FrogPrincesse

OK, so regarding the famous caramelized carrot soup... Attempt #1 was a while ago when I got the book. At the time the errata and various tips were not yet available so I ended up with burnt carrots at the bottom of my pressure cooker. I diligently separated the burnt bits from the rest of the soup but the burnt/bitter taste had contaminated everything, and it was not edible. Attempt #2 was two days ago. I got so much carrots in my CSA recently that I decided to experiment again. I followed the updated instructions, with the butter pre-melted and the cooking time reduced to 25 min. My pressure cooker is the aluminum - venting kind (an antique "SEB") if that makes a difference. After about 20 min the smell mutated from caramelized carrots to burnt caramel and I knew I was in trouble. I opened the lid and sure enough, I got burnt carrots again. A very thick layer of charcoal... Not willing to give up, I proceeded with attempt #3 right away (after scrubbing the pot!). This time I reduced the cooking time to 12 minutes. I did not have carrot juice so I just used water to dilute the soup at the end. Some super-fresh grated ginger (also from my CSA) and fresh thyme for the garnish (next time I will add a slice of duck prosciutto too). Very nice.

One last thing... I was wondering if anyone had a chance to try the cheeses from Andante dairy. Apparently they have been featured at the French Laundry. Since reading an article about its owner Soyound Scanlan in the Art of Eating a few months ago, I've been curious. I wonder if it's worth all the hype. A quick google search tells me that some of her cheeses have been the object of a recall this summer... that's too bad.

I forgot this picture that I took last month. This is a fresh goat cheese that I bought at the farmers' market. I buy from this vendor (Nicolau) regularly. The cheese is similar to homemade ricotta however the goat milk gives it a very distinctive flavor that I love. I made my own version in the past using goat milk from Trader Joe's but I could not taste this special flavor in my cheese. Clearly the fresh milk that he uses makes all the difference. I buy the plain cheese (he has flavored ones too) and add chives that I grow on my patio. Only complaint about this cheese - it's really expensive ($8 or $9 for this little container). But it's great so I splurge every once in a while. He also makes aged cheeses but I so far I prefer this one. There is also a ice cream bar vendor at the farmers' market (Viva Pops) that makes various flavors including a goat cheese and honey pop (with cheese from Nicolau). It's amazing too. Like having cheese and dessert in the same bite.

I've got some cheese to contribute to this thread. At 9 o'clock, a cheese I got at Trader Joe's that they call "Toscano" and that has a rind soaked in Syrah (rind removed in the photo). It's very flavorful and I am now completely addicted. They also have a cinnamon version that I don't care for. Their description is quite accurate: "Creamy Toscano Cheese Soaked in Syrah begins with a cheese that has the nutty flavor of an aged Parmesan and the creamy texture of a farmstead Cheddar". I wonder who makes this. Once again Trader Joe's beats a more "artisanal" cheese that I bought for a much higher price from the cheese shop, in that case the lavender TouVelle from Rogue Creamery at 12 o'clock. The taste was fine, quite mild, dare I say, bland. It's the rubbery texture I really did not care for. In general it seems that Rogue does blue cheeses much better than semi-hard cheeses. At 2 o'clock, a crottin de Chavignol (on country bread from TJ's) smuggled from France by my dad who was visiting. True crottin de Chavignol cannot be purchased in the US as it is made from raw milk and typically aged for less than 60 days. The "imitation" sold under the name crottin de Champcol is not bad but not nearly as flavorful or interesting (it's made with pasteurized milk). I had the pleasure to visit the tiny rural village of Chavignol a while ago in the Sancerre region, and was amazed to see that they had a vending machine selling their famous crottin - great for these late-night cravings! My dad could not find a very aged specimen when he bought the crottin and as a result it got a little wet during transportation, which affected the taste. I will most likely use the remainder for "salade de chèvre chaud". The cheese with the ash rind at 5 o'clock is the same that Dave presented above - Selles-sur-Cher, also one of my favorites. I can see that the one pictured in Dave's photo above does not seem very dry based on the aspect of the wrinkly rind; I prefer mine on the dry to super-dry side. Selles-sur-Cher can be found in the US, however the quality leaves much to be desired. I've been spoiled because I spent a lot of time in the region where this cheese is made when I grew up, and we always bought it directly from the farm. Homecured duck prosciutto at 6 o'clock. My husband thinks that it's weird to have relatively pungent cheeses with cocktails, but I really love it. The cocktail was an aperitif with Campari and I enjoyed the pairing. Obviously the classic pairing with Chavignol would be a nice crisp Sancerre.

Could it be Elizabeth/Panaderia Canadiense?

That was from the introductory section on aperitif wines. Later in the book, under Short Drinks, he has an entry for Kina Lillet drinks: So what does everyone make of this? Was there yet another Lillet product--a vermouth no less--that may have been called for in certain drinks? If we are to believe that Kina Lillet never really changed, is what we are looking for to faithfully re-created old drinks something else entirely? I can't imagine Embury was completely mistaken about this, especially since he cites it as his favorite French vermouth. Surely he knew what he was drinking. Gotta love that he feels that the only way anyone would possess a bottle of Kina Lillet is "by accident." The book on Lillet finally sheds some light on this question. Page 207 it explains that, at some point after 1945, there was indeed another type of Lillet, "Lillet dry type canadien" at 18°. The bottle had a green label similar to Martini extra dry. It was an aperitif based on French vermouths such as Noilly Prat. So clearly David Embury was referring to this French vermouth-style Lillet in the Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (1948). So, when making Embury's drinks calling for "Lillet vermouth", French/dry vermouth should be used.

I like Averna, Montenegro and Cynar. In the aperitif category (are these still considered amari?), I really like Suze and Campari, but am on the fence regarding Aperol (not distinctive enough/too mild). Amer Picon is another good one. I also have Fernet Branca which is ok in small amounts. I keep the Cynar and the Suze in the fridge and the other ones at room temperature, with the logic being the relatively low alcohol content (< 20%).

Last night we had The Business (Sasha Petraske), the lime version of the Bee's Knees. Tart and refreshing.

One the topic of sausages it is extremely bizarre to see a merguez recipe in the book which includes PORK fat. Merguez is always lamb or beef. In the "dry-cured foods" category there is a gem. You see, since moving to the US a while ago, I have not been able to find the equivalent of Saucisson Sec here and have to rely on visits from family or friends to smuggle some for me. So I was quite excited to find a recipe for saucisson sec in the book and have been making it regularly. Again I make large batches. They make excellent gifts and last for a few months in the fridge (I like mine extra-sec). The prep is easy. Pork shoulder and fat are fed into the meat grinder. The texture should be on the coarse side with little pieces of fat still clearly visible (I used the biggest die that came with the Kitchenaid grinder, but something bigger would be even better). The seasonings are just salt and pepper, sugar, garlic and curing salt #2. After the dreaded stuffing process (make sure you have a helper if you are using the Kitchenaid stuffing attachment), they are ready to go in the curing chamber (aka spare fridge) for a month or so. Amazing how fresh pork can transform into this after a few weeks.

Moving on to smoked foods. I believe the only item I've attempted in that category is the maple-cured smoked bacon. For detailed pictures of the process see on my foodblog here. It's good stuff, a little sweet for me. I still have my stovetop smoker that I've been using on my grill for non-charcuterie items (potatoes are a favorite). I need to explore this category a little more but if I remember correctly most items in the book are cold-smoked, which is not easy to do without additional equipment. Sausages Breakfast sausage Inexplicably I don't have any pictures but I really liked these. The ginger-sage combination is excellent. I am not a big breakfast person but this gets me salivating. I need to make another batch soon! As for stuffed sausages, since the sweet Italian sausage I made last year, I haven't had the energy to make them again. It is quite an involved process especially with the Kitchenaid stuffer attachment, and I don't feel that it would make sense for me to buy a dedicated stuffer. I can find excellent sausages locally and I was not crazy about the texture of the ones I made (see the grinding process here and the stuffing here). I did find that they kept very well frozen, so again my advice would be to make a double or triple batch and freeze the leftovers with each sausage individually wrapped in plastic.

I am going through photos of the various items from Charcuterie that I made so far, including a bunch of them from last year's Charcutepalooza challenges. Starting with the salt-cured items... Fresh bacon My advice would be to buy a lot of pork belly - at least 6 pounds, but 10 is better (just double whatever you think you will need). Your butcher will love you and you will end up giving most of it away to friends and family, plus it freezes very well (I slice it and freeze 6 slices in a ziploc bag). Duck Prosciutto This must be one of my favorite recipes from the book so far. It is fantastic with a (large) moulard breast, but any duck breast can do. Mine loses typically 30% weight at the end of the curing process, but I don't weight it anymore, I just judge by feel to determine if it needs further drying. I like to slice it super thin. I've been making this on a regular basis for almost two years now. It's very good on its own as a little pre-dinner snack (with a cocktail of course), or as a garnish for soup (shown here with a root vegetable soup, from the Soup thread). Brined Pork Chops I can't seem find a photo of the finished product, but in any case I found them too salty for my taste. Corned Beef This is something terribly exotic for me, having grown up in France where I had never heard of it. But it took the plunge and loved the result. The meat was extremely moist and flavorful at the end of the process. Once I had cured the corned beef, I used the recipe from Lucques to serve it (more details on the recipe in the Lucques thread). Home-cured sauerkraut No photos as it smelled off at the end of the (long) process with pink slime as a bonus, and I ended up throwing it away.

Another recipe that I have enjoyed recently is the Swiss Chard with Olive Oil. I like the simplicity of the recipe and the big flavor. She boils the stems first (cut into 1- to 2-inch pieces), then adds the leaves, drains them, adds them into a serving bowl where she just dresses them with olive oil and grated fresh garlic that she tosses with her hands, with a squeeze of lemon juice to brighten things up. Full recipe here.

Are these baked in little ramekins? Baked eggs (or, as we call them in French, oeufs en cocotte) are hard to get just right but they are indeed delicious.

Lamb chops with chimichurri Because it is paired with lamb, this chimichurri variation uses mint and parsley (but she suggests other versions as well). Also included are thinly sliced shallots, garlic and habanero. Everything is mixed with olive oil and we wait long enough for the herbs to "get to know each other". The lamb chops are pounded before they are grilled at high heat. They are served topped with the chimichurri (to which a little bit of lemon juice is added at the last minute) and a side of roasted peppers. We also had summer squash from our CSA. You end devouring the chops with your fingers and it's delicious. She demonstrates the recipe here.

A couple of recent Manhattan variations that we enjoyed. Cotton cocktail, which is a perfect Manhattan with orange bitters and a Pernod rinse. Sam Ross' Cobble Hill with rye, dry vermouth, amaro Montenegro and muddled cucumber.

Thanks for doing this! It's always fun to read your adventures.

Odd McIntyre from the Savoy cocktail book (aka Frank Sullivan, Hoop La!): equal parts cognac, Cointreau, Lillet and lemon juice. I was preparing myself for something on the sweet side like a sidecar (especially with the addition of Lillet), but it was crisp and light. A good warm weather drink!

There are good desserts too in the Babbo cookbook. Last weekend I made the Espresso Torrone with Drunken Cherries. It's a frozen nougat made with honey and caramelized sugar, egg whites and whipped cream. The texture is very light, similar to a mousse (semifreddo). I used a local dark avocado honey for an extra boost of flavor. I could not find coffee extract but used extra-strong espresso to flavor the torrone. There is also a little bit of amaretto in there. Making the torrone in the stand mixer. The torrone is frozen for a few hours in the freezer but it retains a soft texture. For the plated dessert, it is topped with dried cherries rehydrated in sweet vermouth with a vanilla bean. Next time I won't reduce the vermouth as much because I ended up with very little sauce (or I will just increase the amount of vermouth!). This was an unexpected flavor combination that was very good - honey + almond + coffee for the torrone, cherries + vermouth. The dessert is very light and I enjoyed the texture of the torrone.

Definitely going to order some bacon (and country ham) from Benton's. I just need to figure out how much!

I made a Benton's Old Fashioned last night with Bulleit rye infused with home-cured bacon fat. Very nice. I think I will try to put my hands on some Benton's bacon soon so I can try the original version and also assess my bacon-making skills!

Last week I tried the Bee Sting, a simple Bee's Knee variation with reposado tequila and a muddled jalapeño slice, lemon juice and honey syrup. Straighforward but hits the mark. It's fresh with a touch of heat.

My husband had a craving for chocolate so I made soft chocolate cakes with Valrhona chocolate. The recipe is here; I've been using it for years. Instead of ramekins, I bake them in muffin tins lined with paper cups. They cook very fast and are ready in less than 10 minutes typically.

So sorry to hear of your loss, Katie.

:-) Perfect!

I tried the Green Hornet variation with Junipero gin last night. It's a good "digestif".