Michael Interviewed...

Bob Blumer
The Surreal Gourmet
July 29, 2000

If you're not familiar with Bob's creations, you are missing some very interesting cuisine. Bob makes food that looks like other food, but isn't. Got that? How about bacon and eggs made from prosciuto and melon? Or french fries and ketchup made from pound cake and raspberry syrup? Bob is traveling the US this summer in a customized airstream trailer that looks like a toaster with two pieces of toast sticking out the top, to help promote his book in 30 cities and a few more places in between--let's call them drive-by shrimp feedings.

Here are a couple recipes Bob created for your summer barbecue:

Bob's Beer Can Chicken
Ingredients: 1 can beer, 1 whole 4-pound chicken. Open beer, drink half of it. Wash and dry the chicken and season with salt and pepper and a little dry rub. Hold 1 leg in each hand and put the cavity of the chicken over the beer can (which is half full). Put it on the grill over indirect heat. Cover with the lid. Cook 1 ½ hours. Lift the lid and you'll have a perfectly cooked chicken. Serve the other 5 cans of beer from the six-pack.

Maple-glazed pepper crusted salmon
Take a Ziploc bag and put in 3 or 4 salmon fillets. Add 1 cup maple syrup and 1/3 cup soy sauce to the salmon, and leave it in the bag for 2 days in the refrigerator. Take it out of bag, sprinkle with freshly-ground black pepper and cook for 7-8 minutes on grill or bake it.

Watermelon margarita
Take a seedless watermelon and cut into 1- to 2- inch chunks. Place the chunks in the freezer until they're frozen. Put lime, tequila, triple sec, a little lemon juice in the blender and blend, then add the watermelon chunks and puree.

Want more recipes? Check out Bob's latest book "Off The Eaten Path" from Ballantine Books.

Listen in to Michael's interview with Bob Blumer.

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Bob Blumer's book, Off The Eaten Path is available from Amazon.com.

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