I had the awesome opportunity to attend the 3rd annual LunchBox auction in NYC this past week. (http://www.thelunchboxauction.org/) Mario Batali and Michael Stipe hosted the evening and helped raise a ton of money for the charity. I was so honored to be a guest. I hung out with Tom Colicchio, the TOP CHEF himself, for a bit and talked about music. I was a bit surprised to hear that his view on food and music is so similar to mine.

Im pretty sure that my favorite part of cooking for people is... well, the people. I get a strange sense of fulfillment when I get to see all the people I cook for enjoying my food and enjoying the company around them. When they get a chance to forget about why or how they got to the party and just let loose, I feel like I had a part in helping them have a good time. I made some deliciousness for a bunch of friends this past week and I had an absolute blast. I made most of the recipes I have up on the site right now, so go check out the pictures and recipes.

I get so excited about going to local or fresh markets just to look at the produce. Asparagus is one of those veggies I love to use, pretty much whenever possible. They are great in soups, sauces, on the grill, fried or used in salads. The other day I had an asparagus tempura with a citrus and sesame dipping sauce that was absolutely nuts! The crispy contrast with the tempura and soft, tender asparagus was great. I'm gonna try to play with them this week. Any sweet ideas?

As you guys all know, I love BBQ. I went to RibFest 08’ at Vinoy Park in St. Petersburg FL. this week with my buddy John. It was so rad! There were a bunch of great bands and BBQ vendors all over the place. I had a chance to hang out for a bit with a few of them. I met Donna from Desperado’s BBQ and Denis from Porky and Beans…both of which are national champs for their sauces and ribs. They shared with me their victories and tours they have had the pleasure of taking part in and expressed their true love for smoky ribs and brisket.

One of my favorite things about tropical living is the citrus. Ever since I was a little lad, I have always loved oranges and grapefruits. My grandmother used to put salt on pink grapefruit and have it for breakfast. I grew up with 6 orange trees in my yard and loved oranges so much I would often eat a half dozen or more for lunch. If you have never used fresh lime juice on your steaks... give it a go. It adds a wicked sweetness to the meat and if you use a grill just throw the limes on with the steaks and it gives off a beautiful aroma as the limes char.