Norm Matthews

I made Pasta Puttanesca for dinner tonight. I didn't take a picture. One bowl of spaghetti looks pretty much like another.

My apologies to Kim Shook. I did not see your question until now: "Norm – gosh, your chicken parm looks so crispy and good. Is there sauce under the chicken, on the pasta? And is your chicken coated with panko? " The pasta was tossed with Parmesan/ cream sauce until it was absorbed into the pasta, then more sauce was served on the table for anyone who wanted to put more on the pasta or the chicken. The chicken is coated with a combination of panko and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. The ratio is approximately 2 parts cheese to 3 parts Panko. Flour coat first was salted, then beaten egg, then panko and Parm. Reg. It was browned in butter/olive oil, then the Mozzarella cheese was placed on top and melted in the oven. I chose not to leave it in until it browned. I didn't want to take a chance it would over bake and be dry. PS sorry about your thumb. I know how painful it can be. I sliced the end of my finger and part of the fingernail completely off a couple years ago.... it grew back.

Hi Smithy, Yes I have always baked squash before this time. I agree that baking would probably be more tasty.

Both my mom and aunt lived in apartments for the elderly while they were able to live on their own (assisted living) They had facilities to cook for themselves, get meals delivered or go to the dining room. Mom's dining room had better than average food. My aunt lived in a larger and nicer place and the food was very good. The dining room even had a scenic view. Mom moved in with my sister when she got too old to live alone but I have vistied a couple nursing homes for invalides. One was nice one was awful. I don't know what kind of food was in the awful one but the other one had food a little better than I remember from my high school cafeteria.

HI FauxPas, With the Carnival squash, I cut it in half with a chinese cleaver that I hammer through the squash with a wooden mallet. After that I scooped out the seeds and followed the recipe that was on the paper sticker that was stuck to one of the squash. It said to boil the squash in water for 15 minutes, meantime cook a couple apples in a skillet with butter then add 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/8 tsp. allspice and 1/8 tsp. black pepper and then mix it in with the mashed the squash.

I was going to make Chicken Parmesan and Carnival squash tomorrow but Charlie and Cassie have tickets to an outdoor theater for Wed. and they asked me to make it today. The cooked squash is mashed with cooked apple, cinnamon and allspice.

I made some creamed corn and later got comments from people about how good it was. One even asked for it again on his next visit. The first thing I do is put ears of corn on the grill for a few minutes so it turns a darker yellow and even chars in a few places, then I cut it off the cob and scrape the cob with the back of my knife to get all the corn 'milk' out of the cob. My recipe does not thicken very much. After that the amounts are due to taste and the amount of corn I am making but the approximate amounts are For 5 ear of corn, I used approximately 2T. honey 1/4 C. cream 4 pads of butter Salt and Pepper to taste. I heat all the ingredients in a saucepan until the liquids boil down a little.

I am planning to make chicken parmesan on Wed so I got a whole chicken and cut it up. I was trying to figure out what to do with the wings, thighs and legs when I remembered Darch's stuffed chicken wings. I boned the legs, thighs, and wings, stuffed them with Stove Top for Chicken, rubbed with oil, salted, and baked them at 450 for 45 minutes. Charlie said they were really good and Cassie said they were her new favorite chicken. I also steamed some broccoli and then tossed them with a little mozzarella and butter. We also had some corn relish that I got at the Farmers market a couple days ago. Pictures didn't turn out all that great looking though and I didn't get a picture of the corn relish.

I have used Tender Quick (1 tsp per pound) as part of a dry cure when making Canadian Bacon and allow seven days per inch to the center as curing time. I don't know how different it might be for chicken and a wet cure. When making corned beef brisket in a wet cure, I use canning salt and let it cure for up to two weeks but have had OK results after just one week.

If you have the same 7 qt. mixer I got a few months ago, congratulations. It has all metal gears instead of older ones that have some nylon gears. It runs quieter and has a longer warranty too. I really don't think running it to distribute the oil is vital, but it won't hurt anything if you do. If you need to adjust the bowl to beater clearance, check the booklet that came with it. Tthere is a screw on the neck for doing this. Also never knead bread above the number 3 setting.

I was able to re-plate some leftovers and get my camera working again. Here is our dinner. Shrimp etouffee with potatoes and green beans and salt pork instead of rice and some collard greens.

My camera messed up and the pictures didn't come out today but I had a yen for some shrimp etouffee but not for the rice so instead I substituted some new potatoes cooked with Southern style green beans and salt pork. While i was at it I discovered some collard greens I forgot to make the other day and cooked them too.

Mayonnaise is in itself an emulsion of oil and egg yolk so naturally incorporating anything into it would be including it in its own emulsion. By 'fail' in vinaigrette, I meant not tasting as good as if it had the salt in it. Mayonnaise based dressings are a whole other class of salad dressings that are rather distinct from vinaigrettes but I can see how it could be used as a part of a vinaigrette too.

Akin to the alfredo sauce in the US is not really Italian nor is the US version of Italian dressing is what most Italians use on their salad, perhaps this would be a good place to start a discussion about vinaigrettes. Vinaigrettes are extremely versatile and may be crafted to go with the kind of salad that is being made. They can be mild, hearty, tangy, sweet, nutty, or fruity for example. A vinaigrette should start with the vinegar or acid and seasonings can be infused into it before the oil is added. Emulsifiers help blend the acid and oil to help it hold together. With boutique vinegar and oil shops becoming popular, there are a lot of newer infused oils and flavored vinegars that can be used in salad dressings but the more common vinegars besides the cider vinegar for salads are rice vinegar for a mild dressing, red and white wine vinegars, champagne vinegar, sherry and balsamic vinegars but also for acid, lime juice, lemon, orange juice and one could even add some apple cider to cider vinegar for variety. Other flavored things with a vinegar base like Worcestershire sauce can be used to vary the flavor of the other acids but probably would not be good if used by itself. Oils can include olive oil of course. The varieties of olive oil is a topic in itself but you can use very mild oils or infused oils as well as other salad oils and walnut oil, hazelnut oil or a blend. Sesame oil in small amounts can add an asian hint for example. Emulsifiers most commonly used are mustards. Besides dry mustard, there are German, English, French and Chinese mustards as well as some delicious homemade mustards which is again another topic in itself. Besides mustard emulsifiers one could use cream, yogurt, buttermilk, pureed fruit such as raspberries, blueberries, tomato paste (or even chili sauce) Flavor accents are endless but some are lemon zest, fresh basil, chives, crushed dried oregano, thyme or rosemary, ginger, freshly grated Parmesan, crushed garlic, toasted walnuts, pine nuts, dill, honey, sugar (purists will be against sugar but a small amount can help round out the dressing without adding sweetness) In short, crafting a dressing that will go with the kind of salad you make can be fun and there is lots of room for experimentation. One final ingredient is SALT or a salted ingredient. When a simple vinaigrette fails, lack of salt is quite often the reason. PS: A basic proportion for a vinaigrette starts with about 1 tsp. herb, 2 tsp. emulsifier, 1 Tbs. acid and 3 Tbs oil .

I tried a new recipe (new for me) called Grilled Churrasco with green and red chimichurri. It was grilled flank steak. I also did a latin-ish salad and Korean bean sprouts.

Wishbone Italian Dressing originated in Kansas City. Before Wishbone, vinaigrette was called "French Dressing"

From the Kansas City Star in 2011 Hearty Italian Vinaigrette 6 Tbsp. Olive oil 2 1/2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar 2 Tbsp. chili sauce 1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce 1 cl garlic, minced 1 1/2 tsp. minced fresh parsley 1 tsp. Italian Herb Seasoning 1/2 tsp, sugar 1/4 tsp salt ------------------------------ Italian herb seasoning with fresh herbs Use 1/3 to 1/2 tsp. instead of 1 tsp dried Italian Herb seasoning. 1 part oregano1 part basil 1 part thyme

CatPoet is right. Serve it at room temperature. It is safer and easier than trying to reheat it whole.

How long does it take you to go from your house to the party? I'd cook the roast to temperature, not time but plan it so the roast (rib roast is best for cooking to medium rare) then wrap it in foil, put it in a pan with sides, and take it to the party. If it is a half hour trip, it will be ready to slice and serve when you get there.

Thanks. It did take a while to learn how to regulate the heat with a charcoal/wood smoker. Having been a potter who sometimes used a wood burning kiln didn't help much. Very different goals.

Those plastic scrubbies work well on dough not only in the bowl but on the beater blade too. Use under running water. Afterward toss the scrubby in the dishwasher.

These are beef back ribs. Temp never reached 225 or went lower than 185, most of the time at 220, (about 95% of the time) for 5 hours. It could have used a little more time. Rub added the night before, smoked for 2 hours with apple wood then, basted with bacon fat, rub and beef broth a couple times after an hour, then an hour later, basted with BBQ sauce, wrapped in foil and continued to cook another three hours. The smoker is a Horizon which is owned by one of the original brothers who started Oklahoma Joe Smokers. It is made with quarter inch steel. Oklahoma Joe was purchased by Char Broil who then dismantled the company and sold off the assets. The rub I used this time was from www.woodyardbbq.com. For pork I like to use The Squeal Hog Rub www.cowtownbbq.com. Another good rub is Plowboys BBQ Yardbird Rub. I have a recipe from Oklahoma Joe that is really great too but the last time I printed it here, it got deleted. I can send it to you via PM if you would like it.

Fired up the smoker and did some beef ribs.

Thank you Shelby. The lobster tails were too small to make a meal with one each so when I saw the steak on sale too I knew what dinner was going to be. I also got some pumpernickel bagels but forgot to put them on the table...

Hen House Market had Lobster tails on sale yesterday for $5.00 each and strip steaks for $6.00 each. I made dinner around those today. The lobster was served with Buerre Monte and a cream sauce loosely based on the one used with Lobster à l'américaine. The steak was grilled outside. The lobster was cooked first in a skillet with a little oil until the shell turned red, then finished in the oven. I got some BBQ sauce that won first place at the American Royal BBQ contest in 2012. I had some of that on the steak to see how I liked it, and we had smashed potatoes with sour cream. The salad was made with lettuce, garden tomatoes, radishes, carrots, green onions and some leftover chicken salad.