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nessa

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Posts posted by nessa

  1. Don't get me wrong. I love potatos. They are good vectors for cheese and buttah and other lovely things. But I'll take my fresh sourdough slathered in butter any day over any potato product. Hell I'll even take it over chocolate :wub: But not good chocolate mousse. One must have standards.

    I eat low carb, not no carb. There will always be room in my diet for good breads.

    Speaking of which I best set some starter out for tomorrow!

  2. I don't find the texture to be any different than a regular hard boiled egg, though sometimes the yolks might be a little softer? However maybe I'm so enamored of the flavor that I'm not noticing. I'm addicted to these yummy little portable snacks. I am going to try a new thing this week, hard boil them, crack them, then simmer in the crock pot in the brine overnight. Be careful when cracking the shell so that you don't also crack the white. When that happens, the brine gets in and makes the yolk a tad soupy. However, you can take pin and poke a hole or two into the egg so that the brine penetrates further. My Chinese friend does that. I don't usualy because I don't want to risk my precious yolk.

  3. I do this. We are/have been in a similar situation. I work 5:30 am to 2:30ish, he tends to work 8-5 or later, sometimes night shifts. I tend to bulk cook on the weekends and freeze the leftovers in those gladware partitioned tupperware lookin' thingies. Well for him anyways. I get the sandwich sized ones for myself. All kinds of things work well. Stews, spaghetti/pastas, meats with gravy or something to cover it and keep the freezer burn away, enchiladas etc etc.

    I can't think really of anything that I've made that didn't freeze well, that I chose to freeze in the first place. Its a real life saver to have a home cooked meal in the time it takes to nuke it. That way we are eating within budget and eating much healthier than we would if we ate out. I also find it a good way to control portion size. I tend to cook say 2-3 large batches of whatever over the weekend. If I do this every weekend then I build up a nice variety of things so we don't get too tired of any one thing. Right now I have spaghetti and meatballs, Israli couscous with lentils and spinach, chilli, pinto beans, bean soup, tofu and veggie stir fry, mushroom risotto and peas, pozole, and I think beef enchiladas. Another good thing about this "system" is that we are each able to eat different things. I can cook once a week, cook something he likes, something I like, and we don't have to eat the other's meals. Everyone is happy! Chicken and dumplings also freezes well.

    Some week nights (afternoons whaaaatevah) I'll get the urge to make something different, and I do, so it doesn't stifle my urge to create. But it does allow me not to *have* to come up with something when I'm tired. I also make stuff for a quick, portable breakfast. The SO loves sausage in a biscuit things like a"pig in a blanket". Breakfast casserole of potatos obrian, cheddar, eggs, and (shhhh) finely chopped tofu is on the menu for this week. It cooks up nice and firm so I can pick it up and eat it in the car or at my desk.

    I don't tend to freeze the breakfast stuff for whatever reason. Eggy stuff can be iffy frozen. Pancakes freeze well. Some rice dishes don't seem to freeze well.

    Here is a link that offers guidelines for things that do not freeze well, or that change texture etc.

    http://www.realfood4realpeople.com/freeze.html

    Incidently thats from OAMC or once a month cooking. For me personally that is WAY too much work for one weekend but I was on anOAMC list once and got good ideas to adapt for my tastes. Some folks swear by it.

  4. Chinese Tea eggs

    Hard boil eggs.

    Crack shells of eggs with the back of a spoon or handle of a knife so that pretty crack patterns are made. Be careful that shell does not peel off.

    Put eggs back in pot, add fresh water, soy sauce, black tea, salt and star anise.

    The amounts are relative to what flavors you like and how strong of a flavor you desire. I typically am making a dozen eggs at a time so I will use about a half cup of soy sauce, a teaspoon of salt, the equivalent of about a fourth cup of loose black tea leaves, and 5-7 star anise. It varies and obviously isnt an exact science.

    I then simmer the eggs for a couple of hours and store them in the brine in the fridge. I'll attempt to post a picture or two tonight. The result, when you peel the shell off is a light tan egg with dark brown crackle patterns. The flavor is quite delightful. Some do not like the anise flavor, and that can easily be left out.

    i2864.jpg

  5. Tofu. Its my new cheap protein. I get it for about a dollar a pound, for now. I made some beef meatballs last night, and 1/3 of the mix was extra firm tofu put through the food processor. :raz: The SO can't tell, so I'm not tellin'. It infuriates me that lamb is so expensive here. When I was in Germany I used to get an entire leg of New Zeland lamb for $7 dollars. Needless to say I ate a lot of lamb. And flank steak used to be my mother's favorite because it was inexpensive. When I saw the price a year ago or something, I was flabbergasted. I admit to being frugal, most of my ancestry is Scottish. When prices get high, I find something else. Nothing makes my day more than finding a sale in the meat section. Lamb isnt terribly popular in my part of town, but the stores still carry it. So when it isn't bought, it gets marked down and I pounce on it and throw it in the freezer. That goes for all good cuts of meat marked down.

    There is also a grocery here that sometimes sells chicken for under 40 cents a pound. I love to stock <pun intended> up then.

  6. I this a good place for my usual rant about leaving the tail shells on shrimp... when they are served in a sauce? :angry:

    I will add huge leaves of greens in salad so that you can effectively paint your cheeks with salad dressing. Uh... they don't set the table with a salad knife anywhere I have been lately.

    AMEN! Man thats a huge pet peeve of mine. If its a dish to be eaten with a fork take the damn tail off already. Lettuce for salad should be in BITE SIZE pieces. Unless its one of those darling Caeser salads that you get to pick up the whole leaf and nibble and let the dressing dribble down the rib to dance on your tongue.....

  7. No, its not just you. I DETEST foods that are meant to be eaten with your fingers or hands that can't stay together. Burgers and sandwiches are a problem, they slip and slide, ooze and gooze all the good stuff onto the plate so that you have to use a fork anyway. Bah. Sometimes a couple of well placed toothpicks helps. I don't mind getting my fingers dirty, but when what I'm eating just collapses into a pile it rather ticks me off. I also hate it when finger foods are served too big to fit in your mouth. I don't want it all over my cheeks and chin when I try to take a bite.

    And Jinmyo... those pork chops sound divine! Finger licking good.

  8. Nessa, Zapp's I think are also sold in a stripey bag. Bob's Texas Style Chips do have, by some coincidence, a map of Texas, or use to anyway. They have somewhat muted stripes on the bag. Both companies make a jalapeno flavor.

    Poore Brothers

    I know they aren't Zapps, but I think you hit the nail on the head with Bob's. Gotta find me some. No wait, that would he a disaster waiting to happen to my hips. Scratch that idea!

    Thanks though :wub:

  9. I love to make mini scones for tea. That way I can have one with marmalade, one with lemon curd, one with clotted cream and blackberry jelly.....

    It is about portion control for me too. I feel more of a treat if I get to have a variety, and I actually eat less with three mini as opposed to one regular. So sometimes I have 6.... sue me :biggrin:

  10. MMMM. cheeeeeeeeeese.

    A comfort food for me is indeed nasty white american puffy bread and two or three slices of american cheese. Lots and lots of butter.

    However, my favorite is seeded rye bread with roquefort. Must have tons of butter, and be grilled to a crunchy good crispness. Cheddar, Havarti, Grueyere...I don't think I've met a grilled cheese sandwich that I've not liked.

  11. I used to get a brand years ago, but I can't remember its name. It was in a red and white striped bag. It may have had the state of Texas on it.

    The only flavor I got was the Jalepeno, :wub: and MAN were they perfect. Thicker than normal, spicy, salty, I can still taste them. I also adore good salt and vinegar chips, and dill chips. I like thick chips. I like chips so much however that now I don't buy them or even go down the isle. I have no control when it comes to chips. Last time I bought a good bag of S&V chips, the entire bag was gone before I got home. I realized then, that I had a problem. So now, I get one of those 25 cent bags when I go to the store as a reward. Dill, if I can find them.

    Now I'm craving chips so badly that I can't trust myself to enter a grocery store until it passes. Thanks.

  12. I had something similar happen with my cumin seeds.

    I think they might have been weevils. Thank goodness I poured it in my hand first. That way I could stare dumbly for a few seconds then fling eveything to the floor, screech and do the icky-dance, run from the room and let the dog take care of it from there. Good dog! I am now seriously considering finding a way to store my spices in the freezer!

  13. I'm in Texas and I have several favorite beans. Black, red, pinto, garbanzo, adzuki, most varieties of lentils, limas and fava beans. Oh. But wait, there's more! :wub: I made pintos with ham hocks this weekend.

  14. I highly reccomend adding some cumin.

    Y'all are making me hungry. I think its time for some red beans and rice, greens, cornbread, black eyed peas .... and OKRA. LOTS AND LOTS OF OKRAAHHHHH.

    Ok. I feel better now. Perhaps I'll skip the rest and start directly with the sublime goddess of slime.

  15. My darling SO, bless his heart, loves texmexican above all else.

    And almost without fail, orders fajitas. Gotta love that man.

    We are kind of new to Dallas and I really want to give him a great fajita meal for Valentine's day that I do not have to cook at home.

    His idea of "great" fajitas are beef fajitas where the meat is very very tender, well flavored and spiced, and tons of fixin's. He wants plenty of guac and sour cream etc. He is not a fan of fajitas that come with tons of grilled onions and peppers, mushrooms or god forbid, tomatoes. Good sides are a bonus.

    So... weigh in, y'all! Where in the Dallas Ft. Worth area can you get the best fajitas? And if your definition of best fajitas doesnt match his, where might I take him for Valentine's day that does serve them that way?

  16. I think that one's taste is often influenced by the first time they had a dish. My first dolma was from a little Armenian place a few blocks off the UT campus. They were simple. Served chilled they had simply rice and herbs. They came with a lemony sauce.

    To this day I'm always dissapointed in dolmas if they have raisons, pine nuts or other "adulterations". I'll eat them warm with meat but to me thats just a whole 'nother dish.

    I make mine with preserved grape leaves (I adore the brine). I add a lot of lemon juice to the rice, and usually some combo of parsley, dill, rosemary, whatever herb I have on hand etc. I add finely chopped onions sometimes. I also dont tend to wash the leaves of the brine, but then I just love salty sour stuff.

    My favorite sauce is a yogurt-garlic-tahini-lemon combo thing, but in general I don't bother with a sauce. I honestly have a hard time finding good dolmas that are not made in my house. I will admit that I've almost given up trying. It seems that all of the restaurants that I've found use the canned (just kill me please) version. Delis too. What gives? These dolmas are revolting, they are covered in some rancid olive oil that departs a bitter taste, and the rice is just mush. Its horrid and I'm scarred for life. One local place that does make their own is Central Market. Bless them, bless them, bless them. They have such a nice variety. I am new to this city and I hear that they have some really good Middle Eastern restaurants, so perhaps I'll get brave and try their dolmas......

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