blue_dolphin

I buy peaches and other stone fruit from Tenerelli Orchards who bring peaches to our local farmers market from June into November. Here's the sign in their booth that shows the varieties of yellow peaches. The first on on the list is a cling peach, all the others are freestone. Last week, I got June Lady and June Flame. This week, there were lots of Fancy Lady and the July Flames were just starting. O'Henry is my favorite, but they are all good. Yesterday, my power was out for an all-day, planned outage. Last year, when they did this, it was out until 9 PM and my popsicles suffered badly so I picked up some dry ice for the freezer, then packed up the peach popsicles I made last week and brought them down to the guys working at this stand. They were very appreciative. From other stands, I bought corn, parsley, dill, green beans, red and yellow cherry tomatoes, 3 kinds of heirloom tomatoes and blueberries. Out of curiosity, I bought a box of these little cheese rolls. They're maybe 2 bites, sold in a box of 30. Bake from frozen in ~ 15 min. Gluten-free because they are made from yuca or cassava flour. I have no need to eliminate gluten but when tried them, I thought they had a nice chew that's usually missing from GF baked goods - maybe it's the cheese 🙃.

Vivian Howard's recipe for Foolproof Grits in Deep Run Roots also uses a double boiler and I've found this method works very well with the uneven stone-ground grits that I've ordered from a mill in South Carolina. She uses 1 cup grits and 3 1/4 cup of milk or other liquid and whisks occasionally for 25-40 minutes depending on the grind of the grits. She also recommends using a tea strainer to skim off any bits of chaff that float to the top and it certainly helps produce a perfectly creamy result. I can cook the evenly ground stuff in the Instant Pot but the uneven mix of particles in the stone-ground stuff really seems to need at least an occasional stir.

I just signed up for the club to give me a nudge to eat more beans but I've been buying Rancho Gordo beans for at least 12 years and the quality is excellent. Not everyone is a bean lover but these are the best!

I took advantage of the recent openings to sign up. Just got my first box: Better start eating more beans 🙃!

Ditto here - kinda wanted leftover pasta, kinda wanted a poached egg.....

Congrats for trying something new! I came upon a good reminder when I was consulting Samin Nosrat's recipe for Kuku Sabzi in her great book Salt Fat Acid Heat. There's a whole little pep talk about flipping the Kuku and then she says, "If something goes awry....don't freak out! It's only lunch. Just do your best....." Wise words to remember in the kitchen!

Corn and Tomato Salad with Torn Croutons from Six Seasons p 225. Leftover kuku sabzi (not from this book) in the background. This is very similar to the Farro with Tomatoes, Raw Corn, Mint, Basil and Scallions that I shared a few posts back. While the farro made that version a one-bowl meal, this is much lighter and more of a side salad. I like the addition of pistachios and grated Pecorino Romano cheese in this version. In all of the raw corn salads this book, after cutting the corn off the ears, they are scraped and the milky pulp in included in the salads. I've always scraped the cobs and saved the pulp aside for a soup but it becomes a nice part of the dressing in these salads. Spaghetti with Small Tomatoes, Garlic, Basil and Chiles from Six Seasons p 269. In this recipe, the garlic, half of the tomatoes and basil get cooked down into a sauce while the rest are added to the pan as the pasta finishes cooking in the sauce so you get both cooked and fresh flavors. It's finished with a sprinkle of dried breadcrumbs p 30 and grated Parmesan Romano. I can't say it's head and shoulders better than other versions of I've made but it was very good.

My first pass at El Diablo pops, based on the El Diablo cocktail as it appears in the Nopalito cookbook: Tequila, lime juice, ginger beer and just a few dashes of cassis. Not bad. I added a little cassis to the mix, then added 2-3 drops to each mold to get sort of a gradient effect and that worked pretty well. They are kind of icy since there's no fruit pulp, just juice. I think I'll try adding some cucumber purée to the next batch to see if that helps.

The name might more properly be Cocchi Americano Rosa, not really sure. I'd say it has more in common with Cocchi Americano than with the vermouth. which is also my favorite vermouth for a Negroni. Rosa starts with a red wine (not white as in Cocchi Americano) but the herbs, etc. used to infuse it are light and floral rather than warm and woody like in a vermouth. The website identifies gentian, ginger, rose and citrus, all of which I can taste. Not sure what else is in there. I've read that it's a little more bitter than Cocchi Americano but I haven't tasted them side by side. I quite like it. On its own, over ice, or with soda, tonic or as a spritzer with a brut rosé.

It was indeed very herb-y. I've also seen it in various places, been curious and had the fridge contents to make it a good idea today. I liked it with the tomato chutney - it needs a punchy accompaniment, I think. I'm glad I tried it. The leftovers will determine whether I make it again or not.

Kuku Sabzi (Persian vegetable & herb omelet) from Tartine All Day with tomato chutney and fresh tomato I used Swiss chard and arugula for the greens and cilantro, parsley, dill, basil and mint for the herbs.

Tomato-Rubbed Grilled Bread Topped with Tomato Salad from Six Seasons p 263. Bread is grilled or toasted, rubbed with garlic, olive oil and tomato, spread with whipped ricotta and topped with more fresh tomatoes that have been marinated in red wine vinegar. I added a little confetti of basil because I thought it should be there.

I resisted Modernist Cuisine. I used the $10 from Whole Foods and the $5 book off promo code on a cookbook.

I do like that cocktail. It is indeed very refreshing and goes down way too easily. Some of the published versions call for more cassis, which can become cloying. I recommend a light hand, as in the recipe I linked to.

The Bourbon Decay sounds like it might be just the ticket. I'd put in a plug for the El Diablo which also calls for cassis and works beautifully with Chambord but I'm guessing the requirement for ginger beer would be a deal breaker on your island. Too bad. I'm working on some El Diablo popsicles at the moment and you are sure to see them someday soon.....

Today's breakfast was 2 ears of corn. Yesterday, I made Grilled Corn with Alla Diavola Butter from Six Seasons. The header notes suggest serving the corn with several of the compound butters in the book so that's what I did. Not-grilled corn with Cacio e Pepe butter and Pecorino. Peppery and delicious. A couple of those big chunks of peppercorn certainly woke up my taste buds! Not-grilled corn with Pickled Vegetable Butter: This one looked pretty but I'd just as soon have a dish of pickles on the side.

Me, too. For the last few years, I told myself that if it went below $400, I'd spring for it. On the other hand, I've gotten along without it thus far. Two more hours.......

Understood. I'm somewhat relieved as I secretly want an ice cream maker but I really, really shouldn't have one 🙃 Here are Amazon.com prices over the past year. The current price isn't bad, but not the best, either.

Is there a reason to purchase it during this Prime Day promotion? It doesn't seem to be at a particularly low price. Or maybe it was a lightning deal and I missed it?

I've been making a Negroni-ish cocktail with Cocchi Rosa subbing in for sweet vermouth. Equal parts with a little wedge of orange squeezed in to go with the fruitiness of the Rosa. Light and summery.

With extra tonnato made for the recipe above, I repeated the Radishes with Tonnato, Sunflower Seeds and Lemon from Six Seasons p 112. Still the best way I've found to eat a bowl o-radishes! I also tried the Grilled Corn with Alla Diavola Butter and Pecorino p 229 I really like the Alla Diavola butter p 33 and this was very good but grilling fresh, tender sweet corn seems to take some of the "pop" out of the kernels - they don't quite burst when your teeth hit them they way they do if you just steam or microwave them lightly. The idea in the header notes of serving several different butters from the book with corn on the cob is very appealing. I will try the Cacio e Pepe butter p 34 next but probably won't grill the corn.

I checked out the Prime Day kitchen listings over at the Wirecutter. Prices I see (US Prime Member) as of ~ 1PM PDT Instant Pot Duo60 @ $58.99 Anova WiFi @ $69.99, Bluetooth is $74.99, Nano is not showing any Prime deal and is still priced @ $99. Joule @ $130 Edit: Now up to $150 Vitamix 5200 @ $279.95 These prices seem to be shifting up and down over time. In some cases, you don't see the "Prime Day" prices unless you are logged in as a prime member. All seem like good prices but nothing I need so far. I've got $10 to spend from using the Whole Foods app and may apply it to a cookbook, along with promo code PRIMEBOOKS18 to save $5.00 when you spend $20.00 or more on Books

Interesting. I wonder what starting price that 20% discount is calculated from. Modernist Cuisine has a list price of $625 and is currently listed on Amazon at $495.47 or 21% off list and was selling at 437.50 for a good period time, from Nov 17 thru mid-Mar 18. Modernist Bread has the same list price and is currently listed at 11% less or 558.35. I guess I can see for myself tomorrow AM!

They're pretty clear about the products not needing refrigeration so I didn't complain about it and chalked it up to a learning experience. Given the shipping cost of close to $35, I sort of expected a insulated shipping box or cool packs might have been involved but I didn't ask ahead. The hocks and bacon seasoning seemed to fare the best so if that's what you're after, it may be OK.

If others are inspired to order Father's products and live somewhat distant from them, I'd recommend waiting until cooler weather. My order, placed in May, was shipped promptly but was in transit for over a week. It wasn't hot here, but the uninsulated box had clearly been exposed to very warm temps. Everything inside ws quite warm to the touch and the bacon had that translucent, liquidy appearance you get when you try to warm a pack in the microwave and way overshoot the time. The shipping box was soaked through in several areas with fat that had leaked out from 2 poorly sealed bags. Nothing was actually rancid but I'm sure this sort of handling can affect the quality and shelf life of the products.