FauxPas

My husband has been a bit under the weather, so I made him his fave grilled cheese and tomato sandwich (no pics, it disappeared too fast). But he still had room for dessert. Funny how you crave things when you don't feel well. He wanted DQ ice cream (milk?). I had some lovely fresh cherries and blueberries, so that became the best part of dinner.

Thanks, Anna! I will check that one out, also.

I revived a "Homemade Crackers" thread and added the Raincoast Crisps to it.

I love Lesley Stowe's Raincoast Crisps but the price, not so much! I think it's about time I tried making some. I found a recipe at the kitchn. And Anna N suggested this one. Anyone else made these or similar crisps/crackers?

Thanks, Shelby! The crackers are Raincoast Crisps, made in Vancouver, BC (well, Richmond - just outside of Vancouver). There are a few different varieties, these ones were cranberry and hazelnut. I love them but they are pricey so I keep meaning to try making my own. Here is a recipe for one make-at-home version that I should try: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-harvest-crackers-with-cranberries-pecans-amp-rosemary-recipes-from-the-kitchn-197627 Has anyone else made these or similar?

Thanks for the Crepes, I hope your eye gets its blink back! That must be frustrating. Shelby, what can I say? That really is a humdinger of a bad week. Things have got to turn around soon, right? So I'm going to disagree a bit with kayb and say that maybe this is exactly the right time to make a bet or buy a lottery ticket. Meanwhile, I was thinking of having some fresh peas (from the farm) with dinner but this is what happens when I am around fresh peas. Notice how few peas actually make it to the bowl?

cyalexa, how tasty are the Fig & Olive Crisps? I love Raincoast Crisps, but the price - not so much!

Some starters. Caprese Verrine. Lovely in these little 4 oz glasses. Layers of tomato gelée, fresh mozza with olive oil, basil chiffonade. I just wish that the tomatoes I used for the tomato water had been a bit fuller-flavoured. Pretty, though! Buffalo Brie - made here in the Comox Valley from buffalo milk. Served with Cranberry Hazelnut Raincoast Crisps made by Lesley Stowe Foods in Vancouver. I saw the Raincoast Crisps being sold in AZ last year, so I assume they are pretty widely distributed now, though you used to only see them in (parts of?) Canada. I have seen a few recipes that try to duplicate these crackers, I really need to try making my own some time because I love them and they are a bit pricey to buy.

Norm, that looks amazingly tasty. I hope your hard work is appreciated! I am grateful just to see pictures of the food you make, I would be over the moon to be served such delights!

Wow, thank you! Your meals are so delicious-looking and always beautifully photographed, so I am very flattered.

Anova (current model) is on sale at Amazon for $119. That's only $10 less than the Anova site (because of a Father's Day sale), but it's still interesting to see it featured on their Lightning Deals. (ends in 2 hours) Anova Culinary Precision Cooker/Immersion Circulator (Black)

Pasta aglio e olio. I love this dish, simple and easy and yet I never get tired of it! Cherries, straight and simple. Best this way, maybe. They are so tasty fresh so why cook them unless you absolutely have to? Clafoutis, not sure why. I was disappointed in the clafoutis, but maybe I am missing something.

We have been really busy but also busy of the best kind - terrific friends visiting! We had Greek-style pork ribs and Greek salad and we started chowing down before I even thought to take a pic. So this is not as photogenic as it could be. The ribs marinate for up to 24 hours and the salad can be made a few hours in advance so it has always been a fave for me because almost all the work is done in advance. Also made some tzatziki and had some store-bought pitas. Though I'd love to revisit that pita sourcing.

Have you ever asked them if they have sauerkraut? Some do, but they store it in the cooler. I know the ones in Tucson leaves the sauerkraut out, but here in BC they keep them in small individual containers in the cooler. You would never know they have it unless you ask.

Sorry, Yum-Yums are a name used by Bick's Pickles in Canada for their bread-and-butter (sweet) pickle slices. Like this: http://www.bicks.ca/products_sub.aspx?pid=10

It's been warm and I wanted some summer whimsy. Watermelon cubes stuffed with diced cucumber, feta cheese, a mild vinaigrette with some dill. Sous vide pork tenderloin, quickly seared and then served on top of mixed baby greens with a fresh blueberry-balsamic vinegar sauce and some dried blueberries. This wasn't perfect, and not as photogenic as I thought it would be, but it was still quite tasty. The real thing looked better. I was going to do a different veggie but ran out of planning time and steam (well, not literally) and had a lot of these little tomatoes and they are pretty decent.

Mmm, that little pizza looks so perfect!

I did the salmon at 55C for about 40 mins. It was a fairly thick piece. I might even go a bit lower temp next time, because I like a good sear and it's easy to overcook the salmon during that part. Although tonight's fish was still quite moist inside. Absolutely no complaints. And the cat really liked it. Heh. I'd also like to know gfweb's times and temps!

Fresh (wild, local) sockeye salmon cooked sous vide and then quickly seared after brushing with a teriyaki-type sauce (Tamari soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, powdered ginger and garlic). Lovely local snap peas from an organic farm just north of here + red pepper from a local greenhouse + some canned water chestnuts. We had a crazy busy day today and this was fast food! We dined quite late out on the deck and even Mijo (kitty in the avatar image) joined in for a little bit of salmon.

I love this kind of meal. Any tips on the halibut sous-vide? I live in halibut country but haven't tried it sous-vide yet, only because I am still new to SV and I keep getting sidetracked with other foods!

If you've got room in your fridge, I'd suggest making a few jars of refrigerator pickles. If you want to can a lot of peppers, then proper canning might be the better solution. I tend to make small batches of things these days so all my stuff is stored in the fridge. Here is another choice - candied jalapenos.- which really ramps up the amount of sugar. That might make it unappealing to some people, but I think the sweet and hot combo might be quite tasty in small amounts. I've never made them, but I am saving the instructions so I can try it at some point. I don't think I would make more than a few jars. The recipe could easily be divided by three. Edited to add: If you just want to preserve them, you can also freeze them, of course. Blanched or not, cut up or not. Here are some instructions/options: http://www.pickyourown.org/peppersfreezing.htm And just to be complete, I should also say that you could do laco-fermented pickling: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-lactofermented-mixed-pickles-recipes-from-the-kitchn-194011

Pickling - are you planning to do canning for long-term storage? Or more like a refrigerator pickle? Here are some basic instructions for pickled peppers using a boiling water bath, which can then be stored at room temperature. You can leave the peppers whole (with a few slashes) or slice them. You can add other peppers or veggies or just do the peppers on their own. You can adjust the sugar and garlic a bit to better suit your taste. But I'm sure you know that any time you are storing at room temp, you have to make sure you have the right acidity and proper canning techniques. There are links in the recipe to instructions. But if you want something simpler that can be stored in your fridge w/o processing, here is one example from David Lebovitz. I like to add the carrots in because it makes the jars look prettier with the colour contrast. I also like the spicy pickled carrots on their own! He also adds onion, which of course is optional. You can modify the herbs or amount of sugar, of course. Some people char and peel peppers before canning because the skin can get a bit tough after pickling. I don't think that's necessary but others may prefer the peeled product. Let us know what you end up doing with your pepper bounty!

I don't know what looks better - the steak, the veggies or the dessert. Wow, you really know how to choose and plate your edibles! We had a simple puff pastry tart. Pastry was store-bought and this was cooked in the Cuisinart Steam Oven. Finished off the remainder of the last tomato purchase from the local greenhouse and a few kalamata olives and the last of the goat cheese. It always warms my heart to use all of a purchase w/o waste and w/o making something that doesn't bring at least a little bit of joy. Heh. We had a fairly big lunch so this was perfect for dinner with a glass of wine. We might have strawberries and ice cream later.

Our weather cooled a bit and we went for comfort food last night. A pretty simple meatloaf (base of ground beef, pork and veal), more of the little steam-baked potatoes (a bit overcooked, actually - I got distracted), corn and some local green house tomatoes. The tomatoes were surprisingly good.

mm84321, your salad looks so delicate and fresh. I'd love to hear more about what you grow. Also, wondering about the hazelnut au jus that you referenced upthread - can you tell me anything about how you made it? I have 4 hazelnut trees and would like more ideas for using them. Thanks so much!