FrogPrincesse

Last night I was looking for something with orgeat and a dark spirit, but not a Mai Tai. And I was not after something like the Japanese or its bourbon cousin, the Attorney Privilege, both very good cocktails when I am in the mood for a sweeter flavor profile. After trying one of Chris McMillians' creation with the End of the Road recently, I tried a cocktail that was named after him, the McMillian which incorporates some of his favorite ingredients: rye, orgeat, curacao, Benedictine, lemon juice, Angostura bitters, and mint. After a mint aroma, the first impression is that this is a strong rye-forward cocktail. It tastes sharp even though there is only a small amount of lemon (I used a Meyer lemon as I was out of regular lemons). It has a strong spice and orange oil finish. Interestingly, the mint blended with the other ingredients to add another layer of flavor, but there was no mint flavor per se. It was perfect for the first day of fall weather in San Diego (rain for the first time in months and 65F today... brrr).

Here was the beer board on a recent visit at Blind Lady Ale House . Started with the Petrus aged pale and the St Louis gueuze. The guy taking our beer order double-checked with me that I was aware that the Petrus was a SOUR beer before he let me order it. I thought it was funny because I love sourness. I could practically drink (and enjoy) vinegar neat. Anyway I digress... The Petrus was indeed sour and dry, and was the perfect way to get my taste buds ready for the meal. The St Louis was nice and tart. The second round was the Stone Enjoy By 10-25-13 and Maredsous triple. The Stone was an intensely piney/hoppy double IPA with crazy aromas. The Maredsous had a deep flavor and was dangerously smooth for 10% ABV. It reminded me of my first time trying a triple with my parents during a trip to Belgium when I was a teenager. Tasted fabulous but I was surprised to find myself a little "light-headed" after just one beer when it was time to stand up and leave the restaurant.

Outstanding food everyone. The game meats on the thread are particularly stunning (hare, pigeon, grouse, ...). Something I really miss here. Prawncrackers- would you mind sharing your recipe for crab linguine? That looks like something I would like to try very soon. Thanks!

Was in the mood for a Martini variant last night so I made an Imperial Cocktail. I recommend it - it's excellent and beautiful too. I used Erik's specs (more or less). Also there were no olives on hand so I cheated and used a tomolive (thoroughly rinsed).

We have not yet explored the duck eggs and only just learned that they were a gift from the husband of the lady who supplies our gorgeous chicken eggs. We are open to suggestions as to how to make the most of this unexpected gift. Duck eggs indeed have a richer taste and a higher yolk to white ratio. I love they sunny side up, on top of asparagus when in season (asparagus Milanese), or on top of a croque madame. Delish!

Rafa- what mezcal did you use? Fidencio Clásico, which has moderate smoke and a lot of jammy fruit on the palate. Thanks. Added to the booze wish list!

Rafa- what mezcal did you use?

rotuts - I just re-read the thread which mostly deals with a comparison of pressure-cooking vs. sous vide rather than traditional techniques. The additional time needed for sous-vide as well as a "lack of nuance", "muddying of taste and texture", and not "produc[ing] the wonderful sauce" are mentioned. So what is the main purpose of sous-vide for stews? It's still not really clear at least to me... Thanks!

Heidi, I prefer to store mine still attached. If the stalk is too big, you can cut it in half. I detach them as I use them. I haven't tried cooking them still on the stalk and the TJ's recipe does not look too promising. I like to do something similar to this recipe (using less oil) where they are fried and served with pancetta, Parmigiano, and a balsamic reduction (which gives a little bit of sweetness but much less than in this crazy-looking TJ recipe). Straight balsamic works too if you don't mind the acidity (I like it actually).

I am currently working on a traditional bourguignon (the meat is marinating in wine as I type) and wondering what the advantage of a sous-vide bourguignon would be? For traditional stews that can be left unattended in the oven (mine will be going at 325F for 3 to 4 hours), I don't really understand what sous vide can improve but I am curious...

Both are very good restaurants and we would (and will) go again to both in the future. Marche Modern is more of a classical type of tasting menu with a strong, not surprising based on the background of the chef, foundation in French cooking (but many influences from around the world). TBL3 on the other site is novel, more unusual, New American cuisine with more unexpected dishes. Marche Modern is perhaps on a one Michelin star level whereas TBL3 competes with the best restaurants in San Francisco and LA and is more on a two Michelin star level. If we would have to choose between both we would pick TBL3 as we in general prefer restaurants who try to push the culinary boundaries. Costwise TBL3 is ~$170 for 12-14 courses and Marche Modern is about $110 for 7-8 courses Thanks. I am in love with the food at Marché Moderne, plus it is really reasonable for the quality that you get, and it's exactly the kind of good that is close to my heart - elevated bistro food, without pretension. I am on the fence regarding Table 3, mostly because I've never spend that kind of money on food ($260 with wine pairings, so that's about $340 a person with tax and service...). But it's very nice to read your review while I debate whether to splurge some day.

Czerquershuus, Thank you for recommending Dan Carlson's Last Caress. It immediately caught my eye because I thought that the rye + maraschino liqueur combo looked promising. It is at the basis of one of my favorite cocktail, the Brooklyn, and many of its variations including another favorite, the Red Hook. The aroma was citrus-forward. On the first sip I tasted the rye with a lot of spice, then a hint of lemon, herbs from the Benedictine, long finish. Overall it felt very smooth and had just a hint of smoke from the mezcal in the background. The rye + Benedictine combination reminded me of the Monte Carlo that I tried a few nights ago. Really good.

There was a previous discussion of powdered egg whites in cocktails here. Some complained about the taste and tendency to clump. Also they have to be rehydrated before use.

Thanks gfweb. Do you have any favorites from the book?

Carré d'agneau à la moutarde 1) Season the rack of lamb with salt and pepper 2) Fry in olive oil and butter 2) Sprinkle with fresh herbs (thyme & rosemary), cover with Dijon mustard and breadcrumbs 3) Roast in the oven @ 375F 4) Rest for 10 min before slicing For the sauce: Throw away the fat from step 1), deglaze with red wine, reduce, add stock (I cheated and used demi-glace), add a smashed garlic clove and a bouquet garni, reduce to coating consistency, strain, add butter before serving. The only tricky part is the cooking time which is highly dependent on the size of the rack of lamb. Mine was quite thick so it took much longer than the 17 minutes recommended in the recipe. I used a meat thermometer to cook to medium rare. The chops look very rare on the left side of the last photo, but it's from the sauce which is bright red. Probably best not to spoon it over the meat unlike what I did. Overall this is a recipe that is quite easy - after maybe 15 min or so of "active time" you can just do something else white the rack is roasting in the oven and later resting. I served it with parboiled rattes potatoes that are roasted under the lamb to catch all the juices and seasoning. Who else is still cooking from this book?

Honkman, Now that you have tried extended tasting menus at George's and Marche Moderne, I would be curious to hear if there was one you liked best? Also price-wise, were they comparable?

Session black lager Slightly smoky, malty, light to medium body, drinks very easily. Saison Rue from the Bruery I can't believe I haven't reviewed this one yet because it is one of my favorite beers. First it has a great orange color. Flavor-wise, it has the perfect combination of spice from the rye and crazy almost fruity flavors (apricot, peach, etc) from the yeast, plus bread-like aromas. It's rich and complex, and very harmonious overall. Providential Belgian-style golden ale from Trader Joe's (brewed by Unibroue) It is actually excellent. Ok, it does not have the complexity of something like Saison Rue but it is still a very enjoyable beer and it's only $6 for the large bottle (about half the price of Saison Rue). Green Flash 30th street pale ale That one was overly bitter for me; not enough other flavors to counterbalance the bitterness. The Bruery Batch 1000 Bryeian The recipe was from the winners of a homebrewing contest. It was a little too busy for me between the intense hop flavor, the dark malts, and the rye.

Agreed - they are wonderful. Also a childhood memory for me because my mom used to buy them when I was little. Honkman - I am pretty sure that I got them at Specialty Produce.

thampik - I read the article this morning and thought too that it was confusing. I am not sure what technique Alessandro Palazzi is referring to. I think that it would be hard to achieve the texture of a Ramos Gin Fizz for example without using an egg white. I've seen gelatin foams mentioned as an option but they don't seem to work as well as egg whites in cocktails. Some cocktails still work without the egg white, but for many classic cocktails the texture created by the egg white is an essential component. Additionally the egg white foam, while not imparting much flavor itself, helps blend the flavors together.

These grilled endives make me salivate... Beautiful! SPAM ALERT - I haven't posted in a while but do enjoy some food in between cocktails... Here are some recent (September) dinners. Zuni kale. I don't particularly like kale and this recipe has you boil it for a long time, so you get the full benefit of the semi-toxic fumes. However this was surprisingly good. The boiled kale is served on a piece of rustic toasted bread that is dipped in the kale broth. There was also some shaved Parmigiano under the duck egg. I will make this again when I get kale in my CSA. Grilled sausages from Siesel's my local butcher shop (veal bratwurst, bourbon sausage), assorted peppers and pink corn from my CSA. Excess corn and leftover grilled vegetables = quick succotash, served with grilled chicken. Salmon and shrimp terrine, homemade mayo, arugula salad. Made the terrine for a potluck picnic which ended up not being a potluck (oops). Plenty of leftovers shared with my thankful neighbors. Home-cured guanciale... ...with a homemade tomato sauce (recipe from Babbo)... ...served with fresh sundried tomato pasta & pecorino, all'Amatriciana. So satisfying. Grilled Korean-style ribs and button mushrooms, white rice. Moules marinières (this time made per Anne Willan's recipe, with a bit of extra white wine for the broth, chives substituted for the parsley). Grilled veal chops, ratte potatoes. Lamb chops from Homegrown Meats, my other local butcher shop... ...grilled scottadito style with a mint rub. I should have bought more! They were succulent.

Another Country Life No. 2, this time with a Buffalo Trace, Smith & Cross, and Dolin rouge combo. 1 1/4 oz bourbon, 3/4 oz Jamaican rum, 1 oz sweet vermouth, 2 dashes Angostura bitters.

Elana posted the roundup for this month's challenge on her blog. After making a few excellent things with Laphroaig last week, I could not resist trying Fred Yarm's entry, the Copper Creel (Laphroaig, Cocchi vermouth di Torino, curaçao, Drambuie). Smoky with a slightly metallic taste, orange and honey.

A Gin Rickey with a muddled plum and Beefeater gin. Great on a hot Saturday afternoon. 1.5 oz gin, 1 oz lime, 1/2 oz simple syrup, and plenty of soda water. It would have been fine without the simple syrup as the plum was sweet already.

I bought a bottle of Siete Leguas tequila añejo and a new bottle of Lillet and knew right away what I wanted to try. Jonny Raglin's Nouveau Carré (añejo tequila, lillet blanc, benedictine, peychaud's bitters), a twist on the Vieux Carre created as an homage to New Orleans after hurricane Katrina. Very good. Lillet makes it light without rendering it sweet. A hint of smoke at the end which is nice.

I haven’t had much luck with Aperol cocktails in general. At best I find them ok but not exactly unforgettable, except for a few exceptions (such as the Paper Plane which I would order again gladly). But many times I found them actually unpleasant. It seems that certain combinations tend to bring out the sweetness and candy-like flavor of Aperol. I think that part of the problem is that I am infatuated with Campari so I cannot help but compare them. But I keep trying*. The other night I was in the mood for Suze and tried the Paper Trail with bourbon, Suze (my substitution – the original calls for Salers), Aperol. On paper it sounded sweet and indeed it was too sweet. I did not have a twist so that was another issue. I added a couple of drops of grapefruit bitters and it became passable. At least it was pretty. *Ok, I admit it. This is mainly an attempt to streamline my liquor cabinet! I am not sure I will restock this one when it’s finally gone.