My Dad, part 1: Shotguns, Jon boats, and alligators don’t mix

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Dan

This story is one that my dad told a lot.  I have no first person knowledge of this story as I wasn’t born yet.  This happened when my dad was a teen.  My dad grew up on northern Louisiana in the 40s-50s, and was very poor.  His family lived mostly off of what they could catch/kill when hunting and fishing.  This is a story of my dad and grandfather, Steve Gilmore, who we referred to as Papaw (pronounced PAP-aw).

Continue reading →

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Seared scallops over angel hair pasta with sauce

Posted on August 5, 2010 by Dan

The full name of the dish is seared seasoned scallops over angel hair pasta in a basil, butter, and garlic sauce, but damn, that makes for a REALLY long title.  I was sent this recipe from a friend, Rose (register on my blogs and I can link to you!), and I embellished a little from her recipe. Continue reading →

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My Dad: How I Survived Growing Up with a Redneck

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Dan

My Dad, Don Wilson Gilmore, was an amazing man.  I don’t have the adjectives to describe him truly, so “awesome” is what I’m going with.

In the years that he’s passed on, I’ve found that telling stories about him is kind of an internal therapy for me.  He was a hard man, but a fair one.  He grew up in a rural and poor parish in Louisiana, spent over 20 years in the U.S. Army, was a loving husband to my mom for 32 years and what I’d consider a perfect father for the first 25 years of my life.  From my memories, he’s still “teaching” me to this day.

I’ve been considering writing up some stories about him for years, and the other day at work I was in a chatroom discussing how we (folks my age) should be dead because of what we’d done when we were kids, and how our parents raised us differently from folks nowadays.  Back then, we’d leave the house in the summer around 9am to play in the woods, play in a creek, ride bikes, etc, until dinner time.  If you weren’t at the table at 6pm, you didn’t eat.  Simple as that.

I typed up a quick anecdote about one Independence Day party from my youth that involved my Dad, some gunpowder, and a Centrum bottle.  I actually had one person say “Dan, your dad was AWESOME”.  Now, I’ve never met the person that said this in person, but when I looked through what I’d typed, it hit me that “yeah, he was awesome”, and more importantly, the world would be a better place if more folks had met him.  It really had a profound effect on me.

With all that said, I’m going to try to write up some funny stories about me living with a gun toting, beer drinking, safety ignoring father, and how much I really learned from him.

“Hey son, hold my beer and watch this shit” was something I heard a lot…

Stories I need to get out there:

  • When an alligator swims under your jon boat, a .12 gauge is NOT the best solution
  • Gunpowder and a Centrum bottle
  • If you’re a blood relative, you’ll get smacked
  • When celebrating NYE, don’t shoot your .44 magnum Ruger Redhawk in the air.  Don’t shoot it in the front yard either.
  • Practicing bow hunting might make neighbors think the Apaches are attacking
  • How to remove a dead pine tree stump, 80s redneck style
  • When your expensive prized show/breeding dog is going into emergency C-section, “Nature will take its course” is NOT the best response to your wife
  • Drinking 55+ exploding bottles of home-brew beer is not the best way to prevent wasting beer
  • ….and many more
Posted in My Dad, Personal | 5 Comments

Butterflied Cuban Style Pork Chops

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Dan

I love me some Cuban sammiches.  You know, the pork, pickle, cheese and spices.  Courtesy of the Food Network, I made that quick sammich snack into a nice grillable meal.

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 cup orange juice
  • 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh oregano leaves
  • 10 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 4 (8-ish ounce pork chops, butterflied and thinly pounded)
  • Salt and ground black pepper
  • 8 (1/4 inch) thick slices Swiss cheese
  • 8 (1/4 inch) thick slices boiled ham
  • 2 sour dill pickles, thinly sliced (need about 16 slices)
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Instructions:

  • Heat grill to high
  • Whisk together 1/2 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup lime juice, 3 tablespoons oregano, garlic, cumin, and vegetable oil in a large baking dish.
  • Add pork and turn to coat.
  • Cover and let marinate for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours in the refrigerator.
  • Remove pork from the marinade and pat dry.
  • Place chops on flat surface, cut-side up, and season with salt and pepper.
  • Place 1 slice of cheese, 2 slices of ham, and a few slices of pickle and another slice of cheese on one half of the chop.
  • Fold over, brush the top with oil and season with salt and pepper.
  • Repeat with remaining ingredients.
  • Place chops on grill, oil side down and grill until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes.
  • Flip chops over and continue grilling til the bottom is golden brown and the cheese has melted, 2-3 minutes longer.
  • Whisk the remaining orange and lime juices, oregano, and the cilantro with the olive oil and salt and pepper, to taste.
  • Spoon over the chops and serve.
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Beef Stroganoff (with leftover steak)

Posted on July 19, 2010 by Dan

I tend to cook stuff and not look at the serving amount.  I’ll see a recipe I want to try and just cook it for Nancy and myself.  We’ll then have 2-3 days worth of leftovers.  Oops.  So, the last time I made a nice London broil, I had a little more than a pound of seasoned and cooked meat left over.  I decided that the beef would be good in a nice stroganoff, so here goes.

Ingredients:

  • 1-1 1/4 lbs cooked London broil (in my case), or sirloin steak tips, cut lengthwise with the grain in small 1/4 inch strips
  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 1 lb white mushrooms
  • 2 teaspoons hot water
  • 1 tablespoon dry mustard
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • Ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped fine (about a cup)
  • table salt
  • 2 teaspoons tomato paste
  • 4 teaspoons flour
  • 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon white wine or dry vermouth
  • 1 1/2 cups beef broth (in a pinch, I’ll use the cubed broth)
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
  • Boiled egg noodles, or mashed taters (to serve the beef and sauce over)

Instructions:

  1. Marinate the beef in soy sauce for 15 minutes to an hour.
  2. Quarter the shrooms and place in a microwavable bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.  Microwave on high until shrooms have decreased in volume by half, 4-5 minutes.  Drain shrooms and set aside, discarding liquid.
  3. Combine water, mustard, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper in a small bowl until a smooth paste forms.  Set this aside.
  4. Pat steaks dry, and season to your liking with pepper.
  5. Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking.
  6. Place steak pieces in skillet and cook until heated (remember, you already should be using cooked meat).  Transfer meat to large plate and set aside while cooking the sauce.
  7. Add shrooms, onion, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to skillet and cook until the veggies are browning and begin to stick, about 6-8 minutes.
  8. Add tomato paste and flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the shrooms and onions are coated, about a minute.
  9. Stir in 1/3 cup of wine, the broth, and the mustard paste and bring to a simmer, scraping the bottom of pan with a wooden spoon to get the good brown bits.
  10. Reduce heat to medium and cook until the sauce reduces and thickens, about 4-6 minutes.
  11. Stir the meat into the sauce and cook till the meat is warmed through, about 1-2 minutes.
  12. Remove pan from heat and let any boiling/bubbles subside.
  13. Stir in sour cream and remaining tablespoon of wine, season with salt and pepper.
  14. Sprinkle with parsley and serve over noodles or taters.
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Crab Cakes

Posted on June 2, 2010 by Dan

CrabcakesHaving lived here in Maryland for the last 14 years, I’ve had my share of crab cakes, both good and bad.  I don’t believe I’ve ever had a bad crab cake that was homemade, but once you start trying restaurant cakes, you are bound to run into trouble.  Seriously, Applebee’s had crab cakes for a while….shudder.

I’ve made this a couple times, the last time for what turned out to be the end of the Baltimore Raven’s season in their loss to the Indianapolis Colts.  I fired up a HUGE batch of crab cakes for the viewing party, and there wasn’t even a piece of breading left on the serving tray when done.

This recipe is pretty simple, but if there’s one thing I need to reinforce to my readers is this:  Your crab cakes are only as good as your crab.  When I make them, I usually use jumbo lump crab meat.  The cheapest I’ve found them is around $21.99 a pound.  Yes, it’s expensive, but it’s totally worth it.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 pound crab meat, picked free of shells
  • 1/3 cup crushed Ritz or Townhouse crackers
  • 3 green onions (green and white parts), finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped bell pepper
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • Dash cayenne pepper
  • Flour, for dusting
  • 1/2 cup peanut oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients, except for the flour and peanut oil. Shape into patties and dust with flour.
  2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot, carefully place crab cakes, in batches, in pan and fry until browned, about 4 to 5 minutes. Carefully flip crab cakes and fry on other side until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Serve warm with preferred sauce.
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Bolognese sauce

Posted on June 1, 2010 by Dan

Bolognese sauce, or ragù alla bolognese, is a meat based Italian sauce I use for a lot of pasta dishes.   This is another borrowed recipe from Cook’s Illustrated, but bastardized to my own invention.  Cook’s Illustrated’s version of this ragu was in their recipe for Lasagna Bolognese.  Lasagna Bolognese is a meat sauce lasagna, prepared without the typical ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese you’re accustomed to.  I loved the lasagna Bolognese recipe so much, I adapted its sauce to all of my other meat/tomato-based pasta dishes.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 8oz (half pound) ground beef
  • 8oz (half pound) ground pork
  • 8oz (half pound) ground veal
  • 1 medium carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 medium celery rib, roughly chopped
  • 1 small onion, roughly chopped
  • 1 28oz can whole tomatoes (with the canned juice)
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 1 1/2 cups dry white wine
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon table salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic*
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seed**

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Take off any rings you have on your fingers.  Add all three meats to the bowl and mix together with your hands.
  2. Put carrots, celery, and onion into food processor.  Chop this mixture with about 10 1-second pulses.  Transfer mixture to a small bowl, and make sure you wipe out the processor bowl into the small bowl.
  3. Add the tomatoes to the processor and chop them so that the tomato pieces are really small, again, about 10 1-second pulses.
  4. Heat a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium heat and add butter.
  5. Once butter is JUST about to start turning brown and start foaming, add the carrot/celery/onion mix.  Add garlic.  Stir occasionally until softened but not browned, about 4 minutes.
  6. Add the meat mixture and cook, breaking the meat into a minimum of 1-each pieces with a wooden spoon, about a minute.
  7. Add the milk, and stir, breaking the meat down further to about one half inch pieces.  Bring to a simmer and cook until almost all liquid has evaporated.  This will take 30-40 minutes.
  8. Once the milky liquid has evaporated, use a potato masher or wooden spoon to break up the meat further
  9. Add wine and bring to simmer
  10. Cook 30-40 minutes, stirring every 10-ish minutes.  Make sure to lower the heat if you start seeing burnt pieces on the bottom of the Dutch oven.
  11. Stir in tomato paste until combined, about 1 minute
  12. Add the tomatoes, salt and pepper
  13. Add fennel seed
  14. Bring to simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook until sauce is thickened, about 15-20 minutes.  Make sure to stir every 5-10 minutes to make sure you’re not burning something on the bottom

You now have an authentic(-ish) meat ragu.  I typically make this recipe when making spaghetti, and it’s been a hit. There are a few variations you can do, i.e., mushrooms.  If using canned mushrooms, add one small can after adding the tomatoes (step 12).  If using fresh sliced mushrooms (8oz pack), sautee the mushrooms along with the carrots/celery/onion/garlic mix.

* – The recipe didn’t call for any garlic, and for an Italian recipe, I called shenanigans on it not calling for garlic and added some.  I, my wife, and the friends I cook for, all love garlic.  I cook with an abundance of garlic.

** – This recipe also didn’t call for any fennel seed, and I think that all tomato-based Italian sauces need fennel.  It’s just my taste, but I think you’ll enjoy it.

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Caesar Salad

Posted on June 1, 2010 by Dan

I’m not a fan of Caesar Salad at most restaurants.  It is usually just some old romaine lettuce and a bland dressing with some Parmesan cheese thrown on top.  It wasn’t until I found this recipe at Cooks Illustrated that I truly enjoyed this salad.  As a testament to how much we loved this recipe, we decided to add romaine lettuce to our first ever garden this year.

By the way, eight romaine lettuce plants is a TON of lettuce.  Seriously…if you are a neighbor or work with me, let me know if you want any lettuce.  It’s getting to the point that I’m going to have to start clipping leaves and throwing them away.

Ingredients:

  • 1 large egg
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice (either from a fresh lemon or from a bottle)
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon table salt
  • 8 grindings ground black pepper
  • 1 small clove of garlic (I use a lot more, I love garlic)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste
  • 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 medium heads romaine lettuce, torn into smaller pieces
  • 1/3 cup grated Parmesan-Reggiano cheese
  • Store-bought croutons

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Bring some water to boil in a small saucepan.
  2. While water is boiling, combine lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, garlic, and anchovy paste in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk until smooth.
  3. Place egg in boiling water and cook for 45 seconds.  Remove with slotted spoon.  When cool enough to handle, crack egg into mixing bowl.
  4. Slowly add oil in a slow, steady stream, whisking until smooth.
  5. Put lettuce in large bowl, drizzle with half of the dressing, tossing to coat.  Add cheese and remaining dressing, however many croutons you want, and toss it around a bit more.

If you want, at the end you can add two grilled boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced into half-inch.

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Matrix-esque music

Posted on March 22, 2010 by Dan

How sad is it that the music from the second and third Matrix movies were better than the movies themselves?  Well, with that in mind, I’ve dabbled a bit more in the electronica genre of creating music.  I really love Rob Dougan and the work he did on the both the first and second movies’ soundtrack’s.  I decided to attempt a partial cover/interpretation of his song “Clubbed to Death“, which is featured in the original movie.  Linked below is my attempt at pure MIDI music arrangement, clocking in at a whopping 1min 53sec.

The sound quality is really good on my local machine when I’m listening to the non-squashed raw data.  The MP3 version sucks quality-wise…something I need to work on.

“Copied To Death” by Dan Gilmore, inspired a LOT by Rob Dougan

Hope you enjoy.

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To the Military: Betray your fellow man

Posted on March 20, 2010 by Dan

The Teaparty’s Movement is Treason?

A colleague of mine on Facebook posted a blurb about the Tea Party Movement (TPM from here on out) and his view was summed up with one view: Ugh.  I made a genuinely immature comment referencing “teabagging” (no linking there), and thought nothing of it.  A few hours later, one of his Facebook friends posted a response, the colleague responded, and then the colleague’s friend responded in length, supporting the TPM.  I read the response four times, and retyped my response about 10 times before I decided to take it here.  I didn’t want to derail his post with a political discussion, as it’s my colleague’s wall, not mine.  I simply posted:

have you ever read someone else’s thread and been so moved to write something that might derail it just because you believe something so strongly? Yeah, that’s what I feel right now, but after XXXXXX’s latest post, I’ll take the high road too. Definitely something I’ll post about later.

What would have spun me up so much at 1:27am on a Satur – er…Sunday morning to go grab another beer, put on some music, light up another smoke and type up this blog post?  Well, here’s the direct quote that pissed me off:

Some tea-party folks may be pro-military, couldn’t say as I haven’t met them all. But that’s not for lack of trying. Nevertheless, I suppose that’s why they are staunchly non-interventionist like myself. As an infantry rifleman, I carried a rifle in defense of this country’s constitution. That experience compels me to demand all of our troops stand-down from every FOB and theaters of operation around the world.

(the bolding is my own)

As a veteran of the US Navy, having signed (literally) my life away to the US Government, I took GREAT offense.  How dare you, sir.  How DARE you!  Just because you were part of the military at some point in time gives you absolutely no right to sit on the sidelines (like me) and try to be a Monday morning quarterback.  There are machinations in place that you have no access or clue to knowing about. Just because you have experience in the military (and I’m not knocking that in any way) doesn’t mean you have any idea of what is truly going on in the current military.

With that statement, you are asking the very soldiers –the same ones that risk their lives to provide the freedom of speech for you to spout your rhetoric — to stand down and walk away from the responsibility that most of them would die to uphold.  If you got what you wanted, a Pvt would walk away from his gate guard duty, leaving his command open for attack.  An HM1 would leave the Marine Battalion he was assigned to and leave the DevilDogs to fend for themselves the next time they came under fire.  You’d have that Air Force intel analyst readily ignore the intelligence he was reading that might save fellow soldiers/shipmates/airmen.

Demanding troops to stand down from every forward operating base and theater of operation is irresponsible at best, and treason at worst.  I don’t know if my colleague’s friend is bitter against the military and adamantly against it.  Even on my worst day in the Navy, I’d never resort to what I see as him sowing descension among the ranks of heroes that try to preserve our country.

Just to clarify a point: I’m all for calling out our government when I see it doing wrong, but I’ll never, EVER, put another person on the line just to get my political view across to another person.  I served eight years in order for assholes like the Westboro Baptist Church to spew their hate.  The TPM can say what they want to say, and I’d have died for their right to say it.  Now it’s my time, since I have a website of my own, to challenge the bullshit spouted by members of groups that may (or may not) be genuinely out for the good of America.

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