SobaAddict70

Roast lamb, braised vegetables, chermoula.

Boneless lamb shoulder. I wasn't able to get bone-in lamb shoulder, but I imagine that's not going to be a huge issue. This was stuffed with slivers of heirloom garlic and oil-packed anchovy fillets, then rubbed with sea salt and black pepper. It sat in the fridge overnight and will be roasted later today. This is 3 lbs., about $38 worth from Eataly. 1 tablespoon black cumin seeds and 1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted in a dry pan over high heat until fragrant... ...then ground in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder until it's a coarsely-textured powder. Each time I make chermoula, I almost always vary the green ingredients a little bit. There is not one recipe for this sauce, so feel free to come up with your own combinations. Clockwise from right: heirloom garlic, scallions, mint, arugula, cilantro. Combine garlic, scallions, mint, arugula and cilantro in a food processor or blender, along with a pinch of sea salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper (or minced fresh or dried chiles; how much depends on how spicy you want your sauce). Other ideas include but are not limited to: preserved lemon, preserved orange. Pulse until you have a rough-textured purée. Transfer the purée to a bowl, then pour in about 1/2 cup olive oil and add the cumin powder. Mix well. Chermoula. This is best the day it's made; its potency will diminish over time. Along with the lamb, you can use it for just about anything imaginable -- with roast beef sandwiches, over pasta, stirred in scrambled eggs like so: Creamy scrambled eggs, with French breakfast radishes and chermoula. To be continued...

Looks awesome.

Today I'm going to pick up a bone-in lamb shoulder from either Eataly or Chelsea Market and start the prep for the roast lamb dish (page 203). You stuff it with anchovy and garlic; it marinates for a few hours or preferably overnight. I'm going to skip making the panisses ("chickpea puffs") and the salsa verde. Instead, I'll substitute chermoula (still in keeping with the French theme, although it's by way of North Africa). You'll see photos for that later.

Every dream begins with a step. I would encourage you to follow your dream to wherever it leads. I'll be rooting for you along the way.

Part 1 of the thread that Allura linked to is here. Note that the thread refers to Modernist Cuisine at Home. I think there is a separate thread for the other version. ETA: Here is the other thread. You'll probably want to clarify which one you mean.

2 cups of bacon lardons is probably an entire package of bacon. If I were younger and possessed of a hardier constitution, I might think that it wasn't a big deal, but these days I use meat more as a flavoring than as a main event if that makes any sense. That being said, Thursday I'm hoping to pick up a bone-in lamb shoulder for the roast lamb dish. Looking forward to that.

No particular reason. The recipe isn't that specific but it also doesn't take much time to trim it before service.

Was quite nice. If I made this again, I'd cut back on the bacon even more so I could accentuate the leeks. They're luscious when steamed. I hadn't thought of that before.

Poireaux vinaigrette à la moutarde et aux lardons ("leeks with mustard-bacon vinaigrette").

I thought I'd resort to cooking the leeks in barely simmering water, but then realized that I do have a steamer -- a stockpot-sized one that I hardly ever bother with. Not any more.

6 leeks, after about 30 minutes of steaming. Mustard-bacon vinaigrette. The amount of bacon here is about 3 rashers worth, chopped into not-quite pea size lardons, but close enough. The ratio of bacon to mustard is probably off by a little lot, but that's okay; I need only satisfy myself. David's recipe (page 88) calls for 2 cups, but that serves approx. 4-6 people. I was fine with the reduced amount. Poireaux vinaigrette à la moutarde et aux lardons ("leeks with mustard-bacon vinaigrette"). Tomorrow night I have dinner at a Filipino restaurant in NYC with friends, then the parade of cooking continues on Thursday. Bonne nuit.

I'll be attempting the leeks tonight, but I'm going to downsize the recipe so that it serves one person. Stay tuned...

Oeufs mayo -- spring lettuces, French breakfast radishes, hard-cooked farm egg, herb mayonnaise.

Oeufs mayo. David calls for tomato in the salad, but I subbed French breakfast radishes instead; while greenhouse tomatoes *are* available at USGM, I didn't have those on hand.

I nearly made the leeks last night but I don't have a steamer set up, although I realized just now that maybe I could have cooked them in barely simmering water. Some adjustments have to be made for kitchens that are, ahem, minimalist for lack of a better word. For instance, I only recently acquired a blender, food processor and tart pan. (I'm slowly branching out into baking.) The recipes I've chosen to start out with are the ones that I can reasonably handle without too many complications.

Yes, it was with a whole egg.

Just tasted the mayonnaise I made last night. It has a hint of shallots that dances on the tongue; it will go wonderfully with the eggs, and maybe some spring lettuces I bought at USGM this weekend. Most recipes for mayonnaise call for only the egg yolk; this recipe uses a whole egg. Seems like there's a "lightness" that's not usually present. I think this will be my default recipe for mayonnaise going forward. Aioli is another matter entirely, as I prefer using a mortar and pestle instead of a blender for such things.

Had to use up some leftover shrimp before it turned... Gambas al ajillo ("garlic shrimp"). Add a glass of white wine and part of a baguette, and you're set.

By the way, these two recipes, omelette aux fines herbes and œufs mayo (at least with respect to the mayonnaise part) have gone off without a hitch.

Herb mayonnaise. This will sit in the fridge overnight; it's part of the recipe for œufs mayo (page 103). I subbed tarragon and parsley for the chervil, and Meyer lemon juice instead of the lemon juice, because that's what I had on hand. Otherwise as written.

Well, I rarely cook meat so doing the lamb will be quite an adventure. The recipe doesn't seem so daunting. Famous last words, right?

Hi there. The recipe for the shrimp is in the link above, but this is my version which has some differences. The kumquat vinegar is the pickling liquid from the kumquats. pickled kumquats: 9 kumquats, 1/2 cup white wine vinegar that was heated until boiling, 2 crushed green cardamom pods. combine all ingredients in a heat-proof container. cool. place in the refrigerator, covered, for 48 hours. kumquat vinaigrette: 1 tablespoon honey, 3 tablespoons kumquat vinegar, 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt to taste, a pinch of piment d'Espelette. whisk honey and kumquat vinegar together; then whisk in the olive oil. taste for salt and piment. set aside. shrimp: peel, trim and devein shrimp. sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt and black pepper. set aside for 5 minutes. rough chop a clove of garlic and a handful of Italian parsley. warm 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a small skillet. add the garlic and fry until it becomes a pale gold, about 1 minute. add the shrimp. cook until it turns color, add the parsley. cook for 1-2 more minutes. taste for salt and pepper. spoon shrimp into a bowl and set aside. salad greens: in the same pan that you cooked the shrimp in, wilt spinach leaves and arugula leaves. you don't want to wilt them all the way though. I like a little bit of texture to my greens. 1 minute is sufficient, then remove from heat. kumquats: thinly slice 3 kumquats; discard the seeds. pineapple: the original recipe uses sliced pineapple, but I decided to caramelize them in a heated skillet with 2 tablespoons olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. assembly: combine the greens, shrimp, pineapple and kumquats in a bowl. divide shrimp mixture between two salad plates or salad bowls. spoon kumquat vinaigrette atop the salad, then serve.

Thanks Smithy. The ramps are from Eataly. USGM won't have those available for maybe 1-2 more weeks. It's been a long winter. Carrots and salsify, with garlic and saffron Peel and trim salsify, cut into batons, place in a bowl of acidulated water (1 cup water, juice of half a lemon). Peel and trim carrots, cut into batons. Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil, add carrots and salsify; cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 10 minutes. Drain with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl. Melt unsalted butter in a skillet, add chopped garlic. Fry until garlic turns a pale gold, add carrots, salsify and a pinch of saffron. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, or until the vegetables are golden brown, about 6-8 minutes. Stir in chopped parsley. Taste for salt and pepper, then serve. Omelette aux fines herbes, sautéed spinach with shallots and sesame oil.

A little brown, but tasty nonetheless. Oh well, can't be perfect all the time. This was a 2-egg omelette made in a 10" skillet.