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Boo!
hahaha
Happy Halloween!
GC took the leftover eyeball cupcakes from our party to work. That recipe made a lot! Today I picked up what was left and went driving around town looking for hungry homeless people. No dice; they weren't in their usual haunts. I saw my neighbor when I got back home, and sent the rest of the cupcakes home with him for his kids. They will be on such a sugar high...
I don't make French food very often any more, so I decided to revisit one of my favorite recipes for this week's Wandering Gullet. My chef training was in French food; this is a very familiar "genre" and a natural choice for dinner on a busy day. I made Côtes de Porc Charcutière avec Pommes Purée, which sounds really fancy but really means pork chops with a charcutière sauce and mashed potatoes. I had some faux thickened brown veal stock in the freezer from the last time I made a fancy French sauce. While the stock doesn't actually use veal bones, the substitution of canned chicken and beef broth with tomato paste and wine actually makes a stock with a very similar flavor (and is much, much easier!).
The recipes:
Côtes de Porc Charcutière avec Pommes Purée
Pork Chops with a Charcutière Sauce and Mashed PotatoesPractical Kitchen Work: The Basic Arts of Cooking by Michael Maincent
All measurements are in metric. Sorry about that, but not sorry enough to convert it for you. Just guess and taste, it'll turn out fine. I take lots of short cuts with this recipe. I substitute pickle relish for the julienned gherkins; I don't strain the sauce. Sometimes I just mash the potatoes with a potato masher or a fork instead of dirtying up my vegetable mill (though they really are better when passed through the mill). I sort of used a bain-marie to keep the potatoes warm. I boiled peas, and set the pot of potatoes on top of the pea pot, which kept the potatoes warm and helped the peas cook faster. I also served baby carrots.8 (7 oz. Each) pork chops
40 g. butter
40 mL oil
Sauce:
80 g. onions
200 mL white wine
400 mL thickened brown veal stock
20 g. mustard
40 g. butter
80 g. gherkins, pickled
Garnish:
2 kg potatoes
800 mL milk
40 g. butter
S/p, nutmeg, to tasteTrim excess fat from chops; flatten slightly.
Peel, wash and cut potatoes into large quarters; rinse again. Set to cook in cold water. Salt with coarse sea salt, skimming if necessary; cook covered with a lid for 25-30m, over low heat.
Peel, wash and finely chop the onions. Slice and cut the gherkins into fine julienne.
Set the milk to boil. Check that the potatoes are cooked; drain. Pass quickly through a vegetable mill and return potatoes to the cooking pan, working it with a wooden spoon over low heat to dry a bit. Add the butter in small knobs and gradually work in the boiling milk unlit required consistency is reached. Check seasoning. Spread a bit of milk and small knobs of butter over top and keep potatoes hot in a bain-marie.
Salt and pepper the chops and sauté in butter and a little oil. Cook gently for 5-6m/side; transfer to a dish fitted with a grill or trivet. Keep in a hot place until ready to serve.
Drain fat from the pork pan. Add chopped onions; sweat. Deglaze with white wine; reduce. Add veal stock and finish the cooking of the sauce over a low heat for a few minutes. Add the mustard off the heat (don’t boil); strain. Add gherkins and beat in some small knobs of butter off the heat. Check seasoning. Serve sauce with chops and potatoes on the side.
Serves 8.
“Veal” Stock SubstituteCook’s Illustrated, May/June 2004
2 T. veggie oil
4 t. tomato paste
2 small onions, chopped medium
1 med carrot, chopped medium
4 med garlic cloves, peeled
¼ c. water
3 t. flour
1 ½ c. dry red wine
3-½ c. low-sodium beef broth
1-¾ c. low-sodium chicken broth
2 t. black peppercorns
8 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leavesHeat oil and tomato paste in Dutch oven over med-high heat; cook, stirring constantly, until paste begins to brown, ~3m. Add onions, carrot and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, until mixture is reddish brown, ~2m. Add 2 T. water and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is well browned, ~3m, adding remaining water when needed to prevent scorching. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, 1m. Add wine and, using a heatproof rubber spatula, scrape up browned bits on bottom and sides of pot; bring to boil, stirring occasionally (mixture will thicken slightly). Add broths, peppercorns, thyme and bay; bring to boil and cook, uncovered, occasionally scraping bottom and sides of pot with spatula, until reduced to 2-½ c., 35-40m.
Strain mixture through fine-mesh strainer, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; you should have ~1 ¼ c.
Sunday was a busy day because Saturday was our Halloween party. The party started around 8pm and ended at 5am Sunday morning (that was before we changed our clocks). That's 9 hours of partying! I decorated the house with mice, rats, spiders and bats. We even had a real spider climbing the wall above the buffet table, for added authenticity. On the buffet table we had buckeyes (big hit), pumpkin gingerbread (surprise hit), terror trail mix, pumpkin cheeseball (only shaped like a pumpkin, not pumpkin flavored) with apples and crackers, devil's black bean salsa with tortilla chips, and eyeball cupcakes. Guests included Miss Cleo (tv psychic), Velma from Scooby-Doo, Raoul Duke from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, trashy tourists, a skeleton, a ninja, a Catholic priest and a monk, Andrew W.K. and Pete & Repeat. As usual, the party ended up in a late-night poker game. The skeleton and the ninja split the pot.
While GC was out of town last Saturday night, I did all but one of the following. Which did I NOT do?
a) turn up the music and dance around the house
b) stay up late surfing the internet
c) drink directly from the milk carton
d) drink ¾ of a bottle of wine by myself
e) chase Fat Larry around the house
f) crank up the heat so I can finally get warm without singeing GC
g) listen to the Missouri game on the radio… or at least check in on the score from time to time
Well, which is it?
Last night was the second installment of Dinner & a Movie, but the first time we actually watched a movie. We saw Thank You for Smoking. I tried to match the food with the movie somewhat, so we had Turkey Cutlets with Smoky Black Bean Sauce. The movie was great: funny and farcical. I like morally ambiguous movies and when the "bad guy" is the good guy. The food too was great: easy and healthy, though not actually smoky. I knew I didn't have any Liquid Smoke, but I thought I had some sort of BBQ Smoke powder. Nope, I guess I threw it out; I never used it. Except for the corn I served on the side, everything was a SuperFood: turkey, black beans and tomatoes. Gentleman Caller and I are the epitome of good health, vitality and good sense. We are awesome.
It's October, and though I missed Oktoberfest, I still have a hankerin' for some good German food. I found a very German-sounding dish, Baked Spareribs and Sauerkraut, in a cookbook, but it was attributed to the Pennsylvania Dutch. This shouldn't be too surprising, because the Pennsylvania Dutch aren't Dutch at all, but descendants of Germans who emigrated in the early 18th century. Their food is derived from traditional German dishes, but adapted to use ingredients available here. Following the recipe for spareribs was a Pennsylvania Dutch dessert: Orange-Lemon Funny Cake, which is funny indeed. It's a cake baked in a pie crust. In a pie crust! This I gotta try.
Baked Spareribs and SauerkrautThe General Foods Kitchens Cookbook, by the Women of General Foods Kitchens, 1959.
We are but two, so I cut the recipe by 1/3 and still had leftovers. I started the ribs in the late afternoon, because they take so long to cook. I thought I was in trouble when I checked them after 30 minutes and they were already fully cooked. I added the sauerkraut and rest of ingredients at this point, thinking the ribs would be dry if I cooked them another 2 hours. But because GC and I weren't ready to eat dinner at 4:30pm, I took a chance and cooked them the full time, 2 hours more, and they weren't dry at all! The juice from the sauerkraut kept them moist. The apples kind of dried out, but nothing else suffered for being added an hour too soon. I also boiled some new potatoes, then tossed them in butter, salt and pepper, as a side dish.9# spareribs
1 T. salt
1 t. pepper
4 cans (1#11 oz. Each) sauerkraut and juice, 3 ½ quarts
4 c. (~1 ½#) diced green apples
1 T. caraway seed
1 t. pepper
1 ½ c. diced onion, ~1#Cut spareribs into 2- or 3-rib pieces. Place in a large roasting pan and sprinkle with s/p. Roast at 450 for ½ hour, turning ribs occasionally, until browned. Reduce heat to 350. Cook 1h, uncovered. Remove from oven; drain fat.
Add undrained sauerkraut and rest to the ribs. Cover and return to the oven. Continue roasting at 350 until ribs are tender and meat will slip easily from bones, ~1h, turning ribs occasionally. Add water, if necessary, during last of cooking.
Lift ribs from pan and place on one end of hot platter. Place sauerkraut on other end.
Serves 12.
Orange-Lemon Funny CakeThe General Foods Kitchens Cookbook, by the Women of General Foods Kitchens, 1959
Let's see... the orange I bought for this was stingy with the juice, so I had to top off with water. In hindsight, I should have added lemon juice, but it all turned out just fine. I added more zest to compensate for the lack of juice. I couldn't figure out how to pour the glaze mixture "gently" on top of batter; it made little wells and sunk to the bottom in places. I sprinkled both coconut and pecans on top. I cooked the funny cake in my toaster oven, because I was afraid that if I put it in the big oven with the ribs, it would taste like sauerkraut. That would be a funny cake indeed! This is really good, and interesting. The pie crust is tender and flaky; the cake batter sweet and spongy and the glaze is thick and gooey, and is just as good on the top of the cake batter as it is on the bottom. Sweet and citrusy with lots of funny textures.½ c. orange juice
¾ c. sugar
2 T. butter
1 t. grated orange rind
Pastry for 1-crust pie
1 ¼ c. sifted cake flour
1 t. baking powder
½ t. salt
¾ c. water
¼ c. shortening, at room temp (or sub butter, but use 1 T. less milk)
2 t. grated lemon rind
½ c. milk
1 t. vanilla
1 egg, unbeaten
3 T. chopped nuts or flaked coconut for toppingCombine ¼ c. oj with sugar in a saucepan. Place over low heat. Cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Boil 1 minute. Add remaining ¼ c. oj, 2 T. butter and grated orange rind; mix well. Set aside to cool.
Roll pastry on lightly floured board to fit into 9” or 10” glass pie plate. Line plate with pastry, letting it extend 1” beyond the edge of the pie plate. Turn edge of pastry under and make a high fluted rim.
Measure sifted flour; add baking powder, salt and ¾ c. sugar. Place shortening in a mixing bowl. Sift in the dry ingredients. Add lemon rind, milk and vanilla; mix until moist. Beat 2 minutes, in mixer at low speed, or 300 vigorous strokes by hand. Add egg and beat 1 minute longer in mixer, or 150 strokes by hand.
Pour batter into pastry-lined pie plate. Pour lukewarm sauce gently over cake batter. When cake is baked, sauce will form a layer between cake and pie shell. Sprinkle with chopped nuts or coconut. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes.
To serve: serve warm as a dessert for lunch or dinner. If desired, top with whipped cream or ice cream. Funny cake may also be served for breakfast as coffee cake.
1 cake serves 6.
Simple Pastry
I made this in my food processor. It's the first time I've made pastry in my food processor, and I added the liquid to the flour mixture in the processor. That didn't work so well. It clumped, the blade wouldn't turn and there was egg dripping down the side of the bowl. Lesson learned: Best to turn out the flour mixture to a bowl before adding the liquid. This dough was soft, but really easy to work with, and it baked up to a nice, flaky crust. This is now my go-to pastry crust recipe. It makes enough for 2 crusts, so I froze one to use later.
2 1/2 cups flour, plus more for work surface
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, chilled
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening, chilled
1 egg
1 tablespoon white vinegarIn a food processor (or in a large bowl, using a pastry blender, 2 crossed knives, or your fingertips), combine the flour, salt, butter, and shortening until the mixture is crumbly and the size of peas. Break the egg into a measuring cup and beat lightly; add the vinegar and enough cold water to measure 1/2 cup. Slowly add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until a soft dough forms. Divide in half. Shape each half into a flat disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Tip: The vinegar makes the pie dough especially tender and workable, allowing you to wrap the disks of dough in resealable plastic bags and freeze them for up to 3 months. Thaw partially before rolling them out.
Yield: Makes one 9-inch double-crust pie
Real Simple, SEPTEMBER 2005
As part of my summer reading program, I read all of the Augusten Burroughs books I could get my hands on. His book, Magical Thinking, introduced me to a phenomenon that I had been previously unaware of: the idea that you can influence future events by attributing a causal relationship between two events where no actual relationship exists. I stepped on a crack in the sidewalk; therefore my mother will break her back. I hit all the green lights on the way to work; therefore I’ll get a promotion today.
I don’t know how common this is, but the two people I mentioned it to said, oh, yeah, they do that to some extent. They both declined to offer examples. But both were also surprised that I didn’t think this way (though I’m sure I’m susceptible to other forms of magical thinking), and wasn’t even aware that other people did. That’s the second of the identity traps, the one I most often fall into: the assumption that others will do things or think in the way that I would. (The first identity trap is the belief that you should be someone other than yourself. I don’t have a problem with that one).
Just for fun, last night, I tried out some magical thinking. I knew that I shouldn’t make a chocolate pound cake, but I really wanted to, so I left it up to my performance in a Spider Solitaire computer game. If I won the game, I’d bake the cake. If I didn’t win the game, I wouldn’t make the cake. I know, it’s a loose application, but I’m new at this. I won the game. The cake is delicious. I wish you all could have come over to my house last night, to help me lick the bowl and beaters and hover around the oven like expectant parents, speculating about how big it will be, what it will look like, if it will be attractive…
The muffins I made yesterday for breakfast today were also delicious. Here’s the recipe:
Almond Poppy Seed Muffins
Fence Bed & Breakfast Luxury Suite and Cottages, Stanley, VA
I boosted the almond extract to 1 full teaspoon. Omitted glaze, but topped with extra poppy seeds instead of sliced almonds. Made 12. GC thought they might be a tad dry; I think he’s wrong. Try it to see what you think.1-3/4 C. Flour
1 Tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1/2 C. Butter
1 C. Sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 C. Milk
1 T. poppy seeds
1/2 Tsp. Almond ExtractPreheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds and set aside.
Cream butter, sugar and extract. Add eggs, beating well. Add flour mixture alternately with milk. Pour into greased muffin tins and sprinkle with sliced almonds.
Bake 24 minutes or till top springs back. Makes 10 muffins.
Can glaze with mixture of 1/4 C. Powdered Sugar, 2 T. Cream and 1/2 Tsp. Almond Extract if desired.
These muffins freeze well.
Today is a gloomy rainy day in central Missouri. Gentleman Caller is on the road with his band, and I'm knocking around this ol' house looking for things to do. I started watching a movie on TV (My Tiny Universe - a good premise, but not well executed), then clunk! plop! Something hit the ceiling fan, then fell on the floor. I thought it was a big bug of some sort, but was too comfortable on the couch to investigate. Then crack! Plaster all over the couch. Uh oh! I'm so glad I'm a renter. The roof has a leak. I left a message for my landlord, then decided to evacuate the couch in case the ceiling caves in and crushes me. Wouldn't that be a grizzly scene for GC when he returns?
So, I do that thing that I do when I'm bored. I bake. I made some pastry crust for tomorrow's dessert (and some for the freezer too). I baked muffins for breakfast tomorrow. I got out of the habit of baking muffins for breakfast over the summer, when it was too hot to turn on the oven. Now it's chilly and the house is closed up, so all the good smells linger for hours. Oh yes. So, the weekend muffins are back. It's sort of a Snackdown, I suppose, but it's simply impossible to narrow it down to just one perfect muffin, so I'm just testing recipes and brutally disposing of those that are less-than-perfect.
I'm having a fairly low willpower day, so I'm toying with the idea of trying to chocolatify The Viper's pound cake. I want a piece of it every night after dinner, when I'm at my most vulnerable and the Mandible Crown's power and influence are at their peak. But because I'm usually full of self-righteous notions of health and fitness in the afternoons, I haven't made a delicious chocolate pound cake to enjoy after dinner. But now? Now it's evening and I'm weak and bored, and have all the fixin's for a chocolate pound cake.
Kosher Vocabulary
Blue Artichoke fortunately explained what a hekhsher is, but there are some other terms that I'll be throwing around in the upcoming Kashrut Quest.
kashrut -- From a root meaning "fit," "proper" or "correct." Jewish dietary laws.
pareve (or parve) -- Kosher foods that contain neither meat nor dairy and therefore can be eaten with either. Yiddish for "neutral."
treyf -- Food that is not kosher, and hence forbidden.
The ramen I was going to make the other night (I had been at work for twelve hours!) was packaged in a factory that also packages shellfish, which is treyf. I chucked it (it was only a nickel) and my roommate went out and bought me a few packages of kosher ramen so that I'd have something I could make in three minutes on those really late nights. Wasn't that nice???
A quick rundown of the rules, as best as I can manage (and keep in mind I am NOT a vegetarian, so please don't suggest I do that for the next ten months):
1. Beef, lamb, buffalo, venison, chicken, duck, turkey and fish with scales are kosher.
2. Pork, rabbit, camel (you know, all the camelburgers we have these days), shellfish, birds of prey, amphibians, and insects are all treyf.
3. Meats from kosher animals must be slaughtered and completely drained of blood.
4. Meat and dairy shall never, ever, ever be put together. That means no cheese and beef on a pizza. It also means no chicken and cheese, either.
5. Pasta, rice, bread, etc, are in most cases pareve.
There are some strict guidelines as relate to Passover, but my roommate avoids his kitchen during Passover and eats out all the time so as not to have to worry about those specifics.
For more information, I suggest http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm. It has much more detail and several of the scriptures that form the basis of kashrut.
After saying I'm not a vegetarian, I am trying to vege-up a bunch of my staples. 'Twas I that submitted the pastisio recipe that set Blue Artichoke's kitchen on fire... but as that was ground beef and cheese, I need to do something else. I'm thinking of beef spices (bouillion cubes) mixed in with seitan, or wheat gluten (it sounds better as seitan, doesn't it?). It would make it strictly a dairy meal, but may have the right flavour. I will be trying it soon.
First, however, a safe mushroom stroganoff.
I've started amusing myself by renaming recipes and writing funny (to me) labels for things in my kitchen. This was part of the fun of working at a restaurant. Why should I miss out on the fun just because I'm the only one in my kitchen? Last night's dinner was so good, I wanted to share it with you.
Beef-and-Butternut Squash ChiliPrep: 20 min., Cook: 50 min. We've loaded this chili with beef and beans for zinc and B vitamins, tomatoes and green peppers for vitamin C, and butternut squash for beta-carotene.
1 pound extra-lean ground beef [I think it would also be really good with stew beef cut in 3/4" cubes]
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 (14.5-ounce) cans Mexican-style stewed tomatoes, chopped
1 (16-ounce) can chili beans
1/2 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed (about 1 1/2 cups) [I used a whole small butternut squash]
1 cup low-sodium beef broth
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 cup frozen corn kernelsCook beef, bell pepper, and next 2 ingredients in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until meat crumbles and is no longer pink. Drain well, and return to Dutch oven.
Stir in tomatoes and next 5 ingredients; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes. Stir in corn, and cook, uncovered, 15 minutes or until squash is tender and chili is thickened.
Yield: Makes 8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)
CALORIES 234(22% from fat); FAT 6g (sat 2.3g,mono 2.3g,poly 0.4g); PROTEIN 17g; CHOLESTEROL 21mg; CALCIUM 65mg; SODIUM 642mg; FIBER 6.8g; IRON 2.9mg; CARBOHYDRATE 30g
Southern Living, JANUARY 2006
Sweet CornbreadBon Appétit, November 2005. I halved recipe to make just one pan. Mmm... This is the best cornbread I've made that wasn't from a Jiffy box. I like sweet cornbread, and this was just the right kind of sweetness. The bread was light, but firm and not crumbly. I've tested several cornbread recipes, and this is the only one worth keeping (so far).
2 2/3 c. flour
2 2/3 c. yellow cornmeal
1 c. sugar
2 T. + 2 t. baking powder
2 t. salt
2 2/3 c. whole milk
4 large eggs
¾ c. butter, meltedPreheat oven to 375. Butter and flour two 9” square metal baking pans.
Whisk first 5 in large bowl to blend. Whisk milk, eggs and butter in med bowl to blend. Add milk mixture to dry, stirring until just moistened. Divide batter between pans.
Bake until loaves test done, ~30m. Cool completely in pans. Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with foil and store at room temp.
Makes 2 loaves.
48-hours, Mistake Number One
After a weekend of eating out and trying to unpack my belongings, my roommate came back to town to finish helping me and to point out that Gummi Bears are NOT kosher. I can eat them, they just can't go in the kitchen. I didn't even think about the hooves being treyf. But they are... so be warned! Ye lovers of Gummi, look for a hekhsher -- and let me know if you find a gummi product with it!
Blue Artichoke's note: hekhsher, also hechsher, is the formal granting of certification, usually by an authorized Orthodox rabbi, that a product is certified as kosher (meaning "fit" for consumption). The best known hekhsher symbol is the "OU" symbol of the Orthodox Union, based in New York, but there are many others, often followed by a descriptive qualifier, such as Pareve (the neutral food class), Meat, Dairy, or Kosher for Passover.
Sometimes I think I'd like to have a FryDaddy
Dinner last night: turkey and pear sausage patties; cheesy broccoli and roasted red pepper strata
Some of you who read the comments know that Red Momo is becoming kosher. He will occasionally guest blog about his efforts and beg for delicious kosher recipes. Here's his first entry, and for those unfamiliar with Jewish lingo, tref (also treyf, trayf, terefah) means unclean and unfit for consumption according to dietary law; not kosher.
Becoming KosherI just moved to Boston, and the rental market here is insane. However, through a friend I've found a roommate. I don't yet know his gourmand name, but I guarantee it's kosher. Well, at least not tref (or treyf). Anyway, for the approximately $800 I'm saving EACH MONTH to live in this palatial apartment, I have to learn to be kosher. Not a problem.
Well, wouldn't be a problem if I had any experience with it. I have never followed kosher as I'm Greek Orthodox -- we don't have rules like this. Like most religions, we have our quirks, but only our slightly lost Catholics brethren keep fasts and such like we (and the old religions) do.
I will gladly take any help, suggestions, and comments. Plus any recipe suggestions. And delicious things you see here? There might just be a kosher version... wait and see...
Gentleman Caller and I get movies from Netflix, but are getting increasingly bad at watching and returning them in a timely manner. We sometimes sit on these movies for weeks before remembering to watch them. I'm not sure why; they're all movies we'd like to see. I'm going to try to make Tuesday nights "Dinner and a Movie night" in hopes that we'll have a faster turnaround rate for Netflix. Starting next week. Last night, instead of a movie, we watched most of the most recent Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view event. We didn't finish it because we got a late start, so don't you dare spoil it for me.
The food will sometimes tie in to the movie we watch, but not usually. Last night we had an artichoke, ham and egg casserole. We both liked it well enough, but didn't think it was spectacular. GC renamed it the Unanimous Decision Casserole because it was a winner, but didn't have a dominant finish or a strong showing.
Over the weekend, Gentleman Caller and I attended a "Cat in the Hat" funny headwear party. GC's band had a show the same night, so we ducked out after their set and arrived at the party about midnight. Because we were going to be late, and going straight from the show, we didn't put much effort into our silly hats/headwear. We wore sweatbands. I have an awesome one with my name on it. My grandmother gave it to me for Christmas many, many years ago. I thought it was hideous at the time, hot pink and chartreuse with my name in purple. It came with a matching wristband, hot pink and lime green, also with my name in purple. But I hung on to it, secretly thinking it awesome in its hideousness. A lot of presents she has given me bombed at the time, but later became totally cool. I recently rediscovered the sweatband combo and started using the headband when I exercise in the privacy of our basement gym. I wore the wristband to the show, tucked under the sleeve of my sweater. As I was dancing around under the black light, waving my arms around as I do, I noticed my sleeve glowing. They glow in the black light! Sweet!
I was a bit wary that our sweatbands would be lame, but there were only two silly hats, which had already been removed, and the rest were normal hats: a Russian-style fur hat, knit skullcap, leopard print fedora, safari-style hat... My sweatband was a hit, because it had my name on it, spelled correctly (and my name isn't one normally found on personalized items, at least not in this country). Someone at the party complimented me on my ability to keep my head fit and in shape, so as to not stretch out the name to illegibility. That's where the basement gym comes in handy, all those head exercises do pay off!
Now I guess I need to find a sweatband with GC's name on it. His was red and blue. It's nice, but pales in comparison with my black light-glowing personalized sweatband.
Dinner last night: Granny's turkey supreme; leftover chipotle bourbon cranberry sauce
After the rather large and heavy meals we've had recently as part of this Wandering Gullet project, I decided to do something fast, easy and light. Chicken stir-fry. This recipe comes from Shandong (aka Shantung), a coastal province in eastern China. It was really easy to make, with minimal prep work. And it tasted really good. Gentleman Caller said it tasted like something you'd get from a good Chinese restaurant.
I have a super awesome Le Creuset wok that I don't use often enough. Sometimes I forget about it. Other times I think it'll be easier just to use a skillet. But the real reason I don't use it often is that I don't know how to. It's heavy, so I can't flip food around in it as easily as I can in a skillet. It's also cast iron, which I haven't really learned to use yet. I've got several old cast iron skillets, pilfered from my grandmother's kitchen, and a new one that came with the wok as a wedding present. I'd love to use them more often, so a winter project or New Year's resolution will be to learn how. And practice.
For dessert, we had store-bought fortune cookies. Why don't fortune cookies actually tell a fortune? Are the manufacturers afraid of a lawsuit when one of their fortunes fails to come true? I think they could cover themselves by printing fortunes such as "You will come into great wealth." If a person sues, the resulting settlement will surely count as great wealth, thus negating the terms of the lawsuit. We got sucky "fortunes," such as "The only way to have a friend is to be one" and "Have respect for yourself, and others will too." Boo! These didn't even have lucky numbers on the back, to which we could attach great significance. We did get one that could actually be a fortune: Accept the next proposition you hear. That sounds rather risky to me. I'm propositioned all the time, and rarely think it's a good idea to accept. Had I followed that fortune, I'd be a Jehovah's Witness right now!
Shantung ChickenI used low sodium soy sauce, subbed some dry red wine for the sherry, subbed some ginger powder for the gingerroot (I forgot I had some pickled ginger in the fridge, oops), and omitted the sesame seeds because I thought I had some, but didn't. The next time I make this, I think I'll add some sliced button mushrooms along with the bean sprouts and white parts of the green onions.
1 whole chicken breast, skinned and boned
2 T. cornstarch, divided
3 T. soy sauce, divided
1 T. dry sherry
1 clove garlic, minced
1 c. water
3 T. veggie oil, divided
½ # fresh bean sprouts
¼ # green onions and tops, cut into 1 ½” lengths, separating whites from tops
1 T. slivered fresh ginger root
1 T. sesame seed, toasted
Hot cooked noodles (lo mein)Cut chicken into narrow strips. Combine 1 T. each cornstarch and soy sauce with sherry and garlic in small bowl; stir in chicken. Let stand 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, blend water, remaining 1 T. cornstarch and 2 T. soy sauce; set aside.
Heat 1 T. oil in hot wok or large skillet over high heat. Add chicken and stir-fry 2 minutes; remove. Heat remaining 2 T. oil in same pan; add bean sprouts, white parts of green onions and ginger; stir-fry 3 minutes. Stir in chicken, soy sauce mixture, green onion tops and sesame seed. Cook and stir until mixture boils and thickens. Serve immediately over noodles.
Serves 4.
Last week I gussied up my car. I washed and waxed it, cleaned the windows inside and out, applied Rain-X to the windshield, cleaned out the interior, vacuumed and dusted the dashboard. Sparkling clean!
Then I drove to St. Louis, to the botanical garden. By the time we arrived, my car was smoking, but not in a good way. I've had an oil leak for quite some time, and I always keep a quart or two of oil for just such occasions. My oil gauge doesn't seem to sense crisis level, so I usually become aware of the problem when I notice smoke billowing from under the hood. I added a quart of oil and we went on our way. Monday I drove to the dentist's office, which is a mile or two away, and my car was smoking again. That's awfully fast for the oil to leak out, so I took my car to the mechanic. As it turns out, I have multiple leaks, seemingly in every component of the engine relating to motor oil. The cost to fix it could also purchase another car, and my mechanic suggested keeping a case of oil in the car and an eye out for a new car. Devastating news.
When I got the car, I had a problem with the antenna. You see, I liked sitting in a carwash listening to the radio. My antenna was an automatic one, so broke off in the carwash. I replaced it at the dealership, only to forget to put the antenna down before going into another carwash. This was getting to be a rather expensive hobby, so I started getting the short, cheap, rubber-coated screw-in antennas at Auto Zone. I've had the same antenna now for several years. It bends and whips around in the wind, and reminds me of a warthog tail. Warthogs shoot their tail straight up when they run, and I imagine my car to look like a little warthog running down the street. So, I named my car Njiri, which means warthog in Swahili. Njiri is 12 years old, and has been with me for 10 years. We've been everywhere together: back and forth to college, on several moves, a cross-country road trip, to Canada. Njiri has suffered all sorts of abuse, and has dents and scrapes all over to show for it. Plus, a tree once fell on it.
I've flirted with the idea of a new car over the years, but just couldn't give up on Njiri. It's always been a reliable car, and I decided to keep Njiri until I drove it into the ground. At roughly 177,000 miles, I'm just about there. Sad.
Dinner last night: White bean and spelt soup; popovers
Last Saturday was a perfect fall day. The sky was clear, the air was crisp and the sun warmed our faces. It was the perfect day to spend outside with friends, wandering around a beautiful garden. I went to St. Louis with some friends to see the Chihuly exhibit at the Missouri Botanical Garden. The first Chihuly glass I saw was in Vancouver, in the lobby of some fancy building. It was huge, colorful and very impressive. At the botanical garden, the glass pieces were smaller, but no less impressive. Some were outdoors gracing the tops of trellises, hidden among the shrubbery and floating in pools. Most of the glass pieces were in an indoor Climatron, peeking out of the plants and creating interesting scenes of contrasting colors. Neat. I took lots of pictures, but haven't even looked through them yet. I need to learn how to post pictures here...
As it happened, the Best of Missouri Market was held on the same day, in the parking lot of the botanical garden. We pushed our way through the crowds and sampled popcorn, cookies, dips, sauces and sausages, and looked at jewelry, wood crafts and decorative iron wind catchers. We didn't buy anything, but got some good craft ideas. That's right, I go to craft shows to rip off ideas.
Sunday was another beautiful day, cool in the morning but quite warm in the afternoon. GC and I went for a hike at Shooting Star bluffs with some friends. The boys raced ahead while the girls trailed behind. I kept expecting to see Chihuly glass pieces peeking out from behind the trees, but all I saw were hundreds of spider webs spun between clumps of grass on the ground. Nature's art. I examined some of the spiders in the webs and recognized them as some we have around the house, though hopefully ours aren't nearly as big as the ones along the trail. We hiked to the top of the bluffs, then down to the dry creek bed below and back up to some more bluffs. The leaves are changing, so the views from the bluffs were bright and colorful, though still with a lot of green.
If only there had been a hayride, this would have been the perfect fall weekend.
I go through phases of being totally susceptible to food advertising. I saw several ads for Quizno's new prime rib cheesesteak sandwich, and had to try it. It was pretty good. Not only tv ads, but also the terse and often misspelled boards outside of fast food restaurants have been making me salivate. "2 4 $2 SAUSEGG CHZ BISCU T" at Hardee's...mmmm.... KFC's "CRISP CHICK BUFFET” yum! It's the fried chicken that's stuck with me, though, and while I won't let myself walk up to the all-you-can-eat KFC buffet, I will let myself make a good Southern meal. So I did, last night. The menu: buttermilk fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and pound cake.
Buttermilk Fried ChickenRecipe from Cook's Illustrated.
Once again, I cheated and bought a whole chicken already cut up. This must have been a most unusual chicken, because it had 3 thighs! I refrigerated the chicken pieces in buttermilk overnight. I like this recipe because it follows the old Southern tradition of shaking the chicken in flour in a paper bag. I have no idea what difference it makes what kind of bag you use, but it just seems right to use a paper grocery bag. I used to drain the chicken after frying on another paper bag, but a rack works just as well, if not better (though it is harder to clean up). The chicken breasts I had were huge and took a lot longer to cook than the rest of the chicken. It smelled so good and I was so hungry that I couldn't wait for the chicken to finish frying. I confess that I microwaved the two chicken breasts for a minute and a half at the end to speed things along. The microwaving didn't affect the crispiness, but quickly brought the reluctant breasts to a safe temperature to eat. The chicken was dark golden brown and crispy, but moist and juicy inside. Yum.1 whole chicken, 2-½ - 3 pounds, cut into 9-10 pieces, neck, giblets, wing tips and back reserved for stock
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
table salt
ground black pepper
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3 - 4 cups vegetable shortening, for frying
1. Place chicken pieces in a gallon-size zipper-lock bag. Mix buttermilk with 1-teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Pour mixture over chicken; seal bag, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.2. Measure flour, 1-teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper into a large double brown paper bag; shake to combine. Drop half of chicken pieces into flour mixture and shake thoroughly to completely coat with flour. Remove chicken from bag, shaking excess flour from each piece. Place coated chicken pieces on a large wire rack set over a jelly roll pan until ready to fry. Repeat coating with remaining chicken pieces.
3. Meanwhile, spoon enough shortening to measure 1/2-inch deep into a 12-inch skillet; heat to 350 degrees. Place chicken pieces, skin side down, into hot oil; cover with lid or cookie sheet and cook for 5 minutes. Lift chicken pieces with tongs to make sure chicken is frying evenly; rearrange if some pieces are browning faster than others. Cover again and continue cooking until chicken pieces are evenly browned, about 5 minutes longer. (Be sure oil continues to bubble; oil temperature at this point should be between 250 and 300 degrees, and should be maintained at this level until chicken is done.) Turn chicken over with tongs and cook, uncovered, until chicken is browned all over, 10 to 12 minutes longer. Remove chicken from skillet with tongs and return to wire rack set over jelly roll pan. Cool chicken pieces on wire rack about 5 minutes and serve.
Serves 4.
Basic Creamy Mashed PotatoesI used Yukon Gold potatoes and added a bay leaf to the boiling water. I used the vegetable mill that I didn't even know I had. I rediscovered it in the top of my kitchen overflow nook. Jackpot! The potatoes were really creamy with nary a lump. I just made basic mashed potatoes, using buttermilk, salt and pepper. No fancy additions. I made the potatoes a day in advance and added a few dots of butter and some milk before heating them in the microwave.
For 4-6 servings:
Peel and quarter ~7 med Yukon Gold or russet potatoes (2#). Place in saucepan, cover with salted water and boil until tender (can add a bay leaf). Drain. Mash with a potato masher or pass through a vegetable mill.Add 2-6 T. butter, melted. Stir in, gradually, ~ 1 cup of warm milk, buttermilk, cream or sour cream (or a combo) until desired consistency. Add salt and pepper. Can also add ½ t. dried dill weed or 1/8 t. nutmeg. Or bacon, cooked and crumbled, or snipped chives.
Tips: a hand potato masher produces the best results. An electric mixer can cause the potatoes to become gummy or sticky. If an electric mixer is used, use on the lowest mixer speed and do not overmix.
Potatoes can be reheated in the microwave, on high, covered, until heated through (~10m) rotating twice; stir.
All-Purpose GravyRecipe from Cook's Illustrated: This gravy can be served with almost any type of meat or poultry or with mashed potatoes. If you would like to double the recipe, use a Dutch oven to give the vegetables ample space for browning and increase the cooking times by roughly 50 percent. The finished gravy can be frozen. To thaw either a single or double recipe, place the gravy and 1 tablespoon of water in a saucepan over low heat and bring slowly to a simmer. The gravy may appear broken or curdled as it thaws, but a vigorous whisking will recombine it.
This was super easy to make and really good. I made it a day in advance and reheated it slowly on a back burner while I fried the chicken. Great gravy, especially when you want gravy without roasting some sort of meat or poultry.
Makes 2 cups
1 small carrot, peeled and chopped into rough ½-inch pieces (about ½ cup)
1 small rib celery, chopped into rough ½-inch pieces (about ½ cup)
1 small onion, chopped into rough ½-inch pieces (about ¾ cup)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
5 whole black peppercorns
Table salt and ground black pepper1. In food processor, pulse carrot until broken into rough ¼-inch pieces, about five 1-second pulses. Add celery and onion; pulse until all vegetables are broken into 1/8-inch pieces, about five 1-second pulses.
2. Heat butter in large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat; when foaming subsides, add vegetables and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and well browned, about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to medium; stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, until thoroughly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Whisking constantly, gradually add broths; bring to boil, skimming off any foam that forms on surface. Reduce heat to medium-low and add bay leaf, thyme, and peppercorns; simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened and reduced to 3 cups, 20 to 25 minutes.
3. Strain gravy through fine-mesh strainer into clean saucepan, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
Southern Smothered Green BeansRecipe from Southern Living, March 2002.
I was a bit wary of this recipe's claim to be "Southern" because it didn't involve cooking the beans until soggy with a ham hock. That's how I had always had green beans growing up, and didn't know until cooking school that people actually liked beans to be bright green and crisp-tender. I still prefer my beans to be dark green and soggy-soft, but thought I'd give this recipe a whirl anyway. I used turkey bacon because I had some and didn't want to entirely clog our arteries, but I still cooked the beans etc. in some regular bacon grease. The beans were really good, though no match for the true Southern-style green beans.
4 to 6 bacon slices
3 celery ribs, chopped
1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1-½ teaspoons saltCook bacon in a large skillet until crisp; remove bacon, and drain on paper towels, reserving 2 tablespoons drippings in skillet. Crumble bacon, and set aside.
Cook celery and next 3 ingredients in hot drippings in skillet over medium-high heat 10 to 12 minutes. Add tomato and next 6 ingredients; cook, stirring often, 5 minutes or until beans are tender. Stir in bacon.Yield: Makes 6 to 8 servings
I made the viper's pound cake. It totally rocks, as promised. Purple Fried Okra passed along the recipe to me, and I need PFO's permission to share the recipe. This pound cake has a slightly crispy/crunchy outer crust and a moist and buttery inside. Even though I was stuffed from the huge dinner, I had two pieces of cake for dessert. And another for breakfast this morning. And I might have one for lunch too; it's just that good. As long as it's in the house, it beckons me. I'm thinking of having a Pound Cake Snackdown, just to see if any other recipe even comes close.
UPDATE: PFO has granted permission to share her recipe. Eat and be happy.
The Viper's Pound CakeAt PFO's suggestion, I added a teaspoon of butter flavoring in addition to the teaspoon of vanilla extract. I also used butter flavored Crisco. I checked the cake after an hour of baking and it seemed done, but I turned off the oven and let it sit there for another 10 minutes, just to be sure. Perfect!
½ pound butter
½ c. vegetable shortening
3 c. sugar
5 eggs
3 c. flour
½ t. baking powder
1/8 t. salt
1 c. milk
1 t. vanilla
Cream butter and shortening; add sugar and continue creaming until light and fluffy. Add whole eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Sift dry ingredients together and add, alternately with milk, to creamed mixture. Blend thoroughly. Add vanilla. Use spatula to scrape sides of bowl and beat one minute longer.
Turn into greased and floured 10-inch tube/Bundt pan and bake at 350 for 1 hr. and 15 mins.
Gentleman Caller and I were anthropologists last night.
We went to Rocktoberfest, a bike rally and car show. We went for the cage fights. It was held in the arena where the rodeo is usually held, with a small octagon cage set up in the middle and tables and bleachers around the cage. Local strippers acted as the "ring girls," and worked the cage between fights and during intermission. Also during intermission was a cage dancing competition, which turned into a strip show. The crowd was mostly bikers, clad in leather, chaps and bandanas, with a few nonbiker fight fans (like us). Though we felt like anthropologists, watching the bikers and skanks in their native habitat, I'm glad that GC and I can find a place for ourselves in their world. And we were the best looking couple in the building.
Dinner last night: cheeseburger, Hooters wings, chips, nachos and a hot dog (this is the food that bikers eat)
Last week, I cooked recipes from a holiday instead of from a country. I’m doing it again this week with the quintessential American holiday: Thanksgiving. It’s my favorite meal of the year, and I’ve never made it myself. And even though Thanksgiving meal responsibility doesn’t fall on me, I still copy all the Thanksgiving menus that cooking magazines start printing about this time every year. I have quite a collection, good for many years of Thanksgivings, but why wait?
My Thanksgiving-in-October menu included the turkey, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce and green beans. Like Thanksgiving dinner in many households, everything didn’t go quite according to plan. The green beans I bought on Monday were moldy by Sunday night. I threw them away, looked around for a good vegetable substitution that could be made in less than 30 minutes, and found some mushrooms. Saved! I roasted a 6-½# turkey breast; this being the first time I’ve roasted a turkey, I didn’t know how long to cook it. My recipe was for a 2# breast, so I knew it would take longer than the recipe indicated. I checked it obsessively every 30-45 minutes for a little over 3 hours, until my meat thermometer told me it was safe to eat. It wasn’t very difficult, but I wasn’t cooking many dishes for a crowd of hungry people, as most people do for Thanksgiving. This was good practice, and I learned that I desperately need to learn how to carve a turkey. I did an OK job, but I suppose it would have been easier and prettier had I removed the bird from the roasting rack to a cutting board before hacking away at it. I’m lazy, though, and didn’t want to dirty another thing that Gentleman Caller would have to wash. I thought I’d be better at carving the turkey, because I’m a super slicer. Seriously, I can cut cakes and slice loaves of bread perfectly. With practice, I’m sure I’ll soon be an expert bird carver too.
Recipes!
I made a Thai-inspired roast turkey, marinated overnight in a saté paste of peanut butter, chili sauce, soy sauce, onion and spices. I’m not including the recipe here because it isn’t worth repeating. The turkey was good, indeed, but didn’t taste much like the saté because most of it slid off the turkey into the roasting pan. Some of the skin (which didn’t crisp at all) tasted a bit like peanut sauce, but the flavor was very mild. All in all, I think the saté marinade is just a waste of ingredients. I’ll be glad to provide the recipe if anyone wants to try it, but it isn’t a Blue Artichoke-endorsed recipe.
Chipotle Bourbon Cranberry SauceRecipe from The Girls Who Dish!: Seconds, Anyone?
I couldn’t find cranberries, so I subbed a can of whole berries in jelly. Omitted star anise; just used some adobo sauce (no chipotles). I reduced the apple juice, cinnamon and brown sugar until about ¾ cup, then added the cranberries, bourbon and adobo sauce. Cooled, then added lime juice. Nice sweet and smoky flavor.1 (12 oz.) pkg cranberries, fresh or frozen
2 c. apple juice or cider
2 cinnamon sticks
4-6 clusters star anise
1 c. dark brown sugar
2-3 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
¼ c. bourbon
2 limes, juice onlyIn a nonreactive saucepan, combine first 4. If you’re unsure about how sweet the sauce will be, begin with ½ c. sugar and add the rest later to taste. Bring the berries to a boil; reduce heat to med-low. The cranberries will cook completely in 20-30m, bursting and turning the sauce deep red. In the last few minutes of cooking, taste fro sugar and stir in more as desired. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
To make mincing the chiles easier, cut them on foil or parchment. After scraping the chiles into the pot, discard the paper. For a milder smoky flavor, omit the chipotles and spoon some of the adobo sauce into the cranberries. Add the bourbon and lime juice. The high natural pectin in cranberries keeps the sauce for months in the fridge.
Makes ~ 2c.
Whipped Chipotle Sweet Potatoes
Gourmet, November 2003; originally published November 1995
This recipe is inspired by a dish served at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill, in New York City. The smoky heat of the chipotle chile and the potato's natural sweetness balance each other beautifully.I halved the recipe and used 1 chipotle with a bit of adobo sauce. Whooo, boy! Way too spicy-hot; overshadowed the sweet potatoes. Go light on the chipotle, unless you like a burning, tingling mouth that can’t taste anything else on the plate. I made the casserole a day in advance, pulled it out of the fridge when I put the turkey in the oven (to bring to room temperature) and baked it during the last 20 minutes of the turkey’s cooking time.
5 1/2 lb sweet potatoes, scrubbed
1 tablespoon minced chipotle chiles in adobo, mashed to a paste (1 1/2 to 2 chiles)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces and softened
1 teaspoon saltPut oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with foil and butter a 2-quart shallow glass or ceramic baking dish.
Prick each potato several times with a fork, then bake on baking sheet until very soft, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
When cool enough to handle, halve potatoes and scoop flesh into a bowl. Beat potatoes, chile paste (to taste), butter, and salt with an electric mixer at medium speed just until smooth, then spread in baking dish.
Bake whipped potatoes until hot, 20 to 25 minutes.
Cooks' note:
Whipped potatoes can be prepared and spread in baking dish (but not baked) 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature before baking.Makes 8 to 10 servings.
Sautéed Mushrooms with Garlic, Parmesan, and Bread Crumbs
Cook’s Illustrated, January/February 2006I used ~ ¾ cup of Panko (Japanese-style breadcrumbs) instead of making my own, and used dried parsley. Pretty easy last-minute addition to the menu.
2 slices high-quality white sandwich bread, torn into quarters
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds white button mushrooms, cleaned, stems trimmed, quartered if medium or halved if small
2 teaspoons minced garlic
Table salt and ground black pepper
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves1. Pulse bread in food processor until coarsely ground. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until foaming. When foaming subsides, add bread crumbs and cook, stirring frequently, until dark brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer crumbs to small bowl and set aside.
2. Heat oil in now-empty skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms release liquid, about 5 minutes. Increase heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has completely evaporated, about 8 minutes longer. Add remaining butter, reduce heat to medium, and continue to cook, stirring once every minute, until mushrooms are dark brown, about 8 minutes longer.
3. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to medium bowl. Toss hot mushrooms with Parmesan until cheese melts. Toss with bread crumbs and parsley; serve.Serves 4
It's officially fall now. The leaves are turning colors, the weather is getting cooler and there are brand new shows on tv. I generally like to try out the new fall line-up, and wonder what you all are watching. I'm a big fan so far of NBC's Studio 60. I've seen two episodes and think it is smart, funny and fast. Brothers & Sisters on ABC gets two thumbs down for being too dramatic and having a pretty high sap factor. I watched Ugly Betty, also on ABC, and liked it enough to watch it again this week. It's silly, and I really liked America Ferrera in Real Women Have Curves.
There are lots of new shows out and these are the only ones I've checked out. What good ones am I missing?