August 2009 Archives

Can you freeze beer? Can fungus be made to taste like Deep South pulled pork? These were just a few of the tricky chemistry questions Hot Knives tackled this month in throwing our first installment of a roving kitchen we call Gnosh Pit.

The answer? An unequivocal, obviously inebriated "Fuck yes."

For two Sundays we took over the back patio of the Verdugo bar. We transformed the grill cubicle that's built into the back fence into our short-order window serving vegan Banh mi sandwiches, BBQ mushroom buns, fresh hand-cut potato chips, kimchi coleslaw and Lmbic popsicles. We told people to bring board games and sunscreen. We made a 6-hour playlist of summer songs.

And people showed up! Maybe too many people the second week... We got a few bummed out dudes and some old codgers who flipped out when we ran out of food earlier than expected. (All apologies, bros). But all in all, by most accounts, a great success. The food came out just right. The sun came out. The beer list was outrageous.

So how do you freeze beer? How to 'pull' shrooms? It's easy sauce. If you showed up late last Sunday and missed the Pit. Here's your chance to gnosh in your kitchen...

1 bottle Lambic (750 ml)
1/2 cup grape juice
12 popsicle molds

1. Reduce your Lambic just slightly, to kill carbonation: Empty the Lambic into a large soup pot, making sure to milk of every last sud, and put the pot on medium heat until the beer hits a foamy boil. Stir and turn off heat. Let the beer cool and foam subside, about 20-30 minutes. (Not sure why this helps, but we conducted experiments, and it does).

2. Add the grape juice and stir well.

3. Using a measuring cup or other vessel with a spout, pour the mixture into your popsicle molds. Transfer to the freeze and let sit for at least 14-16 hours.

4. To remove, gently warm for one minute with your hand or dip each mold in room temp water, to prevent from cracking.

Photo and good vibes thanks to Quarrygirl.com

2 cups commercial BBQ sauce
1 cup "Frank's Red Hot" hot sauce
1 cup IPA (we used Anderson Valley)

1 lbs. oyster mushrooms
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. sea salt
Pinch of fresh black pepper
1 tsp. fresh black pepper
2 white onions
hamburger buns

1. Start by making an easy cheater's BBQ sauce: Choose your favorite commercial sauce (something without corn syrup or too much sugar, please) and throw it in a sauce pot. Dilute it with vinegary hot sauce (we like Frank's) so that its one-part hot sauce, two parts BBQ sauce. Top it off with a cup of pale ale, stir, and bring it to a bubble on high heat and then remove. Done.

2. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Rip the oyster mushrooms into manageable thin strips. (Think pulled pork.) Place on a sheet pan and toss well with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 10-12 minutes, or until mushrooms deflate and outer ones are crisped and brown. Remove and let sit.

3. In a skillet or cast iron, caramelize the onions. Slice into thin half-moons. (Leave a tablespoon or so raw onion for garnish.) Add to an already hot pan with 1 Tbs. olive oil and stir well, letting brown. Remove.

4. In a bowl, combine mushrooms and onion. Add sauce and toss.

5. Gently warm the buns. Serve with a garnish of white onion.

Beverage: Lagunitas' Little Sumthin' Sunthin'
Soundtrack: Sparklehorse's "Knives of Summertime"

Type Silver Bullet into your favorite search engine and (awesomely enough) it takes more than a few pages of vibrators, monster fighting advice, and Healthcare freak-outs to get to the Coors website.

While the old dogs at Bubble and Fizz somehow haven't managed to bend the internet to capitalize on perhaps the catchiest of beer nicknames, they have created a pretty sweet can. Innovation of the country's biggest baddest low calorie macro-brew has taken to the certification of optimal drinking temperature--something to keep in mind when consuming such specific ale--via a color changing can.

While the idea of can design based on a reverse facsimile of our favorite tee shirt from yesteryear; it seems pretty silly to reinvent the wheel for such a square beer.

The Can Revolution bears better fruits closer to the coast. Uncommon Brewers, based in Santa Cruz, does not have cans that change color when cold, and while their can design is pretty slick, what's inside is the point of sale.

Siamese Twin Ale, a current guzzling fave, coalesces the Belgian tradition of brewing with spices and the base elements of an awesome Thai curry by adding kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass to the wort while brewing. The sweeter flavors of a high alcohol ale, bolstered by the hints of citrus and spice result in a dubbel unlike any other we've ever tasted. Whatever weight this beer actually has gives way quickly to brevity and buoyancy; both dangerous characteristics for a 16 oz can of 8.5%.

As the can claims, this beer is both unpasteurized and unfiltered, which explains its cellaring potential (aged cans?!) as well as the strange sedimet that slicks your glass after the last sips. There is a definitive taste of culture (bacterial) that develops as the beer warms from frigid to tepid, refreshing to funky.

With beers like this there can be no truncation of temperature, no optimal phase where color coded neo-aluminium determines drinking. Open it ice cold, and let it mature in your glass if you can't stand to let it sit for half a year.

This Silver Bullet might not get you off or solve the healthcare problem, but it just might help you fight some monsters.

Dairy Pairy: Caruchon--a brine washed brick of ewe's milk.
Soundtrack: Fela Kuti's "Gentleman"

Somehow, the summer sun set and a blanket of glittery stars replaced it while we attentively stirred this risotto on the camp stove, and we don't think we missed a thing. Just look at that great glob!

Now we know its asking a lot to of people to be packing the way we do for a 3-day camping trip. But there's no excuse on this dish people. It's easy, compact vegetable grub that can be made on a decent Coleman stove (like we did) or just straight on top of any standard issue campsite fire pit (which is how we reheated to eat the next morning).

Okay, we did make our own vegetable stock out of purple cabbage, onions and pepper tops. But that was actually a mistake. We forgot to pack the vegetable bullion.

9 cups water
4 Tbs. vegetable bullion
2 Tbs. olive oil
3 summer squash (or zucchini)
2 red peppers
1 white onion
4 cloves garlic
1 jalapeño
3 cups Arborio rice

1. Pack two large soup pots: you need them for this dish.

2. In one pot make your broth, by setting it on your fire source, whether it's the camp fire or a stove. Bring it near a boil and add the veggie boullion. Stir well until it dissolves.

3. Chop your squash, onion and red peppers into rough chunks and set aside. Toss the peel or inedible tip of each veggie into the stockpot rather than discarding. Let broth simmer for 10 minutes or more.

4. Put your other pot on medium heat. Add oil and chopped veggies. Chop your garlic and jalapeño and add that too, stirring for several minutes until squash cooks down and browns slightly.

5. Now pour in the Arborio rice and toast with the veggies for about a minute, still stirring. Using a big spoon, measuring cup or ladle, add about 3 cups of broth and let cook down for several minutes, stirring every 30 seconds or so.

6. Once most of the liquid is gone, start a process of adding 1/4 cup of liquid and stirring attentively while it cooks off until you've added most of the broth or the risotto has fluffed (i.e. the rice is soft but not goo). Once the rice seems super sticky and fully cooked, add another 2 Tbs. of olive oil and any other spices you've managed to pack.

7. Optional: add grated cheese. If you lugged a cooler with goat's milk gouda on your camping trip, this is when to add the cheese. If not, cook it an extra minute or two so it is as goopy as possible.

8. Crank The Bowie.

Beverage: De Glazen Toren Jan De Lichte
Soundtrack: David Bowie's "The Prettiest Star"

Yeah. Pine needle juice. And with a little rye whisky... a pine sap-arac.

On our recent U.S. National Forest expedition, Hot Knives broke a Golden Rule of camping and broke off a piece of nature to take with us. Relax, it was to make an emerald beverage. And we only snagged a small handful of the stuff.

Infused ever so faintly into a tart lemon-lime juice that's more Whiskey Sour mix than lemonade, this uses the bitter medicinal notes of pine to make the whisky that much sweeter. The stuff's fine hand-mixed and room temp if you're still out in the pines. Or if you bring the loot back home, blended is better. Convenience.

2 limes
1 lemon
5 cups water
¼ quarter cup agave nectar
a handful of pine needles (about 30-40 needles)

1. Obtain one frond, or about a handful, of fresh pine needles fresh off the tree. Clean them: Make sure any dirt or pollen is wiped or washed off, cut off the nubby base of the pine frond. Using a sharp knife, cut off the lower quarter of each pine needle, like you would asparagus.

2. Store fresh pine needles submerged in water in a container with a lid (they stay good in the fridge for at least a week.

3. Roll the limes and lemonades on the counter with assertive hands. Slice the limes and lemon in half. Now juice 'em whichever way you can: you want about 1 cup of juice.

4. Combine the water and lemon-lime juice in a blender (or a tall container that can accommodate a handheld mixer). Add agave syrup while pulsing or blending. Taste after mixing for about 30 seconds. If its still too tart to your liking (we are sour) add another couple tablespoon of agave, honey or sugar.

5. Pick out the 30-40 best looking pine needles from the bunch, ones that are pure green with no brown, and let sit on the bottom of a sealable jar. Add the blended limeade and let chill for at least 3 hours.

6. Serve blended with 2/3 cup rye whisky, or stirred with a single shot.

We cut our teeth on summer barbecues, so we are super-psyched to make this announcement: For the next two Sundays, Hot Knives will be hosting a vegan BBQ at Verdugo bar in Glassell Park...

Vegan BBQ on Sunday Aug. 9 and Sunday Aug. 16 from 2 -7 p.m.

...That's right, short of pouring your drink, we will be calling the shots -- manning the stereo, pairing your sammich with a brewski, beating you in checkers, flippin' your seitan (that's not a euphemism). Beside it being our favorite bar right now purely for the beer list, Verdugo recently doubled their patio picnic table seating making it the perfect summer beer garden.

So, what's on the grill? Think drippy, vinegar-spiked barbecue "pulled pork" and handmade curry seitan bahn mi, served with fresh-cut chips, seeded coleslaw and beer popsicles. But you're gonna have to hang out to learn more.

Come thirsty, bring friends, pack a board game. Hope you like grunge. Cash only. See you in the gnosh pit!

Whether its desert glamour camping or subzero firewood gathering, we come prepared. Neither of us made Eagle Scout or anything, we just love to plan. Also, we like to eat a fat-ass variety of complex carbs in the wilderness.

So, on a recent three-day camping trip to Los Padres National Forest -- a massive pine sprawl east of Santa Barbara, and 6,500 feet up -- Hot Knives put some thought to our humble, nerdy tips for proper campfire cooking. Put simply: sturdy vegetables, beans n' franks, and sealable containers. If you're looking for more detail, we made some lists below.

This time out, we fixed 4 or 5 real meals in between hanging with rattlers and scoping a watering hole. Sourdough blueberry griddle cakes and flame-grilled bran muffins ruled mornings with cowboy coffee. Hardy veggies like kale, sweet corn and summer squash traveled well. A 2-pound bag of Jalapeños went along way. We used both the cast iron on the campfire - especially awesome for the pancakes - and a propane camp stove for more delicate stews - summer veg risotto and chile. We even harnessned the sun for a snack (more on that, and full recipes, soon.)

As for packing...We like to have oversized storage bins that we can throw the dinner mess in once the sun sets and the booze kicks in. Next in importance is, of course, knives and a camp stove cooking kit. Also, plenty of towels please. The list goes on. It was only when one of our camping companions scoffed at the spice jar of cumin and fennel seeds we were unloading that we realized we might be over-packers. We still don't think so. Though overeaters is a different story altogether.

Supplies

• Storage crates with sealable lids


• Clean kitchen towels


• Knives


• Cutting boards


• Plates and utensils


• mugs and cups


• Water (2 gallons for cooking and cleaning)


• Cooler with ice (should fit 4-5 gallons)


• Soup pot




• Sauce pot


• Mixing bowls


• Tupperware


• Cast iron


• Wooden spoon


• Garbage bags


• Coffee percolator

Staples

• Veggie hot dogs


• Jalapeños


• Watermelon


• Pinto beans


• Canned tomatoes


• Kale


• Squash


• Potatoes


• Garlic


• Beurre Échiré

• Onions


• Crusty French bread


• Olive oil


• Lemons


• Limes


• Beer


• Sourdough start


• Scotch


• Bourbon


• Tequila


• Chips in a bag with foil coating inside

Can people think of anything we're missing? Stuff you would bring? And does anyone know where we're going with that last staple on the list?