Booze and Breakfast: Cereal milk, oatmeal, bacon and coffee

Food Links | Compiled by Nathan Mattise

Things quieted down recently while work on Barcode Magazine took over.  In honor of that work, this edition of links all celebrate the beautiful combo of booze and breakfast.

• Culinary heartthrobs Alie & Georgia took this idea literally by discovering a way to use cereal (specifically its milk) in an original, killer cocktail.

• Oatmeal has never been our favorite, but when it’s infused with bourbon we’ll at least listen.

• If our recent bacon whiskey didn’t appeal, perhaps a Bacon Bloody Mary better suits your fancy.

• Finally, these bottles look like classic brews but they’re actually freshly brewed and iced.

Recipe Review: Bacon Infused Whiskey for Bacon Old Fashioneds from PDT & NY Mag

Recipe Review | Prepared, written and photographed by Nathan Mattise

Original recipe from PDT (and NY Mag) | Overall Rating: 4

Denny’s will tell you, every single culinary element in existence can be improved by adding bacon.  Liquor is no different with some companies specifically producing such items. If you don’t have a distributor offering such gems near you, there is hope and a simple recipe to follow.

Recipe Review: Captain Crunch cookies from Miss In The Kitchen

Recipe Review | Prepared, written and photographed by Nathan Mattise

Original recipe from Miss In The Kitchen | Overall Rating: 3

Introducing: Recipe Reviews

Site Info | Written  by Nathan Mattise

Did you know Diners Without Frosted Tips has a “recipes” category/tag?  Apparently we forgot about it too.

The heart of this site is promoting diner culture through news and first-hand reviews. It always will be.  At times, recipes don’t find a nice niche within that.  However, while we won’t become another recipe-driven blog, we’ve got a few unique ones to share.

Our idea? Recipe reviews.

Similar to the approach on diners, we want to experience a recipe then convey that for interested parties. There are less factors to consider when handling a recipe, but three rateable aspects (“1” being low, “5” being high) stick out:

Overall Ease – Do I need any techniques your average home cook can’t handle? Are there a lot of touch and go moments where you need a good feel for the kitchen before attempting? No matter how great the cook book picture looks, if the text next to it reads like a thesis rather than simple steps, the recipe is a pass.

Common Ingredients/Tools Needed – How many of the items being called for do you need to obtain specially for this recipe? The more effort to gather, the more hassle overall.

Idiot-Proof Flavor – You can’t judge the overall taste of a recipe since this is such a vast spectrum of human error impacting its outcome. However, you can judge how hard it is to screw up the recipe despite your level of cooking prowess.

Look for a fresh batch of recipe reviews coming soon.  In the meantime, make your way to your favorite Sunday diner to stretch your stomach for the evening’s festivities.

Old Forge Pizza means home for the holidays

Food Essay and Links | Compiled by Nathan Mattise

The holidays season is quickly approaching which means travel plans are quickly arriving. “Home for the Holidays” is a concept that seems to resonate no matter who you are or where you’re from. The concept incorporates friends, families,  unique traditions… and food.

My December always means a visit to the greater Scranton, Pa. area.  Northeastern Pennsylvania subtly offers strong cuisine like wings, Sheetz, coneys,  etc.  The undisputed king of my hometown food scene is Old Forge-style pizza however.

Every time I’m there I need a “tray” (that’s right, not “pie”) of either Lou’s or Andy’s. I can settle for Duke’s, Barrett’s or even a grab-and-go from the “Archbald Express Mart” (a.k.a. Propst’s)  as well.  It’s a distinct approach only available in NEPA – typically square cuts, sweet sauce, multiple cheese blend, softer crust and as good cold as it is hot. A slice of it feels like home as much as (or probably more so at this point) sleeping on mt parents’ couch.

With Holidays 2010 already underway or just days away, what food makes you feel at home in your area?