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In the Vernacular
The cooking show that I recorded two weeks ago with Vern Lindsey is now airing on Charter Main Street. After the taping, I suggested that they post the show on YouTube for the benefit of those who live in neighborhoods not served by Charter, myself included. The producers sent me a data disc with the video files and told me to go ahead and put it online.
Know What I Mean?
Vern Lindsay invited me to be a guest on his cooking show about a year ago. Then his kitchen flooded and everything was put on hold while it was rebuilt. We finally taped the show on Thursday. Once it is edited, it will appear on the Charter Main Street channel.
I could choose to cook anything I wanted. Of the things I like to cook, I thought chili and BBQ would take too long. Omelettes would be ideal. Vern said to buy whatever groceries I needed and he would reimburse me. With that caveat, I decided to kick things up a notch with a pound of Benton’s Bacon.
The famous bacon was in short supply when I stopped in at the Strawberry Fields Market on my way to Vern’s house. I bought the last pound they had. Robin Wheeler told me that demand was exceeding supply and that it might be a while before she got more in stock. You can’t rush the dry-curing and smoking process.
Once the taping started, I showed Vern how to bake the bacon. I first tried and liked the method after my field trip to Benton’s in March. Then I cooked some omelettes, describing how each person could customize the ingredients. The choice of sauce and cheese determined if it was a BBQ, Italian or Mexican omelette.
At the end of the show, Vern made a baked French toast with a maple and raspberry sauce on top, using fresh bread from the Old Mill Bread Company. It made my sweet tooth happy.
Choc Boar
The Knoxville Zoo and the March of Dimes have annual restaurant-sampling events that I loved attending in the past. Naturally I was thrilled to be invited to the Cityview Top Chefs of Knoxville event on Saturday, which was a benefit for East Tennessee Children’s Hospital’s Camp Cure.
Former “Hell’s Kitchen” contestant Carol Scott of Bravo Cucina Italiana was one of the chefs donating her time and food. Even if I didn’t know her from “Dancing with the Knoxville Stars,” I would have thought her shrimp dish was one of the best entrees in the competition. We each received a ballot to rate the food, which meant deciding which offerings were great and which were extra great.
It was interesting that Rose Mortuary was listed as one of the sponsors. It’s not like they were handing out business cards or anything. I think they were just supporting another worthwhile cause in the community. Last December they sponsored a screening of “White Christmas.”
I recognized Denae D’Arcy of WATE. I introduced myself and she introduced me to her friend Melissa Etezadi of WYMT in Hazard, Kentucky. Before I got out my camera and while I was still making a bee line for the food, I saw Jill McNeal. She introduced me to her husband. He will be forever known as Lucky Prentice Elliott. I lost them in the crowd and couldn’t find them later when I was on my photo safari.
I wonder if the event will soon outgrow the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. It was a bit of a challenge to get through the crush of foodies to all the chefs’ tables set up around the Rotunda. After a while, my wife and I noticed that the hall was thinning out. We followed the signs to the Urban Playground room where former Tennessee Vol and Minnesota Viking Tim Irwin was singing and playing with his band, the ChillBillies. Irwin is also known as Judge of the Juvenile Court for Knox County.
As I mentioned earlier, there wasn’t a bad thing on the menu. Everything was terrific. Despite all the deliciousness, one item that was not on the menu stood out like Cinderella’s slipper. I had a list of the entrees and desserts offered by the participating restaurants and there was no mention anywhere of chocolate-covered Benton’s bacon. Yes, chocolate-covered bacon! I can’t stop thinking about how good it was. In fact, I am seriously considering trying to make some, assuming my wife and son want to help. Does anybody know which restaurant put out the extra treat?
E Biscuits
“The Fat Elvis – a/k/a Taking Care of Biscuits” was the grand prize winner at the first International Biscuit Festival on Saturday. In order to win the grand prize, it had to first win its category — and that almost didn’t happen.
I was one of the three judges for the Most Original Biscuit category. The other two judges were Janet Testerman of Knoxville Magazine and Maryann Byrd, the producer/author of “The Rise of the Southern Biscuit.” I felt strongly that the Fat Elvis was the best thing I had eaten all day.
One of the other judges said she could not stop eating an entry called “Flitter Bread.” She liked the taste and texture of it. I argued on behalf of the Fat Elvis because I thought it was more creative than the Flitter Bread, which was essentially a large buttermilk biscuit cooked in a cornbread skillet. I would have ranked the Hawaiian-themed “Big Island Biscuits” in second place but agreed to push them down to third if it meant we could give our category’s first prize to Elvis. After our judging was finished, Erin Donovan of WBIR and Brent Thompson of Knox ivi announced that the overall winner was The Fat Elvis.
“The Fat Elvis – a/k/a Taking Care of Biscuits”
recipe by Kimberly Pack
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- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1½ cups powdered sugar
- 1½ bananas, mashed
- ½ cup honey roasted peanuts, chopped
- ⅓ cup shortening (or ⅓ cup frozen unsalted butter, grated)
- ½ cup buttermilk
Sift first 5 ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Add mashed bananas and chopped peanuts to flour mixture. Cut in the shortening until well combined. Pour in buttermilk until mixture is slightly moistened. Add more if needed. On a floured surface, turn out mixture and gently, careful not to overmix, form into a ball. Then flatten out into a circle about ½ inch in thickness. Using a biscuit cutter of choice, depending on the size preferred, for example a glass, biscuit cutter, etc., dredge through flour and form biscuits. Place biscuits on a Silpat® covered cookie sheet and bake 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown. Number of servings: 10 to 12.
.
Peanut Butter Topping
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- ⅓ cup creamy peanut butter (Jif recommended)
- 1 tbsp skim milk
- ¼ tsp vanilla
Combine ingredients in small bowl. Microwave until soft. Mix until smooth. Serve with biscuits, fried bacon and sliced bananas.
See, Biscuits
The crowds at the first International Biscuit Festival exceeded expectations. The organizers were worried about too few attendees rather than too many. Two months ago, I was the only media person to show up at their press conference. For Saturday’s event, the merchants along “Biscuit Boulevard” were told to prepare 400 samples for a four-hour tasting. No one anticipated that all 400 tickets would sell out within minutes.
My son and I started our day as invited guests at the elegant brunch catered by Blackberry Farm. Each place setting had a copy of the menu, as re-typed below. I meant to ask someone why they didn’t serve the “Singing Brook Cheese and Benton’s Country Ham” but everything else was so good, I couldn’t have eaten another thing anyway.
- Buttermilk Biscuits with Benton’s Smoked Sausage Gravy and Blackberry Farm Jams
- House Made Butter
- Blackberry Farm Field Greens with Herb Vinaigrette
- Singing Brook Cheese and Benton’s Country Ham
- Beignets with Sheep’s Milk Yogurt
- Forever Roasted Pork & Fresh Bacon with Cruze Farm Ramp Grit Custards, Cooked Greens and Smoked Bacon Hollandaise
- Cruze Farm Buttermilk Pie with Vanilla Cream
On my way into the brunch, I spotted Chef Walter Lambert from WVLT. I told him that I had watched his segment about the Biscuit Festival on Thursday. After brunch, I told Allan Benton that my son and I had traveled to his business in Madisonville during spring break. We talked while he walked to the Cruze Farms ice cream trailer to sample some of their wares.
Jam on It
Biscuit lovers from all over are expected to converge on Market Square in Knoxville for the International Biscuit Festival on June 4 and 5. The event is presented by the same folks who have done such a fine job with First Night Knoxville. Organizer John Craig invited me to the official announcement of the schedule of events, which was held Thursday afternoon at the Mast General Store.
I already knew about one of the items on the agenda. Einstein Simplified will perform at The Square Room on Market Square on the evening of Saturday, June 5. I didn’t know until today that we would be opening for comedienne Leanne Morgan, a favorite of mine.
There will be enough going on to keep me at the festival all day, assuming I can arrange my work schedule accordingly. Biscuit Boulevard will offer signature biscuits from a variety of restaurants for a $5 Tasting Ticket. The Biscuit Film Festival will screen a documentary called “The Rise of the Southern Biscuit.” Other highlights include an eating contest, a scavenger hunt, an art competition and a songwriting contest.
Southern Culture on the Skids will be performing on Friday, June 4. That band will always remind me of Susan Olsen, because she is the person who first told me about them. The downtown nature of the event made me think about Susan too. She has been interested in displaying her artwork at another urban food celebration, the What the Fluff Festival in Somerville, Massachusetts
Lighthearted fare like the unconventional Miss Biscuit Competition, a flour sack race and an apron exhibit will appeal to my sense of humor. The festival is also going after foodies as illustrated by the involvement of Benton’s Smoky Mountain Country Hams and Cruze Dairy Farm, instead of more popular brands ending in -field. Allen Benton will be the guest speaker at the VIP Biscuit Breakfast. He will talk about the amazing bacon he sells to five-star restaurants around the country. Mmm… bacon…
When Pigs Fly
One of the best things about Nashville International Airport is the live music that you may encounter as you walk to your gate. I saw a sign for a “melody guy” that confused me because the singer was obviously a woman. It turns out that her name is Melody Guy.
I was at the airport to drop off my son, who is on his Spring break from college. Normally I would let him out of the car in the white zone, which is for loading and unloading only, and drive off. However this time he was traveling with some high-priced bacon. We were almost 100% sure that TSA would have no problem with the breakfast meat but we devised a back-up plan just in case. I would wait by the x-ray machines, ready to accept the pork if the officers rejected it. It all turned out fine and my son and his friends will be enjoying Benton’s bacon for breakfast during his visit.
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