Super Bowl Chili

By Andrew Hunter

Food and sports have a lot in common. They bring people together, encourage bonding and provide fodder for fun conversation. So what better way to spend an afternoon with friends than over a Super Bowl of chili and a great ballgame?

As the Patriots and the Giants take center stage this Sunday, we’re gearing up for the big game with a celebration of kids, food and banter. They may only be eight and six, but Ben and Nick are already die-hard fans. The only thing that could make this Sunday better is if the Lions were playing the Cowboys!

Chili is almost as traditional to the Super Bowl as a great bowl of guacamole. I personally like serving chili to a group of people, because I can offer a tasty base and then a smorgasbord of toppings so each person can customize to their own.

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My L.A.

By Andrew Hunter

Five years ago we packed our bags and moved from San Francisco to L.A. completely unaware of the vast difference between Northern and Southern California. We replaced fog with smog, foghorns with police helicopters, and sourdough bread with taco stands. At first these differences were intolerable, but I must confess I’ve grown quite fond of this sprawling city. It’s now my L.A.

The restaurants in San Francisco tend to be more formal affairs where kids are less welcome. Since we eat out often, but rarely without the boys, the “everyone’s welcome” attitude of the southland better fits our lifestyle. Even at Spago, arguably L.A.’s finest, Wolfgang is glad to see kids of all ages dining at his tables. The boys love the Weiner Schnitzel, but more often crave old school hard-shell tacos.

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Andrew and Marilyn Provide Help for Busy Moms and Dads every Thursday

By Andrew Hunter

All this week, we will be re-introducing our bloggers by re-posting their very first post for Special Fork. Next week we’ll be back blogging with more cooking insights, helpful tips and delicious recipes that take no more than 30 minutes of prep time, all to solve your daily dinnertime dilemma: what to cook now!

Today we feature Andrew Hunter’s introductory blog. Andrew and his wife, Marilyn, post every Thursday to provide cooking help for busy families.

Andrew is the founder and owner of Culinary Craft, where he develops food products for such brands as Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Niman Ranch and Martha Stewart. Previously, he was a VP of Culinary Development for Wolfgang Puck and before that, Andrew managed the culinary operations for the 525-unit Olive Garden chain. Earlier in his career, he was chef de cuisine of Barbara Tropp’s China Moon Café.

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“No Thank You” Bite

By Andrew Hunter

Several months ago I was at a dinner party at a loud restaurant with business associates when amongst the chatter, laughter and clamor of raucous conversation, I heard a husband quietly taking care of family business with his wife, “The boys did a good job with dinner tonight,” he said quietly, “except for Timmy who took a ‘no thank you’ bite and passed.”

I wondered what a “no thank you” bite could possibly be. So thanks to the Cronan family from Folsom, the Hunter boys now take no thank you bites whenever they turn up their noses at something. A no thank you bite is a simple but brilliant way to get your kids to at least try everything they’re served. If they take a bite and still don’t like it, then they don’t have to eat it. But our experience is that at least half the time our boys change their mind from no to yes after the no thank bite rule is enforced.

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Dinner of a Lifetime

By Andrew Hunter

Last week I returned home from two weeks in Afghanistan. I was invited by the U.S. Army Special Forces Command to cook Thanksgiving dinner for the Green Berets downrange. This was the first time in history that a group of chefs have cooked at the “tip of the spear” as the soldiers call it, in hostile and kinetic forward operating bases.

All week long the soldiers were asking me why I would travel half way around the world and leave my family and the comfort of home to cook for a bunch of guys I have never met. My reply was, to say thank you the best way I know how…by cooking dinner. I told them I may only be one person, but I speak for millions of Americans, by bearing a simple taste of home during the holidays. My menu featured roast turkey, ham, grilled lobster tails, Cornish game hens and a giant steamship round of beef with all the traditional fixings including stuffing, sweet potatoes and honey ginger carrots, to name a few.

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