blue_dolphin

Prosciutto, Mint & Fig Crostini from the Cichèti chapter of Polpo. Barely a recipe, really, but as the book says, they are particularly pretty!

I've seen recipes that suggest rinsing but my Chinese friends recommend against it. I just give them a rough chop.

This morning, I continued my pizza efforts with this Pizzetta Bianca from Polpo I thought the pizzette would go well with the Harissa and Manchego Omelette from Ottolenghi's new book, Simple but I ate most of it while I caramelized the onions for the omelet. This is a 2 egg version (the recipe calls for 3 eggs/serving), cooked in a 6 1/2 inch cast iron skillet. I like the flavors of the harissa, caramelized onion, cheese and cilantro but can't help thinking that I might prefer this as a conventional omelet or maybe turned into a frittata with potatoes.

Stracchino, Potato & Rosemary Pizzetta from Polpo

Two wrapped, low-carb appetizers from Russell Norman's cookbook, Polpo. Bresaola, Rocket & Parmesan Wraps. Very easy to assemble, these are little arugula & Parmesan salads, dressed with lemon juice and olive oil, wrapped in paper-thin slices of air-dried, salted beef. Smoked Salmon, Ricotta & Dill Wraps Slices of smoked salmon are topped with a spoonful of a ricotta/lemon juice and zest/dill mixture and rolled up to "about the size of your little finger." That wasn't happening here, these are more like the size of my thumb.

I think you will like the assortment. It includes some of my favorites and a couple I haven't tried yet.

Thanks, @liuzhou! Both the pale green stem type posted by @liuzhou and the white stem type that @rotuts shared below are available locally in sizes that range from the size of a thumb up to larger than a forearm. The small ones are often labeled "baby" in the stores. The white-stem sort shared by @rotuts And the most recent photo looks very much like what I see in stores labeled as Choy Sum or Chinese flowering cabbage.

I just enjoyed watching the 4 episodes of Samin Nosrat's Netflix series. It has the same name as her James Beard & IACP award winning cookbook, Salt Fat Acid Heat (some eG comments on that here). In the book, Samin comes off as the best sort of teacher - part teacher/part cheerleader - who truly wants her students to succeed. The book is info packed and as a result, it reads rather like a textbook. This series adds the colorful food photography that the book lacks and incorporates her warm personality and enthusiasm, though it only conveys a fraction of the book's information. I may try to re-read the book, with a break after each section to watch the relevant episode. Recipes from the series will be available online starting Oct 19 at this link, where you can also watch a trailer. I want to try the focaccia recipe, at least. Some online mentions from Eater: ’Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat’ Is a New Kind of Food TV Show ‘Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat’ Recap: Samin Nosrat Samples the Bounty of Olive Oil and Parmesan in Italy ‘Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat’ Recap: Samin Explores the Wide World of Salt in Japan ‘Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat’ Recap: Samin Heads to Mexico for a Study in Citrus ‘Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat’ Recap: Nosrat Summons Superior Flavors Using the Power of Fire Food52: How Our New Favorite Netflix Show Is Making Us Better, Smarter Cooks Bon Appetit: ‘Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat’ Is the New Netflix Series That's Very Much Worth Your Time Food & Wine: 29 Essential Cooking Tips From Samin Nosrat’s ‘Salt Fat Acid Heat’ on Netflix

I will make an effort to report what I cook with my bean club beans over in that thread.

My box-o-beans arrived a few minutes ago. It's a great selection and I'm already giving the first pound a bit of a soak.

@Ann_T, may I ask what temp you use for the CSO steam-bake bacon? And do you put it flat on a pan or up on a rack?

Just email them at customerservice@ranchogordo.com They are very responsive. I'm a member of the club and got a code that says it's good until the end of Dec.

Today's breakfast was the chopped chicken liver crostini that I posted this over in the crostini topic.

Two more crostini from Polpo. Chopped Chicken Liver Crostini Compared with other chopped liver recipes I've seen, this one uses shallots and garlic instead of onion and olive oil instead of schmaltz but otherwise the method is similar, including the usual hard boiled egg. Both port and brandy are added at the end of cooking. The recipe recommends to process until just combined but not too smooth so I stopped before I normally might. I served this on slices of sonora wheat rosemary baguette from Roan Mills. Tuna and Leek Crostini I wasn't sure about two things: adding brandy to the tuna-mayo mixture and topping them with sliced, raw leeks - I love them cooked but never ate a raw leek. I needn't have worried, these are tasty little morsels and another good pantry crostini. I never would have thought to serve guests baby tuna sandos, but why not?

I got one email from them on 30 Sept with the end of Nov shipping estimate. It was sent from info@darto.org

She is selling "Country as Cornbread" T-shirts to raise money for hurricane relief in Jones County, NC here on her website.

Great use of that TJ's pâté! Now, I must go over to the preserving threads to see if you've shared that onion and sherry marmalade - sounds amazing! One more from Polpo, White Bean Crostini made with one of my favorites, Rancho Gordo Alubia Blanca beans. This one could also be called, "beans on beans on toast," as half the beans get turned into a simple but "fluffy" purée and the rest are marinated with olive oil, lemon juice & zest, garlic and parsley, then spooned over top of the purée.

And two more, also from Polpo. Top: Rocket and walnut pesto crostini. Equal weights of arugula and walnuts go into the food processor with Parmesan, garlic, S&P and enough olive oil to make a spreadable paste. I added the juice and zest of half a lemon to brighten it up. Since arugula is readily available for much of the year in my area, this is a nice pesto alternative when basil is out of season. Bottom: Anchovy and chickpea crostini. This was one of those recipes I had to try. 10 anchovies + some of their oil go into the food processor with a single can of chickpeas, lemon juice, parsley, a little tahini and olive oil. I thought it would be anchovy overkill but it was not. Both of these spreads can be made ahead and stored in the fridge or even freezer for longer term.

Resurrecting this thread with a couple of ideas, both from Russell Norman's Polpo. The Cichèti chapter in the book has a lot of ideas for "stuff on toast". Goat's cheese, Roasted Grape and Walnut Bruschette, recipe available online here (that link takes you to a multi-page excerpt from Polpo with several recipes. This recipe appears on pages 16-17 of that excerpt so you need to click the right arrow 8 times to get to it) Broad Bean, Mint and Ricotta Bruschetta, recipe available online here.

My first cook from Ottolenghi's Simple Hot Charred Cherry Tomatoes with Cold Yogurt and Braised Eggs with Leek and Za'atar. Bäco bread on the side. The egg & leek recipe is available online here. The tomatoes are roasted, then broiled with garlic, lemon zest, cumin, thyme, oregano, slivered lemon zest and olive oil and garnished with more fresh oregano and Urfa chile flakes. The Greek yogurt is seasoned with lemon zest and salt. Excellent. The egg dish was rather salty from the preserved lemon (the recipe says to use both the skin and flesh) and feta. I also added extra spinach. Next time, I'll just poach the eggs and nestle them into the cooked vegetables.

I firmly believed that I didn't need another Ottolenghi book, but I caved in and bought Simple. A list of recipes can be found here on Eat Your Books. I don't find it quite as captivating as his earlier books but I think I will still enjoy it. I have a number of dishes marked to make. I'm looking forward to hearing him speak at an author event later this month. Since "Simple" means different things to different people, each recipe in the book is marked with colored disks marking them as: S - Short on Time I - 10 Ingredients or Less M - Make Ahead P - Pantry, using primarily ingredients discussed in the intro L - Lazy - slow oven cooks or refrigerator desserts that don't require a lot of attention E - Easier than You Think The back of the book has a listing of seasonal menu suggestions and a separate section of "Feasts," which consist mostly of dishes that can be made ahead and sit for a while at RT. So far, I've just been perusing the book. I'll come back and update this when I've actually cooked from it.

....in Hong Kong, no less!

Toasted rosemary sourdough bread, triple creme brie and saskatoon berry jam

I use equal parts gin/Salers/Cocchi Americano for a White Negroni. I tried Suze but can't make myself call that version, "white."

Good point. My original intent was to give it away but it's kind of ugly so I should at least do a freezer test. There's a nice crispy texture on the top - it was brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with cheese & pepper before going into the oven. That texture might suffer, but we'll see.