Grace and Christopher Walken in the Kitchen

Raise your hands if you think I should get in the kitchen with Christopher Walken. Exactly. Chris needs some Fearless Cooking in his life. I can tell.

In this video he makes a really nice roast chicken. I'll have to buy one of those upright roaster contraptions he uses. I'd bet he gets more crispy skin on his bird than I do. I also approve of how generous he is with the salt.

The Cult of the Oyster at Stone Park Cafe

Pleasure. Lately I’ve been finding it every weekend in Park Slope. It’s gotten so bad that I wake up on Monday morning thinking, “Only 5 more days until heaven.” I’ve found myself on the F train daydreaming about having them.

What I’m pining for are the perfectly cooked, enormous fried oysters I’ve been having for brunch every Saturday for the past few weeks - and sometimes if I’m really strung out I go back for seconds on Sundays. They’re at Stone Park Café in Park Slope, Brooklyn at 5^th Ave and 3^rd St.

Tasty well seasoned thin crispy batter outside, perfectly cooked ridiculously large oysters, that are often the size of a plum inside. Good God they are good! They come on top of eggs cooked with a very good quality bacon, green onions and topped with cheddar. The first time in the restaurant the menu said the oysters were on top of a frittata, but I asked for my eggs cooked “soft”. I’m sure that pissed off the chef. I do understand what a pain in the ass it is for orders to be changed up during a busy brunch, but I am so, so sick of overcooked eggs. And, I really wanted something crispy on the plate, the oysters, with something soft, the eggs.

I also hold the potatoes and toast and want greens. (I know pain in the ass, again) They do a really simple delicious sauté with the greens with lots of roasted garlic. I’ve been converting lots of friends including a cookbook author Lyn Stallworth and AnotherFoodBlogger to the Stone Park Oyster Cult and everyone agrees that the food is phenomenal and prepared by guys who really know what they’re doing and care about what they sling on the plate. If you're looking for me some Saturday morning you know where I’ll be, at Stone Park Café, engaging in full on oyster gluttony.

What:
Hangtown Fry – that’s what it’s called on the menu. Crispy perfectly cooked oysters on a bed of eggs, bacon and cheese.

Where:
Stone Park Cafe
5^th Ave and 3^rd Street

Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY

Dishwashing as Meditation

I just finished hand washing a load of dishes and realized my breathing had slowed and I wasn’t obsessing over what I needed to do next. I think I’ve discovered a new form of mediation for myself; the new yoga!

There was something satisfying about it. The sink was a disaster – and now it’s not. Cleanliness and order has been restored. Now how do I apply this to everything else I’ve been putting off in my life?

In honor of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, I bring you How to Eat like a Pirate!

After looking at the options it is clear that talking like a pirate is way more fun than eating like one. Have a look at the recipe for Hard Tack. I'm pretty sure I have the same recipe for making inedible Christmas ornaments.

Hard Tack

• Mix one teaspoon of salt with one pound of flour.
• Add enough water to make a very stiff dough.
• Flatten the dough to about 1/2 inch and cut it into about 4 inch circles. Punch holes in each circle with a fork.
• Bake in a flat pan at 250 degrees for two or three hours.

In Food News:
Don't eat the Dole!
Dole is hurting after having to recall 5,000 bags of lettuce yesterday. Go to your fridge now and toss out that bag of lettuce. 11 people were sickened and 2 hospitalized.

5,000 bags of salad mix sought in recall, Dole says. Most packages were sold in U.S.

By Stephen J. Hedges | Washington Bureau
September 19, 2007 WASHINGTON - Dole Food Co. Inc. has recalled nearly 5,000 bags of its Dole Hearts Delight salad mix after a test by a Canadian food safety agency found E. coli bacteria in the product in a Canadian store. The salad mix also was being sold in a number of U.S. states, including Illinois.