How is it that when we plan a vacation we always look forward to food? Not only do I live in an area filled with really good restaurants, I travel often and eat out frequently in many cities. While neither Sanibel nor Captiva could ever be considered a gourmet paradise, there are just somethings that are not to be missed.
Top of my list is the Fish Tacos at Doc Ford's. I've watched this location kill off any number of restaurants over the years. Up until Doc Ford's moved in I never even stopped. Naturally, I like Randy Wayne White's books - well most of them anyway - and seeing the name of his protagonist on a restaurant was tempting. But there are a lot of celebrity restaurants around, from the TriBeca Grill to chains like Planet Hollywood and Margaritaville. A few are excellent. Most, even those owned by celebrity chefs, leave me wondering what all the fuss is about. Then there's the little unpretentious places like this. Randy Wayne White is not exactly DeNiro, but Sanibel isn't Manhattan either. LOL This place just suits the island and fills a void in the food chain for both locals and visitors.
I haven't really had a chance to explore the menu, something I really must do this fall, after getting a fish taco fix. About the only thing I've tried and was unimpressed with is the Doc's Beach Bread. I mentioned this on both the BOSC and Trip Advisor forums and took a fair amount of flack from those who love it. What can I say. To each their own, but I did take the time to write out my own recipe for Garlic Cheese Bread. So I figure I'd include it below. It goes great with grilled steaks or chicken.
Now, while we contemplate the desert menu - you should ALWAYS check out the deserts first, that way you'll know how much room to save - I thought I'd take votes on Doc Ford's favorite dishes.
Tourmaline's Garlic Cheese Bread - with variations
Top of my list is the Fish Tacos at Doc Ford's. I've watched this location kill off any number of restaurants over the years. Up until Doc Ford's moved in I never even stopped. Naturally, I like Randy Wayne White's books - well most of them anyway - and seeing the name of his protagonist on a restaurant was tempting. But there are a lot of celebrity restaurants around, from the TriBeca Grill to chains like Planet Hollywood and Margaritaville. A few are excellent. Most, even those owned by celebrity chefs, leave me wondering what all the fuss is about. Then there's the little unpretentious places like this. Randy Wayne White is not exactly DeNiro, but Sanibel isn't Manhattan either. LOL This place just suits the island and fills a void in the food chain for both locals and visitors.
I haven't really had a chance to explore the menu, something I really must do this fall, after getting a fish taco fix. About the only thing I've tried and was unimpressed with is the Doc's Beach Bread. I mentioned this on both the BOSC and Trip Advisor forums and took a fair amount of flack from those who love it. What can I say. To each their own, but I did take the time to write out my own recipe for Garlic Cheese Bread. So I figure I'd include it below. It goes great with grilled steaks or chicken.
Now, while we contemplate the desert menu - you should ALWAYS check out the deserts first, that way you'll know how much room to save - I thought I'd take votes on Doc Ford's favorite dishes.
Tourmaline's Garlic Cheese Bread - with variations
Get an excellent quality crusty bread with a dense and chewy interior. Breads baked in wood ovens and artisan breads are excellent for this as are many sourdough breads. The garlic part won’t work with seeded loaves. Take several cloves of garlic and split them lengthwise in half. Now rub the crust of the bread with the garlic until it is completely covered and shiny from the garlic juice. Depending on the size of the loaf, this can take a number of cloves. The bottom of the loaf takes a lot of garlic!
Now lightly brush the crust with extra virgin olive oil.
Grate Parmigiano-Reggiano, pecorino romano, extra sharp 2 year old white cheddar and OPTIONAL: asiago, fresh mozzarella –which is REALLY tough to grate, so consider using a mandolin, very coarse grater or even slicing and julienne the slices - please DO NOT buy the pre-grated stuff. You can vary the ratios to suit your tastes, but I use mostly white cheddar [30-50%] and then equal parts romano and Parmigiano and smaller parts of the asiago and mozz. [I like mine rather sharp and with a bite to it so I often use only the Parmigiano , romano and white cheddar.]
It’s not that hard to grate these cheeses yourself and the flavor difference is really noticeable, so buy really good cheese and do it yourself as you need it. Using you fingers mix the cheeses together with a little dried marjoram, black pepper, and OPTIONAL: a tiny amount of hot paprika (I buy Hungarian) (or a high quality ancho chili powder and good hot red pepper)
You now have two ways to go.
1. Split the bread in half lengthwise. Spray a double over heavy duty foil ‘pan’ – dull side up and shiny side folded in – or a really heavy cookie sheet, with Pam or equivalent.
Put the bread on the sheet crust down and mound the cheese onto cut side till it about 1-1.5” thick. There’s a fair amount of air in grated cheese. You can sprinkle a little extra virgin olive oil on the top or dot lightly with sweet butter. Don’t worry about what spills over onto the pan. It will be an excellent lacy crust of cheese. Bake at 350F for about 20-30 minutes till the cheese is melted and browning. Less if you like it gooey. Eat with fresh salsa, bruschetta, or even a really good pasta sauce. A small plate of olives and mixed sliced Italian dried sausage or salamis.
2. This works best with the baguette style breads to a moderate width, but not wide bread. Take the loaf that’s covered in garlic juice and slice top to bottom – stopping short of cutting cleanly thru. Make the pieces about 1.5” thick but not more than 2”. Now cut strips of UNSALTED butter and slip them between the slices. This will cause the bread to make a bow, so cut the loaf in half if it’s a long one. Now take your mixed cheeses and push as much as you can between each slice. [If I’m serving this with pasta I put a little Greek oregano in the cheese mix when I add the marjoram] mound more grated cheese all along the top. Thinly slice garlic and lay the slices on the top of the cheese and place very thin slices of sweet butter on top of the garlic. Bake at 350 till the cheese is browned on top and the bread crunchy. You can pick off the garlic slices if you like, or eat the.
Believe it or not, this bread is not offensively garlicky, but man, I never, ever have any left.
Now lightly brush the crust with extra virgin olive oil.
Grate Parmigiano-Reggiano, pecorino romano, extra sharp 2 year old white cheddar and OPTIONAL: asiago, fresh mozzarella –which is REALLY tough to grate, so consider using a mandolin, very coarse grater or even slicing and julienne the slices - please DO NOT buy the pre-grated stuff. You can vary the ratios to suit your tastes, but I use mostly white cheddar [30-50%] and then equal parts romano and Parmigiano and smaller parts of the asiago and mozz. [I like mine rather sharp and with a bite to it so I often use only the Parmigiano , romano and white cheddar.]
It’s not that hard to grate these cheeses yourself and the flavor difference is really noticeable, so buy really good cheese and do it yourself as you need it. Using you fingers mix the cheeses together with a little dried marjoram, black pepper, and OPTIONAL: a tiny amount of hot paprika (I buy Hungarian) (or a high quality ancho chili powder and good hot red pepper)
You now have two ways to go.
1. Split the bread in half lengthwise. Spray a double over heavy duty foil ‘pan’ – dull side up and shiny side folded in – or a really heavy cookie sheet, with Pam or equivalent.
Put the bread on the sheet crust down and mound the cheese onto cut side till it about 1-1.5” thick. There’s a fair amount of air in grated cheese. You can sprinkle a little extra virgin olive oil on the top or dot lightly with sweet butter. Don’t worry about what spills over onto the pan. It will be an excellent lacy crust of cheese. Bake at 350F for about 20-30 minutes till the cheese is melted and browning. Less if you like it gooey. Eat with fresh salsa, bruschetta, or even a really good pasta sauce. A small plate of olives and mixed sliced Italian dried sausage or salamis.
2. This works best with the baguette style breads to a moderate width, but not wide bread. Take the loaf that’s covered in garlic juice and slice top to bottom – stopping short of cutting cleanly thru. Make the pieces about 1.5” thick but not more than 2”. Now cut strips of UNSALTED butter and slip them between the slices. This will cause the bread to make a bow, so cut the loaf in half if it’s a long one. Now take your mixed cheeses and push as much as you can between each slice. [If I’m serving this with pasta I put a little Greek oregano in the cheese mix when I add the marjoram] mound more grated cheese all along the top. Thinly slice garlic and lay the slices on the top of the cheese and place very thin slices of sweet butter on top of the garlic. Bake at 350 till the cheese is browned on top and the bread crunchy. You can pick off the garlic slices if you like, or eat the.
Believe it or not, this bread is not offensively garlicky, but man, I never, ever have any left.
2 comments:
Doc Ford's is a fav of the locals as well as vacationers. It was an instant success and one of the only restaurants open during the Hurricane Charley aftermath. It was great because we had no electricity for 10 days. My favorite food to order is the Mussels in a tomato wine sauce served with garlic bread (although I'm sure no match for yours!)but very good for dunking.
I will be there 1/2 of October, I could go for your recipe for beach bread! Hmmmmmmm Yummmmmm
Post a Comment