We talked a bit about the Top 5 Trends of 2011 in our first Sweet TnT Post of the year. Catch up on what we thought was most popular and talked about here.
As this writer sat and wrote, though, a thought emerged: is there anything that’s out there in the culinary world that hasn’t been fused, re-created, upgraded, jazzed up, over promoted, or given “a new spin”? Granted, part of the culinary evolutionary process is that often times, new dishes are simply old dishes with a new face – that way, things don’t get too boring or stale. However, if you’re constantly giving a new face to everything…where does that leave the classics?
Is there anything left classic?
With all that thought process churning, this writer went a little deeper in and dug out the top five things that they’d like to remain…well…classic. You might be surprised at the list. (And we are perfectly accepting of the fact that you may or may not agree. This is just our humble opinion. *wink*)
5. Fried Chicken
Though this writer in particular doesn’t eat chicken in any form anymore, when the carnivore was still in full effect, fried chicken was a personal favorite. Crisp seasoned skin, juicy tender meat, even the slight touch of grease was enough to have you licking your fingers before you took the first bite. Many dispute the seasoning process of this classic bit of soul food history – some say salt and pepper is simply enough, others are avid seasoned salt (read: Lawry’s, Old Bay, all the sentimental MSG filled favorites) fans…if you were the Colonel, then you threw 11 herbs and spices into that bad boy. Either way, fried chicken is a simple, delectable treat. It doesn’t need cake batter as breading…it can do without a Coca-Cola bath first…sure, as a chef, this writer is all about the appearance, and definitely all about trying new things, but no, dipping a piece of chicken in whipped cream first is just highly unnecessary. And yes, as much as many of us dive head first into a ‘sticky wang’ covered in honey coated sweetness…fried chicken doesn’t need it. It’s perfectly fine all by itself. Let’s leave it that way.
4. Cupcakes
Ah, the luscious confection, topped with whipped chocolate ganache…or, for contrast, a jalapeno jelly glaze…or a bacon infused maple crème…
Wait a minute…jalapenos? BACON? Whatever happened to buttercream? Soft bites of CAKE?
As a chef and cake decorator, this writer full well understands the desire to become as creative as possible. We’ve created masterpieces with our cake creations, admittedly. However…when you get past the zebra striped fondant…we promise you…it’s just cake and buttercream. Yummy cake…and even yummier buttercream. Sure, we’re all for experimenting with flavors a LITTLE. But please. If we can leave the jalapenos for nachos and the occasional cornbread…and the bacon for, I don’t know, breakfast…this writer will sleep a little easier at night.
Well…at least, we’ll be going to get a simple cupcake. Since we brought it up and all.
*noshes on vanilla cupcake with coconut buttercream*
3. Macaroni and Cheese
Mac and cheese is the ultimate comfort food, right up there with ice cream as the go to break up to make up, it’s “that time of the month”, Soul Food Sunday meal food. Similar to fried chicken, mac and cheese is hotly debated as to which style is the best: melty ooey gooey sauce or baked? One cheese, two cheeses, or five? If you’re Caribbean like this writer is, it’s not even macaroni and cheese, it’s a tightly packed and baked piece of macaroni ‘pie’, and don’t yuh dare call it otherwise, ent? No matter how you look at it, macaroni and cheese is as classic as it gets, just about. It doesn’t need to be truffled (as good as it does taste, admittedly, it’s just an incredible waste of a perfectly good and expensive truffle), it, too, does not need bacon (why must bacon go in everything?), and as much as this writer LOVES figs…um…it doesn’t need that either. Cheddar and mozzarella (or gruyere) is perfectly acceptable and delicious. And classic.
2. Cuisines
This might seem like a weird thing…how can you keep cuisine classic? As this writer noted before, the world of food is constantly in a state of evolution, particularly as we push the envelope with all of these varying culinary revelations, upstarts, etc. In spite of this…does everything quite need to be fused? Isn’t Mexican a perfectly acceptable and delicious meal by itself? Does it really truly need to be fused with Italian? And while restaurants like newly opened Cu29Copper in Williamsburg make clever and certainly delicious plays on both genres of cuisine, the question is, do we have to? This writer is of the firm belief that some cuisines should simply be left to stand on their own…why? Because they’re quite delicious all on their own and do not require fusing. To be perfectly fair…some cuisines work as fusions because the stark differences between them are, well, not that stark at all, and thus lend themselves to the combination. Caribbean and South American cuisines, for example, lend quite well to this concept, primarily due to the proximity of the islands to the continent, as well as other factors. Trust this writer, though: a whiskey infused borscht with pesto and bourbon infused crème fraiche? We’re good.
And not just because we’re not fans of beets.
1. Vodka
Yes. This writer did, indeed, say vodka.
Yes. We know vodka is not actually food. Just hear us out.
Currently the most popular and populous spirit in the country, vodka can be found in just about every club, bar, lounge, restaurant, you name it. You’ve seen the most widespread names: Ciroc…Grey Goose…Belvedere…Stolichnaya…and, with the exception of the latter, the reason that you know them is due to the celebrity name attached to them. The power of the promoting force behind them.
Whatever happened to Absolut and, dare I say it, Smirnoff?
When did they become inferior?
A few months ago, this writer and a close friend were at a local bar, drowning our sorrows having a drink or two, when a vodka representative came and asked if we would be willing to do a brown bag blind test, as she called it. (Free drinks? Sure. Why not.) We taste tested three different vodkas from the bag, no idea what it was, and were simply asked to judge on what we tasted – which was the smoothest? Which one had the most kick? If we had to guess, which was which? The three that we wound up taste testing were Grey Goose, Belvedere, and Absolut. Guess which one was the smoothest and most likeable?
(Give you a hint. It wasn’t the Grey Goose.)
The Absolut was, by far, the best tasting and smoothest of the three. The Grey Goose, ironically, tasted like medicine, which surprised most of the people tasting it, avid Grey Goose fans that they were, but not this writer. Why? (*whispers* Absolut is the better vodka.) Now, while I’m sure that most of you reading this will vehemently deny this, disagree, etc. That’s all fine. We’ll go into a little more details on the nuances of vodka making for this week’s #Spirited Saturdays, but let’s leave it here – stop relying on the celebrity endorsement to determine your drink choice.
Trust your palate instead.
To check out other Ex-Foodie blogs, visit us at www.kimberlyparris.com/ex-foodie.