Monthly Archives: August 2010

Patience with Pie

Making a pecan pie can be a trying experience. Continue reading

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Filed under Miscellaneous, The Ocular Omnivore

The Problem with Restaurant Criticism

Restaurant criticism leaves a bad taste in my mouth.  Continue reading

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Filed under Miscellaneous, Theory and Criticism

The Proof Is Not in the Pudding: Husk-On Corn with Basil Honey Butter

Overambitious plans make for half-baked dinners. As a kid in the kitchen, I plotted baroque feasts that required hours of labor. Nearly 20 now, I finally understand economy of effort. Last Thursday, I avoided culinary disaster by accepting simplicity as the solution to an unapproachable recipe.

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Big Changes For The College Critic

As another school year rapidly approaches, big changes are coming to The College Critic. For example, I’ll have substantially less time to cook, but I’ll also be back on the New York restaurant beat. With new spots sprouting up all over Morningside Heights and Harlem, the next few months will prove. . .interesting, if not exhilarating and downright combative. But besides the annual evolutions of my personal culinary life, The College Critic will be adopting a new format for a new year. We’re going big. We’re going national.

Employing around a dozen correspondents at campuses across the country, The College Critic will be providing information on the restaurants, stores, dishes, and drinks that make your college campus tick. Every week, we’ll offer new restaurant reviews, interviews, and testimonials from college students. From Duke to Princeton, Washington University to Wellesley, The College Critic is coming to a college near you. Never dine without info again.

Maybe you’re the expert on your college dining scene. You’re the go-to-guy (or gal) on cafeteria deals, cheap eats, and  parent appropriate dinner choices. Or maybe you happen to have something to say about food on your campus, in your college town, or in your big city. Contributing to The College Critic is easy: simply email us at thecollegecritic@gmail.com. Required time and effort: minimal. Contribution to your college community: questionable, but probably significant. Best of all, we already reach a national and international audience, so this is a chance to get your voice heard. Love the Burger King up the block because they always give you an extra patty? Think the best fine dining restaurant in American is up the street from UC Berkeley?  Let us, your friends, and thousands of other college students know.

The College Critic is about to make a major mark on campus dining; no longer must we stand by and accept mediocre food, waste money on overpriced cafés, or suffer another poorly prepared coffee. Join us and the other college critics. Because there’s not just dorm food anymore.

-The College Critic(s)

thecollegecritic@gmail.com

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Filed under College Life, Meta, Miscellaneous

Taking a Whisk

A few days ago my Mom requested a chocolate pie for her birthday. I had only ever baked fruit pies before, so I felt apprehensive about making the filling, a pudding or custard. Since my Mom only has her birthday once a year, I decided to tackle this daunting task, and bake that chocolate pie. I found a recipe and made the crust first. The recipe called for a graham cracker crust, and following the recipe, the crust turned out swimmingly. I crushed the graham crackers, mixed in the dry ingredients and moistened the mixture with melted butter. I felt like a champion, especially after the crust issues with some of my fruit pies.

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Pulled Chicken Chili

Cooking chili requires restraint. Although a culture of “chiliheads” exists, a group of heat enthusiasts with a serious capsaicin fetish, most Americans prefer balance between peppery fire, salt, and acid. In typical Midwestern style concoctions, tomatoes and ground beef help mute requisite chili powder and hot sauce additions. Indeed, Steak ‘n Shake’s maroon version tastes more like stew than spice, a paradigmatic representation of the Missouri preference for meat over heat. Even in St. Louis barbecue, sauces tend towards sweet rather than spicy, allowing the protein’s character to soliloquize uninterrupted. Therefore, chili cookoffs at home involve a game of spice roulette: how much seasoning to add to bring the dish just to the border of acceptable piquancy?

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My Brunch with Braunschweiger

The term “mystery meat” evokes traumatic images of cafeteria meat loaf and sausages with bizarre textures. Yet, I do happen to enjoy one specific mystery meat: braunschweiger. This spreadable meat product primarily consists of liver (pork, calf, veal, beef, etc.) and pork jowl. As a result, I never can be absolutely sure what I am eating. Despite this product’s dubious composition, I find myself wanting to eat more, especially on a sandwich.

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Filed under Dining Suggestions, Miscellaneous, Restaurants, The Ocular Omnivore