Author: Pete Dulin
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Wagner Biscuits and Gravy in West Virginia
Making biscuits and gravy is a rite of passage in the extended Wagner clan of West Virginia. That treasured family ritual involves a heaping amount of bacon grease with no regrets. My Uncle Mike grew up in Longacre, West Virginia, a poor coal-mining town, with a big pack of siblings. Now, Uncle Mike and Aunt…
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Potato Candy
I tasted potato candy for the first time last week at Watoga State Park, located in the mountains of Pocahontas County near Marlington, West Virginia. Before this trip, I never knew that this sweet confection even existed. My Uncle Mike, Aunt Tawee, sister Mary, her family and I drove from Kansas City to Watoga for…
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Grating Coconut for Sticky Rice Dessert
It’s been years since I used a Thai “rabbit” grater. I brought mine out storage to grate fresh coconut for a sticky rice dessert that I prepared for a four-course Thai meal at Julian in March. The grater is referred to as “rabbit” because the elaborate versions of the tool were once carved into that…
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Urban Food Tour with Chef Ferran Adriá
It’s not every day that you meet world-famous Spanish master chef Ferran Adriá. Yesterday, a small entourage that included Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Director Julián Zugazagoitia, local media and I had the opportunity to accompany Adriá on an exploratory food tour through downtown Kansas City. Adriá and his wife Isabel traveled from Spain to visit Kansas…