"You should save this": Mac and Cheese Pizza

My brother and I have been known to appreciate food from time to time. And, for some reason, we were talking about the perfect carb-load that might just be oh-so-tasty: The Mac and Cheese Pizza. I'm not sure if this already exists, but we needed to discuss how best to make it. We still haven't produced it, but I wanted to share the conversation with you...

Daorcey says:
there was a discussion the other day about mac and cheese pizza. Can it be done?

QA Monkey says:
I suppose it could be done. The problem with putting it onto a pizza is that you need to worry about cooking time. Too long, and you overcook the pasta, making it a dry pizza. Too little, and you just have dough with mac and cheese on top.

The trick is in the toppings, and the cooking time.

For a tofu dog, it is much more simplified, because you are using it like a condiment.

Daorcey says:
ooo! it could be just like baked pasta, I bet... I'd suggest pre cooking the crust (half way), then putting on the mac and cheese, sprinkle on more cheese and then bake until melted.

OMG

QA Monkey says:
I would suggest an alfredo-based sauce for the pizza, as opposed to tomato. Tomato would be too overpowering, while alfredo is saucy and garlicy enough to provide a suitable lubricant.

However, you should still add fresh diced tomatoes, and possibly even some basil, to the final product.

For the break in the monotonous cheese flavour, and to make it really pop.

Daorcey says:
this will happen, I guarantee it.

QA Monkey says:
You should save this conversation for next time we come down, so we can remember these ideas.


Consider it saved.

Henry Hudson would be ashamed

We went back to Hudsons because it was finally time to use the food coupon we received the first time we were there. Hooray! It may be the last time we go there even though we still have another $20 off coupon.

Tuesday is East Coast night which means $4 Keiths (a miserable IPA) and 25 cent butterfly shrimp. We order 2 Keiths and 20 shrimp and put in an order for Cesar salad and a buffalo/cheddar/bacon burger.

The good: The butterfly shrimp are great. Crispy batter and the spicy chili dipping sauce is a good choice. Also, $4 for a bottle of Keiths is not a bad deal--even if it's a bad IPA. Normally I hate drinking IPAs because of the hoppy taste. But there is barely any in Keiths, so good beer for me, terrible beer for IPA lovers.

The bad: Everything else.

It took a long time for our non-shrimp food to show up. Hudsons was full but not crazy busy so I'm not sure why the delay. Perhaps they're still working out the kinks in the system? Daorcey's salad was meh but he had little choice on the menu (it was either that, nachos or fish and chips). My burger? Remember how excited I was in the previous post that they had buffalo burgers in addition to the beef? My buffalo burger patty was as tasteless as making Hitler jokes while visiting Aushwitz. There was no flavour in the patty and the bacon was so-so. How can a restaurant mess up bacon?

We're probably not going back, unless it's for $20 worth of butterfly shrimp on Tuesday.

Release the Kraken!

My father shared some important things with me growing up: learning how to deal with fractions, several concepts in physics, and the sheer goodness of schlocky movies. I come from a family where we have fond memories of Wrath of Khan, the entire series of the Planet of the Apes movies (we've seen them all), and Clash of the Titans.

I can't really remember the story of the original Clash of the Titans. I know of the important set pieces like the Medusa fight and the whole solve-a-riddle-to-win-the-hand-of-the-princess scenario. The plot is jumbled up in my mind, but I imagine a lot of our favourite childhood memories are like that. We only remember snatches of good things. Anyways, I was fond of the Ray Harryhausen effects (staccato skeletons and that creepy Medusa) and the fact the movie has the immortal line "Release the Kraken!"

So it was with great nostalgia that my sister, Daorcey and I headed to the theatres to see the remake of the movie. Daorcey hadn't seen the original--a shocking knowledge gap--while my sister was young enough to remember the movie but not the finer details.

The movie isn't bad, but not bad enough to become a cult classic. Neither is it good enough to pass as superior action movie. Sam Worthington, an actor who is bland enough to be in two other recent blockbusters (Avatar and Terminator 4), is passable as Perseus. (For some reason, he seems to be doing a weak Jason Statham impression for this film.) It's the others around him that are much better.

There's the guy who played the villian in Casino Royale (Mads Mikkelsen) and, unfortunately, he's much more interesting than Worthington. There's the guy who looks like Bill Bailey, and has a faint copy of his humour, that provides all the decent comic relief. Finally, Liam Neeson steps into Sir Laurence Olivier's shoes as Zeus. Neeson gets to wear a shiny suit of armour (no togas here) and gets to say THE LINE. He does it well and matches my memories enough that my sister and I chuckle out of fond remembrance.

This remake wasn't a Episode I atrocity--although I suspect there won't be another movie in my lifetime that achieves that level of awful... unless they make either a She-Ra or Jem movie (for which I would be first in line to see even though I know it'll be aweful). But, the movie was just good enough to convince me that the original is a movie worth showing to Daorcey. If only for the opportunity to giggle at Olivier slumming it and yelling "Release the Kraken!"