blue_dolphin

What vendor did you order from?

Made a breakfast sandwich by splitting and toasting a piece of yesterday's cheesy jalapeño cornbread to surround an egg and country ham biscuit slice. Not bad, I might try again with sausage to see if that works better with the cornbread. On the side are a tangelo and the Sweet + Sticky Brussels Sprouts from Nik Sharma's Veg-Table, which were excellent. After roasting, they're lightly dressed with a sauce that's made with mirin, honey or maple syrup, miso, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil.

@rotuts, if you are ever interested in trying something different with your fish sticks/nuggets, you might consider Nigella's Fish Finger Bhorta. The recipe is in her book, Cook, Eat, Repeat, and a lot of folks in the cookbook group I participate in thought it was surprisingly good. It's on my list to try one of these days.

Cheesy Jalapeño Corn Bread from Snacking Bakes by Yossy Arefi. There aren't a lot of savory recipes in this book, but I found one and made a little half recipe in a 6-inch pan so I could check it out. I was worried it was going to look pale because I used white cornmeal and a sharp white cheddar but the cheese topping browned nicely and it came out fine. Half the jalapeños get chopped and mixed into the batter so you get a little heat throughout. At first bite, I thought it was a little sweet but the salty cheese and chile heat balances out the honey used in the batter so I was happy to have it with my breakfast this morning and would probably make it again.

Clockwise from lower left, scrambled egg, cherry tomatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts tossed with hot sauce, manzano chile salsa and queso fresco, cheesy jalapeño cornbread from Snacking Bakes, and pinto beans with more salsa.

Years ago, a chemist friend of mine worked for one of the big meat curing/processing companies in the US doing testing of their raw materials and he said that the spice business was the dirtiest business in the world. Vendors would present clean samples for approval of an order and deliver all sorts of adulterated crap. It required constant testing to prevent tainting their products. Yes, I remember when I read that Consumer Reports spice/metals article when it came out that the folks drinking mass quantities of turmeric chai for their health might want to at least vary their spice usage.

There's a bunch of stuff out there like this: 18 Surprising Things You Can Make In A Panini Press. Most of them aren't things I'd necessarily want to do - that omelet looks weird - but I liked the idea of the smashed little potatoes (boiled first, then smashed) and the grilled vegetables. Also, 10 Unexpected Things to Make in a Panini Press where I liked the idea of the grilled romaine lettuce, grilled fruit and grilled flatbreads

Yes, that's why I included the Garden Betty link as her photos show that the base needs to be intact.

You could try rooting some to grow outside in the summer or in a pot indoors. Luckily, I can buy them by them individually, priced per lb but I might try this anyway.

Lobster Green Curry from Shaya was a treat! I upgraded my fish share this week and got a live spiny lobster caught by this guy: I par-cooked it as soon as I got home, put the meat in the fridge, shells in the freezer and pulled them out to make the lobster stock this morning: I've got a lot of stock leftover so I can make this again with shrimp or crab. Here's the curry at the end of cooking when I've put the lobster in to finish cooking.

I really can't imagine what it would taste like but all this conversation has made me curious. I looked it up at Total Wine and the stuff has an amazing number of positive reviews. My store has the mini bottles available for a fairly nominal cost so maybe I'll spring for one and find out. If I do, I'll be sure to let you know!

I noticed Modernist Cuisine is going to offer a series of email Bread School courses. They said they will make an announcement when it's available for sign-up, sometime in early March. In response to questions when they posted this on Facebook, they said that it's not necessary to have either this "At Home" book or the original Modernist Bread in order to follow along. Even though the emails don't require the book, it kind of piques my interest in getting it and might serve as a nudge to actually bake from it! I figure I'll sign up for the emails when they become available and if they seem engaging, I'll order the book.

I'm very sorry about your broken hip, @Katie Meadow and happy you are home, complete with titanium body parts and sense of humor intact! Couldn't pick a single "reaction" emoji to encapsulate that so I had to post!

I've never heard of a rock cake but your Fat Rascal description reminds of pane del pescatore aka fisherman's bread, also called an Italian scone. The recipe I have from the Il Fornaio Baking Book (available online here) includes the ingredients you mention, including raisins, candied lemon and orange peel in addition to fennel seeds and a splash of Marsala. They often have almonds on top, although my recipe doesn't do that. I think this was the last time I made them. Thanks for the reminder to make them again!

I tend to prefer to chew my calories rather than drink them. Unless there's alcohol involved, that is 🤣 And I love that you often include vegetables in your breakfasts. Years ago, I participated in a research study where we had to eat a LOT of fruit and veg. I soon learned that adding some to my breakfast could help prevent getting to dinner time and needing to eat 4 servings of fruit and 5 vegetables. I need to get back into that breakfast habit! Toasted fruit-nut bread (has dried apricots, figs, cranberries, pecans, hazelnuts and walnuts) spread with homemade whole milk ricotta and topped with beet stems and cranberries pickled in a sweet red wine vinegar brine. Plus a handful of kumquats to ward off scurvy.

I thought you might!

I save Parm rinds and use them in soups and sometimes when cooking beans. I have to admit that I never stopped to taste the rinds but I’ve never picked up a moldy taste or smell in anything I've made with them. Edited to add that I’ve got some stashed in the freezer and will be sure to give them a good sniff before I use them.

How about using it in a Bloody Mary? Or a spicy martini?

I've been buying them for a while and blame either @weinoo or @Katie Meadow. I can get them at a local import shop. The brine is good in a vinaigrette. Or just toss greens with a splash of brine and drizzle of olive oil. Also toss your hot spuds with it prior to making a potato salad. I'm not a big pasta salad fan but the aforementioned vinaigrette makes a nice dressing for the sort with bits of cheese and salami. If you're making any recipe that uses pickled peppers, look for a way to sneak the brine in to sub for vinegar, lemon juice, etc.

A curious breakfast. Yesterday's balsamic beets and beet greens, warmed with Gorgonzola and scooped up with crisped tortilla wedges. Blood orange on the side.

Yes, but it's not uncommon for a kitchen with all gas appliances to have all or mostly 110 volt circuits. When I moved here I hoped to replace the gas cooktop with an induction model but there's no 220/240 volt circuit available. Running electrical in this post and beam house is not trivial and would have cost a bundle so I got another gas cooktop.

Growing up, I wasn't much of a meat eater. I never cared much for calves liver but my mom lightly breaded and fried chicken livers in bacon fat and served them with mushrooms and onions, also cooked in the bacon fat and I liked that. Always liked paté, too, and will probably make something along that line with some of this package.

I always like a recipe that uses both the beets & greens and this is a good one. Works well as a side because you can throw the beets and everything but the greens into the pan and leave it to simmer while you do other things and just toss the greens in towards the end. I know liver isn't for everyone but with their flavorful spice marinade and bright squeeze of lime juice, these are pretty great! Well...you know....if you're a liver lover!

Chicken livers on toast from the breakfast chapter of Dishoom, recipe online here. Also balsamic glazed beets & beet greens.

A light lunch for Ash Wednesday featuring beets for a Valentine's Day color scheme. Based on a recipe in Susan Spungen's Open Kitchen for Whipped Ricotta Toast with Pickled Rhubarb and Grated Beets. I made the Creamy Ricotta from Bestia, which is pretty decadent from the added heavy cream and has a bit of a tang from the buttermilk used as the coagulating agent. I followed this recipe's instruction to whip the ricotta with lemon juice and zest. No rhubarb about so I cast about for subs and ended up pickling a mix of apple slices and halved fresh cranberries. The grated beets are raw and add an earthy flavor and chewy texture. Sort of odd, although not unpleasant with the creamy ricotta and tangy pickle. This is supposed to be a party appetizer but it seems like a dangerous choice both for the guests' clothing and the host's upholstery.