Carrot Top

The book is 'The Classic Cuisine of the Italian Jews' by Edda Servi Machlin. It was set in Pitigliano, not Rome.... And thanks to both Pan and Gifted Gourmet for helping me remember (in another thread) the name of that wonderful book....! Amazon has it in stock...

I have searched on-line and can't find it. Will look when I toddle over to the bookstore or library later, but that won't do any good with a recipe for 'today'! This particular recipe came from a book on Jewish cuisine in the Roman ghetto. I daresay you don't have time to stop and read a recipe the way you're rolling along there, anyway! Salmon...is good however it is cooked!

I read this last night and tried to respond...but ran right up against a mountain. It was a mountain of thought that I ran up against, and it was not surpassable. What did I atone for?...I reached for humorous or interesting ideas but this particular one kept slamming into my mind. This morning, I've been able to go around the mountain and think of smaller lighter things, and will tell you what they are... and will also show you the mountain. The mountain was the thought that as I mow through the aisles of the grocery stores, loading my cart with this and that, assessing thousands of possibilities and having the means to do so and the plastic card to whirr through the POS machine at the cashier station that magically allows me to pay and walk out with overloaded bags....there are so many, too many others that can not do this. The mountain was the thought that as I tucked my children into bed, laughingly talking them out of one last cookie or carrot stick or drink or whatever....that there were others in the world with empty cupboards that were trying to soothe their own children to sleep, children that were raw and tired and worn and hopeless from hunger. So, I atone for the sin of not remembering this each day, and trying to do something, no matter how small, about it each day. The morning has brought these additional atonements: For the sin of calling any sort of food 'drek' For the sin of allowing my daughter to become addicted to individually wrapped Kraft American Cheese Slices For the sin of letting myself be talked into buying the jumbo size box of 'Oatmeal Cream Cakes' at the grocery store last week, and then lunging into the thing at every opportunity to eat another 600 calorie cookie with the resultant feeling of overstuffed sugary sickness For the sin of setting the cat's food outside where the possum thought it was his and thought the cat was his to eat, too And for the major sin of not keeping 'on topic' all the time on eGullet threads For these and many other sins, I do ask atonement.

That Tesco looks clean and well organized. I have to admit to something...whenever I have to travel through London, if there is enough time between planes, I hop onto the Underground to the closest stop, run out and find a place to find canned dog food to buy and take home. Much better flavors than we have here, I think. But anyway, on to People food. You've got me flummoxed as far as a recipe for the sweet and sour salmon. I know there isn't one in any of the books I now own (have given away many books over the years due to moving house too frequently). I do remember that it was poached in white wine, with onions, carrots, and raisins. Very gently sweet and sour. Hopefully Gifted Gourmet or bloviatrix will check into the blog and have a recipe for this? They have excellent collections and resources....

Oh, dear, Nullo Modo...I didn't mean to imply 'low-brow'. But when I see young children unwilling to taste a carrot without ranch dip, or an apple slice without caramel dip...it worries me...both in terms of whether they will ever want to approach the taste of something that comes from the earth 'au naturelle' without something else from a jar poured over it....and also, the idea of children becoming accustomed to the sort of quick-satisfaction mouth and tummy-feelings that come from the additions of fatty or sugary toppings to everything they eat, concerns me. Ranch is wonderful but addictive and can layer on the pounds just too darn quickly without anyone even really noticing they are doing it.

Here is one that makes me sort of blink several times and feel several emotions that I will not describe: There seems to be a burgeoning adoration of 'Ranch Dressing' by elementary school age children. The latest twist on this that's been reported to me by my daughter (in our fun ongoing discussions of eating habits at school lunchtimes) is: No, I can't say it. Okay... Pizza.....Pepperoni Pizza......dipped in Ranch Dressing while eating it.

You would have to purposely screw something up and take a photo of it, with an aghast look on your face and your arms flung in the air...to receive any suggestions on improving the cooking, methinks. I have occasionally wondered if some of the people on eGullet are actually creations of FatGuy's or jhlurie's imaginations....carefully crafted personalities with either marvelous or terrible cooking 'attitudes'....designed to incite interest or jealousy or admiration.....you would be in this category of characters...for really, I don't personally know anyone who bakes like that and can then take such photos of it, too... But I'll try in a minor way to discuss the cooking, as you asked. I've never had a bread that included chocolate that rose well, either. One wonders whether it is the sugar that is inhibiting the process or perhaps the cocoa butter? I just bought 'What Einstein Told His Cook' (lent out my copy of Harold McGee awhile ago and never got it back...). Will wander through the book to see if it says anything. Thank you for the excuse to lie around reading today.... How will you cook the salmon? Are you still aiming for a theme of what seems to be updated versions of traditional Jewish food? I love the sweet and sour salmon recipe....particularly the Italian version of it from the original historic Roman ghettos. We'll all hope for a sunny day for the party!

Um, hmm. Wise words. You certainly have the capabilities to turn the tables on them and invite them to a lunch that you have prepared....tit for tat....wonder what they would/could do for you then. A good bottle of wine is always helpful, and have a contract ready for them to sign. A pleasant fantasy, anyway.... Soba, a banetton is a basket which bread dough is placed into during its final rise....traditionally made of rush...basket material...but now found also in ceramic and other materials. It helps create the final shape and 'look' of the loaf...

Anyone who has mistakenly hit or even bumped a deer with their vehicle, knows that makes for nothing but an expensive repair to the car. Gosh, this isn't really about Road Kill, it's about a subject (the preparation and cooking of unusual sorts of wild game, which is quite traditional in rural areas of West Virginia among other states) being approached in a humorous, creative manner. It's about making a silk purse from a sow's ear. I would love to go to the festival, might try to do it this year. Some of the recipes sound really good if one does not approach them with a prejudiced attitude....I am sure the crowd attending will be both knowledgeable and fun to be around. Of course, if nothing suits to taste, there is always the Greenbrier Resort up the road a piece (also in West Virginia) to visit for dinner...one might find rabbit or venison on the menu there too but you'd have to dress up right to walk in to sit down for dinner....

Ouch, guys. As a former Executive Chef for a major investment bank, I can assure you that there are many places that don't serve that sort of drek...if the person ordering the meal does not request that sort of drek on the table. But on with the blog...I just had to spout that out.

I feel a thirst coming on. Nice writes. And it is coming to mind to wonder, too, since so many things Southern obviously are fueled by Coke, whether the musical drawl of the lingo is caused by consuming the beverage, also. We'll never know, though, will we. Who would stop drinking it long enough to bother conducting such a silly study....

Hmmm. Was that a professorial tactic to say you had no recipe and to send me off to hunt one up? It worked. Here's a recipe for Tourte aux Blettes....very very loosely phrased from a book on my shelves, Williams-Sonoma 'Savoring Provence'. It is not exactly the one I used to make...that one had olive oil in the pastry dough and salt pork in the body of the pie. Not kosher. Tourte aux Blettes: for one (11" round) tart Preheat oven to 400 F. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One (double) recipe rich shortcrust pastry made with butter, egg yolk, and sugar in the dough. 1/2 C brown sugar 2 eggs 2 T golden raisins, soaked in...3 T dark rum 1/4 C pine nuts Black pepper to taste 2 T marc, brandy, or kirsch 1 T olive oil 8 leaves swiss chard, stems removed, leaves coarsely shredded 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled cored and sliced 1/4" thick 1 egg beaten with 1 T milk 1. Blend brown sugar and eggs together well in large bowl. 2. Drain raisins, reserve rum. 3. Add raisins, pine nuts, black pepper, marc and olive oil to egg/sugar mix in bowl and blend together well. 4. Add chard, stir well. 5. Line tart pan with removable bottom with half the pastry dough. 6. Fill with half the chard mixture then top with half the apples. 7. Repeat step 6. 8. Drizzle with reserved rum. 9. Top with remaining pastry, tuck up nicely, decorate with snippets if you like. 10. Brush with egg/milk mixture. Prick with fork to allow steam to escape. 11. Bake 45 to 50 minutes till golden brown. 12. Cool on rack, remove from pan. Serve warm or at room temperature, sliced into wedges. There you have it!

Why, both, of course, Toliver! And if they happen to be the same, that's okay too....

It has been said (not by me, no, not by me) that some men are good to have around the house for one thing only. That thing is.... Opening a recalcitrant..I mean stuck closed...jar. But what can one do if you don't happen to keep a man folded up ready in your silverware drawer for just this useful purpose? How many ways can eGulleters come up with for opening a jar? Tell us....

Sigh. Beautiful photos.... I haven't made tourte blette in years...but the recipe I used was perhaps Provencal. Will try to hunt it up tomorrow.

That's a tough one. How about a block party where everyone brings something they ended up having to use up quick? Good for the soul as well as for the practicalities.

He sounds like a good, hardworking individual that knows opportunity when it presents itself. I know many people who would not want to be caught in a hurricane without a paper bag of okra clutched in their hand. It is the only thing that can save us....isn't it, Mayhaw Man...

Do you add apples to your Tourte Blette? Would love to see your recipe...when there might be time to type it out....I don't think many cooks have made this, and it is unusual and good! (Besides being very healthy, too...)

Seriously, if you are talking specifically about taco trucks in DC...I wonder if it is the 'surprise quotient' that's engendering the sort of response you described. There are not that very many there, are there? (I could be wrong). So when someone does run across one, it's like finding a treasure. Sort of like the way kids feel about the (now-too-rare) ice cream trucks that used to come through the neighborhoods, ringing their bells...a happy seredipitous happening! This could be a good subject for an article or book of photos and interviews (of the truck owner/operators), really...'Taco Trucks of DC'...

chromedome's response to this is naturally the ideal one for chefs to think of doing! But one that is a privelege...that perhaps only independent chef/owners can make. Reputation is vital, and if one can do this and keep customers and maintain reputation, well! A nice thing, yes....yes, indeed-y! But many chefs do not have this option. I can think of two circumstances immediately, in particular. In catering or in personal cheff'ing or as a private chef, the client has placed an order that you as chef have agreed to comply to. In catering or personal cheff'ing, if you say "I won't do this"...it is likely that someone else will get the job. Lots of catering businesses can not afford to turn down almost any job that pays what they ask...competition is too great. As a Personal Chef, the same situation applies. Even moreso as a Private Chef, for then you are being paid to cater specifically to the client's desires. The largest chunk of time in my own career was spent working with the situation of feeding (initially as working chef then executive chef) then caring for (as in front-of-house management and finally overall operations) a group of extremely wealthy, powerful people that used their time over the dining table to do billion-dollar deals daily. The mission of the investment bank I worked for was to provide top-quality creative solutions in a heartbeat to their clients. Therefore it was my mission also. Anything that could or would make the guests happy was aimed for, within reason and sometimes without reason...for people do like to play power games. It takes a lot of getting used to providing this type of service. You run, you stretch yourself in ways emotional and intellectual, to make the experience of the guest not only 'good' but stellar and also personally warming in some way. Lest the thought come to mind that this is an exclusive situation and that therefore this way of doing things is only applicable to the money and power crowd, I find I must beg to disagree. There are two ways (at least) of looking at the act of putting food on the table for someone. Neither is right nor wrong in my opinion. The first is food-centered, kitchen-centered, chef-centered. The food stands above all, the chef's creative abilities, technical skills and talents stand above all...and anyone who doesn't like it can go elsewhere. The second is people-centered....it is about making the person dining, in any way possible, extremely pleased, happy, content, and cared for. It is a closely focused service that requires study and care of who is at table, and respect for that person's wishes no matter how they may vary from one's own ideas and tastes. This can be done at home even in the most reduced of circumstances as well as it can be done with a huge budget and staff. My personal philosophy is that food is a way of caring for people...a small bit of kindness, respect, or love that can be done on a daily basis...so my own way leans towards the second way. Sorry to go on so...I love this question and am deeply fascinated by the psychology and philosophies of everything surrounding the ways we eat and feed others. P.S. As I posted this I realized the subject had moved from specifically pastry to a more general discussion of cooking...it is true that many pastry chefs can not re-do whatever it is they have made without ruining it, even if they wanted to...so some of this discussion would not 'work' for their situations...

Your home looks like a veritable paradise of food...both 'on the vine' and 'in the pot'. Gorgeous photos, nice ideas. A joyous and prosperous New Year to you and yours, also.

You could use up a dozen quickly by separating, freezing the whites (in ice cube trays to keep them individual) then making zabaione with the yolks. If you substituted a slightly-watered down fruit-flavored syrup (not sure whether you have Japanese fruit syrups? but the Italian ones would do) rather than using Marsala, the children would probably like this too...

:laugh: It's gonna take me a while to think of an answer to your answer, Mr. Rocks. In the meanwhile, I will visit the California board as advised to more fully educate myself.

I don't know...I've never seen one....hmmmm. A taco truck? Do you have a picture? And tell us...why is this taco truck making you so angry, DonRocks?

Often in professional cooking one is faced with this 'problem', unless you've reached the point where everyone around you is pleased to eat exactly what you choose (i.e. celebrity chef type and not even then, really...). We all have food likes and dislikes and some very intense ones. You can taste it in your mind, if that way works well for you... But bottom-line, we have to rely on our audiences. They, are who we cook for...so as an aspiring writer must find a trusted 'reader' who can comment in a good objective caring manner...a chef must find a trusted taster! Shouldn't be too difficult, huh? Not to downplay the problem, for having the right mood or not in cooking certainly can affect the final taste of things in an unmeasureable way...