Born on Third Podcast: #2

Here is the 2nd edition of the Born on Third Podcast. Enjoy!

http://bornonthirdpodcast.tumblr.com/post/53772149691/born-on-third-episode-2

Born Sinner & The Gifted: Double Album Review

J. Cole and Wale have both pushed their way to the forefront of rap and they show exactly why in their new albums. Other than that, the two are complete opposites. Cole has traditionally made songs about life, emotion, and simplicity. Wale meanwhile is more showy, usually rapping about money, girls, and how great life is...but it works because he is a superb lyricist. Just looking at the album covers, you can tell the difference between the two: Cole's is simple and dark, while Wale's has all kinds of art behind, a much lighter (straight up white) look, and a giant bust of himself front and center. Even the title is a boast...and Wale IS in fact gifted.

Now, first off, J. Cole produced most of "Born Sinner" on his own, which is a great feat in and of itself. It doesn't hurt to have learned from Jay-Z (an all-time great) and Kanye West (excellent

rapper, world-class producer). After a string of very successful mixtapes, Cole dropped his first full-length album, "Cole World: The Sideline Story", in 2011. It was...something. There were certainly some great tracks, but it was missing something that his mixtapes all had. That thing was an appeal towards his fans. Cole broadened his horizons, producing more pop-influenced songs for "Cole World", while "Born Sinner" thankfully begins to bring back that "what the fans want" type of music.

Cole shows a deeper side of himself on this album, choosing to take more of a look at himself and his perspective of the world rather than other people's. The first words Cole utters on the album are "It's way darker this time"...and boy is he right. He comes crashing out of the gates with tons of vintage Cole punchlines in "Villuminati". He tosses out lines about homophobia ("Pause, maybe that line was too far/Just a little joke to show how homophobic you are"), the Devil ("But the Devil run the T.V. so the demons in him/I'm in trouble/Did a deal with the Devil but now I'm pleading with him/Like give me my soul"), and his fear of a career crash and burn ("Re-adjusted my target audience/Cause it's obvious/I've gone astray/Losing my way like Timberlake/Produced by Timberland on that goddamn FutureSex/LoveSounds").  One song in and I'm already blown away. After a quick skit, Cole comes back with a slower Outkast sample in "LAnd of Snakes", then we get to the hit single "Power Trip"...which ends up being

one of the album's weaker songs. Still good, but already overplayed...and maybe the only radio song here. The next few tracks a bit boring, with few memorable lines, but Cole hits back with "She Knows". And then, the big one...which ends up being slightly disappointing. "Forbidden Fruits" is a collab with Kendrick Lamar and it sounded like it would end up being amazing...but Kendrick does little more than provide a hook for Cole to rap around. Not bad, but not what I was expecting. The rest of the album is very solid, with perhaps the highlight being "Let Nas Down". This is about one of Cole's rap idols, Nas, did not like Cole's first single "Work Out". Basically the only people who liked it were the ones who only listen to rap on the radio, and Cole was disappointed and felt like he let Nas down with this first single. Cole takes a deep look at himself on this track and produces one of my favorite songs in recent memory. And of course, the James Fauntleroy-aided title track, "Born Sinner" brings Cole's sophomore effort to a triumphant close.

Overall, the beats on this album were consistently well-produced and easy to listen to. Cole seems more reflective on this than on his first album, which felt like a bunch of unconnected thoughts. The songs on "Born Sinner" are all more closely related to the theme of Cole's young, rich, college educated black man living in the 21st century personality. He shows a more understanding view of the world. I would give this album an 8.5/10, easily surpassing his first album and coming close to his mixtapes in terms of Cole's best work.

One of the cool parts about J. Cole's album was that it had very few big name featured artist. Wale, on the other hand, brings us an impressive roster: Meek Mill, Cee Lo Green, Yo Gotti, Nicki Minaj, Juicy J, Rihanna, Ne-Yo, Rick Ross, Wiz Khalifa & 2 Chainz. Impressive. Even with all these big names, Wale still manages to make himself the forefront of the album and show off his lyrical talents. After four successful mixtapes, a small label album and a big label debut, Wale is out to prove he is more than the ambitious newcomer he showed us on that debut, "Ambition".

After the album's first track, I can see how people unfamiliar with Wale could be turned off to it. I'm sure there are listeners getting that "oh no another album full of bragging and material lyrics". Because that's exactly what the first song is. This continues on the next couple songs, but people should know that this is what Wale is. His lyrical talents totally make up for it, plus "LoveHate Thing" has a killer beat. Wale likes to show off. But he's amazing at it. Every song he makes has a catchy part to it and features at least one amazing line. This is shown on "Heaven's Afternoon", featuring labelmate Meek Mill. This is the first different song on the album. Wale and Meek talk about how they aren't supposed to be where they are and how other rappers weren't able to make it to where they are. After this we get some more bragging, then we get to "Vanity". Wale basically apologizes for everything I just said about it and it's great. Plus he samples "Mad World" and that's just perfect. He even states that he's a narcissist. Wale knows what he's talking about. Another big part of Wale's style is his love for women (usually strippers with large behinds) and he shows that clearly on "Clappers", "Bad", and the "Bad Remix" with Rihanna. And of course there's the stoner hit "Rotation" with two well-known stoner rappers, Wiz Khalifa and 2 Chainz. Wale loves to make songs that appeal to every group of people that may listen to his music and he does it so well that these songs still sound good to people who aren't part of a specific group. One of my favorite songs on the album and Wale's best song with no feature is "88". He declares himself the leader of the MMG label and he has a very good claim to that title. He compares the rap game to basketball in many clever ways ("Carolina blue kicks/Hottest nigga on your block/I ain't J.R. Rider but them wolves coming for my spot/From the percentage of youngins winning without no college/I'm in my Laneys but nothing JV about this balling/I lost my deal, got with Will he seen a nigga genius/My rapping skills is on Chapel Hill but you ain't see it", "Never Michael Jeffrey in 17s, I'm staying with my team"). MMG is taking over the rap game and none of its members will quit on the others. Wale is never going to stop doing what he does, just like Michael Jordan in '88. On the song's "outro" ("Bad" comes after this), called "Black Heroes/Outro About Nothing", Wale talks about some of the black heroes from today and the past. He specifically mentions Stevie Wonder, Usain Bolt, Barry Sanders and Robert Townsend. According to Wale, there are not enough true black heroes nowadays: "Ain’t no hope for a young nigga/Ain’t no goals for a young nigga/Too short for a sport nigga/That be horrific, we glorifyin them drug dealers". Eventually, Wale tells us why he does what he does. He wants to become an inspiration, to show that someone like him can come this far and there's hope for anybody else who wants it...if they want it enough.

Or maybe this music will inspire a future mountain mover or two

And if I ever rush more music out to you

Then know that I’m overworking myself ‘cause my heart and mind into it

Ain’t been a black hero since Robert Townsend

So for meeting your man I hope you found something profound enough to expand on before the sound falters

And then we get the best piece of news I've heard in a long time to finish up the album. Wale's first two mixtapes were Seinfeld themed ("Mixtape About Nothing" and "More About Nothing")

and on his outro to the album we get a conversation with the one and only JERRY SEINFELD. In a short conversation, we get a small teaser for what's next: the Album About Nothing. A collaboration between Wale and Jerry Seinfeld. Yes please.

Overall, the album is well produced and Wale's lyricism is on point. This is a much better album than "Ambition", not his best work, but still an excellent album. Like J. Cole, it seems like Wale did less for radio here but possibly relied upon his features too much in some places. But in others, features don't even seem necessary because Wale had already done it on his own before the other artists even showed up. I would give this album an 8/10.

Cole and Wale have started off the summer with a bang and if this is a sign of what's to come, it's going to be an amazing season for rap.

Kendrick too!

Let's get this party started...

Booze… liquor… alcohol… hooch…

Great stuff right there. Some call it the solution to-- and cause of-- many of life’s problems.

That’s right folks, I’m here to discuss booze with you. Now I’m not talking about drinking it and tearing up the town, although I could give you a few great stories. Like how the people you trust the most with your safety feel compelled to draw a penis on your forehead in permanent ink when you pass out and the next day you have scrub it so hard that you swear you’re polishing bone. Or waking up in the morning and somehow in the night a witch has cast a spell that transformed the girl on your arm from Scarlett Johansson to Sandra Bernhardt.  There is a great blog article to be found in regaling the stories of being “floor lickin’ loser pissed” but this is not the one. No I’m not here to talk about those great nights that we so often cannot remember until we see the YouTube clip. I’m here to talk about food--and more specifically cooking-- with booze.

Booze is an amazing way to add flavor to food, it is as simple as that. There are multiple ways to use it in cooking and--like all flavor enhancers-- most people need to use trial and error to get it right, like what I said in my post about spices.

The first and easiest way to use booze in food is simply as a flavor. By that I mean add it to your food while you cook it, and that is that. I make a wicked Irish Stew *see recipe below* that uses two cans of Guinness stout to help make the broth. This adds some serious depth of flavor and gives the claim of the stew being Irish a bit of credibility. I also use white wine in a white wine and mustard sauce that I put on clam linguine. Got the idea from Food Network. Seriously, watch it. Hell you can even use alcohol that is still in the package when cooking if you stuff a can of beer up a chicken’s wazoo before you put it on the BBQ and make Beer can Chicken.

Another method of using alcohol is as a marinade. Using red wine to marinade roasts adds huge amounts of flavor and actually begins to break down the connective tissue in the meat which will tenderize it for you a bit. I personally have used wine, whiskey, tequila, rum, beer and vodka in marinades before and they all turned out well.

The two methods above can also be combined as in the case of my “Tequila-Lime Enchiladas” recipe that I previously posted. The leftover marinade is cooked down to make the sauce in the enchiladas. This picks up extra flavor in the food and is less wasteful. I also reuse the red wine marinade from my roasts as the braising liquid and then put the left over “juices” after the roast is cooked in the gravy. Now I’m getting hungry…

The fourth way to use booze in cooking is to make a sauce with it. I’ve found that BBQ sauce lends itself to booze as an ingredient exceptionally well. Who among us hasn’t had a Jack Daniels BBQ sauce at some point, or a beer and chipotle sauce?

And finally, you can use booze simply as the people who make it intend on you using it to enhance your meal; drink it. There are entire industries made on pairing wine with food and as a lifelong baseball fan I can tell you that there is magic involved when hot dogs and beer get together at the ballpark*. Others feel that a small glass or shot of some kind of spirits matches fantastically with your favorite dessert. Always remember that if you are drinking to do it responsibly and either know your limits or have a way home.

*shameless plug – I have posted regularly on the MLB.com message board for well over a decade now and we are always interested in having new and fun people to talk to. If you enjoy baseball and good discussion please use the following link and come give us a try: http://www.forums.mlb.com/ml-mlb

So there it is, cooking with booze. I raise a glass to you for making it this far and hope to see you here again.

Chris Irish Stew

Ingredients:

2 Pounds Lean Stew Beef                                6 Large Potatoes Chopped

2 Cups Carrots Chopped                                  3 Stalks Celery Chopped

7 Cloves Garlic Crushed                                  1 Large onion Chopped

1 ½ Cups Frozen Peas                                      2 Cups Fresh Mushrooms Chopped

4 Cups Beef Stock                                            2 Cans Guinness Beer

1 Small Can Tomato Paste                               Seasoning Salt

Black Pepper                                                    Sunflower Oil

Directions:

1. Make sure the beef is fully thawed and has been patted dry with paper towel. Put enough oil in the bottom of your stew pot to just coat it and put on medium-high heat. Once the oil it hot, add enough beef to just cover the bottom of the pot. Turn once it is brown. Remove once both sides are browned. Repeat until all of the beef is browned.
2. Once the beef is out of the pan, add the garlic and stir with a wooden spoon making sure to scrape up all the browned bits on the bottom of the pot, these are HUGE flavor. Once the garlic is translucent, add the beef stock, the browned beef, the onion, half of the potatoes, both cans of Guinness and the tomato paste. Stir it all together really well, making sure you get all of the browned bits off the bottom of the pot.
3. Reduce the heat to medium until it boils and then reduce to simmer. Simmer until the potatoes have dissolved into the mixture (about 3 hours).
4. Add the rest of the potatoes, the carrots, celery and the mushrooms and simmer for 30 minutes or so
5. Mix 1 Tbsp cornstarch in 4 Tbsp cold water and add to Stew if thickening is desired. Bring entire pot to a boil to thicken.
6. Add peas with there is about 5 minutes until serving. 

Bon appetite...

This is the End: Hopefully Not

Comedy troupes/acts are typically only relevant for a short while. Monty Python had a solid decade. Bill Murray's prime was from 1980-1984. Even Adam Sandler was funny for a couple of years. The string that Judd Apatow, Seth Rogan, Evan Goldberg et al have put together is probably the best of any comedy troupe since Farley-era SNL. They have had a sustained run since 2005's The 40-Year-Old Virgin (unless you want to go back to Freaks and Geeks), producing seven 'Certified Fresh' movies by RottenTomatoes in that time.

If you've seen a commercial, I don't need to tell you what happens in this movie. With every actor playing themselves, Jay Baruchel visits Seth Rogan while in LA. Rogan drags Baruchel to a party at James Franco's new house, when the apocalypse hits and hilarity ensues. With more cameos than any movie in recent memory, the celebrities have to deal with this scenario in surprisingly hilarious fashion.

The film, based on a 2007 short, Jay and Seth Versus the Apocalypse. attacks a number of actual, real themes: celebrity, ego, friendship and loyalty -- enough that one wonders which of the dramas explored in the film are present in the relationships of the film's stars. More importantly, it is goddamn hilarious.

Story: 3/5 - The story is actually pretty good for a stoner comedy. As mentioned, the guys combat not just the End of Days, but the relationships within the house. Friendships are challenged, beliefs are shaken, and while the writers (Goldberg and Rogan) probably weren't looking to be artsy, the movie is deeper than the dick jokes.

Writing: 5/5 - This is probably the most cleverly-written wide-release comedy since The Hangover. Apparently 50% of the jokes were ad-libbed, and that is believable. The jokes are perfect, the cameos are brilliant. This is the End isn't just funny, this is bring-you-to-tears-in-the-theatre hilarious.

Acting: 4/5 - The cool thing about movies like this (Pineapple Express is the other example) is that the actors are so invested, they become entirely authentic, and this is only exacerbated by the idea to have everybody play themselves. The lines are delivered very effectively. This is the best comedy troupe in Western cinema plying their trade expertly.

Aesthetics: 4/5 - That scene in Office Space where they beat up the fax machine has had a magnificent impact on comedy - slow-motion and ironic music have produced fantastic results in a number of productions in the last five years or so: take this scene from Danny McBride's HBO series Eastbound and Down. This is just an example, of course; the entire movie is full of 'fun' shots and excellent editing.

Final Grade: 80%

Interviews from History: Ruben Amaro Jr.

                         

Hi, my name is Ian and this is the first edition of "Interviews from History". In this series I will post (fictional) interviews with anybody in history, and I'm open to suggestions. I chose Ruben Amaro Jr. (Philadelphia Phillies GM) to start, because I'm cynical and I enjoy reflecting on my pain when it comes to sports.

As soon as Ruben walks into the room you can feel just how smug he is. "How are you, Mr. Amaro?" I asked, as he stared into his blackberry, saying that I was wasting his time.   I decided to get down to brass tacks. "If given the opportunity, what would you have done differently?" I asked. His reply was short, arrogant, and also really idiotic. "Nothing, why would you ask me that question?"  I asked him that question because it's well known that he's made an excess of bad moves and I was curious if he would admit it.

I soon realized I wouldn't get anywhere with that series of questions, so I decided to ask him about the current team. "Do you think this team can contend, at least for the second wild card?" I figured it was a simple question, and it wouldn't offend him. I figured wrong, as he scoffed, said something under his breath and then ignored me.

This interview wasn't going the way I had hoped it would, so I thought that I'd ask him a light-hearted question so that there wouldn't be so much tension. I decided to ask how his family was doing. It happened to be the only legitimate answer I got all day, but it was just as arrogant as normal. "My children are doing extremely well in school, I suspect that they too will get into Stanford. *chuckle*" He then asked if we were done, and walked away extremely quickly.

This was a very unpleasant interview with a very unpleasant person. He didn't answer any of my questions, but hopefully the next interview with someone will be more enlightening. Feel free to give me suggestions on who to interview next.

Scrubs: A Look Back on an All-Time Great Show

Comedy is one of the toughest genres of television to pull off successfully. More comedies die in their first couple of years than is possible to remember. This is especially true for big networks, which often seem hellbent on killing their best comedies. The three best examples of this are probably Futurama, Arrested Development, and Community, but let's not forget that NBC also managed to lose one of its greats before the show had a chance to come to a conclusive end. That show is Scrubs.

Scrubs is one of those shows that can claim to be part of multiple genres, as at times it felt as much like a drama as it did a comedy. While this is true, the show excelled most greatly in the moments where it tried to be light-hearted and amusing. Not familiar with Scrubs? Here's a short summary:

Plot:

Scrubs is a show about an innocent and fun-loving medical intern--J.D. (aka John Dorian: played by Zach Braff)--and his close-knit group of friends, mentors, and enemies. The show travels from J.D.'s first day at "Sacred Heart"--a fake hospital believed to be somewhere in California--through his education and development into a full-fledged attending physician.

As J.D. is the center of the show, the show relies most strongly on his specific relationships with other characters. Primarily, the show focuses on his relationships with his best friend Chris Turk (Donald Faison) and his on-again, off-again girlfriend Elliot Reed (Sarah Chalke), and personal mentor Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley). These relationships drive the show and carry the audience from J.D.'s innocence as an intern to his eventual growth and maturity as a doctor.

Presentation:

The show uses a very unique style as a very large portion of the show is spent inside the mind of J.D. Whether he is thinking up quirky fantasies or preaching valuable life lessons, this approach makes everything gel together just a little bit more. In most shows, the audience has to rely on reading body language--which requires phenomenal acting--to understand how characters are feeling. In Scrubs, the audience is brought inside the mind of the main character--and sometimes minor characters--for a glimpse at his--and their--inner-most thoughts.

Setting:

As a medical show, the majority of the time is spent within Sacred Heart hospital, which serves as an educational hospital for young interns trying to break into the medical field. When the show isn't in or around Sacred Heart, time is most likely being spent at J.D. and Turk's shared apartment--where the living situation changes periodically throughout the show.

Now that you know more about the show, I can talk about some of my favorite aspects. Let's start with my top 5 favorite characters:

1. Theodore "Ted" Buckland- Ted is played by actor Samuel Lloyd. In short, Ted is a less-than-capable medical lawyer who lacks self confidence so badly that he serves as the "hospital sad sack." Most of Ted's humor comes off of the actions of other characters, which is part of why I love him so much. Essentially, there really isn't a time at any point in the show where I do not laugh at what Ted's character does. Whether he is singing in an A Capella group or showing everyone that his girlfriend is indeed real, Ted serves as a reminder to us all that we really are better at things than we sometimes think we are.

2. The Janitor--In what may be the best acting performance on the show, Neil Flynn plays the primary antagonist to J.D. With his crazy, over-the-top schemes and general disregard for his work, The Janitor serves as the show's most quirky and out-of-place character. What I mean by that is that the rest of the characters in the show are put in very important and serious positions. Several are doctors, some are lawyers, and some are in charge of running the hospital. One of the recurring themes in the show is that The Janitor doesn't have much work to do, yet he doesn't do it anyway. As the show progresses, we see The Janitor become more and more human to the point where he becomes married and actually is seen helping with important tasks throughout the hospital.

3. Dr. Bob Kelso--The only reason there's a "may" next to Neil Flynn's role as The Janitor is because Ken Jenkins is, in my humble opinion, the best at portraying the role given to him on the show. Dr. Bob Kelso spends the vast majority of the show as the Chief of Medicine at Sacred heart, which is fancy talk for saying that he is the head honcho; he runs the place. Kelso's character depends primarily on his status as the primary antagonist to J.D.'s personal mentor: Dr. Cox. To best summarize Kelso's character, I have a question for you:

Who has two thumbs and doesn't give a crap? Bob Kelso

4. Dr. Percival "Perry" Ulysses Cox- Dr. Cox' character serves as the rebellious leader of the hospital's working staff. Due to Kelso's nature as Chief of Medicine, Cox fulfills the role of the individual who does his best to counteract Kelso's decisions and fight against his authority. When Cox isn't calling J.D. by a vast array of girls' names, he is being incredibly passionate about his job and his family. While his ego is his greatest asset, it is also his greatest nemesis as he repeatedly gets in his own way--most notably in an episode where he ends up losing three patients due to his stubborn drive to get them organs for transplants. His character is defined by his cynicism of the world and his drive to see J.D. do well--despite never being able to admit it.

5. Dr. John "J.D." Dorian--Zach Braff is simply great in this role, and the show is nothing without the performance of Braff as J.D. After all, everything that happens in the show is--in some way-related to what goes on in J.D.'s head. A large portion of the show is spent between J.D.'s often ridiculous day dreaming and his constant screwing up of his intimate relationships. Really, the reason J.D.'s character is so great is because he is easy to relate to. He struggles with self-confidence, he gets in his own way, he is immature, and he is nothing without his best friend--Turk. It's easy to root for J.D.

While it is fun to focus on the funny moments in a comedy, Scrubs is an all-time great due to Bill Lawrence's fantastic ability to direct the story and deliver powerful moments. Here are a few of my favorites--based on how strongly they impact me emotionally:

1. Ending to "My Fallen Idol" (video through 3:22)

2. Carla Says Goodbye to Laverne

3. J.D. Looks Into His Future

All of this makes Scrubs fantastic, but there is one thing that I appreciate more than anything in the show: Lawrence's ability to choose music that fits the scene. Here are some more of my favorites--not including "The Book of Love", which is used in the final scene of the show (that matters, anyway):

"Be Yourself"- Audioslave

"Guy Love"- Turk and J.D. 

"Poison"- Belle De Voe

"More Than a Feeling"- Boston

Conclusion

So there you have it. Scrubs is a comedy that knows how to relate to the individual. Through the use of characters we can relate to, the incorporation of music, and the focus around a vulnerable individual trying to make his way in the real world, Scrubs is a show for, well..everyone. There is a character for everyone in the show:

Vulnerable and immature- J.D.
Cocky and confident- Turk
Intelligent, yet ditsy- Elliot
Proud and motherly- Carla
Arrogant and passionate- Dr. Cox
The guy you want to root for- Ted Buckland
The boss that shits on you wherever you turn...but really has a soft side- Dr. Bob Kelso

Very few shows have accomplished what Scrubs has. Unfortunately, NBC swung and missed at the show's end, so they weren't able to finish what they started--the last two seasons (only one matters) aired on ABC. At some point it might be cool to see a Scrubs movie or something of the like, but I feel as if Scrubs' biggest accomplishment was wrapping things up in a way that makes sense. I won't completely ruin it for people that have yet to view the show in its entirety, but it becomes clear where each of the characters is headed.

So this is to you, Bill Lawrence. You created a hell of a show, and I really appreciate that you did.

Bringin' the heat

I  know what you’re thinking; you’re thinking “oh no, they let this guy back on the internet”. Sorry about your luck folks, but I’m back.

I’m going to start out the actual cooking portion of my cooking blog with something that is a major stumbling block for a lot of people: spices.

Spices are a great way to enhance any dish, and they’re also a quick way to make something inedible. I’ve found the best way to initially discover which spices work with which dishes is to look up multiple variations of whatever dish you are thinking of making and taking note of which spices are in all or at least most of the recipes. After a while you will develop a working knowledge of which spices work well with which foods and which work well together.

Remember that different spices are used different ways. Things like garlic, oregano and black pepper are just added into dishes while other things such as star anise or cardamom pods need to be removed from the food before it is consumed or you risk someone biting into them which could potentially be dangerous. Spices can also be used on food instead of in food as in a dry rub on ribs or chicken before you cook them. So always look into the proper method of using the spices before you use them.

The first thing most people need to know about spices is that less is more. You can always add more to a dish if it needs it, but you cannot take it out once it’s put in. We’ve all--at some point--had a dish that tasted like the contents of a used diaper, because your Aunt Gertrude doesn’t know how much curry she should put on her meatballs. So add your spices in small amounts and taste your foods frequently. Another aspect of this rule is to not use too many types of spices in one dish. Eventually they will just end up fighting each other and will ruin the taste of the food.

Secondly, learn which spices give which effect to your food and in which way. Oregano, basil and thyme are all “earthy” spices but they all give their own flair to food. Chilies and peppers both give heat to food but each does it a different way and with a different flavor. Using one spice in place of another can detract from the overall effect of your meal.

Now that I’ve said that all that, the third rule of thumb is to not be afraid of spices. It is way too easy to just get into the habit of using the old standard garlic, salt and pepper on everything. This is a wonderful strategy if the desired effect is to have boring salty food night after night. Again, the internet is your best friend when trying to figure out which spices work best with which foods. Try looking up recipes or just lists of spices and how to use them. I personally bought a book called “The Spice and Herb Bible” which has pretty much every spice known to man in it with explanations of the spices and examples of how to cook with them. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys cooking.

I think there are a few spices that no kitchen should be without. Here is a short list of what I think are the must have spices:


Seasoning Salt – I am not a fan of regular white salt and rarely salt anything, but when I do I use seasoning salt due to its extra flavor. I pretty much only use this on grilled meats like steak or burgers or in tiny amounts in sauces if they need a touch of salt after preparing them. In my opinion, white salt should be reserved for baking only.

Garlic – Garlic is a delicious relative to the onion that adds a wonderful flavor to a wide variety of dishes. I use it both in fresh form or as a dried powder. In its fresh form I finely mince it and cook it down in whatever dish I am preparing. Usually in fresh form I use it in pasta sauces, chili, soups or other “saucy” dishes and on grilled vegetables. I use the powder form in burgers, meatballs, on steaks or in dry rubs. Be careful not to overdo it, a little goes a long way and a lot can ruin a great meal.

 

Oregano, Basil and Marjoram – I call them the Holy Trinity of pasta sauce. They add a wonderful earthy flavor to whatever you put them in whether you use fresh or dried varieties of each. Outside of sauces I enjoy putting them in burgers and meatballs or in soups to add a depth of flavor. They are also very commonly found in a wide variety of sausage.

Black Pepper – Probably the most versatile spice in any cupboard, black pepper can literally be put in virtually any dish and in small amounts will make almost anything better. It can be put in food or on them when they’re grilled.

Smoked Paprika – A recent addition to my repertoire, smoked paprika is now in my favorite spices. It adds a terrific sweet and smoky flavor to things like burgers or chili and can be put in virtually anything. Use it sparingly though as it can overpower easily.

Dry Mustard – Another recent addition for me, I’ve found dry mustard to be very helpful in adding a serious depth of flavor to a wide variety of dishes. It is useful in marinades and sauces or anything that needs a bit of a kick like pulled pork. 

I think that’s enough for now, here is this week’s recipe

Boston Baked Beans

Ingredients:

2 Cups Navy Beans                                                   ½ Tsp Black Pepper

1 Pound Bacon                                                          ½ Tsp Dry Mustard

1 Med Onion Chopped                                              ¾ Cup Ketchup

6 Tbsp Molasses                                                        2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

2 Tsp Salt                                                                   ½ Cup Brown Sugar

Directions:

1. Soak beans overnight in cold water. Simmer the beans in the same water until tender (1-2 hours). Drain and reserve liquid.
2. Preheat oven to 325 F
3. Put beans, bacon and onion in pot.
4. In a saucepan, combine molasses, salt, pepper, mustard, ketchup, Worcestershire and brown sugar. Bring to a boil and pour over beans. Add enough of bean water to just cover the beans. Put lid on dish.
5. Bake 3-4 hours until beans are tender. Remove lid halfway through cooking and add more bean water as needed to prevent beans from getting dry.