After that, I fired up the stove and tackled Todd Wilbur's recipe for Taco Bell Chicken Quesadillas out of Top Secret Recipes Unlocked. Here's what he writes "Taco Bell takes the fast food quesadilla into new territory with three different cheeses and a creamy jalapeno sauce, all of which you can now cheerfully recreate in the comfort of your warm kitchen."
I was cheerful in my warm kitchen and the recipe was easy, which was a blessing. Creamy jalapeno sauce: mayonnaise stirred together with spices and bottled jalapenos. Chicken: breast meat, grilled or cooked in hot skillet. The three cheeses: cheddar, jack, American. The American cheese really did make the quesadilla taste like something crassly satisfying that you might get at a fast food restaurant. These were great quesadillas.

I was going to drive down the hill and buy a quesadilla from our local Taco Bell to compare, but thought better of it.
Food styling by a drunk person.
In other news, I can't believe I didn't know about the Tournament of Cookbooks. Now I want that Argentinian cookbook, even though Nora Ephron makes it sound absurd. Plus, we have a wheelbarrow.
Tipsy, I found your XX review of Foer's book a refreshing change of pace from the Oprahfied gush it's been receiving: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2009/11/11/an-eaters-reading-roundup
ReplyDeleteAlso, your post on making fresh mozzarella inspired a colleague of mine to undergo what turned out to be an arduous journey, chronicled in this week's issue of the Chicago Reader: http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/the-food-issue-my-mozzarella/Content?oid=1231745
Is not drunkenness the optimal state of being in which to consume quesadillas?
ReplyDeleteFirst, I truly enjoyed your review. I found the whole tone of the book irritating and I wonder where these people have been all these years. The whole paternity argument: nauseating. I find the emergence of morally accepted secular dietary prohibitions a very interesting phenomenon.
ReplyDeleteSecond: last entry is hilarious
Oz
I also enjoyed your essay. I'm sorry the reaction drove you to drink. Hope it was good, at least!
ReplyDeleteKate -- Oh NO. What an ordeal. I tried making mozzarella again a few days later and it was a complete failure. I probably should have posted about that as a warning. I have been scared to try again because the first time was so beautiful and I don't want to spoil the memory. That story makes me even more scared.
ReplyDeleteLayne -- probably, especially quesadillas that look like those did.
Oz, Feeder: Thank-you!
RE: your review of "Eating Animals"
ReplyDeleteI love contrarians! amusing and well-reasoned. pretty sad that your failure to join the praise bandwagon is "controversial." since when is there a wrong or a right in criticism?
lmao! love it!
ReplyDeleteDeal sealed: This is the greatest cooking blog on the web. "Food styling by a drunk person" caption=HAHAHA. As for controversial reviews--hardly a reason to drown your sorrows! They get more hits than any other kind!
ReplyDeleteOn a totally different topic--a different food blog recommended the hard boiled eggs recipe from Platter of Figs. ??? Really? Any thoughts on this?
ReplyDeleteI read tournament of cookbooks, and besides sounding like she stole this idea from you, I don't think she is qualified to judge cookbooks. Who doesn't know how to use a mandolin? I use mine all the time, can't live without it.
ReplyDeleteP.S. stop feeling guilty for not liking something and saying it. As all men know, there is no inherent benefit to just being nice.
I heard an interview of Nora Ephron on the radio cooking show Spendid Table. She seemed like a very set-in-her-ways cook. She was suspicious of any fusion cuisine. She was horrified at the thought of serving Turduken (which *is* pretty strange). I can definitely see her shying away from new kitchen gadgets.
ReplyDeleteSorry, that's "Splendid Table."
ReplyDeletenice post. thanks.
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