Overview of a Juice Cleanse

Overview of a Juice Cleanse

Photo Via Grass Roots Juicery

Chlorophyll is vile...

For those who follow Tipped on Twitter, you’ll know that last week I started a three day juice cleanse. This isn’t normally something I would do, but I’ve been more aware of these food trends recently and have even gone as far as to give up gluten for two weeks. In the past I went vegetarian for a week to prove a point to a friend, but this was child’s play in comparison to going gluten-free or attempting an all juice cleanse. I’ve heard of staggering health and mental benefits accompanying many of these extreme diets and cleanses, but my desire mainly stemmed from curiosity. These juice cleanses are becoming insanely popular, and it was time to see what all the hype was about.

I got my cleanse from a juice bar down the street, Grass Roots Juicery, but this post wont double as a review for them, just my cleanse experience in general. We did their Peaceful Warrior cleanse—basically not meant for beginners or hardcore juicers, somewhere right in the middle. It is meant to, “Find inner peace while still kicking butt. Designed for more experienced cleansers who take good care of themselves, and work-out regularly. It is perfect for those who would like a cleanse that will keep up with a high-energy life style.”

The cleanse itself consists of six 16oz juices with one morning shot of chlorophyll. The juices are coconut water, Grass Roots (Kale, apple, spinach, cucumber, celery, romaine, parsley, lemon, and probably more), Just Beet It (Beet, ginger, apple, carrot, lemon, wheat grass), coconut milk, another Grass Roots, and almond milk. The basics of the cleanse are to spread the juices across the day and try to stay busy so you don’t think about food too much. This actually worked pretty well for me, spreading the seven drinks over 12 hours, one every two hours. If the juices do their job, they’re supposed to regulate your blood sugar so you don’t feel hungry. The juices are also supposed to cleanse your body, make you more aware and mentally clear, and just generally give you an energized and positive feel, but the jury is out on that… more to come later.

Update: Sous-Vide Brisket

Update: Sous-Vide Brisket

Photo Via TastyMemoir

Check out my previous post on sous-vide brisket here.

As far as the update goes, I made another brisket a few weekends ago. I kept the recipe exactly the same but changed a few important things:

1. Add a stick of butter to every 2 pound serving of brisket. Put the butter right in your Ziploc bag with your bacon--the extra fat is completely necessary. 
2. Lower the cooking temperature to 141 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for 48 hours. I cooked mine for 36, and it needed a little more time. Still brine as before, but this time you'll get a much more tender and gelatinous piece of meat. 

I didn't take any pictures, but look up any generic BBQ picture from Google and you'll see what I saw. What is so remakable to me is how I completely ignored Thomas Keller's method for cooking brisket sous-vide... he cooks at 145 Fahrenheit for 48 hours. From now on, I'll just default to anything he's already done and save myself the trouble. Keller is king. Let it be known, this is the be-all end-all recipe for sous-vide brisket... now let us never speak of this again.

- Adam from Tipped Mixology 

Quickfire Review: Walter Foods

Quickfire Review: Walter Foods

These quickfire reviews are really growing on me...

They're just nice and easy to write up, and I think it's great to expand on restaurants that I wouldn't normally commit a full review to. I eat out a lot, as I'm sure every reader knows at this point, but sometimes it's tough to devote a few hours of writing and proofreading to a night out that wasn't for a special occasion or at a specifically highly touted restaurant. Many of the places I eat deserve praise for different reasons, here's where they'll get it.

Walter Foods, Williamsburg chapter, was the meeting point for me and Patrick on Halloween for some business talk, catching up, and much needed great food. I'd say Walter Foods takes pub fare and dresses it up for a cocktail lounge. The menu offers bar snacks like deviled eggs and buffalo wings, but also items like tuna tartare and a French dip made with filet mignon. They marry these menu items together very well by dressing up common pub items for instance, the buffalo lollipops which used a very classic French technique to make each buffalo wing a little bite sized piece with the bone sticking out like the stick--they were very good. We also got the iceberg wedge salad with blue cheese and bacon, the aforementioned French dip, and the fried chicken. Everything was great, right down to the old fashioned that was done up for me the proper way... their cocktails were very classic and all looked great.

Photo Via Kim G. on Yelp

So what's the take on Walter Foods? I'll be heading back soon, I'm sure. If it was closer to me, I could easily see it becoming a staple. If you live close by, make a point of going here for brunch, lunch, dinner, or just to grab an amazing cocktail. 

- Adam from Tipped Mixology

Quickfire Review: Pulino's

Quickfire Review: Pulino's 

Quickfire weekend review

Hey everyone. This weekend I ate at Pulino's, a newish Nolita pizza staple right in my old neighborhood. Pulino's opened right as I was leaving my first NYC apartment, so I never got a chance to eat there. I have to admit, I was drawn when I learned that Food Network's Nate Appleman cheffed there, but he's long gone. I don't know how much of Nate is still in the food, but whoever has a hand in the menu, it's good. Opened by Keith McNally, owner and restaurateur of such restaurants as Balthazar and Pravda in the same neighborhood, Pulino's offers very respectable thin crust pizza with fresh, tasty toppings and fells a lot like his other restaurants. 

We had the burrata pizza which had a simple and fantastic crust with a marinara sauce that stole the show. We also had the braised duck 'gnocchi' which fit the weather with a rich and powerful wine sauce over a polenta cake... not quite gnocchi. We got a hot fudge Sunday dessert only because it came with Amarena cherries, which are heaven sent. The vanilla gelato, whether it was homemade or not, was great as well. Overall, the place was just right; we will be going back.

On a side note, go see All is Lost with Robert Redford... an absolutely great movie that might go unnoticed. 

- Adam from Tipped Mixology

Fall is Here -- Spiced Apple Cider

Fall is Here -- Spiced Apple Cider

This is my 'Oh shit, how long has it been since I've posted?' post

Yeah, I know. It's been a while... we've been very busy over here! We're going to have some exciting news in the next couple of weeks, but until then I'll get back to some quick posts. As we all felt this morning in the Northeast, fall is finally here. This is easily my favorite time of year--pumpkin everything, squash is in season, the leaves are changing, giving us their amazing smell and crunch, and spiced apple cider. I remember calling it spiced apple spiders when I was a kid and had a speech impediment... but let's move on to a super easy recipe! 

If you can find it you can get a bag of mulling spice, but don't go out of your way looking for it. Definitely don't as someone that works at the supermarket where the mulling spice is because they will look at you like you have multiple heads... it seems no one knows what this stuff is actually called. Mulling spice consists of cinnamon, dried orange peel, clove, allspice, and star anise, and the ratio usually changes from company-to-company. Don't make the same mistake I did this past weekend and use a bag of mulling spice with the wrong ratio-- our spiced cider was too licoricey. Yes, skip the pre-made stuff, grab some cheese cloth, cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice, an orange, and a two liter bottle of fresh apple cider, hopefully fresh-pressed without preservatives. 

Mulling spice. Photo Via http://www.chadotea.com

Recipe:

• 2 liters of apple cider, fresh-pressed
• 3 cinnamon sticks, medium size
• 5 cloves, whole
• 5 allspice berries, whole
• 2 large orange peel segments
• Cheese cloth

You'll want to take all your dry spices and the orange peel and tie them in the cheese cloth like a homemade tea bag. Just take a peeler and peel the orange from top to bottom without any of the white rind--this is the easiest way to get the peel. Put your apple cider in a large pot, add the cheese cloth sachet, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer for about five minutes, and serve. The longer you let the cider simmer, the more spice will get added, but it will never be overwhelmingly spicy and this ratio is perfect--notice I don't add any star anise, I'm not a huge fan. Keep the pot simmering for hours and your apartment/home will smell like all the best parts of fall.

Bonus time! Enjoy your newly made spiced apple cider in a mug with a shot or two of bourbon--it's the best alcohol to add. Drink it up hot for an amazing break from raking leaves. If you let the cider cool, don't throw it out; put it over ice with bourbon, sweet vermouth, and bitters for a wonderful fall Manhattan on the rocks. Not sure what bourbon to use? Get Bulleit (pronounced bullet)... it's easily the best for these cocktails. Enjoy!

- Adam from Tipped Mixology

Restaurant Review: Primo

Restaurant Review: Primo

Coming Soon: Michelin Guide, Maine

I sat on this review for a couple of days to collect my thoughts after eating one of the best meals of my life. I keep flipping through the incognito pictures I snapped throughout the dinner, except the one where my flash went off as I panicked and pocketed my phone while glancing around the dining room to see how many diners I pissed off with my embarrassing mistake—I don’t think anyone cared. I’m not faced with the same dilemma I was faced with after eating my birthday dinner at Le Bernadin: how do I write a review of something that is as close to perfect as I have experienced thus far in my life? I scrapped my review of Le Bernadin because I didn’t think I could do it justice… I kept getting stuck on the first paragraph where I tried to justify why some restaurants should get a fourth Michelin star. I think I have more to say about Primo. Primo isn’t quite the dining juggernaut that Le Bernadin is; it’s unassuming, casual, hidden, and every bit as good as Le Bernadin, but for completely different reasons. More so, I feel like everything has been said about Le Bernadin; We all know they’re leaders in the world of sustainability, boast a menu of the best fish dishes you’ll experience in your life, and we all know the accolades of Eric Ripert, and even his fish prep chef à la an episode of No Reservations. Everyone knows Le Bernadin is amazing, and I insist you eat there if you appreciate food and haven’t yet, but not everyone knows about Primo. I may still be able to introduce a few to some amazing things happening in a cozy converted Victorian getaway.

For those of you who saw my recent Instagram, I was in Maine with my girlfriend this past weekend celebrating our one year anniversary. Primo is located in Rockland, Maine, about an hour and a half drive along the coast from Portland. It’s a hike; my first trip to Maine was totally formulated around a meal at Primo. Saying it’s worth it is a complete understatement. Primo deserves all the accolades they’ve received and more. Melissa Kelly is a genius, admirable for her approach to farm-to-table cooking, and I don’t hesitate to say that Primo is the best restaurant in Maine—possibly the best restaurant in the Northeastern United States excluding New York City. I don’t think I’m just taking a leap for the purpose of this review, I really mean it. Let me get into things and see if I can do that statement justice:

The Almost Perfect Sous-Vide Brisket

Photo Via http://www.newyorkjets.com

The Almost Perfect Sous-Vide Brisket

Not quite the final say on sous-vide brisket, but definitely a step in the right direction for all technological foodies out there!

Okay, what do I mean by this statement? A quick search of sous vide brisket on your preferred search engine will yield a ton of results from foodie blogs, magazine articles, and sous-vide forums all asking the same question: how do I cook my brisket sous-vide? What's frustrating for a home chef trying their hand at sous-vide cooking is the sheer number of different responses to this question all claiming to have the correct answer and most of which are dead wrong. A little background:

Sous-vide cooking, for those of you who don't know, is a style of cooking where the product is cooked using an immersion circulator, which is a piece of equipment that regulates liquid to a very specific temperature, so that the product is cooked thoroughly to the same consistent temperature. This means a piece of meat, for example, a strip steak, would be poached in this circulating water bath at an exact temperature, let's say 135 degrees f, or perfect medium rare, so the entire piece of meat is exactly medium rare. This may sound gross to a lot of people... why would I want a poached piece of meat? Well, the goal here is to have perfect medium rare all the way through instead of just a small sweet-spot in the middle which is what usually happens during conventional cooking methods. The outside of the meat would then be seared or grilled super hot to replicate how a normal piece of meat would look, and the finished product is just amazing. If you ever look to try your hand at sous-vide cooking and don't want to break the bank, go pre-order the Sansaire for $199 and I'll recommend a really easy recipe at the end of this post. 

The SousVide cooker from PolyScience is the professional version and runs a very steep price.

Brisket is a tough piece of meat with a lot of connective tissue. It's best cooked either brined and baked like corned beef, cooked low and slow on a smoker or BBQ rig for days, or braised for a couple of hours. The goal with a piece of meat like brisket is to let the collagen, elastin, and other connective tissues holding the protein together turn into gelatin so the meat stays juicy and tender. This can either be done above 180 degrees f  when collagen and elastin break down with heat, or by pounding the shit out of the meat. Beating your meat is always an option, but won't yield a traditional looking brisket, and heating the meat to 180 f is also an issue because the meat dries out. It's all about temperature and time to yield a juicy piece of meat with all of the connective tissue broken into gelatin... it's not so easy. I personally have failed at brisket every time I've ever cooked it, until now. Here's how I did it, and what I would do differently next time:

Tipped Tailgate

Tipped Tailgate

For those of you who may not know or don't follow Tipped on Twitter... which you should, I am a big football fan. Huge. I used to play football until a career ending injury in High School, and was one play away from continuing to play into college. Instead, I managed Ithaca College to two back-to-back playoff appearances--the IC Bombers are still looking to get back to their winning ways since I left, and I'm not trying to be cocky by saying that. 

When it comes to football, I look at the game from many different eyes: the eyes of a player foremost, but also the eyes of a manager, trainer, administrator, coach, and fan. I've done it all in some way, shape, or form. I'm back in my comfort zone now that football is starting back up again... the NFL starts tonight in fact! While I will be watching the game, my real season doesn't begin until Sunday when the New York Jets, who I am a season ticket holder with, take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Patrick and I will be there representing Tipped Mixology with a two-man tailgate. A post will follow shortly afterwards about the joys of tailgating and what goes into preparing for game day. Let's go Jets!

-Adam from Tipped Mixology

Housewarming

I had a little get together with friends and family this past weekend... here are the ups, and the downs. 

Up: About 4 dozen great chicken lollipops baked off in the oven like fried chicken. 

Down: Tried to make a balsamic gastrique to drizzle over some roasted figs, but forgot about it and walked back inside my apartment to a lovely plume of black smoke and a crusty All Clad. 

Up: Pickled beets with ginger and cinnamon.

Down: I had to clean up some vomit... I'll spare you all.

Up: Friend's, family, and great company.

Down: Trek was barking at everyone, but finally seemed to simmer down towards the end of the party... he is still a puppy after all, just a very big one. 

Up: House plants as gifts including a brand new money tree.

Up: Finally started watching Breaking Bad... wish me luck.

Up: Learning how to saber a champagne bottle. 

All-in-all, a wonderful party and a great weekend. More to come soon!

- Adam from Tipped Mixology

Chicken Galantine and Ballotine

Chicken Galantine and Ballotine

Classic as classic can get

Chicken Galantine or Ballotine are classic French dishes which I believe are so classic they're almost dead. I graduated with a diploma in classic culinary arts from the French Culinary Institute, and the only two people I ever saw attempt something like this were Master Chefs; I'm talking Jacques Pépin, Alain Sailhac, André Soltner, and the like. These are the heavy hitters, the old and the knowledgeable, the last remaining greats. I held the bathroom door open for Jacques Pépin once during my time at the FCI... that's a cherished memory. These guys paved the way for current star chefs, Michelin star winners, James Beard award winners, and all chefs alike in one way, shape, or form. If quartering a duck in under 15 seconds is something that gives you butterflies, then these are your guys. 

I've always wanted to learn how to properly debone poultry or fowl--it was never taught to me. When I stumbled across an old demo starring a much younger Jacques Pépin, I knew it was time to try my hand at a lost art. Here's the video, and my results.

If you want to do this as badly as I did and need a recipe, here's what I did, and it was amazing!

Start off by sauteing a container of spinach and drain off the excess liquid. Make two servings of mushroom duxelles, as mention in my en papillote review, and combine together. This is the stuffing for the chicken. Once the chicken is deboned and trussed back together, rub it with olive oil or butter, and salt all the way around. Bake on 415 F for around an hour depending on the size of the chicken... you want to pull it once the internal temperature hits 155 F. Grab some really nice vine-ripe or grape tomatoes, drizzle with olive oil and salt, and put them in the oven once the chicken is out. Just turn off the oven, and let the residual heat cook them for 10-15 minutes while the chicken sits. They'll crack slightly, but stay whole leaving the inside full of flavor and juice. 

If you want to make a sauce, make a white roux with 1 tbs of melted butter and flour, and add a splash of red or white wine. Cook until thick and add chicken stock until the right consistency is reached. Add some chopped parsley, salt, and pepper, mount with a pad of cold butter, and there's your sauce!

The hardest part about this recipe is deboning the chicken... I had to disinfect my laptop because I kept hitting the space bar to pause the video so many times. I'll tell you now, it's worth it to learn. If it's something you feel up to, good luck!

- Adam from Tipped Mixology