California Habanero Blends Garlic Key Lime Pistachios

Just got a package in the office from the good gang over at California Blends. And to our surprise not only did it contain some wonderful looking hot sauces and sauce blends that we will be testing this evening, but it also had a bag of these goodies right here:

California Habanero Blends Garlic & Key Lime Pistachios. The bag says they are roasted to perfection and that sounds like the perfect invitation to pour up some libations and test out a few recipes.

Check back for more in the next few days on our testing session of these and the other wonderful products from the great independent brand California Blends.

Use Your Imagination

If only it were simple to cut beautiful flowers like these out of Honeydews and Watermelons, we would all play with our food a little more before eating it...

Artist: Ray Duey

May Cause Dizziness

Gummi bear Chandelier

Artist: YaYa Chou

The Supreme Plate Road Trippin' Coming Soon

Coming in April & May, will be the first of our Las Vegas reviews for 2010. The Supreme Plate will once again be taking its show on the road, this time touching down in Las Vegas to enjoy some of the best restaurants but more importantly to attend the Vegas Uncorked 2010 event in May. Be on the lookout for some reviews from spots such as Sage at the Aria Resort & Casino, Joel Robuchon at the MGM Grand and a few other unknown treats on and off the strip in the heart of Sin City.

Kitchen Tools That Everyone Should Own

Having libations is truly fun. Well that is true as long as those that you are sharing your time with can handle their alcohol like and adult and no one starts throwing lawn furniture or worse fists over a few misunderstood words. When the time is right and the bottles begin to get popped everyone needs to have a few items in their home to help keep things flowing smoothly.
Unless your Major Payne and possess the skill of opening cans and bottles with one finger, the first thing you should consider purchasing is a corkscrew and sturdy bottle opener.

We're not talking one of those bottle openers on the bottom of your lighter, pieces of plastic that could potentially stab someone openers. I am talking about having some heavy steel to do the right job at the right moment.

The Knuckle Duster Corkscrew, is something to behold and should be owned by every bad ass in the kitchen as well as anyone that needs to provide themselves with some added cool points.
Although it does take a bit of skill and know how to open a bottle it is worth its price of $12.99. Available on ThinkGeek.Com 

And please don't think that we would ever leave out those in need of a good old fashioned bottle opener.
This crowbar styled bottle opener is as equally vicious looking as it is effective in getting the job done. Made of stainless steel with a baked enamel coating, this bad boy would be great for cracking bottles open or making short work of some King Crab Legs at the weekend BBQ.

Also available at ThinkGeek.com  for a limited time at the cheap price of $19.99 get yours today & do some serious damage, to some bottles that is.

Recipe Of The Day: Lasagna

I got an email from an old friend who said they needed a good Lasagna recipe. This one here is a solid hit every single time I make it, because it is simple yet full of flavors you have to usually cook for hours to get in a dish. In my book the Recipe Of The Day: Lasagna is even better, the next day.
Enjoy.

Recipe Of The Day: Salmon Cakes

These days not everyone has the desire to go sit in their favorite restaurant simply because it isn’t a secret anymore, good food can be made at home with a little know how. Besides that fact it is widely known that certain dishes are meant to be eaten at respectable spots or else you could be paying for nothing garbage.

With that being said, that brings to mind how not every restaurant can pull off a good crab cake and to find some quality crab meat in certain areas (at a reasonable price) is more difficult than one would think.

Today’s Recipe Of The Day: Salmon Cakes, are aimed at those people I so fondly relate too.

I came up with this recipe for a close person in my life who has a horrible allergy to shell fish but loves fried sea food just as much as I do.

These salmon cakes take little to no time once you have your Mise en Place together (measured out your ingredients.)

Mass Produced Pancakes At Home?

Everyone loves to wake up to pancakes in the morning. Well that is unless your on the breakfast of champions diet that includes cigarettes and donuts before 5 am. But for the rest of the normal world, we love to eat pancakes and eat them in abundance. The thing is about those lovely little discs of dough that are covered in warm maple syrup surrounded by tasty bacon and eggs is that they take forever and when your the only one cooking, its hard to get it a chance to eat them while they are still hot. 

In steps the first of its kind ChefStack Automatic Pancake Machine, that will do all the unwanted work for you. 

This little baby will spit out 200 pancakes an hour and have you eating more than you ever could have imagine in no time with your friends and family. Heck even the firemen down the street could be invited over with this little bundle of joy in the house.

Coming with a hefty $3,500.00 price tag, this is truly aimed at restaurants and hotels looking to ease the load of the breakfast rush.

For more info check them out at ChefStack.com 

Recipe Of The Day: Braised Brisket

AHH Spring. The lovely time of year where Easter egg hunts, pastel colors and Passover Brisket are in abundance. The traditional feast for either the Passover seder or the Easter Sunday dinner, is nothing short of amazing here in America. Getting to see your loved ones in their finest clothes, acting’s as if none of us have ever had an issue with each other (even if it is only for one day) is quite pleasant. Especially for the elders in the family who are looking forward to nothing less than seeing their Grand and Great Grandchildren play in the yard.

So many wonderful memories are usually brought back to life simply because of the conversations we have while engorging ourselves on the family classics. But it is just that, those family classics that have gotten us through all these years that keep us coming back.

People have been asking me lately where I got my Passover Brisket from and I tell them it is an adaptation from my Grandmothers recipe, I learned many years ago.

Today’s Recipe Of The Day: Braised Brisket, is something I hope that you try out and love. It is a fairly simple recipe, similar to a crock pot recipe, because you are able to put it in the oven and forget for hours at a time. Please make sure to set your oven timers on this one, to help remind you when to check the liquid level in your braising sauce.

Recipe Of The Day: Slow Cooked Chipotle-Lime Chicken Thighs w/ Jamaican Rice & Peas

We have been getting some emails from people who love our Recipe Of The Day ideas, but after a long 10 hr day at work, they just don't have it in them to stand on their feet any longer to make dinner.  The sad fact is, in this economy no one has the time to stand in the kitchen and cook all day.
When money is as to hard to come by as it is lately, people are being forced to eat meals that cost less and do not pack nearly enough of the daily nutrients we all desperately need to survive.
Just because the economy is forcing us to work ten times harder, doesn't mean that we have to work that hard in the kitchen to get a great meal that is full of flavor and is easy to clean up after creating.

I took a few moments and put together a slow cooker recipe that should bring back some good home cooking memories for some. For others this recipe should help you begin to understand that great food can come out of a crock pot, its just about what you put in it and more importantly, when you put it in.
I hope you enjoy the Recipe Of The Day: Slow Cooked Chipotle-Lime Chicken Thighs w/ Jamaican Rice & Peas.

Torchbearer Hotsauces

I came into the office and stumbled upon a package from Tim & the great gang over at Torchbearer Hot Sauces. Just off of the packaging alone, I knew this was going to be a great evening, especially seeing as how it was Bean and Cheese Burrito & Seafood Jambalaya tasting night in The Supreme Plate kitchen.
Having won awards from coast to coast in numerous national hot sauce competitions these guys have an acute set of senses when it comes to creating complex sauces. It is not often that one brand of hot sauce can be used on almost everything you eat. True we all have our own stand-by condiments that can somehow be swallowed with almost any bite of food we take, but as time goes on, those flavors become less and less acceptable to our palates.

Recipe Of The Day: Smoked Sausage Jambalaya

Something that people have a million recipes for, but can never really pull off because they no patience is Jambalaya. Lately I have been tearing up a lot of seafood whenever I go out or in the house and normally my Jambalaya has massive amounts of seafood in it. This time around I went light and un-Kosher with this Smoked Sausage Jambalaya that I often serve with my Jalapeno Cheddar Muffins just to top off the heat of the dish. As always heat tolerance is relative to the individual in question so I scale back the amount of heat I list in the recipes. Please feel free to put yourself in a world of enjoyment and pain with a few added dashes of hot sauce and cayenne.

Drinks for this should be a lovely lager beer or a vodka and cranberry for those opposed to beer.

The Supreme Plate "Substitutions Cost Extra" Shirts Coming Soon...

Here is a sneak peak at the first of the upcoming "Substitutions Cost Extra" line of T's that The Supreme Plate is doing with Sukebe Demons. For those not up to date, Sukebe Demons are some the most innovative designers coming out of Los Angeles. 

These shirts are going to be a limited run for the devout followers we have and those who have supported TSP from day one.

You cannot buy these so sign up and follow the blog for a chance to be selected to win your very own limited edition TSP Shirt. More flavors to come in the next few weeks. 

Recipe Of The Day: Spanish Style Chicken w/ Saffron Rice (Arroz Con Pollo)

Those who follow the site closely know that we have a certain fondness for chicken. Especially when it is accompanied by an incredibly flavored side dish such as Saffron Rice. A little known fact to some, saffron is one of the most expensive ingredients to use because of the ratio of what you get for what you pay. But have no fear, most stores carry saffron threads for a mere few dollars and that amount alone will be more than sufficient for the average cook for a year or more. The key to this recipe is not overcooking either the chicken or the rice but yet allowing everything the proper amount of time to come together when cooking.  This is a healthy dish overall that should feed about 4 people. Although it packs a little punch from the cayenne, I usually double up on the cayenne and also add some Sriracha sauce (I know its an asian styled hot sauce but its great on this dish.) For those of you who are like myself please do this dish the justice it deserves and enjoy it with a cold beer or a strong mixed drink.  

Recipe Of The Day: Maple Glazed Salmon w/ Pineapple Salsa

As the Summer steadily approaches your going to find us making lighter and lighter dishes. This Southern California heat will leave you drained at days end and in need a good amount of protein, fruits and vegetables to build yourself back up for the next day. Todays Recipe Of The Day: Maple Glazed Salmon w/ Pineapple Salsa, works incredibly well with white wines, rum flavored libations or a good old sangria. I also try to always serve this with some well seasoned and spicy Guacamole. Enjoy  

Mac Knives MTH-80 Chef Knife Review (Revisited)

To some people cutting vegetables into fine dices and breaking big sides of various proteins down into serving size portions is just impossible. Well then again in this day and age some people probably think cows just fall into the cuts of steak we eat when they magically pass away. 

When taking into consideration the amount of skill needed to pull off fine dining plating skills, one must consider the tools used and how much of an important roll they really play. 

True many of us know some great cooks (in their houses) who perform night after night, creating amazing dishes that could stand up against any top rated chef in the nation. But when your paying top dollar for something, to put it bluntly it better look good damn it.

I love being able to check the mailbox and finding some brand new products just yearning to be tested out. Yesterday I walked in to find a package from the good guys over at Mac Knife Inc. After checking out some of our reviews they offered to throw their products into the arena, against some of the other high ends brands you have seen and will be seeing over the next few days. To make the story simple and sweet, Mac came in and cleaned the kitchen out.

Bitten Silverware

Mark Reigelman designed these “Bite” silverwares to draw attention to the ongoing problem of global hunger. “Each day millions of individuals lay in hunger while millions more are wastefully overeating,” Reigelman says. “This set of ‘bitten’ silverware highlights the daunting reality of both worldly plagues.”

Pyknic Fitted Hat

Pyknic Clothing released a chef inspired fitted hat for the Spring time and its pretty dope if you ask us. Check em out on their site PYKNIC Wear or at good old KARMALOOP.Com

Recipe Of The Day: Green Beans w/ Roasted Corn & Onions

I've been getting more and more emails after we posted up the Recipe Of The Day: Vegan Chicken Scaloppini the other day for healthier and healthier side dishes to accompany these wonderful main entrees were making over here. This little side dish goes perfect with a burger, grilled or fried chicken and of course any other kind of protein you can sear off (Tuna and Salmon included.)
This time were going to give you a classic dish that brings earthy flavors to the forefront of your palate.

Recipe Of The Day: Red Chili Onion Rings

When something is quick and easy to make, so spicy that you can't stop eating for fear of being devoured by its own heat and out of the ordinary its a no brainer that we are going to like it over at The Supreme Plate. Everyone and their Mama seems to love a good Onion Ring. These right here pack a powerful amount of heat and are bursting with flavors. The key to getting em just right is to have your oil perfectly hot but not to the point of smoking so that they catch a quick crispy coating before burning.

More Fly Culinary Artwork

Recipe Of The Day: Coconut Shrimp w/ Mango - Pineapple & Habanero Chutney

This recipe right here if pulled off will have a house full of lovely smells, full stomachs and smiling faces.
It is not for the novice as most people tend to over cook their shrimp, resulting in coconut crisped rubber instead of the deliciousness that is the Recipe Of The Day: Coconut Shrimp.

Take your time and allow yourself to get a feel for how hot your oil is cooking before you go for the gusto and toss in all of your shrimp. No one likes soggy or burned up shrimp!

Recipe Of The Day: Vegan Chicken Scaloppini

Once again I got a request for a good vegan dish, this time from a true OG to the lifestyle game, Chace Infinite (who later on The Supreme Plate will be doing an in depth interview with about how Lifestyle marketing has changed over the last decade + years.)

This time around I'm gonna switch it up and go completely vegan for those that have knowledge of self and for those that care about what eating all these processed foods does to ones body.

Please enjoy this recipe and as always, exercise caution and common sense.

Chroma Cnives. Chef Quality Cutlery At Affordable Prices

The kitchen is usually the centerpiece to most homes. Everyone needs to eat and drink and when the party is in full force, at most of the houses I have been too, it usually ends up in or near the kitchen. Now with all of these chef related shows, everyone thinks they can cook like a pro, but a lot of times on tv all you read about is the food ingredients in the recipe. Rarely do they speak on the types of equipment that are needed to perform such daunting tasks as creating perfect Juliennes and Brunoise cuts out of some hard to handle items or to fine dice a succulent shrimp without hackin’ it bits, when the “Recipe Of The Day: Ceviche” calls for it.

Without a doubt people need to get their knife game up to par so we are here to hold you down and let you know what kinds of knives are actually worth the hefty price tags attached to them and what knives are merely hype.

Recipe Of The Day: Shrimp & Scallop Ceviche

In keeping with the light and hearty theme we have been on lately, we thought why not hit the family off with a easy Ceviche recipe that is just amazing and fresh. The flavors in this dish combine to create such wonderful sensations its almost like eating something that was cooked for hours to get that flavor, but was hardly even cooked at all.
I hope you enjoy this seafood favorite in my household.
 The Recipe Of The Day and more photos after the break...