I've had a fondness for cheese grits since I was a kid, when my mom would make them by adding Velveeta (I think) to grits and add slices of hot dogs (it was the seventies). Even in the south, this was apparently a little bit weird - I remember taking them to school in sixth or seventh grade for a pot luck and getting weird-ass looks. But, damn, they were tasty.
This fine recipe was a new addition to Christmas dinner this year, replacing a Treebeards recipe for which I seemed to lose the touch. This past weekend was about relaxing, guilt-free, until the paper comes back with red marks for revisions. Comfort food was in order.
The first batch tasted mind-blowingly good. The second, merely excellent. The big difference was the taste of the gouda, which came through much better in the Christmas batch. Saturday's batch, not so much. I end up adding a little salt and about 8 oz of a mild cheddar to punch up the flavor. It's still really, really good.
The lesson here appears to be to get the strongest flavored gouda you can find, though I have no idea how you would know until you got the cheese home.
Showing posts with label Side Dishes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Side Dishes. Show all posts
Monday, February 1, 2010
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Ratatouille
As I mentioned a while back, I have a ton of marinara sauce. But at the same time, I'm watching what I eat pretty carefully these days, which means I can't be eating too much pasta. So what to do?
Somehow, I thought of doing a fake lasagna with some zucchini thin-sliced horizontally, with the Morningstar Farm Grillers Prime or Sausage Recipe Crumbles (or whatever they're called) and some low fat ricotta or cottage cheese. Though I was not too keen on the cheese portion. My neighbor and trainer Heather, pointed out that this is basically rataouille, if I added eggplant and red bell pepper.
Not a fan of that vegetable, by the way. My stepmother is the only person that's actually made me eggplant that I liked and it was seriously fried, so I dunno if that counts.
I decided to give it a shot. The first effort, san eggplant, was really pretty good. I did a bit of experimentation, even trying some eggplant I found at the farmer's market. I got the small zucchini-sized ones (not japanese eggplant, smaller versions of the regular). I think I have a really winner here. After all that, I finally opened a cookbook and found that I was making pretty close to authentic ratatouille.
Oh, and I freaking love my ScanPan saute pan. More on that another day, but my God, it's like magic.
Here's my first shot at writing a recipe:
1 small, narrow eggplant
1 medium yellow squash
1 medium zucchini squash
1/2 yellow onion
1/2 red ball pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt
1 cup marinara sauce
1+ tbsp fresh oregeno
2 tbsp fresh basil
Slice eggplant into thin disks. Place in single layer in a colander (over a paper towel or plate to catch the liquid) sprinkled with kosher salt. Sprinkle kosher salt across top as well. Let sweat for ~45 minutes.
Slice onion and red bell pepper into sticks. Slice yellow squash and zucchini into thin disks. Using the back of a chef's knife or pastry scraper, mash peeled garlic cloves with kosher salt into a paste (salt crystals will act as an abrasive). Mince herbs. At the end of the 45 minutes, pat the eggplant dry with paper towels.
Heat saute pan to medium high. Add olive oil. When oil starts to shimmer, add onions. When onion softens, add mashed garlic. When garlic is browned, add zucchini and summer squash. Heat until both start to soften, turning a bit translucent. Add eggplant and heat until that starts to turn translucent as well. Add red bell pepper. Heat until bell pepper begins to soften. Pour marinara into pan around the edges and sprinkle the herbs across the top. Gently fold in the sauce to the vegetables until heated through.
Serves 4 as a side, 2 as a main course.
* This seems to be all the rage these days. I learned it at the Chopping Block and have since see it on How to Boil Water with Tyler Florence and, yes, America's Test Kitchen
Somehow, I thought of doing a fake lasagna with some zucchini thin-sliced horizontally, with the Morningstar Farm Grillers Prime or Sausage Recipe Crumbles (or whatever they're called) and some low fat ricotta or cottage cheese. Though I was not too keen on the cheese portion. My neighbor and trainer Heather, pointed out that this is basically rataouille, if I added eggplant and red bell pepper.
Not a fan of that vegetable, by the way. My stepmother is the only person that's actually made me eggplant that I liked and it was seriously fried, so I dunno if that counts.
I decided to give it a shot. The first effort, san eggplant, was really pretty good. I did a bit of experimentation, even trying some eggplant I found at the farmer's market. I got the small zucchini-sized ones (not japanese eggplant, smaller versions of the regular). I think I have a really winner here. After all that, I finally opened a cookbook and found that I was making pretty close to authentic ratatouille.
Oh, and I freaking love my ScanPan saute pan. More on that another day, but my God, it's like magic.
Here's my first shot at writing a recipe:
1 small, narrow eggplant
1 medium yellow squash
1 medium zucchini squash
1/2 yellow onion
1/2 red ball pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt
1 cup marinara sauce
1+ tbsp fresh oregeno
2 tbsp fresh basil
Slice eggplant into thin disks. Place in single layer in a colander (over a paper towel or plate to catch the liquid) sprinkled with kosher salt. Sprinkle kosher salt across top as well. Let sweat for ~45 minutes.
Slice onion and red bell pepper into sticks. Slice yellow squash and zucchini into thin disks. Using the back of a chef's knife or pastry scraper, mash peeled garlic cloves with kosher salt into a paste (salt crystals will act as an abrasive). Mince herbs. At the end of the 45 minutes, pat the eggplant dry with paper towels.
Heat saute pan to medium high. Add olive oil. When oil starts to shimmer, add onions. When onion softens, add mashed garlic. When garlic is browned, add zucchini and summer squash. Heat until both start to soften, turning a bit translucent. Add eggplant and heat until that starts to turn translucent as well. Add red bell pepper. Heat until bell pepper begins to soften. Pour marinara into pan around the edges and sprinkle the herbs across the top. Gently fold in the sauce to the vegetables until heated through.
Serves 4 as a side, 2 as a main course.
* This seems to be all the rage these days. I learned it at the Chopping Block and have since see it on How to Boil Water with Tyler Florence and, yes, America's Test Kitchen
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Black Bean Quinoa Salad
First off, it's pronounced "KEEN-wa."
A few weeks back, I went to a dinner party with a friend who's in Yoga school. As you might expect, all vegetarian. Which, frankly, is fine by me. I found a long time ago that, if necessary, I could go meatless, assuming that included fish, eggs and dairy. Vegans, however, are crazy.
Everything was good, but the one hands-down standout was this dish. I'd never had quinoa before and there were a lot of diced tomatoes, which to this day are my kryptonite. But, damn, this is good. Quinoa is a grain which is apparently a "super-food." It's whole grain, so lots of fiber, but chock-full of protein as well. Usually, I think these kinds of food suck. I'm looking at you, kale. But this actually tastes good and has a nice texture. It's kind of like cous-cous. In fact, I bet you could sub it in very easily. It cooks up kind of like rice, so that's easy.
The recipe does feed an army, though. I succumbed to temptation and and made a double batch, to help work down our tomato and peppers crop. Don't do that. Seriously. As good as it is, it gets tiring eating it twice a day for a week just to finish it before it can go bad.
This recipe was actually my first exposure to the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites cookbook. Fortunately, I had made it before trying the Gingered Broccoli, so I still have a good feeling about this book.
A few weeks back, I went to a dinner party with a friend who's in Yoga school. As you might expect, all vegetarian. Which, frankly, is fine by me. I found a long time ago that, if necessary, I could go meatless, assuming that included fish, eggs and dairy. Vegans, however, are crazy.
Everything was good, but the one hands-down standout was this dish. I'd never had quinoa before and there were a lot of diced tomatoes, which to this day are my kryptonite. But, damn, this is good. Quinoa is a grain which is apparently a "super-food." It's whole grain, so lots of fiber, but chock-full of protein as well. Usually, I think these kinds of food suck. I'm looking at you, kale. But this actually tastes good and has a nice texture. It's kind of like cous-cous. In fact, I bet you could sub it in very easily. It cooks up kind of like rice, so that's easy.
The recipe does feed an army, though. I succumbed to temptation and and made a double batch, to help work down our tomato and peppers crop. Don't do that. Seriously. As good as it is, it gets tiring eating it twice a day for a week just to finish it before it can go bad.
This recipe was actually my first exposure to the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites cookbook. Fortunately, I had made it before trying the Gingered Broccoli, so I still have a good feeling about this book.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Guacamole
If you ever see a recipe for guacamole which has measurements, throw it away. It's completely useless. Why? Because the flavors of the dish is completely driven by the avacodo and that can be a total crapshoot. You never know how intense the flavor of the fruit is going to be until you start making it, so everything else has to be adjusted relative to the base ingredient.
Case in point: I was making the sauce, once again, for our semi-Mexican themed holiday party. I lucked out and found ripe ones, but when I started actually preparing it, I found that the were very, very mild in flavor. Consequently, I had to be very careful with the other ingredients, particularly with the lemon juice and salt, so that they wouldn't overpower the avocado. I dialed back a LOT from the usual mixture. I generally prefer a much more intense flavor, but a delicate touch was called for here. It "sold" well, so I think I got it right. I've always done this to taste anyway, but this is the first time I've ever encountered any this mild.
Avocados (~1 per cup of sauce you want)
Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice
Table salt
Yellow Onion - diced
Fresh Cilantro - chopped
Tomato - deseeded, membrane removed, diced
Jalepeno Peppers - very small dice (for flavor)
Serrano Peppers - very small dice (for heat)
Ground Chipotle Powder (from Penzey's)
Prep all of the ingredients and arrange in front of you. Mash avocados and taste to get the baseline. Add all of the other ingredients to taste, working through one at a time. The only exception, for me, is the tomato. I'm not a big fan, but I think they're needed for color. Those I add until the proportion looks right. Make sure you bite into some onion when tasting, so you account for the sweetness there.
Serve with restaurant style, locally produced tortilla chips. Using Tostitos or Doritos (do they even make the plain variety anymore?) is a sin.
Case in point: I was making the sauce, once again, for our semi-Mexican themed holiday party. I lucked out and found ripe ones, but when I started actually preparing it, I found that the were very, very mild in flavor. Consequently, I had to be very careful with the other ingredients, particularly with the lemon juice and salt, so that they wouldn't overpower the avocado. I dialed back a LOT from the usual mixture. I generally prefer a much more intense flavor, but a delicate touch was called for here. It "sold" well, so I think I got it right. I've always done this to taste anyway, but this is the first time I've ever encountered any this mild.
Avocados (~1 per cup of sauce you want)
Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice
Table salt
Yellow Onion - diced
Fresh Cilantro - chopped
Tomato - deseeded, membrane removed, diced
Jalepeno Peppers - very small dice (for flavor)
Serrano Peppers - very small dice (for heat)
Ground Chipotle Powder (from Penzey's)
Prep all of the ingredients and arrange in front of you. Mash avocados and taste to get the baseline. Add all of the other ingredients to taste, working through one at a time. The only exception, for me, is the tomato. I'm not a big fan, but I think they're needed for color. Those I add until the proportion looks right. Make sure you bite into some onion when tasting, so you account for the sweetness there.
Serve with restaurant style, locally produced tortilla chips. Using Tostitos or Doritos (do they even make the plain variety anymore?) is a sin.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Cornbread Stuffing with Fennel & Sausage
Once I found this recipe for dressing, I've never made any other one. It completely nails the sweet, savory and texture nodes. I use sweet cornbread when I make it, usually from the Jiffy Corn Muffin mix.
The downside is that it's not very flexible for modifications. I discovered this first at my brother's house. We swapped out the pork-based Italian sausage with a chicken sausage because some relative (my sister-in-law, maybe? It's been a while) couldn't eat pork.
The result tasted fine, but was way, way too dry. I think this happened twice, as I had forgotten between the two attempts. So this year, our friends Ebru and Fuzail joined us for the feast. Being Muslim, they couldn't eat the pork either, so I went a different route. I split the recipe into two and put sausage in one and left the other vegetarian. Finally remembering the moistness issue from nixxing the pork sausage before, I upped the chicken stock on the pork-free version.
Unfortunately, there may be a density factor at play here in the baking, also. I split the two versions into covered baking dishes, but they were only about half as deep as usual. Again, a bit dry. So, my lesson from this experience is to just do exactly what the nice people at Bon Appetit tell me. At least in this case.
UPDATE: I made this again at Christmas in Ft. Worth a few weeks later. I found that if you make it in one dish and you up the stock added by a cup or so, it turns out absolutely perfect. Yay!
The downside is that it's not very flexible for modifications. I discovered this first at my brother's house. We swapped out the pork-based Italian sausage with a chicken sausage because some relative (my sister-in-law, maybe? It's been a while) couldn't eat pork.
The result tasted fine, but was way, way too dry. I think this happened twice, as I had forgotten between the two attempts. So this year, our friends Ebru and Fuzail joined us for the feast. Being Muslim, they couldn't eat the pork either, so I went a different route. I split the recipe into two and put sausage in one and left the other vegetarian. Finally remembering the moistness issue from nixxing the pork sausage before, I upped the chicken stock on the pork-free version.
Unfortunately, there may be a density factor at play here in the baking, also. I split the two versions into covered baking dishes, but they were only about half as deep as usual. Again, a bit dry. So, my lesson from this experience is to just do exactly what the nice people at Bon Appetit tell me. At least in this case.
UPDATE: I made this again at Christmas in Ft. Worth a few weeks later. I found that if you make it in one dish and you up the stock added by a cup or so, it turns out absolutely perfect. Yay!
Green Onion Buttermilk Biscuits
I don't really know what to say about these other than they're incredibly good and I've never screwed them up. They're the only home made biscuits I've ever made and have been consistently successful for 6 years. So, I'd say it's a fool proof recipe. For some reason, it's not on-line, so this is a scan of a xerox from the magazine. I'll clean that up with either a scan of the original, if I find it, or I'll type it. But in the meantime...
Treebeards' Garlic Cheese Grits
I always have to explain grits, as most everyone I know here has never had them. They're like polenta. In fact, this recipe is a lot more so than the ones I fell in love with that my mom used to make. The egg in the recipe firms it up a lot more like the Italian version and the cayenne gives it a great kick. This is one of the recipes that is included in the Treebeards' cookbook that isn't actually on the menu, but in keeping with the palate and feel of the restaurant. That's a shame, because I would have ordered them all the time.
Something about that grits = polenta thing: A woman in my office, Teresa, is Chicago born and bred, though it seems she got a solid upbringing with Southern food here. She went down to Mississippi with a friend whose father (or some male relative) who is a fantastic cook, based on what Teresa was describing. He served soft polenta with an Italian meal he put together and Teresa had no idea what it was. His response? "They're like grits." So the analogy works both ways.
Something about that grits = polenta thing: A woman in my office, Teresa, is Chicago born and bred, though it seems she got a solid upbringing with Southern food here. She went down to Mississippi with a friend whose father (or some male relative) who is a fantastic cook, based on what Teresa was describing. He served soft polenta with an Italian meal he put together and Teresa had no idea what it was. His response? "They're like grits." So the analogy works both ways.
Roasted Garlic & Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes
This "recipe," like my guacamole, is basically made to taste. I've had this as part of every single holiday meal I've served for at least ten years now, so it's not like there's much "learning" for me here. They are tasty, but I think it's time to move them out of the line up.
Ingredients:
5 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes
1 pint sour cream
1 bulb garlic
olive oil
salt & fresh ground black pepper
I roast the garlic in the toaster oven, as a) it seems wasteful to use the entire oven for such a small item and b) I'm usually baking something else there at the time anyway, since it is the holidays, after all. I slice the top off, to expose a bit of most, if not all, of the cloves and drizzle olive oil over all of it. Then I roast the buld, lightly covered with a sheet of aluminum foil at 400F for about 20-30 minutes. Thinking about it, I'm not sure I've ever timed this.
Wash the potatoes and chop into ~1.5 inch chunks. Cover with cold water in a pot and boil until fork-tender. Note that I do not peel them.
Once the potatoes are done, drain them, put them back into the pot and mash until creamy. Add sour cream, garlic, salt and pepper while mashing, to taste.
5 lbs is an awful lot, I know. I just got in the habit because I like the leftovers and if I don't do the whole bag at once, the remaining spuds usually go bad.
Ingredients:
5 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes
1 pint sour cream
1 bulb garlic
olive oil
salt & fresh ground black pepper
I roast the garlic in the toaster oven, as a) it seems wasteful to use the entire oven for such a small item and b) I'm usually baking something else there at the time anyway, since it is the holidays, after all. I slice the top off, to expose a bit of most, if not all, of the cloves and drizzle olive oil over all of it. Then I roast the buld, lightly covered with a sheet of aluminum foil at 400F for about 20-30 minutes. Thinking about it, I'm not sure I've ever timed this.
Wash the potatoes and chop into ~1.5 inch chunks. Cover with cold water in a pot and boil until fork-tender. Note that I do not peel them.
Once the potatoes are done, drain them, put them back into the pot and mash until creamy. Add sour cream, garlic, salt and pepper while mashing, to taste.
5 lbs is an awful lot, I know. I just got in the habit because I like the leftovers and if I don't do the whole bag at once, the remaining spuds usually go bad.
Lime Cilantro Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Holy Mother of God, this recipe is good. As I mentioned in the menu overview, I usually just skip these as I have too much starch action going on in the meal. But the promise of the sharpness of fresh lime juice was just too good to pass up and would make it a nice pop of flavor.
There's not much to say other than it was easy and straight forward. The sweet potatoes were a hair underdone, so I need to watch that next time.
UPDATE: One thing I have found is that it is really important that you spread the pieces out in a single layer in the oven, with space between each piece, like it says in the recipe. If they're packed too tight or on top of one another, they get mushy. Still taste great, though.
There's not much to say other than it was easy and straight forward. The sweet potatoes were a hair underdone, so I need to watch that next time.
UPDATE: One thing I have found is that it is really important that you spread the pieces out in a single layer in the oven, with space between each piece, like it says in the recipe. If they're packed too tight or on top of one another, they get mushy. Still taste great, though.
Spinach Cheddar Bake
Bon Appetit describes this recipe as a "creamed spinach," but it's really more like a casserole. A very managemable and delicious way to include greens in the holiday meal - it always gets rave reviews. I've made this several times before, but I did learn two new things time:
- You can cut this in half. In fact, you should. As written (for 18!), this is an insanely generous amount. As much as I like leftovers of this stuff, really. This is the first time I've tried cutting it down and it worked.
- When reheating something with a crispy crust, do not leave the foil on the entire time. Okay, everyone, "Well, duh." Fine. I waited a bit too long and it was kinda moist. Don't think anyone knew the difference or cared.
Oh, and that first review with the bit about "adding pimentoes for color?" Crazy talk. Just saying.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Gorgonzola Potatoes au Gratin
I put this together using the potatoes from my mandoline slicer practice session (no, I did not wait two weeks and use nasty spoiled potatoes, I'm just slow in posting). I got the idea for the gorgonzola version of potatoes au gratin from a dinner we had recently at A Taste of Heaven. Channing's not a big fan of potatoes except when they're very crispy fried, but in this case, his love for blue cheese flavors won.
I thought I was going to have to take a regular recipe and swap out the cheese used, but I found this recipe with a simple Google search. Restaurants and Institutions is, apparently, a trade magazine and the site is actually pretty interesting. This week's "Recipe of the Week," "Caramel Coconut Rice Pudding" was tempting enough that I registered as a "Point of Sale Software Consultant."
Anyway, this recipe worked out great. I may mince the onions next time for Channing's sake, but I liked them very much sliced as instructed.
I thought I was going to have to take a regular recipe and swap out the cheese used, but I found this recipe with a simple Google search. Restaurants and Institutions is, apparently, a trade magazine and the site is actually pretty interesting. This week's "Recipe of the Week," "Caramel Coconut Rice Pudding" was tempting enough that I registered as a "Point of Sale Software Consultant."
Anyway, this recipe worked out great. I may mince the onions next time for Channing's sake, but I liked them very much sliced as instructed.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Pasta in White Wine
Oh my.
So, I'm cooking up steak tonight, practicing my grilling and making use of a marinade I bought at the Guiness Storehouse (i.e. the brewery tour gift shop) a long time ago. I had a bag of fingerling potatoes left from the dinner a few weeks ago that I needed to use before they went bad, so I planned on a repeat. Here's the problem, Channing hates potatoes and I didn't really want to cook yet another dish. He had a hard day, too, so telling him, "Tough, eat them anyway," wasn't really a winner move. But I really had no idea what to serve him until literally the last minute.
Two brainstorms in quick succession happened. First, I remembered that I had a a little pasta left from the Mac 'n' Cheese (I used pipe doppia rigatura, by the way. You can see it here.). I grabbed that, thinking I'd toss it in some olive oil and shred some parmesan on it, though I really wasn't sure if I had any. Then the second idea hit. I popped the pasta into the microwave for a minute and then tossed it with some of the white wine sauce from the potatoes.
Wow. This is really, really good. Like, I was tempted to steal Channing's plate good. And super light, so that's a bonus.
So, here's the recipe for the sauce, cobbled from the Fingerling Potato recipe. I would guess that this would be enough for up to a pound of pasta.
WHITE WINE SAUCE
1/3 cup dry white wine (I used a Pinot Grigio)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
Cook pasta al dente and drain. Put pasta into mixing bowl and pour each of the ingredients over pasta and toss. Serve immediately.
The steak worked out great, too. 4 minutes per side, turning every two minutes, gave us a nice medium well done with impressive grill marks. The marinade can be found here if you aren't up to flying to Dublin to pick it up. Tasty stuff.
So, I'm cooking up steak tonight, practicing my grilling and making use of a marinade I bought at the Guiness Storehouse (i.e. the brewery tour gift shop) a long time ago. I had a bag of fingerling potatoes left from the dinner a few weeks ago that I needed to use before they went bad, so I planned on a repeat. Here's the problem, Channing hates potatoes and I didn't really want to cook yet another dish. He had a hard day, too, so telling him, "Tough, eat them anyway," wasn't really a winner move. But I really had no idea what to serve him until literally the last minute.
Two brainstorms in quick succession happened. First, I remembered that I had a a little pasta left from the Mac 'n' Cheese (I used pipe doppia rigatura, by the way. You can see it here.). I grabbed that, thinking I'd toss it in some olive oil and shred some parmesan on it, though I really wasn't sure if I had any. Then the second idea hit. I popped the pasta into the microwave for a minute and then tossed it with some of the white wine sauce from the potatoes.
Wow. This is really, really good. Like, I was tempted to steal Channing's plate good. And super light, so that's a bonus.
So, here's the recipe for the sauce, cobbled from the Fingerling Potato recipe. I would guess that this would be enough for up to a pound of pasta.
WHITE WINE SAUCE
1/3 cup dry white wine (I used a Pinot Grigio)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
Cook pasta al dente and drain. Put pasta into mixing bowl and pour each of the ingredients over pasta and toss. Serve immediately.
The steak worked out great, too. 4 minutes per side, turning every two minutes, gave us a nice medium well done with impressive grill marks. The marinade can be found here if you aren't up to flying to Dublin to pick it up. Tasty stuff.
Friday, September 7, 2007
Smoked Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese
Damn. Knocked it out of the park. We had a great Smoked Cheddar Mac 'n' Cheese at Glenn's last week and this was my attempt to recreate it. I looked at a lot of recipes and went with this recipe from Epicurious.com, which was originally from the Fanny Farmer Cookbook.
The excuse for making such a health hazard at home was that Channing was going to be swimming the Big Shoulders on Saturday morning and needed to carbo-load. It was pretty clear late Friday afternoon that work stuff was going to interfere with his ability to participate (3:30 am log-ins, etc), but I was committed (and craving).
I picked up a Wisconsin Smoked Cheddar at Whole Foods which was, unfortunately, massively expensive. Something like $13/lb. There was a less expensive one, but it was reduced fat, which the manager of the cheese area confirmed would make for a crappy sauce.
The result was really, really nice. It wasn't anywhere close to Glenn's, as the sauce didn't bake up as creamy. But I dare say that it was a success in its own right. I think I might try a mix with a smoked gouda next time, for texture, flavor and price.
This also counts as a Basic Skill since the Cheese sauce is a bechamel (white sauce). There's a link to the sauce recipe within the main recipe, but here's a direct one. I had never made one before and had actually made sure to avoid them. I've never made a gumbo or jambalaya as a result (roux being very similar to a bechamel - cooked a bit more to get to a golden brown, I believe). Needless to say, the reference they make that, "This used to be one of the first lessons in home economics classes" stings a bit. Nonetheless, I executed it flawlessly - no burned butter, no lumps of flour and all the flour got cooked completely. Woo-hoo!
The excuse for making such a health hazard at home was that Channing was going to be swimming the Big Shoulders on Saturday morning and needed to carbo-load. It was pretty clear late Friday afternoon that work stuff was going to interfere with his ability to participate (3:30 am log-ins, etc), but I was committed (and craving).
I picked up a Wisconsin Smoked Cheddar at Whole Foods which was, unfortunately, massively expensive. Something like $13/lb. There was a less expensive one, but it was reduced fat, which the manager of the cheese area confirmed would make for a crappy sauce.
The result was really, really nice. It wasn't anywhere close to Glenn's, as the sauce didn't bake up as creamy. But I dare say that it was a success in its own right. I think I might try a mix with a smoked gouda next time, for texture, flavor and price.
This also counts as a Basic Skill since the Cheese sauce is a bechamel (white sauce). There's a link to the sauce recipe within the main recipe, but here's a direct one. I had never made one before and had actually made sure to avoid them. I've never made a gumbo or jambalaya as a result (roux being very similar to a bechamel - cooked a bit more to get to a golden brown, I believe). Needless to say, the reference they make that, "This used to be one of the first lessons in home economics classes" stings a bit. Nonetheless, I executed it flawlessly - no burned butter, no lumps of flour and all the flour got cooked completely. Woo-hoo!
Monday, September 3, 2007
Corn Pudding with Basil
I bought a bunch of sweet corn at the Farmer's Market, but my usual tactic of roasted corn wasn't going to work well with the menu - too "grilly" for a more formal dinner. I found this recipe which really hit the mark on a few fronts. It offered a different kind of starch (getting tired of potatoes), it provided a use of some of the huge amounts of basil I have growing on the back deck and it was an opportunity to practice more knife skills, cutting kernals from the cob. Oh, and it was yellow. Nice for the plate.
This was definitely a winner. It was the one thing that everyone at the table completely finished. Also, it looked just like this picture (from the magazine).
I think I've read about methods to get the "hairs" off better when shucking corn, but I couldn't remember it at the time. That was kind of a pain. It was really good knife practice, slicing deep enough to get most of the kernal without kitting the cob.
Savory Green Beans
I've made this recipe a million times and it turned out great, so it was to be the guaranteed winner. Also, for the presentation, it was adding the greens and reds to the plate. Damn. When you overcook the beans, that doesn't work out so well - they lose color. Granted, I used Trader Joe's frozen beans instead of fresh as a time saver. This was the first time I'd ever made it with frozen, so I'm sure that made a big difference, too. Lessons learned.
The recipe comes from Treebeard's in Houston and their cookbook. I can't say enough good things about this restaurant and this book. It is a very solid basic. I would highly recommend it as someone's second cookbook ever, after The Joy of Cooking. From their site, it looks like it's in the 8th printing. My copy is a 2nd printing, so I don't know how much has changed in the intervening 14 years, but I think it'd be a safe bet.
TREEBEARDS' SAVORY GREEN BEANS
Serves 4 to 6.
Green beans take on a whole new flavor when combined with tomatoes. two kinds of peppers and wonderful herbs.
1 pound fresh green beans
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1/3 cup water
3/4 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/2 teaspoon savory
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
Wash and string beans. Set aside.
In 4-quart saucepan over medium heat. melt butter and saute onion and peppers about 5 minutes or until tender. Add water and seasonings. Bring to boil and add green beans. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and continue cooking until beans are tender. about 10 minutes.
Tidwell, Dan, Jamie Mize and Janie Baur. Treebeards Cookbook. Houston: Treebeards, Inc., 1993, p. 187.
The recipe comes from Treebeard's in Houston and their cookbook. I can't say enough good things about this restaurant and this book. It is a very solid basic. I would highly recommend it as someone's second cookbook ever, after The Joy of Cooking. From their site, it looks like it's in the 8th printing. My copy is a 2nd printing, so I don't know how much has changed in the intervening 14 years, but I think it'd be a safe bet.
TREEBEARDS' SAVORY GREEN BEANS
Serves 4 to 6.
Green beans take on a whole new flavor when combined with tomatoes. two kinds of peppers and wonderful herbs.
1 pound fresh green beans
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1/3 cup water
3/4 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/2 teaspoon savory
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
Wash and string beans. Set aside.
In 4-quart saucepan over medium heat. melt butter and saute onion and peppers about 5 minutes or until tender. Add water and seasonings. Bring to boil and add green beans. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and continue cooking until beans are tender. about 10 minutes.
Tidwell, Dan, Jamie Mize and Janie Baur. Treebeards Cookbook. Houston: Treebeards, Inc., 1993, p. 187.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Spiced Rice With Currants and Cashews
The last of the Chopping Block class recipes. I love cashews. Love, love, love them. So this looks like it'd be awesome, right? Turns out I don't like soggy, mushy cashews. Shocking, I know. The rest of the flavors were pretty good, though, so next time, I'll hold the cashews until right before serving and then stir them in.
RICE WITH CURRANTS AND CASHEWS
2 tablespoons ghee
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 whole cloves
6 whole cardamom pods
3 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
2 cups basmati rice
4 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped cashews
1/3 cup raisins
Rinse rice under cold running water until water is clear. In a heavy saucepan over medium high heat add ghee. Add cumin, cloves, cardamom, bay leaves, cinnamon. Stir and cook 1 minute. Add rice, water, salt, cashews, and raisins. Cover completely and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and-cook until all liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes, without stirring. Garnish with cilantro or fresh mint.
RICE WITH CURRANTS AND CASHEWS
2 tablespoons ghee
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 whole cloves
6 whole cardamom pods
3 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
2 cups basmati rice
4 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped cashews
1/3 cup raisins
Rinse rice under cold running water until water is clear. In a heavy saucepan over medium high heat add ghee. Add cumin, cloves, cardamom, bay leaves, cinnamon. Stir and cook 1 minute. Add rice, water, salt, cashews, and raisins. Cover completely and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and-cook until all liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes, without stirring. Garnish with cilantro or fresh mint.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Aloo Paratha (Indian Griddle Fried Bread with Potato)
Yet another from the Chopping Block class. I was pretty excited to see this on the menu, since I saw this being made on some Food Channel show. Rachel Ray, maybe? Someone very much like her, I'm certain. One of those things where they go to various restaurants and show the behind the scenes. I think this was in Seattle or something.
We accidently used the spices from the Aloo Gobhi in here and it worked out pretty darned well. It could have used more salt in the filling and there could be some more experimentation with the other spices.
We didn't get a chance to make the dough ourselves, so I'll be doing that myself in the next week or so.
One thing to note in regards to the recipe, there is no way you'll get "thick" 10" discs out of this recipe. And you probably wouldn't want to - they'd be insanely large and thick. The instructor, Ariel, rolled them out very, very thin (not read-through, though) and that worked well.
ALOO PARATHA (Indian griddle fried bread with potato)
For the dough:
2 cups Indian whole wheat flour, chapatti flour
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon ghee
3/4 cup warm water or more if needed
Mix the dry flours with the salt, sugar and ghee. Knead with water to make a soft pliable dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes before using.
For the filling:
3 large russet potatoes, boiled, peeled and mashed
1 small onion, small dice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin seeds
1 tablespoon ground coriander
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
3/4 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Mash the potatoes. Add rest of ingredients and mash again. Taste for seasoning.
To prepare the parathas: Divide the dough into 9 equal parts and roll a thick roti about 10" diameter. Place about 1/4 cup of the filling in the center. Gather the ends to the center to form 4 or 5 points. Overlap the ends so they do not leave an opening. Press gently, dust with dry flour, and proceed to roll 6" wide and 1/4 inch thick.
Frying the parathas: Heat a heavy griddle over medium heat and drizzle with oil. Place paratha on it and allow one side to become golden brown. Drizzle with more oil if needed and flip.
We accidently used the spices from the Aloo Gobhi in here and it worked out pretty darned well. It could have used more salt in the filling and there could be some more experimentation with the other spices.
We didn't get a chance to make the dough ourselves, so I'll be doing that myself in the next week or so.
One thing to note in regards to the recipe, there is no way you'll get "thick" 10" discs out of this recipe. And you probably wouldn't want to - they'd be insanely large and thick. The instructor, Ariel, rolled them out very, very thin (not read-through, though) and that worked well.
ALOO PARATHA (Indian griddle fried bread with potato)
For the dough:
2 cups Indian whole wheat flour, chapatti flour
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon ghee
3/4 cup warm water or more if needed
Mix the dry flours with the salt, sugar and ghee. Knead with water to make a soft pliable dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes before using.
For the filling:
3 large russet potatoes, boiled, peeled and mashed
1 small onion, small dice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin seeds
1 tablespoon ground coriander
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
3/4 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Mash the potatoes. Add rest of ingredients and mash again. Taste for seasoning.
To prepare the parathas: Divide the dough into 9 equal parts and roll a thick roti about 10" diameter. Place about 1/4 cup of the filling in the center. Gather the ends to the center to form 4 or 5 points. Overlap the ends so they do not leave an opening. Press gently, dust with dry flour, and proceed to roll 6" wide and 1/4 inch thick.
Frying the parathas: Heat a heavy griddle over medium heat and drizzle with oil. Place paratha on it and allow one side to become golden brown. Drizzle with more oil if needed and flip.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Steamed Fingerling Potatoes in White Wine
I've never worked with fingerling potatoes before, much less steamed potatoes, so this was two new things to try. This recipe was also from the August issue of Gourmet, though not paired with the veal. I learned 2 things about fingerlings: 1) you have to peel them. There are too many little spud things (whatever they're called) and you can't just scrub them off. 2) they're really hard to peel. The curves and crannies are a lot like ginger. So, they all ended up about 1/2 peeled. This worked out great. Steaming seemed to work well, too.
Broiled Asaparagus
I used to hate asparagus. Absolutely despise it. We used to have canned when I was a kid in the '70's and I never touched it again. Until sometime in the '90's, a friend cooked me dinner and served steamed asparagus. Not wanting to be an ungracious guest, I showed no sign of having an issue with it and dug in. Well, I was kind of busted because I was totally blown away. It wasn't slimy at all! And had a good flavor and a nice crunch to it.
So, the vegetable quickly became a favorite. I had it grilled at the Pepper Lounge here in Chicago and added that variation to the toolbox. In lieu of grilling, the broiler works well, too.
This almost doesn't count as a recipe either. These guys lose heat very quickly, so make this as the absolute last thing before you serve the meal.
Marinate the asparagus in the vinaigrette in a flat pan (like a lasagna pan) for at least an hour in the refrigerator.
10-15 minutes before serving, heat broiler (to High if you have settings). At 5 minutes until service, place stalks on the broiler pan, drizzling remaining vinaigrette over the vegatable. Set pan 3 inches from the flame (again, if adjustment is available). Broil for 5 minutes, remove from broiler, top with crumbled Gorgonzola and serve immediately.
This is my first use of the new stove's broiler for an older recipe and I'm quite happy with it. I set the pan at the second rack level from the flame, about 3", as the first one (1"?) seemed really, really close. They came out just perfect and could have even had another minute or two to get a bit of char.
I used a White Wine with Gorgonzola dressing from Whole Foods, which worked really nicely.
So, the vegetable quickly became a favorite. I had it grilled at the Pepper Lounge here in Chicago and added that variation to the toolbox. In lieu of grilling, the broiler works well, too.
This almost doesn't count as a recipe either. These guys lose heat very quickly, so make this as the absolute last thing before you serve the meal.
Broiled Asparagus
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed (i.e. snap off the tough part of the stalk)
1/2 bottle vinaigrette
3/4 cup Gorgonzola crumbles
Marinate the asparagus in the vinaigrette in a flat pan (like a lasagna pan) for at least an hour in the refrigerator.
10-15 minutes before serving, heat broiler (to High if you have settings). At 5 minutes until service, place stalks on the broiler pan, drizzling remaining vinaigrette over the vegatable. Set pan 3 inches from the flame (again, if adjustment is available). Broil for 5 minutes, remove from broiler, top with crumbled Gorgonzola and serve immediately.
This is my first use of the new stove's broiler for an older recipe and I'm quite happy with it. I set the pan at the second rack level from the flame, about 3", as the first one (1"?) seemed really, really close. They came out just perfect and could have even had another minute or two to get a bit of char.
I used a White Wine with Gorgonzola dressing from Whole Foods, which worked really nicely.
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Warm Potato Salad with Bacon
Made this for a barbeque this past weekend. Damn. This is really, really good and really easy.
From the July issue of Gourmet: Warm Potato Salad with Bacon
When I was at the store, I was thinking of another recipe and I picked up Yukon Gold potatoes. I probably would have done that anyway, though. So, if you do that, the result is yellow instead of the white shown in the picture here. Also, I did not peel the potatoes. I actually never do that anymore.
Also, I used Oscar Mayer thick-cut bacon just for the hartiness. I don' t think that I have cooked bacon in years and was probably no good at it then. So, I burned the first batch pretty hard. As Special Agent Dale Cooper would have said, "Carbonized."
I don't understand why the potatos are chopped after boiling, rather than before. It did make it a bit more difficult when boiling, as the different sizes were odne at different times. Next time, I'll definitely cut into chunks first, like I do for mashed. Another issue was that I didn't make the pieces small enough, so the larger chunks didn't get as much seasoning as I would have liked.
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