Sony

I'm going to make a batch of blackberry vinegar! Haven't tried it before, but think it will add a nice splash of summer to winter salads..... http://www.recipezaar.com/172165

Hi all, So, what ended up happening is I didn't get the offal, and the majority of the goat was cut into stew meat (boneless), curry cuts, shoulder/leg roasts or ground. The butcher asked my friend if she was going to consume the organs herself- when she said no, he said he couldn't give them to her because she'd be selling/bartering it (albeit for a VERY reasonable sum). What has ended up in my possession is a package of goat loin chops. Looks like most of the recipes on this thread are for braises, but I'm guessing that this isn't the right thing to do with this cut. (?) Any recipes or suggestions.....at least guidance on how well done this type of cut should be cooked? (up until now, I've only braised goat.) For what it's worth, the flesh looks pale pink- more like veal than the deep red curry cuts I'm used to buying (from what I presume are older animals). Thanks for your help (I hope!)

Hello everyone! I just came across 2 bags of butterscotch chips that are best used by the end of this month. What are you favorite recipes that utilize them? If you could also give me a heads-up about how sweet the finished product is, that would be great! The crowd I run with and myself all have fairly sensitive sweet teeth that are easily overwhelmed. I usually tend to reduce sugar in sweets automatically unless I know the actual recipe is not-so-sweet or that the full amount is essential for the proper result. Thanks!

What kind of element are you using to heat the tortillas (or entire burrito) through? Or are you just putting a filling into a room-temp tortilla?

A friend of mine is going to have a 4-month old pastured goat butchered and asked if there are any "special" cuts I'd like to go in on. Thus far, the only "variety cuts" that have given me pause are: -eyeballs (can't bring myself to do it- I think the texture would make me squick) -lamb liver (think it was from an old animal- one of the only types of liver I haven't liked since I began to enjoy offal) What would you request? I think she's into mostly mainstream cuts, so I'd like to take advantage on this opportunity! What are some hard-to-find cuts of goat that I should try out? (right now, I typically find frozen chunks of bone-in stew meat and not much else.....)

If you have the freeze space, maybe some interesting popsicles. I think they can be sexy.....and depending on the crowd, downright lewd.

Have you tried refrigerating the formed patties for a few hours in the fridge?

I have a question that I figured might be useful/answered on this thread..... I bought some jars to put up some strawberry preserves this weekend. I used Ferber's method of macerating/resting/syrup boiling (oddly, I could not get the temp higher than 218 F, so I have a feeling it'll be runnier that expected....ah well, it's strawberries in syrup, then ) Anyway, I opened up a new set of jars, plunked them in boiling water to sanitize, filled, wiped off the edges, carefully placed on the lid, screwed on the band......and then it occurred to me that the lids are perfectly FLAT- no "button" to check if the seal has been made. I've never seen such a thing before...... So, my question: how do I know if my jars are sealed properly? I'm keeping them in the fridge right now just to be on the safe side.....

The only ingredient that I haven't seen mentioned yet is saffron. Depending on the rest of your menu, it can be part of a sauce, a flavoring for a starchy side like potatoes or risotto...... And if using asparagus, I might consider white asparagus, as it's fussier to grow than green. Good luck treating your friend well and making her feel pampered.

Doesn't that require pancetta, guanciale, or plain ol' bacon? (You see my problem.) ← Nice, sure, but not required. A knob of butter added at the end will give you some of that additional character if that is what you're looking for. In addition, if you are also adding the olives, or even some mushrooms, you probably won't even notice the lack of porky goodness. ← As someone who doesn't partake in porky goodness, greens, garlic, olive oil and chilie flakes are great at dressing up plain pasta. You could put an additional twist on this by tossing in plumped raisins and toasted pinenuts. If your friend is ovo-inclined, an over-easy egg on top of all of this is SO good. A sprinkle of toasted breadcrumbs on top might not hurt, either....

Yay! Thank you for sharing so generously, Marcy....sure you don't want to rename it "sex bread"?

Wow, Peter, that looks AMAZING. Were do you get hardwood veneer from? Plus, cooking time and temp of grill/coals estimated for just cooked through salmon?

Woohoo! Thanks for reporting back, and hope the coming days are just as successful. Stay hydrated and rest as well as you can. Looking forward to the pictures!

I bet you're thinking of grits with red-eye gravy, SobaAddict. Never had it before....but from what I understand, the grits are made in the standard way, and the coffee goes in the gravy made from breakfast meat pan drippings.

I wonder if they are dry scallops (not soaked in preserving solution) that were frozen and then thawed.....the freezing process might have damaged the cells on some level, causing the release of natural liquid. As far as which ones are wetter or drier, I have no idea what your fishmonger is talking about. Different natural salinity, maybe? But would be interested to know if that's true, and if so, why......

I am officially inspired to have greens topped with a poached egg on top for dinner this week. So happy to see you blogging this week! I like how you let us know about how you keep HIV in check.....What you eat looks nothing like the neutropenic diet that I so often think of when it comes to immunocompromised systems. As questionable as extreme versions of it is in terms of effectiveness, was that ever mentioned as a consideration? Can't wait to see more of your inspiring creations.....

I just got water up my nose.....

As happy as I was to see the gastropub team win, I was a little peeved at Antonia continuing to minimalize the depth and complexity of Asian food. I think she said something about the other team opening a "Chinese restaurant"...... Not that there's anything wrong with a Chinese restaurant. But Asia's a whole lot bigger than China, as varied as the cuisine within that country in itself is. The dishes they chose to do had influences from at 3 different Asian countries besides China. She's got a dent in my book because of her perspective (or lack of it). As many of you have expressed, I was also thinking that I wouldn't be surprised by any of the losing team's members to go....though I think I wanted Dale to go the least. I wish he could have risen above the fray. Oh well, more slime and sourness to go..... (Is it just me, or does anyone else wonder (hope) that it's just the show environment/stress/editing that's making some of these characters unlike their genuine selves? I don't like rooting for people to go home....)

Oh my...I don't know if I'm ready to eat it raw, but it would take care of the texture issue, no? Next round, cooked over a really hot flame after a soak in milk so the inside is not cooked too far. Will also hang onto the idea of serving with mint and onion. Thanks- there may be hope after all !

The other day I made an egg sandwich that used a little mint- 2 slices stales bread, toasted and rubbed with garlic, over easy egg sprinkled with hot sauce, and a few pinched basil leaves and mint leaves tucked in. The warmth of the egg and bread slightly wilted the fragrant herbs- SO good!

Oh my goodness Peter....that is one of the most hilarious, adorable thing I've seen in a long time.

Hi everyone! There's not much that I make at home that I find truly disastrous, but maybe I've finally met my match..... Pick up a 1 # package at the farmers' market. I love lamb. I love liver. The lamb liver, not surprisingly, tastes of both. However, it seems like the 2 strong flavors together might be too much for me. I took a few pieces and prepared it simply....dusted in seasoned flour, seared, quick pan sauce with wine, chicken stock, thyme and a tiny bit of chopped garlic. The liver was slightly pink in the center still, though the texture was a little tougher than I'm used to. Help me rescue the remaining liver from exile in my freezer. Suggestions for spicing or cooking method, please?

Congrats on your successful long-term management, RAHiggins! As you previously expressed, this is totally meant for the purpose of having accurate information, not to flame or point fingers: Dietary cholesterol (what you see on nutrition fact labels) is dietary cholesterol. What turns it into HDL, LDL, VLDL, etc. in our bodies is the "package" that the dietary cholesterol comes in- mainly, what else is in that food or what that cholesterol-containing food is eaten with. If that package includes unhealthy saturated fats or trans fats, your body is more likely to turn that dietary cholesterol into artery-clogging LDL. As far as I know, this is why there's been so much back and forth about shrimp and eggs- they are high-cholesterol foods, yes, but in and of themselves, they are still fairly (to very) low in the "packaging" that makes cholesterol especially undesirable to us. Lisa's dietary "packaging" of the shrimp appeared to be fairly benign. More research is being done to tease apart how certain trans fats (e.g. those naturally occuring in animal products, like dairy) or certain saturated fats (e.g. those from plant sources, like coconut oil) are less likely to convert dietary cholesterol into the kind that clogs arteries. For this fine tuning, there is nothing definitive that has come out of research. You see broad US recommendations for people to avoid trans fat and saturated fat because, quite often, the bulk of these nutrients are coming from sources that have known, definitive negative health impacts (e.g. Most trans fat in the American diet comes from artificially produced partially hydrogenated oils, not naturally occuring dairy trans fat. Most saturated fat in American diets is from animal sources, not plant sources). But back to the topic on hand ....I was surprisingly sad to see Andrew leave! At least what I saw from him was exciting, even if his personality was a little tweaky. You could tell how passionate he is about food. I did wonder why the issue of sliding past the rules wasn't more prominent, but I think it's because the primary issue- taste- was already a problem. It seemed to me that during the improv challenge, Lisa and Antonia at least had a dish that tasted good. As a dietetics professional, I was curious where Andrew had studied nutrition......seems like he had some fairly extreme opinions about healthy food (at least in my opinion ). Lisa can get under my skin, but again, she's shown some exciting work (e.g. the pressed, glazed bacon). And sometimes, you just want to see that expression and think to yourself what great wallpaper/screensaver it would make for a workplace computer. Spike.....his slimy ways and uninspired food through the entire competition had me wishing that he got the boot last night. I can't stand when people rely on pushing people down in order to succeed instead of trying to stand on their own good merit.

I like this recipe for Icy Pumpkin Smoothie because it had "fall flavors", but is still refreshing. Soymilk works very well in this recipe, which is a plus for lactose-intolerant folks. Plus, canned pumpkin is a nice shelf-stable addition to add creaminess and nutrition- so long as it is readily available in Japan? Main downside I see is that you'd need room for frozen bananas....or ice if you're just using room-temp bananas. Oh, and I tend to just use pumpkin pie spice instead of the combination......and will sometimes substitute honey if I'm out of maple syrup. http://www.recipezaar.com/192148 Good luck!

First thing that came to mind for me was Filipino chicken adobo. Soy sauce Vinegar Bay Leaf Garlic cloves Peppercorns Chicken Add some rice (or chuck some potatoes into the simmering chicken), plus a simple steamed vegetable, and it's a tasty dinner with less than 10 ingredients!