the unofficial start of fall?

Above, "The Big Kahuna Burger," one of three Pulp Fiction-inspired artworks by Lonesome Road Studio.

September 1st, and many are calling this "the first unofficial day of fall." And, this weekend is Labor Day weekend in the United States, so grills will be up in smoke at least one more time before the snow falls. (Or, if you're on the Lonesome Road, you put on your coveralls, fire up the torpedo heater and grill anyway.)

An easy-going, casual holiday like Labor Day is best served with a low-key, fun menu and tops on the list is burgers. There's a burger to please everyone's taste: beef, buffalo, lamb, turkey, chicken, black bean, veggie, a huge portabella cap... the list is endless. And maybe more endless than the list of burgers themselves is the toppings that you can put on them. Want a Greek burger? Just crumble a bit of feta cheese, add fresh spinach leaves, tomato and onion and top with tzatziki sauce. How about an old-fashioned bacon barbecue burger? Have a pizza burger with mozzarella and provolone cheese plus marinara sauce, maybe sauteed mushrooms and pepperoni slices... or a Mexican burger with salsa, avocado, sour cream, jalapenos and olives.

If you think those are creative ideas, check out some of the ideas at Chicago's Kuma's Corner, one of the most heralded repositories of insanely inventive burger dining in the area:

• The "Judas Priest" - with bacon, bleu cheese dressing with apples, walnuts, and dried cranberries
• The "Slayer" - French fries topped with a ½ lb. burger, chili, cherry peppers, andouille, onions, jack cheese, and... ANGER
• The "Lair Of The Minotaur" - caramelized onions, pancetta, brie, bourbon-soaked pears
• The "Insect Warfare" - panko-crusted goat cheese, bacon roasted corn and green chili medallion, topped with roasted corn, cilantro, green chili salsa and paprika creme fraiche
• The "Black Sabbath" - blackening spice, chili, pepper jack, red onion
• Or maybe just the House Burger, complete with a fried egg.

You get the idea.
So while you're flipping (and not pressing, please) that burger, dream up a little something out of the ordinary and say good-bye to summer with the sandwich equivalent of a 21-gun salute!

And while you're at it, take the groovy poll in the upper right; poll closes at noon on Wednesday the 8th of September - come back to Bite This! to see the results!

reflections on labor day

It's Labor Day weekend in the USA... cookouts, family fun, summer's last fling; and the promise of fall is in the air. For me, fall brings "busy-ness" but as this change of season approaches, I am reminded also of "business" and how I yearn to make my own changes.
Now more than ever I dream of spending all of my time making my own small business the best it can be, but still have to work a part-time day job. It's just a paycheck really; I didn't even have benefits when I worked full-time. Then there is the guilt trip that the economic downturn has placed on me as well; who would be insane enough to leave a job in these bad times? Still, it's hard not to wonder if I could be doing so much more for my own business if I had that other 24 hours a week to spend nurturing it. I guess the "good part" is that there are many others who feel the same way, and we can all support each other.
On a positive note: I recently took another step to making my own business grow; I purchased my .com domain name for two years. It was surprisingly inexpensive at GoDaddy, and with an online discount, even more affordable. In addition, shortly after I created the account someone from GoDaddy called me to discuss my account, what I hoped to accomplish with it, etc. Frankly, at this point I just wanted to purchase the domain name and figure out how to create a redirect to a landing page (my Etsy shop, for now). Well, the kind people at GoDaddy did it for me over the phone and I am so thankful because I certainly didn't know how to do it, LOL.
So, even though I still feel that I'm stagnating in my "old career," my "new career" is taking off, even if it's just semi-sporadic baby steps.

sunday dinner redux - love on a plate with a twist 2 - labor day edition

Chet Atkins' Coleslaw
Planning on grilling this weekend for the big "end-of-summer" Labor Day cookout? What could be a more perfect side dish than cool, crisp coleslaw?
This is reportedly the coleslaw recipe of the guitar great Chet Atkins, published in the awesome "Dinah Shore Cookbook" (yes.. Dinah Shore) which I scored in my favorite resale/consignment shop. It is one of my all-time favorites; a vinegar-and-oil-based recipe with just the right touch of sweetness. The original recipe does not include onion, but I do like a bit of onion added to the slaw. I also use real apple cider vinegar in place of the recipe's original white vinegar; it's probably just me but I equate white vinegar with pickle-making and house-cleaning. Heh.

For best results, let this blend for about an hour before serving with your masterpiece of the grill.

7 to 8 cups shredded cabbage (or a 14 oz. bag of pre-packaged coleslaw mix)
1/2 cup shredded carrots (if not using the coleslaw mix
1 tablespoon finely minced onion (more if you like)

For the Dressing:
Scant 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I've used light olive oil with good results as well)
2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon sugar (I added the extra teaspoon of sugar because the apple cider vinegar is quite piquant!)
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard (like Coleman's)
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, more or less to your taste (I like Tabasco's green sauce made with jalapenos)
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Thoroughly whisk together the dressing ingredients (the dry mustard will want to clump a bit; just keep whisking it until dissolved). Add dressing to the cabbage, carrots and onions; refrigerate for around an hour before serving.

Serves 4 to 6, depending on how much you like coleslaw!