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FrogPrincesse

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Posts posted by FrogPrincesse

  1. I made the Impostor Al Pastor for a gathering and they were pretty outstanding. My modifications were to use pineapple vinegar instead of apple cider vinegar in the marinade, and, more importantly, to do all the cooking in a cast iron skillet on the grill (following the recipe, cooking in a pan on the stove, it started to stick and burn very rapidly. Moving this outdoors reduced the "mess" considerably.). With that technique, I was really happy with the results! It is absolutely delicious. As a side note, this was my first time cooking a Mexican dish and won't be my last, for sure! :)

     

     

     

    Importor al pastor

     

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  2. I made the beef chilli fry with pancetta on Monday. It had a great flavor but lots of issues. First it took much longer than described in the recipe, and I wasn't planning to spend that long on a weeknight (almost 2 hours, beginning to end). It was also quite dry.

    I should have followed my instincts and stayed away. The first paragraph of the recipe instructs you to dice potatoes and fry them with rendered pancetta until "crispy". Guess what happens when you put cubes of raw potatoes in a pan - they stick and all the browning ends up on the pan rather than on the surface of the potato (I added extra fat (duck) to try to help, to no avail). It took easily 45 minutes to cook the diced potatoes, and there was no browning on them (but my pan had to be regularly scraped because it was sticking like crazy). Next time I would do this step in the oven after rinsing the diced potatoes to get rid of the starch, which is my usual procedure. The onions could have used some extra cooking, I went longer than the 5 minutes from the recipe, but still it wasn't sufficient to have a result that looked anything like the picture. Lastly, I didn't love the fact that the chillies were only added as a garnish, sprinkled on top, although I liked the freshness that fresh cilantro brought to the dish. Again, great flavors (loved the spice combination), but the recipe would need a lot of tweaks to work properly!

     

    beef chilli fry with pancetta

     

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  3. 22 hours ago, rotuts said:

     

    what is pointy cage ?

     

    the only thing I can think about is potty raddicio ?

    Here is the pointy (“conehead”) cabbage we get locally. Tasty stuff! I like that it’s a smaller sized cabbage (I love cabbage and all vegetables, but the other members of my household aren’t especially fond of it).

     

    https://www.specialtyproduce.com/produce/Conehead_Cabbage_4381.php#:~:text=Conehead cabbage is indeed cone,is most reminiscent of cabbage.

     

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  4. A few weeks ago I happened to have all the necessary ingredients for the baked sweet potatoes with maple creme fraiche that @blue_dolphin posted about upthread. I wasn't sure I would like the dish with its unusual mix of ingredients (maple syrup, creme fraiche, and fish sauce?) and potential to be overly sweet, but I liked the final flavor and creativity of the dish. The maple syrup and butter enhance the flavor of the sweet potato while the creme fraiche, lime and scallions counteract its sweetness. The umami from the fish sauce made the dressing very crave-worthy. The nuts (I used marcona almonds) were great for texture. The dish needs a lot of small touches to get to its end result, which is very balanced and interesting. I am not sure I would make it again, but I am glad I tried it! 🙂

     

    baked sweet potatoes with maple creme fraiche

     

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  5. 1 minute ago, blue_dolphin said:

    Coincidentally, I have that book sitting next to me as I read your post. I'm getting black cod in my fish share today and was looking at the recipe for it with endive & hazelnuts as a way out of my miso-marinated black cod rut!  

    Black cod, you are lucky! :) It's not something I see very often in the stores.

  6. Thank you @blue_dolphin for keeping this thread alive. This book is really a gem, there are so many delicious and creative recipes!

     

    It doesn't look that I have posted about the wild salmon à la Lutèce with sweet corn, green cabbage, and brown butter vinaigrette, although I have made it a few times previously. On paper, I wasn't sure about the salmon-bacon combination (the bacon appears in the batter, and also as lardons with the veggies). But it's actually a clever way to accentuate the rich flavor of the fish, and an interesting twist on surf and turf! The recipe originates from one of Suzanne Goin's culinary "heroes", chef André Soltner who grew up in Alsace, France. His original recipe was published in the Lutèce cookbook under the simple name "salmon with bacon" (darne de saumon au lard) (I don't have access to the recipe and would be curious to compare the inspiration to chef Goin's version!).

     

    The batter consists of sautéed diced bacon blitzed in food processor with milk and an egg; I coated the salmon with (panko) breadcrumbs post-dip in the batter instead of adding them to the batter as I find that easier (otherwise you end up with a very wet batter that doesn't adhere well to the fish). Corn isn't in season so I used the cabbage on its own (I used red Napa). The salmon is placed on its cabbage bed and the whole thing is topped with a little bit of brown butter vinaigrette with diced onion, and fresh parsley. It was really glorious, especially with the sushi-grade salmon I used, and everything was rapidly devoured!

     

    Salmon à la Lutèce with cabbage and brown butter vinaigrette

     

     

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  7. Salad with radicchio, fresh goat cheese (purple haze from Cypress Grove, with fennel pollen and lavender), hazelnuts, with an almond oil and sherry vinegar dressing. I really enjoyed this! This radicchio variety is crunchy and not overly bitter. 

     

    Salad with bitter lettuce, fresh goal cheese (purple haze from Cypress Grove, with fennel pollen and lavender), and hazelnuts with an almond oil and sherry vinegar dressing

     

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  8. I wanted to make an omelette for breakfast yesterday, so I finally tried the Crispy Kimchi and Cheddar Omelette from Dining In. I used a locally-made kimchi. The contrast between the creamy rich eggs & cheese and the sharp acidic bite of the kimchi was nice. All that being said, it is a very basic recipe. 

     

    Local kimchi

     

    Crispy Kimchi and Cheddar Omelette from Dining In

     

    53552004466_ddcd7f9399_b.jpg

     

    Crispy Kimchi and Cheddar Omelette

     

     

    A thought for Anna who is missed by many of us.

     

    On 7/29/2018 at 5:37 AM, Anna N said:

    Good morning. It’s sunny and 19°C with a forecast high of 24°C, but there are showers in the forecast.  For now it is blue skies and sunshine.

     

     

    6938CAFD-7E05-43FB-A808-AB11C2964CF0.thumb.jpeg.6ab940e751bc8b2beed232941c8e75f3.jpegBreakfast this morning is a Crispy Kimchi  and Cheddar Omelet from the book Dining In which I bought yesterday. (If I were to be truly open and honest I would admit here that when I got home I found I owned both books in Kindle editions.) :$

     

    But for anyone interested, the recipe is available on-line on the Food52 site.  Just ignore the typo that says “serves 4”.  

     

    Kerry is back on call today so, as always,  anything could happen. 

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  9. Posting this one here as well, even though it's from her latest book, Sweet Enough.

     

    Crunchy cholate shortbread. I followed the recipe as written, just skipped the sprinkle of flaky salt on top because that's not my thing. I used (light brown) coconut palm sugar which added a subtle caramelized flavor. The chocolate was macondo 60% from Luker, and the nuts hazelnuts.

     

    Crunchy cholate shortbread

     

    These cookies are absolutely terrific: great texture (buttery, slightly sandy), interesting flavor (with the touch of salt, the chocolate chunks, the nuts, the crunchy outside demerara sugar layer). I am usually not a cookie person, especially not American cookies which I almost always find unbearably sweet. But I really enjoyed these, and found myself craving them with a shot of espresso. My family gave them their seal of approval as well. 😄

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  10. Here is a basic question. I read recipes where people use parmesan rind as a source of umami in recipes (for broths, soups, etc) and it's always seemed like a great idea. However, I've tasted the rind of the slices of parmigiano reggiano that I get at Trader Joe's (usually the stravecchio kind), and they taste quite moldy to me, so I toss them away. But maybe that is the normal taste of the rind when it's uncooked? Just thought I'd ask. 😄

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  11. This one is from Nothing Fancy, her second book: one-pot chicken with dates and caramelized lemon. It's a pretty standard braise - you brown the chicken in olive oil (I used chicken parts / legs rather than a whole chicken as this was a week night and time was limited). Then you set the chicken aside and brown lemon slices and shallots (love shallots) in the same pot which now contains chicken fat. The lemon slices are the genius part of the recipe here - they deglaze the pot and later add delicious flavors during the braise (a bit like lemon confit but it all happens in the pot). Add dates (I used local medjools that I had forgotten in the fridge), fresh thyme, water. Sprinkle with urfa chile (never heard of this but am intrigued; I used aleppo instead). Then it goes into the oven. 

    About an hour later...

     

    53526125197_28f8c7caaf_b.jpg

     

    This was simple and totally delicious. I could not get enough of the chicken, lemon, and date combo, and the juices are just lovely. Lemon and chicken has always been a favorite, and the dates add another dimension. I have added this recipe to my favorite recipes! :)

     

     

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  12. Crêpes! Savory (traditional "crêpe complete" with ham, egg, and cheese) and sweet (granulated sugar; honey and lemon; nutella and whipped cream; granulated sugar with a touch of calvados and topped with whipped cream (to die for)).

     

    Crêpes jambon, oeuf, fromage

     

    Crêpes: sucre, Calvados, creme chantilly

     

    As a side note, somebody please tell Kenji that crêpes are supposed to be browned (the blender technique he has on Serious Eats is great - I use it with the crepe batter recipe from Anne Willan - but his crêpes are undercooked!).

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  13. 1 hour ago, Smithy said:

     

    I'd love to talk about it! Is this still the recipe and process you use? Got any updates? I'd be up for trying it again.

     

    Also, I'll be in Trader Joe's country in a few weeks. I'll see if I can find some there.

    That’s the process. Use the freshest whole milk you can find. Fresh ricotta is delicious- on toast, on pasta, on its own! With a drizzle of olive oil, herbs, etc.

    The Trader Joe’s version tastes very much like homemade, so I recommend it as well!

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  14. 5 hours ago, Smithy said:

     

    Thanks for that. I tried making ricotta once and was unimpressed...but thinking back on it, I haven't usually been impressed with store-bought ricotta, either!

    We need to talk about ricotta. Fresh, homemade ricotta is wonderful! And super versatile. Regarding store-bought, the one from Trader Joe’s is surprisingly good as well!

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  15. I had a bunch of broccolini in my Specialty Produce farmer's market box the other day, so I made the roasted broccolini and lemon with crispy parmesan. It's super simple: mix the broccolini with lemon slices, smashed garlic cloves, and olive oil; season with salt & pepper and top with plenty of grated parmesan. Cook for 15 min in the oven at 425F, and add a squeeze of lemon juice before serving.

     

    It was really tasty! It helped that the broccolini was super fresh. I am going to make it again tonight with sprouting cauliflower.

     

    Roasted baby broccoli and lemon with crispy Parmesan from Dining In by Alison Roman

     

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  16. 2 hours ago, lindag said:

    Just this morning I saw an item on the ATK website suggesting they be wrapped in a damp paper towel and stored in a ziploc bag.  I'm heading to the kitchen now to prepare my thyme, cilantro and parsley just like that.  I'll report back on how long each of them last.

    That’s what I do for leafy herbs, and it works quite well. Just make sure to keep the paper towel damp (not too wet), rewet or replace if needed every few days, discarding any past-their-prime leaves. I do this for heads of lettuce as well (little gems etc). More robust herbs such as rosemary or thyme don’t need the moisture; I just store them in a plastic bag in the fridge and they eventually dry out after a while but that’s fine.

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