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first families' likes, dislikes By Nancy Stohs Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (MCT) White House chefs dish on County Faretasty Satiny, sweet and salty fresh WASHINGTON — As cities go, the nation's capital is as food newsworthy as any in this land. What with all those embassies keeping a spotlight on international cuisine, ever-present buzz about first family dining for- ays or official state dinners, the food policy role of the government, and a diverse restaurant scene, a food lover has no excuse to be bored. So it was for members of the Association of Food Journalists gathered here early this month for their annual conference. Regardless of party affiliation, election year or not, everybody wants to know what and how (and where) the first family eats. A panel of current and former White House chefs shed some delicious light on that subject. word for ham, but few other hams are so fine in texture and so delectable in flavor. The Serrano hams of Spain share some of the same characteristics, but nothing quite matches the rosy color, satiny smoothness and sweet, meaty flavor of the best Italian prosciutto. Prosciutto di Parma owes By Carole Kotkin The Miami Herald (MCT) Prosciutto is the Italian & own food. Groceries purchased for regular family meals are kept separate from those acquired for state dinners and other official functions, according to Cristeta Comerford, White House executive chef since August 2005. So yes, like most families, the Obamas do eat left- Little-known fact: The president's family pays for its And White House chefs have emphasized healthy cooking even before Michelle Obama's Let's Move! initiative and her efforts, such as the White House veg- etable garden (more on that in a few weeks), to encour- age Americans to eat better, Comerford said. For this elite group of chefs, cooking for a first fam- overs. ily — any first family — requires a special mind-set. "The White House is a house," said pastry chef Bill Yosses. "That was the biggest adjustment for me." "It's not about us as chefs," emphasized Comerford. "At the end of the day, you have to please the people you're cooking for." To that end, the chefs on the panel all could remem- ber dishes that a president asked them to never make again. For George H.W. Bush, it was a broccoli dish that Barbara insisted he would love, said Frank Ruta. ("Maybe she was setting me up, I don't know," he mused, referencing the president's well-known distaste for broccoli.) For Bill Clinton, it was pecan pie, recalled Roland Mesnier, White House pastry chef for 26 years starting in 1979. Feeling creative, Yosses once made a chocolate pecan pie for the Obamas. Not a hit. The first family also doesn't care for beets, Comerford learned after serving a dish of them once. Talk of state dinners revealed that White House cus- toms can and do change. A typical state dinner today consists of five courses served to 136 people, Comer- ford said. And they last exactly 55 minutes. Plating of dinners is done in the old family dining room because the kitchen is too small, she said. Although this is "the hardest part of the meal," she said, in full swing "we can crank out 50 plates in seven min- utes." When Ruta and Mesnier were in the White House, state dinners were not individually plated. They were served family style on large platters. Hillary Rodham Clinton ordered the change. spoken Mesnier, "because you can choose what you want. And the platters were always beautiful and festive. "I hate plate service. When that came to the White House, I really resented it. Most of my desserts were plattered to the very end." Asked if there were seconds at state dinners, Mes- "I think platter service is much nicer," said the out- nier was equally decisive. "No, there are no seconds and no doggy bags." have never denied a guest." "That's new," Mesnier said. One thing the chefs agreed on: For state dinners, there is no room for error. You have to get it right, every time, on time. But Comerford contradicted him with a smile: "We mother," Mesnier said. "You don't get a second chance." Usually, making and timing all of the dishes in "This is not the time to cry or call 911 or call your advance — a routine practice taken so the first lady and staff can sample them and make final choices — elim- inates any chance for error. egg whites, the chef explained. Turning to a clean bowl, he started again, this time to success. To speed up the cooking process, the soufflés were started on top of the stove and then put in the oven at the highest heat possible, he said. "We were ready just in time, down to the second," Mesnier recalled. "I still have nightmares about it." Questions about "first children" brought smiles and more stories. Amy Carter would make cookies, Ruta said. "She'd make a mess," Mesnier chimed in. "She'd put them in the oven and then go off and roller skate." Chelsea Clinton did indeed come down to the White House kitchen for cooking lessons before she left for college. He was making hot raspberry soufflés for a large state dinner serving 250. The egg whites wouldn't whip. He started over twice, dumping out both batches. And then he overheard the chef and sous chef talking about may- onnaise they had made that morning … It takes only three drops of residual oil to sabotage But when it came to the Obama girls, Yosses and Comerford were resolutely closemouthed, following the family's wishes. Yosses would say only that "the girls come down once in a while." Mesnier recalled that once he was called at home at midnight to return to the White House to bake and dec- orate a birthday cake for Chelsea, by then a college stu- dent at Stanford, and box it up special for her parents' early-morning flight. He did it without complaint. Said Mesnier: "You have to be fully dedicated if you work for the White House." its flavor to pigs fed corn, barley and other cereals as well as whey from the pro- duction of Parmigiano-Reg- giano cheese. During the curing coarse sea salt is applied to hams before they are hung to air dry, making it safe to eat without cooking. In Parma, prosciutto is sliced paper thin and served on an antipasto platter, wrapped around bread sticks or melon or eaten in pasta, omelets or sandwich- es. In the recipe here, adapt- ed from Mitchell Rosen- thal's Cooking My Way Back Home, it's used to take a Miami favorite to the next level. ——— BOB'S CUBANO WITH GRUYERE AND DILL PICKLE A malty, full-bodied German bock beer is perfect with this sandwich. MCT photo Adapted from Mitchell Rosenthales, "Cooking My Way Back Home," pro- sciutto takes this recipe for Bob's Cubano with Gruyere and dill pickle to the next level. roast pork sliced 6 torpedo rolls, split lengthwise (or six 6-inch sections from two loaves of Cuban bread, cut in half lengthwise) 1 pound thinly sliced Hot-dish insight Mayonnaise Dijon mustard Campbell's once noted that Minnesotans consume more "multi-use" soups, such as cream of mush- room, than do folks in any other region of the country. The reference was to using condensed cream of mush- room soup as the sauce in an easy hot dish. RECIPE STARTERS General Mills' Progresso has introduced a line of five canned Recipe Starters cooking sauces, sold next to its canned soups. They are creamy Parmesan basil, creamy roasted garlic, creamy three cheese, fire- roasted tomato and, of course, creamy portabella mushroom. The price of an 18-ounce can is essentially the same ($1.99 at one store) as an 18- or 19-ounce can of Progresso soup, and that seems reasonable, as it is essentially a can of soup. A 10 3⁄4-ounce can of Camp- bell's condensed cream of mushroom (diluted with water to 18 ounces) is $1.36 at that store. Mr. Tidbit was surprised Still, Mesnier came close to disaster once, he said. to find that the "easy week- night beef Stroganoff" recipe on the back of the Progresso sauce label — in addition to beef, chopped onions and the can of sauce — called for Worcestershire sauce, measured amounts of salt and pepper and sour cream. He would have thought that's what the can of sauce was for. SKILLET SAUCES No additions are called for with Campbell's six new aseptic-pouched Skillet Sauces: toasted sesame with garlic and ginger, creamy chipotle with roasted corn and black beans, scampi with white wine and garlic, Thai green curry with lemongrass and basil, marsala with mushrooms and garlic, and fire-roasted tomato with red bell peppers and chiles. The 9-ounce pouches, $2.29 at the same store, are labeled "just add" chicken, beef or shrimp, and the recipes on the back call for nothing more than browning the meat, adding the sauce and cooking. 12 slices prosciutto 12 slices Gruyere cheese 1 large dill pickle, sliced 4 pickled jalapenos, Unsalted butter, at room temperature Place the rolls, cut sides up, on a work surface, and spread with mayonnaise and then mustard. Divide the pork slices evenly among the rolls, placing them on the bottom half. Top with 2 prosciutto slices and 2 cheese slices. Divide the dill pickle and pickled 8049 Hwy 99E, Los Molinos, CA We Accept EBT "Your Family Supermarket" BLACK CANYON ANGUS BEEF WE FEATURE We appreciate your business - and we show it! HOURS: 7AM - 9 PM DAILY SPECIALLY CUT MEATS AT NO EXTRA CHARGE Prices good Sept. 26 - Oct. 2, 2012 Watch For List of Items in Next Week's Daily News Meat Bonanza October 13th Annual Fall Shoulder Butt Roasts Bone-In Pork Fresh Meat Specials Rib Steak Bone-In Beef Bagged Fryers Bone-In Country Style Pork Ribs • 8am-5pm Sea Best Tilapia Fillets 1 lb. package jalapeno slices evenly among the sandwiches. Close the sandwiches with the roll tops. Smear the top and bot- tom of each sandwich with the butter. Heat a large fry- ing pan over medium heat. Add as many sandwiches as will fit comfortably and heat for 3 to 4 minutes, or until browned on the first side. Carefully flip the sandwich- es over and place a sand- wich press (or a brick cov- ered with aluminum foil) on top. Cook for 1 minute, then transfer to a sheet pan. wiches have been browned, put the sheet pan in the oven for about 6 minutes, until the sandwiches are hot throughout. Serve at once. Makes 6 sandwiches Source: Adapted from "Cooking My Way Back Home" by Mitchell Rosen- thal (Ten Speed, $35). Per sandwich: 456 calo- ries (49 percent from fat), 24 g fat (10.5g saturated, 10 g monounsaturated), 106 mg cholesterol, 38 g pro- tein, 20 g carbohydrates, 2 g fiber, 866 mg sodium. When all of the sand- 384-1563 STAMPS ACCEPT FOOD WE REQUIRED FOR EVERYDAY LOW PRICING OR SALE ITEMS NO CARDS Wednesday, September 26, 2012 – Daily News 3C $179 lb. Fiber Rich, Broccoli Crowns 99¢ lb. New Crop, D'Anjou or Gold Bosc Pears 99¢ lb. Coffee 27.8-33.9 oz. Folger's 99¢ Crystal Geyser Water 24 pack 1/2 liter Produce Specials Premium $699 lb New Crop, Large- Fuji Apples Salads 6-12 oz. bags lb. Grocery Specials Honey Nut $129 lb. General Mills Cheerios 12.25 oz. 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