Chicken Satay with Balinese Peanut Sauce

Recipe from Weber’s Charcoal Grilling™ by Jamie Purviance

Serves: 4 Prep time: 30 minutes Marinating time: 1 to 4 hours Grilling time: 8 to 12 minutes

Marinade 1/4 cup peanut oil Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime 1 tablespoon fish sauce 2 teaspoons garlic-chile sauce, such as Sriracha 1 teaspoon ground coriander 1 teaspoon ground cumin

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (without tenders), 8 to 10 ounces each

Salad 1 eight-inch section English cucumber 1 tablespoon minced fresh mint 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon granulated sugar 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Sauce 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter 1/2 cup stirred coconut milk 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 2 teaspoons garlic-chile sauce, such as Sriracha 2 teaspoons fish sauce

16 wooden skewers, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes 1. In a medium bowl mix the marinade ingredients.

2. Cut each chicken breast crosswise into 1/2-inch slices. Place the chicken slices in the bowl with the marinade and mix to coat all the slices thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and as long as 4 hours.

3. Quarter the cucumber lengthwise, and then cut the quarters crosswise as thinly as possible. In a medium bowl mix the cucumber slices with the remaining salad ingredients. Set aside at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.

4. In a small saucepan combine the sauce ingredients. Set the saucepan over very low heat and cook until the sauce is smooth, 3 to 5 minutes, whisking occasionally, but do not let the sauce simmer. If the sauce seems too thick, whisk in 1 to 2 tablespoons of water. Remove the saucepan from the heat.

5. Remove the chicken from the bowl and discard the marinade. Thread the chicken slices lengthwise on the skewers, 2 or 3 slices per skewer, keeping the skewers inside the meat as much as possible.

6. Prepare the grill for direct cooking over high heat. Brush the cooking grates clean. Working in 2 batches, grill the chicken skewers over direct high heat(450° to 550°F), with the bare wooden section of the skewers lying over indirect heat to keep them from burning. Close the lid and cook until the meat is firm to the touch and no longer pink in the center, 3 to 4 minutes on the first side and 1 to 2 minutes on the second side, turning once and swapping their positions as needed for even cooking. Meanwhile, reheat the sauce over very low heat. Serve the chicken warm with the salad and sauce.

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Spacelocker, A Social Network You’ll Want To Avoid Like The Plague

Here is a good article on a social networking site that you will definitely want to avoid.

Talk about poor customer service; this group wrote the book!

Portabello Mushrooms Stuffed with Spinach and Dried Tomatoes

Recipe from Weber’s Real Grilling™ by Jamie Purviance Serves: 4 Prep time: 30 minutes Way to grill: direct medium heat (350° to 450°F) Grilling time: 10 to 15 minutes Filling 10 ounces baby spinach leaves, rinsed Extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion 2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic 1 cup finely diced ripe tomato 1/4 cup oil-packed, sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced 1/4 cup pitted and coarsely chopped kalamata olives Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 4 large portabello mushrooms, 5 to 6 inches in diameter 1/4 cup fine, soft bread crumbs 1. In a large saucepan over high heat, cook the spinach just until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Transfer the spinach to a sieve and drain until cooled. Squeeze out the remaining liquid with your hands, and then roughly chop the spinach. You should have about 1 cup. 2. Wipe out the saucepan and warm 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until golden, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the diced tomatoes and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Add the spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook until all the moisture has evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the saucepan from the heat. 3. Remove and discard the mushroom stems. With a teaspoon, carefully scrape out the black gills from the mushroom caps and discard. Generously brush or spray the mushroom caps with oil and season them with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Brush the cooking grates clean. Grill the mushrooms, smooth sides up, over direct medium heat, with the lid closed, until well marked, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a work surface, smooth sides down. Close the grill’s lid to maintain the heat inside. Spoon a thin layer of the filling onto the mushrooms, spreading it evenly to the edges. 4. In a small bowl toss the bread crumbs with 1 tablespoon of oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle each stuffed mushroom evenly with a thin layer of crumbs. Grill the mushrooms, smooth sides down, over direct medium heat, with the lid closed, until the crumbs are browned and the mushrooms are tender, 5 to 10 minutes more. Serve warm.

Networthy Rockfish

Caught yesterday on a Proud Mary charter, this was just one of many nice size late season striped bass we pulled in.

Back to Life

Several weeks ago I started having "chest pains". These came at odd times at first. Like when I was driving into the office or during times of stress rather than exertion. This made me think it was some kind of anxiety not any type of heart condition. But as time passed and the pains got more intense and more frequent, I started to become concerned it was something more than anxiety. The kicker was when it started to interfere with my daily lunchtime walks. I decided I needed to see a doctor, even if it was just to ease my mind and prove it was actually anxiety after all. So I make an appointment with a GP my wife recommended. I go to see her and she finds I have really high blood pressure so she takes an EKG. Actually her very attractive assistant hooked me up to the machine the whole while making small talk. Asking me where I work, yadda yadda and then, while leaning over me to hook up a lead, she tells me she used to work at Hooters! So now I am thinking my EKG is going to be all over the place after this little stress test. But what do you know, it turned out to be rather normal. However, the doctor still referred me to a cardiologist for a stress test. So I set up an appointment for my stress test the next week.

At the cardiologists office they take my BP and then hook me up to their EKG. The cardiologist comes in and starts the test after hearing the whole story. The treadmill is supposed to start off level and then incline 15 degrees every 3 minutes. Well he starts the machine and tells me to get on and right away it goes up 15 degrees. I'm OK at this point but he insists on talking to me while I am walking which starts to wind me a little. Then the speed increases and the angle goes up again. By this time I am thinking, he is trying to get me to quit early. I figured I had two options, quit or push it. Well I started to feel a little chest pain so I told him my chest was starting to hurt so he stops the machine right away.

After I cool down a little he pulls the graph off of the machine and starts to go over it with me. He points out certain peaks and valleys trying to explain to me what it all means but he might as well have been speaking Greek. Actually I might of understood that better. Anyway, when he finishes with his explanation he tells me he wants me to go to the hospital. I ask when, and he says now. What?!? He wants me checked in where I can be monitored. Then he wants to catheterize my groin and run a tube up to my heart where he can check for blockages. However, the hospital he wants to send me to right then doesn't have the facilities to do a procedure if he finds something while exploring. I would have to be taken my ambulance about 25 miles away to another hospital where the procedure can be done. Now I am convinced this guy is nuts. I am not going to the hospital right now and if he can only do the whole thing at the one hospital then that's where I will go; but only when I can schedule it. He didn't like me telling him no but we scheduled the procedure for 2 days from then. He told me I could not do anything until that day. I had to sit home and veg until that time. OK, so now I am liking him a little better but I am still in shock, as you can imagine. I go home and let my wife know what is going on and then call my boss to let her know what is going on as well. My boss was really cool about the whole thing.

Two days go by and it is procedure day! I am scheduled for 3 and get to the hospital at 1 to get prepped and what not. We get there and sit in the waiting room until 2, then I am taken back to the pre-op area where I have to put on one of those no back gowns and then sit on a really uncomfortable table for another hour. Towards the end of the hour a nurse comes in and hooks me up to an IV of saline. Big ass needles are not fun at all. While I am sitting there getting jabbed, a nurse comes into the nurses station, which was right in front of me, and starts telling the others about this patient, who, while having the same procedure as me, gets a ruptured coronary artery because of the angioplasty. Great, just what I wanted to hear!

Another 20 minutes go by while my butt gets more sore sitting on that torture table. Then that same nurse with the horror story comes in and starts to tell me that they are almost ready for me and asks if I have any questions. Damn straight I have some questions! What happened to the last guy?? "Oh, sorry, did you hear that?" she says. Well she goes on to explain it and make everything all better for me. She was actually very nice and professional. One of the assisting doctors came in and tells me they are all ready to go- they just need my cardiologist to come down and sign something. Now it is about 3:40 and I am getting really tired of this whole thing and then finally the cardiologist shows up. After puttering around the nurses station for about 10 minutes or so he comes in and explains everything about the procedure. He gives me a choice of stents in case he has to put one in. Finally I am wheeled into the operatory and the procedure begins at 4.

I won't go into all of the gruesome post op details but suffice it to say that I had an angioplasty and stent put in due to a fairly blocked coronary artery. I am all better now. I have gone from no medication to 5 different pills a day now. Hopefully, with some work and dedication I will be able to go back to no medication in a year.

Maison Damaré Sauteed Shrimp and Pasta

Here is a nice and tasty shrimp dish. Start a pot of boiling pot of water for the pasta of your choice, I typically use Dreamfields penné. When the water is boiling I add about a tablespoon of sea salt and 1/8th teaspoon or so of Dave's Ultimate Insanity Sauce and add it to the water just before dropping the pasta in. This will add some heat to the pasta itself. On another burner I heat up a big skillet then add enough extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) to coat the pan. Add some sliced yellow and/or red bell pepper, sliced garlic, (4 to 6 cloves to taste) and then the shrimp. I use about two pounds of frozen cooked tail-on shrimp from Costco; 30 count (medium size). It should about fill up the skillet. Add some fresh milled black pepper, cayenne if you would like the extra heat and let it cook. Start a steamer full of broccoli florets, snap peas, carrots. When the shrimp look almost done, drain any excess liquid and add some soy sauce, about 4 tablespoon. Toss shrimp to coat and continue to cook till done; (totally thawed since they are pre-cooked). When the pasta is done, drain and return the pot to the stove with the burner off. Add some EVOO and a little butter, (I use Smart Balance made from vegetable oils w/out trans fats, which tastes great) then dump the pasta back in. Now here comes the unhealthy part, dump some (about 3/4 cup) grated Parmesan cheese over the pasta with one raw egg and some half and half (enough to make it creamy, maybe 1/4 cup), then stir vigorously. Drain the veggies and add these to the pasta and stir till all is coated evenly.

Serve pasta on the side with the shrimp and enjoy! Bon Appétit

Cabbage Fusion

A few of weeks ago I was in Charlottesville, VA for the State swimming finals in which my youngest son was a participant. The event went for two days which meant we needed to spend the weekend and discover the town. We met someone in the old market area of the historic district and he took us to this Himalayan, Indian fusion restaurant. There is where I first had this amazing cabbage dish. It was made with green cabbage, mushrooms and some other assorted items. It was delicious. I was determined to recreate this in my own kitchen. My first attempt was spectacular; at least according to my wife. So I told everyone how great this was and they all wanted the recipe. Well, time passed and I kind of forgot exactly what went into this dish. So tonight I tried to recreate it. I'm not 100% sure it is the same but it was good. So here is what I did tonight:

heat a large skillet
when hot add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the following
1/2 head of green cabbage sliced about 1/4 inch slices or smaller.
enough red cabbage sliced the same just to add some color
2 small yellow onions, halved and sliced
1/4 to 1/2 cup of thinly sliced green and red bell pepper
2 green onions thinly sliced
1 pint, more or less, of mushrooms quartered
salt, pepper and cayenne to taste (take it a little easy on the salt)
Soy sauce to taste (this adds a salty earthy smokiness)
at least 1 teaspoon of garam masala (to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander (to taste)
now here is the real kicker, I have this old bottle of austi spumanti in my fridge, it has aged to the point where it is almost a brandy, I add about 1/2 cup of this to help steam everything. You can use a nice white wine or a cheap brandy to do the same.

Turn this frequently, cooking till mostly softened but still partially crunchy. Enjoy! Low fat, high fiber and full of vitamins! Not to mention YUMMY!

Best Pork Tenderloin Ever!

Ok, here it is. Get your standard vacu-pak of pork tenderloin; two strips of meat. Get a nice BIG cast iron skillet heated then lightly coated with olive oil. Drop your tenderloins in nice and easy. Add salt, pepper and cayenne to taste; for me that is like one teaspoon per strip. While the meat is getting browned on one side cut up a couple of apples. I used Gala apples which are a little sweeter than red delicious and not as tart as Granny Smiths. Core them and cut them into about quarter inch slices. Then halve and slice up one medium to large onion and about six cloves of garlic. Take one yellow and one green squash and slice these into quarter inch slices too. DON'T FORGET THE MEAT! Be sure to turn the meat so it browns evenly on all sides. Once the meat is browned on all sides remove it from the pan and add your onions and garlic; these should cover the bottom of the pan. On a nice big cutting board slice your tenderloins about two thirds to three quarters of the way through every half inch or so. Return the meat to the pan and push the apple wedges into the meat slits.(Sounds almost erotic doesn't it.) Once you have filled all of the slits evenly distribute around the pan any remaining apple wedges. Sprinkle about one teaspoon of rosemary over top of everything. Then top all of this off with the squash slices, salt and pepper to taste and put it into a three hundred and seventy five degree oven. Let it bake until the squash has softened; the meat will be cooked through at the same time, believe me (but don't sue me if it doesn't). Remove from oven, place tenderloins and all contents of pan on a platter, except for the liquid. Return pan to the stove and on medium high heat reduce the liquid in the pan, adding about one quarter cup of apple juice. Once the liquid is reduced by at least half, pour over tenderloins and serve with saffron rice. ENJOY!

Business Intelligence, Inc. Gets a New Site

Check out the new redesigned site at www.bii-va.com. This is the fruit of a combined effort on the part of a few key employees of Business Intelligence and lil'old me. After a few minor design changes to the original conceptual design I feel the finished product is a very professional public face for BII.

So please take a couple of minutes to judge for yourself and visit www.bii-va.com.

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AmyOops: Welcome Obama

AmyOops: Welcome Obama

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