FoodMan

Nadia- First off, welcome back! To say I am looking forward to the rest of the report is an understatement. I feel so homesick now and I cannot wait to my trip to Lebanon -hopefully- next year. It sure sounds like you had no problem finding the good stuff so far. BTW, Bay Rock was the place I mentioned in the other "planning" thread...you know the one my friends took me to but I could not remember the name, with a great view. Also it is a relief to learn that you got no hot dog on your pizza, can you elaborate a little on the Italian food you had. I honestly never venture and eat anything but local stuff when I am there, so some pointers from you might come in handy. looking forward to more of the report and pics, (Tripoli, Mina,...Shawarma) Elie

That sounds kind of funny.. ← Oh la la. I had to special order them from a vendor at the market, you usually don't see these at the market here in Lyon. OK I wear gloves, cut them up, put them in a large vessel with some eau de vie and some wine and some sugar and put it in a covered vessel the sun for a few months, stirring something like once a week? ← more or less...see the recipe I linked to upthread. I added a vanilla bean, cloves and walnut leaves. Elie

I am glad that the book is being recieved very well over here. I flipped through it at Barnes and Noble and only needed to look through less than half of it before I ordered my copy from Amazon. I love Mario's style and food from his previous books. It is a shame that MM is no longer in production. I should have my book at some point this week. Elie

I hurned the rested chocolate ice cream yesterday. From the first picture you can tell that it is pretty thick, a couple of notches down from a pudding! I also decided not to add the caramlized nuts since they were a little...err...'overtoasted' and I did not want them to overpower the chocolate. They are ok to eat out of hand though. In the machine After about 10 minutes of churning, smooth creamy and delicious. BTW, this mix has no cream or eggs, only whole milk, powdered milk, sugar and chocolate. Elie

how about letting us know which issue of F&W? I'm also interested in this recipe, and trust my librarians to help me track down old magazine issues... (give them chocolate occasionally & they'll do anything for you ) ← Here is the link to the recipe, but I think you need to buy an issue or be a subscriber to get to it. It's from the December 2004 issue. BTW, I had no Kirsch so I substituted a mixture of bourbon and white wine for it (about 2Tbsp. each). Elie

They are lovely with goat cheese. Simply boil the leaves first till almost done and then roll the cheese in them and bake them. Mario Batali has a pretty good recipe in his first book. Elie

hmmm..that is odd. Like I said, I've made this ice cream before and it freezes perfectly fine with good texture and a pure chocolate flavor. I made the chocolate ice cream mix yesterday using El Rey 70% chocolate and it is currently resting in my fridge waiting to be churned tonight. I also made -instead of brittle but similar- candied nuts from the same PH book to add to it. The problem is I managed to slighlty scorch the nuts and I am not sure if I should add them to the ice cream now. I guess I'll taste and see tonight. Maybe you should try resting the mix overnight in the fridge, I do that with ALL my ice creams before churning, it should help freeze it faster and results in a better texture. Chufi- The Nougat is not churned. The whipped cream is whipped stiff, folded with stiffly beaten meringue and other ingredients and frozen in a loaf pan. The end result is very soft and a little chewy. If you are interested in a recipe PM me, since this is a F&W recipe I cannot post it. Elie

Ok, we decided that sorbet, sherbet, and gelato qualify for this thread. I would like to throw in this concoction as well (moderators: feel free to remove it if it does not belong in this thread), it's frozen, it has lots of cream and it is wickedly delicious. It's frozen nougat! The recipe is from an issue of Food and Wine magzine and I have been meaning to try it for a while. I am very glad I did becuase like I said it is an excellent frozen dessert. Basically it is whipped cream, whipped egg whites, crushed nut brittle and dried fruit soaked in liquer. The end result is soft, and a little chewy After several hours in the freezer. It can certainly be scooped like regular ice cream instead of sliced. The recipe calles for a citrus sauce to go with it, but I just used some preserved homemade orange peels. Elie

I guess if you are making a whole bunch it could be a pain, for a couple of pounds it was no big deal. I do love how easy to use collagen is though and clean and fool (read: amateur) proof. How about it's taste/texture, is it noticably different? I sure hope not. Elie

My first ever homemade sausages! I followed Len Poli’s recipe for Sonoma Brats. Since I own no meat grinder or sausage stuffer I had to use my food processor and a funnel. It took me one or two tries to get the hang of it but in the end, while not the most efficient method, funnel stuffing worked. I see two problems with it though. First, the meat mixture spends more time at room temperature than it would if I had a stuffer. I made sure that the mixture was ice cold and used a little at a time from the fridge though. Besides these will be fully cooked. The second issue is the presence of more air pockets than I would like. I also did not want to mess with natural casings, so I used collagen. Unfortunately, I have not tasted the sausages yet since we had dinner plans . So, they are resting in the freezer to be tried out sometime this week hopefully. Elie

Elie - all your dinners look outstanding! Would you mind explaining why you chose to cook the eggs this way (and how you do it)? Thanks! ← Why? well the whole meal was more or less based on David Thompson's Thai Food. Steamed eggs is what he used. Since I've never tried steaming eggs, I thought it would be cool to try it out, besides the photo in his book looked so good of steamed eggs with a still soft yolk. As you can see the eggs came out perfect with a nice soft white and a just set yolk. No rubbery whites or green tinged yolks! How? The process could not be easier and I followed his instructions from the book down to the timing. Put the eggs in a steamer basket (I use the one that comes with my pasta pot) and steam for exactly 10 minutes. Cool in a cold or ice water bath, peel and enjoy. This might actually become my favorite way to hard cook eggs. Elie edit: fixed typos.

Playing catchup again.... Thursday: Salmorejo, a type of gazpacho based on a recipe from Paula wolfert and made from tomatoes and veggies from my garden. I also served the last of my dried Spanish sausage with it and slices of homemade sourdough topped with olive oil. Dessert- bruleed rice pudding Friday: A sort of very tasty Thai inspired dinner with minced pork with sweet soy, chilli and lemongrass, steamed sticky rice, steamed (not boiled) eggs and homemade chili jam. Saturday: Our favorite quick pasta, angel hair with garlic, canned oil packed tuna, chopped spinach, lemon juice and olive oil. Dessert: Frozen nougat with dried fruit and nuts. Topped with candied orange peel. This was absolutly divine. Sunday: Homemade pizza with a variety of toppings July 4th: BBQ at the in-laws. chicken, sausage, fajitas, ribs, corn, guacamole, potato salad.

I knew I should've paid more attention to this thread. Let me explain more. I tested a couple of recipes from this book and loved both of them, only it just did not click that the recipes I tested as part of a recipe testing group were from The Pastry Queen. Anyways I was flipping through the book the other day and WOW everything looks amazing including the two recipes I loved (Tuxedo Cake and the Bacon-Cheddar scones). So, my copy of the book is on its way from amazon and I can properly join this thread. The scones were excellent, almost a complete breakfast in one delicious baked item. The Tuxedo cake is indeed amazing, and very big. The second time I made it -by request for a b-day- I only made half a recipe and it was still enough for a good 10 people. It truly is very impressive and tastes as good as it looks. The main challenge is frosting it with the whipped cream, which is much softer than regular buttercream and needs much more attention and care. I am thinking about adding some gelatin to it next time to make the frosting more stable. Here is a picture I took of a slice of the first Tuxedo cake I made: Elie

From today's digest: Seriously, "Tandoori Enchiladas" would have me running out the door and to the nearest Indian restaurant serving Chicken Masala. In general I am very weary of any restaurant that has the word "fusion" anywhere on the menu. It does seem that a few here and there every now and then take the fusion concept and do it right. Apparently Cafe Monsoon does that for the most part (I have never been there yet though). The only place that I can think of that also properly uses the fusion concept -and touts it on their menu- is "Cafe Red Onion". Most of their stuff is pretty good and it is a regular lunch destination for me. What does everyone else think about fusion restaurants? Let's hear about the good, bad and ugly in TX. Elie

Houston Press' Dining Section Tandoori Enchiladas Tandoori Enchiladas , typically that menu item alone would have me running out the door. However, Robb Walsh finds that fusion is done right at Café Monsoon, just grab a beer and enjoy. Houston Chronicle's Dining Guide Don't let looks fool you When it comes to ‘cue Alison Cook finds out that you really cannot read a book by it’s cover, or a ‘cue shack by it’s exterior. Pizzitola’s sounds like a must visit TX barbeque joint. There's more to dining out than a menu Ever notice the lighting in a restaurant? If you say no, that’s probably a good thing. Dai Huynh explains why restaurant owners spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on lighting. This thread is for food media DIGEST entries. If you want to discuss one of these news items, please start a separate discussion thread.

I have to say that this ("you can't make good ice cream without a delicate technique and expensive equipment") is bull crap! I've been making amazing ice cream in my very in expensive Krups for almost three years with mostly great results. On a good note, awsome cookoff! I am planning on making some chocolate ice cream tonight based on Pierre Herme's recipe. I have made it before, but this timke I want to add something to it. I am thinking some lightly -very lightly- salted crushed nut brittle. We'll see... Other recent ice creams I made were an outstanding olive oil gelato and a mediocre grilled peach one. The problem I think with the grilled peach one is that the creme englaise overcooked and had an odd taste. Oh well! you live you learn. Elie

Good restaurant service is largely most evident when the service never calls attention to itself, but elBulli takes this to another level. In fact, it may be precisely because there is, of necessity, so much interaction with staff as they explain the highly individual and creative food, that even the most sophisticated and experienced diners lose sight of how well run and how much of the front of the house operation goes on behind our backs. Just as the food is more than the sum of the courses, the experience seems greater than the sum of its parts. Above, and not for the first time, I said the food was labor intensive. So is the service and all that goes into the experience, including making it all seem effortless. The dollar has been on a slide for a while and topic of conversation more on the France board than the Spain one perhaps, but I suppose in a way, I'm lucky to have been around when the dollar was strong and the franc and peseta very weak. The tables have turned and it's the EU citizens' turn to enjoy themselves at bargain prices. Should I be consoled that I might never have developed such a taste for foie gras had I not traveled in the Perigord when the dollar bought ten francs. At its price, which amounts to close to $200 this spring, elBulli is more than fairly priced when compared to what one pays in NY, London or Paris for a top meal. It's getting to Cala Montjoi that's expensive, but we amortize that cost by having a few other good meals along the way. ← Thanks Bux for your input. I must apologize for suggesting that I had more salient comments to make for this thread; I don't!! I must applaud Elie's significant, marvelous explication of the same menu (with few exceptions) we also shared at elBulli on May 19, 2005. I had planned to add both pictures and our personal observations. Elie and others have done an eviable job. I have nothing to add but one observation. My one personal comment about the lamb brains dish is that I failed to taste the sea urchin ( I am a serious fan of these unctuous morsels. I also believe that cooked sea urchin is a failed culinary effort.) The texture of this dish was akin to eating baby food. I could not taste the oursin flavor and the lamb brains were too soft! The dish failed for me because it had no depth or breadth of texture or flavor. It was boring. The one highlight was elBulli's humor in it's efforts to celebrate a special occasion. The all purpose cardboard replication of the celebratory cake arrived at our table with great ceremony. Julie Soler produced a copy for us of our all purpose elBulli cardboard "cake" to take home. A witty end to a tasty, entertaining meal much appreciated by both of us. We will continue to explore elBulli's newest culinary contributions as long as we are able. ← that is very odd. I loved the lamb brains dish and I thought the flavors were very prominent, both the sea urchin and the brain itself. So much so that my wife could not finish hers and I had to -very happily- oblige and finish it HUH! we got the whimsical cardboard cake as well since it was our anniversay. It had all kinds of salutations on it (I think) like Happy B-Day, Congrats,....in several languages. We thought it was both cheesy, funny and kind of sweet. Reading through everyone's description of their meals it is also evident that Adria switches the order of some dishes or the way they are served. One example are the black olive-oil stuffed raviolis, we recieved them on the terrace as an appetizer, but it seems everyone else got them as one of the main courses. To answer an earlier question by Blake, we did not feel that the 25 courses or so over about 4.5 hours were too much food. Both of us were satiated but not over-stuffed, and would love to go back at some point. Elie

I'm intrigued by the onion marmelade. How do you make that? ← I more or less use this recipe. I do however, reduce the amount of sugar to about 1.5 cups and the vinegar to about 2 cups. Only the first time I mad eit I followed the recipe exactly and then I started modifying it. Also I leave the peppercorns whole and add extra, I just love the crunch and mild heat they empart once you bite into them. Elie

Last night I made Tuscan chicken liver crostini and served them with onion marmalade and a mixed green salad tossed in a Dijon vinaigrette (the picture did not do the stuff justice, so I am not posting it). I have to admit that I am not a big fan of chicken liver, but boy this recipe (Mario Batali's) was good! It probably also helped that I bought good quality livers from Whole Foods, inctead of the specimens that come in the chicken at the supermarket . I am actually having some leftovers right now on top of homemade rye bread at my desk for lunch.... Dessert was, Viennese Dobos torte. Elie

Here is a pic of both the Vin De Noix and Nocino:

My first Nocino batch has just been mixed up. I used Artusi's recipe with grain alcohol (Everclear), crushed cinnamon and cloves. I will also probably add lemon peel in a few days. Forty days or so from now it should be ready and I will post more pics hopefully. Elie

I got the walnuts today in addition to some walnut leaves in the package. Both the Vin De Noix and the Nocino have been set up. I went by the recipe I linked to upthread and used a drinkable cheap red wine and brandy, added cloves, vanilla bean and walnut leaves. I tasted a little bit of the mixture for the vin and I know it is way early, but it tasted a little too sweet. How sweet should it be? Should I add any more wine to it maybe? Anyways, now it is resting for a couple of months and then we'll see. Here are some pics: Elie

My order from mount lassen has shipped and should arrive no later than Friday, so hopefully we will have Lucy's recipe by then. If not I'll go with the one I linked to upthread. Elie

Windy, all these look perfect! How was the sorbet? I also am planning on making the trout soon. It is funny how some people, including myself think that the picture in the book looks awsome. Others, like my dear wife, insist on removing the head before serving it because it just looks "alive" . Bond Girl- I do not have the book in front of me, but I believe he asks for Fromage Blanc not cream cheese for the cheesecake. Where did you get it from? Or did you have a handy substitute? Elie

I enjoy Broker's in G&T and in Negroni, the 2 drinks I use Gin for. It is also very moderatly priced. Elie