The 30 Pizzas of 2012
Last week All Over Albany announced the winner of the 2012 Tournament of Pizza. Congratulations to Marisa’s Place in Guilderland who brought the prize back to the Albany bracket. The last Albany shop to hold the award was Pasquale’s. I still miss their killer combination of thin, crisp, cornmeal dusted crust and fresh, bright sauce. But now it’s Marisa’s turn for the spotlight
Pulling off this tournament is a herculean effort orchestrated by the AOA editors, their friends, and the judges. Thanks also has to go to Sunmark Federal Credit Union for their continued sponsorship of the event.
You can read about every face-off here and see the scores for each round along with some notable quotes by the judges. But that only tells part of the story. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to judge the TOP for the past four years (only Albany Jane outranks me in seniority having participated in the tournament since its inception in 2008).
There is drama in every round, and I could easily fill a week’s worth of posts on the TOP. But I’m going to try and wrap up everything today, so you will know why this was my favorite tournament to date, which pizza place got really lucky, why one place was eliminated too early, and how you aren’t the only one who is frustrated that DeFazio’s keeps on losing in the finals.
SOS: A Tale of Two Markets
Sometimes the press releases come in fast and furious. Other times they come in at a trickle. And honestly, there are some that I just can’t get excited about which you will never see.
On the flip side, there are some that I’m really into, but by the time Sunday rolls around the stories are all yesterday’s news. And sadly, you miss out on those too. Maybe one day I’ll get better about writing shorter stories and putting up multiple posts per day. But for now I like the rhythm of the blog.
All of this is to say that today I’ve actually only got one official press release to share, but there is another local promotion which also involves a market that I think you will be interested in learning more about. So even though Price Chopper didn’t actually send me any official materials on the matter, you will still hear about it today on Sell Out Sunday: A Tale of Two Markets.
Competition Cupcakes
Those who participated in the blind tasting of twelve cupcakes know very well that judging food competitions sounds like a lot of fun on paper, but it’s hard work. And those who look upon food judges with envy seem to want an excuse to try every single item at Bacon Fest or thirty pizzas in the Tournament of Pizza.
But for every chocolate bourbon bacon cupcake there is a bacon milkshake. And for every slice of DeFazio’s Buffalo chicken pie there’s one from The Pie Hole.
Still, I love doing it. Not for the opportunity to stuff my face, nor even for the chance to be an arbiter of taste. I love judging food competitions because each one teaches me something new. And that’s priceless.
At last night’s cupcake competition, which was part of a fundraiser for the Commission on Economic Opportunity, I learned a lot. And it wasn’t just about sweets either.
Troll Role Goal
People always say to me, “It’s amazing how easily you let things go.”
Yeah, that’s not even remotely true. Those words have never been uttered in reference to me and my behavior. I’ll readily admit that it’s a character flaw. Luckily, I’m generally slow to anger and I’m really difficult to offend. But I’m also quick to forgive when I see a turnaround in behavior.
One of the things that galls me is when something strays from its own stated core beliefs. You know, like restaurants that are dedicated to using only the best, freshest ingredients, yet will serve farmed Atlantic salmon and caprese salad in the dead of winter. Or the implicit promise of a $3 cupcake that it was fresh baked that morning, only to find that it has sat around for days.
Well, at the end of last month I mentioned that the once All Natural Breyer’s has transitioned so far away from being “all-natural” that many flavors are no longer even actually ice cream. Now they are called, “frozen dairy dessert.” You probably won’t be shocked to hear that I haven’t let this go.
So what have I been doing about it?
AskTP – Judgy McJudgerson
The 2012 All Over Albany Tournament of Pizza (sponsored by Sunmark Federal Credit Union) is going to have a winner by the end of this week. The tournament has been flying by so quickly, and there has been so much going on, it feels like I barely had time to write anything about it.
But the semi-final round was amazing. DeFazio’s Buffalo chicken pizza is fantastic. The only thing that could make it better is if the chicken were breaded and fried. There’s that fat tooth popping up again.
Of course there’s the cupcake competition to judge too. But after that I get to take a little breather, just in time for Halloween. And before you know it Thanksgiving will be upon us. However, I’m getting ahead of myself.
Today we are answering reader questions, in the semi-regular format of Ask the Profussor. I’ve committed to answering every query that is submitted to the comments with proper punctuation. Yes, it would be easier reply as each one came in, but life gets in the way. Plus these AskTP posts continue to be a lot of fun to write. So, without any further ado, onto the questions.
Another Cupcake Competition
Well, I was wrong again. If you were reading the FLB back in the spring, perhaps you remember the blind cupcake tasting that I conducted to try and settle some of the bickering between the region’s most popular bakeries.
It was an important thing to do, but it was brutal. Even though each participant was only served one half of each cupcake, that still totaled six cupcakes over the course of a couple hours. And as I write these words, just like when I was planning the event, it seems like a challenging but doable amount of food.
Was I wrong. Those cupcakes almost did me in. Thank God for skim milk. It saved my life.
Like the high school kid who gets drunk on champagne at a wedding, and suffers badly at the hands of the bubbly, I vowed not to touch another cupcake ever again. And never did I think that I would be judging another cupcake competition. But I am. And you are invited.
Making Real Pudding is Real Easy
Meeting people who enjoy food but don’t cook is always thrilling. Getting someone who doesn’t much care about what they eat to actually cook something is next to impossible. But for those who actually taste what they put in their mouths, cooking provides an opportunity for them to get more pleasure from their meals.
People take short cuts. I get that. And there are some things that taste better made by professionals than home cooks. I’m not advocating that anyone make their own ketchup.
But things like tomato sauce, popcorn, and hot cocoa are no brainers. Albany Jane has inspired me to make my own orecchiette, but there are some great dried Italian pastas you can buy. Pop over to The Cheese Traveler, and they’ll tell you what makes the ones at the store so special.
Recently my new buddy Innae was tweeting that she bought some instant pudding. Now Innae loves food, and she was totally open to the idea of making her own pudding from scratch.
So to get her a recipe, I turned to a professional.
Oz Fest
Many months ago, in the dark ages when there was only one ShopRite in the Capital Region and it was all the way out in Niskayuna, I had a meeting. It was with the ShopRite nutritionist. She took Albany Jane and me all around the store, and we talked about a lot of things: whole grain pastas, gluten free foods, tahini in glass bottles and more.
It was a good time.
There was something she mentioned at the time that I filed away in my head. We were in the natural foods aisle talking about reducing cholesterol, and the nutritionist points down at a bag of chia seeds. Apparently they were all the rage, the latest health food fad.
Oprah used to be the queen bee for spawning this kind of craze. But these days I’m told it’s Dr. Oz. The nutritionist told me that they monitor his show because if he blesses something, the store makes sure it’s on their shelves. When Dr. Oz speaks people take action.
Well, you’ll never guess what he spoke about yesterday.
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