SobaAddict70
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Posts posted by SobaAddict70
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Simple grazing dinner tonight.
Roasted cauliflower and hazelnut salad (page 62 of "Jerusalem")
The salad takes about 35 minutes to make, including prep. Roast some cauliflower, prep the celery and hazelnuts, pick off some parsley leaves, make the dressing; once the cauliflower is done, combine with the celery, parsley leaves, hazelnuts, pomegranate seeds (I subbed dried cranberries that were plumped in boiling water), spices and the dressing; mix well; taste for salt and pepper, then serve.
Arctic char, Castelvetrano olive tapenade
Made a batch of rose vinegar that turned out quite well.
3 tablespoons organic, pesticide-free edible rose petals
1 cup white wine vinegar, brought to a simmer in a saucepan
Combine rose petals and white wine vinegar in a sterilized glass jar. Seal. Place jar in a cool, dark place. Steep rose petals in vinegar for 6 weeks, then strain and use as desired.
It has a gorgeous color, a lovely bouquet and just the faintest hint of a rose-like flavor.
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How about a 'Doodie'?
http://www.grubstreet.com/2014/05/food-dude-doodies-and-the-women-who-love-them.html
Made me laugh, hit a little close to home.
I remember that article. It was a "thing" on social media when it came out.
"Why are you against deliciousness?" Josh asked indignantly a few months ago, when I said I didn't think he needed to make a special trip to get soppressata for a salad that already had like 20 things in it.
I'm not against "deliciousness", just everything-and-the-kitchen-sink syndrome.
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I prefer these terms.
"The term gourmet may refer to a person with refined or discriminating taste who is knowledgeable in the craft and art of food and food preparation.%5B1%5D Gourmand carries additional connotations of one who simply enjoys food in great quantities. An epicure is similar to a gourmet, but the word may sometimes carry overtones of excessive refinement. A gourmet chef is a chef of particularly high caliber of cooking talent and skill."
"gourmand" also carries a pejorative connotation depending on context, to me. It's not a preferred term of mine.
I would rather just refer to people by their names than call them something that may not necessarily describe them. Much safer.
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Lets think through what a server might make at a diner. 8 hours x $2.13 = $17.04 in salary
lets say he/she served 30 customers ( a low number, I think for 8 hours) who had an average check of $20 (also low) and they all tipped 15% that's $90 tips plus salary for 107 for 8 hours or $13.38/hour. And I bet I've way-underestimated things. Might be half again or twice as much.
That's a broad assumption that very likely doesn't bear out in reality.
You're forgetting that in many places, tips are pooled and divided amongst all FOH workers. So that includes busboys (who don't receive tips), or if it's your stereotypical diner or Olive Garden, it might also include things like the cashier and other FOH staff. So your effective $13.38 per hour is even less when you take those factors into account. And that's assuming that management is above-board, not like slimeballs who steal or skim off tips.
You're also not considering things like lack of health insurance and the amount of sexual harassment restaurant workers regularly endure. Those ARE factors that must be included because they impact a server's performance and job morale, and further determine an employer's bottom line.
I linked to the report above. Did you even bother to read it? Most likely not, but why should I be surprised?
Yes, $2.13/hour + tips using your napkin math means that American restaurant workers are living in the lap of luxury. Okay.
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Well, it must be enough money for them to keep at the job because observation indicates that the servers are there and working.
Unless its just a hobby for them.
Would they like to do better? Sure. Is the current system stupid? Absolutely.
They may be there because they have no other choice. If they leave that job, in this economy, where would they go?
Are you even aware of what it is you're saying?
$2.13 per hour + tips is less than minimum wage. It's legalized slavery. Let's be blunt and call a spade a spade.
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I'm transferring the contents to another jar tonight. It's an experiment; if successful, I might start adding sugar in the future.
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$2.13 per hour + tips is "enough money to stay in that job".
Okay.
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Q: "Do they [the restaurant industry] have a point when they say that an increase in the minimum wage will mean a cut in service and higher costs?"
A: "Well, these are their two primary arguments: one, that it will kill jobs, two, that it will make the cost of food go up. So on that first one, killing jobs. There are actually seven states in the United States that have the same wage for tipped and non-tipped workers. They range from somewhere around $8.00 and $9.50 an hour. You can go to California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Montana, Nevada, Minnesota. All seven states have faster industry growth rates than the restaurant industry nationally. And in fact, we recently did a regression, looked at the states with the higher minimum wages for tipped workers, we found that they have higher sales per capita in the restaurant industry.
"So we would argue that evidence shows that you could actually do better as an industry, faster industry growth, more jobs, if you treat your workers better. On that second argument that the cost of food will go up. We used USDA methodology. And we applied the current bill that's moving through Congress to every worker along the food chain, from farm workers, to meat and poultry processing workers, to restaurant workers. And we assume that every employer along the food chain would pass on 100 percent of the cost of the wage increase to their purchaser. The title of the report is “A Dime a Day", because it would cost the average American household at most $0.10 more for all food bought outside the home. That's groceries and restaurants alike. So we're talking pennies more on your hamburger when you eat out, for 30 million workers to come out of poverty.
Q: "But what do you say to the small-business owner, who says “Gee I run a very small place, we-- our waiters depend upon the tips at the counter. We just can't afford it. We'd go out of business if you require us to raise their wages."
A: "I would say a couple of things. First of all, you as a small business, you are actually being cheated by these very large corporations that are running the show, setting the standards, raking in millions of profits and screwing you by getting away with very-- you know-- very, very large, high-volume business and setting standards that require you to have to pay for very high rates of turnover. Our industry has the highest rates of employee turnover of any industry in the United States. I would say-- I can point you to plenty of small businesses around the country that actually pay their workers a livable wage and have managed to cut their turnover in half, in some cases, completely out, because they treat their workers well.
"I would also say that nobody's expecting you to change your wages overnight. We're talking about policies that would phase in a minimum wage increase. A minimum wage increase for both your servers and the back of the house. But the last and most important thing I would say is this: no customer in America believes when they leave a tip that they are leaving a wage for a worker. Nobody believes that they're paying a wage. People think they're paying a tip on top of a wage. We don't think about this in any other context except restaurants. We believe somehow that because they're getting tips, they shouldn't get a wage. It's not true in any other context. And that is because of the power of this industry."
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Lamb's quarters (wild spinach)
Greens on toast, with fromage blanc, pipelchuma and lime juice
There's slow-cooked onion in olive oil, until the onions are golden brown, then I added chopped garlic and blanched lamb's quarters , then cooked that until the greens were warmed through, then seasoned to taste with sea salt, black pepper, a touch of pipelchuma and lime juice. Then topped toasted Italian bread spread with fromage blanc with the cooked greens, then drizzled with olive oil.
Spaghetti con vongole, with fried breadcrumbs and bottarga
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Soba, I added sugar to some preserved lemons and I have found it enables the juice to work well as a dressing addition. The lemons which I cut into smaller pieces, are good for bloody marys, too.
That's interesting because I usually don't.
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Preserved limes
This is a variation on the recipe Ottolenghi gives on page 303 for preserved lemons.
4 limes, quartered
4 tablespoons sea salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 tablespoon chopped thyme
1/2 cup lime juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
This will sit in a cupboard for one week and be gently shaken each day, then transferred to the fridge for three more weeks.
I picked up a tip on the inclusion of sugar from a friend last night; it makes the brining liquid more palatable if one were to use it in savory things like a tagine or a vinaigrette.
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today: fava beans, cherry tomatoes, green beans, lamb's quarters, herbs, ricotta cheese, summer squash
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I had never heard of ramps. Thanks for the tip.
I had never heard of cronuts either. I can't tell if you've made this suggestion in earnest or in jest.
Probably was made in jest; it would require you to get to NYC at an ungodly hour and get in line; waiting in line is our City's unofficial sport, didn't you know?
Ramps are only available in the spring for about 8 weeks, but well worth it after months of root vegetables.
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I read about that.
They opened again a week later with an A rating, I think.
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I still haven't had a cronut, mostly because I like sleeping.
We should just name it "rapunzel" (after the mythical vegetable of the same name).
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I object to the term because it's infantile in my opinion. So I don't use it. I'm not bothered if someone calls me one, that's on them.
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SobaAddict70
>>Assuming you mean things like fried chicken, pizza and meatloaf, then I might start here: it's Franny's clam pizza at their restaurant in Brooklyn. It's not haute cuisine, but it's something that a foodie might eat
>This clam pizza looks excellent. I'll show this video to my friend.
And it never occurred to me that 'foodie' was a horrible word. Other members have used it throughout this thread.
I don't believe it was I who said that "foodie" was a horrible word but liuzhou.
However, I do agree with Liuzhou that it's not my preferred term, although probably not for the reasons he has.
My perspective is that it's a rather infantile pejorative that doesn't begin to describe any of the people on this forum, including you. I try not to use it in my dealings with other people. You'll notice that in almost about every comment on this thread that I've made, I've enclosed the term in quotes. Here is a discussion on Chowhound that explores why some people feel that way, for instance. That's not germane to this thread however.
SobaAddict70
>Thanks for your input.
>Your reply to me comes across to me as sarcastic, so I simply responded in kind. I can't read minds, remember?
As God is my witness, I can't understand how you could interpret my sincere thanks for providing those links, even if they didn't work out for me, as sarcastic. If you won't believe that, I don't know what else I can say.
Text-only communication has its shortcomings. I apologize if I perceived things wrongly, however I can only say that it still reads to me as "sarcastic". That being said, this is a really trivial issue that shouldn't color your perspective of eGullet and its membership. I've already moved on.
liuzhou
>Tell us one food you really, really like and why you like it.
I like all the things my friend prepares for me, which I thought would have been obvious, since I continue to eat it, and I like sushi and sashimi. I like these foods because they taste good and it's pleasant to eat them; for me, that is reason enough to eat them.
I would suggest that it WAS NOT obvious in the least, otherwise the question would not have been asked. Do you see a pattern here?
"rather mainstream American non-haute cuisine" is a terribly broad category. It would be as if I had said I loathe "Asian food". Do I mean Chinese? Japanese? Thai? Indian? Malaysian?"Thanksgiving food" is slightly better using the example you provided, but that's still a little broad, because (1) not everyone eats the same thing even though that's the gold standard and (2) it's only one meal a year. Unless you mean that your friend cooks those dishes on a regular basis.
"pasta-based dishes" can be anything from American to Asian to European and all points in between. However the rest of that comment suggests Italian or something along those lines.
I think the difficulty that many of us are having is because there has not been much specificity that would enable us to provide you with more relevant/more helpful suggestions.
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No, not even close. With all the exquisite fresh fruit around here, baking seems like the wrong direction to go, as does adding chocolate and ice cream.
One of the recipes that Marcella Hazan provides in "Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking" has you slice strawberries and macerate them in a mixture of freshly squeezed orange juice and a scant teaspoon of sugar.
It doesn't have to be citrus in this instance, keeping in mind your comment above, but that's an idea. The resulting liquid once you're able to serve the salad satisfies the need for a dressing and keeps things "light".
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That is my stepmother's go-to. She makes it at least weekly.
I generally do not like a dressed one either, but have enjoyed fruit with a light simple syrup with lime or lemon zest and fresh ginger juice. Just enough to provide a touch of contrast and a spark.
I might have to steal that. Thanks, Heidi.
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If you don't like my approach to food, why trouble yourself to speak to me?
You posed a question to the forum and we engaged you in a conversation.
>Well, actually, you said you were unaware of any cooking classes that were held locally. (Would you like me to quote you?)
Why would I want you to quote me? Of course I said that. I wasn't aware of any local cooking classes. Is that offensive?
It's not offensive. I was pointing out that you had answered you weren't aware of local cooking classes, then proceeded to show that in fact, there were. A simple Google search indicates that.
>I provided those links to show that there were cooking classes held in your immediate vicinity.
But I never said I wanted to take any cooking classes.
This is true, but as I said in my edited post above, telepathy is not one of my innate abilities, nor is reading comprehension apparently.
That being said, cooking classes are one way you can expand your depth and breadth of knowledge about the wide world of food. That was why cdh asked that question presumably. People do educate themselves for various reasons even though the focus of whatever it is they're studying or learning about will never be used in their day-to-day lives.
>Thanks for your input.
I was sincere when I thanked you for your input. Why the sarcasm?
Why all the hostility?
Were you? Your reply to me comes across to me as sarcastic, so I simply responded in kind. I can't read minds, remember?
I don't see any hostility here. It's too early in the day for that kind of thing anyway, and besides, I haven't drunk my coffee yet.
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SobaAddict70 and cdh: Thanks for your input, but I'm not even sure that I want to learn how to cook, at least for now.
SobaAddict70:
The first link leads to a webpage for Whole Foods Market (although you have to look quite closely to even discover this). On this webpage, there is the statement "See our list of upcoming classes on Eventbrite" in small letters, but it is not linked to Eventbrite. If you go to Eventbrite's website on your own, you'll see that it's a clearinghouse for "events", but it won't tell you anything about those events unless you join.
The second link leads to a store website that mentions an upcoming class for how to prepare food with "the spiralizer", which is doubtless a device they hope to sell you.
The third link leads to a website for a couple who run a business at their home, where you have to sign up with a group of at least eight people to attend a dinner party at which the guests help make the dinner; this will cost you at least $1,500.
But thanks again for your input.
Well, actually, you had said you were unaware of any cooking classes that were held locally in response to something cdh asked. (Would you like me to quote you?)
I provided those links to show that there were cooking classes held in your immediate vicinity, at supermarkets and by private companies. The specifics aren't particularly relevant as far as I'm concerned since you hadn't provided any additional information that was germane to your situation. Regrettably, telepathy is not one of my magical powers. (FYI, there is a link to the Eventbrite site on the Whole Foods' page, but it's not clearly marked. Furthermore, you can clearly see what events are offered and decide on your own whether you want to join: http://www.eventbrite.com/o/whole-foods-market-princeton-5568680797 )
And now that you mention it, since you're unsure as to whether you want to learn how to cook, all of that is moot.
Thanks for your input.
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I just googled "Princeton cooking classes nj" and these were the first three links:
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/princeton
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/stores/us/nj/princeton-market-fair/
Hope those are of some help to you.
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Sometimes it's things like that, other times it's:
• "Thanksgiving food" (turkey / quail / cornish game hen, stuffing, mashed potatoes with turkey gravy, butternut squash, pumpkin pie, etc.)
• pasta-based dishes (such as raviloi or tortellini), which may incorporate:
...• mushrooms (usually porcini or button / portobello)
...• meat (such as beef, pork, or various seafood such as shrimp, scallops, fish, or crab)
...• any of a number of vegetables, such as tomatoes, onions, black and / or green olives, or even asparagus, or artichoke hearts
There are "foodie"/gourmet versions of all of these dishes.
Mashed potatoes for example can be colcannon (an Irish dish with potatoes with cabbage (and/or leeks) and lots of butter), stamppot (the Dutch version of colcannon), pure di patate (Italian, puréed potatoes with butter and cream, occasionally Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese). The haute cuisine version of mashed potatoes could be something like purée blanche -- contains potatoes and things like parsnips and celeriac, or pommes dauphine (basically mashed potatoes mixed with choux pastry and deep-fried).
This clam pizza looks excellent. I'll show this video to my friend. I won't be able to sample it at Frannie's restaurant though, because I never go to NYC, even though I live somewhat nearby (near Trenton & Princeton in New Jersey). That's because of the surreal, nightmarish experiences I've had in NYC, as well as stories I've encountered in the media about what goes on there.
I've lived in NYC for 25+ years.
The City's changed a lot in the interim -- from a dystopian post-apocalyptic war zone with abandoned buildings (anyone who's lived in the East Village in the late '80s might identify with that description) to a playground for the 1%. It's not for everyone, and it's hardly boring. But I hear you.
I've repeatedly offered to be my friend's sous chef, but she'll have none of it. She prefers to do everything herself. In fact, she once told me, to my great surprise, that she thought it was "weird" for a man to cook.
News to me.
Cheese is disgusting? Avocado and mushrooms are inedible? But stir-fried BEES, stewed DOG, and roast RAT are edible?!?! It's very difficult for me to understand such a vast difference in cultural perspective.
Liuzhou can tell you more, but a couple of things...
* China has approx. 25% of the world's population and 10% of the planet's arable land. Their society has learned to squeeze every available edible bit out of anything imaginable and put it to good use.
* Cheese/dairy has not, historically, been a part of the Chinese diet in the same way that it is for many other Western cultures for many reasons -- like for instance, that arable land bit. This Wiki article goes into more detail: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Chinese_cuisine . To understand why a culture eats the way it does, you might have to look into its past.
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Oh have you tried Fish balls? Pikeballs are one of my favorite things and they are easy to make and can be made with other types of fish then pike. It just fresh fish, potatoes, dill, egg and seasoning, rolled into a balls, coated with flour, egg and bread crumbs and then either fried in a lot of butter or deep fried. yum.
I do like fish balls, but the ones I'm familiar with are Chinese. They're not fried either (or more precisely, the ones I'm thinking of aren't typically fried, but are eaten in soup).
The type of food I usually cook doesn't involve meat or fish most of the time, and when they do, they're usually not the focus of the meal.
Cooking from "Jerusalem: A Cookbook"
in Cooking
Posted
Clockwise from top left: a small bowl containing sherry vinegar and honey (subbed instead of the maple syrup), heirloom parsley leaves (from USGM), a mixture of cinnamon and allspice and a bowl containing celery and chopped hazelnuts (with skins). Not shown at extreme left is a pot of boiling water containing a handful of dried cranberries that were being plumped.
Roasted cauliflower and hazelnut salad (page 62 of "Jerusalem")
The salad takes about 35 minutes to make, including prep. Roast some cauliflower, prep the celery and hazelnuts, pick off some parsley leaves, make the dressing; once the cauliflower is done, combine with the celery, parsley leaves, hazelnuts, pomegranate seeds (I subbed dried cranberries that were plumped in boiling water), spices and the dressing; mix well; taste for salt and pepper, then serve.