The Omaha Metro
Event Report:
Mingle at Mootz
Cooking Class at the IWFS Great Weekend New Orleans Part 3 Trinity Upcoming Events.
Event Report: Mingle at Mootz
Written by Tom Murnan. Photos by Tom Murnan
What’s New
Mootz Pizza is tucked away in the northwest corner of Countryside Village. Founded by Collin Adkisson when he lost his job during COVID-19, Collin started Mootz with his brother Kyle by making pizza in his garage and delivering it. They bought a food truck, and later decided to get a brick and mortar restaurant near his alma mater, Westside High School. It is a family affair, with his parents, brother, and a son in law all working at Mootz. The name Mootz is Collin’s nickname, which is a derivative of mozzarella. The idea for the event came from Brent Rasmussen and Susan Rauth. They wanted a change of pace, an informal, casual event.
And informal it was. Our side salad was boxed in clear plastic, à la a fast food restaurant, with individual containers of cheese and dressings. I very much enjoyed all the pizzas, which is described on the web site as Neapolitan. Thin crusted, the back of the pizza was rolled several time to give it a ridge. The pizza spent a short time in a gas fired oven from Italy to start cooking the crust, removed from the oven, then toppings were added before another stint in the oven. We had in succession Margherita, Arugula with fresh Parmesan and Balsamic Vinegar, Oaxaca & Jalapeno with Italian Sausage, and Brisket pizzas. Oaxaca is a white buttery cheese from Mexico which melts easily but has the texture of Mozzarella. Mootz’s favorite cheese, however, is Grana Padano, which is similar to Parmesan. As a gourmet touch, we tried “Mike’s Hot Honey.” Mike is a pizza maker in Brooklyn who introduced dipping your leftover crust into spicy honey. Now it’s at Mootz. Interesting way to eat your leftover crust. Dessert was a small cup of Tiramisu. Moist and coffee flavored, it was tasty.
The wines were all well selected. Pinot Noirs for the first two, more delicate pizzas, was a good choice. Australian Shiraz for spicy Italian sausage, and French Cornas (syrah) for the powerful BBQ-ed Brisket pizza, filled with the essence of beef, were the right wine choices. Kudos to Susan and Brent for coming up with this unique idea, and thanks to the Moot’s staff who provided us with unusual pizza of their own imagination. It just shows that great wine, carefully selected, goes with any good food.
“Someone on their team must be more confused than a chameleon in a bag of Skittles.”
- Senator John Kennedy
Cooking Class at the IWFS Great Weekend New Orleans Part 3 Trinity
Written by Tom Murnan, Photos by Tom Murnan
Last month we discussed the foundation of NO cooking: the roux. But roux is just the foundation, or the base, of the dish. From there you add Trinity and stock or broth. But what is Trinity? No, it is not a religious term. It is based on what is called in French cuisine a mirepoix. To NO chefs, Trinity means the mixture of three seasoning ingredients, but they are not spices. That comes at the end. Trinity consists of three vegetables: onion, celery and green onion. In France they used onions, carrots and celery, but in Louisiana, carrots are not prolific, but green peppers are. Ever adaptable, Creole and Cajuns used green peppers. Typically, these are sauteed in fat, be it butter or oil. As they cook, they get caramelized just a bit, but typically when the onions get transparent, the Trinity is done. The stock is added next. The best is when you cook the bones of beef, chicken or duck in water and simmer them until a deeply flavored stock emerges. This can be time consuming, so start early. It has to be ready when the Trinity is done.
So the cooking process was about the same for both the Corn & Crab Bisque and the Étouffée. For the chowder, add corn (an indigenous or local product), and stock and spices, add cream and crabs and simmer for 5 minutes. For the Étouffée (which means smothered), make roux, add Trinity, add heated stock, cook for 20 minutes, then add crawfish and cook another 5 minutes and season. Either dish could be cooked over a campfire in a single pot. The process is simple but a bit time consuming for the broth and roux.
The Trinity are the small bowls next to the corn for the chowder
Chef Gary Epstein
Making Corn & Crab Bisque
UPCOMING OMAHA METRO EVENTS
FLEMINGS
“Reaching New Heights—Napa Valley Mountain Wines.”
We will compare wines from Napa Valley Mountain AVAs: Mount Veeder, Howell Mountain, Spring Mountain and/or Diamond Mountain.
Producers: Hyders and Goldsteins HOSTING
