Chad Chandler

One of the reasons my no-knead bread recipe is so successful is the pot it’s baked in. The heavy cast iron traps heat and moisture like an old-world brick oven, causing the bread to develop great texture and a hard crust. To create the perfect baking environment, the pot must be preheated in a 425-475° oven for about a half hour. For whatever reason (fashion, I presume), all the manufacturers of dutch ovens seem to be mimicking Le Ceuset. And since Le Creuset uses a plastic handle that’s only rated to around 375°, so does everyone else. I removed the cheap, plastic handle and replaced it with a solid bronze drawer knob I had laying around the workshop. You can see it in the background here.

You know what all the ladies say; you’re not a real man until you’ve tricked out your overpriced, cast iron dutch oven. But if you one of those people who cares more about style than substance, you can pony up an additional $14 to Le Creuset for a stainless steel replacement knob that “can withstand any oven temperature.”

Remember how I said I was trying to cook healthier dishes at home? This isn’t one of them.

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The wife made a pink, velveteen rabbit for one of her oldest friends who just had a baby girl.

You can see the assembly process here.

I don’t know of it’s beach fever or just a craving for seafood, but we decided to make a big pot of seafood gumbo for our Memorial Day weekend staycation.

I’ve only made gumbo a few times. Making the roux is pain in the ass and the shrimp, fish and sausage aren’t cheap. So when I do get the itch to make it, I make a lot and freeze the leftovers.

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I ran across some turkey tenderloins at the store the other day. I’ve been burned out on bland chicken for a while now, so I thought I’d give a new twist to my old chicken cutlet recipe. I know the name of this dish sounds complicated, but it’s really easy to cook.

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This time of year, hard, sweet, green tomatoes are available at the market. I’ve blogged them before, so I usually don’t post the recipe anymore. This time we experimented with a new breading and a new sauce.

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Most people aren’t familiar with bulgur, but it’s just cracked wheat. Think of it as a cheaper and puffier version of cous cous. It’s probably the easiest grain in the world to cook. All you do is measure one part bulgur into a bowl, add about two parts hot liquid, and cover. After 15-20 minutes, it’s done.

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We have an oregano plant in the garden that’s getting a little out of hand, so I decided to make some oregano pesto. Nothing goes better with oregano pesto than lamb.

For whatever reason, people get intimidated by roasted rack of lamb. They envision a Passover/Easter feast with mint jelly and overly-complicated, old-world side dishes. It doesn’t have to be that way. Rack of lamb is just the ovine equivalent of the pork chop. Who’s intimidated by pork chops?

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Sautéed spinach is one of the best side dishes you can make. It’s nutritious, it’s easy to cook, it tastes great, and it goes with everything. I always keep one or two boxes of frozen spinach in the freezer, but it’s not very versatile. Whenever I see a good deal on fresh spinach (especially baby spinach leaves that don’t need to be trimmed), I buy it. They were selling big bags of spinach at the market for a couple of bucks this weekend, so I bought one. I should have bought two. We served it with some very ripe roma tomatoes and some grilled amberjack.

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On our block, all of the addresses are painted on the curbs next to the driveway. They’re very faded and it’s almost impossible to discern the street number while you’re moving in your car. Who looks at the curb anyway? Even if someone down the block has noticeable numbers you could use as a benchmark, the randomness of the double-lots would throw you off every time. Whenever we’re having friends over or something is being delivered, we have to tell everyone to look for a green porch swing. I decided to finally make an address marker that would be impossible to miss.

I wanted it to be in the fashion of some of the wrought-iron plaques that some neighbors have, but I wanted to use some of the scrap pine that’s laying around my garage.

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