percyn

Thanks Blether. Actually, the Uni Carbonara is one of the dishes I am planning to make, along with an Uni Custard.

I posted this in the Breakfast thread, though some might like it for dinner, so here goes... Soft Scrambled Egg w/Uni - the subtle sweetness of the cream in the eggs complimented the sea-sweet sea urchins, make it super luxurious. Would make a great amuse bouche or appetizer.

Got some Uni (Sea Urchin) from my local Sushi purveyor. Made Soft Scrambled Eggs w/Uni - creamy, mildly sweet eggs complimented the sea essence of the urchin. Ohhhhh...soooo goood.

Budding cook and entrepreneur - love it!! Jenni, when is the book expected to be published?

On Saturday a couple of friends got together for Battle Spaghetti Squash !!

Margaret, Most of the courses above were quite budget friendly (<$5/serving) or could be made budget friendly with a few modifications while still being true to the spirit of the dish. For a quick weekday meal, the spaghetti squash soup would have been fine without foie gras, duck or 38yr old Bordeaux...just some crusty bread would do it for me. The casserole could be made with just button mushroom or even mushroom soup. The Lasagna with beef or a vegetarian version....you get the idea.

The idea for a Spaghetti squash battle was conceived during an August picnic gathering, when our gracious hostess lamented that she did not know what to do with some seemingly overgrown Spaghetti squash, while giving a tour of her garden. Add a dozen or so food fanatics and an equal amount of wine bottles, shake in some alcohol influenced battle rules such as being able to source ingredients from the local farmers market, with a max of 5 other ingredients and you have battle Spaghetti squash in Chester County PA. Along the way we decided there would be wine pairings. Alas, the squash that started this all perished, though the idea of the battle did not. We simply sourced the squash from the local farmers market and when we bought them all out, proceed to procure them from a local supermarket who also sourced them locally. Contestants cooked all day in some cases and arrived at the predetermined location for final assembly. I wish I had more pictures of the prep and plates/dishes which were setup all throughout the gorgeous kitchen which luckily had sufficient counter space to allow 5-6 cooks and helpers to work efficiently without bumping into each other. Dinner started with a Spaghetti Squash Fritter w/Tomatillo and Homemade Pepper Gelee (almost like a gastrique), paired with Wairau Riesling 2007. The dish was surprisingly light and with a good amount of acid from the Tomatillo and pepper jelly/gelee which went well with the dry Riesling. Next was a Spaghetti Squash and Almond Ravioli w/Fried Sage paired with a Jean Marc Brocard Chablis 2005 - a delicate, well balanced dish which accentuated the mild flavor of the squash. The wine pairing worked very well with this course. Next came a hearty yet luxurious dish of Spaghetti Squash Soup with Foie Gras and Duck Breast, paired with a Chateau Montrose 1970. Our next course was a Casserole of Spaghetti Squash and Mushrooms paired with a Baronnie d'Estouard Vacqueyras 2000, brought back from the vineyard in France - A great dish which achieved a good balance of Shitake and crimi mushroom flavors along with the flavor of the squash. A good way to get your kids to eat it as well. It was around this point that the diners began to feel a bit full, though we were not even half way through the meal....and wines. Spaghetti Squash Lasagna, with Goast Cheese, Free Range Veal and Karabuta Pork Bolognese, was presented in the squash skin and paired with a simple Banfi Chianti Classico Reserva. - This dish was topped with some bread crumbs at the last minute, courtesy of Joey, which gave it a good textural element. Personally, I thought there was a bit too much cheese, but the diners seemed to like it. Continuing with the pork theme, our next course was Roasted Pork Loin w/Spaghetti Squash and Fruit compote, paired with a Panther Creek Pinot Noir, 2004? A strong dish which accentuated the sweetness of the squash and lending just enough acid to pick it up. If the pork was slow roasted or prepared sous vide, this would have been a very hard dish to beat. The fruit compote was well prepared, though the wine must have been getting to my taste buds at this point, as I could not tell whether the fruit was apples, peach or Asian pear (there were other flavors going on besides the fruit). Another strong contender was the Sous Vide Lamb w/Natural Jus and Mediterranean squash w/Olives and Feta, paired with Gloria Ferrer Syrah 2005. Though the lamb was seared prior to serving, the chef would have preferred a blow torch to sear the outside. Lamb was cooked @56C (if I recall) for 45 minutes. The lamb was well cooked and the olives in the acid did bring a nice briny component to the dish. Our last entree for the night was a take on Roti Canai - made to order roti w/curried lamb and spaghetti squash stew, paired with your choice of an ice cold IPA (beer) or a Moet Chandon Sparkling Rose. Unfortunately, in the heat of preparing this dish, I forgot to take a picture of it. Probably for the better was it was not a very pretty dish - just rustic. The spice levels were kept low so as not to overpower the squash and palates. By this point, we must have been eating for 3.5-4 hrs and people were contemplating how they would be able to get through the 3 dessert courses we had. The solution - instead of 3 full desserts, we served a Pre-Dessert and a combined dessert. Pre-Dessert - Spaghetti Squash Halva - similar to a rice pudding, with saffron, almond and topped with dried cranberries. Our final course was Spaghetti Squash and Cashew Muffins w/Squash Amaretto Ice Cream, paired with a Moscato. The ice cream was creamy and went well with the muffins. Unfortunately, I do not have a pic of the martini glass with the ice cream. Somehow, we managed to get through all the courses and wine, but the most amazing element to me was the creativity of the group, enabling us to enjoy dishes which were not merely edible, but rather dishes which you would easily find on the menus of restaurants and gladly pay for them. It was a great night and I once again thank our host, hostess and fellow diners/cooks for a fabulous time (including the post midnight Beatles guitar hero session). Since it is quite likely that I made some error in posting or forgot to mention a key detail, I welcome my fellow diners (particularly the eGullet members) to post on this thread and share their thoughts and encourage those who are not eGullet members to join. Cheers Percy

Jenni, care to share the recipe?

Very nice Peter

Hmmm....I want a couple of those for lunch Menu...

Pancakes, Turkey Sausage, Fried Egg - Blis Bourbon Maple Syrup poured after the picture

Nice meals all. Today, I made Sous Vide Beef w/Lobster and Sauce Américaine - the bits in the sauce are lobster tomale scrambled in at the last minute. Beef was cooked Sous Vide @60C (140F) and then torched for some Mayard reaction effect. Pink throughout Wife's version without the sauce

Lobsters - Before and After Lobster Salad #1 - With melted butter to enjoy the lobster as is Lobster Salad #2 - With a little Mayo, Shallots and Avocado Enjoyed with a 2003 Cakebread Chardonnay

An interpretation of Eggs Benedict

If you go on Fri or the weekend, they also have Hyderabadi Biryani, which is a central Indian specialty, from the city of umm..errr.. Hyderabad.

Beautiful Soba, just beautiful. Jenni - such as accomplished cook at such a young age (boy I feel old)....keep it up!!

PhilA, glad you liked it. With more culinary destinations opening in the Gateway shopping center, I find myself having to make the hard decision of choosing between Taste of India, Five Guys, Baja Fresh(?) and Kebab cafe (though they have been my main destination recently). Try the side salads and lemonade at the Kebab cafe, they are quite good.

Prawn, unfortunately, I cannot take credit for adding truffles and foie to a hot dog, that credit belongs on Hot Doug's in chicago. Here is Friday Night's dinner at StudioKitchen, which I also cannot take credit for, but enjoyed immensely. Here is the chef's StudioKitchen Blog. Cheers Percy

Last night's dinner was fabulous !! A marathon 10 courses celebrating corn. A few of us took pics, including Shola, which I am sure will be on his blog soon, but I will post the ones I have before heading out for the weekend. There were some last minute changes to the menu and I can't seem to find my copy, so will copy the menu from the blog and update it from memory: Chilled Corn Soup . Lemongrass . Ruby Grapefruit . Peeky Toe Crab . Kaffir Lime Gelee - The Kaffir lime gelee was surprisingly delicate and not as overpowering as I had imagined. Silver Queen Ice Cream . Sake Cured Trout Roe . Corn Shortbread . Sorrel - Great combination of creamy, slightly sweet corn ice cream, the saline saltiness of the trout roe. The dish would reach even greater heights by the addition of a crunchy textural element. Scrambled Corn . Santa Barbara Uni . Spicy Yuzu(?) - Luxurious textures and flavors with a kick at the end. Corn Juice Polenta . Ginger . Truffle . Castelmagno Cheese - Another small, yet flavor packed dish. Amazing how the ginger just accentuates the corn flavor. Scallop . Marcona Almond . Corn-Miso . Smoked Hijiki - This was a bowl full of umami. Delicate sweetness of the scallop and corn-miso and the sea essence from the Hijiki or wild Japanese sea vegetable. King Salmon . Matsukate . Onion Sprouts - Super fresh salmon quickly seared to be rare in the middle, over Matsutake mushrooms in a broth with a lot of depth. Cavatelli . Corn Carbonara . Meadow Run Egg . Grated Benton's Ham (and bacon?) - Scallion(?) Cavatelli, just formed creamy egg yolk to cut the smokiness of the Benton's ham and bacon. My palate would have preferred for the yolk to be just a tad more runny - I love runny yolks. Grass Fed Lamb . Shisito-Corn Relish . Yellow Watermelon . Yuzu Kosho - Lamb from D'artagnan, compressed yellow watermelon which had almost a pickled flavor. I am not a fan of watermelon, but I loved this. Epoisses-Corn "Yoghurt" . Caramel Corn . Corn Shoots - Amazing flavor combination of funky cheese with soothing corn yoghurt and the crunch from the corn pops. Corn Bread "Perdu" . Sweet Corn Sorbet . Chocolate . Orange Liquid + Crispy - After this elaborate meal, I was glad to see a light dessert and a super refreshing corn sorbet, which embodied the taste of raw corn. The flavor and textures of this dish made it one of the highlights of the evening. Unfortunately, I was not taking taking wine notes and there was a lot of wine which was enjoyed by all, so I hope my fellow dining companions comment on the wines we consumed.

I'd be there if I wasn't going to the shore this weekend. Based on their blog and a StudioKitchen collaboration dinner, I certainly want to have an opportunity to try their new place out.

Having returned from Chicago last week, I was inspired by Hot Doug's to make... Foie Gras and Truffle Hot Dog on buttered bun. Too bad I did not have some duck fat fries to go with it

Over the long weekend, I made... Fried Egg w/Pâté de Campagne (French Country Pate) and a slice of Walnut Gouda and Fried Egg w/Turkey Sausage and Pancakes, topped with Blis Bourbon Maple Syrup Yuuuummmmm

and where in Lancaster, or vicinity, is the best place to get that Amish fix? ← If you take some back roads (Rt 340 West to Lancaster), you will pass Intercourse and Bird-in-hand, where you will find the Amish Barn and other similar places such as Plain & Fancy and Hershey Farm (not to be confused with Hershey Park). ETA : A little more planning and you might be able to get an Authentic Amish Homecooked Meal. Another PA Dutch Resource. Note: Don't be surprised by how commercialized some Amish places can be. It seems like the Amish have more websites than most local businesses

Thanks! It's one of those dishes which you are unlikely to find anywhere and has a very unique (maybe even acquired flavor). Haven't been posting much for the past week since I am in Chicago doing my fair share of eating, though not cooking.

About 10yrs-15yrs ago there used to be a place called Bukhara, on State and Ontario, I think. Anyone know what happened to that restaurant? Did it relocate? Where is the chef?