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FoodMan

eGullet Society staff emeritus
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  1. FoodMan

    All About Cassoulet

    Maybe Wolfert would chime in, she's the expert. But if I had to guess I would say yes: no glaze = more evaporation. Elie
  2. FoodMan

    GOOD EATS

    New episode airs tonight Man Food Also a Grains episode airs at 10:30 Central time that I've never seen or heard of so not sure if it is a re-run or not. Edit: nevermind a quick look here informs me it's been aired on 10/08/2003. IT's new to me though. Elie
  3. FoodMan

    All About Cassoulet

    Whatever you do do not skip the Duck Confit, it's essential and SO GOOD. The other piece of advice is you need to adjust the liquid level if you use a metal instead of clay pot (I'm sure you already read that in the Houston thread though). Let us know how it turns out. Elie
  4. FoodMan

    Dinner! 2004

    that sounds amazing!! i would love the recipe if you don't mind last night i had jim's cauliflower (1st time and i freaking loved it), also roasted some sunchokes and brussels sprouts. yum. went to a brand new fish market in my neighborhood because i want to support them - even though the fish does look a little less than pristine. i bought what they labelled hamachi - i don't know what it was - but it wasn't hamachi - my best guess would be something in the albacore family. would have been fine, but my prep (black & white sesame seeds and crushed macadamia nuts) wasn't suited to tuna. it needed more flavor...veggies were super though! I would be happy to send you my recipe for the soup. I just need to write it down. Hopefully in the next few days I'll post it or PM you. For the Chard ribs, just wash cut into two inch pieces. Then steam them (or boil) them till tender. Toss them with Tahine Sauce. Garnish with a little pasley. Elie This is the soup recipe as best I could remember, please keep in mind that most of these amounts are approximate (especially the dumplings). So use your cooking-sense and sorry for any inconvenience. Kibbet Raheb: Lebanese Lentil chard lemony soup with herb-burghul dumplings Dumplings: ½ cup fine bulgur about 1 cup flour ¼ cup onion finely chopped 1 tbsp chopped mint ¼ cup chopped parsley Soup: 1 large bunch of chard, hard ribs removed and coarsely chopped and washed 1/3 Cup lentils 1 cup diced onions 1 Tbsp crushed Coriander seeds 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (or more, the soup is supposed to be tangy and lemony) 10 large cloves of garlic chopped (or more if you like) ½ cup chopped cilantro Make dumplings: Put Burghul in a bowl and add enough water to barely cover. Let soak for thirty minutes Meantime sauté the onion till translucent in some olive oil. Let cool. Add the flour, onions, herbs to the burghul and mix. Add more water or flour to the mixture if needed. You need a soft dough like mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Form the dumplings into small marble size pieces, put them on a large baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to use For the soup: In a large heavy pot saute the onions in 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil till soft and translucent. Do not let it brown. Add the crushed Coriander and cook for one more minute stirring constantly. Add the lentils and half of the chopped garlic and cook for a couple more minutes so that everything is mixed up properly. Add the chopped chard and lemon juice and mix it in then cover everything with about 3 inches of water. Bring to a boil, season with Salt and pepper and let simmer till the lentils are almost done. Add the dumplings and continue cooking till the dumplings are cooked through, about 30 more minutes (they will almost double in size and have no raw flour taste when done). Saute the rest of the garlic in 1 Table spoon of olive oil till soft, add the cilantro and cook for another minute. Then add this mixture to the soup. Correct the soup’s seasoning and serve. This is normally served cold or at room temperature, and is better the next day. Recipe Link in RecipeGullet Elie Edit to add the link
  5. FoodMan

    Dinner! 2004

    Bowtie pasta tossed with roasted butternut squash, sweet onions, garlic, crushed red pepper and fresh mint. At the last minute I tossed in crumbled fresh white cheese. Very tastyand light pasta dish. Drank some Chianti with it. Dessert: buttery crispy Sables cookies Elie
  6. FYI- According to Allison Cook in today's Chronicle, the market will be open this Saturday January 31st. A month earlier than initially expected. I will try and make there early this Saturday. Elie
  7. Kibbet Raheb: Lentil chard lemony soup with herb-burghul dumplings Serves 5 as Main Dishor 10 as Soup. This is the soup recipe as best I could remember, please keep in mind that most of these amounts are approximate (especially the dumplings). So use your cooking-sense and sorry for any inconvenience. This is normally served cold or at room temperature, and is better the next day. Dumplings c fine bulgur 1 c cup flour c cup onion finely chopped 1 T chopped mint 1/4 c chopped parsley Soup 1 c diced onions 1 T crushed Coriander seeds 1/3 c Brown lentils 1/3 c Fresh Lemon Juice (or to taste but this is supposed to be lemony) 10 large cloves of garlic chopped (or more if you like) 1/2 c chopped cilantro Make dumplings: Put Burghul in a bowl and add enough water to barely cover. Let soak for thirty minutes Meantime sauté the onion till translucent in some olive oil. Let cool. Add the flour, onions, herbs to the burghul and mix. Add more water or flour to the mixture if needed. You need a soft dough like mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Form the dumplings into small marble size pieces, put them on a large baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to use. You need about 24 dumplings. For the soup: In a large heavy pot saute the onions in 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil till soft and translucent. Do not let it brown. Add the crushed Coriander and cook for one more minute stirring constantly. Add the lentils and half of the chopped garlic and cook for a couple more minutes so that everything is mixed up properly. Add the chopped chard and mix it in then cover everything with about 3 inches of water. Bring to a boil, season with Salt and pepper and let simmer till the lentils are almost done. Add the dumplings and continue cooking till the dumplings are cooked through, about 30 more minutes (they will almost double in size and have no raw flour taste when done). Add more water if the soup is too thick and chunky. Saute the rest of the garlic in 1 Table spoon of olive oil till soft, add the cilantro and cook for another minute. Then add this mixture to the soup. Correct the soup’s seasoning and serve. Keywords: Soup, Vegetarian, Main Dish, Middle Eastern, Intermediate, Beans ( RG835 )
  8. Kibbet Raheb: Lentil chard lemony soup with herb-burghul dumplings Serves 5 as Main Dishor 10 as Soup. This is the soup recipe as best I could remember, please keep in mind that most of these amounts are approximate (especially the dumplings). So use your cooking-sense and sorry for any inconvenience. This is normally served cold or at room temperature, and is better the next day. Dumplings c fine bulgur 1 c cup flour c cup onion finely chopped 1 T chopped mint 1/4 c chopped parsley Soup 1 c diced onions 1 T crushed Coriander seeds 1/3 c Brown lentils 1/3 c Fresh Lemon Juice (or to taste but this is supposed to be lemony) 10 large cloves of garlic chopped (or more if you like) 1/2 c chopped cilantro Make dumplings: Put Burghul in a bowl and add enough water to barely cover. Let soak for thirty minutes Meantime sauté the onion till translucent in some olive oil. Let cool. Add the flour, onions, herbs to the burghul and mix. Add more water or flour to the mixture if needed. You need a soft dough like mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Form the dumplings into small marble size pieces, put them on a large baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to use. You need about 24 dumplings. For the soup: In a large heavy pot saute the onions in 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil till soft and translucent. Do not let it brown. Add the crushed Coriander and cook for one more minute stirring constantly. Add the lentils and half of the chopped garlic and cook for a couple more minutes so that everything is mixed up properly. Add the chopped chard and mix it in then cover everything with about 3 inches of water. Bring to a boil, season with Salt and pepper and let simmer till the lentils are almost done. Add the dumplings and continue cooking till the dumplings are cooked through, about 30 more minutes (they will almost double in size and have no raw flour taste when done). Add more water if the soup is too thick and chunky. Saute the rest of the garlic in 1 Table spoon of olive oil till soft, add the cilantro and cook for another minute. Then add this mixture to the soup. Correct the soup’s seasoning and serve. Keywords: Soup, Vegetarian, Main Dish, Middle Eastern, Intermediate, Beans ( RG835 )
  9. That was a great issue, I still have saved in between my cookbooks.
  10. We moved to our new home froma n apartment this past summer and I am happy to report that I planted my first veggies about a week ago and they are already sprouting. I have Radiches, beets, carrots and sweet peas. I also have mint, rosemary and basil. I am planning on expanding my herb collection to have thyme and several others. So far two fruit trees have taken up residence in the backyard. A Meyer Lemon one that is already blossoming, and a black turkish fig that is sprouting nicely but is probably a couple of years away from fruits. For the summer 2 main items will take over the small garden: tomatoes and peppers. Elie
  11. It seems to me that there are two kinds of people here those who like cheese in all shapes and forms (like myself) and those who like some cheeses. Except for Brenna, I do not see any real cheese haters here , and that's the "power of cheese". Elie
  12. Here are some threads that will help you Robyn: Dallas restaurants Houston Eats Houston Fine Dining My picks for fine dining would include Mark’s- It really is not that noisy especially if you request a table on the second level. Top notch service and excellent food. The place is also very romantic set up in an old church. Rouge—very good contemporary French food Hugo’s for upscale Mexican Damian’s for great Italian Aries—Great fine food but casual service (see my review in one of the threads above) Boulevard Bistrot—A little like Chez Panisse. I believe the chef already closed it and opened up T’afia near downtown earlier this month which should be more Mediterranean. Zula in downtown is also excellent This is just to name a few, Houston DOES have great fine dining as does Dallas. Welcome to our town and I hope you enjoy your stay. To answer one of your earlier questions, I do not believe Bank has opened yet, but I could be wrong. I saw a couple of mentions for La Colombe D’or, which is a VERY nice hotel with only six suites and a restaurant where you get great service but IMHO the food is not very interesting. Good but, a little too old. Another place that I think is overrated –I know I will be stoned for saying this, especially by Fifi- is Brennan’s. I just did not enjoy the food that much. It did not even compare to the NO establishments. Café Annie also has good food but can be noisy and is overhyped and expensive for what it is. If I'm paying I would not go there. Elie
  13. I was very pleased with choosing Nana for our dinner destination. The whole dining experience was superb from the top notch service to the great food and the wonderful view. Our service was flawless, we first had drinks at the bar while we waited for our table to be ready. When we were sat I and greeted we took a quick look at the menu and I inquired if it was at all possible to get the tasting menu in addition to 2 or 3 al la carte menu items so that we can taste different things. The waiter was more than happy to do this for us. I opted not to take the wine pairings and instead asked the young sommelier to recommend a nice wine that would go with our dinner and with our budget. He was also very informative and recommended several bottles. We picked a “La Crema” 2001 Pinot Noir. During dinner both the Maitre D’ and Chef McMillan stopped by our table and we chatted with the chef for a few minutes specifically about the fabulous Foi Gras that he had on the tasting menu. He said they were the only restaurant in TX serving this Sonoma artisan Foi Gras that is produced by the chef who was recently terrorized by the PETA people. It actually slipped my mind to keep a copy of the tasting menu, so what follows is from memory: Amuse: not on the tasting menu, a square of dark craker type bread topped with smoked salmon and crème fraiche. Prime Fillet Tartar, with vinaigrette. Very good and tender my wife could not believe it was not cooked. Seared Scallop with artichoke puree and meyer lemon emulsion I wish we got more than one scallop, the emulsion was nice and fragrant without being too tangy Seared Foi Gras with date/walnut conserve. This was the best foi gras I’ve ever had. Absolutely amazing flavor , melt in your mouth feel without the hint of any livery taste. It paired perfectly with the sweet paste type conserve Basil-Campari Sorbet. It was very nice of them to give us each a scoop of this pink sorbet that tasted amazingly like a shot of basil with grapefruit Pan Seared veal with black truffle risotto, and Madeira jus. Excellent flavor, my wife pretty much at the whole serving while I enjoyed the skate (see below) Ripe Munster cheese with some kind of green apple salad and several crackers. Since my wife is not too crazy about ripe cheeses I was more than happy to polish this off. Pear and dried cherry tart with caramel ice cream. This was the only dish that was not that interesting. The ice cream was very good but the tart, which was made with puff pastry not short paste, was very plain. A la Carte items: Lobster in chestnut flour, this was a great dish with nice Asian flavors a thin crust and juicy flesh. I can see why it is one of their signature dishes. Skate wings, cooked with the classic brown butter and capers with a creamy pink sauce whose name escapes me now (sounded like auroria). While my wife enjoyed the veal I savored every bite of this wonderful fish. Excellent. Ginger-Cranberry crème brulee. A wonderful dessert that I would love to try and duplicate at home. Creamy and fragrant with ginger. Chocolate truffles. at the end of the meal. Iike I said before the whole experience was flawless. I would love to go back when I visit Dallas again. On Sunday we had brunch at Ciudad were we also had a great meal. I ordered coffee, my wife got the fresh Mango juice with crushed ice. The juice tasted very fresh. We ordered four different items: Sweet Potato pancakes with braised bananas and currants, served with their homemade cinnamon spiked syrup. This is another item I would love to try at home. They ware exceptional. Cabrito taco, also very good with perfectly roasted goat meat Queso Y Carne omelet, a perfect omlete wrapped around braised beef tips and white cheese. I just thought this needed a little more seasoning. Pineapple “sandwich”. Two pineapple slices played the role of two bread slices around a filling of strawberries, blueberries, mangoes and papaya. The whole thing was drizzled with raspberry (or was it strawberry) sauce which was very thin and soupy not thick and chunky. This fruit salad of sorts was a great finale. Elie
  14. FoodMan

    Dinner! 2004

    that sounds amazing!! i would love the recipe if you don't mind last night i had jim's cauliflower (1st time and i freaking loved it), also roasted some sunchokes and brussels sprouts. yum. went to a brand new fish market in my neighborhood because i want to support them - even though the fish does look a little less than pristine. i bought what they labelled hamachi - i don't know what it was - but it wasn't hamachi - my best guess would be something in the albacore family. would have been fine, but my prep (black & white sesame seeds and crushed macadamia nuts) wasn't suited to tuna. it needed more flavor...veggies were super though! I would be happy to send you my recipe for the soup. I just need to write it down. Hopefully in the next few days I'll post it or PM you. For the Chard ribs, just wash cut into two inch pieces. Then steam them (or boil) them till tender. Toss them with Tahine Sauce. Garnish with a little pasley. Elie
  15. FoodMan

    Dinner! 2004

    Kibbet Raheb: a Lebanese soup made with lentils, chard and lemon juice. with bulghur/herb dumplings cooked in it. I haven't had this for years. It was very good but not exactly the same as the one mom makes. I have to call her to get more specific instructions. Chard ribs steamed till soft and tossed with Tahine sauce. Elie
  16. That is very nice of them. I was wondering how was everything served? Did they incorporate the a la carte items as part of the tasting menu? and served you both one dish at a time? or did they serve you the tasting menu and your companion the a la carte? Thanks for the review. Elie
  17. FoodMan

    Dinner! 2004

    Spaghetti tossed with cannelini beans, garlic, lemon juice, chopped frozen spinach, parmesan cheese and black pepper. Not bad for a quick fix. Elie
  18. FoodMan

    Dinner! 2004

    Broiled chicken breast that has been marinated in Ancho Chile powder and orange juice. Served it with a sweet and sour rice pilaf made with raisins, dried apricots, almonds and pomegranate molasses. Dessert: Crepes with Nutella filling Elie
  19. FoodMan

    Mezzaluna

    Spend your money elsewhere. I tried it once and found my chef's knife much more efficient and a multitasker. Elie
  20. FoodMan

    GOOD EATS

    It's probably his latest toy/hobby. Good show.
  21. Personally I never liked the place even in the college starvation days (chinese buffets -Lucky Village on Fountainview- were my thing ). And those sopapillas are pretty nasty, they taste like a spoonfull of vegetable oil. yuck. Elie
  22. I make this at home all the time and I never use whip cream for topping I much prefer the egg white meringue topping. The three milks I use are pretty trditional whole, condensed and evaporated. Elie
  23. FoodMan

    Dinner! 2004

    Duck Confit Risotto: Shredded the duck leg confit and reserved the skin. Used homemade duck stock and added some fresh thyme at the end. Crisped the duck skin and used them as the tastiest garnish ever and lots of fresh ground pepper. It was excellent. Dessert: Dulce De Leche crepes using the Dulce De Leche recipe from "South American Table. It came out a little grainy and chewy, I might've used a little more sugar than the recipe calls for. Elie
  24. FoodMan

    GOOD EATS

    For the GE fans Spice Capades the new episodes started last week with "Herbal Preservation" Elie
  25. Well I tried the good folks at Lola again and requested the tasting menu in the main dining room, but they –very nicely- refused again saying that the two restaurants are really separate with different staffs and chefs. So, I decided to get reservations at Nana instead. Elie
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