Hannah E Williams

This doesn't just happen... it takes skill.

​Do you ever wonder how that pretty fern finds its way into your specialty coffee? It doesn't just appear there by coincidence. Your barista's probably brushing up on his art skills: Latte art, that is.

From a "glorified latte slinger" at a Starbucks drive-thru to barista to manager to the director of education and training at Cartel Coffee Lab, Jen Macias has learned her way around a cup of joe. Today she shows us step-by-step how to make your latte not only look pretty sweet but also taste really damn good, too.

"Latte art is the really very last stage for a barista, in that the emphasis is really all on the quality of the drink itself - the composition, appropriately steaming milk and appropriately extracting espresso," Macias says. "Essentially what you need is microfoam, and espresso that displays an adequate amount of crema."

Hold up. Quick latte art vocab lesson with Macias:

Get the lesson after the jump.

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notwithoutsalt.com

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Hungry for your early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives?

Cook Like Grandma
That is, if your grandma is Mexican. If not, learn to cook like your friend's grandma. Either way, this Friday you can learn to cook authentic Mexican Comfort Food, just like somebody's grandma used to make. North Scottsdale's Sur La Table's new Culinary Manager, Chef Anne-Marie Blanco, will be spilling the family secrets at 6:30 p.m on September 3rd. Perfect your skills by learning about the different spices used to create dishes such as Posole, Mole Sauce, Tamales, Enchiladas, and even Mocha Flan. The cost of learning to cook your own Mexican food is $69 per person. Space is limited. Click here to register.   More >>

​Say what you will, J. Crew catalog, I ain't in the mood for stretchy tights and a merino wool cardigan just yet. Summer's still hangin' around and Fry Girl needs to chill. Good thing the fast-food world has provided some new and limited-time frozen sweet treats for the tastin'.

Arby's Strawberry Banana Split Shake, Carl's Jr. Banana Chocolate Chip Hand-Scooped Ice Cream Shake, Sonic's Campfire Blast, Dairy Queen's Mini Blizzard -- can these beat-the-heat eatings provide cold comfort on a (still) hot day in Phoenix? Find out in this week's column.

Erica O'Neil

Pig feet from Pho Nhat.

​Despite what the supermarket aisles may lead you to believe, there's more to an animal than neatly wrapped styrofoam trays of meat. From tongue to tail, offal (pronounced awful) encompasses all those taboo edibles that don't make the cut at your local grocer. Just Offal is here to explore these oft-neglected byproducts of butchering, featuring different offal meats from establishments across the Valley.

This week: Pig Feet, or trotters, served up by Phở Nhất.

The Ick Factor: Just look down at your feet. Go on, it's summer, so you're probably wearing sandals anyway. How scrumptious do those little morsels look?

Foot fetishists aside, feet are kind of grody. And eating them is a combination of all the foreign textural things that make offal meat by and large an unappetizing endeavor. While many people like pork, the problem lies in the fact that very little actual meat is present for consumption. Just like your own trotters or chicken feet (phoenix claws!), pig feet are primarily skin, bone and connective tissue. Mmm, connective tissue...

(bite into all the juicy details after the jump)

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Josh Evrin

Oven Braised Brisket

​ This week, a reader asked for cooking methods to prepare and take brisket for a tailgate picnic. Smart cook! Brisket is an easy do-ahead main dish that just gets better and better when reheated. Read on for some tips and recipe ideas.

Low and Slow: Brisket is a tough cut of beef; it comes from the breast and fore shank of the animal, a working muscle. To achieve a tender and flavorful dish, brisket is best cooked low and slow: low heat for an extended period of time. Braised brisket is easily reheated without loss of tenderness or flavor.

Browning and braising the meat in a 325 F oven will take 4 or more hours, depending on the size of the brisket. If you are a pit boss, barbeque brisket is best at 250 F for 10-12 hours. Tip for braising: cook for three hours, remove from oven, cool, slice, return to pan with liquid, continue to cook until tender.

Fat equals flavor: A whole brisket usually weighs10-12 lbs. To prepare it for cooking, trim almost but not all the external fat. Retaining a small layer of fat keeps the meat moist and adds flavor while it cooks. You may find a flat cut or a point cut at the store already trimmed. Buy the point cut; it has more fat than the flat cut, yielding a tender final dish.

Against the grain: Once your brisket is cooked and cooled it's ready to slice. Check the meat to determine the direction of the grain. Always slice against the grain, with the knife held across the grain of the meat. The grain is easy to see, think of looking at a piece of fabric and finding the direction of the threads. Slice the meat in ¼ inch slices, thicker if you like.

Recipes and methods after the jump.

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The vegans have spoken. More >>

Yesterday we heard from Chef Jerry Alday of Nello's Pizza. Today the conversation continues.

Hannah E Williams

​Jerry Alday, the chef at Nello's Pizza & Italian Restaurant in Ahwatukee, has a thing for farmers' markets and fresh, local produce.

"It's really nice to see that surge of farm to table, local first, really getting back to the core of food," Alday says. "I think food has taken a different direction. And I think a lot of these convenient fast food restaurants are slow to be a dying breed."

"My wife calls me a food snob," Alday says. He doesn't frequent fast food joints and has been known to reject deliveries that don't meet his standards. "The produce people hate me, because I send things back all the time."

He's okay with i,t though. "As the saying goes, you either pay the farmer or you pay the doctor, and that's really so true," Alday says. "If you've got quality product walking in the back door, it's still good by the time it reaches the table."

Today, Alday spills his secret for making the perfect pizza crust, his most embarrassing kitchen moment, and his habit of talking to vegetables.

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Sometimes the best cure for a rough week (or the dreaded Monday blahs) is an international escape. When you can't literally hop a plane, the next best thing is to indulge in a foreign treat. My personal favorite are crepes, the wafer-thin stuffed pancakes that originated in Northern France. They're rare in Phoenix, but not impossible to find if you know where to look. 

For this week's Battle of the Dishes, we headed to two small, casual cafes known for their customer service and their savory crepes.

In One Corner: Cupz N' Crepes
4232 E. Chandler Blvd in Phoenix/Ahwatukee
480-706-1963

This crepe's like a good summer beer: Light in body, full in taste.

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The 3-B: bacon, blue cheese, and Joe's Real BBQ sauce

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Food Network

Nom Nom Truck

​​Earlier this week we mentioned four Arizona food truck companies that are season 2 nominees for The Great Food Truck Race on The Food Network. We hope you follow the link to vote for your local food roadsters and a chance for you to win a trip to NYC for The Food and Wine Festival.

As we are casting our votes for season 2, season 1 has us salivating for a banh mi from the Nom Nom Truck. The Nom Nom team has won each of the first three challenges taking place in San Diego, Santa Fe and Fort Worth. The contestants are not judged on the quality of their food as much as their ability to sell product and bring in the cash that garners a win.

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