Jim Weaver Named One of the Country’s Top Culinary Talents in Best Chefs America

An update: Jim got this letter from the editors of Best Chefs America describing the elaborate nomination and selection process of the best chefs in America:

The Best Chefs America team has received many email and phone inquiries from chefs over the last two months. In responding to these inquiries, we have noticed the powerful fact that even the most skeptical of chefs become enthusiastic supporters of the Best Chefs America project once they truly understand the integrity and objectivity that characterize our process. We would like to emphasize a few key points that speak to the massive, year-long effort that went into creating our groundbreaking peer-review of chefs.

1. Our staff of 15 full-time analysts conducted one-on-one phone interviews with over 5000 chefs from all over the country to determine who they consider the most talented, exciting chefs in their respective areas. Each interview lasted about 20 minutes and was recorded for accuracy. Our software sorted this information and revealed the names of those chefs mentioned most often in the course of the interviews. These chefs appear in Best Chefs America.

2. The one and only way to appear in Best Chefs America is to receive the requisite number of mentions from chefs interviewed in your area. Chefs cannot buy their way into the book.

3. Of the more than 5000 chefs we interviewed, less than half appear in Best Chefs America 2013. More than half of the chefs who do appear in the book were not interviewed—though we attempted to reach each chef as soon as he or she was first mentioned by a peer.

We encourage you to embrace what you have accomplished. According to other chefs, you are one of the very best.
Sincerely,
The Editors at Best Chefs America
218 King Street, Suite 200
Charleston, SC 29401
843.937.5310

http://bestchefsamerica.com/

So proud! Jim Weaver has been honored as one of the country’s top culinary talents in the inaugural edition of Best Chefs America. This is the first-ever peer review guide of U.S. chefs, who were chosen after extensive interviews between their fellow chefs and Best Chefs America analysts. Chef Weaver has been showcased in the informative and exquisitely produced 386-page coffee table book that was released on March 1, 2013.

“I am thrilled to be nominated by my peers and included in Best Chefs America,” says Jim, “This recognition is truly an honor and gives me yet another reason to be appreciative of my fellow professionals and chosen profession.”

Best Chefs America is the ultimate chef’s guide to chefs. Analysts conducted more than 5,000 confidential telephone interviews with chefs who were nominated by other chefs, culinary professionals and food enthusiasts across the country. The interviews consisted of a series of proprietary questions, and software was used to aggregate the data.  Chefs earning the highest scores among their peers in their region were included in the guide.

The results were compiled into a 386-page coffee table book, complete with chef listings broken down both geographically and alphabetically. Best Chefs America also features stunning photography and highlights emerging culinary trends and ingredients uncovered during the interviews.  

Best Chefs America costs $75.00 and can be purchased online at http://bestchefsamerica.com/book/

Two Winetry Recipes

It's a perfect day for Garden State Clam Chowder! One that is light, full of flavor and utterly satisfying. Shellfish goes beautifully with bacon so why not try it with the Tre Piani green salad. With crusty bread you'll have a heartwarming, fresh and satisfying meal.

Garden State Clam Chowder
Tre Piani Restaurant
 Serves 2
Ingredients:
12 littleneck clams
3 cloves garlic sliced thin
1 tomato diced
½ cup dry white wine
¼ cup small diced potato
1 tbsp. fresh parsley roughly cut
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and add the garlic. Let the garlic cook slowly until
golden brown. Add the remaining ingredients, cover and cook until the clams open. Serve
immediately.


Tre Piani Micro Green Salad
Serves 2

Ingredients:
1 cup micro greens, any mix of lettuce will work
3 slices of cooked bacon crumbled
1 tbsp. chopped sun-dried tomatoes
2 tbsp. sharp cheese shredded or shaved

Dressing:
1 small shallot minced
2 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Whisk dressing ingredients together until emulsified and toss remaining
ingredients when you are ready to serve.

Bolognese, Giada's Chocolate Mouse and Other Market Recipes

Here are the recipes concocted by Jim and a troop of Girl Scouts during the Slow Food Central New Jersey  Farmers Market.

Bolognese Sauce
You might want to wipe the mushrooms with a damp paper towel. Do not rinse – mushrooms soak up water like a sponge.
2 lbs Davidson's or Shibumi Farms wild mushroom mix
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, peeled and chopped
5 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon chili pepper flakes
1 package (about 1 lb) Beechtree Farm pork sausage
2 Lbs WoodsEdge Wool Farm ground beef
1 can (28 oz) plum tomatoes, drained and chopped
2 cups beef stock or 1 cup stock + 1 cup red wine
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pint Fulper Family Farmstead fresh ricotta
2 lbs dried pasta (the girls chose penne)


Chop mushrooms. Saute over high heat in small batches with two tablespoons of the olive oil and a little salt. The liquid released from the mushrooms should have enough room in the pan to evaporate and let the mushrooms develop a golden-brown color. Set aside.

Heat up the remaining oil over medium heat.  Add the onion and some salt, and saute for about five minutes until the onion is translucent.  Then add carrots, garlic, chili flakes and a little salt. Cook for another five minutes.

Add the sausage and ground beef. Cook, breaking down the lumps with a fork, until the meat is cooked through. Add tomatoes, olive oil and stock. Add salt and pepper to taste (not too much, the sauce will reduce and intensify). Reduce the heat and simmer for twenty minutes to - better yet - an hour.

Add sauteed mushroom and stir until heated through. Serve or refrigerate. The sauce tastes even better the next day. If you make it ahead of time reheat on a low heat while the pasta is cooking. Just before serving take the sauce off the heat and mix in the ricotta.

Cook pasta according to package instructions. When the pasta is cooked mix with bolognese.


Green Salad with Tre Piani Fresh Mozzarella and Bobolink Dairy and Bakehouse Croutons
Bobolink garlic croutons (recipe below)
1 ball freshly made mozzarella (the girls used Tre Piani’s housemade mozzarella. You can get great local mozzarella from Fulper Farms)
Mixed greens (the girls used the Tre Piani blend. You can get local mixed greens from Blue Moon Acres Farm)
Fruity extra virgin olive oil
High quality natural coarse salt (such as Maldon, Himalayan red salt or fleur de sel) and freshly ground black pepper.

Toss the greens with a little olive oil to coat lightly.
Mound on individual plates.
Arrange the tomatoes and mozzarella artfully on the greens. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Top the mozzarella with some croutons and serve. 

Bobolink Garlic Croutons
1 crusty loaf of Bobolink bread, cut into bite-size pieces
2 cloves garlic, chopped very finely
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large saute pan, heat the olive oil and garlic. Cook for one minute, stirring. Add bread cubes, and toss to coat. Spread on a baking sheet.
Bake for fifteen minutes, or until crisp and dry. Check frequently to prevent burning. Cool.

The girls brought a yummy chocolate-avocado mousse made from a Giada de Laurentiis recipe. Apparently Apparently one of the dads discovered it on the Internet. You can find the recipe here: http://www.giadadelaurentiis.com/recipes/997/chocolate-avocado-mousse