Charcuterer

My recipe for cornbread is one that my mother used and I love it. 2 TBS oil 2 C cornmeal (not coarse or self rise) 1TBS baking powder 1 tsp salt 1 tsp sugar (I use turbinado) 1/4 cup melted butter 1 egg 1 3/4 cup buttermilk Put 2 TBS oil (not butter) in a 9" cast iron skillet and put in a cold oven then heat the oven to 425f . Don't start putting the batter together until the oven is up to temp. Mix all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Lightly whisk the egg and add the melted butter and buttermilk then pour the wet into the dry and mix. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and return to oven for about 20 minutes. Turn out on a cooling rack. I have added Jalapenos and sweet corn to it and it's great. This cornbread makes the best cornbread dressing (stuffing) when it has staled a little.

I love to grill Top Sirloin steaks as kebabs. I find that they need a good soak in a marinade or they have a kind of an off "liver" flavor.

Kent with the Fissler you can get a regular (non pressure) lid so you essentially have two pots in one.

For a steak like that I stick with the grill. I get the fire very hot but banked to the side of my kettle grill. I sear, turn, flip, turn and then move it to the cooler side of the grill. I turn it so the strip portion is nearest the fire so the tender doesn't get hammered and pull when at the temp I'm going for. I only season good meat with salt and pepper.

We make homemade stock about twice a month and I love the 6X8 bags for single cup storage. I freeze them on a cookie sheet so they stack perfectly. I also use the very large bags for freezer storage and sous vide. The other size that I use is 8X10. Amazon has good prices and if you have prime the shipping is free!

I'm a little embarrassed to admit that mine is a kitchen staple for many; Fennel. I've really never used it much until recently. There is a recipe in an ancient (circa 1965) New York Times cookbook (Craig Claiborne) for Italian tossed salad that has fennel, lettuce, walnuts, capers and boiled egg with a vinaigrette. I am loving that salad right now and it turns out that the fennel makes it come together.

Yes the Parmesan Risotto. The first time I made it I followed the recipe exactly but the second time I stirred in some sautéed Kale and leeks and some green peas at the end (mind blowing - if Risotto can be mind blowing.). The curried chicken I made called for Penzy's but all I had in the house was some I had bought in Barbados. I'm sure the flavor was influenced by the West Indies curry but it was darn good. I will try the red cabbage too it's a favorite in my house as well.

I also got the Cooks Illustrated PC cookbook. I am very impressed with the two recipes I've made so far. I made the Risotto and don't think I will ever make it the other way again. It comes out so perfect and creamy. It also reheats better than other risottos. I also made the Chicken curry with chickpeas and cauliflower. It was fantastic.

I have a question of semantics, if you were to prepare a piece of pork in the identical way to corned beef (brine, spices, cure, etc.) would that be corned pork or would it be ham? Is corning specifically referring to beef? Could you corn duck? Lamb?

Baron, that is stunning! Is that a recipe you created and would you share it? Scotty Boy, I plan on making the artichoke barigoule this week, thank you for the suggestion. I had an idea for a grilled salad with artichoke hearts, Zucchini and asparagus with feta and a lemon vinaigrette that I will make Thursday. I am very happy that the artichokes are holding in my wine cellar very nicely. I may have another 2 weeks before they are gone.

This is the results of my efforts. I corned a 5 pound whole short rib section using the Ruhlman recipe except for the addition of some smashed juniper berries to the brine. It was cured for 5 days. I then rinsed it thoroughly and sealed it in a vac bag and cooked it at 140F for 3 days. I then put the liquid out of the bag in with some water to boil the cabbage. I also roasted new potatoes and made a parsley cream sauce (basic béchamel with parsley added.) Please pardon the picture I am not a photographer.

That's a great tip Mike, Thanks!

Here's an odd question. If I roasted and then bagged some artichoke hearts with olive oil could I then pasteurize the package in my immersion circulator? I'm always nervous about preserving anything under oil for the botulism risk.

I find myself in a nice situation of having more perfect artichokes than I know what to do with. I just received 2 boxes (25 large artichokes per box) from Ocean Mist farms and I would love if anyone would share ideas of what to do with some of these. (My usual method is Steam for 45 minutes then cool and cut in half. Remove the choke and drizzle with olive oil, season and either broil or grill until golden brown. Then serve with garlic aioli My second question is how to store them. I have a wine cellar that stays at 57 degrees F. My refrigerator will not hold more than 10 or so. Ideas? )

When I did a pre-corned beef I used 135 degrees and went 60 hours. It was very good. Tender and still very juicy but not falling apart. This year I decided to corn a uncut short rib portion of 4 ribs. I am using Ruhlman's brine from Charcuterie. The first attempt at this was amazing but my wife complained that I had invited guests and we had to share. So this time I am using the same ingredients but leaving out the guests!