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Vlcatko

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Everything posted by Vlcatko

  1. Beebs - welcome on board! Your situation is similar to mine it seems - I am slooowly working my way through the pantry items but getting rid of all those condiments is indeed a challenge. Maybe I will have to try stop using conventional spices and somehow use the condiments instead of them? Regarding your leftovers from the morning - would it be possible to make croquettes or fritters from the mixture? They work great as a small snack or an accompaniment to salads... Michaela - oh no! I am so sorry to hear that. Food poisoning can be really nasty - I hope you are better soon! The rava, it's like rice semolina, yes? Do you like regular semolina porridge? I do not know if it is a common food where you live but here it is one of the foods that you are served a lot when you are a kid and you either love it or hate it. I personally love it with a little granulated instant cocoa on top. Nothing fancy but very comforting, and it requires milk as the cooking liquid so you could use up a part of that too... The gnocchi are a good idea too, I think - I would be interested how it went if you decide to try it! When I was researching powdered milk before I bought it I definitely came across a recipe for dulce de leche so I think it is possible. Not being a big fan of caramel flavors I have never tried the real deal nor the one from the reconstituted milk so I can't do a comparison... Day 7 Oh my, my 7th day without buying ANY food and I feel like I have barely scratched the surface of my pantry... I have very little fresh produce left (a knob of ginger, 1 red bell pepper, 2 apples, 6 small carrots, a cup of cherry tomatoes, 2 kohlrabi, one small net of mainly purple fingerling potatoes and around a dozen of shallots) and no fresh bread but other than that I am still very well stocked. I will try to use up all the fresh items before buying more but I will buy some good bread tomorrow to go with the duck rillettes that I had in the fridge for a while now and that I am planning on using for tomorrow's dinner. Breakfast - another packet of instant oatmeal porridge (apple and cinnamon) - we still have quite a few of those as we bought several boxes to try new brands/flavors Snack - nut bar (some pistachios in there, yum!) Lunch - pancakes with cinnamon sugar Dinner - leftover potted pork + leftover boiled potatoes (both from the hand pie filling preparation) + spicy salami = delicious hash browns (served with pickles and few cherry tomatoes)
  2. mm84321 - ooh, those chestnut scales look amazingly delicious! What is the side dish? My guess is giant couscous, maybe mixed with some kind of a grain?
  3. Michaela - I see... So it would be better for you to (for example) the cook the whole theoretical chicken and work with the shredded meat rather than cooking it part by part, right? Oh my, it must be really tough not to have a possibility to cook whenever fancy hits you - I as so used to my own kitchen by now that I can really sympathize with your situation. I hope you can still manage to prepare many delicious treats and meals now that you have set your mind to it BeeZee - looks like you are on a roll - great work using up all those things! I have had two lazy days, not using much because of the Sunday program we had and due to me trying to work on my thesis and being depressed by it so I basically didn't eat a proper meal today Meh, I have to pull myself together and redouble the effort - mainly the thesis, I do not think cooking will be a problem when my hunger kicks in Day 5 We skipped breakfast and snack time and left for an early lunch - even though St. Martin's Day was the next day many restaurants offered a special menu on Sunday and we had had one booked for a long time. We had a very lovely goose pate as a starter, served with a baquette and some kind of cranberry sauce. As a wine pairing we were presented with an interesting fresh Riesling from Germany. Main course was roasted duck with two kinds of dumplings (potato and bread) and cabbages (white and purple) - a traditional St. Martin's Day fare. It was delicious, and I really liked the wine they offered with it - a heavy red, unfortunately I forgot to write down the name, I remember it was from Italy. As a dessert we had a very light cheesecake with honey-caramel sauce and roasted nuts. The accompanying sweet Palava wine (Czech) was a delight. We had a final shot of Fassbind pear brandy and wallowed home happily to crash on the sofa. Dinner - I was so "devastated" by the huge meal I ate that I couldn't have a single bite for the rest of the day but DH managed to finish the very last piece of the slightly overaged Camembert like cheese as his dinner. Day 6 I was still feeling pretty full today plus not very enthusiastic about food in general (which happens to me when I have to work on something I do not particulary enjoy) so I just nibbled on some random items. Breakfast - cold Kartofelpuffer left over from Saturday Snack - few potato crisps Dinner - two pancakes with cinnamon sugar. I made a bunch of them for tomorrow so I ate some fresh to see if they were any good
  4. Plantes Vertes - thanks, another item on my want-to-try list I think lot of us here at eGullet must be at least a bit of a food hedonist - when I talk to "normal people" about food or food preparation they are usually surprised by how much time and effort (and money) I am willing to invest into a single meal. The fact that our bill for the groceries has been so huge lately is one of the reasons I decided to do this challenge - with the Christmas coming closer we will be thankful for every extra Crown we can get... BeeZee - I also like to use leftover grains and similar things (couscous mainly, quinoa, millet...) for patties/fritters (but I actually bake them in the oven using partially filled mini muffin molds - very efficient, no fat, less hands-on time). I just mix the cooked grain with an egg or two (sometimes little flour as well when it looks like the egg wouldn't be enough to keep it together), a choice of meat and/or vegetables and bake until crispy. My favorite combo is couscous and finely diced spicy salami or sausage. Leftover rabbit or duck meat and some variation on pate seasoning are also great. They are a popular treat at parties. Michaela - I think a good approach could be to try to start some sort of meal plans - if you both have a very busy week and you basically can only do any kind of larger preparations on weekends and you want to be able to just come home and quickly be able to cook something when you have a plan it is much easier and quicker to get everything ready and out. Buying a whole chicken on Friday for example can be a great way to prepare for the upcoming week. Take the chicken apart and use the bones and scraps for stock during the weekend. Over the week you can make a quick soup based on the stock (I usually make two soups - one clear chicken broth and one used as a liquid in a heavier soup), use the breats for salads or as steaks, bake the thighs or use them in stir-fries. Or if you don't wan't to eat chicken the whole week, put majority of the deconstructed chicken in the freezer and use just one or two items - there's where the planning comes into play - if you know what are you going to cook in the evening, you can just place the selected ingredient from the freezer into the fridge in the morning and by the time you get home it's all ready to be cooked. I found that when I stick to the meal plans I came up with I am always quicker and more efficient in the kitchen and grocery store and I also frequently loose a bit of weight as a bonus Day 4 Well this wasn't the greatest of days, I have to say. Or rather 24 hours. Remember the oxtail I wrote about yesterday? I put it into the oven straight from the freezer, wrote the yesterday's post and went to the cinema with my family. When we came back the whole flat smelled terrible. Like, well like rotten meat. I pulled the meat from the oven and examined it - I guess because our freezer is quite cold and I was just tossing the frozen tail straight into the oven I didn't notice anything but the oxtail must have been bad. It smelled awful, sour and just plain icky. Sad thing is I had to toss the ribs as well as I wouldn't risk it after all the juices mixed and everything So no beef stock and no pulled meat for us. Then today, I dropped my portion of the salmon I was making for lunch on the ground as I was transfering it from the tray to my plate. It splattered... with enthusiasm... I was able to salvage some of it, luckily, because it was really delicious. Breakfast - scrambled eggs with spicy salami, hot dog sausages, kartofelpuffer (a cousin of latkes and rostis) Snack - pomelo Lunch - baked salmon with mustard sauce (I used 3 kinds of mustards - wholegrain, Dijon and Czech, the rest of the duck pan juices and heavy cream), duck fat roasted potatoes (fingerlings and purple) Snack - Ben and Jerry's Chocolate fudge brownie ice cream Dinner - hand pies from puff pastry filled with mixture of chopped beef, hot dog sausages, canned corn and potted pork
  5. Michaela - yay, I was curious whether someone would join this time around So, what would your goals be? Eliminate all the "special" ingredients? Or incorporate more from scratch cooking that kind of chains the ingredients/products? Something else? Hmmm... Your stocktaking has led me to consider if I should be doing it as well - I am a bit scared though - I know I have so much stockpiled that if I list it all it will be plain as day that I have a packratting problem judiu - thanks, I will, once I have eliminated my stash of nuts, seeds and similar items. I have put them on my want-to-try list. Day 3 Breakfast - bread and sourcream butter spread (which Mom left at work yesterday and I had to eat so they wouldn't spoil over the weekend), red bell peper Snack - leftover potato chips from yesterday, yogurt dip Lunch - somen noodles, edamame, peanut-sesame sauce (peanutbutter, tahini, soy sauce, duck pan juices) Snack - apple Dinner - couscous with canned tuna and sweet corn (used last two tiny cans of tuna, there are still 4 more corn cans) Right now, I have an oxtail and few pieces of beef side (that would be de-boned ribs?) in a slow oven - will shred the meat in the morning and use the rest for beef stock. I have one or two ideas for the shredded meat, I will have to wait and see how much I will get... I have to say I have no problems so far with coming up with meals for several days to come, the only concern will be fresh fruits and vegetables (and little later meat) - I am slowly but surely running out. I will probably buy some fresh produce once the first week is finished. I could eat like a king for at least two more weeks without ANY shopping, I think, but it wouldn't be a very balanced diet...
  6. The only things I buy canned/jarred: sweet corn (kernels)pickled pearl onionspickled gingerpickled red beetspickled cabbagegherkins/cornichons (I don't care much for brine pickles, but those made with vinegar - I could eat a whole jar by myself )pears (mainly as a garnish for pear brandy and an ingredient for chocolate-pear cake I sometimes make)peaches (I love the fresh ones but when I feel like sour cream trifle in the winter I will buy a can)pineappleolivesThings I buy frozen: edamame (I have never seen fresh ones in my life)corn (both on the cob and kernels)some herbs and chilliberries (sometimes other fruits - mango etc. - usually used in smoothies or already mentioned trifles)Everything else I pretty much buy only fresh (or dried if it is stuff like lentils, peas...).
  7. Nancy - thank you! I will try Yeah, I have almost-succeeded with the freezer a few times already but then comes a great deal or a generous grandmother and poof go my plans This time around, I plan to be really really determined and use my parent's freezer if it comes to worst - I wouldn't mind a good deal on geese or ducks because I want to make rillettes as Christmas gifts. But St. Martin's Day (November 11 is a traditional day to roast a goose or a duck and open that year's wines in the Czech Republic) is almost here and so far nothing... judiu - I am a very picky eater and I do not like raisins so no, I haven't. But I really like the carrot salad my grandma used to make for me when I was a kid - finely grated carrots and apples, orange juice and a little bit of sugar. As a matter of fact, when I was preparing my meals for today, that's what I came up as my snack! Great minds think alike, heh? I didn't have any oranges so I used lime juice and it was still tasty, however, I think the pineapple would be great as well - I just wouldn't use any extra sugar - so thanks for your suggestion: next time, I will try it with pineapple. Plantes Vertes - thank you for your suggestions! I will definitely try the tahini/yogurt and mustard/seeds versions - sounds tasty and I have all of those things on hand. For the soup, would I use fresh coriander or coriander seeds? I don't have either but I may want to try it sometime in the future... Unfortunately, I do not own a juicer but I love carrot juice with ginger, the best one I've had had a little pineapple thrown in. Franci - I remember that thread - I will have to go and check for some ideas there, I am sure there will be plenty of good ones Yeah, if you have a limited time in which you have to finish all of everything and you can't buy new supplies, it must be near impossible to do it. My advantage is I will be able to buy new ingredients that will help me to use up the old/duplicate items and that I can take as long as I need. I will try to come up with some system to help me have a "smarter" pantry and somehow force me into disciplined cooking/shopping routine. Day 2 Breakfast - oatmeal porridge (the instant kind, apple and cinnamon flavor) Snack - grated carrot and apple salad Lunch - cherry tomatoes, cucumber and red bell pepper, mozzarella, olive oil, salt and pepper Snack - last piece of onion baguette, butter, raspberry jam and more Camembert style cheese - I still have at least a half of the last piece from the multi-pack but no good bread to bake it onto/into (which is what I like to do with such a cheese after it had seen its better days) so maybe I will try a savory panna cotta with some crackers, I should still have some somewhere in the pantry... Dinner - oven baked potato chips with cheese sauce (leftover from the day before yesterday, we had it with spaghetti squash)
  8. Hmm... I eat many things that are supposedly good for me. I eat them because I like them. I also eat many things that probably aren't that healthy for me, some of them are downright junk foods or totally unnecessary in my diet. But I eat them because I like them. As few others had pointed out, the healthiness of certain foods change from year to year. Also, most of the "dangerous" foods are quite safe when eaten in moderation and that's what I do - I eat whatever I want, in reasonable quantities, while trying to balance all types of nutrients. I have however tried many new things just because I had heard/read/was said they were "good for me." The ones I liked got accepted into my regular meals, the ones I didn't are re-tried every now and then to see if my tastes haven't changed (lately, it looks like I will finally start eating fish on more regular basis - for the longest time, I couldn't stand the taste of cooked fish). I am a very picky eater (taking after my mother whom I thank every day for not making me eat things I didn't like) and I don't much understand people who willingly eat something they don't like if they have other options. Of course if you only have oatmeal and nothing else you will have to eat oatmeal to get your sustenance even if you don't like it. But to choose to eat something you don't like... I don't know, food for me is such a pleasure I can't imagine why would anyone ruin it for themselves... Regarding oatmeal, I had oatmeal porridge for breakfast (cinnamon and apple flavor) and it was delicious. I also add rolled oats to pancakes - yum! I had no idea it supposedly affects cholesterol levels, I always thought people eat it (aside from just liking it) because it is quite filling and will make you full for a long time (doesn't oatmeal count as wholegrain food, i.e. lower glycemic index?). And butter! Ah! With fresh rolls... Or on bread with radishes... Nothing has ever made me stop eating butter, even when my parents started to use margarine (mainly because it is easier to spread and no one ever heard of whipped butter around here) and were buying butter just because of me. One thing that I kind of eat because it is healthy are some vegetables - spinach, broccoli, green beans... I hated them as a kid (can you say mushy, anyone?) but when I started cooking my own meals I found out that properly prepared I really really like them.
  9. I found this old thread by accident when googling for some ideas on wheat berries and ending up in the previous challenge's thread. I think it's amazing how many people took part in the challenge and how much fun it was. Lately, I have been trying to be smarter about my food shopping/planning and I've succeeded in part (my fridge and freezer are no longer bursting in seams) but I still have a terrible habit of impulse-buying pantry items like unusual varieties of lentils, rice and pasta... I opened my pantry last night and it was a solid mass of random half-finished packets of everything-and-its-mother, tins of so-interesting-but-never tried ingredients and multitude of other odds and ends (the most notable is probably my nuts and seeds "collection") - I have to say I was scared a bit. Me finding this old thread now seems like a sign I should do something about it! Committing to regular reports is a great way to make one stick with the goals, I think, so I thought I could revive this topic (I hope it is OK ). My goals: no shopping for food for at least a week, after that only fresh veggies and fruits and things I run out of (butter, milk...) - no pantry items, deli counter or snacks for as long as I canclean out the freezer completely before Christmas, defrost and clean itgo through the fridge and minimize the clutter - eliminate all those half-empty sauces, jams and other condimentsattack the pantry! Leave no packet/jar/tin/box unfinished!be conscious about shopping - buy nothing I still have or have a good replacement for (no penne if I still have tagliatelle), try to make some things from scratch from time to time instead of buying them (bread, pastry...), use what I have so I don't have to toss something and buy new stuff (also be conscious about how much and why I am tossing - limpness of a carrot or a brown spot on an apple aren't good enough reasons!)plan better so my leftovers or by-products can be used as ingredients for upcoming mealssave some money so I can buy more/better gifts for my family this yearDay 1 Breakfast - onion baguette from the freezer, butter, Camembert style cheese and crispy bacon Snack - apple Lunch - wheat berries (half of them fried in butter until crispy), spicy salami (leftover from a last week's gaming party), edamame, peas and broad beans (the very last of a frozen mix), few tablespoons of roasted duck pan juices (which I have kept in lieu of demi-glace for flavoring purposes instead of using it with the roasted bones in the soup I was making - I couldn't believe how much pan juices I got from that one duck skeleton and trimmings, and it gelled beautifully too!) Snack - cherry tomatoes and a final fourth of a cucumber Dinner - rest of the cheese from the morning + two more cheeses Mom brought for me from Netherlands, carrot sticks with yogurt dip (I have a whole bag of carrots, I will have to think of things I can do with them that are not boring because I don't particularly like them cooked.) Today, I would have gone to M&S and bought a bunch of goodies. But I am not going and I can already say I saved some money doing this
  10. Really? Most of the butters we can get here (Czech Republic = Central Europe) are 82%, including the imported ones. Maybe 1 in 8 is 83% and there's this elusive one that is delicious 85% (and I am really surprised it's actually a Czech one). Do you know any specific brands that are 84%?
  11. My mandoline slicer is from an infomercial. I am quite happy with it
  12. Yup, that's basically how I do it - thank you, Andie, for the link I use silicone molds but I have also seen people "roll" the sugar into a sheet and cut it with cookie cutters. Once you get the sugar properly moistened you can even shape it by hand - tiny sugar loaves, rustic cubes...
  13. When making rillettes I cut the belly into fairly small chunks (I like my rillettes quite smooth). I once forgot to take the skin off and had to fish the skin pieces out of the liquified porcine goodness which had taken significantly longer than if I had removed the skin before cutting it up. Pig skin alone is a great ingredient for many charcuterie items and by itself can be made into one of the best snack items ever - chicharron/scratchings/pork rinds. Also, some people just don't care for it, some even hate it. I am always surprised by the number of people who make a disgusted face when I mention pig skin or ear
  14. almonds -> blanched almonds, toasted almonds, almond halves, almond slivers, almond meal, marzipan, almond butter, almond milk (repeat for any nut) I also make my own sugar "cubes" (I do different shapes) from caster sugar - we don't get visitors very often so I don't see why I would need a pack of sugar cubes in my pantry... cinnamon and vanilla sugars
  15. Great meals everyone! So inspiring! Makes me want to be able to take pictures worth sharing - as it is I feel like a freeloader here Ooh, this looks good! Basquecook, can you please tell us more about this? I love potatoes and I am always on the lookout for new ways to prepare them...
  16. I finished the first week, here are my observations: it's harder than I anticipated - the level of chemistry, math and other "science" is pretty high for me (I have grown sooo lazy with no science classes at my current university, I even forgot the basic things like logarithms' connection to exponentiation.) - but when I realized what this course is really about - teaching some science to non-science students - I thought it was doing a pretty good jobsure, there are some mistakes and occasional nonsense/illogicality (like phrasing a question, non-consistent terminology etc. ) but it's free, and the overall beneficial influence it can have on individuals who endure and finish the class is worth a momentary frustration from time to timefor many people here the content may be laughable or they may already know all and more of what is presented but for me and others like me it's more or less a revelation - I get to see some of the top chefs at work, get to know their mindset and motivation and get to understand at least some principles of cooking - which is something that's never really been done in education in our countryfrom all the online courses I took, this one is by far the best one - timeline, resources, interface...All in all, I am glad I signed up and I hope I will manage to finish the course successfully
  17. I have never tried the baking soda trick because I have read several times that the eggs have a stronger sulfurous smell. And I have a strong aversion to that. I always salt my water before boiling eggs as I was told that salting the water will help if the eggs are cracked (the white will coagulate faster and so less of it will escape the shell) and that salting the water will flavor the eggs. I have not tested it in any credible way but I instinctively feel it works so I keep doing it. As for the ease of peeling: Ater cooking the eggs and submerging them in cold water for a while, I crack the shells all over with a small spoon (I tried the counter method but I was always too harsh on my eggs) and submerge them for a little longer. They peel easily.
  18. Vlcatko

    Chicken salad

    This is more of a question but I do not know if it is worth a new thread so I just ask here Where I come from, chicken salad is one of those dishes cursed with overuse - before the revolution, chicken salad and horseradish ham rolls were pretty much your only options when you wanted something "fancy." But the main problem was there were very limited resources. So standard "1980s Czech chicken salad" would look something like this: - shreded leftover chicken - diced pickles - mayo - diced peaches or pineapple from can (if you were lucky to get them) It was served in half of the peach or on a soggy leaf of lettuce, garnished with a whipped cream and with a white toast on the side. I loved it as a kid because it was the best there was at that time. I mean peaches, mayo and whipped cream?! Nowadays I am not very fond of mayo. But I really love the simple ingredients chicken-pickles-peaches. Is this a strange combination? Would you cringe if I served you this? My favorite combination right now is: - shreded chicken (combination of white and dark meat, skin never makes it, I eat it all ) - finely diced pickles - medium diced peaches (usually from can) - mascarpone flavored with a bit of mayo or tartar sauce, sometimes fluffed up with a bit of stiffly whipped cream - salt, pepper to taste, lemon juice optional (the liquid from pickles is also great!) Served in whiskey tumblers (if using as an appetizer) or plated with a ring mold (if it is a main dish) with toasted baguette slices. Sometimes I add whipped cream as garnish, sometimes something green and a slice of the peach, sometimes I serve it with same sort of lettuce salad. My question is - whould this be frowned upon in a regular bussiness? Are any of these ingredients generally considered incompatible (like sage and rosemary)? Thak you for your input!
  19. Also, I later found these two recipes which seem really authentic. The Passionate Cook.com - should be from one of the Plachutta books but seems more complete than the one I re-translated from Czech. Classic Tafelspitz @ Wien.info - good source if you plan to visit Vianna.
  20. In case someone was still interested in this: Tafelspitz is indeed one of "national dishes" of Austria but I believe it is not merely a boiled beef. It is a bit more complex than that. Very famous restaurant in Vienna that serves excellent tafelspitz is Plachutta. I have been there and it was indeed marvelous, but more about that later. First, "real" tafelspitz is made from one specific cut of beef (the cut is called tafelspitz). I know many countries have different cuts and so it is probably not very common to find it - one usually has to request it (providing you are not in Austria and that your butcher is informed enough to know what are you talking about - most butchers here sadly aren't). Next, what you get when you order tafelspitz at Plachutta (it is possible that elsewhere it is just the meat) is actually a whole menu, not a single dish (and it is enough to feed 2, maybe even more, people). There are toasted slices of rye bread for the bone marrow from the bone which is in the pot with the beef itself. That's your starter. Then there's the incredible meaty broth which you can enjoy by itself or with some of the cooked vegetables (or noodles, which they also bring as a matter of fact) - soup. And finally there's the tender and juicy meat and an assortment of side dishes - traditionally sautéed grated potatoes, beans, spinach with cream and different condiments - horseradish sauce, chive sauce... During my visit at Plachutta, it was not possible to eat everything - there's simply too much for one person. But let me tell you, it is worth it - even if you are unable to finish everything, every single bite/slurp is a bliss. Some of my fondest memories of Vienna are of the incredible broth which was so clear it might have been called consommé and so flavorful I wanted to be saturated with it There are several books with Plachutta recipes. I have none of them but I found a recipe posted in Czech somewhere and according to the poster it is from the Plachutta book. - 1 onion, unpeeled and halved - 2 kg tafelspitz - 3.5 l water - 10-15 pieces of black pepper - 250 g of assorted root vegetables (carrot, celery, parsley...) - yellow carrot is a signature vegetable of Plachutta's tafelspitz - 1/2 leek (white part only) - granulated bouillon, as needed (I can't believe that great flavor came from granules, but the poster swears it is in the book) Caramelize the onion halves till almost black, wash the meat with tepid water, drain and bring to boil. Lower the heat, add the onion and pepper and cook over low heat (under 100°C) for at least 2.5 hours until done (pierce the meat with a long metal skewer/fork and lift - if it "tears" by its own weight it is done). Around 25 minutes before 2.5 hour mark add your vegetables. There are no marrow bones in the recipe but it could be a transcription error or it is a variant without them - I think everyone here can play with the recipe according to their own tastes... I hope this is helpful...
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