Moose Productions Blog

Brother Mark’s Chilli Con Carne

Ingredients

4 lbs. beef stew meat (small cuts from the end of roasts)
flour
salt and black pepper
bacon fat or lard

3 carrots, chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 large onions, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3 dried poblano or ancho chillis, chopped and with seeds and stems removed
1 – 28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes with juice
cumin
bay leaves
1 pear, cored and cubed
1 pint of blueberries
salt and black pepper to taste

cilantro, minced
roasted garlic

Directions

Heat bacon fat in heavy-bottomed pan over high heat. Use enough grease to coat the pan. Mix flour, salt and black pepper. Dust cuts of beef stew with flour mixture. Brown beef in grease, turning frequently for 10 minutes or until all sides are browned.
Remove beef and set aside. Reduce heat to medium.
Add onion, carrots, and celery. Sauté in bacon fat and beef liquid until onions are translucent. Season with salt and pepper. Add green bell pepper and chillis. Add enough cumin to taste like chilli con carne. (I used a lot.) Transfer everything to cast iron Dutch oven.
Add beef, can of tomatoes, bay leaves, pear, and blue berries. Stew on stove top for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 300°F. Taste chilli con carne and season with salt, pepper, chillis, and cumin as appropriate. Cover Dutch oven with tight-fitting lid and transfer to oven. Braise for 2 more hours. Check chilli after 1 hour and re-season if necessary.
The beef should fall apart completely and absorb most of the liquid. It should be very tender. Let stand for 15 minutes. Serve with roasted garlic and cilantro.

Roasted Garlic
4 whole heads of garlic
olive oil
salt, black pepper, and thyme

Preheat oven to 275°F. Place garlic in a baking dish. Cover with olive oil and season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Remove cover and cook for another hour or until tender. Remove skin of garlic and serve. The roasted garlic should be the consistency of butter.

This article comes in advance of Zac’s piece for TitanTV:

I think it’s safe to say that with concerns about global warming becoming more and more prevalent in our collective consciousness, a lot of environmentally friendly products have popped up in hopes of cornering the Green portion of the marketplace. Nevertheless, most people assume that they are sacrificing something when they buy green, whether in a product’s effectiveness or in the higher cost. In many cases that is unfortunately the case. But as science improves upon these green items and competition forces prices to fall, living green is starting to become less of a hassle.

This got me thinking. Why not help people help the environment by checking some products out for myself and then creating a video piece displaying the strengths and weaknesses of different products? And what better place to start than with a simple household item that we all have in our homes and use everyday…the lightbulb.

For over one hundred years, the tungsten filament has been the workhorse for most standard household bulbs. Recently, however, a new type of bulb has emerged based on the model of the florescent and is starting to become a more attractive option to businesses and residence alike.

These compact fluorescent lamps, or CFL’s, are much more efficient than standard tungsten bulbs, reducing both carbon emissions and the numbers on your electricity bill at the end of the month. They use around one quarter to one fifth of the energy in any given amount of time as do incandescent bulbs and they last on average about ten times longer, leaving you with less work changing out bulbs.

A miracle product, right? Well, unfortunately not yet. There are some significant downsides to these bulbs that are still up for debate. The initial price of these bulbs is much higher than your cheap incandescent, which might make some consumers squeamish to take the plunge. It should be understood, however, that you end up saving an average of thirty dollars over the lives of the CFL bulbs in energy bills and extended bulb life compared to incandescents.

Nevertheless, for people on a budget, it is sometimes hard to think in the long term. Hopefully prices fall faster than they currently are to make up for this concern.

CFLs, like other fluorescents, also contain mercury, a startling fact that should put many on edge. In April of 2007, a cap was set at 5 mg of mercury for most household CFL bulbs. While it is said that this small amount is not harmful if you come into contact with it, one should still use extra caution if handling any broken bulbs. Keep in mind that proper disposal of CFLs implies the same steps as disposal of batteries, thermostats or other hazardous household items. Go to www.earth911.org to find out the disposal options for your area.

Finally, my biggest past issue with CFLs had been their tendency to act way too much like fluorescents and not enough like incandescents. The first CFL I ever screwed into a socket had the unflattering green hue that most classic fluorescents emit. There was also a delay in start up time as it sluggishly buzzed to life, and even then it would take a few minutes for the bulb to get to its proper brightness. This double whammy of disappointment turned me skeptical towards CFLs. After this initial failed experiment, I had stayed far away from all CFLs…until now.

The bulbs that I will be testing are from a new generation of CFLs. In total, there will be seven different bulbs from four different manufacturers, GE, Philips, Sylvania, and Ushio. Four of these will be the said brands ‘twisty’ CFLs that most resemble the light emitted from a 60W incandescent bulb. As a bonus, I’ll be looking at GE, Philips, and Sylvania’s classic bulb models, designed to look like the classic incandescent for those who aren’t ready to furnish their homes with glass that looks like soft-serve ice cream. Anyway, I’m excited about this little experiment and the results so stay tuned.

Two months and 50 tapes later, we are going through the editing process for CareerTV’s in-depth JPMorgan production. Matt Rivera, Gil Levanon, Mark Reicher, Christina Fontana and Nick Clark are putting together stories about each group of characters. Our stories follow the interactions of the new hires and interns in New York. We also had a small contingent following JPMorgan interns in London at their training seminar.

Our crew has spent the past months on numerous projects for Titan TV. Matt Rivera, Colin Rich , Kieran O’Hare , Zach Nicholson and Jeff French are creating video content for the website. One of the projects is called 5 On It. In each episode we take Five Hot Topics, on that week’s entertainment news, and discuss it in Five Hot Minutes.

For our series on Odd Jobs we take a behind-the-scenes look at some of the most interesting and unusual professions. We’ve followed a private investigator as he goes on a stakeout; gotten tips from a dog trainer; and watch “Billy Bones the Pirate” perform at a birthday party in Brooklyn.

If you want to step into an unfamiliar world watch the series Geek World. Our crew followed everyone from a man who makes robots in his kitchen to a graphic designer who’s able to turn his life into a piece of art.

We’re also shooting a behind-the-scenes look at TitanTV. Viewers get to witness what it takes to run the technology company. Moose Production’s crew was there to capture production meetings and their office moves. Be sure to check out TitanTV.

This summer the story is set in upstate New York. Kieran O’Hare, Jeff French, Colin Rich and Matt Rivera, are shooting for CareerTV during the JP Morgan 2007 Summer Program. Our cameras are following the lives of 12 new hires and interns as they are brought together, from all over the world, to participate in an intensive training seminar.

For two months our characters are going through exercises and games that keep them on the edge, ready to face any future coworker and client relationships. We are there to capture every moment, from the awkward icebreaker games, to the character building exercises that help them develop leadership, communication and teamwork skills. Once their initial hesitations and inhibitions have been put aside, the participants explore every job in their industry to build a broad perspective and appreciation of what each professional goes through.

Thanks to everyone who came out for the 2nd Volume of the VJ Grab Bag. I’ve been out of town for a few weeks but I will have the videos up in a few days along with the “Save Me a Dance” Music Video and some info for the next round of the Grab Bag. (Sorry, no pictures this time.)

Also, if you are in the area, stop by the South 4th Bar & Cafe and say hello to the guys who hosted. It was a great venue.

The Videos are up! What videos? Videos for magazine articles… It’s called Convergence. Enjoy it.
Go here to read the article.
Go here to see video. (Watch watch watch… it’s about Spies and You Tube and a bunch of other stuff you know you love.)

Here’s the old article which explains what this is all about

A new episode will be airing Thursday at 9PM ET and again on Friday at 1PM ET. The episode follows two stories, one in Detroit and one in Memphis. Graham and I shot for the Detroit segments. Our story follows the murder of a driver on the interstate. It took a lot of effort to shoot this episode and we are very excited to see it go to air.