Saturday, May 30, 2020

Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--The Healthy Bread-less Sandwich: Jimmy John's Unwich

     On at least three occasions, I've eaten and then posted about sandwiches wherein the bread is replaced by something else.  The first was KFC's Double Down, which has fried chicken patties as the "bread", which I discussed back on May 8, 2014.  And then Taco Bell's Naked Chicken Chalupa, which has an outer shell made from pressed fried chicken enclosing the lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cheese, and sauce.  And finally, very recently, another KFC abomination, the Chicken and Donut Sandwich, which I talked about on February 29, 2020.  Today I'll do the opposite.  The large sandwich fast food store Jimmy John's makes something called an Unwich--a sub (or hoagie, or grinder, depending on what part of the U.S. you reside in) which instead of an outer roll made from bread is encased in big slices of lettuce.
     This establishment is, not shockingly, named after the founder--Jimmy John Liautaud.  Liautaud had a shaky start, but recovered impressively.  He reportedly graduated second to last in his class at the Elgin Academy, an Illinois-based college prep school, in 1982.  Therefore, his father gave him two choices--join the Army, or start his own business.  Initially Liautaud thought he'd start a restaurant that specialized in hot dogs, but he reconsidered and went with sandwiches instead, aided by a $25,000 loan from his dad.  The sandwich shop, located in Charleston, IL, blossomed quickly, helped by Liautaud's decision to offer delivery to the nearby Eastern Illinois University students.  By 1985 Jimmy John was able to buy out his father's 48% ownership share, and therefore become sole owner, and by 1986 he was able to open a second restaurant.  In 1988 Liautaud was mentored by Jamie Coulter, a successful restaurant executive, who later founded the lucrative Lone Star Steakhouse chain.  Franchising of Jimmy John's started in 1994.  By October of 2018 Forbes Magazine estimated Liautaud's personal worth at about 1.7 billion dollars, and there are currently over 2800 individual Jimmy John's restaurants in the U.S.  On October 18, 2019 Liautaud sold his business to Inspire Brands, which in turn is owned by the humongous Roark Capital Group.  There have been a few controversies along the way.  There were some labor issues consisting of alleged illegal non-competing clauses in the Jimmy John's employee contracts back in 2014, and in 2015 many were outraged about Liautaud's participation in big game hunting.  (He's since claimed that he stopped this hunting.)  On the positive side, Jimmy John's charitable contribution targets include the families of killed or disabled soldiers, providing HIV/AIDS medication to Sub Saharan Africans, and paying the Christmas layaways of needy folks at Wal-Mart.  Finally, Liautaud owns something called a "superyacht," a craft which is 198 feet long.
     I should mention that the Unwich is clearly catering to people following diets which eschew carbohydrates, such as Atkins and the Keto (Ketogenic) diet.  I think most people have an idea about Atkins, but I'll expand upon the Keto one a bit since it's newer.  Evidently the Keto diet was first developed to reduce epileptic seizures in kids.  However, recently some have adapted it for weight loss, and presumed better health for adults who don't have epilepsy.  The diet involves avoiding fruit, vegetables, and grains, and consuming lots of protein and fat.  Obviously, the legitimacy of alternative diets is often a heated issue.  Clearly, the Keto diet has its adherents.  However, I did read an article written by a Harvard dietitian which voiced some concerns about this diet.  She warned that being on it could lead to nutrient deficiencies, liver and kidney problems, constipation, and even erratic moods and poor cognition.  So, in short, if you're considering adapting the Keto diet, or any diet, for that matter, probably best to investigate it thoroughly, and consult your physician, etc., before embarking on it.

Jimmy John's Turkey Tom Unwich:  The Turkey Tom is one of their regular offerings, which consists of turkey, lettuce, and tomato.  I also got onions and mayo on mine.  And I ordered the eight inch one, not the sixteen inch large sub.  Anyway, as advertised this concoction was the innards listed above wrapped in a large sheath of lettuce (iceberg), with a paper sleeve at the end to prevent the innards from falling out.  The taste was okay.  I like this type of sub/hoagie in general, so even missing a usual key component it was still good.  It looked weird, and was a little strange to eat, but it wasn't bad or anything.  That said, since I'm not an adherent of an anti-carb diet I don't plan on getting it again.  Actual bread certainly improves the overall flavor and experience of a sandwich, in my opinion.  In closing then, it you are on a low carb diet I guess this would be a viable and tasty alternative, but if you're not I really don't see the point.  From a restaurant's perspective I think it's smart, though--Jimmy John's can get business from folks that it wouldn't normally, and there isn't much added cost or fuss.  If anything, I'm sure it's cheaper than the bread encased sandwich.  Moving on, I am enjoying trying different types of sandwiches, though, made with vastly different ingredients, and with various structures.  I hope to add more in the future.















 





















Saturday, May 23, 2020

Underrated Horror Movie Gems--"The People Under the Stairs"

     Wes Craven was a famous movie director (and writer), mostly in the horror genre.  However, even his biggest fans would have to admit that his output was kind of hit and miss.  The subject of today's post, 1991's "The People Under the Stairs," is one I think was quite good, but didn't get the acclaim it's due.  I'll follow my usual format of starting with a brief, spoiler-free synopsis, followed by a long, spoiler-rich recap, and ending with a discussion about some of the film's strengths, themes, and cast and crew info.
     Thirteen-year-old Poindexter, known as "Fool," is in a bad situation.  His mother is gravely ill, and his family will be evicted in a day if they can't pay the outlandishly high rent for their rattrap apartment.  A friend of his sister's, Leroy, convinces him to assist on a robbery attempt of their landlord's house, which is rumored to have a large stash of gold coins.  Once inside, though, things go awry.  The man and woman who live inside are weird and violent.  And the children who live there are strange--mute and monstrous.  What are the secrets of the house, and its bizarre inhabitants?
     (SPOILERS AHEAD UNTIL MARKED)  "The People Under the Stairs" opens in a shabby apartment in a rundown Los Angeles neighborhood, as a young woman, Ruby, reads her brother's future using tarot cards.  Her brother, known as "Fool," is warned that evil trials will face him soon.  The family's overall status is horrible--their mother is sick with cancer, and they'll be evicted the following day if they can't pay the rent.  Ruby's friend Leroy has a criminal proposition for Fool.  Leroy and his partner Spenser want to rob the house of the local couple who are the landlords to much of the neighborhood, including Fool and Ruby's apartment.  There is a rumor of a large cache of gold coins inside.  The scene then shifts to inside the landlord's house.  A man and a woman are seen, as they eat some mystery meat with buckshot in it.  The woman strictly scolds her daughter, Alice, for misplacing a fork, and for feeding some weird person who lives behind the walls of the house.
     We then see Fool dressed up as a Bear Scout, approaching the landlord's house, which we see is the Robeson residence.  The plan is for Fool to gain entrance by pretending to sell cookies, and then to observe the security measures inside and report back to Leroy and Spenser.  The plan is thwarted, though, as the woman who answers refuses to let Fool inside.  Spenser has better luck when he approaches dressed as a gas company employee, as he's grudgingly let inside.  As Leroy and Fool wait in their van, the landlord's car drives away.  Leroy is suspicious, so he pulls the van into the landlord's driveway, and manages to break into the house.  Leroy and Fool discover that the house is strange, with filth, vermin, and a system of locks and security measures, including a vicious attack dog.  After trapping the dog, Leroy goes upstairs, while Fool investigates some weird noises coming from the cellar.  There he sees people with flashlights lurking in a set of large wooden cage-like partitions.  He also then trips over Spenser's dead body.  The landlords return, and seeing that the house has been breached, let the dog inside to attack Fool and Leroy.  After they subdue the dog using a wired security dog trap, they scatter.  The landlord man ("Daddy"), hunts them down, shooting Leroy.  Fool is grabbed by the weird guy behind the walls (Roach), and pulled into the space behind the walls through the vent system.  He is quickly introduced to Alice, and Roach.  Alice is intensely shy and nervous, and has never been outside.  Roach had his tongue cut out for the crime of "speaking evil."  He was put in the cellar, too, but managed to escape, and now he lives behind the walls.  The people in the cellar are the boys who wouldn't behave for Mommy and Daddy.  Alice also reveals that many salesmen, utility workers, etc., have been inside and then were murdered like Spenser.  Daddy, now dressed in a S& M type leather outfit, hunts for Roach, and then Fool, when they discover that the boy was part of the robbery group after they find his Bear Scout uniform in the discarded van.  Strange booby traps and security measures are everywhere throughout the house.
     Daddy manages to capture Fool, and he's handcuffed and thrown into the cellar with the bizarre boys who live there.  Daddy feeds the boys pieces of Leroy's body, and even indulges himself.  Roach scares the other boys away from Fool, and then frees Fool and leads him in an escape through the warren of vents, heating ducts, and tunnels behind the walls.  In the chase that ensues Daddy mortally shoots Roach, but Roach gives Fool a gold coin just before he dies.  The dog (Prince) gets behind the walls and fights Fool and Alice, but is accidentally stabbed to death by Daddy.  Fool and Alice make it to the attic, which has the only open, unlocked windows.  Fool gets out and jumps off the roof, remembering that there is a pond underneath to break his fall safely.  Back at home, Fool's grandfather reveals that the gold coin he got from Roach is worth enough to pay their rent, and for their mother's cancer treatments.  He also tells Fool that Mommy and Daddy Robeson are the crazy brother and sister left from the original funeral home family.
    Fool calls the police, telling them about the Robeson's child abuse.  Mommy and Daddy manage to act normal and charm the police.  However, the commotion allows Fool to sneak in.  Mommy and Daddy find and attack Fool, but he subdues them temporarily.  He finds Alice hanging by her arms in the attic, and he tells her that she was kidnapped, and that the Robesons aren't her real parents.  The previous escape routes have been blocked off by Daddy, though.  More fights happen, between Alice and Mommy, and Fool and Daddy.  They are interrupted by Ruby and Grandpa at the door.  The boys in the cellar break free and attack Mommy, and Alice eventually stabs her fatally.  Fool discovers the stash of gold coins and cash, and also some dynamite.  Fool manages to detonate the dynamite, killing Daddy and exploding much of the house.  The cash flies out of the damaged house, and the gathering neighbors, many of whom are the Robeson's tenants, gather it up.  Fool, Alice and the cellar boys go outside as well.
     (For brevity's sake, during the rest of this post I'll refer to this movie as "People.")  One of the major themes in this movie is, of course, racism.  Mommy and Daddy Robeson are the typical stereotype of white landlords exploiting mostly black tenants.  Daddy tosses off a racial slur at one point, and very casually, suggesting that he and Mommy are very prejudiced against their African-American neighbors and tenants.  Also, the Robesons have clearly kidnapped many children, but they all appear to be white.  (At least as far as I can tell--the boys in the cellar are dirty, disheveled, diseased, and sometimes seen only quickly, in dark conditions, but they all seem to be Caucasian.)  The Robesons also seem especially concerned that Fool will "spoil" or contaminate the white Alice, perhaps sexually, or even by his "otherness."  In a related theme, there is obvious classism going on here, too.  The Robesons find their poor tenants to be disgusting, and dangerous, all for the "sin" of not being rich like they are.  But their financial comfort seems underutilized.  The Robeson's house is huge, and does have some valuable antiques, but in a lot of ways it's run down, crappy, and infested with vermin.  Mommy and Daddy have literal piles of cash and gold in the cellar, going mostly unused.  They exploit their tenants, but then don't even spend much of their ill-gotten gains.  It makes the whole thing even more reprehensible somehow, because it's for no point, or gain.  The Robesons seem extremely joyless, rather Mr. Burns-esque.  There's also the theme of gentrification--Fool's family is the last in their building, and the Robesons want to force them out so they can tear down the building down and rebuild.
     And then there's what the Robesons eat.  Here you can say that Wes Craven was a little too "on the nose" with his social commentary, almost latter day George Romero-style.  But I can forgive it, since it makes the film that much more disturbing and scary.  I refer to the frequent cannibalism, obviously.  Mommy and Daddy could clearly afford to eat the most expensive steaks, caviar, fine wines, etc., if they wanted to, but instead they chow down on the corpses of their human victims.  They go out of their way to do so, almost intentionally so that they embody the symbolism of the rich living off the poor.  Plus, they seek to contaminate, and bring others down to their level in the process.  They could feed the cellar boys cheap gruel, or something, but no--these captive boys are given human meat to eat as well.  Maybe some would say that the cannibalism is to get rid of the murder victim's bodies, to remove evidence, but this doesn't really work, since the bones and remains of countless victims are scattered throughout the house.  Burying the bodies, or leaving them in the neighborhood would be more effective to avoid being caught with evidence.  True, the Robesons are clearly insane, so there's that too--their decisions often don't make much logical sense.
     Family and fertility are some more important issues in "People."  We learn that Mommy and Daddy are really brother and sister, but they give every indication that they're lovers as well.  Their several kinks go beyond this, such as Daddy regularly wearing an S & M type black leather "gimp" suit.  And given Mommy being the most dominant one of the two, it's probable that she's the "top", or sadist of the pair.  There's also a hint that Daddy has sexual interest in Alice, too, and that Mommy might realize and seek to stop it, although whether it's out of either jealousy, or a rare moment of humanity we don't know.  But, perhaps a little oddly, the Robesons are obsessed with adding to their family with children.  You can even argue that the cellar boys are still cared about, in a warped way--the Robesons could have easily killed the boys who came up short as "sons," but they don't.  They keep them alive in the basement, albeit in savage conditions.  But Mommy and Daddy are only seen to kill one cellar dweller, Roach, and only because he's escaped and is actively thwarting their plans.  There is an obvious question here--why do the Robesons kidnap outsiders to serve as their children?  Why not just make their own?  Is one or both of them infertile?  Or, in a rare moment of insight, do they realize that the product of incest might be diseased, or have birth defects?  Again, it's an unusual choice to make.  The cliche horror movie move would be for Mommy and Daddy to have a pack of deformed, natural children.  (Although, thinking about it, maybe Wes Craven did this to avoid it being like his earlier horror classic, "The Hills Have Eyes.")
     The Robeson's insanity is interesting as well.  There's no question that they're both severely mentally ill, but they are capable of functioning in society, at least barely.  Both are able to "pass" as normal when the police are inside the house.  Even the professional child welfare officers, who probably have extensive experience in figuring out which parents are crazy and abusive, are taken in  by the charade.  And the Robesons own much of the city neighborhood, and function in this capacity adequately.  So at some point they put down their human meat dinners and bondage gear, and file complicated tax returns, permits, and the rest of the bureaucratic minutia necessary to remain as landlords.  And if Fool hadn't narrowly escaped and then brought back help the Robesons would have presumably continued their horrific crimes against humanity for years, or even decades.
     In addition, religion is a major part of the Robeson's lives and personalities.  Like many villains, they see themselves as good and holy, and anyone against them is evil, and bound for Hell.  Which much require a staggering amount of denial and rationalizing, to make up for their many, many sins.  They lie, cheat, take advantage of the poor, steal, kidnap, murder, and even commit cannibalism, while still thinking that they're in the right.  Many so called religious people show a lot of hypocrisy, but the Robesons take theirs to repellent (but darkly entertaining) degrees.  The "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil," monkeys perfectly embody their philosophy--it's okay to DO evil, but just don't talk about it, acknowledge it, or witness it.  It you don't admit to doing something evil, especially to yourself, it didn't happen, I suppose, in their world view.
     One of "People"'s virtues is the casting.  The story is admittedly ridiculous at times, and also rough and disturbing, but the actors acquit themselves well.  Wendy Robie and Everett McGill are great as the Robeson siblings, really selling the idea of this crazy, kidnapping, murderous, cannibalistic pair.  Sometimes they're kind of going over the top, but it is appropriate for their characters.  The younger actors are unusually effective as well.  As I've noted previously, I typically find child/young teen actors tiresome, and they often detract from an otherwise good movie.  But Brandon Adams as Fool plays it well--he seems believably scared and immature, but ultimately strong and resourceful enough.  And A.J. Langer is sympathetic as the poor abused, traumatized Alice.  The other supporting players work as well.  Sean Whalen (Roach) is weird looking but sympathetic, and the robbers (Ving Rhames as Leroy, and Jeremy Roberts as Spenser), and Fool's family (Kelly Jo Minter as Ruby, Bill Cobbs as Grandpa Booker) are all effective.
    I should also mention that I really enjoyed the spaces behind the walls, and between the floors, complete with hidden entrances and exits, booby traps, etc.  When you think about it they don't make much sense--why would a building have such huge unused areas around and behind each room?  But it is undeniably fun, and adds a weird, funhouse-type atmosphere to the film.  And kind of reminiscent of the similarly unrealistically large space behind the walls in the classic "Evil Dead 2" (1987).
     (END SPOILERS--SAFE FOR ALL READERS)  Writer/director Wes Craven had a long career, unfortunately ending when he died in 2015.  I would credit him with directing 4 horror classics--"The Last House on the Left" (1972), "The Hills Have Eyes" (1977), "A Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984), and "Scream" (1996), all which he also wrote except for the last one.  Other highlights include directing "The Serpent and the Rainbow" (1988), "Scream 2" (1997), "Scream 3" (2000) "Red Eye" (2005), and the non horror "Music of the Heart" (1999).  He also wrote and directed "Wes Craven's New Nightmare" (1994) and "Scream 4" (2011), and co-wrote the excellent "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3:  Dream Warriors" (1987 and see my July 7, 2018 post for more information).
     As for the actors, star Brandon Adams (Fool), was also in "Moonwalker" (1988), "The Mighty Ducks" (1992), "The Sandlot" (1993), "Ghost in the Machine" (1993), and "D2: The Mighty Ducks" (1994).  Daddy Robeson was played by Everett McGill, probably best known for roles in ""Brubaker" (1980), "Quest for Fire" (1981), "Dune" (1984), "Silver Bullet" (1985), "License to Kill" (1989), and the television series "Twin Peaks" (1990-91, 2017).  Wendy Robie (Mommy Robeson) played McGill's wife on "Twin Peaks" (1990-91, 2017), and was also in such films as "Vampire in Brooklyn" (1995, one of Craven's least respected movies), "The Glimmer Man" (1996), "The Dentist 2" (1998), "The Attic Expeditions" (2001), and "Were the World Mine" (2008).  Alice portrayer A.J. Langer is probably best known for her role in the television series "My So-Called Life" (1994-95), but she also appeared in movies like "The Killing Box" (1993), "Arcade" (1993), "Escape from L.A." (1996), "Meet the Deedles" (1998), and on television's "Seinfeld" (1996).  The most famous member of the cast was clearly Ving Rhames, who played Leroy.  Career highlights for him include "Casualties of War" (1989), "Jacob's Ladder" (1990, see my recent post on April 4, 2020), "Dave" (1993), "Pulp Fiction" (1994), the "Mission: Impossible" series (1996-2018), "Con Air" (1997), "Dawn of the Dead" (2004, the remake) and "Piranha 3D (2010).  Bill Cobbs (Grandpa Booker) was in such films as "The Taking of Pelham One Two Three" (1974), "Trading Places" (1983), "Silkwood" (1983), "The Color of Money" (1986), "The January Man" (1989), "Demolition Man" (1993), "Night at the Museum" (2006), and "Oz the Great and Powerful" (2013).  Kelly Jo Minter (Ruby) had roles in such movies as "Mask" (1985), "Summer School" (1987), "The Lost Boys" (1987), "A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child" (1989), "New Jack City" (1991), "Popcorn" (1991), and "Doc Hollywood" (1991).  Sean Whalen (Roach) was in such films as "Batman Returns" (1992), "Tammy and the T-Rex" (1994), "Twister" (1996), "That Thing You Do!" (1996), "Suicide Kings" (1997), "Hatchet III" (2013), and "3 From Hell" (2019).  And Spenser portrayer Jeremy Robert's resume includes roles in "The Marrying Man" (1991), "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" (1991), "The Mask" (1994), "The Mexican" (2001), and on the television series "Sunset Beach" (1997) and "The X-Files" (1999).
     "The People Under the Stairs" actually did good business, earning a box office take of 31 million dollars on a 6 million dollar budget.  But its reviews were mixed, and I think it's largely forgotten.  True, it's not one of Craven's best, but it's far from his worst, which to me would be "The Hills Have Eyes Part II" (1984) and "Shocker" (1989).  (To be fair, I haven't seen several of his other reputed stinkers.)  It's very scary and disturbing.  As I went into detail previously, there is quite a bit of social commentary in it, but it's not too obvious, and doesn't detract from the overall story.  So fans of freaky, unsettling horror films should give it a look.






































































































































 





















Saturday, May 16, 2020

Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Hamantashen Cookies

     The name given to these cookies is a little strange, at least to me.  Haman was a man mentioned in the Book of Esther in the Hebrew Bible/Christian Old Testament.  He was the political advisor of a King (rendered as Ahasuerus, but believed to be Xerxes I) who decided to commit genocide of the area's Jews due to a perceived personal slight from one individual, Mordecai.  However, eventually the King took Mordecai's side (and his peoples') and instead executed Haman on the very gallows that Haman had devised for Mordecai.  So this explains the front of the name.  The back part has a couple of linguistic theories.  Some think it's because "tash" is the Yiddish word for "pouch," or "pocket," a shape the cookies usually resemble.  It could also be a double meaning, as an insult to Haman's love of ill-gotten money, stored in his pockets.  Or, "tash" in Hebrew means to "weaken," so it may be a reference to the enemies of the Jews (in this case Haman) being weakened and defeated.  The cookies are also sometimes called oznei Hamans, which is Hebrew for the "ears of Haman." In some versions of the story, in addition to being hung Haman had his ears cut off.  The spelling of the cookie's name is also varied, and a bit confusing.  It can be spelled "hamantashen," "hamentashen," "hamantaschen," "humentashen," and others.  Also, technically one cookie is a hamantash, and many are hamantashen, but English speakers commonly use the plural name for one or several of them.  Finally, some claim that the cookie's usual three cornered shape is after Haman's alleged three corner hat.  (But some historians point out that this kind of hat was probably not worn during Haman's time.)  Others say it's a fertility symbol, to represent female genitalia.  And the more practical ones think it's because the shape is a convenient one to hold in a tasty filling.  Anyway, I still kind it weird to name a fun dessert after a would-be psychotic mass murderer, but others clearly disagree.  I mean, as far as I know there's not Leopold Licorice, or Vlad Tepes Tarts, or Pol Pot Pies.  Maybe the key point is that Haman didn't succeed in his genocide.
     These cookies are part of the Ashkenazi Jewish tradition, and have a lot of different varieties and ingredients.  Some are dry and crumbly, like shortbread (see my January 11, 2020 post), others are firm and crisp, and still others are soft and cake-like.  All of them tend to be triangular in shape, with a filling inside.  But these fillings vary tremendously as well.  The original one is thought to be poppy seeds, but other common fillings are lekvar jam (see my February 15, 2020 post), apricots, raisins, vanilla, apples, dates, figs, cherries, halva (see my June 8, 2016 post), and caramel.  But some have savory fillings--anything from potato, cheese, spinach, lamb, or even pizza.  The prune kind was reportedly invented by a David Brandeis, of Jung-Bualan, Bohemia, in 1731.  A Christian bookbinder fell ill and died after eating some of Brandeis's jam, and the deceased's daughter claimed it was a poisoning, so Brandeis was jailed.  However, an investigation revealed that the bookbinder had died instead from consumption (an old timey expression for several diseases, such as tuberculosis), so Brandeis was freed, only a few days before the Jewish holiday of Purim.  So Brandeis made some prune-filled hamantashen to celebrate, and his Jewish kindred and descendants made it a Purim tradition.
     I can't tell you much about the makers of the hamantashen I tried, Lilly's Baking Company out of Brooklyn, NY, since their official website was very terse, and other online information was lacking.  The company has been in business for over 75 years.  Alternate cookies and baked goods made by them include babka, black and white cookies, macaroons, rainbow cookies, rugelash, linzer tarts, and recently, a gluten-free kind.  Not surprisingly, Lilly's products are indeed Kosher.
     Plus, I neglected to note, this was yet another Shop Rite supermarket find.  Shop Rite doesn't tend to have a lot of Jewish cuisine, but every so often they stock some.

Lilly's Baking Company, assorted hamantashen:  According to the ingredient list, and what I could see and taste, the fillings included were apricot, raspberry, and prune, with poppy seeds/butter and apples as well.  They were triangular in shape, and measured about 7 cm. (about 2.75 inches) to a side.  They were clearly the dry and crumbly kind, as the taste was very reminiscent of shortbread.  Which is a good thing.  Overall, all the kinds were good--nice cookie outside, sweet and tasty filling inside.  I certainly recommend them.












































Saturday, May 9, 2020

Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Mascarpone Cheese

    As a cheese connoisseur, I've heard of quite a few of this wonderful creation's varieties.  But, I'm clearly still capable of being stumped on occasion.  As I was a couple of months ago, yet again at my local Shop Rite grocery.  This new-to-me cheese was called mascarpone, and it came in a round tub, that kind of reminded me of a Cool Whip container.
     Mascarpone originated in Italy.  Specifically, in the northwest region of Lombardy, which shares a border with Switzerland.  Even more precisely, in the area between the town of Abbiategrasso and Lodi.  The "when" is in either the late 1500's or the early 1600's.  Alas, I don't know which person, or persons invented it.
     Unlike a lot of cheeses, mascarpone doesn't take long to make.  At all.  Forget being aged for months, or even years--evidently it can be whipped up in only a day!  Its preparation involves adding an acidic substance, like vinegar, or more commonly, lemon juice, to a batch of whole cream, from cow's milk.  After a little heating, and straining, and then "aging" for hours, and voila, mascarpone.  (I'm sure some makers might take a little longer to make it, but you get the point--it's super quick, by cheese standards.)  As you might expect from its youthful nature, mascarpone's texture is very soft.  So much so that it's easily spreadable.  Its color is usually white.  Some consumers compare it to English clotted cream, or to French creme-fraiche.  Mascarpone is a favorite part of desserts--most notably, tiramisu and cheesecake.  Or as a thickener to risotto.  One downside is that since it's made from cream, and not milk, it has a high fat content--twice that of American style cream cheese, for example.  I heard three linguistic explanations for its moniker.  Some claim it's derived from "mascarpia," from a local Lombardy dialect word for "ricotta."  Others say it's from the word "mascarpa," which is another dairy product made from the whey of other cheeses.  And still others claim it's from the Spanish phrase "Mas que beuno," which means "more than good."  Also, some subtypes of vegetarian/vegans might find it acceptable to eat, since unlike most cheeses mascarpone doesn't require rennet, which is traditionally received from the stomachs of calves, young goats, or lambs.
   The maker of the mascarpone I tried was a company called Galbani.  Davide Galbani and his son Egidio started the business back in 1882.  They started making their flagship product Bel Paese cheese in 1906.  The company survived the turmoil of World War I because their soft cheeses were badly needed in hospitals, and for the military.  (Since Galbani didn't close during World War II I guess demand was similarly enough then as well.)  Other cheeses offered by Galbani include parmesan, mozzerella, romano, asiago, ricotta, snack cheeses, snack dips, and string cheese.  On a business level, Galbani was bought up by the French Lactalis company in 2006.  Finally, the official company website notes that Galbani was involved in the biggest cannola (singular of cannoli) ever, as determined by the Guinness Book of World Records.  Their monstrosity weighed in at 262. 5 pounds (or 119.09 kilos) on November 9, 2014.  When I was writing this, I found another claimant to the record, though--supposedly the Ferrara bakery in New York City made a cannola that was 350 pounds (or 158.7 kilos) on September 22, 2014.  Maybe this one was determined to be illegal for some reason?  Is there such a thing as performance-enhancing drugs for cream desserts?

Galbani mascarpone cheese:  This cheese was white, and very soft and spreadable.  Almost like whipped cream in texture.  Plain it tasted fairly bland, only slightly sweet.  Not bad, but so inoffensive as to be kind of boring.  I tried it on several things, and with additives.  On a bagel it was okay, but not as good as regular American style cream cheese. On a cracker was pretty much the same deal.  It was better mixed with Rose's orange marmalade on a Thomas's English muffin, or when I put a little salt on it.  In conclusion, it's not savory enough to be that good by itself, but it's better mixed with other ingredients.  And to be fair I didn't have it in its most popular manner, as part of a cheese cake, or tiramisu. 






















Saturday, May 2, 2020

Some Trivia About the Major League Baseball and National Football League Drafts

     Like much of the world, one of the bits of entertainment that I've been missing during the pandemic is sports.  Obviously, all sports leagues have shut down, with the exception of pro wrestling, which I don't count.  Anyway, I thought today I'd do a sports related post.  Much of it will be about the MLB draft, with some NFL draft items, too.  (And I realize one focusing on the NFL draft would be more timely, since it just concluded a few days ago, but I already did a NFL draft piece back on May 4th 2013 so here we are.)
     To non sports fans, the draft is one of the main ways sports teams acquire new players.  It differs from league to league, but in general these players are high school athletes, or college players, or sometimes members of other amateur leagues.  Once an eligible player is chosen, their rights are held by that particular team.  The team then attempts to sign that players to a contract.  If a player doesn't sign, depending on the sport, they can't then sign with another team in that league for a specified length of time (often a year, but sometimes it's longer).  Often, if players indicate that they probably won't sign with a particular team, their rights will be sold or traded to another team, since teams don't want to waste a draft pick, especially if it's a high one.
     Player drafts are pretty old in American sports--the NFL started one in 1936, and the NBA in 1947, to name two.  Therefore, it's a little surprising how late MLB was in instituting one.  Major League Baseball was around almost a century before it started holding a draft, in 1965. The impetus for it was the Los Angeles Angels paying prospect Rick Reichardt a $200,000 signing bonus, which many teams thought was outlandishly high, and would result in salary inflation across the board.  For a time there were three different MLB drafts a year: one in January, of high school and college players who had graduated in December, one in June for high school grads and college seniors, and one in August for players in other American amateur leagues.  However, the January draft was discontinued after only two years, and the August one in 1986.  Currently all players in these situations are selected in June.  Although, this draft only applies to players in the U.S., Canada, or other U.S. territories (like Puerto Rico, for example), or foreign players who attended educational institutions in these areas.  Foreign born and educated players can be signed by any team in other ways.  Each team currently has 40 picks allotted to them.  Before 2012, some teams could have as many as 60 odd picks, since they could have been awarded  additional compensatory picks, such as reimbursement for losing one of their players in certain types of free agency, for example.  Which is way more than the NBA's 2 rounds, or the NFL's current 7.  (Due to the pandemic, I just learned that the 2020 draft will be severely curtailed.  It will be at least 5 rounds, up to a maximum of 10, with this exact number to be determined.) Also, unlike most sports leagues, in MLB draft picks can't be traded to other teams.
     I thought it would be fun to focus on the overall first draft picks over MLB's history, or the first pick in the first round.  Obviously, these players are considered to be the cream of the crop, the absolute best prospect in the country.  Clearly, they don't always work out to be great, or even good, or even average MLB players, for a variety of reasons.  Judging players' futures is a crap shoot.  Here's some trivia about overall first picks.

Only 3 first picks went on to become Hall of Famers.
     1) Harold Baines, outfielder/designated hitter (First overall in 1977)
     2) Ken Griffey, Jr., outfielder (1987)
     3) Chipper Jones, third base/outfielder (1990)
     In normal circumstances, 1993 first pick Alex Rodriguez would be joining this list in a couple of years, given his career accomplishments.  However, his suspensions and admission of doing performance enhancing drugs will almost certainly delay his Hall of Fame inclusion, or even prevent it.  Other active players, like 2007 pick David Price,  2009 pick Stephen Strasburg, or 2010 pick Bryce Harper, may eventually join the 3 on this list, so we'll have to wait and see.

Only 1 guy was the overall first pick in more than one draft.  Danny Goodwin was the first pick in the 1971 draft, but chose to go to college rather than sign.  Then in 1975 he was the first pick again, and this time did sign.  We'll return to Mr. Goodwin later in this post.

Only 3 first picks never played in the MLB, topping out in the minors.  They are:
     1) Steve Chilcott, 1966 first pick.  Due to an injury incurred while playing.
     2) Brien Taylor, 1991 first pick.  Due to an injury incurred during a fist fight.
     3) Mark Appel, 2013 first pick.  Due to various baseball-related injuries.  Unlike the first two, Appel is still young enough that he could conceivably make a return to baseball.  But he's officially retired as of now.  (UPDATE:  Appel un-retired, and made his way back into pro baseball, and as of June of 2022, finally made his major league debut as a pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies.  So now it's just Chilcott and Taylor.)
     And note that the first picks from 2014, and 2016-19 haven't played in the majors yet, but all were active minor leaguers in 2019, so it's too soon to rule them out.

Let's get negative.  While the question of which first pick was the worst overall is subjective, I think we can make a list that surely everybody would agree are strong candidates.  I'll make a list ranking them by their worst WAR.   This statistic stands for Wins Above Replacement, and ranks each player's overall value compared to a typical average major leaguer.  A negative WAR for a year indicates that the player was much worse than average, while 0-2 is a substitute, above 2 a starter, above 5 an all-star caliber season, and above 8 that of an MVP candidate.  A player accumulates separate WAR figures for offense and defense for each year they play, and then an overall WAR number.  So a guy who's a great hitter may have say, a 5.0 offensive WAR, but if he's terrible on defense, say a -2.0 WAR, his overall WAR will go down.  The stat is cumulative, too, so a Hall of Famer who plays 20 years can have WARs of 80 plus.  Anyway, the worst players have overall career WARs of low single digits, or even negative ones.  Here they are, with the worst being listed first. Finally, there are different ways to judge WAR, but I'm using Baseball Reference's totals.  I'll also include their career "slashes" (batting average/on base percentage/slugging average, adjusted batting average and ERAs, indicated with a Plus sign (100 is average), won-loss records, ERAs, WHIP ratio, etc.
   
1) -1.7 WAR, Danny Goodwin.  1971/1975 pick. Slashed .242/.312/.372, 84+, in 7 miserable seasons.
2) -1.3 WAR, Shawn Abner. 1984 pick. Slashed .227/.269/.323, 65+ in 6 seasons.
3) -0.6 WAR, Matt Anderson. 1997 pick.  15-7, 5.19 ERA, 1.582 WHIP, 89+, 7 seasons.
4) -0.5 WAR, Al Chambers. 1979 pick. slashed .208/.326/.292, 72+ in only 3 seasons.
5) -0.3 WAR, Bryan Bullington, 2002, 1-9, 5.62 ERA, 1.580 WHIP, 77+, 5 seasons.
6)  0.4 WAR, Dave Roberts, 1972, .239/.286/.357, 84+, in 10 seasons.
7)  0.6 WAR, David Clyde, 1973, 7-18, 4.63 ERA, 1.530 WHIP, 81+ , in 5 seasons.*
8)  2.7 WAR, Paul Wilson, 1994, 40-58, 4.86 ERA, 1.450, 88+, 7 seasons.
9)  3.2 WAR, Delmon Young, 2003, slashed .283/.316/.421, 98+ in 10 seasons.
     Note:  Matt Bush has a career WAR of only 2.6, and Tim Beckham has one of 3.5, but both are still active players, so these will probably change.

* Clyde has become a cautionary example of the dangers of overworking a young pitcher.  He went from pitching in high school directly to the majors (i.e. no minor league experience at first), and was overused largely because he drew large crowds.  Alas, he predictably got permanent injuries, so his career was shorter and presumably much worse than it could have been if he'd been handled more regularly.

    Now I'd like to list some NFL players, and some NBA players, some of whom were good or even excellent, who were also drafted in MLB.  It's important to remember that because there are comparatively so many rounds in the MLB draft that teams sometimes take guys who are extreme stretches to ever play baseball professionally.  For example, Michael Vick was drafted even though he hadn't played baseball since 8th grade, simply because he was such a phenomenal athlete.  Of course, if someone is taken in the first 5 rounds or so, they were clearly very talented in baseball as well.  Anyway, here we go.

Tom Brady, who will be a Hall of Famer after he retires (despite his participation in several cheating scandals), was infamously only drafted in the 6th round of the 2000 NFL draft by the New England Patriots.  However, he was also selected in the 18th round by the Montreal Expos in the 1995 MLB draft.

Akili Smith, who was an infamous bust in the NFL, as a 1st round, 3rd overall pick in the 1999 NFL draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, was also selected in the 7th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1993 MLB draft.

Charlie Ward almost joined Dave Winfield, Dave Logan, and Mickey McCarty as the only guys selected in the NFL, NBA, and MLB drafts.  Ward was selected in the 59th round of the 1993 MLB draft by the Milwaukee Brewers, and then in the 18th round by the New York Yankees in the 1994 draft.  Then he was taken by the New York Knicks in the 1st round (26th overall) in the 1994 NBA draft.  And, since he was a Heisman trophy winning quarterback in college, he surely would have been drafted in the 1994 NFL draft too, if he hadn't indicated his desire to play in the NBA if he wasn't selected in the 1st round of the NFL draft.

Russell Wilson was actually drafted twice by MLB teams.  He was selected in the 41st round by the Baltimore Orioles in the 2007 draft, and then by the Colorado Rockies in the 4th round of the 2010 draft.  However, he obviously signed with the NFL's Seattle Seahawks after they took him in the 3rd round of the 2012 draft.

Another infamous bust, Johnny Manziel, was taken in the 1st round (22nd overall) of the 2014 NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns.  He was also selected in the 28th round of the 2014 MLB draft, by the San Diego Padres.

Colin Kaepernick was taken by the Chicago Cubs in the 43rd round of the 2009 MLB draft, but signed with the San Francisco 49ers after being selected in the 2nd round of the 2011 NFL draft.

NFL Hall of Famer Dan Marino was a first rounder (27th overall) in the 1983 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins, but was also selected in the 4th round of the 1979 MLB draft by the Kansas City Royals.

Another NFL Hall of Famer, John Elway, was the first overall pick of the 1983 NFL draft, although he forced the Baltimore Colts to trade him to the Denver Broncos.  However, he was drafted twice by MLB teams--in the 18th round by Kansas City Royals in the 1979 draft, and in the 2nd round of the 1981 draft by the New York Yankees.  He even threatened to play baseball if the Colts refused to trade him.

Bo Jackson did the opposite of many of the players mentioned here.  He was drafted in the 4th round of the 1986 MLB draft by the Kansas City Royals.  But, he was also selected in the 1st round, 1st overall, by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1986 NFL draft, but didn't sign because he wanted to play both pro baseball and football.  He did eventually sign with the L.A. Raiders after being taken in the 7th round of the 1987 NFL draft, after they assured him that he could play in both.  Although he then played mostly in the MLB after a bad hip injury destroyed his NFL days.

Hall of Fame football player Deion Sanders was another two sport pro player.  He was a 1st rounder (5th overall) in the 1989 NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons.  However he was selected twice in the MLB draft--in the 6th round of the 1985 draft by the Kansas City Royals, and then in the 30th round of the 1988 draft by the New York Yankees.  He signed with the Yankees.

Still another two sport player was Brian Jordan.  He played 3 years in the NFL before committing full time to MLB and having a long, solid career.  He was drafted in the 7th round of the 1989 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills, and in the 20th round of the 1985 MLB draft by the Cleveland Indians, and the 1st round (29th overall) by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1988 MLB draft.

One final guy who played in the NFL and MLB.  Alas, D.J. Dozier disappointed in both.  But, he was taken in the 18th round of the 1983 MLB draft by the Detroit Tigers, and the 1st round (14th overall) of the 1987 NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings.


Brandon Weeden was another disappointment in the NFL, after being taken in the 1st round (22nd overall) of the 2012 draft by the Cleveland Browns.  However, he was also selected in the 2nd round of the 2002 MLB draft, by the New York Yankees.

Similarly, Chris Weinke under performed in the NFL after being a 4th rounder in the 2001 draft by the Carolina Panthers.  But previous to that he was a 2nd round pick in the 1990 MLB draft by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Another 1st rounder, 1st overall NFL pick was selected twice in the MLB draft.  Steve Bartkowski was the 1st in the 1975 NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons, for whom he played.  In baseball he was both the 19th round pick in the 1971 MLB draft (Kansas City Royals) and the 33rd round pick of the 1974 draft (Baltimore Orioles).

Ricky Williams was a 1st rounder (5th overall) pick in the 1999 NFL draft.  Four years previous to that he was an 8th rounder of the 1995 MLB draft, by the Philadelphia Phillies.

As I mentioned before, longtime NFL quarterback Michael Vick was selected in the MLB draft basically because he was a great athlete.  Specifically, the Colorado Rockies took in the 40th round of the 2000 MLB draft.  In the NFL he was the 1st round, 1st overall pick of the 2001 draft by the Atlanta Falcons.

Isaac Byrd had a fairly obscure NFL career, after being selected in the 6th round of the 1997 draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.  However, in baseball he was taken in the 73rd round of the 1993 MLB draft by the San Diego Padres, and the 11th round of the 1996 draft by the St. Louis Cardinals.

Jay Schroeder had a fairly mediocre NFL career, after going as a 3rd rounder in the 1984 draft by the Washington Redskins.  Surprisingly, he was so well regarded as a baseball player that he was a 1st rounder, the 3rd overall pick of the 1979 MLB draft by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Finally, as far as I can learn, only one guy has been a first rounder in both the NFL and MLB drafts.  Kyler Murray was the first overall pick of the 2019 NFL draft, by the Arizona Cardinals.  He was the 9th overall pick in the 2018 MLB draft, by the Oakland A's.

     Moving on, aside from Charlie Ward and the others I mentioned previously, I was able to identify two more guys who were drafted in MLB and the NBA.  Danny Ainge was a 15th rounder of the 1977 MLB draft by the Toronto Blue Jays, and a 2nd rounder in the 1981 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics.  He went on to play briefly, and quite frankly, badly in MLB, before embarking on a solid NBA career.

Scott Burell was drafted twice in MLB, going to the Seattle Mariners in the 1st round (26th overall) of the 1989 draft, and then the 5th round of the 1990 draft to the Toronto Blue Jays.  However, he went on to play in the NBA, after being selected in the 1st round (20th overall) of the 1993 draft by the Charlotte Hornets.


     I was only able to locate one instance of a draftee of both MLB and the NHL.  That was Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Glavine.  He was taken in the 2nd round of the 1984 MLB draft by the Atlanta Braves, but also in the 4th round of the 1984 NHL draft by the Los Angeles Kings.

     That's it for now.  Hopefully we'll be able to see some pro sports in 2020, albeit probably in a modified form, such as televised in front of empty stadiums/arenas.  Stay safe!