BBQ Recipes: Lemon Leeks

Since I posted the recipe for Confetti-Filled Ham Spirals from Sublime Smoke by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison, I thought I should also post their recipe for Lemon Leeks. I'm trying this out for the first time this Thanksgiving, but I think they'll make a nice change from the pearl onions in cream sauce that no one eats except my mother eats.

Lemon Leeks
Serves 3 to 6

Vinaigrette

• 6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 Large shallot, minced
• 1/2 Teaspoon prepared Dijon Mustard
• 1/4 Teaspoon coarse Salt
• Generous grinding of black pepper

6 Medium Leeks, trimmed of roots
Minced fresh Flat Leaf Parsley for garnish

Combine the vinaigrette ingredients in a lidded jar and reserve at room temperature.
Bring your smoker to its appropriate cooking temperature.

Place leeks in a steamer. Steam the leeks on the stove over high heat for 5 minutes, after the water has begun to boil. Remove leeks from steamer and brush the leeks thoroughly with the vinaigrette and transfer them to the smoker.

Cook the leeks until they are very tender, about 20 to 25 minutes at a temperature of 225 to 250 degrees.

Remove the leeks from the smoker, drizzle more vinaigrette over the leeks and top with a scattering of parsley. Serve warm. Leftovers are good warm or chilled.

RUB - No, not like that!

I was just listening to Food Talk on WOR 71 radio, and the host Michael Colameco and Ed Levine were discussing a recent dinner they enjoyed at Paul Kirk & Andrew Fischel's RUB restaurant. Josh Ozersky from Grub Street and Rob Richter from the soon to be opened Hill Country restaurant and competitor at Grillin' On The Bay were also in attendance. (Boys, I must have missed the phone call.)

Mike and Ed were raving about the recent addition of spicy bacon to the menu (damn good stuff if I say so myself) and how Andrew and Scottie, pitmaster at RUB, keep the smokers full with a wide variety of offerings. From Peking duck to turkey to the more traditional items like brisket and ribs, RUB's menu offers something for everyone.

But then, Ed Levine let loose the ultimate compliment (?) - "Andrew at RUB is a barbecue slut." I haven't laughed out loud at the radio in a very long long time. I can't wait to see what Andrew thinks about this!

Potatoes In Space......

While, you'd probably expect a story about pigs in space on a barbeque blog, here's an interesting story, courtesy of the AP, about how the Chinese are eating and enjoying mutated space potatoes in the trendiest restaurants of Shanghai.

SHANGHAI, China (AP) -- Having boldly gone where no spud has before, Chinese space potatoes are now the latest culinary fad to hit the country's ultra-trendy commercial hub of Shanghai.

Slightly sweet and purple in color, the potatoes, named Purple Orchid Three, are bred from seeds that mutated while being carried aboard a Chinese spacecraft, the Shanghai Daily newspaper reported Monday.

Grower Haikou Purple Orchid Co. Ltd. is promoting them as a unique food option, and restaurants in the city are offering them for Valentine's Day dinners, served crispy fried, or in salads, desserts and even iced drinks, the newspaper said.

China's space program claims to have produced numerous mutated fruits and vegetables by exposing seeds to space radiation, capsule pressure and weightlessness.

Chinese agricultural experts say plants grown from such seeds can be hardier, more nutritious and produce higher yields, although many scientists say similar effects could be achieved in ordinary laboratories.

The space program, which has successfully completed two manned missions, is a source of massive national pride for China, and companies marketing everything from milk to magazines have bought the rights to be endorsed by it.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.