Cheers Internet!

Hi internets, its been a while. Have you missed me? I think that I’ve missed you more.

Scenario: Me thinks my blog had turned into this little elephant in the corner of my living room. It was so cute; with it’s pretty pictures, gold framed borders, and sassy recipes. Awww so freaking cute! But instead of feeding my cute little elephant in the room, big wordy meals, all I did was take pictures of more and more food that I made, neglecting the feedings and then DAMNIT. I starved my elephant, it was emaciated. How terrible am I? It was this happy cute elephant in my living room and SHIT, well shit.

Realization: Oh crap haven’t written in a while. MUST FOCUS. I need to think about what is important to me. Food, I love food. FOOD FOOD FOOD. It’s what I spend all of my hard earned money on. I take endless pictures of what goes into my stomach. I read magazines solely devoted to what I love. I buy cookbooks just because they make me drool. I work hard to ever-complicate my dinners just because I saw an ingredient that I swore could be put to use somehow. I even work near food! GET BACK ON TRACK WOMAN. Food will always be there, your fingers typing endlessly, will not be...unless you make them. Crack that whip, get that monkey to hop back on! 

Where to start GildedGrease, where to start? Right! GOT IT! My holiday. So I just took a vacation by myself to “The Europes” (as I say with a funny smile). Apparently when you are just in the U.K. people tend to not exactly think of themselves as from “The Europes” so much as just a separate cellar-temp ale drinking, sarcastic, chill -Island society. I found out that I’m quite okay with that. Do as the locals do. Especially- do not be the terrible American tourist that they all think I am going to be. “What a twat” they’d say. NO mustn’t be an American twat. Get in the “queue,” look to the right first when coming to an intersection, say “yes please” when they offer you Ribena and drink the whole glass even if it tastes like Kool-Aid. (In London, they’ve already taken care of the traffic-twat problem, they’ve written, right on the pavement, which way to turn your head when you get to a street’s edge. God how I love the British.) Any who immerse yourself in the land and kindly tell them you are American even if they went for Canadian on the first go (as to not offend.) HAHA British peeps, I’m half Canadian. But come on, I don’t get a freebie here, I don’t live in Canada, it’s just my mum. But, once those first syllables come out “Ah-mer...”  I’m fucked. But I did my best to be the good one. The one who is from the NorthWest, the one who is really not like the rest. Not to boast, but overall, I made out well. Funny thing about the Brits, they are not keen on using my whole name. DANIELLE. No need, I love how they all say DANI way more. I wasn’t really that attached to it anyhow. It’s just been around since...hmm 1986. Over time few have managed to make me smile using it, yet up until three weeks ago, “Dani” it is folks. 

Where was I? Lost fantasizing about my days immersed in the home of gilded shit, pub-culture, chippys, whiskey flights, free AMAZING museums (I saw the flippin’ Rosetta Stone! Followed by some Van Goghs, Rodins, and a stuffed Malabar; yes a giant squirrel!) and castles, oh castles! Right...I ate some FOOD (my love) while I was traveling through England and Scotland. Prior to my trip, people had warned me of the cuisine. Just pub food, terrible, etc etc. Well guess what peoples of my Ballard world? I will take that extra walk to a local haunt or that step into an oddly lit grocer, I will not eat shit! Well unless it’s the second “bonus” meal I received on the nine-hour flight back. I ate that crappy cheese and brown relish-spread sandwich only because I didn’t want to bust into my supply of “Twiglets” until I reached U.S. soil. Really though, people, I ate well the entire time of my travels! From the bangers and mash to the hot custards to the haggis. Its was all good. I was definitely fortunate to visit with my recently-relocated Canadian cousin and her Manman. We were able to cook while on holiday! One of my life’s joys is to ACTUALLY grocery shop, then cook said intended meal. Getting to roam through a British grocer...be it a Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda, Morrisons, or the posh Waitrose...I was in foodie heaven. Also when traveling alone you find yourself faced with the predicament of...do i ask for table for one every night? or do I grab some to-go and park my tired-from-walking-all-day ass on some grass over-looking gorgeous Edinburgh? Inevitably I found myself interchanging both options throughout my travels. GildedGrease get ready for some lovely foods of the U.K. Stay tuned...

Cheers, GildedGrease

Music Video

After all that hard work, we have a final cut! The "Aghadoe" music video that I catered a ways back is here for your viewing pleasure.

Click here for an enchanted wood nymph and hobo song and dance...

"Aghadoe" Music Video  from Julia Massey and the Five Fingered Discount and directed by Andrew Birchall.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Fire in my Belly on a Mountain

      It's winter time and you've found yourself at a ski lodge by Mt. Baker. You know that you are going to be hungry enough to eat a horse after all the skiing and snowboarding. Also you may realize just how much energy one will exert, biting it over and over again.  Obviously there needs to be a meal built to satisfy; so I decided to make a whopping batch of Tortas. Tortas are a wonderful Mexican sandwich that years ago my stomach was introduced to at a taco truck. They are amazing and always HUGE. I never stray from the spicy pork filling option; the other meats fail in comparison squished between that creamy avocado and mayonnaise.
     A few years ago I attempted the recreation of the torta after I found myself compelled to buy a pack of torta rolls at a Mexican Grocer. Though after making them once with my special rolls I knew that this sandwich could be made on any type of roll. Taking the time to dry-rub the pork a day (or even days) ahead will give you the ultimate pay off in moist meaty-goodness. Also the taco trucks understand how messy this meal is so they always come wrapped in foil, but you'll be fine with a pile o' napkins. Be prepared to awe your friend's mouths.

Chorizo Al Pastor Tortas

• 2 lb. pork loin roast
• 2 Tbsp chili powder
• 1 Tbsp granulated garlic
• 1 Tbsp granulated onion
• 1 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp ground coriander
• 1 Tbsp kosher salt

• 1/2 a head of cabbage, thinly sliced
• 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp superfine sugar
• 1 Tbsp kosher salt

• 1 lb-ish Mexican chorizo (the style that melts out flat, usually found in 9 oz. tubes)
• 1 large onion, chopped into small pieces
• Bollario or Telera rolls (you're looking for large round kaiser buns or any large wide/oblong white bread rolls) 
• Avocados (figure one half of a medium-sized avo per sandwich)
• Mayonnaise

*Makes about 10 sandwiches, this recipe can easily be halved

Prep Day

1.) In a plastic produce bag or a gallon size ziplock bag; place chili, garlic and onion powders, cumin, coriander and salt. Shake bag until your dry-rub ingredients are well combined. 

2.) Add your roast to the bag, shake and rub to cover every inch of that beast. Place in fridge for at least 24 hours. (Consider the more hours after 24, the more moist your meat is going to become.) 

3.)  In a large bowl; place sliced cabbage, apple cider vinegar, rice wine vinegar, sugar and salt. Toss cabbage until well coated. Cover and let sit in fridge for as long as your roast does. (Consider the more time the cabbage soaks the less crunchy it becomes - unless you like it that way.)

Torta Day

1.) Crank your oven to 400º. Remove pork from plastic bag and wrap entirely with aluminum foil. Place foiled pork into a baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes.

2.) Turn oven down to 350º. Continue to cook for another hour + until the beast has met an internal temp of 160º. 

3.) Remove from oven, allow a 10 minute resting period before you begin cutting into it. To prepare for tortas; break roast down by slicing meat into little bite size strips and chunks.

4.) Heat up a large skillet on medium heat, add a heaping Tbsp of vegetable oil and cook your chopped onion for about 5 minutes.

5.) Add chorizo to onions, cook thoroughly. (YES there is going to be a lot of bright orange grease, skim it off or dont, no prob.)

6.) Add in the chopped pork loin and cook it all together until its well combined. About 5 to 10 more minutes. 

Prepare to Assemble

1.) Open torta bread. On the bottom half spread mayonnaise, on the top spread avocado. 

2.) Slop your meaty-goodness onto the mayo, top with cabbage, place avo’d bun atop. 

3.) EAT!

White Bean Salad

• 2 12 oz. can cannellini beans
• 1 12 oz. can large butter beans
• 1 12 oz. bag of rainbow slaw (julienned broccoli, carrots, and cabbage)
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into thin 1-inch strips
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced thin
• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup olive oil.
• Salt and pepper to taste

1.) Drain canned beans (I prefer not to rinse them since it adds moisture and salt to your salad) and place into a large bowl. Add rainbow slaw, red bell pepper, green onions, shallot, lemon juice, and olive oil.

2.) Toss salad together. Add salt and pepper to taste. Allow salad to sit at a few hours before serving so the flavors can mingle. 

3.) Enjoy!

Quick Wunder Salad

• 1 bunch cilantro, stems removed and give the leaves given a rough chop
• 1 red pepper, sliced thin then chopped
• 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 medium sized red onion, chopped into small bits
• Juice of 1 lime 
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Kosher salt and pepper

1.) In a medium-sized bowl combine cilantro, red pepper, green onion, red onion, lime juice, olive oil, a large pinch of salt and a few good cracks of freshly ground pepper. 

2.) Toss together and serve.

*Photos courtesy of Dominic Cortese. 

"Aghadoe" Best for Last Greek

Day Four...Lets Get Everything Shot or Else Day


      The final day of the “Aghadoe” shoot arrives and we are still in full Hollywood mode. We had rockstar actresses woken at one a.m. for make-up application, dirty beer-soaked clothes being blow-dried while knocking out electricity, packets of Hotties being ripped open, crows attacking our back stage shelter, re-learning how to correctly make drip coffee, getting to rub more and more dirt on The Five Fingered Discount, champagne anticipating a popping and a cast and crew worked to the bone awaiting a musical masterpiece to be completely wrapped up that day. Hence the Or Else Day. With equipment that good there was no time to waste. I too could say that about my own equipment. My kitchen was preparing yet again for it’s final installment (for now) of Craft Service.

      With the week’s weather getting progressively worse I knew I had to serve a hot meal for Friday’s shoot. I wanted something satisfying with the ability to still wow my crowd. After a long hard week’s worth of work, who doesn’t deserve Greek Food?!? If there was a type of food I was destined to eat for the rest of my days I would easily confide that it is my love; Greek. This really is my labor of love. While respecting the dietary restrictions of the week, I wanted to whip up some classic Greekish foods with my own twists. Gyro loaf and a shredded veggie casserole with pita bread for the protein, Tabbouleh for some whole grain, Tzaziki sauce for the taste of Heaven, veggies and hummus for healthful noshings and some olives for a salty necessity. 

      Though this week truly was my labor of love...it was labor. But you know what? I loved it all. I enjoyed making large quantities of food, figuring out proportions and getting to make that many bellies happy with my creations. I am fortunate enough to have such talented folks around me because they give me the drive to keep doing what I love to do. It felt good to be the part of the day that everyone looked forward too and I was happy to be a part of a music video. I am such a fan of music, being behind the scenes for this music video offered me insight beyond concerts and band practice. Music Videos are entertaining art, bring good food into the equation and we have found my happy place.  Mutually beneficial relationships are the way to go baby. Now, let me get my hands on that damn final cut of the video already!

Gyro Loaf

• 1 lb. ground lean beef
• 1 lb. ground bulk hot pork sausage
• 1 lb. ground bulk chicken Italian sausage
• 2 cups packed spinach, chopped into small bits
• 1 egg
• 1/2 of a medium red onion, chopped into small bits
• 1/4 cup kalamata olives, chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp salt 
• 1 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper

1.) In a large mixing bowl combine ground beef, hot pork sausage and chicken Italian sausage. Work the meats until they are well mixed. (I’ve found that my hands are the superior tool for mixing meats.)

2.) To the meat add spinach, egg, red onion, kalamata olive, garlic, salt and pepper. Combine thoroughly until a wonderful bowl of meaty goodness appears.

3.) Line two 9 by 5 inch loaf pans (like the ones you bake banana brea in) with aluminum foil and press meaty goodness into both pans. Layer some plastic wrap on top of each loaf and place in fridge for at least a night before cooking so the meat has time to take on the flavors as well as break down the spinach.

4.) When ready to cook, set oven to 400 degrees, remove plastic wrap and bake for about 40 minutes until a thermometer reads 160 degrees.

5.) Let sit 10 minutes before removing from pan and slice into 1 inch thick slices to be served on pita bread. Enjoy.

Baked Veggie Casserole with White Beans and Tahini

• 1 large zucchini, stems removed and shredded through a cheese grater
• 2 large yellow squashes, stems removed and shredded through a cheese grater
• 1 medium sized onion, shredded through a cheese grater
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano
• 1 Tbsp dried rosemary
• 1 Tbsp dried thyme
• 2 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1 Tbsp freshly ground pepper
• 1 12 oz. can white cannellini beans, water removed
• 1/2 cup tahini (room temperature, believe me this part is key)
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1.) Mix together shredded zucchini, yellow squash, onion, oregano, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper until thoroughly combined.

2.) Place shredded veggie mix into a fine mesh sieve over top a bowl and place in your fridge overnight allowing the salt to pull out the excess moisture from the squashes and onion.

3.) The next day, transfer your shredded veggie mix to a tea towel or two paper towels and wring to remove the excess water. Place veggies into a medium-sized mixing bowl.  Set oven to 350 degrees.

4.) To the shredded veggies add cannellini beans and tahini. Slowly fold mixture together with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined.

5.) Coat a round 9 in. baking pan with oil or oil spray. Add veggie mixture to pan. Lightly press down mixture with your wooden spoon.

6.) Bake veggie casserole for 30 minutes or until the top had turned to a golden brown. Remove from oven allow at least 5 minutes before slicing then serve. 

Tabbouleh

• 1 cup bulgur wheat
• 1 cup veggie broth (I prefer chicken broth, but we had vegans)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil + 1/4 cup more for cooled bulgur
• 4 garlic cloves chopped
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 large bunch of italian parsley, stems removed 
• 2 large beef steak tomatoes, seeded and chopped into little bits
• 1 english cucumber, cut into little bits (I quarter it lengthwise, then chop)
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced into small bits
• 1 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper
• Salt to taste

1.) In large sauce pot bring broth to a boil. Add in bulgur, 1/4 cup olive oil, lemon zest, and garlic. Turn burner down to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes until bulgur absorbs the broth. Let cool completely before arranging salad.

2.) In a large bowl combine bulgur, chopped italian parsley, lemon juice, tomatoes, cucumber, green onion, 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and pepper.

3.) Give the salad time to rest and chill out in the fridge for at least a few hours before serving to give it a chance to play with all of those flavors going on. 

4.) Serve alongside pitas and gyros. Enjoy!

Tzaziki Sauce

• 1 cup greek yogurt 
• 1/2 cup cultured sour cream  (like Wallaby)
• 1 medium sized English cucumber.
• half a bunch of green onions, sliced into small bits
• 3 Tbsp cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tsp zest of a lemon
• 1 Tbsp kosher salt
• A few cranks of freshly ground back pepper

*If you are unable to purchase a "greek-style" thick and strained yogurt, I've come to find that all you need to do is strain a "plain" variety. Over a bowl, place a cheese cloth lined fine mesh sieve, then add in yogurt. Place yogurt-straining contraption in fridge and allow to strain over night. It really is neat to see how much liquid will be pulled out of your yogurt. Just understand that the more liquid that is pulled out of the yogurt, the denser your yogurt will become.


1.) Run your English cucumber through a cheese grater. Toss cucumber with 1 Tsp of salt and let sit for at least an hour. After the salt has worked to pull water out of the cucumber, place salted cucumber into a tea towel or two stacked paper towels and wring out until you have removed as much excess moisture as possible. 

2.) In a medium sized bowl combine yogurt, sour cream, shredded cucumber, green onions, olive oil, garlic, lemon zest and juice, salt and pepper.

3.) Let sit at least a few hours for the flavors to blend. 

4.) Spoon over everything fresh and Greek, enjoy!