Radio

My longtime mentors and friends Johnny and Lorissa Horn interviewed me on their radio show Made for More from Salt and Light Radio in Boise. The interview was supposed to air last Friday, but a programming glitch forced a change. It should appear on the radio soon. If you would like, you can listen to the show by following this link.

Chopped

Wacky and exotic ingredients, extreme time limits, discerning judges, and creative dishes distinguish the Food Network show Chopped. On Tuesday, a group of friends recreated those elements in a heart-pounding, intense, and high-quality cooking challenge in the heart of Garden City, Idaho. Or something like that.

My first experience as a Chopped contestant took a more relaxed and friendly tone. There was no $10,000 prize for which we were competing (unfortunately), no utterly unrecognizable items in our baskets, and even the time limits were flexible. We had fun. We got to be creative. And we made four surprisingly scrumptious dishes.

First, for any unfamiliar with Chopped rules, the show goes something like this: Four contestants (typically professional chefs), three rounds (appetizer, entree, dessert), one basket the contestants open as the clock begins that has four ridiculous ingredients which must be included in the dish for each round (think octopus, duck, fennel, and animal crackers or halibut, Chinese celery, peperoni risotto, and orange drink mix). One contestant is eliminated each round (chopped), and one victor as determined by the three-person judging panel. On Tuesday, Megan, Kayla, Natalie, and I modified things. We only required three ingredients in our "baskets," our time was flexible, and we were our own judging panel.

In the appetizer round, Megan and I were given corn flakes, a can of Coors, grape jelly, and a half-hour. I thought I was sunk when I saw Megan go for the bacon, make a breading out of the beer and corn flakes, and start a pan with oil for frying. I mean, beer-battered, breaded, and fried bacon? How do I beat that? She topped it with a pineapple chipotle grape jelly dip. Not healthy, but savory, salty, and satisfying.

My first step was to use the beer with a box of corn muffin mix. Since we were making appetizers, I made mini beer cornbread muffins that I figured I would top with something to make a bite-sized portion. The mini-muffins went into the oven to bake. Then I grabbed protein from the same animal as Megan, but rather than smoky bacon, my choice was pork cutlets. I too went with a cornflake breading to fry the cutlets. My strategy was to go for bold flavors, so I put finely diced lemon rind in the breading. Beer in the bread, lemon in the meat, but how was I going to use the grape jelly? In truth, I almost forgot about it. With five minutes left, Megan reminded me about the jelly and even suggested I mix it with the creamy horseradish sitting on the countertop to make sauce with a bite for drizzling over my concoction. Her advice was excellent. The grape jelly-horseradish sauce was the crown my flavorful bite needed.

The finished product was a bite-sized beer cornbread muffin with arugula, cornflake-breaded pork cutlet and a touch of horseradish grape jelly sauce. The combination was a good mix of flavors, hot from the horseradish, hearty from the muffin, peppery with the arugula, bright and satisfying with the pork. Megan and I both smiled at our product.

After downing hors d'oeuvres we cleaned the kitchen to prepare for round two, the entree competition. Kayla and Natalie switched places with Megan and me. Their basket was filled with yellow squash, fresh ginger, and packaged kettle corn. I took more pictures of the process because I wasn't busy cooking.

Kayla at the stove.

Natalie prepping an Asian-inspired entree.

A sea of secret ingredients surrounding the chefs.

Natalie and Kayla sharing the range.

The ingredients inspired Kayla and Natalie in very different ways. Kayla made an eggplant curry with ginger, chicken, and squash, quinoa with kettle corn bits, and a garnish of fresh, lemony herb from her garden. Natalie used the squash to make ribbons that functioned like noodles and were infused with ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, and Asian flavors. She topped that with beef medallions and a crunchy topping from the kettle corn. Two dishes, tons of textures and flavors, utterly unlike each other.

Yum. Fun. Friends. Three memorable ingredients amplified when found in combination. We resolved to do this again. In the mean time, we will continue watching Chopped and plotting our next plate. Anyone want to join in the flavors and fun?

Endings

I look at the photo above from my last evening in Sandpoint, and it seems appropriate for me to be riding away by horseback. We should have been playing this song:

June and July in north Idaho was pristine -- sun, warmth, green mountainsides, caring parishioners, early morning runs, hearty fish fries, lessons in parish ministry, small town friendliness. But as July closed and August began, Boise beckoned. I have until August 25 to spend with my family, and I am savoring that precious time.

First, though, I must recount some of my experience from St. Joseph. I tried to name the many activities in which I participated, and though I missed some, here are a few:

• Saw the documentary film G-Dog at the Panida Theater
• Attended my first barn dance
• Distributed communion to fifty-ish Catholics confined to their homes and assisted livings centers
• Ate four dinners at the Hydra Steakhouse
• Learned a number of funny jokes: the lawyer and the Czech refugee, Sam Clam and Freddy Fish, the three-legged dog, the mushroom in a bar
• Counted the Sunday collection for the first time
• Jumped from a forty foot cliff into Lake Pend Oreille
• Tried an air chair behind the Lewis boat on the lake
• Served at the smallest church in Idaho, Sacred Heart in Clark Fork
• Attended Steubenville Northwest with 15 teens and one youth minister
• Talked to Sandpoint residents at the Friday Soup Supper
• Caught six Kokanee salmon and ate them for dinner
• Lived in the rectory with Fr. Dennis
• Saw the daily function and life of a committed parish priest
• Photographed the distant views from the top of Schweitzer Mountain
• Flew in a four-seater plane above the surrounding area and steered the plane for the better part of a half-hour
• Won Tuesday Trivia at Mick Duff's
• Enjoyed the many parishioner offerings at the parish picnic
• Shot hoops at City Beach
• Devoured fish tacos and pork carnitas tacos at the Dover Dish
• Drove to Bloom Lake with Ed and Paula
• Lectored, Eucharistic ministered, altar served, greeted visitors, made announcements, and assisted at Masses
• Continued to ponder my vocational calling and the implications of God's will for my life
• Played the baby grand piano many afternoons
• Bought fresh produce at the Saturday Farmer's Market
• Sat beneath a better-than-the-city-could-have-done-it fireworks display for Independence Day at the Lewis beach
• Drove to Seattle and back for the funeral of a dear friend
• Saddled up to go horseback riding for the first time
• Went to the homes of a number of generous parishioners for dinner and conversation
• Attended Family Camp with about 70 Catholic households near Cascade
• Used a Crayola marker to draw 50 stars on a true American flag for Vacation Bible School
• Taught kindergarteners the Birdie Song during VBS
• Picked the tastiest blueberries of my life at Omodt Family's Shingle Mill Blueberry Farm
• Witnessed my first super moon
• Rode a red cruiser bike around town and down the road to Dover
• Met the people of God in Sandpoint and left thankful for the experiences and friendships forged during my short time there

The sum of these experiences is a renewed intensity for the life of the local parish. I value building relationships with people of all ages, sharing life over a sandwich at Spuds or a parking lot conversation after Mass. No matter how quirky we can be, the communal aspect of being Catholic is true to our call to communion, to church, and to love. In the intimacy of people's homes, at the bedside of the frail and elderly, on a boat motoring around the lake, from the peak of the ski hill above the city, on the walk back from Adoration and Reconciliation at Steubenville, in the moment a water balloon broke and gushed refreshment down my back, in the homemade treats crafted especially for Fr. Dennis and me, in God's embrace during the liturgy -- in all these places I witnessed Christ transforming me and transforming His people into God's image.

On this earthly pilgrimage, if we can invest in the minutiae and monumental moments with equal commitment and love, we are well on the way to a budding relationship with the Lord that will echo into eternity. Thanks to all those special individuals in Sandpoint for letting me share in that process this summer. I leave you with my favorite blessing, one which many of you have heard but which never grows tired.

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind always be at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face,

and rains fall soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of His hand.