FrogPrincesse

They look great. What's in the middle?

Me too!!! (although rum, tequila, vodka, etc would work too...) Here is a very a propos recipe that St. George distillery just posted on Instagram using their Botanivore gin. I immediately thought of your question when I saw it!

Cannelé from the frozen section. Four in a box, and they already cooked. I warmed it for about 20 min in a warming drawer. It could have used another 5-10 min but was delicious otherwise!

I saw these nice-looking pork chops at Trader Joe's the other day (less than $10 for the pair). I cooked them a la Kenji, 60 min at 60C. Then I browned them in plenty of butter with thyme from the patio and garlic, and served with mashed potatoes and apricot coriander chutney. Very nice meal!

I couldn't resist either. Vegetables + California, plus a few potentially interesting techniques meant that I had to get it! Hopefully I will be able to actually cook from it! I also ordered Richard's Blais new book, So Good, after having a stellar meal at his San Diego restaurant Juniper & Ivy. It's supposed to be geared towards the home cook, and several recipes spoke to me immediately. We shall see!

La Favorite is about $30 for a 1 liter bottle, and is a great choice for a white agricole. I am not sure it's available in SD though. I get mine in Orange County or LA.

I don't keep any spirits in the freezer. I like a little bit of dilution in cocktails. And for spirits enjoyed neat, I find they have more flavor at room temperature.

I don't feel that the pre-sear accomplishes anything. Now I just post-sear to get everything nice and crispy before serving. Duck breasts don't have that much fat to render compared to thighs for example. Sous vide cooking a duck breast renders some juices but doesn't render any fat. You will get a small amount when you sear them, but probably not enough for potatoes.

You realize that there is already an entire discussion about this book, right? It's a great source of info!

I think I went slightly below the 0.5 oz mark for both to be cautious, and it wasn't overwhelmingly sweet. The tequila is super herbal, and so is the Chartreuse, and that was enough to captivate my taste buds. It was a bit like a Margarita & Last Word cross, which was a very cool concept.

PDT's homage to the Last Word, the East Village Athletic Club Cocktail (Jim Meehan, John Deragon, Don Lee) with 1.5 oz Tequila Ocho plata 2014, 0.75 oz lemon juice, 0.5 oz yellow Chartreuse, 0.5 oz Grand Marnier. It's a little more subdued than the original, and the orange flavor from the Grand Marnier is almost like a small nod to a Margarita.

A classic Last Word with 3/4 oz Beefeater London dry gin, 3/4 oz lime juice, 3/4 oz green Chartreuse, 3/4 oz Luxardo maraschino liqueur, and a brandied griotte cherry garnish. I hadn't had one in a while and it just works. The green Chartreuse and maraschino are both super "busy" ingredients but together they work beautifully.

Grassiness is mostly a characteristic of white / unaged rhum agricoles, and is considerably more subtle with the aged ones. Saint James is a good brand, no longer distributed in the US as far as I understand. If I were you, I'd grab a bottle in a hurry!

What makes you say that? I have the Saint James Hors d'Age which is a great example of aged rhum agricole. I imagine the Royal Ambre is in the same vein, younger obviously, so it may work well in cocktails I imagine.

I never tried but would be concerned that the orgeat might separate in an irreversible manner, and that you won't be able to re-homogenize it and get everything back into suspension. The good news is that it keeps for a fairly long time in the fridge. I keep mine under inert gas and am able to keep it for a few months; a little shake before use is all it needs.

.38 Special (Michael Madrusan in Sasha Petraske's Regarding Cocktails) with 2 3/8 oz Glenlivet French oak reserve 15 years, 3/8 oz yellow Chartreuse, 3/8 oz amaro CioCiaro

Bughouse, a tasty Harvard variation via Michael Madrusan and Zara Young's A Spot at the Bar with 2 oz Pierre Ferrand 1840 cognac, 1 oz Cocchi vermouth di Torino, 3 dashes Angostura bitters, dash St. George absinthe

You call it liqueur; does that mean you plan on adding sugar at some point? You could make a banana-flavored rum and I feel that it might be more versatile. I suggested Smith & Cross because a few years ago I taste a wonderful banana-flavored version that one of my bartender friends had made. I will try to see if I can find more details about how it was made. I know it didn't take more than a week and if my memory is correct, he infused banana twice.

Is anybody also participating in the month-long Last Word cocktail party on instagram? I feel this is the new version of Mixology Monday!

It looks like they just released Part 2. That is exciting! The classes begin on May 17. Who else will be joining in? Science & Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science (part 2)

I can picture something delicious with Smith & Cross, if you have it!

Cupcakes! Kids always love them and it's fun decorating them.

Sous vide oxtail ragu. 24 hours @ 82C with diced (canned) tomatoes, onion, carrot, bay leaf, veal demi-glace and water (instead of the beef stock the recipe called for). Here is the oxtail from my favorite butcher shop, from the freezer section. Things going into the sous vide bag (I used purple and yellow carrots hence the unusual color of the shredded carrots). After 24 hours in the bath; hard to tell from the picture but it already looked very promising with a lot of rendered gelatin. The bag was cooled in a ice bath, most of the fat was removed, the meat was separated from the bones and I simmered the resulting sauce for about 30 minutes. This was very good, and I had enough leftovers for another ~ 5 plates of pasta or so. The sauce was wonderfully rich, the kind that coats your mouth and fills it with umami. The meat looks stringy in the pictures but it was completely tender in texture. I absolutely recommend this recipe!

I always put a few (smashed) garlic cloves in the bag when I make chicken confit, and never had any off flavors, only wonderful garlicky flavors!

To clarify, I used the amount of onions and cognac specified in the recipe.