Gettin' Pickled

I'm not sure where the expression came from that associates intoxication with pickling but it is easy to see the broader picture. Cool, crisp, unassuming little cucumbers are sitting there minding their own business when some scalding hot vinegar, infused with spices washes over them to begin the process of transformation. Those little cukes marinate in the magical vinegar concoction like the days troubles on ice in a bath of Tennessee whiskey.

Recently we were fortunate enough to come into a few cucumbers from our good friends at Jones Valley Urban Farm. Those little beauties found their way into the mystical brew of vinegar and spices. Well, after enough marination they ended up at Blackberry Farm in Walland, TN no longer cucumbers but homegrown Alabama pickles. Like all good things, how the pickles were made and why they ended up at Blackberry are largely irrelevant to the fact that they showed up in the right place at the right time. In other words, cool as cucumbers, they were there for the party.

Keepin' It Real

Well the time is rapidly approaching for the little circus we call Jim 'N Nick's to hit the road again and move on down the road to complete our 2009 coast to coast summer tour. This time a new honor has been bestowed upon us by way of an invitation to participate in the Eat Real Festival in Oakland, CA (www.eatrealfest.com/streeteats). This street fair will turn cooks like us into roadside attractions with offerings rich and diverse that form a culinary tapestry made up of sustainable and local ingredients testifying to what real food is all about.

Keep your eyes, ears and gullet tuned in for updates from the road as we go forth with a vagabond spirit and a hunger that will only be satisfied by the gastronomical jewels strung out along the great American highway.

Cool As A Cucumber

"Cool as a cucumber, cool as a cucumber...who knows why cucumbers are cool"? This was the question Chef Michelle posed to our young culinary class and the answer that I gave him was that cucumbers are generally 20 degrees cooler internally than their external temperature. Once he realized that I had the answer because of a friend in a previous class he deemed me as sneaky. He also said that might be a quality that would be advantageous to me later in my career.

Regardless of the Frenchman's commentary on my means of satisfying his curiosity, the humble cucumber has been a favorite vegetable of mine since that exchange. We enjoy them now at Jim 'N Nick's in salads and also have a particularly satisfying salad of cucumber, tomato and red onion marinated in our vinaigrette that is a favorite of our summer time offerings.

The snapshot attachesd is of a myriad variety of cucumbers harvested from Jones Valley Urban Farm. These beauties are on their way to becoming bread and butter slices that will crown a feast of whole hog barbecue. They are crisp and refreshing but at the same time a perfect canvass for sweetness and acidity to cut right through rich, meaty, whole hog barbeuce. The bonus that they are local and from our friends at Jones Valley just adds to why they are so special and why we should appreciate their summer time offering.

Local Yokels

This post is a little late but recently I had the opportunity to enjoy some tomatoes from the Mt. Laurel outpost of the Jones Valley Urban Farm. Heirloom tomatoes for me are representative of all that is good about local, sustainable food that has a history. When the summer sun is at its fiery peak and the rain is lacking just enough you take the rich soil of Alabama's black belt and get some tomatoes that are so sweet, so meaty and have this acidity that is so perfect you don't want anything to eat but tomatoes. They are the crown jewel of the season that gives us our best produce of the whole year.

I can't finish this post without again giving note to Jones Valley Urban Farm. The work being done there by Edwin Marty may prove to be one of the most dynamic and influencing factors in the food culture of Birmingham and the South that has come about to date. I don't doubt that the good work done there will soon impact the whole nation. Check them out at www.jvuf.org.

Here's to the Hops!

Need a good reason to have a beer? Neither do we! But just in case you do check out the Music City Brewer's Festival in Nashville, TN. The festival supports the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee which does awesome work. We'll be there showing our support by serving up some Q and we all know that nothing compliments some tender smoky meat like a frothy head on a tall, cold beer.
Check it out, http://www.musiccitybrewersfest.com/.

Spread the Love

It seems that there is a kind of renaissance happening with pimento cheese. For whatever reason the mainstay of church picnics and ladies luncheons has gained popularity amongst chefs and foodies and it seems that everyone now wants to cast their vote as to what the best recipe is. People are debating over sharp or mild cheese, pimentos from a jar or fresh roasted peppers, spicy or not and on into the most appropriate method of consumption. For what it's worth in this little meditation, I don't care to debate over who's better and who's best.

The pimento cheese dialog going on right now has me thinking about something James Beard said. He observes, "Food is our common ground, a universal experience". I think that pimento cheese, from all walks, deserves a spot on the table of the common ground of our universal experience. The greatness of pimento cheese lies in it's diversity. It's not unique to one racial or ethnic group. The flavors are as unique as the people who craft their individual recipes. When someone offers up a bowl of pimento cheese at a social gathering or an intimate meal then the occasion immediately becomes comfortably special. Just thinking about pimento cheese sort of conjurs up the images of easy afternoons with some saltines, sweet tea and conversations that can drift off in any direction. Those are the times we find our common ground.

Inside the walls of our restaurant we certainly have our recipe and reasons for making pimento cheese the way we do but once it leaves the kitchen we hope the tables it occupies are places where folks can have those easy experiences that make life a little richer. We also hope that wherever people are in the pimento cheese conversation they will help spread the love to just a few more folks.

The Great Debate

In the aftermath of the 4th of July the great debate of what barbecue is best has been on my mind. My simple answer is all of it. I love pulled pork, beef brisket, chicken, sausage and all the rest of the meaty morsels that time, patience and smoke turn into magical gems. But I also like to look around and see what folks eat when barbecue is in the spotlight of a major pork holiday or when the occasion may call for something more than the humble sandwich. The obvious cut that comes to my mind is the spare rib. Taken from the same part of the animal that the king of cured Southern meats comes from you get a case study in rich, tender, full flavored pork. By the way, I'm referencing bacon there although some folks would make an argument for country ham. The first bite of a spare rib that is perfectly caramelized by fire and smoke on the surface is like meeting the love of your life again for the very first time. The perfect mahogany crust that yields to the rich, tender meat between the bones is to me the pitmasters culinary opus that calls me back time and again despite the conventional wisdom of my doctor telling me to trade porcine pleasure for a salad and a membership at the YMCA.
The debate will rage on and opinions are as numerous as the barbecue pits painted across the landscape of the South. As a good pilgrim on the barbecue trail I'll keep my prejudices at bay as I eat my way forward but I'll make sure to request a side of spare ribs where ever the noble bones are offered. Next time you stop by one of our little spaces in the world feel free to weigh in.