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Thursday, October 18, 2007

The Friday Five: Homage to the Top Chef!

This week I have the privilege of writing the RevGalBlogPals Friday Five. I thought about doing something cosmically theological but went with silly instead. Here it is...

This Fall my family has been energetically watching Top Chef on the Bravo channel. My teenage daughter watches with the dream of some day being a chef. My husband watches because he loves reality shows and I mean, really loves them. Plus the whole competition thing really works for him. Me, I love cooking and good food. Every so often I get an idea from this group of talented young chefs who are competing for big money and honors galore.

The winner for this season was Hung. Not the fan favorite, but he won fair and square. In his bio, he says if he were a food "I would be spicy chili - it takes a while to get used to, but once you eat it you always come back for more!" With that in mind, here is this week’s Friday Five.
  1. If you were a food, what would you be? Mashed potatoes with a little horseradish and sour cream stirred in. Pretty ordinary stuff but every so often, a little surprise.
  2. What is one of the most memorable meals you ever had? And where? My parents and I were on holiday in Paris. (They paid. Thanks, Mom and Dad!) We went to a Basque restaurant and had the most wonderful meal. My first course was a small canteloupe filled with port. The entree was fabulous veal with a sauce. And dessert- chocolate. Nobody shared tastes with anyone, it was all so good! However, Mom and I think the reason the owner kept hovering was because Dad ordered calf brains. He insists it was not, but the word for rice and the word for brains only differ by one letter. And Dad did NOT get any rice.....
  3. What is your favorite comfort food from childhood? Corn chowder or creamed tuna on toast. (I know it sounds strange.)
  4. When going to a church potluck, what one recipe from your kitchen is sure to be a hit? My mother's recipe for fudgy brownies
  5. What’s the strangest thing you ever willingly ate? Chocolate covered grasshoppers.

Bonus question: What’s your favorite drink to order when looking forward to a great meal? If it's Italian: campari and soda with a lime. If it's steak, a martini with 4 olives.

27 comments:

Unknown said...

I am glad you went with silly.
That is a funny Paris story.
Wonderful Friday Five.

Dr. Laura Marie Grimes said...

This was so fun--thanks!.

You didn't say if you liked the grasshoppers or not...

RevHRod said...

The grasshoppers were covered in chocolate. This was key. It was long ago in the fourth grade. Somebody's dad brought them back from a trip. As I recall, the grasshoppers must have first been fried in butter or something before being dipped in chocolate. I'd rather have a Snickers bar but I don't remember it being that bad.

Jan said...

Chocolate covered grasshoppers. In 4th grade. Reminds me of the book about eating fried worms!

j said...

this was a great f5, and your play was great, too!

Hot Cup Lutheran said...

oh i can't get the "crunch crunch" of grasshoppers out of my mind now... that truly grosses me out more than calf brains. ick...

Elaine (aka...Purple) said...

Fudgy brownies are the best.

leah said...

well, i understand your #3 comfort food, though i wouldn't have picked it. i'm with hotcup on the grasshoppers, though........but thanks again for posting early!

Katy V. said...

Your blog confirms that anything covered in chocolate can be good!

Lori said...

Paris is amazing for food, isn't it? My best meal there was at the Cafe de la Paix.

I'd imagine the grasshoppers tasted mostly like chocolate with a rice krispie crunch. But I would still not try them, so hat's off to you for food adventure courage.

1-4 Grace said...

Anything choclate is good, well, maybe not grasshoppers, but brownies----YES!.

Sally said...

excellent play- I love the Paris story!!!

Processing Counselor said...

Mmmm dinner in France!

Diane M. Roth said...

great Paris story! and... thanks for the fun Friday Five.

revhipchick said...

fabulous play! i loved the story about your dad's meal!

Unknown said...

You are certainly courageous, or were in fourth grade!

Melissa said...

Well, if you're going to eat grasshoppers, they'd better be covered in chocolate!

Great play!

I'm Molly said...

This was a great play. I love Top Chef! I was cheering for Casey. Or for at least casey and Cj to get together....

RevAnne said...

I forgot pig brains...I have to go modify my post. Again.
Thanks for this Friday Five!

Princess of Everything (and then some) said...

You were a braver 4th grader than I was.

Anonymous said...

Mmmm...crunchy!

Processing Counselor said...

I'm enjoying this play vicariously as I'm about to have gall bladder surgery and most of these wonderful foods I can't eat! D**M!
Thanks for the imaginative a d tasty FF.

rev h-d said...

Great friday five! I think I was in 5th when I had the chocolate covered hoppity hopps!

zorra said...

It looks like a number of us have had a chocolate covered grasshopper experience. I notice nobody has mentioned eating them more than once!
Thanks for the fun Friday Five! Everyone loves to talk about food!

Amy Stewart said...

Calf brains? Grasshoppers? Oh, my, I'm feeling a little woozy. Thanks for the great play today. Oh, and the chicken recipe is posted at my blog now :)

Rev. Sharon said...

I *love* Campari and soda... and your Paris story is wonderful. Nice play, and thanks for the comment!

C. H. Green said...

Enjoyed participating. And some of that sounds really good...