David Custer doesn't claim to be a culinary queen, but he knows the trick to keeping his guests happy. He's had help from local mothers who chipped in their own specialty recipes for the TV anchor-turned-cook's book, "Michigan Moms Make it Best."
"I just tapped into all the women in my life because of all the things that I'd been eating growing up that I loved," Custer says. "How many times have you heard someone say, 'My mom makes the best whatever?' And it's true."
So true that the most mom-made recipes goes to his own ("She made sure of that"). Split between appetizers, sides, main dishes and sweets, "Michigan Moms Make it Best" is part of Custer's shift into culinary entertaining – the simple way.
His brand – Boy Gourmet, which he realizes sounds gay (more on that later) – sells nifty dip mixes, from vegetable dill to habanero salsa and honey-nut apple. Perfect for the party planner in a pinch. All they require is some sour cream, cream cheese or mayo – and, hey, calorie-counters, you can use low-fat substitutes.
"You don't have to worry about your waistline," he says. "But they're obviously going to taste better with full fat."
Taste is what's important, and all Custer gets from guests are big kudos. And bruises. "They're always a hit every time I put them out," he says, meaning "hit" almost literally:
"If I have people over and don't put out the French onion mix, I swear they're going to take me outside and do harm to me. I'm not kidding."
His suggestion to make a simple, yummy snack: Put some apple slices with one of the dips (his recommendation: caramel apple), pretty it up and presto! Everyone loves some fruits and veggies in the spring, he says.
"People love vegetables, believe it or not," he says. "We didn't as kid, but as adults we love fresh cucumbers and asparagus, so anytime you can take fresh vegetables and mesh them with a dip or a spread you'll be a success. Guarantee it."
Custer's mixes are made from all natural, FDA-approved ingredients – and he strongly believes that's the trick to making mouths come back for more. Not necessarily the time you spend on it.
"Anything with fresh ingredients, people are going to flock to just because you can tell when you taste it," he says. "When you dip your chip into that as opposed to something from a can, you can tell by the look on anybody's face. I always say go with something fresh. Keep the can out."
But what does Custer know? His inspiration came from a woman he worked with who ran a Flint food-manufacturing business for 10 years, while he was in and out of television as an Emmy-winning news anchor in Saginaw and Toledo. He currently films cooking segments from his loft for Flint station WNEM-TV 5. Custer doesn't call himself the next Julia Child, but a "culinary entertainer" – someone who loves eating and feeding. He's just like one of us, then. And he's even gay, which had something to do with the name, Boy Gourmet.
"I also own BoiGourmet.com as well," he says, joking. "I was torn on which direction to go at the very beginning because we knew we wanted to market to the gay and lesbian market from the get-go, so we didn't know whether to go with b-o-y or b-o-i."
There's another reason he went with boy: "Because I still get ID'd at age 29, so I was just sticking with the boy theme as well because I'm not claiming to be a professional or a chef.
"I still feel like I have a lot to learn, as a boy would." For more information on David Custer's book and mixes, visit http://www.boygourmet.com.
