FrogPrincesse

A flexible measuring device like this ISI 4 cups. Super easy to grip & maneuver.

I know, me too! And the leftovers were even better!

Agreed.

Manhattan with High West American Prairie bourbon, Margerum amaro, Miracle Mile forbidden bitters. I really liked the combo. Usually I prefer rye whiskey in Manhattans but the Margerum "amaro", which is really more like a vermouth with a touch of bitterness, works great with bourbon. The Forbidden bitters add some warmth/fall flavors.

I loved this one which I thought would be similar to the Little Italy, but actually has a different vibe. It's not as bitter and the orange in the Bigallet china-china is a great counterpoint for the Cynar. Really lovely. I used the Jerry Thomas' Own Decanter bitters has they have a very strong clove note. Rock Beats Scissors (Ran Duan via Fred Yarm) with Michter's rye whiskey, Cynar, Bigallet china-china, Jerry Thomas' Own Decanter bitters.

It's fall and a great occasion to make stews again... I had a lamb neck in the freezer that I had bought from a butcher shop and that they had prepared especially for me. I decided to put into good use in a Daube Provençale. The recipe is very straight-forward. First, you brown the meat (I really took my time, making sure that each piece was well browned on all sides). Then you render some lardons that you set aside (I used homecured (non smoked) pork belly). The aromatics go in next: onions, celery, garlic, tomato paste. A white wine is used to deglaze and is reduced. For the braising liquid, I used water mixed with demi glace as I didn't have any stock. The bacon is added back with a carrot, a bouquet garni, and an orange zest, and the stew is cooked over low heat. A couple of hours later...

Haha. That sounds like fun, but I am currently out of (mixing) scotch. Fernet works well with Cynar (cf Eeyore's Requiem and the likes) but it's in a gin base. Fernet and scotch sounds... bold (I've had that combo a couple of times though, and it can work). How about Suze?

Here is a fabulous Brooklyn with Bartender's Choice ratios and Bigallet China-China as the Picon component. I think I like it better than the Picon Biere I had been using. Of course it is three times more expensive (but at least in available in the US), and more than double the alcohol content... Brooklyn with Michter's rye whiskey, Dolin dry vermouth, Bigallet china-china, Luxardo maraschino liqueur.

Rachel Saunders of Blue Chair Fruit making a strawberry, blood orange, and rosemary marmalade.

Here is Christine Ferber telling the story of her jam business (in French), why she decided to stay in her native village, and her future plans. She talks about her rhubarb, raspberry, and wild rose hip jams, and how she goes about creating new jams.

And your drink was...?

They are cute cookies, super easy to make, and the chocolate chip in the middle is like a surprise. I have two cookie monsters in the house and they liked them!

Two-bite one-chip cookies

Now that I have the book, I am wondering what recipe to begin with! It's a very heavy book by the way, square format, over 500 pages. It's a minor detail but I don't care much for the thinner and glossy paper it's printed on. It makes me paranoid that I am going to rip one of the pages if I am not careful. Also the look of the book is a bit plain. I think they could have done a bit better to make it more visually appealing. But again, these are minor details of little importance if the content is good!

This week's dinners (when I remembered to take a picture! ) Monday: a grilled ribeye with an insane cap (about 1/2 the size of the steak), baby potatoes (cooked in the pressure cooker), oven-roasted eggplant. Wednesday: grilled lamb loin chops with chimichurri sauce (April Bloomfield's recipe), baked carrots with thyme, cumin and vermouth (Jamie Oliver; the dry vermouth was substituted for white wine), smashed potatoes with herbes de Provence. Friday: a traditional quiche Lorraine (Anne Willan) served with a red leaf lettuce salad.

Reading Amaro, so I automatically reached for my bottle of Cynar last night. Little Italy (Audrey Saunders) with Rittenhouse rye, Cocchi vermouth di Torino, Cynar, brandied French griotte cherries (and a bit of the (boozy, kirsch-flavored) syrup from the cherries).

I prefer smaller chunks myself, so I just slice the fruit a bit thinner than what she calls for in her recipes. But it really depends on the size of the fruit. If you use small apricots and cut them in half, it works out fine, but if they are large obviously you need to cut them further. Here is a local jam, Waters Catering's Meyer lemon vanilla bean "marmalade". I used the quotation marks because it is runny unlike a traditional marmalade, not jewel-clear, also less caramelized. But you know what, it is delicious. The Meyers lemons are great in there, they are bright, slightly tart, with a flavor that reminds a bit of bergamot and that is anchored by the vanilla.

Haha. I can see that, although being French and somewhat of a purist, I rarely think of mixing fruit with my cheese! But you are right, that sounds pretty great.

And here is the fig & vanilla jam on toasted bread this morning. It is a bit sweet but super flavorful, and the pieces of fig are almost candied. Excellent in small doses. I am going to serve some with foie gras in a few days for a dinner party...

I also made this Fig & Vanilla jam (Christine Ferber). I used black mission figs from Specialty Produce that are local (and organic). I went into the area where they keep all the local produce, and asked someone who works there what fruit was at its peak right now and that is what they recommended. And I wasn't disappointed! From the minute I cut them, I had to fight the urge to eat them all before using them in my jam. I had to go back after the jam was made to buy more so I could eat them as is. The jam set very easily after about 12 minutes of vigorous boiling. At my thermometer it never reached 105C that she says to target, it was closer to 95C but I am pretty sure it will be fine. Day one - preparing the fruit and pre-cooking Day two - cooking and transferring into jars

Here is an interesting documentary about jam (in French), covering its various aspects including an annual jam festival/competition, small-scale artisanal methods (Christine Ferber makes an appearance), and large-scale industrial production.

Christine Ferber's Quince Christmas jelly (with orange, lemon, cardamom, cinnamon). This was a very small test batch with a single pineapple quince. I cooked it briefly (10 minutes, without checking the temperature - I have since watched a couple of her videos and she seems to boil her jams much more vigorously than I do) and it doesn't seem to have completely set (let's call it a "soft set"...), so I am giving it a few days before I try it. I did thoroughly lick the pot however, and it was really delicious then.

You are very brave!

Page 87 - 220 are cocktail recipes (with plenty of full-page pictures). Pages 223 - 233 have a small section on making your own amaro, with four recipes.

My local bookstore had a copy of it, so I was able to resist for about a second and a half... It is a collection of recipes for the most part, but there are some interesting stories interspersed.