On Gordon Ramsay

     I am not kidding when I say that Gordon Ramsay is one of the main reasons why I cook. I'm not talking the FOX TV Gordon Ramsay. I'm talking the BBC Gordon Ramsay.  If you've only watched Ramsay on FOX, all you've seen is a Scotsman screaming profanity. Don't get me wrong, he screams profanities on the BBC as well. However, he also imparts a great deal of useful cooking knowledge there as well.

Like when to use a nonstick pan.

     While much of what he cooks is complicated, with expensive, hard to find ingredients, he does do quite a bit of far less imposing cooking. His Cookalong Live series of videos on the Channel 4 website offer outstanding tips for the aspiring home cook. These videos walk you through everything from making pastry crusts, to cooking whole meals, to simply sharpening a knife. I also enjoy his show "The F Word." The format is like a variety show. It's hugely entertaining and each season follows him raising some animal or another to eat at the end of the season.  Good times.

     So what's the point of this little diatribe? Mostly to fill in the Friday post. But really, I'm babbling on about  Ramsay because it appears that he's honest and passionate about his cooking. He wants everything to be just right. And then there's a quote you'll hear endlessly: "Simple, honest food, made from locally grown ingredients". That's what I'm looking to do here. It doesn't have to be spectacularly complicated to be spectacularly good. Whatever it is you're cooking, just use the best ingredients you can and cook it right. Enjoy!