Bobby Flay's Crunchburger

I've always liked things that were different or unique. Growing up, everyone used to tease me because I always liked the boys with red hair. I think I dated every redhead in high school. They just stood out to me. Over a period of time, everyone started referring to me as "carrot girl". I ended up marrying someone with hair dark enough to be labeled as black, but somehow we managed to have the cutest little redhead of our own! When my son was born with red hair I was more than tickled.

Food Network first premiered when I was in high school, at the very height of my craze with red hair. I was smitten with Bobby Flay from the beginning. To say that I thought he was cute would be an understatement.

I got the chance to meet Bobby last fall during a food show in Lexington. He was so charismatic and carried himself so well. When he opened up the floor for questions I had to play along. Shy as I am, I walked to the mic. I wasn't going to miss out on this opportunity. While standing in line, I pondered over what to say. The only thing that kept coming into my mind was how gorgeous he was. When it was my turn to speak I opened up my mouth and told him that I had been a fan since the 90's. Then I preceded to tell him just how gorgeous he is. All the ladies in the audience chuckled and Bobby handed me this Caramel Apple Shortcake with Apple Cider Reduction.

Meeting Bobby was such a fun experience and I'm so happy that I "grabbed the bull by the horns" and spoke to him. I vowed then and there to start making some of Bobby's recipes, but as always I've gotten sidetracked...until now.

Presenting Bobby Flay's Crunchburger...........................

The Crunchburger is Bobby's signature burger. I can see why. The burger is topped with a potato chips and a horseradish mustard mayo (Bobby must know I love mustard)!

Making the Crunchburger is as simple as whipping up a quick mustard sauce and frying up some burgers. I really loved the addition of the crunchy chips topping the burger and I especially loved the zippy tang of the Horseradish Mustard Mayo. The Crunchburger is my submission to this months Blogger Burger Club Challenge over at my friend Reeni's blog, Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice. I'm going to give it a 3.5 rating (out of a possible 4). It was definitely a terrific, messy, and delicious burger! You can find the recipe for Bobby's Crunchburger online HERE at the Food Network website.

I'm also submitting the Crunchburger to my pal Deb @ Kahakai Kitchen for her weekly Souper Sundays roundup of soups, salad and sammies.

NOTE: Me and my Zoku Quick Pop Maker have recently gotten a divorce. This week's popsicle is trapped in the Zoku chambers, which is why I'm bringing you the Crunchburger in place of Popsicle of the Week. Popsicle of the Week will be back next Monday.

Bobby Flay Loves to Talk With His Hands

I thought it was the Italians that were known for talking with their hands? Maybe it's the Irish that love to talk with their hands. In fact, this was one of the first things I noticed about Bobby Flay. The man loves to talk with his hands. I thought it was rather cute. He was very animated and all, but I really wanted a picture of his face. In addition to talking with his hands (a lot), he is also a very quick mover. I did manage some better pics, that I will post tomorrow. In the meantime, I thought these were cute.

I also wanted to say thanks to everyone for all your sweet comments yesterday! I love reading my comments and yesterday's were filled with very kind words. I treasured them all!
In both of these pictures (above and below) Bobby is extolling the virtues of Jif peanut butter. He used peanut butter in a glaze/sauce for some ribs that he made. Bobby shared with us that Jif was his favorite brand. He likes creamy in recipes and chunky on his sandwiches. He also said that you could use natural peanut butter, but that he doesn't like the way it separates. He said he prefers the stabilizers in Jif. Everyone in the audience laughed when he said that.
In the picture below, Bobby is talking about his visit the night before to Malone's. Malone's is a very popular steakhouse in Lexington. It's a very nice restaurant, but one that most people can afford to go to here and there. Nothing super duper fancy. He was telling us that they made him wait in line to sit down. He seemed to like that. Later on, he asked the waiter for a specialty aged bourbon that had been aged six years. He was visited by the chef a couple of minutes later. The chef apologized that they were all out of the specialty bourbon. Instead, the chef offered Bobby some 25 year aged specialty bourbon that he kept in his car!! Bobby really enjoyed the fact that this chef kept 25 year aged bourbon in his car. He did end up having some of that bourbon. This picture is him laughing about his experience at Malone's.
In the picture below, Bobby is busy making my apple dessert. I took this picture while I was standing in line to talk to him. An eleven-year old boy had just asked him what his favorite foods were while he was growing up. He explained that he LOVED deviled eggs, pudding, and lamb with mint jelly. Moments later, he laughed and said that was the "entire extent of his mother's cooking repertoire". Bobby turned the question around and asked the young boy what his favorite foods were. The boy replied salmon and artichokes, which made Bobby laugh. He teased the young boy, telling him that he had just learned what an artichoke was this year. He followed that up by saying how great it is that everyone was interested and learning all about food. He said he hoped that the Food Network had played a big role in that. I was the next person up in line and I shared that I had been watching him on the Food Network for years. I have to say that the Food Network has taught people a lot about food and how to cook. It was their cooking shows that inspired me to get in the kitchen. I, myself, have learned a lot watching the Food Network channel.

Don't you just love the way he's using his hands in every picture? There is a lot I could say about this, but I'll stop here. You know where I'm going anyway:D I'll have some more pictures tomorrow, along with some stories that Bobby shared with us.

I didn't get around to making this week's My Girl Paula selection. My weekend was too busy, and my hubby was sick. This week's selection was Pumpkin Gingerbread Trifle and I bet it was delicious!! Head on over to see how everyone else enjoyed it. I'll be back to My Girl Paula next week with Mini Mummies, a great Halloween recipe for the kids!!

My Conversation with Bobby Flay....

As I type this post, I'm shaking with excitement. In fact, I think I need a chill pill. The Incredible Food Show in Lexington was a complete blast. I had an incredible and amazing day perusing all the goodies, meeting local chefs, and watching cooking demos. But, the very best part (and the highlight of my year) was Bobby Flay's cooking demonstration!

Bobby came on stage to a screaming audience. He is even more attractive in person. In addition to his looks, he carries himself extremely well. He is one of those people who are both impeccably dressed and well-groomed. On top of all that, he is completely charismatic, charming and full of raw sex appeal. Let's not forget that THE MAN CAN COOK! All you ladies out there know that this is a winning combination!! I had to pick my jaw up off the floor just to concentrate on the cooking :D Bobby is a real people person. He was chit chatting with the audience and made everyone feel right at home. He is a prankster and practical joker. He kept cracking jokes throughout the show. He also talks with his hands, alot. This made it difficult to get good pictures of him, but I did manage some. I'll be posting more later this week.

Towards the end of the show there was time for a Question and Answer period. Guests were invited to go up to the microphone and ask questions. If you had the chance to meet me you would notice very quickly that I am TERRIBLY shy. I have been shy my whole life. It must have been Bobby's looks that caused me to climb out of my shell today!!

DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT I DID?

Picture an arena full of people, all ages. Then there's me, and about 10 other people in line. I don't know what I'm going to say, but gosh darn it...I'm gonna say something. The question and answer period is going on while Bobby is making an apple dessert. The show is winding up and I am the VERY LAST PERSON to ask a question, or I guess I should call it a statement : O

Me: Hi Bobby! I am a huge fan of yours and I have been watching you on the Food Network since it began.

Bobby: Well, it's always nice to hear about fans from way back.

Me: I have had a crush on you since back then and I just wanted to tell you that you're gorgeous!!

What happened next is something I'll never forget! Bobby blushed and smiled, really big!! He asked me if I liked apples. I, of course, said yes. Then he gave me my very own dessert, made completely by him and told me thank you!! He was over his time limit and ran off stage after that. Mind you, I'm standing in front of the stage with my dessert in hand and 500 hungry people behind me! I was one big ball of nerves. My adrenaline was pumping and I was all hopped up. I quickly found a place to take a picture (or 50) of my handmade Bobby Flay dessert. Some of the other audience members wanted to take a picture as well. And, everyone wanted to know how it tasted.

Onto the dessert. I believe it was from his Mesa cookbook. It was a Caramel Apple Shortcake with Apple Cider Reduction and it was PERFECT (just like Bobby)!! I only wish that my adrenaline wasn't running so hard because it was really hard to calm down and enjoy it :D
We watched Bobby make it all from scratch on stage. His shortcake biscuits were so light and flaky. They were better than any I've ever had before. It was almost like a pie crust, but the best pie crust imaginable. Everything was cooked perfectly and tasted delicious.

I walked out of that arena with a huge smile on my face and I was kind of laughing to myself. This is exciting stuff for a housewife!! Here I am a married woman, with two kids, in my mid thirties telling a married man that he's gorgeous. It's not something I would normally do, but it was totally what I was thinking and IT SURE FELT GOOD TO TELL HIM!! In the end, it paid off well :D

It all reminds me of what my Grandpa used to say whenever we were lucky, doing well, or things were going our way. He used to always say "You must be livin' right". On the other hand, if we weren't winning and were having bad luck then we "weren't livin' right". My Grandpa loved to see people "go for it" and today reminded me of him. Tonight I can hear him telling me that I'm livin' right!!