Brian Linzy » Food Archives – Brian Linzy

Someone make this travel site, please

Brian — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 13:27:55 +0000

Here’s my idea. If it already exists, point me there. If not please make it. I’ll be your first customer.

I want to travel to a city (say New York) and I have a small budget (say $1000). But I want to see the ritzy side of NYC. I tell you where I’m starting, where I’m going, my budget (per person), travel dates, and maybe some interests. Then you plan my trip. It should look something like this:

Flying Southwest Airlines in the luggage compartment with 19 connections – $200
Staying in a motel in New Jersey – $75
Bus, PATH Train, Subway – $25

Now we’re in NYC with $700 left.

Dinner @ Le Bernardin (no drinks) – $150
Ticket to see The Book of Mormon @ the Eugene O’Neill Theatre – $100

Brunch @ The Carlyle – $50
Dinner @ Per Se (no drinks) – $300
Ticket to see The Lion King @ the Minskoff Theatre – $100

We got there on the cheap and blew most of the budget on overpriced food and entertainment. The trick is I want someone else handle the bookings, or at least figure out where I should go and work out the budget.

The Italian Diet Problem

Brian — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 04:08:35 +0000

I’m pretty sure the genetic cards have been stacked against me when it comes to diet. Okay, maybe not genetic, exactly, but close enough.

Any real, useful, lasting diet I’ve ever heard of requires a certain amount of boredom. Dr. John Berardi says if you examine the diets of the world’s top performing athletes you’ll find over and over that they eat the same thing all the time. They keep just a few boring, but balanced and nutritional, meals in rotation. And they eat to live, they don’t live to eat.

Well that would just be a smack in the face to my heritage. In an Italian family when you’re sad, you eat. Happy? Eat. Birthday? Eat. Football game on TV? EAT! Columbus Day? Parade, then eat. Death in the family? Pray, then eat. New Baby? Feed it! It’s Tuesday? How ’bout a nice lasagna?

This is a losing battle. And I have chocolate.

Just 7 Rules

Brian — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 00:48:04 +0000

Over a year ago I posted 27 Rules for Diets. As I mentioned at the time, these are not rules I follow, it’s just a collection of things that seem to be good ideas, based on reading I’ve done. I recently came across a shorter version – 7 Habits of Highly Effective Nutritional Programs by Dr. John Berardi, Ph.D. of precisionnutrition.com. I found it on the Sherdog forums.

Habit 1: Eat every 2-3 hours.
Habit 2: Eat complete, lean protein with each feeding opportunity.
Habit 3: Eat vegetables with each feeding opportunity.
Habit 4: Eat veggies/fruits with any meal. Eat “other carbs” only after exercise.
Habit 5: Eat healthy fats daily.
Habit 6: Don’t drink beverages (soda, beer, etc.) with more than 0 calories.
Habit 7: Eat whole foods whenever possible.

These 7 rules cover a large chuck of the 27 listed in my post.

Instructions

Brian — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 22:24:42 +0000

I love grocery shopping in Asian markets, but you’re on your own as far as figuring out how to cook stuff once you get it home!

Usage: Put the noodle in to boiling water to 2 minutes, noodle will spliting, then stir the noodle, adding oil and vegetable is more tastes or it can do sa pan fry noodle, clipping the noodle, after the water dried it can then fry

Menus, Confusion

Brian — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 18:42:13 +0000

Ever been the Cheesecake Factory? I haven’t been in a couple of years (I’m not even sure there’s one around here,) but there are three things about the Cheesecake Factory that stand out in my memory – 1) surprisingly good steak, 2) surprisingly mediocre cheesecake, and 3) a terribly long menu. The menu goes on for pages and pages. Any one page could service an entire restaurant. I think I even remember advertisements in the menu.

Long menus annoy me. The Cheesecake Factory’s menu infuriates me. Five Guys Burgers and Fries, on the other hand, is menu perfection. They make Burgers, Fries, Hot dogs, and Grilled Cheese. Ordering from the 5 Guys menu is a joy. Ordering from the Cheesecake Factory’s menu makes me want to hurt people.

Today I stopped by our local small town BBQ joint. I walked in and was greeted by a couple of women behind the counter. As I stood there staring at the menu on the wall one of them asked what I wanted. I continued staring at the sign, but all a saw was blob of words. Nothing was gelling into a coherent thought.

Finally I said, “I don’t know, I don’t understand what you have.” She said, “Platters and sandwiches. Chicken, beef, or pork.”

Ah! Perfectly clear. In just 7 words. I looked back at the sign and tried to independently figure out from the sign that they offer “Platters and sandwiches. Chicken, beef, or pork.” Nothing. The sign still just seemed like a blob of words to me.

I said, “Platter, pork.”

She said, “There’s a sign on the wall around the corner that explains the sauces.”

My head exploded.

RVA CSA

Brian — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 17:51:11 +0000

I’m looking for a CSA in the Richmond, Va area to join. There are a lot of options, so I thought a chart might help.

CSA or Community Supported Agriculture is when a small farmer offers “Shares” of their crops to people for a flat fee. You pay at the beginning of the season and receive a box of whatever was harvested each week. Each CSA is a little different – they grow different crops, have different fees, different pickup schedules, etc. Below is a list of the ones I’ve found in the RVA area. I’ve only includes ones with pickup available in Richmond. If you know of any others please let me know!

Name	Fee	Weeks	Notes
Agriberry CSA	$504	20	Asparagus, strawberries, sugar peas, cherries, black raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, red raspberries, plums, peaches, nectarines, fall red raspberries, and apples. A share consists of a minimum 6 “units” of seasonal fruits provided weekly. The size of the “unit” will vary from a pound, a ½ pint, a pint, a quart, a peck, or 3‐5 fruits.
Amy’s Garden	$575	20?	Spring & Fall Shares are laden with greens and cool crops like turnips, kale, arugula, lettuces and Asian greens…summertime Shares consist of tomatoes, squash, eggplant, cucumbers, garlic, peppers, beans, melons and much more. The Garden Share is appropriate for 2 adults who eat at home most nights of the week, or a small family.
Victory Farms	$500	32	SOLD OUT. Salad mix, carrots, onions, radishes, spinach, arugula, head lettuce, turnips, herbs, swiss chard, kale and other cooking greens, heirloom and cherry-size tomatoes, melons, beets, cucumbers, summer squash, winter squash, garlic, peppers, cabbage, broccoli, green beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, sugar snap peas, etc., with seasonal variation.
Trail’s End Farm	$575	25	Greens, spinach, radishes, carrots, beets, kale, turnips, broccolini, peas, onions etc. Summer welcomes tomatoes, melons, squashes, chard, garlic, peppers, basil, eggplant, apples, peaches and more. Fall brings sweet potatoes, kale, spinach, pole beans, carrots, winter squashes and more. Eggs from free range chickens also available.
Quail Spring Farm	$600	20	Spring: fava beans, lettuce mix, spinach, cilantro, arugula, Chinese cabbage, radishes, beets, various herbs. Summer: carrots, swiss chard, summer squash, tomatoes, basil, sweet corn, eggplant, sweet peppers, hot peppers, cucumbers, snap beans, cantaloupe, watermelon, various herbs, potatoes, sweet potatoes. Fall: winter squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, beets, lettuce mix, arugula, spinach, kale, mustard greens, leeks, cilantro, swiss chard, various herbs. Half Shares available for $325. Full shares suitable for two vegetarians.
Growing Community	$650	24	1/2 Share: $325/yr; 12 weekly shares, or 20 half-shares
Edible Old Dominion	$500	28	Early Spring: arugula, spinach, broccoli rabe, radishes, herbs. Early Summer: squash, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, corn, herbs. Mid Summer: cucumbers, melons, squash, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, herbs, beans. Late Summer: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, okra, herbs, beans. Fall: winter squash, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, okra, herbs, collards, kale, beans. 1/2 Share: $250/28week
Rural Virginia Market	$224	6	SPRING FULL SHARE: $224.00 – 6 weeks, SUMMER FULL SHARE: $475.00 – 14 weeks, FALL FULL SHARE: $224.00 – 6 weeks
Frog Bottom Farm	$550	22	Half share = $300. Full share provides enough vegetables to feed a family of four omnivores or two vegetarians. Early summer: beets, carrots, chard, cucumbers, eggplant, endive, fennel, fresh herbs, lettuce, scallions, shallots, summer squash, tomatoes. Late summer: cantaloupe, carrots, chard, cucumbers, eggplant, fresh herbs, onions, sweet and hot peppers, potatoes, radishes, shallots, summer squash, tomatoes, turnips, watermelon. Fall: beets, bok choy, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, collard greens, cucumbers, eggplant, fresh herbs, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, mustard greens, onions, sweet and hot peppers, potatoes, pumpkins, radishes, rutabagas, summer squash, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnips, turnip greens, watermelon, winter squash
Byrd Farm	Varies	Varies	Full Share: Spring $224 Summer $475 Autumn $224, 1/2 Share: Spring $112 Summer $238 Autumn $112. Shares consist of fresh, seasonally grown vegetables such as salad greens, spinach, radishes, carrots, beets, kale, turnips, broccoli, snow peas, sugar snaps, tomatoes, etc. Weekly selection is comprised of 8 – 10 items. Each week’s offering is enough for 2 adults eating at home nightly or a family of 4 eating at home most of the week. Subscribers receive a “basic” selection of vegetables all ready bagged for them.
Fertile Crescent Farm	$500	20	Each share will provide enough produce for two vegetable loving adults. Late spring share may include: salad greens, broccoli, sugar snap peas, kale, swiss chard, radishes, carrots, beets, turnips, chinese cabbage, spinach and spring onions. A summer share may include favorites such as: a variety of tomatoes, summer squash, green beans, melons, potatoes, peppers, garlic, cucumbers and eggplant

Diet update

Brian — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 16:41:26 +0000

Time for a diet update. I used to post changes to my diet on a forum, and for a short time I was posting them on hosted blog, but that site is gone. Since I have this now I figure I’ll keep my diet notes here. Okay… First – I don’t go on diets, I make changes to my diet. I’ve been on diets (practically all of them.) I’ve had different levels of success with each of the diets I’ve tried, but for the most part I’ve always gained back any weight I lost. The most success, measured by pounds lost, was probably on Atkins. But then, that’s also the only diet that has ever put me in the hospital. Take it from me, gout sucks.

I’ve tried some different experiments, mostly involving removing a particular item from my diet (normally for one month). I removed anything deep fried for several months, with great success. I have no idea what happened to that plan. At some point I was sitting in a chic-fil-a parking lot and I realized everything I was eating was deep fried. Oh well. I do want to get back to that, with the exceptions of occasional deep fried turkeys, maybe a fish-fry here and there, and an occasional trip to chic-fil-a. And some sweet potato fries. Damn. See, this is how hard it is for me. I can’t even commit to making a commitment to not eating deep fried foods.

I also mentioned in my recent Corn Free Week post how I try to avoid HFCS and transfats. I’m pretty good about avoiding those, or I’m at least very aware of it when I’m eating them. A few nights this week I let the HFCS ban go so I could take NyQuil. (Update: Tylenol PM has no HFCS, and has replaced NyQuil in my medicine cabinet.)

If I had to label what I wish my diet was, that label would be Paleo. In July I posted 27 Rules for Diets. In a perfect world I would follow those rules about 90% of the time. 90% because occasionally you just have to eat some cake.

So, where does my diet stand right now? I really have no idea. I baked a cake yesterday (below). Little known fact about baking – it’s really simple. As I mentioned I do try to avoid HFCS and transfats, but not really for dietary reasons. It’s not that either will make me fat, it’s just that I suspect they are both poison. Of course I don’t know for sure, as I mention in my comment back to the RCA rep.

I recently lost (badly) in the Finals of a 21-man Absolute gi division, after only getting 2 points scored on me all day. I was really pissed at myself because I was just too tired to fight that last match. I almost tapped out before the match started. I’m determined to not let that ever happen again. What I’m driving at here is I really want to lose 25 pounds and keep it off. The problem is, I have absolutely no will power. None. Zip. I never stick with anything, and particularly so when it has to do with diet and exercise.

I know one of the best and most effective things I could do is simply train more. I’ve wanted to get up to at least 3 days a week for a while now. It’s a reasonable goal, and I have no idea why I’m not there right now. Maybe if I post some specific goals here on my blog I’ll stick with them. Perhaps it will shame me into following through. We’ll see. I don’t want to commit to that right now.

Penzeys Raspberry Enlightenment Cake

Corn Free Week

Brian — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 19:18:52 +0000

Last week in the woods I decided I will take a week off from corn. 7 days, no corn in any form. This isn’t necessarily because I think corn is unhealthy, nor is it an overreaction to the new ads from the evil Corn Refiners Association about how great High Fructose Corn Syrup is.

No, this is about awareness. When I stopped eating High Fructose Corn Syrup and transfats I became much more aware of what I eat. I got really in to reading labels. Even if it turned out the CRA was right about HFCS or that basically everyone was wrong about transfats, that wouldn’t take away the benefits I’ve enjoyed by removing those products from my diet. That’s because HFCS and transfats are found in really sorry excuses for food. Removing those two ingredients from your diet means there’s hardly anything left to buy from a vending machine, as well as about 2/3 of 7-11. Most foods with either HFCS or transfats, and practically all foods with both will fail the Grandma Test – “If your grandmother wouldn’t recognize it as food, it isn’t food.”

So for one week I’m going to take my examination of what I eat to the next level by trying to find all the ways corn sneaks into my stomach.

Some corn ingredients I’ll be looking to avoid:
Corn Syrup
Corn Syrup Solids
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Modified corn starch
Corn Starch
Corn Meal / Corn Flour
Popcorn
Corn Oil
Corn Gluten
Bourbon
Baking powder
Citric Acid

Corn products I won’t be avoiding:
Pills – from what I’ve read it seems if you’re taking any sort of pill there’s some corn in it. It either binds it, stabilizes it, or makes the time-release deal happen. I’m not currently taking any pills, but if something comes up during my corn-free week I’m not going to refuse to take medicine.

Second generation corn products – Animals are fed corn, and I’ll be eating those animals.

Some products which may or may not contain corn, which I will ignore:
confectioner’s sugar
dextrin, maltodextrin
dextrose (glucose), fructose
invert sugar or invert syrup
mono- and di-glycerides
malt, malt syrup, malt extract
sorbitol
treacle
xanthan gum
ascorbic acid (vitamin C)
monosodium glutamate (MSG)

I don’t think it’s practical to include this last group because in most of these cases the products might have been made with corn, but they might have been made something else, and I’ll have no way to know.

Happy Thanksgiving

Brian — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 16:52:08 +0000

Give the internet a break, spend some time with your family today. Go eat a turkey or something. Frying a turkey? See my post, “Lessons of a first time turkey fryer.”

Lessons of a first time turkey fryer

Brian — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:17:59 +0000

24 hour brine – highly recommended
14 lb bird +12 people = no left overs
5 lbs of mashed potatoes isn’t very much
There are no drippings from deep frying, which complicates gravy
Cover during frying, or you’ll never hit the right temperature (350 degrees F)
Get the bird to room temp before you drop it in the oil.
Don’t actually drop it in the oil
If you have an electric fryer read the directions
Watch the episode of Good Eats about deep frying a turkey before you do anything else
If you’re going through all this trouble you might as well fry two turkeys
Peanut oil is ridiculously expensive
You need like 4 gallons of oil
Test your displacement with water before filling your fryer with oil (Thanks Archimedes)
Forget the whole flavor injection thing
Fry some other stuff while you have the fryer set up. Experiment.