This week on Out To Lunch, we visit Watermarc Restaurant in Laguna Beach for some off-the-charts gourmet burgers and fries.

When Don tells you that he’s taking you for a “light lunch” it’s a good idea to give thought to what he considers a “light lunch.” Burgers with toppings like duck confit, brie, caramelized onions, bacon, gorgonzola horseradish cream, and aioli are hardly for the “light” crowd.

With an incredible assortment of well thought out small plates, you don’t have to feel compelled to go crazy like we did. Caprese with burrata, ahi watermelon skewers, smoked bacon wrapped dates, oysters, mussels, and so many more grazing plates are another way to experience the brilliant offerings from Chef de Cuisine Kiel Andersen.

Located at 448 South Coast Highway in Laguna Beach, California, Watermarc is the perfect stop for a business lunch, happy hour (when all burgers are HALF OFF), or for a quick glass of beer or wine. Stick around long enough and you might even recognize a Real Housewife of Orange County. For more information, visit their web site watermarcrestaurant.com

Introducing a new segment of My Life as a Foodie – Out To Lunch. In each episode, we’ll visit a new lunch spot that I like, give you an idea of what they serve, and how much lunch costs.

In this episode of Out To Lunch we visit 101 Noodle Express located at 5408 Walnut Avenue in Irvine, CA.

This chinese eatery is open everyday from 9 am to 10 pm, specializing in noodles, dumplings, xiao long bao (which are soup dumplings that squirt hot soup all over you if bitten into too quickly – just ask Don), and an assortment of other types of chinese soups with regular or hand torn noodles.

When we closed the year a few years ago, I projected that food trucks would be the next big trend in food. That happened, although I didn’t care for the outcome. Whether or not that trend continues in 2012, I have a feeling that another trend is about to really catch on and I’m far more excited about it than eating really good food on the curb of a dirty street off of paper plates and plastic utensils.

Enter the world of nose to tail eating. This year on the show, we’ll be eating every part of the pig but the oink.

I feel so strongly about this trend catching on this year that I’m coming right out of the gate cooking pig ears and sharing a terrific recipe for cold pig ear salad. It’s pure gelatinous goodness that only pig ears can provide. The recipe for both the court bouillon (a staple broth for cooking the “nasty bits”) and the actual salad can be found below, complete with pictures. It comes courtesy of Jennifer McLagan and her book “Odd Bits: How to cook the rest of the animal.” If you’re interested in nose-to-tail eating and really like food porn, you can buy her book from amazon.com below.

Download Episode 90

In this episode:
• All of you in the Facebook Group make me so proud. You get it. You truly get it.
• Why the nose to tail movement makes sense
• Kim Jon Il was a foodie. Who knew?
• More Brown Than Black IPA from The Alchemist / Ninkasi / Stone Brewing
• Applebee’s parody: “Cheese on Queso on Fromage Menu”
• Chipotle CEO wants your kids to get to work so he doesn’t have to hire illegals
• In The Kitchen: Cold Pig Ear Salad
• McDonald’s in Germany pisses of Burger King
• Food Illness Mystery Solved: The FDA has been hiring state inspection agencies all this time.

Court Bouillon recipe

In a large stockpot, add the following:
5 cups water
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
1 shallot, sliced
1 stalk celery, sliced
lemon zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1 large sprig thyme
1 fresh bay leaf
10 black peppercorns
4 cloves
sea salt to taste

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook over medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Allow to cool, then strain. Reserve the bouillon for future use.

Cold Pig Ear Salad

Start with a couple of fresh pig ears. If you’re not into gagging or puking while you cook, have your butcher clean out the ear wax and shave them for you. Just tell him to hold the Barbasol.

Heat the bouillon to a low boil, then add a couple of pig ears.

Cover and poach the pig ears for 1 1/2 to 2 hours until the pig ears are starting to come apart. You’ll know when they’re ready. If you reach in with a pair of tongs to pick up the ears and they almost fall apart, those boys are ready to leave the sauna.

Remove the pig ears and transfer them to a board. Make a small cut at the base of the ear, the place them on a plate lined with parchment paper. Cover with another piece of parchment paper, and another plate. Place the plates in the refrigerator, then put something heavy on top of them (like a can of tomatoes or a 6-pack of beer). Leave to cool overnight.

The next day, pull the chilled ears out of the fridge and slice them into strips about 1/2 inch wide. Put into a bowl, then add:

1/4 cup peeled and finely diced carrot
1/4 cup finely diced celery, saving as many celery leaves as you can
2 tablespoons finely diced shallot
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed

Now make a mustard vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
whisk in 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt + pepper to taste

Add the vinaigrette to the salad, dish the salad to the plates, and garnish with the celery leaves. Enjoy this crunchy, gelatinous salad.

As this year comes to a merciful end, we take a look back at the year in food culture, recapping the big stories, and sharing some stories and features that we didn’t get a chance to talk about on the show. There is, of course, our annual clip montage at the end – some of my favorite moments of My Life as a Foodie in 2011.

With the closing of the year, I want to thank all of you who have taken the time not only to listen to the podcast, but to share your feedback, provide inspiration for new features, and participate in the discussions we have in the Facebook group. This show is not just about my life, but our lives as foodies. I appreciate your ongoing support as we finish off our 5th year in 2012.

Not only the last show of the year, undoubtedly the longest at 1:21. Enjoy!

Download Episode 89 :: 2011 year in review

Music to close out the year – Bottoms Up by Nickelback

As the new year gets closer, that same resolution that most of us make every year comes back into focus – getting fit, getting slim. Maybe it’s time that we get serious and do it in 2012.

The conundrum? How do we, as foodies, strike the balance between our passion for food, cooking, eating great food, drinking great craft beer, and staying in top shape? Perhaps that’s our biggest challenge. It all starts with setting goals, then making a plan to achieve them, and choosing what we’re willing to sacrifice along the way. With over three weeks left in the calendar year, we have a vital weapon at our disposal – a head start.

Are you ready?

Download Episode 88

In this episode:
• Wolfgang Puck is a P-I-M-P
• Burly Gourd Milk Stout from The Bruery
• Striking the perfect balance – eating well, staying fit
• IN THE KITCHEN: Asparagus Soup
• Heston Blumenthal – the best chef not on US television
• Bacon Lube is wrong
• Horse meat slaughtering ban being lifted? What’s with our infatuation with horses anyway?

While I have not been a huge fan of the direction Food Network has taken in the past few years, I do owe it a debt of gratitude. It has blessed me with two great friends – Nathan Lyon, and the “female David Chang” Debbie Lee. You may remember me gushing over her in episode 58 two years ago as she re-introduced me to the Korean food I thought I knew.

Maybe a more important thing to stress is this: Debbie’s appearance on The Next Food Network Star made her want to cook again. She discovered herself and made a new life path. If it weren’t for that show, we would not have had Seoultown Tapas at The Bread Bar, the Ahn-Joo food truck, and the new Ahn-Joo snack bar. More to the point, we wouldn’t have Debbie Lee.

I tip my hat to you, Food Network. She’s never looked back. It’s almost like she’s making up for lost time. The woman turns 40 and all Hell breaks loose.

In this week’s episode, we’re visiting Debbie at the opening of her new restaurant “Ahn-Joo” located at the Americana at Brand in Glendale, CA. Her new book “Seoultown Kitchen” is a virtual red carpet of wholesome “pub grub” — delicious plates of Korean food intended to be eaten (in Debbie’s words) “with lots of beer and soju.”

She had me at “beer.”

We’ll be making her recipe for Hangover Stew, talking about how her life path has changed, and what the future holds for her, for her restaurant, and for our stomachs.

Download Episode 87

In this episode:
• Prohibition, My Life as a Foodie style
• “The Melt” – the only exciting thing Chiefs fans can look forward to
• Stone’s Vertical Epic 11.11.11
• The food, the love, the magic of Debbie Lee
• In The Kitchen: Hangover Stew
• Mario Batali made a boo-boo. Can we get on with life now?
• David Chang might be the Korean Steve Jobs
• Veggie Grill’s 5th Anniversary, and how you can grab $500 of free food

Visit Ahn-Joo:
the americana at brand
668 americana way, suite fp5
glendale, ca 91210
818.242.3793

Music in this episode from:Fear Factory
and Deadmau5

Hangover Stew
Serves 4 (with leftovers)

INGREDIENTS
2 pounds pork butt, cut into 3 inch chunks
2 cups smoky chile rub (listen to the show)
2 quarts pork stock (listen to the show)
2 yellow onions, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/4 cup thinly sliced garlic cloves
24 ounces of lager or pilsner beer
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
2 tablespoons chili pepper flakes
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 pound new potatoes, washed, cut in half
12 Korean peppers (gochu)
Sea salt and white pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped scallions, for garnish

In a large mixing bowl, combine the pork butt and smoky chili rub. Mix well and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to sit for 30 minutes or longer in the refrigerator.

Heat a large stockpot over medium high heat. Add the onions and garlic, and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the marinated pork butt and sear the meat on both sides for 3-4 minutes, or until nicely golden brown. Add the stock and beer. Bring to a boil for 5 minutes.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the soy sauce, garlic and onion powders, chili pepper flakes, sugar, and sesame oil. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Add the potatoes and cook for another 20 minutes.

Add the Korean peppers and season with salt and white pepper. Cook another 10 minutes.

Divide the soup among 4 large bowls. Garnish with scallions.

On today’s show, we’re talking about the magnificent food of Spain. It is a country steeped with culture and filled with people who hold a very deep appreciation for the highest quality ingredients available, and never fall short on ideas on how to prepare them.

They’re not just people with great national pride. They’re proud of the food the country produces, and aren’t afraid to share their wealth of knowledge with us. Of all cuisines available at our disposal, perhaps Spanish cuisine mixes the best of all worlds. Spain has given us the Adria Brothers. It’s given us José Andrés. Anthony Bourdain is so in love with Spain, its food, and its chefs that he’s said on many occasions that he wished Juan Mari Arzak from San Sebastián would adopt him.

We’ll be making Extrameduran Cold Tomato and Bread Salad from José Andrés’ book “Made in Spain” – a companion cookbook to his excellent show on PBS. In line with most recipes in his book, this is incredibly easy to prepare, and the ingredients are readily available at most grocery stores.

Like all good cookbooks, this one requires little to no special techniques or equipment and proves two of the most important truths about cooking:
1. The best food is simple food.
2. Anyone can cook.

Download Episode 86

In this episode:
• “Shut the F**K up and cook!” Top Chef Arrogant Quote of the week
• 4 Calling Birds – Belgian Strong Ale from The Bruery
• Mario Batali defends his restaurant’s clientele as not being the “greedy one percent”
• The diversity of Spanish cuisine
• Making Extrameduran Cold Tomato and Bread Salad
• Modern Cuisine, and the effects of Spanish influence
• The state of California wants you to eat shitty french fries

BUY BOOKS, DVDs, AND MUSIC FROM THIS EPISODE:

Music in this episode by Morgan Page.

My Life as a Foodie has been nominated for a Taste Award in the Viewer’s Choice Best Comedy Series category, and I’m over the moon about it. Someone actually thinks the show is funny!

The 3rd Annual TASTE AWARDS, also known as the TASTY Awards, are presented for programs, series or films on the Internet, on television, on mobile, in theaters, and on radio. Finalist Nominees were selected from progams submitted for consideration between July 17th and August 25th, 2011.

Winners of the 3rd Annual TASTE AWARDS will be announced and receive their honors on January 12th, 2012 at a Red Carpet Awards Show event in HOLLYWOOD, portions of which will be streamed live online as well as filmed for broadcast on national television in 2012 to millions of households. Lifetime Achievement Awards and other Special Awards will also be presented to valuable contributors to the industry.

The categories for all nominations can be seen here.

It’s an honor to be included in the same category with some of my favorite shows such as Drinking Made Easy (with Zane Lamprey, who was on the show earlier this year) and Average Betty (hosted by my friend Sara). Nonetheless, I would appreciate your vote.

Thanks for your continued support of the podcast. In a year with so many lows and uncertainties, this is certainly a great thing to have happen, and could prove for a very bright beginning to 2012.

I was honored to be a special guest on the Halloween episode of The Baub Show, hosted by my good friend Bob Merrick and his co-host, the very funny Sherry Layne. Listen to a replay of the LIVE show below.

We celebrated Halloween by drinking some devil-themed Belgian beer, nosh on Beef Jerky from Dude Food, a special Halloween dessert that I brought along, and some surprise chocolate skulls.

Also in this episode, a great interview with the charming actress Neve Campbell from the Scream movie franchise. It was a great night of fun, and drunken surprises. I had no idea Ghost Face from Scream would be joining us in studio. I was happy to get out of their alive.

Stream the show directly from GVBradio.com or download the show here.

[audio: http://gvbradio.com/archives/baubshow-103011.mp3]

Don’t forget to check out The Baub Show LIVE every Sunday at 5 PM PST.

I’m featured in a short documentary on Molecular Gastronomy by Marin Austin, a filmmaker for the Impact documentary series produced by the USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism. The documentary explores how chefs are bringing science to the art of cooking using chemistry and unusual preparation techniques.

The show debuted on public access television a few months ago before being released online. I’m happy to finally have a chance to share this with you. I hope you enjoy it. I think Marin did a fantastic job.