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CtznCane

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Everything posted by CtznCane

  1. I've bought my grits through Lee Bros. The ones they sell are from the Old Mill of Guilford. I've been very pleased with them. Hoping to find more to try now that we've moved.
  2. CtznCane

    Shrimp Stock

    The shrimp stock is used in the sauce. The shrimp stock is also thickened with a roux and is in combination with the tomatillo/tomato, bell pepper, & Jalapeno mixture. (bacon also) -- The shrimp are added at the very end since they only take a minute or so to cook --- while I love it with grits, I more often do it over rice since my wife is not as keen on grits as a savory dish
  3. CtznCane

    Shrimp Stock

    Another dish I like with shrimp stock is Shrimp & Grits. The recipe I've used is from the Lee Bros cookbook. Rather than their method for making the stock I just use my own. While the dish is Shrimp & Grits I frequently just use rice instead of grits and everyone loves it. I typically save my shrimp shells and then make and freeze a batch of shrimp stock. Personally I like using chicken stock (also home made) as a base which produces a really rich and tasty as well. I haven't tried it yet but I may try some poaching with the shrimp stock as ell.
  4. We just bought a place in Arlington, Ky and I took one of our cars back from Calif and to get some things done before moving in. Had a chance too to drive to Franklin, Tn to see relatives and go to Loveless. I'm sure a lot has been said here before now about Loveless Cafe. I think that is where we use to go when I was a kid as well while on vacation. This time I got to take a cousin there for her birthday. What a great place. The fried chicken was simply the best. Nothing fancy about it other than perfectly cooked, just the right crispness. keeping it simple and doing it right. Great service, great side dishes, it is no wonder that on a Sunday that there is an hour or so wait to get in. As to Prince Pit BBQ. This is a little place in Bardwell, close to where we are in the middle of nowhere. It is also a place featured and written about by Alton Brown in his book about the River Road. I've had a lot of BBQ and I do a fair amount myself but this is simply the best I've ever had, hands down. The Mutton is unbelievable. He's only open Wed thru Sat and the sign for hours says 8 A.M. - Sold out, and he sells out early every day. Being spoiled of having things so close living in the SF bay area, it is nice that when we get all moved in we won't have to go far for the best Q.
  5. We all know that the bottom line for TV is advertising dollars. I watched every episode, usually as it was broadcast and think I had to watch maybe 1 or 2 after the fact having recorded them. As I was reading the other thread on Hell's Kitchen I thought about the advertising dollars. Then I asked myself "who advertised on Hell's Kitchen?" My question is this, who were the adverisers? Which ads, sponsors, products do you remember? I have to admit, I cannot remember 1 single solitary advertiser. How many do you remember?
  6. They had the right final 3 and it came down to an interesting final. Christina does have the youth and potential factor which was the swing point. I must say I can't believe how stupid, yes stupid Matt and Jen were. Matt made a fool out of himelf both personally and professionally. Jen on the other hand just killed her career along with showing what a bitch she could be. If you owned or managed a restaurant, would you ever hire Matt or Jen? I can't see anyone hiring Matt since he is a loose cannon as well as not too talented. I could never see hiring Jen as how can you trust someone who you know, based on past history will sabotage your staff and make people miserable. Hell's Kitchen is on the air for one reason, like all other shows, to get ratings to sell adverisements. I think maybe, from week one on, if not before, that GR had his mind focused on 3 or 4 people while being open to perhaps 1 or 2 others. Aside from that, I think who went and when was largely based on entertainment value. Bottom line, I enjoyed the show and wqtched it, though it brings up another point which I think I'll post in a new thread.
  7. Not too long ago I found a copy of The Modern Art of Chinese Cooking by Barbara Tropp. Personally I think this is a superb book. While the book is nearly 600 pages, the first 100 pages are devoted to technique and equipment. Perhaps I'm wrong, but I think a difficulty with some cookbooks is the assumption that one knows the proper techniques for creating the dish. Beyond this book I just bought 6 more used Chinese cookbooks and have 3 more new ones on oder. I look forward to getting to them, but Barbara Tropps book was certainy one that has helped fuel my desires.
  8. More and more I find myself cooking Chinese food. The other thread on Chinese cookbooks, the "Over the Great Wall" thread and this one have lit that fire in me even more. I spent yesterday morning taking BART over to Chinatown to pick up a couple of sandy pots, extra steamer racks, a new chopping block and more. While I cook chinese food often, my menus (up till now) have not been too varied. I saw this thread and am asking myself "what is Eastern Chinese" cuisine? I don't pay too much attention to the regions, or at least haven't till now, other than knowing Cantonese is to the south and Peking to the North. Szechuan I've never considered in terms of direction. Today I needed to pick-up some Chinese Chives to season a 16" wok I picked up yesterday and in the same shopping center (in Concord, Ca) there is a nice used book store. I was surprised to find as many Chinese cookbooks there as I did. On my last visit there I had picked up Barbara Tropp's "The Modern Art of Chinese Cooking" which I have found to be a really good and useful book. Today I wound up buying 6 books there and there are several more I may go back for. (My wife will have a fit when she finds out I got 6 so I wasn't going to press my luck!) At least one of the books I got does have a section on Eastern Chinse cooking. This is Kenneth Lo's book, "Chinese Regional Cooking." I haven't had a chance to look much at the other books, and don't know if anyone has any feedback on them. "The Key to Chinese Cooking" by Isabelle Chang, "Don't Lick the Chopsticks" by the "Ma" family, "Long-Life Chinese Cookbook" by Madame Wong, ""Far East Cafe" by Joyce Jue, and "The Cooking of China" by Emily Hahn. Looking on-line for books by authors, I also came across a book called "The Classic Food of China" by Yan Kit So. I don't know anything about this book but am intrigued by the fact that I'm seeing the book priced at a low of $58 dollars up to several hundred dollars. Does anyone know what is so special about this book? Is it worth it? Well, off to make some White Cut Chicken and check back here later.
  9. Our exact area of relocation will be around Mayfield. While not a fisherman I plan to take it up and in that regard wonder about the fish to be caught in the region or not too far away. I'm amazed that at the time I write this 106 people had read the initial post but only 1 had any input and nobody has volunteered to answer what "hot browns" or Derby pie is.
  10. My wife and I are planning to move to Western Ky (about 15 miles from the Tn border) towards the end of summer. I was looking at the topic here "louisville" and saw "Hot Browns" mentioned, and "Derby Pie". What are these dishes and what other dishes are spawned out of the South? My Mom was from Ky/Tn and it has been many years since I've been back there. Having been born in San Francisco and growing up in the area here I also have a fondness for Seafood. What fish will I find? What veggies and fruits will I be growing in the garden? Where do the foodies back there go to gather?
  11. The braised rabbit and liver ideas would have been great ones. As for not a main course, someone could have chosen to make Apple Pie and cited American Pie for their movie.
  12. I've always had good luck with any of Martin Yan's recipes as well as Grace Young's. The comment that 'she can't cook' is way out of line, I went to a class she did at Sur La Table a couple of years ago which was great and which has paid dividends many times over for me. I agree with those who've mentioned Mrs Chiang's Szechuan Cookbook also. I'm particularly fond of the recipe for the sweet and sour spare ribs. I have Kenneth Lo's "Top ONe Hundred Chinese Dishes' and have only tried a couple from there but the ones I've tried have been fine. I'll have to keep an eye out to try to find a copy of Pei Mei's book.
  13. I haven't tried any of the recipes from the book yet though I intend to. What I did note was his comment about using wondra for dredging the fish before frying and it helping with providing a crisper crust. I tried that with the fish and chips I make and with other applications and have found with fish it's the way to go and have used that combination successfully with other foods as well.
  14. How fascinating Ketchup/Catsup can be. It is one of those odd condiments some love, some hate, some like on one food but not on another, some swear by it, some swear against it. I'm one of those that likes it on some foods but not on others. I've never been keen on ketchup on a burger or a hotdog. In fact, on a hot dog I consider it sinful. As for french-fries the only way I'll use ketchup is when mixed with worcestershire sauce. This combo is one I like not only for fries, but on ground round as well as with deep fried yucca. As a kid, the main food I would have ketchup on is liver. To hell with the oinons and bacon back then, it was the food ketchup was made for (in order for a kid to eat it.) Ketchup is an extremely popular condiment used in Chinese cooking. Many Chinese dishes use ketchup in the sauce. Speaking of sauces, for making BBQ sauce or as another person mentioned for a nice cocktail sauce with horseradish it is great. I'm another who also likes ketchup on eggs from time to time, especially if it is homemade ketchup. I recently made ketchup from a recipe in Fergus Henderson's "The Whole Beast" that used malt vinegar. I substituted splenda and the recipe turned out great. As for store boughts, I'm another who will stick with Heinz. Perhaps the biggest downside to ketchup is simply our perception of this tasty condiment. What do we typically associate it with? Burgers, hot dogs, and fries are what come to mind for me. Nowadays with fast food chains we are so use to seeing ketchup in a little plastic pouch at a MacDonald's or such. The thought of these little packets gives me shivers of disgust. On the flip-side, if I think of a drive in or going to an old fashioned diner or burger joint I look forward to seeing the bottle of ketchup, and though I will not likely use it, I'll be disappointed and a bit of the ambiance will be gone if it is missing from the table.
  15. There is a recipe for Corncob Wine in the Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook which is a recent book (late 2006 I believe.) It's a simple recipe..and a good cookbook as well.
  16. I too find it depressing to see the high cost of lamb. It isn't so much the high cost of a rack of lamb though as it is the cheaper cuts such as shanks as has been mentioned here. Not to mention sweetbreads. I know this thread is on lamb but the same thing holds just as true for what use to be inexpensive cuts of other meat such as tongue for exmaple. Since lamb though is my most favorite meat it is all the more disheartening. While lamb has always taken a back seat to beef and other meats in the states, as I ponder the cost factor (as well as limited availablity) I wonder just how big an influence it is that our local (even large and good sized speciatly stores) don't really have a butcher any more. All of the supermarkets use to have a butcher shop and now none or virtually none of them do. Even the speciatly butcher shops don't get as much of the animal as they use to. Obviously not having a true butcher shop must be cost effective for the supermarkets. While it is cost effective for them, I wonder just how much that has added to our cost, especially when it comes to the lesser cuts which the stores use to sell for a very good price in order to move them.
  17. CtznCane

    Oxtails

    Oxtails are one of my absolute favorite dishes. It is not a meat that can be 'crisped.' If a good chuck roast is a vehicle for braising then oxtails have to be the filet mignon of braises. I like to use a good rich beef stock along with red wine (and a touch of tomato paste) for my braise. One last minute touch which adds a lot is adding watercress right at the end before serving.
  18. 1. Red Potatoes - Raw. Sitting in front of the TV on a fall afternoon watching football. Peel the potato, have the salt shaker handy to salt it and a cold beer handy along side (Domestic only for this ritual.) It doesn't get any simpler or any better than that. 2. Mashed Potatoes. - Any kind will do as long as you have enough butter. Really enough butter. Tons of butter. Okay, I think that part is clear. 3. Good Potato pancakes. So many more but only limiting it to 3.
  19. CtznCane

    Fresh fava beans

    My favorite fava bean recipe is from Tom Colicchio's "Craft of Cooking'. --- The beans (after blanching and peeling) are warmed in a sauce made of a terragon tea (terragon steeped in water) and pureed favas, finished with butter and then drizzled with olive oil when served. I don't make favas too often basically because they are a lot of work but this dish is truly worth the effort.
  20. My favorite is to cut a pocket and stuff boneless/skinless breasts with a pesto sauce with sun dried tomatoes in the pesto. Then bread them with panko bread crumbs. Sautee partially on each side then finish in a 350 oven. They come out great every time, no sauce needed
  21. Two books I haven't seen listed thusfar which are favorites of mine are 'The Classic Italian Cookbood' by Marcella Hazan and 'The New Orleans Cookbook' by Richard and Rima Collin. Over the years I've found the New Orleans Cookbook to be one of my favorite cookbooks period and use it quite regularly still. Marcella Hazan's book is still great and to this day, if I had to choose just one of my Italian books to keep that would be the one I"d keep. I'm sure it has been mentioned already, but I still on occasion use Juila Child's 'The French Chef Cookbook' on occasion too. Of course, like most people, Joy of Cooking, regardless of the edition, never has lost its lustre.
  22. After an absence I checked back and caught up on all the responses to the thread, so perhaps this post will run a bit long but in response to what a few have said - do not think this thread is at all about "snobbism". I think it relates to the issue of quality. In that I am reminded of the saying found in nearly all faiths..... "If it is 'like' an egg, it is not as good as an egg". If you call it Parmesan or Parmigiano and it doesn't carry the seal of that Consortia di Parmigiano it ain't real Parmesan and it ain't as good!!! _DanielRogov Part of this thread initially was and is about snobism. About condescending attitudes of what is and isn't good. That it isn't parmigianno reggiano doesn't mean it isn't as good or better (totally subjective) only that it is different. In my fridge at all times I have parmigianno regianno and peccorino romano, and usually grana padono and assiago as well. Do I appreciate them? Yes. Are they always what I want? No. Sometimes I like good old Kraft Parmesan (and I don't keep mine in the fridge.) It may not be as complex, as subtle, or melt as well but that does not mean that it isn't good. Do you or others have to like it? No, by all means. Many others though who do not like it condemn it and make disparaging remarks about those who do enjoy it. 60 years! For sixty years, well before real parm became widely commercially available, this was the ONLY alternative for many years for the vast majority of the population of the United States. -AnneCross Being that I'm 54 that puts me in the early years, starting when it was probably little over a decade old, and yes at a time Parmigiano Reggiano was not readily available. Is it cheese? yes. Is it Parmesan? Yes. Is it Parmigiano-Reggiano? No, and it doesn't pretend to be either. Kraft Parmesan has also probably led more of us to be open to going on to the fine Italian cheeses. For me to try to make cabernet sauvignon here in the northern Willamette Valley would not do justice to that vine. There may be many consumers that love it, but it would not be an honest thing to do. That's how I feel about Kraft Parmesan, it's just not an honest product so it should not be used as it only degrades a dish.-Craig Camp How dare you make Pinot Noir in Oregon when we have grown it here first in California and also to make a wine that earlier stemmed from France? Blasphemy I say! --- Honest? Get real. Kraft Parmesan is honest. Is it Italian? No. Does it pretend to be? No. Who are you too to say it 'degrades' a dish? Kraft Parmesan is no more a fraud to cheese than your Pinot is to California or French Pinot (and I do enjoy the Oregon Pinot's.) I do not take offense at your being passionate about your wine or about products from Italy, in fact I embrace your enthusiasm. I am however put off when you hoist yourself so high as to condemn my choices. The point is its very EASY to cook well if you cook good stuff. - Craig Camp Good stuff can be made with Kraft Parmesan and with other products that you feel are inferior. Beef brisket is an inferior cut of beef, does that mean a Texan can't make it melt in your mouth and leave you craving more? No. Maybe too the 'good stuff' or better stuff isn't the flavor I want for the dish. Does that make my choice inferior? No. That's the answer isn't it? There's the real stuff and the imposters. Why should the imposters have the right to use the place-name of the real stuff. At some point there needs to be some respect for authentic producers and at the very least they should have their place-names protected and preserved.- Craig Camp This I think is sheer lunacy. It isn't an imposter, it is what it is. It extends not only here to Parmesan but to other areas such as wine as well. They aren't attempting to rip-off the places name. They are simply identifying a type of product. I'm not saying Kraft is identical, it isn't. Could an America produce a parmesan cheese on a par with that from Italy? Quite possibly, I don't know. Would that make it an imposter? No. Only if it claimed to be from Italy would it be an imposter. The first Port I had was an American Port. Did I learn that port originates from and is primarily attributed to Portugal? Yes. Was I duped? No. In fact, liking it made me find out more and gravitated me towards Portugueese Port. If you want to talk imposters talk of forgers, otherwise (imho) it is overblown. Face it, those with any degree of knowledge or intelligence will know the difference and for those who don't, their opinions on the matter are truly inconsequential. To be against a product like Kraft Parmesan is not sanctimonious, it's just caring about food. - Craig Camp You care about your food and I'll care about mine. It isn't about caring, it is about taste. There is no right or wrong, simply an individuals like or dislike. I may have misinterpreted the topic of this post but I didn't think the point was a debate about making anyone's cooking better, just an appreciation for an admittedly inferior product. To compare putting Syrah into a Pinot Noir and calling it Pinot and Kraft's product and Parmesan is hardly equal. The topic of this post suggests that Kraft is not "Parmesan", which is a given. This type of debate irkes me, because it infers that cheap products are somehow "unworthy". They are out there because they are sold, and used by many, despite differing tastes. A steak is still a steak, whether it's ordered at Sizzler or Peter Luger. I thought the point of the post was admitting a taste for an some what gauche product, and letting it be at that. No one suggested it was "good cooking".-Meridith380 You are right about the topic being, in part, about liking a product that may not be thought of as politically correct amongst food snobs. I expected and desired to hear the negative remarks as well because I think there needs to be more overall acceptance that many things can be good. How good is all up to individual tastes. I think it is right to educate people about the better things (or things we perceive as being better) as well. I for one, strongly take offense though at being told or hearing anyone be told that they are wrong and I feel that happens a lot here and out in the everyday world as well. ----- It is also true that some funky foods are just plain good or taste good. Kraft Parmesan is one of them. I like Kraft Paresan on chilli as well. No way in hell that I'd ever use a high grade Parmigianno there, that would be useless. Also there is the fact that it is a good old comfort food. I'll own up to loving Miracle Whip--next to salt, it's the best thing to put on a fresh ripe tomato--and if you go over to the "Dinner!" thread and go back about 30 pages or so, you will see that I can turn Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Dinner into a thing of beauty. -MarketStEl Try substituting tomoatoes for lime with shots of good tequila. The combination is really nice. Most of us here in the states who are over 30 have grown up by being initiated into the world of Italian style cheeses through good old Kraft Parmesan or something similar. As we've grown older (and hopefully wiser) we've been exposed to more and I for one have enjoyed the new experiences. In other areas I've been a part of the group that has so enthusiastically promoted the new while condemning the old but I've outgrown that type of attiude. I find the condemnation and vehemence much like the overbearing attitude of some of the born agains or other radical (imho) religeous groups. If an Italian from Italy had a problem with me calling it Parmesan I could change my terminology around that person. Same as with Port around one from Portugal or Champagne around a Frenchman (reluctantly) but to have that thrust upon me by someone else raises my dander and brings out the stubborn Swede in me. All of us here on EG, whether we agree or disagree on a topic, I think we all share the desire to both learn from others and share with others and in the process we all grow better. I don't think (in fact I'm certain) we acheive that goal when we put down what others like. One can't validate their own view at the cost of putting down and discrediting someone elses. Only when we acknowledge the others viewpoint (whether we agree or not) can we then try to share something new which we feel (or know in our hearts) is better. This is actually just a simple sales situation (as most everything in life is.) If you have a better product you don't need to beat down the composition, just bring out the positives of yours. When you beat down the competition (in this case Kraft) if anything, to those who like the competition you send the message your product isn't good enough to stand on its own.
  23. Okay, okay, so you're up in arms a bit. Down deep though, for those of us who were kids in the late 50's and 60's, Kraft and Parmesan go together. Kraft Parmesan cheese is darned near as American as Baseball and Hot Dogs. Growing up we only faintly heard about Parmigiano Reggiano, and did not hear of Grana Padano, and Asiago. Romano we were familiar enough with too though since Kraft made Romano cheese as well. Still, to those of hear in the states (and it may still hold true) if you mentioned the word "Parmesan" people thought of Kraft. Fortunately, in the early 70's I learned about Parmigiano Reggiano and I was, for quite awhile cured of my former passion for Kraft Parmesan. Through the years I've learned to enjoy other Italian Cheeses as well as Cheeses from many other places as well. I must say that I thoroughly enjoy these cheeses and appreciate them to no end. Recently, a few months back, perhaps influenced by walking by the display for so long, I found myself looking wantonly at the display of hat jarred Kraft Parmesan Cheese. Maybe it was the updated packaging and not that cardboard like container that looked like a can of Comet that made it so intriguing. Whatever it was, I couldn't resist any longer and I bought a jar. In fact I bought 2 jars. I wasn't sure just how soon I'd use it but I knew I just had to have it. It didn't take me long to make a plate of pasta, just with some garlic and olive oil and annoint it with my Kraft Parmesan. My goodness, what had I been missing? No, it may not be classy, perhaps not politically correct amongs foodies, and certainly offensive to the snobs of the food world who wouldn't consider calling anything American 'parmesan' (of course these same folks get pissy when one calls a sparkling wine a champagne as well) yet for many of us (taking the liberty) Kraft really does, based on our childhoods mean Parmesan cheese to us. Besides that, it still, after all these years tastes good. No, I'm not going to substitute Kraft for Parmigiano Reggiano in my pesto or other Italian dishes but I am going back to using it frequently on spaghetti and other pastas at times. One dish, for which one must use Kraft Parmesan on though is Chilli. That Italian stuff just doesn't stand up to the Kraft on a good bowl of Chilli. Green Bean Casserole, Best Foods Mayo, Tuna Noodle Casserole with crushed potato chip topping, jello salad, and the like. COmfort foods, real foods, foods of our youth. Add to that Kraft Parmesan cheese, when it comes down to those familiar staples, certainly Kraft Parmesan was right up near the top of the list. It's time to admit and own up to our passions, to come out of the closet, throw away our food correctness and say, yeah, think parmesan? Think Kraft.
  24. While my wife is a fan of martini's, I had never had a fancy for them until the late WineSonoma introduced me to the use of orange bitters in the martini. To me this makes all the difference. regardless of whether 3 to 1 or 9 to 1, it's all good once you add the orange bitters and the olives. I mean really, is there such a thing as a bad martini? Not if you use good ingredients. Our gin of choice is Bombay Saphire but I like Beefeaters as well. Sorry to say I don't know that much difference between the vermouths and we usually use Martini & Rossi extra dry. As for the Orange biiters, they are easily ordered on-line, we get ours through Surfa's and have been happy with their service.
  25. CtznCane

    Carneros Vineyards

    A favorite of ours in the Carneros region is Gloria Ferrer. Usually with Gloria Ferrer you see some of there lower end sparkling wine in supermarkets. Their upper end sparklers are extremely nice. What you typically won't see outside of the winery is their pinot noirs. Their pinot noirs are stellar and will hold their own with other top California Pinots. In addition to the wines it is a beautiful winery offering a nice view of the southern part of the Carneros region. You're lucky in your timing, or should be, as the end of September and early October is traditionally our best weather here in NorCal.
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