Gerbil Meatballs

It was fun to see Dr. Tim Ryan, president of The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, serve as a judge on an Iron Chef America show that aired over the weekend. He was entertaining-- especially his comment (a joke) about the texture of gerbil! (No, they didn't really prepare gerbil. It was a joke!)

The Food Network show pitted Iron Chef Bobby Flay against Spanish chef José Andrés (Cafe Atlantico, Jaleo, Zaytinya, Minibar by Jose Andres, Oyamel restaurants.) During the episode, Andrés prepared some dishes that looked amazing, using foams and smoke. I'd love to eat in his kitchen someday. Andrés trained at restaurant El Bulli in Spain with Chef Ferrán Adrià, who is arguably the most lauded chef in the world today. (I saw Adrià at the Terre Madre conference in Italy last year, and he got quite the "rock-star" treatment.)

And did you know, Andrés has a quasi-local connection? He was the chairman of "Spain and the World Table," the prestigious Worlds of Flavor international food conference held in 2006 at the Culinary's Greystone campus in California's Napa Valley.