Mel Z
-
Posts
33 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Store
Help Articles
Posts posted by Mel Z
-
-
We do this a fair amount with chicken on the presumption that it'll infuse as you defrost the chicken. It always seems to work pretty well, and although I haven't done a side-by-side comparison with a refrigerated sample, the flavor from memory is comparable.
-
If you're looking for more insights on the faux sushi, we had a sushi birthday party for my friend. Along with traditional rolls and a few Americanized ones, we did:
-a breakfast spin on tamago--make a rectangular thin omelet, fill it with whatever (cheese/veggies) and roll along the short side (you don't want a spiral, just a cylinder). We wrapped some of the rolls in mostly cooked bacon (flexible enough to roll) that we gave a quick sear to finish crisping
-pb&j sushi if there will be kids (white bread w/ crusts removed; add a strawberry slice for texture contrast)
-and my favorite: Carrot cake sushi! I made a spice sponge cake, spread cream cheese icing on one side, lay a healthy amount of julienned carrots down the roll, rolled up, spread with a little more cc icing, and rolled it in chopped walnuts (looks like the sesame seeds that some put on sushi).
Excited to hear what you finally decide!
-
Can we coax those from the 'burgh out again?
I'm moving to PGH in a few months, and would love to hear an update on the places mentioned above. In particular, if you have recommendations for tapas, a wine bar, and any reasonably authentic Asian, I'd love to hear them. Also, I've heard rave reviews of local produce markets. I'm probably going to end up in Squirrel Hill, so if you have any suggestions of easy-access ones in the area, that'd be great.
Thanks!
-
Right now, corned beef brisket ($1.68/lb), assorted chicken parts ($1.69/lb for drumsticks, breasts, thighs), and pork chops (okay, so they're $2.09/lb but I figured that was close enough!).
I'm also known to make "after 8" visits to the store to pick up meat that's about to expire...ours will go as low as 2/3 off, and I've gotten steaks and the outlandishly expensive prepared roulades for quite cheap.
-
I worked in (rather lowbrow) food service for several years and am certified in food safety for my state, so that's the source of my ramblings.
Even beyond the health risks of disease (which I do believe are present, though perhaps rare), there's also the worry of cross-contamination, and places with poor practices on gloves/sanitation are likely to have the same issues with food allergies. People with really severe nut/wheat allergies probably know enough to avoid such places, but from a business perspective, you don't want to have to label all of your food "may contain nuts." Different gloves or freshly washed hands for different tasks...it's not that hard.
I first worked at a fast food joint with a drive through. Want to know how many women pulled money out of their bras to hand to me? (A lot). I didn't want to touch it myself, and would never have considered touching food before washing up. It's just common courtesy!
Those of us who care should voice our opinions to help the market solve...
-
-Unagi/eel: I remember thinking "it's duck from the sea"--the slippery, rich taste was simultaneously confusing and delightful
-Single malt scotch: Not really a food, but it was my first introduction to the complexities of liquor, and the idea that they have as much personality and character as wine...definitely revolutionized my thinking!
-Pan-seared anything: I took a culinary skills class in college and we seared seafood, poultry, steak, and vegetables...each dish was more delicious than the one before it, and I was enchanted by the simplicity of the preparation.
-
From our recent trip to Florida, where I ask every server the same question: which fish or seafood item is the most local and amazingly fresh. Wrong answer #1: "I like . . . ." Wrong answer #2: "We sell a lot of the . . . . ". I want to know what's fresh and local - not what you like to eat and not what you sell a lot of.
Similar pet peeve--at one of my favorite local restaurants, I was stuck between two menu items and asked the server's opinion (on the assumption that the servers have tasted the menu items). She responded with "x item is really popular." I made the mistake of ordering the popular item, which was quite uninspired, and spent the rest of the meal envying my companion's order (which he kindly shared). I love the rest of their menu, but didn't consider the difference between "good" and "popular" until this incident.
Also, the tendency to ask a question on the quality of the meal while everyone has just taken a bite. Do people train servers to do this? It stifles the actual response into a quick nod, getting rid of any potential sharing of information.
-
Along the same lines, I was thinking macarons--does anyone know if pecan flour is a suitable sub for almond flour? And I'm sure you could make a delicious filling using pecan oil...though unfilled cookies are much more portable.
-
A boiled icing could work too--tastes a lot like marshmallow, and goes well with chocolate cakes. It holds up reasonably well in the heat, but I would keep it inside as long as possible.
-
Curried Pumpkin Soup! I realized after making it that it was vegan (coconut milk), as was the roti I made. For those who have had trouble with roti/chapatti puffing (unless it's just me), press lightly on the bread after it has browned, but still on the skillet. It will quickly puff up and form a beautiful pocket. Recipe is adapted from Gourmet, for those who want to try...a nice warming dish. Will hopefully post pics later.
-
It also depends on the humidity of where you're serving...the caramelized sugar becomes tacky and less structural as it's exposed to moisture in the air, so if you assemble it several hours in advance, one can pull pieces off with reasonable grace.
-
My white whale was strudel dough--I haven't tried puff since I don't think my results could come close, but strudel dough was my first laminated dough and it took me FOREVER to finish it. Especially since my first attempt I didn't clearly read the directions about letting the dough rest after each three-fold. That said, eating real Danish made it all worthwhile...
Keep on the choux--you'll develop a feel for what's right and once you get your panade texture/moisture down, everything else falls into place.
For the macarons--I've had better luck when I've ground my own almonds mixed with some of the sugar in the processor...I've never bothered with a cooked/syrup meringue and they usually turn out well.
-
I did my first "real" croque this past weekend...I had made a mini one before with maybe 20 puffs, and decided it was time to go full-sized. Heeding others' comments about dipped faces being too much caramelized sugar, I opted for dripping some down the sides, a molten river from the top. I think it just ended up looking sloppy and will keep it on the inside next time!
Lessons learned:
-Avoid the caramel drip
-Even-sized and -shaped puffs are crucial (note the gaping holes)
-Have a plan of how many you'll need (I had one puff left over, meaning I couldn't select for uniform shape)
-Once the caramel starts to soften, there's no saving it. I had tried to time it for serving but the hosts decided to serve an hour later, and it was heavily tilting by that time...and any attempts to straighten the croque just dislodged more puffs!
-The "two fork" technique for wrapping spun sugar around it worked really well
-Forming by hand (without a cone) is not as hard as it appears
Without further ado, the pictures...I added more spun sugar closer to serving time, but didn't grab a photo.
Any additional insights would be most welcome (especially on how to make the photo not sideways)!
-
I got a slate cheese plate that I had been salivating over...I love to entertain and it's nice to do away with tacky cheese flags (for only slightly tacky chalk marks =p).
I also ended up with stocking stuffer syndrome--melon baller (already have), strawberry huller (I have a paring knife), crinkle-cut slicer (cute--we'll see how it works), and cherry pitter.
-
I'm a huge fan of Wayne Gisslen's Professional Baking...I've yet to find a bad recipe in there. Here's my attempt at a Society-friendly link to the book. The yields are larger than typical to start with (i.e., a cake recipe makes 4 9" layers), and the book has a great high-volume section at the end. I haven't had any trouble on the occasions where I've scaled down, either.
I prefer weight on account of its accuracy, and also because I can convert the recipes on my own "for the road" (when I don't have my scale) based on how I measure. I like consistency.
-
As a college senior myself...
Not sure where you're living, but I was able to get frozen deveined (but not peeled) shrimp reasonably priced at our local super, and a quick sear on that with a butter-cheese-parsley or wine sauce is great, and requires basically no prep. I like cooking with wine because it adds a lot of depth without needing a huge amount of cook time.
I also ate a lot of eggs, rice, and things made from shredded rotisserie chicken bought on discount (though now I'm fortunate enough to have an almost-normal-sized kitchen). Does your grocery store reduce meat after 8pm? I got a lot of cheap protein that way.
See if you have any other friends in the same predicament who are good cooks...if you gather yourself an armful of tupperware, you can do food swaps--about a dozen of us got together and once a week, one would make enough soup/chili/stew for the whole lot, which we'd then exchange. Meant cooking one night a week was a simple reheat!
-
I'm taking the train in from 5 hours away, so transporting food is unlikely :-)
I'll be there on the 28th, though, so prep ahead is certainly fine. We won't be up to much besides skiing and lots of bridge.
Ham sounds like a good option if we can find one large enough, though--any favorite recipes/glazes?
-
Could definitely use some help from the eGulleters out there--My boyfriend and I typically do NYE dinner for his extended family, about 20 people of various tastes. Ages range from 10 to 85, and there are the expected concerns of diabetes, cholesterol, etc. In past years we've done rosemary roasted chicken and braised ribs. The catch is that the hosts live on a military base, so grocery shopping is a bit limited, especially for the protein (we cleaned them out of ribs last year!). We have basic kitchen equipment to use, and we usually bring our own spices. I'll be making a couple of loaves to go along with dinner, but the rest of the menu is pretty open. Suggestions of things that are "festive" enough but still easy to get ingredients?
-
And then I'm copying something I saw (and tasted!) in Belgium--small blocks of chocolate (1 inch cubes) with a pipette of liqueur in them for dropping in hot chocolate/hot milk. I'm going with Irish cream, Grand Marnier, and probably blackberry brandy.
would like to see a photo of the completed confection, please.
Well, a few lessons learned, first--pipettes leak, and chocolate and liqueurs, which obviously have some water content, do not get along well. So my first milk/dark batches were a little streaky from oozing booze. But here's a photo of the white chocolate with peppermint schnapps, which fared a bit better (though not the photo, in my attempt to reduce its size):
Still trying to figure out the best strategy for decorating...the pipette in the middle makes the chocolate drizzle a bit tough. I have a bit of green and red colored vanilla wafers that I could use, though I wasn't sure if that might be too hokey. Love to hear your thoughts!
-
I'm doing a gift assortment for a lot of folks on my list, consisting of:
-Peppermint bark (dark, milk, and white)
-Dark chocolate pb cups
-Sugar cutouts w/ Royal icing
-Chocolate, white chocolate, and maple walnut fudge
-Jam ribbons (a lazy linzer)
And then I'm copying something I saw (and tasted!) in Belgium--small blocks of chocolate (1 inch cubes) with a pipette of liqueur in them for dropping in hot chocolate/hot milk. I'm going with Irish cream, Grand Marnier, and probably blackberry brandy. Thinking of making homemade marshmallows to complement this but we'll see how energetic I'm feeling!
-
We do a pretty basic one--very thinly cut/pounded steak, rubbed with butter, sprinkled with romano cheese, fresh parsley, salt & pepper...pan seared and then added to our monthly batch of sauce. From what I know, this is more of a southern Italian style...
-
My partner thinks broccoli rabe/rapini tastes like soap (but strangely not cilantro). I love it sauteed with pine nuts over wheat pasta, but sadly, I only get to eat it when we're out! Then again, we both hate mushrooms.
-
I've never worked with agave, but I do a fair amount of gf experimentation...here's my cream puff recipe, though obviously using rice flour has its own sugar considerations...but there's no added sugar in the pate a choux and you can use whatever filling you like, so if you have a sugar free custard cream recipe, go for it! Otherwise, whipped cream works just fine. There are some crap quality sugar-free chocolates out there that you can use for decoration, but I've never found a good one (let me know if you do!).
1 c. water or milk
1 stick + 1 Tbl butter
Heat in a large saucepan until the mixture comes to a full rolling boil. Remove from heat and add
half a cup of quinoa flour
and half a cup + 1 Tbl of rice flour
Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until mixture comes together and pulls from the sides. Return to medium heat and cook & stir until mixture dries slightly, about 3 minutes. Mixture should easily come into a ball.
In a stand mixer, place ball of dough. Let sit for 5-10 minutes until cool enough to touch (but still warm). Crack 5 (large-xlarge) eggs & 1 yolk (or 6 medium-large eggs) into a spouted cup. Start beating the dough on medium speed and add the eggs one at a time, waiting until each egg is fully incorporated before add the next one. When you finish add the last egg, the paste is ready to use.
Pipe cream puffs or eclairs onto parchment/foil onto baking sheets. Bake at 375 degrees until fully puffed and golden. Poke a small hole (w/ a toothpick) in each and leave in turned-off oven with the door ajar for 5 minutes.
Transfer to cooling rack, then fill with pastry cream, whipped cream, or pudding.
-
If you're looking for a nice complement to the tea flavor, I have a recipe for Earl Gray & lavender scones that I adore--you infuse the milk with the tea and lavender before adding to the dough. I imagine you could quite easily do the same with cream for ganache, if that's a combination of interest--it works really well for the scones.
Limiting Salt & Animal Protein
in Food Traditions & Culture
Posted
A friend of mine was just diagnosed with membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN), which is a kidney disease without a known treatment. She needs to cut way down on animal protein and salt to keep things under control, and is a bit at a loss for how to do this. She's a college student, so unfortunately she's used to depending on a lot of packaged ingredients that aren't really feasible anymore. Can anyone recommend some basic recipes (she does have a kitchen) that could help her get some tofu/bean/other non-animal protein into her diet without requiring salt? Or any recommended packaged products that are low-sodium?
Many thanks!