Badger Cookin' -- The Wisconsin Predicto

It’ll all be over soon, Boilermaker fans. And then you have the end result of the coaching search to look forward to! Yaaaaaayyyyyyy! Can’t wait to see Brock Spack at the podium.

*cries*

Oh, want to be even more sad? Or happy, if you like these guys getting some time on the stage? Here’s a photo on ESPN.com today:

Sometimes when people are depressed, they eat. And if Purdue football hasn’t depressed you lately, well, you’re a more optimistic person than we are or you’re properly medicated. But in our 2016 grand tradition of distracting ourselves during the Predicto and with Thanksgiving rapidly approaching, let’s talk cooking...so here's the question. (And this does not have to be specific to Thanksgiving.)

What can you cook? What are you good at making? Is there something you're known for at family gatherings? Share your skillz here. 

Oh, and what will the bludgeoning look like vs Wisky?

--------------------------------------------

J Money:

Based on the first half performances of this Gerad Parker-coached team, several of us here felt that Purdue would steal another win before the end of the season. But with teams like Minnesota and Northwestern pounding the Boilers because Parker and staff have no idea how to make a halftime coaching adjustment, that now seems like a pipe dream. This weekend, reports are that there will be guys in attendance like Drew Brees, Albert Evans, Ricardo Allen, KK Short. There’s also a persistent rumor that Morgan Burke will be honored at halftime, though I can’t find that confirmed anywhere. (Typical.)

And what better way to pay tribute to Morgan Burke’s handiwork as AD than to pay “tribute” to him at halftime of a game Purdue will lose by gobs of points in front of 20,000 miserable fans?

It’s going to be ugly. But maybe a Brees pregame speech can get the boys up to look competitive for a quarter.

Wisconsin 52
Purdue 17

As for cooking, I don’t do enough of it, honestly. I wish I did more because every time I cook or bake something, I really enjoy it, find it cathartic, and my wife always seems genuinely impressed. I make a mean buffalo chicken dip, homemade fried chicken (I make my own dust to roll it in), the dream marinated and perfectly cooked London broil on the grill (oh, the grill, goodness I love the grill) and, oh, I was also a short-order cook in college. You may have eaten things I cooked at the Cary Quad Knight Spot Grille. My favorite time to cook there was breakfast because you were doing more than dropping mozz sticks in the fryer. If you need a delicious omelet or pancakes with just the right mix of cinnamon sugar in the batter, I’m your guy.

I also bake something my mom called Chocolate Chip Cheesecake. It’s a layer of chocolate chip cookie, then a layer of cheesecake, then a layer of chocolate chip cookie. Yeah, it’s orgasmic.

And when the holidays arrive, I make apple pie like nobody’s business. The trick to keeping it from getting liquidized inside is to put pinches of flour everywhere before you close up the top crust. And if you sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on the top of the crust, you’ll be a hero and people will bow in your general direction. Oh, man, I’m in a sugar coma already just thinking about all of this.

Dave:

Honestly, I think cooking is a lot easier than baking. There are plenty of things you can cook where it doesn't matter exactly how much of something you put in, or if you cook it for 35 minutes instead of 30 ... but baking is full of little traps. (Also, if you're trying to manage your weight, baking for yourself is a big mistake.)

I can cook a number of different things, but my go-to thing is probably shrimp creole. You can generally tell a cook's comfort level with a recipe by the amount of modifications they make to it: in this case, I double the volume (I've actually made a triple batch before as well; you just need a bit more cooking time), use flour instead of corn starch and diced tomatoes instead of gross stewed tomatoes. The trick is remembering to start the rice well in advance so that it's ready when the creole is; alternatively, you can serve it over quinoa, or really just about anything, because it's excellent. (Protip: get the shrimp that are already peeled and deveined.)

If what you're looking for is a way to consume more sugar, then I've got an easy fudge recipe for you, no candy thermometer needed. Yes, it's shown as cinnamon fudge - and it's tasty - but you can easily make a number of different flavors by dropping the cinnamon and adding whatever kind of extract you want in the same quantity and at the same point as the vanilla. Orange, peppermint, lemon ... all good eatin'.

Wisconsin: many
Purdue: not many

Michael:

I agree with Dave, cooking is easier than baking, although baking is pretty awesome, due mostly to the end product. I made some peanut butter cookies the other night that made my day. Last year at Christmas I made buckeyes and pretty much gave everyone around me diabetes. 10/10 would do again.

Baking wise, last year I bought Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume I. It's more of a textbook rather than a cookbook, because it's mostly filled with super detailed information on preparing different types and sizes of chicken, proper techniques, proper kitchen tools, etc...But one of my favorite things in that book is all of the awesome sauces that she has. Each one I've made has been a huge hit.

I also like cooking pho, which is super easy. Pho makes for a great warm-yourself-up-after-being-outside-in-the-cold meal; it's Vietnamese comfort food. I haven't made it in a while, but just talking about it makes me want to make some tonight. 

You know what else is awesome? Pulled pork sandwiches. I came across this article in Foodspin and that became my jam for a while. Bonus points for making your own bbq sauce.

Wisconsin, Purdue. Well, Purdue will probably keep it close early as Wisky will spend the first half wondering what they're gonna have for dinner that night (I recommend pho!). They'll probably come to a consensus in the locker room at half time, and then a slightly more focused Badger team will tear Purdue to shreds. Is it true Morgan Burke will be honored at halftime? What a shit-show that will be.

Wisconsin: 55
Purdue: 17

Swamy:

Please someone make that shrimp creole recipe in the West Lafayette area, if you make enough it'll surely waft into the midst of Ed "Shrimp Creole" Orgeron and he'll just follow the smell and eat the shrimp creole and end up coaching football for the next decade there. Anyone but Greg Olson. Please.

I really love cooking. It's stress-relieving, it's an avenue to harness creativity, it's the best way to open your eyes (and stomach) to different parts of the world without the hassle of a plane ticket or checked bags, and it's scrumptious chemistry at work. My mom is the greatest cook of all time (sorry, other moms and people who fight on behalf of other moms) who makes a homecooked dinner every single evening, and she's also been a professor at Butler for the last 25 years, so naturally she'd get creative with weekend meals:

During my middle school and early high school years, my younger brother and I would be "assigned" a different country every week. We'd have to research and do a 5 minute presentation for our parents on the history of that country, and a unique aspect of their food culture. Mom would cook the food (and it would be perfect), dad would sit on the couch and make sarcastic jokes occasionally, and theoretically me and my brother learned things. Seriously, we were the coolest house on the block.

All that to say: I've inherited that love for cooking far-reaching cuisines, but grilling recipes from African and South American countries are my favorite dinner experiments. Different spices, marinates, grilling methods, you name it and I've tried it. My recommendation for a post-Purdue grilling experience: find a Ghanaian Kyinkyinga or Peruvian barbeque recipe that calls your name, let it sit during the awful

Purdue-Wisconsin game, prep some lump charcoal and them gooood wood chips, and forget Purdue even played.

My Purdue vs Wisconsin preview: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.

Spread: Wisconsin -28

Wisconsin 64
Purdue 12

B-dowdy-dowd:

I love to cook, but generally don't use recipes. My wife always says she loves what I make, but that she'll never get it again because of my somewhat haphazard technique.

Before I got married, I watched Emeril Lagasse to give me ideas...then made dinner for my roommates to test things out. After living in the Northeast as my fiance finished at Purdue, I could cook pretty well. Making Italian food is probably my favorite thing to do...kids happy and Mrs. BDowd is happy; everyone wins.

Like Dave, I don't bake...everytime I try to do it, I experiment...and fail in some way.

_________________________

Regarding Purdue v. Wisconsin: I don't think our Boilers will win the first half this week. Wisconsin's punch first mentality is still in place as the mob boss, Alvarez, continues to pull Chryst's strings and has created a successful Badger squad. The only issue is that their QB's motion looks like he's throwing with the wrong hand...so I guess it's a good thing he has Clement in the backfield. Clement might be my favorite RB to watch in the conference...he's nifty, can make people miss and is trouble in the second level. If Sconnie keeps it on the ground, they'll have a 10 point lead at the half, and potential to win by 40...

BUT, if they try to go MSU on Purdue and pass the ball, it might be a game.

Also look for how efficient Blough is early. Wiscy's pass defense is very good, Purdue's pass offense is all they've had this season...Purdue's only chance in staying close is if Blough can keep the picks under 2...which we have no reason to believe he can do that in even one second half.

Wisconsin 42
Purdue 13