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Jamie Lee

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Everything posted by Jamie Lee

  1. Sammifloater: I can NOT believe I didn't know about this site! It rocks - full length videos of Julia C. "Cooking with the Masters" - a bunch of them! Thanks so very much for bringing it my attention. I'll check out the med fish soup today - it might be my NYE new tradtion! Thanks again!
  2. Now this made me choke! (The keyboard is not doing well, either! ) Back on topic (sort of.) My local grocery makes you load your bounty at one end of a long conveyor belt. I'm busy loading my stuff, while the teenager ringing up my groceries makes whatever judgements he/she is going to make on produce he/she has probably never seen. (rutabega? turnips? brussel sprouts?) They never mess up on canned goods (Thank goodness for bar codes.) I wonder how much grocery stores make on erroneous rings. ("They" say stores make a fortune on gift cards that don't get fully used.) "Food" for thought!
  3. Once upon a time, I was known for my annual vodka parties. They always started the same way - car keys were surrendered at the front door. After a while, guests (all women) began to arrive in "jammies" under their winter coats. I shopped all year long for the event. Summer time, I bought rafts (yes, rafts) from the dollar store. During white sales, I bought twin-sized flat sheets for cheap. I hounded "two for one" sales for slippers. My invitations always reminded guests that dinner would NOT be served. Snack treats only. I set up two six foot folding tables. After a few years, I ended up with laminated drink "recipe" cards, but in actuality, I ended up making most of the drinks myself. The Bloody Mary "station": Tomato juice Jalapenos Celery Sticks Green Olives Worchester Sauce A bunch of hot sauces Pickled Garlic Celery Salt, black pepper, garlic powder Pickle Spears The "Sunbreeze" station: (EASY) Cranberry juice The Martini "Station": Baby onions Green Olives Vermouth (Natch) Lemon twists Green olives stuffed with blue cheese Extra green olive juice (for dirties) Fresh jalpeno slices The Blender "Station": Ice, blender (DUH) Orange juice Grape Juice Margarita Mix (yuck) Daquiri Mix (Double Yuck) (Never said all my friends drank well! ) I always froze my vodkas alla Martha Stewart - in emptied milk cartons with herbs, flowers and greenery. My choice for vodkas: A local (read, cheap) vodka, Stoli, Absolut, a pick of flavored Smirinoff vodkas. Snacks: Pretzels, chips, dips, brownies, cookies, popcorn (if IRC). I always had a breakfast bread pudding and sliced fruit hidden (lest we feasted in our drunkeness) and donuts and/or coffee cake for the morning. Coffee, not to be obvious! My house was a tiny two-bedroom. The first two down would usually claim my queen-sized bed in the master bedroom. The next two down would usually take the double bed in the second bedroom. One lucky gal would get the couch, and the rest of us would be resigned to blowing up rafts, making a pseudo-bed with the flat sheets and crashing where-ever. My cats loved it! All those warm bodies just for the asking! Things I wish I'd done: 1. Infused vodkas - Rachael Ray has a number of infused vodkas here (She is not my fav, but I think these are somewhat inspired.) 2. More food - I could have made more food - maybe even made it into a dinner party.l 3. Another bathroom! I stock-piled bath towels, and single-serve bath soaps, deoderant, body sprays; but one bathroom is just not enough for 8 women! Party On!
  4. You all rock! I wish I could be with you.. A trifecta - three of my favorite posters all at once, and in France! I just can't wait for more. Jamie
  5. Potsticker, you are da bomb! A short story about why you should read receipts: A terrible pic, but the list says "Red Plums" at $2.29 per pound. What I bought was post-Thanksgiving Idaho potatoes at 0.39 per pound! The store was kind and even though I had "proof" (dig camera et al) they just credited me the "plums" and didn't charge me for the potatoes! I think I freaked them out!
  6. With a ton of homemade stock in the freezer, and a new immersion blender, I made this: Peeled and chopped buternut squash, peeled and "hunked up" carrots, a large yellow onion in chunks, some whole garlic cloves and a hand-full of parsley. Steeped in homemade, defrosted chicken broth. After a meeting with my new immersion blender, and after a pathetic attempt at at "nice" creme fraiche - drizzled presentation, voila! I know, I know.. the edge of the bowl at least needed to be wiped... so many other presentation gaffes need to be addressed... but it tastes GREAT! J.
  7. Jamie Lee

    Dinner! 2007

    For those lurkers who are not "Cooking Gods" , here's some more comfort food from a less-than-stellar cook or photographer.... Beef and Pork Chili... (although you can't see it much!) Normally, I put the cheese on the bottom (a thick slice of sharp ched preferred), but like the addition of crisp, raw onions and a touch of sour cream.... yes, I have the breathe of camel dung! Not really - I think! To see the chili in it's more natural state check out here.
  8. Jamie Lee

    Pig Testicles

    Where is the OP and why don't we have pics and (excuse me) the blow-by-blow?
  9. Jamie Lee

    Stupid Chef Tricks

    It's petty, but I abhor the "trick" a certain network cooking star does with salt... everytime she seasons, it's "over the shoulder for luck" with a pinch of the supposed salt. When questioned, she states that she does it everytime because the tradittion is that if you spill salt, you must toss a pinch over your shoulder to avoid bad luck. Said "star" reasoned that if you're tossing salt by hand into your cooking vessel, there's a good chance you've spilled a bit, so why risk "bad luck"? There was a priceless moment a bit ago where she added salt - "toss over the shoulder for luck" and then she added a pinch of pepper... and tossed it over her shoulder! She caught herself before before she delivered the signature line, but it was funny all the same! Also... I have a hard enough time keeping my floors clean of accidental spills... why in God's name would I throw gritty kosher salt on my floors on purpose???? (AND before you ask, I watch said network "star" because right now, I don't get FN, TLC, or any other cable channel with food cooking shows - pathetic as one may find them - and I'm jonesin'. I'm in bed alot, and TV is my distraction.)
  10. Jamie Lee

    Chili con Carne

    To the OP, here's yesterday's - and today's - effort. Not a beauty pic, but I'll explain... I will "purty it up" with a plated pic soon. I have no recipe, but I do know this: 1. I like a variety of meat, a variety of textures, and lots of it. I use, at a minimum, cubed beef, ground beef and cubed pork. I once won a chili contest at work, and added sausage to the mix. 2. I don't do beans. The afore-mentioned chili contest was held in Oklahoma, and while I know I didn't meet strict ICS guidelines, I knew beans were controversial at best! 2. Spices (chili powder - Gebhardt's is my fav, cumin, coriander) need to be added in "waves" - once during sweating of the veggies, another after every addition of "big" ingredients (toms, stock, every reheat). I use part kosher salt and part soy sauce for salty. I also love Tiger Sauce, and if necessary, Worchester (sp?). 3. Reheating and retasting is key. Make it one day, cook, low and slow, and then cool and refrigerate. (It's okay to sneak a bowl at this point.) Next day, reheat, re-season, re-assess. Dump more spice and liquid goodness. Continue reducing chili liquid so you can avoid "thickeners" - i.e. corn starch, flour, masa harina. (Sneak another bowl if you must.) 4. Day three: Gently reheat, adjust hot seasonings... more jalapeno, but better yet, sambal or chili/garlic thai seasoning. By now the meat is tender beyond compare. To try to capture my "non-recipe", this time I used: 1 large yellow onion, medium dice 1 green bell pepper, medium dice 5-7 large garlic cloves, medium dice (I like big bits after a long, slow bubble) 1 large poblano chili, medium dice (for the mild heat) 3 big jalapeno chilis, seeded and chopped fine 1-1/2 lbs. beef roast - whatever's on sale, cubed small 1/2 ground beef (I usually go for chili grind, but only had hamb-style on hand) 3/4 lb. boneless pork chops, cubed to mimick the size of the beef cubes 1 very lg. can diced toms, San Marzano if possible 1 reg. size can of Fire Roasted diced toms (Muir Glen Organics are a good choice) Sambal or Garlic/Chili paste to taste ground chili pepper cumin coriander salt soy sauce Tiger Sauce All to taste, added in "waves" - once as the veggies are sweated, once after the meat has been browned, everyday during the "re-heat". Serve with grated sharp cheddar (or other cheese as your pocketbook can handle), oyster crackers, chopped raw onion, and sour cream if you need to control the heat (wuss) . Yum-City. ETA: Tried to fix typos
  11. Cream of Tomato Soup: This soup began life as a disaster. I tried to "wing" a regular tomato soup using San Marzano (canned) tomatoes, peppered bacon ends and lots of thyme. It was dreadful. Too chunky, too much thyme, bacon chunks weren't working. Since I have a hard time throwing out quantities of food, I did what every self-respecting tightwad would do: I froze it. Inspired by some words from a poster on another site, I thawed it out, fished out the bacon pieces (they'd given their all), made sure there were no thyme stems. I then added a copious amount of fresh, organic basil, and then used my brand-new immersion blender to puree, and finished with some leftover cream. The result: It's delicious! Now I just have to learn to use my new immersion blender without spraying pureed soup all over the walls! J
  12. Jamie Lee

    Dinner! 2007

    Holy smokes, Marlene! Talk about FOOD PORN!
  13. Jamie Lee

    Oysters: The Topic

    Sony: I think my family's oyster dressing is the best.... used mostly for holiday turkeys... is that what you're interested in? (I just didn't want to mis-interpret if you meant some kind of stuffing to put in a half-shell..)
  14. Jamie Lee

    Stupid Chef Tricks

    Blamo: Thanks for this reference... I was always taught by Mama and Grandma... to make roux (made with warm potato water with flour shaken in a mason jar added to roasting juices and fond) over low heat and use gently warmed turkey stock to incorporate it slowly, using a wisk. Gravy was perfect (no lumps) every time... Call me untrained and unsophisticated, but it works!
  15. I know this thread has been somewhat "controversial".. but check this out: My receipt: I never bought "red plums" (at 2.29 per pound) I bought two Idaho Potatoes on sale - (post T-Day) for something like 0.39/lb. How often do these "mistakes" escape the consumer? What a windfall for mass grocers! I have not yet approached the store, but I'll report back! J
  16. Jamie Lee

    Dinner! 2007

    As a riff on Suzilighting's (SP?) deconstructured french onion soup... here's my gigantic comfort food extraganzanza... Beef Stew and Fontina Grilled Cheese! yummmm
  17. Jamie Lee

    Dinner! 2007

    Oh man, suzilightning! That looks gorgeous, and a perfect choice for someone (like me) who loves onion soup, but has no oven or broiler! I'm doing it!
  18. Sorry but this story made me cry - from laughter! J.
  19. I suppose it follows the "I love it because mom always did it this way": Turkey Divan. (Someone sorta dissed it above.) It truly is "Betty Crocker cooking": In a 13" x 9" glass casserole: frozen broccoli spears, topped with chopped cooked turkey, topped with a creamy mixture of two cans of your choice of Campbell's "Cream Of" soups, which have been mixed with generous amounts of packaged curry powder, topped with grated ched cheese, and then bread crumbs which have been tossed with a bit of melted butter. Baked until lightly brown and bubbling.. Damn. Would taste like home!
  20. My biggest failure to date: "Pumpkin Caramel Refridgerator Pie": Pic: If this isn't baby poo, I don't know what is... And I can't even say "But it tasted good" because it's now sitting in the bottom of my kitchen trash can.
  21. Maybe those of us with "real" bloopers are too embarrassed to post, but with all due respect, your "failures" sound pretty damn good to me! To frame my challenges this year, I was cooking for myself, due to a number of circumstances. Add to that that I'm currently living in an efficiency studio apartment - with a kitchen that would make most NY kitchens grand in size! No oven, two electric burners, a microwave (yuck!). Limited pots, appliances, utensils. (Mine are all in storage 2000 miles away.) It was good I decided to go solo this year since I didn't feel well on Thursday, so I ended up cooking my meal on Friday. A completely stovetop T-Day dinner? No easy feat! I've made trad. T-Day meals entirely on my own, and think I was well taught by mom and G-moms.... But an oven is key. I thought about one of those roaster ovens, but decided it was a dumb expense for "just me" and really didn't need a whole turkey, even if small. 1. Turkey stock: Not bad, bought wings and legs, with aromatics, it turned out quite well. It was to be used for stove-top stuffing and gravy. 2. Turkey: Went with two tenderloins, butterflied open and sauteed (after dusting with flour) in a combo of oil and butter. My thinking was I'd use the left-over fat (enriched with the flour dusting from cutlets) as the base for gravy, since I would have no wonderful roasting fond and juices. 3. Stuffing: "Sandra Lee" style (UGH) Stove Top enriched with Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage, sauteed garlic, celery, onions, carrots and bell pepper (all chopped, of course). Only liquid was turkey stock mentioned before. Not awful, but it would have benefitted greatly from some time in a hot oven. It is a little bit mushy. May have to try frying patties for leftovers. 4. Gravy: Should have known better - In my "normal" T-Day cooking, stock is made day-of, kept warm, and then shaken with flour in a mason jar before adding to the fat/drippings. Stupid me, I added flour to the pan (post turk cutlets) and then added cold stock. Result? Lumps and a rather bland gravy. My immersion blender might have solved the problem, but it was 2000 miles away. 5. Other sides: Couldn't find rutabega, so had to forgo this uber-trad family tradition. Mashed potatoes, cooked them off on Wed., but ran out of burners and energy. Will either transform to latkes, or try to reheat and finish as mashers. Cranberry - made from scratch, with orange juice, zest, grand marnier, some sugar - but very tart in the end. It's not bad paired with the other rich items, but boy, one can only eat a tiny bit! 6. My Crowning Failure : An attempt at a no bake pumpkin dessert! This will make an appearance on the "Regrettable Meals" thread for sure. Another embarrassing "Sandra Lee" (Did I say YUCK already?) experiment. It started with a graham crust, drizzled with caramel sauce (bottled), then a mixture of canned pumpkin, vanilla instant pudding, cool whip, pecan bits and spices. (Shoot me now.) Next a layer of cool whip, drizzled artistically with more caramel sauce and pecans. Chill. OMG! the grossest thing I have ever made! Not only does it look suspiciously like baby poo, it is tooth-ache-ingly sweet. I think I f-ed it up further by accidentally using canned pumpkin pie filling INSTEAD of canned pumpkin. Damn, I KNOW the difference. So double the sweetness, double the spices, a crappy (HA) consistency - total disaster. I can only redeem myself by knowing that had I had my home tools, I could have done much better. Sorry for the long post, but perhaps this makes those of us who had a less than stellar T-Day a little better! J.
  22. I have this dutch oven in brown (I think they call it bronze) and I love it. It's very heavy, heats evenly, and because I've been ovenless for awhile, I've used it for stovetop braising with good success. (As well as many many soups.) I got mine at a local "big box store" for the same price, and since OR doesn't have sales tax, it was a bargain.
  23. You know that you're a foodie when: You get one of those brown bags that you're supposed to fill with canned goods to donate to those less fortunate and.. "I can't give my best jasmine rice!" "They'll never appreciate my canned jackfruit!" "Will they understand these are SAN MARZANO tomatoes???" "It's not spaghetti, it's bucatini!" "There IS a difference between Bumble Bee and imported italian tuna!" So I'm a food snob. I went to my grocery store and made two bags. I've been homeless, and lived out of my car, and a can opener and a park bench and any can of veggies/meat was a God-send. Hope my bags make someone happy.
  24. Jamie Lee

    Dinner! 2007

    I wasn't going to post this, but what the hell! I've got a fridge and freezer that need some "thinning out" So.. my fav... veg fried rice! 1 c. jasmine rice cooked in some butter and 2 c. of homemade chix stock. Then the mise: Fresh: Carrots, garlic, poblano chilis, green onion, woops, canned --> water chestnuts, and crimini mushrooms... Frozen: Celery (bought fresh, but chopped and frozen before it went "off"), Red Peppers (same as celery), frozen peas. Mid way: (Aren't those colors pretty?) Add seasoning: And the final. No apps, No 1st course, no main other than this one! Dessert was full-fat Fage yoghurt with an awesome TJ's "desert" (no, not "dessert") honey. Highly recommended. As a result of "ridding" my fridge of leftovers, I now have two containers of fried rice and about a cup and a half of cooked rice! Damn, life is good! Jamie
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