The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Working the Dining A Cruise Ship Tale Going on a cruise ship can be a mixed bag of experiences. On one hand, you have a multitude of service personnel who are dedicated to you having a wonderful vacation, one that is not only memorable but also safe. On the other hand, you…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Cobblers, Crisps, and Buckles This is one of those desserts that can be a game changer for your holiday feast, but you need to do a bit of planning and execution to pull it off. Make a splash this holiday season, and create your own cobbler, crisp, or buckle. It may not…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed The Snackle Box (Patent Pending!) Is your lunch bag getting a bit boring? Or is lunch in a sit-down restaurant getting too expensive? Let’s face it, even fast food is putting a dent in our wallets! So, why not give a Snackle Box (Patent Pending) a chance? Put a little variety and…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Mead Maker . “When Odin drank of the song-mead he composed poems which for sweetness and grandeur have never been surpassed. He was the first poet and knew well the magic of the mead. For the source of it was secret, and was discovered only by Ivalde, the watchman of the primeval…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed .Grits Not many people will agree with me, but I will say it: I like grits. If they are on the menu, I will order them. Unfortunately, they have been fighting a bad rap since they were probably first made. But hot grits with a pat of butter is good. Stir in…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck ReedThe word “mycology” refers to the study of fungi, which is another word for mushrooms. You don’t really need to study mushrooms to appreciate them or enjoy what they bring to the culinary world. But in case you need to know, or are ever on Jeopardy and the category comes up, below are…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Old Bay…It’s a Maryland Thang, Hon Maryland and, more importantly, the Chesapeake Bay has firmly established itself as a kingdom of seafood. We are known for our oysters, shrimp, and, of course, our Maryland crabs. And, what real Marylander doesn’t know that crabs are firmly linked to Old Bay seasoning? I would…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Food Rants. PERIOD.F Okay, I have been writing this article for a while now, and I normally am a pretty happy-go-lucky kind of guy. For well over six years, I have been sharing my thoughts on a variety of food topics without any malice or thought toward any specific subject and usually…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Bean Nation I may have said this before, but that never stopped me from saying something twice: All traditional cuisine is not national, but instead, it is regional. That is to say, crêpes might be French, but that doesn’t mean all the people of France eat their crêpes the same way. So,…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed For me, the best meals are the ones made simple. Yes, I like steak and lobster as much as the next person, and I can appreciate a wonderful sauce on a painstakingly made dish. But, for me, I really enjoy simple, well-made meals. Simple means uncomplicated, and it also means nowhere to…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed A Crawfish Tale During the 1600s, two very distinct people immigrated to the Americas from France. One went to New Orleans, where they found industry and prosperity. The first generation to be born here were dubbed the Creoles. The second group went to Acadia in Canada to look for their fortune. Instead,…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Rocking Ramen It is a well-known fact that every ancient civilization made some form of alcoholic beverage—let’s call it beer, if they were going to advance that culture (I will make the case in a future article!). No one person in these societies is credited with inventing this beverage. Every single one…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Rocking Ramen Ramen is on the rise. Given that it is an inexpensive dish that is easily elevated, it is understandable that we will be seeing it on more restaurant menus, and more Ramen shops will be opening soon. This elegant dish will no longer be relegated to broke college students. And,…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Perfect Pie Crust If the kitchen were a concert hall, then cooking and baking would be very different music. Cooking would be Rock and Roll, in that it is based on musical talent that has no real or consistent structure. There are rules but not really written in stone. But if we…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed A Berry Summer As I have written before, the summer brings an abundance of wonderful things to our table. We have grilled foods from our backyard, seafood from the oceans, and flowers for our centerpieces. But we should not overlook the wonderful fruits that we find in abundance at this time of…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed A Brief Conversation About Beer For the record, I am doing almost no fact checking on this article. These are all thoughts and ideas from the Wise Beer Council of…..well, of just about anywhere they meet. Currently, they can be found at The Flying Barrel and the establishment next door, Monocacy Brewing…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Seafood The Grill You don’t need a calendar to tell you that the weather is warmer, and once the rain subsides, it’s grilling time. Now, there are the usual hamburgers and hot dogs options, which are pretty good reasons to fire up the charcoal, and even a steak or chicken can be…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Sandwich Hall of Fame Bread might be considered the “staff of life,” but at no time is it more popular than when we place it around another food, accompanied by a smattering of condiments and adorned with lettuce, tomato, and onion. The sandwich might very well be the game changer that may…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed I Like Pork Butts I know that someday I will have to write an article about the proper way to serve crickets and meal worms. Of course, I will include information on how to prepare the bugs, what wine goes best with them, their nutritional value, and, more importantly, how to properly…
The Supermarket Gourmet
by Buck Reed Guidelines for Cooking with Nuts I would bet that when mankind first walked the earth from his former home in the trees, the first time he used a tool was to crack open the shell of a nut. Okay, maybe he used a stick, a stick with a pointy end, to kill…
