King of the Kitchen (26 page)

She popped an alarmingly red Cheeto into her mouth and pointed the bag at Duncan, who grimaced and shook his head. “More for me,” she said with a shrug. “Anyway, you’re a hottie, darling. I should know because my department opens your mail. You get asked out all the time. There have even been marriage proposals.”

Duncan crowed gleefully. “Have there been dick pics? Make my year and tell me yes, Lindsay. Tell me yes.”

Lindsay smirked. “No, but I wouldn’t be so smug. We’re getting mail for you now as well. ‘Is Duncan single?’” she said in a singsong voice. “‘Would you consider doing a show where Duncan and Beck auction themselves off for charity?’ and my favorite, several variations on ‘are Duncan and Beck secretly a couple?' Won't have to bother answering those now, I guess. Cat’s out of the bag on that one.”

Duncan looked over at Beck, who had gone scarlet at Lindsay’s last taunt. “Doesn’t count if the question comes from Beck,” he teased.

Beck seemed to flush even darker, which Duncan wouldn’t have thought possible.

“Like you wouldn’t pay good money to a charity if it meant you could get in his pants,” Lindsay shot back.

Duncan bit his lip like he was considering the question. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. “Not that I need to enter a contest to do that, but how much are we talking here?”

Beck remained silent, but Lindsay cackled. “Well, it would be an auction. I bet some of his backers have pretty deep pockets.”

Duncan snorted at her word choice. He’d like to be a backer for sure.

“Well, keep me on speed dial if you ever decide to pursue that particular suggestion,” he said, leering suggestively at Beck before winking at Lindsay.

“I totally don’t need any details,” she said with a laugh. “And while it may not be a dating auction, you
will
be getting a call from the network about that show Bob was talking about, Duncan. I’m sure of it.”

“And when I do, I should tell them I negotiate through you, right?”

She grinned. “Damn straight. I’ll look out for you, baby.”

“As well as you look out for me?” Beck asked dryly. “Where was this concern for your charge when you whored me out to this one?” he asked, pointing at Duncan.

“This worked out perfectly well for you, don’t pretend otherwise,” she said. She crumpled up her empty bag of radioactive Cheetos and tossed it in the garbage. “It’s not my fault you had a public fight with someone you’d had a crush on for years. I’m glad it all worked out, though.”

She blew them a kiss and traipsed out, leaving both of them staring dumbly in her wake.

Duncan whirled on Beck. “You had a crush on me? Seriously?”

“Whatever. It was a food crush,” Beck muttered, looking down.

“That is such a lie. You hate my food,” Duncan said, eyes widening. “Wait, do you still? I mean, I know we’re involved, but do you still have a crush on me? Should I be waiting for Campbell to pass me a note?”

Beck’s jaw tightened. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t be a jerk about this.”

Duncan scoffed at that. “It’s like you don’t even know me. I’m a jerk about everything, Beck! This can’t be news. And I’m going to milk this crush for all it’s worth.”

“I don’t have a crush.” Beck looked adorably flustered, and Duncan couldn’t stop himself.

“I know I’m new to relationships, but I think that’s kind of how this works. You have a crush on me, I have a crush on you; we’re together.”

Beck was fighting a grin, his face a complicated mix of indignant and amused. “I don’t have a crush on you anymore.”

“You don’t? Has the fire gone out of our relationship already?” Duncan teased.

“No, you idiot. Crushes mean light feelings. I’m not crushing on you anymore because it’s more than that. You’re frustrating and you can be a real dick, but I think I’m falling in love with you.”

Duncan’s breath caught. He wasn’t sure how to respond, so he fell back on his old standard, humor. “I’m sorry, all I heard was the word ‘dick’ and the word ‘love.’”

Luckily, Beck seemed to get that it was too heavy for him at the moment. “I do love your dick,” he said solemnly, nodding. “And probably the other parts of you too.”

Duncan laughed. “I love your dick too,” he said. “And I’m getting there on the rest. It may take a while, but I’m getting there.”

Beck beamed. “We should celebrate.”

“Celebrate our mutual love for each other’s dicks?” Duncan asked, skeptical. “What would we do, get a cake? Can you imagine the look on the baker’s face when we ask for the inscription ‘Congrats on falling in love with my dick’?”

Beck’s laugh was infectious. “No. I mean, let’s go do something to celebrate. I won, and I want to claim my prize.”

“Oh. Sex. Yes. Let’s.”

Beck shook his head. “No. We said the winner gets to choose, and I choose a date.”

“A date?”

“Yes. We’ve never actually had one. Do you realize that? So I want to claim my prize and take you out. Like, really out. Not to one of Christian’s restaurants or somewhere we know the owners. Someplace where we can have dinner, the two of us, without interruptions. Like a real date. I want to show you off.”

That actually sounded pretty amazing. Things had been so hectic for the last month. Having a relaxing dinner would be awesome, and Duncan felt an undeniable thrill that Beck wanted to make their relationship public. It already was, to some extent, but this was different. This was doing it on their own terms, and that made a world of difference.

“You realize nothing’s going to be just the two of us for long, right? We’re bound to get noticed, and I plan on being all over you. That’s what dates are for, right? There are going to be people who want to get the first picture of us out on a real date.”

Beck quirked a brow at him. “So you’re in?”

“I’m all in,” he said.

Beck swept him into a kiss, leaving Duncan breathless when he pulled back. “From what Bob said about the audience participation today, we may be offered a contract together. That would mean working together permanently. I know you have reservations about that. You still in for this?”

Duncan wasn’t sure where he was going careerwise. His family life was in shambles. He hadn’t returned calls from most of his friends for the last few weeks because he’d been so busy. Basically, everything was up in the air and nothing was certain.

Seemed like a great time to take a huge leap and start something new.

“I told you once that I seem to be breaking all my rules for you. I’m still all in,” he said, laughing when Beck moved in to kiss him again.

Recipes

BRAINSTORMING ABOUT
what kind of food Duncan and Beck could make for the shows and writing them in the kitchen was honestly the highlight of writing this book for me. I love to cook, and I especially love experimenting in the kitchen. Sometimes things don’t go as planned, and my family ends up eating cold cereal for dinner, but other times new favorites are born from my mad-scientist approach to cooking.

Here are a few of the dishes Duncan and Beck made in
King of the Kitchen
, including Duncan’s red wine caviar for those of you who are feeling adventurous. I’ll admit that one takes some doing and includes specialty ingredients you have to order off the Internet, but my son and I had a blast trying to get it just right!

REFRIGERATOR VELCRO FRITTATA

This can be made with pretty much anything in your refrigerator, which is what makes it such a versatile recipe. It’s great for breakfast, but it’s also perfect for dinner alongside a fresh salad and some crusty bread.

I’ve purposefully left this open for you to use whatever type of vegetable, protein, and herbs you have on hand. You really can’t go wrong!

Ingredients

8 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup of milk

2 ounces of cheese (Parmesan, Mizithra, or gouda are my favorites, but use what you’ve got)

1 1/2 cups of cooked vegetables, chopped (squeeze moisture out of high-water-content veggies like spinach)

3/4 cup of cooked meat, chopped (beans also work)

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh herbs, chopped or 1/2 tablespoon dried herbs

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine eggs, salt, pepper, milk, cheese, and herbs in a bowl.

Heat a 10-inch nonstick oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add the butter or oil, then sauté the veggies and meat until warm. Pour in the egg mixture and stir until evenly distributed. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, using a spatula to push back the edges as they start to solidify so the egg mixture from the middle can reach the edges to cook.

Put the pan in the oven, uncovered, and bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the middle is set. Let cool for a few minutes after cooking and cut into wedges to serve.

BECK’S BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH BALSAMIC REDUCTION

Ingredients

1 pound brussels sprouts, cleaned and trimmed

1 pint grape tomatoes

3 tablespoons olive oil

Kosher salt

Ground pepper

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400F.

On the stovetop, bring the balsamic vinegar to a gentle simmer and let cook uncovered, stirring often, until the water cooks out and it reduces by about half. It should be a syrupy consistency that sticks to the back of your spoon or spatula when it’s ready. Take it off the heat and set aside. (This makes enough to barely coat the brussels sprouts. If you really like balsamic glazes and want a thicker one on the sprouts, start with a full cup of balsamic vinegar.)

Slice brussels sprouts and grape tomatoes lengthwise (through the stem). Discard any yellowed leaves on the outside of the brussels sprouts. If you want extra-crispy bits (my family’s favorite part!), then pull the larger brussels sprouts apart. Toss with the olive oil and distribute evenly on a heavy sheet pan. Arrange the sprouts and tomatoes cut side down for maximum caramelization. Sprinkle with a generous amount of kosher salt, and pepper to taste. Roast for twenty minutes, taking the pan out halfway through the cooking time to check for burning, and stirring if necessary.

The brussels sprouts are done when they have a nice caramel color. Ovens (and sprout sizes) vary, so keep an eye on them and adjust the cooking time as necessary. When they are finished, toss them with the balsamic reduction and serve.

DUNCAN’S RED WINE CAVIAR

You can make this with any liquid that isn’t overly acidic. Most red wines will be okay, and if you’re trying it with juice, then apple and grape are a good place to start. You’ll need chemicals to make this work, and there are a lot of molecular gastronomy sites that sell them. I recommend getting a kit if you want to experiment—that way you have everything you need to play around and see if you want to invest more money on tools and larger amounts of the chemicals later.

In addition, you will need some special tools: a syringe, plastic pipette, or drinking straw, and a slotted spoon or small sieve.

Ingredients

1 cup wine or juice

1/3 teaspoon sodium alginate

2 1/4 cups of water

1/2 teaspoon calcium chloride

Food coloring to suit (optional)

Put the wine or juice in a bowl and add a drop or two of the food coloring if desired. I’ve found that I like the extra depth of color that food coloring can bring, but it’s not necessary. Sprinkle the sodium alginate in and immediately stir vigorously with an immersion blender as the alginate tends to clump. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender instead. Blend until the alginate is thoroughly incorporated.

Pour the water into a wide bowl and whisk in the calcium chloride. It takes a bit of time to dissolve. Once it has dissolved completely, take your dropper and suck up some of the juice or wine mixture. Gently drop beads of it into the water. If you are using a drinking straw, keep your finger over the top to control the drops.

Let the drops sit for no longer than a minute and then gently fish them out with the slotted spoon or small sieve and rinse them carefully with cold water.

Please note that since these are not cooked, if you make them with alcohol you cannot give the caviar to children.

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