kayb

I've cooked my first rice -- a bit stickier and wetter than from my old el cheapo rice cooker, maybe -- and my initial foray into Rancho Gordo beans. Ojo de Cabra, cooked per Steve's suggestion with just a little salt, pepper, garlic and onion, and olive oil, and served with a scoop of rice, a squeeze of lime juice, a diced avocado half, and some feta cheese. I am as satisfied as if I had had a 12-oz ribeye. Those beans are a revelation. That's soy sauce on the rice. Because I like soy sauce on my rice.

Will be interested to hear reports on the yogurt-making, Shelby.

Rotini with smoked salmon alfredo sauce. Meh. Sauce was too rich, and the smokiness of the salmon got lost.

The damned Instant Pot is costing me money. I decided that, since I had a pressure cooker for the first time in ages, I needed to buy some Rancho Gordo beans, which I could now cook without having to plan it the night before and soak. So I betook myself to the Rancho Gordo site. And all the bean varieties are so pretty and so fascinating that I kept clicking "add to cart," and when I got through, I had, well, about 8 or 9 different packages. They arrived midweek. And I was intimidated enough by them that I thought, "You can't just throw those in there with a hamhock," so I ordered the Rancho Gordo cookbook, which should be here Friday. We will have beans this weekend.

My Instant Pot was my Christmas present to myself. Used it for beef stew, so far. I'm pleased.

After delaying the beef stew for an evening when a dinner guest had to cancel, we had it last night. Very good. Can't say any better than my usual beef stew, but certainly quicker, easier, and less trouble. Wow. I can buy chicken livers all day, every day, for $1.99 a pound, here in the home of Tyson. Wish I could figure out how to ship some to you. I have, in fact, half a pound in the fridge left over from making pate that I either need to freeze or throw out. I want to try this bolognese sometime soon.

I highly approve. I had salsa with grated cheddar in it.

Thanks for all the answers. I have been very pleased with the flavor, and have enjoyed the pate!

BV -- I want a cheese board with the mouse! Fond of the flatware, as well.

Taking my IP on its maiden voyage tonight. Beef stew. Will report. ETA: I just checked Amazon to send the link to a friend who is interested. While on the listing of different models the LUX shows $104 and change, when you click on it, it comes up for $75. In case anyone is waiting to pull the trigger.

Candy. I had candy for dinner last night. And wine. I'm a little ashamed. But not too much.

I pulled the aforementioned rump roast out of the fridge yesterday, set it in a roasting pan, and seared it for 10 minutes in a 500-degree oven. It turned out with a lovely dark crust, and a beautiful rare inside, not quite fork tender after four hours SV at 125 degrees. But -- it had very little flavor, once I got past the coffee-ancho rub on the exterior. I know rump is a very lean cut and thus has little fat or collagen to lend flavor, but I really thought the SV cook and the overnight in the fridge afterward would allow the seasoning to penetrate a bit. Any suggestions out there on how to cook rump roast? One comes in my beef order every year, and I have yet to cook it in a fashion I enjoy it.

I went ahead and ordered the HIP book, too. Just for good measure.

How fun!

One of the reasons I love sous vide: I had coated a small (1.5 pound) rump roast in a coffee-ancho spice rub and put it in the water bath for four hours at 125. Decided I wasn't in the mood for roast beef for dinner. Took it out, stashed the bag in the fridge, and had a glass of wine and some cheese, pate and crackers. Tomorrow evening, I'll bring it back up to temp, then sear it, and go forward with the original plan.

The Instant Pot arrived this morning (Amazon's Sunday delivery still weirds me out). Won't use it today, as I am sous viding a rump roast, but may very well use it tomorrow, and certainly this week. Need to re-read this entire thread, as well as the recipe/instruction book. Will also take a look at the book rotuts referenced.

Dutch baby folded around peach butter and ricotta cheese. Would have been better with a stronger-flavored cheese, and I added a tablespoon of sugar to the batter that it didn't need. Still good. With a large cup of French press coffee, this went a long way to offset the third grey, rainy day in a row.

I made a pot of turkey posole, which was pretty good. Forgot to take photos.

Baron -- Just absolutely stunning. I envy your guests.

Change of pace from yesterday's overindulgence. The pate de campagne I made the other night (I deem it a success!), with some cheese, olives, pickles and quince paste. Crackers and a glass of red.

That's the one I got.

Thought it would be appropriate to have a place to recreate successes -- and not-so-much -- from the Annual Celebration of Overindulgence. Mine was mostly traditional Thanksgiving fare -- turkey, cornbread dressing, corn casserole, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, broccoli salad, cranberry salad. I made a white chocolate cheesecake, had enough batter for a second, smaller one. The first one was topped with cherries, the second with a spread of Nutella, toasted pecans, caramel sauce and sea salt. Neither were touched. I'm about to tear into the cherry one for breakfast. I do have to report, though, that I cooked the best turkey I have ever cooked. It was a farm-raised bird, local from here in the region, but not a heritage variety. I picked it up fresh on Wednesday, brined it for about 12 hours in a brine containing salt, brown sugar, thyme, paprika, garlic and onion. Roasted at 350, started breast-down (per the NYT's cooking section, "How To Roast A Turkey," where I was looking to check recommended roasting times) with a stick of butter, salt, pepper, thyme, and a quartered orange.Chicken broth in the bottom of the roaster to keep the drippings from burning. After an hour and a half, I donned oven gloves covered with plastic bags; turned the turkey over, breast-up, and returned him to the oven, where I overcooked him because I dozed off on the couch (had gotten up at 5 to start cooking). Thigh temp was near 185. I said, "Oh, s***!" and snatched the turkey out. He was a pretty thing, but I had little hope he would be tasty. Wrong. I sliced into the breast an hour later, and could see the juices in the meat. That was without any doubt the juiciest, tenderest turkey I have ever cooked. Don't know whether it was the farm-raised aspect, the brine or the breast-down technique, but be assured I'll do it EXACTLY the same way next year. My eldest daughter also contended it was the best mashed potatoes she'd ever had. Not sure why -- there was nothing but butter and cream in them, although they did whip for a while in the mixer while I got sidetracked doing something else. My dressing left something to be desired; some years it's good, some years it's not. This was a "not." How was your Thanksgiving?

I've joined the club as well. Amazon Black Friday deal. I figure I can get rid of my slow cooker and rice cooker, and create a little room in my cabinet. Plus, I haven't had a pressure cooker in forever. Looking forward to experimentation.

Welcome, and you've picked a great time to join in! Amazing cooks in this group turn out some amazing dishes over the holiday season. What kinds of things are you most interested in, and what do you most like to cook?

I grew up in the South, but never heard of this until I moved to Arkansas. Perhaps it's an Arkansas thing. The recipe I posted comes from the grandmother of an Arkansas friend. I thought it was weird when I first tried it, but it's really pretty good. Addictive on carrot sticks. And turkey sandwiches.