paul o' vendange
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Posts posted by paul o' vendange
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On 8/17/2024 at 12:32 PM, OlyveOyl said:
@paul o' vendange Thank you. It’s an adaptation of a Donna Hay pear tart, it’s mostly almond flour.
Man that is insanely gorgeous. Thank you again.
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Just now, OlyveOyl said:
Never let a good thing go to waste! A nice dollop of pastry cream was an excellent addition to the fruit tart.
Gorgeous!
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1 minute ago, OlyveOyl said:
@paul o' vendange That is an amazing picture, how wonderful your brother had kept it.
i saw a TV clip of Graham Kerr a few years ago, apparently he is living in California .
I just looked him up - glad to say he's still with us. 90!
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23 minutes ago, OlyveOyl said:
I have two, “ Dessets by Pierre Hermé” and “ Chocolate Desserts by PH”.
( I just went to look for my “La Technique” book and can’t find it. I hope it turns up, a treasure.)
Thanks! My mom bought the book for me as I'd grown up in love with everything French from very early (like, 5 or 6, began learning the language), and was driven to cooking from, among other things, Galloping Gourmet which I raced to always watch. I was 13 or 14 when I cooked Christmas for our extended family, all from La Technique. My brother sent me some photos....feel really lucky.
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3 hours ago, OlyveOyl said:
And the proof is in the crème pat…raspberry tart, pastry cream, Pierre Hermé pate sucrée. With a tip of the hat to @JoNorvelleWalker for the quick and easy method for the delicious pastry cream 😋
Looks really beautiful. I grew up 50 years ago on La Technique so not a lot to contribute here. Which Pierre Hermé book(s) do you draw from, if you don't mind me asking?
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We were re-watching Top Chef Season 15, episode 5 ("This is not Glamping") just two nights ago, the very night I found out. I was very saddened to come to know of it. Not too many days prior, I had read the article covering Kwame Onwuachi in the current F & W, and noted the sidebar at the end mentioning Naomi's Cornet Custard Shop. She died after the issue had already gone to press. Peace to her memory and healing to her husband, staff, friends and family.
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On 7/16/2024 at 11:54 AM, Maison Rustique said:
@Ann_T, I followed the directions given here by King Arthur Flour. I've got it in a Mason jar and storing in the pantry.
For what it's worth, a good amount of discussion here and here on "fleur de levain," though it's in German (I'm part of a German baking community on FB). Though these aren't used as leavening, rather just a flavoring component using up excess sourdough or "Anstellgut."
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On 7/15/2024 at 6:55 PM, JoNorvelleWalker said:
I have a whole, uncut, intact block of gruyere from panic buying before Covid. I'm wondering how to deal with it?
If you'll send it to me, I'll wash it for you.
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1 hour ago, paulraphael said:
Similar idea. The coulis from pre-revolutionary France is just taken to exorbitant extremes. Whole joints of meat are discarded in the name of making a final sauce for a banquette.
It puts things in perspective ... how Classical cuisine (especially idea of the mother sauces and demi-glace) is really a kind of fast-food simulation of the old ways, designed to make a-la-carte dining possible at bourgeois restaurants.
Yes. There's a part of me that wars with a part of me that misses the classical coulis that is disgusted by most elements of haute cuisine. It's one reason I got out.
There.
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This is a "gateau orange caramel," which I got from Cuisine et Vins de France. The recipe calls for Grand Marnier in the batter. My wife, whom I lovingly refer to as "kitchen witch" as she loves to make all kinds of liqueurs and extraordinary bitters, provided her "Cointreau." One of these days we will have to source Seville Oranges. The recipe also calls for faisselle égoutté. Easy to make (the soft, drained cheese), I've made it many times but I haven't made any cheese in a log time and have no cultures so I substituted the faisselle égoutté with Chobani yogurt - I made a "sack" with double layers of tight-weave cheesecloth and drained it overnight over a bowl in the frigo. Texture came out beautifully.
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Just now, paul o' vendange said:
Paul, a sort of master process, let's say. Do you have a "standard" light chicken stock recipe? And what size (make, while we're there) PC do you use?
And you're earlier description of a sort of hybrid-coulis process sounds like something I seem to recall Peterson describes, in terms of trying to parse out aromatics given multiple wettings. Is this where you got it?
@paulraphael: "
It's so easy that I don't do anything generic like veal or a white chicken glace. I use a dish-appropriate meat for whatever meals I'm planning. The degree to which this is better than an Escoffier demi-glace has to be tasted to be appreciated. And you don't give up a whole weekend for it."
I always believe in using the "thing itself" as much as possible, which is why I was always such a fan of Keller's "quick sauces" approach. That said, because he uses his (extremely light, 40-minute simmer) chicken stock and demi-glace, along with water, for his multiple glazings, I think there can be a tendency for a generic "roast meaty" taste between his duck, squab, lamb, etc. quick sauces, despite the uses of "squab spice" and so forth. Interested in the coulis approach, with meat. Anyway, more of the PC process generally somewhere?
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39 minutes ago, paulraphael said:
Mitch, no one's going to take your stock pot away. I haven't even given mine away. I still use it for lots of stuff ... just not so much for stock.
Sounds like your reason for doing it the old fashioned way is you like it. No other reason needed.
But it's not a general argument against a pressure cooker.
You're right that the time savings aren't huge for chicken stock. When I did it conventionally, I simmered for 3–4 hours. In the pressure cooker I go 2.5 hours (plus waiting for it depressurize).
It's a bit quicker, but the bigger advantages are 1) no skimming (called into question by this thread) and 2) tastes better (to me, anyhow).
It also uses way less energy.
The real revelation for me, though, isn't chicken stock. It's any kind of meat glace / coulis. What I'd use as a substitute for traditinoal demi-glace. A project like this used to take nearly 2 full days in the kitchen. Now it takes about 30 minutes of work plus 2.5 hours waiting for the pressure cooker to do its thing on day 1. And less than an hour of work on day 2 (which includes portioning into ziplocs for the freezer).
It's so easy that I don't do anything generic like veal or a white chicken glace. I use a dish-appropriate meat for whatever meals I'm planning. The degree to which this is better than an Escoffier demi-glace has to be tasted to be appreciated. And you don't give up a whole weekend for it.
Paul, a sort of master process, let's say. Do you have a "standard" light chicken stock recipe? And what size (make, while we're there) PC do you use?
And you're earlier description of a sort of hybrid-coulis process sounds like something I seem to recall Peterson describes, in terms of trying to parse out aromatics given multiple wettings. Is this where you got it?
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2 hours ago, AAQuesada said:
Puebla y su Cocina was published in 1971 and was likely put together in the late 60's by a social / charitable organization. Recipes are all from local ladies in the higher social class many of whom had French trained Chefs -I know recipes in foreign languages doesn't hinder you here you will find stuff like Oysters Rockefeller and Oso buco to soufflé to hot cakes (Mexico does pancakes very well!). Really anything you would need to know food wise if you were marrying into a wealthy Mexican household. Including a section on nutrition, calories, weights measures and substitutions.
Yes there are all of the recipes you'd expect from Puebla as well like manchamanteles(so good you stain your tablecloth!) Tinga Poblana, mole Poblano, Desserts as well that are local as well as French or Spanish. There is a great party guacamole with lots of chicharrón!
I posted a cocktail from this book somewhere in that section not too long ago btw and no idea if it's available online. I'll mention again that the book was recommended by family in the city as having good recipes that are typical and work.
Thanks. Looking for Puebla y su Cocina, no luck so far but I love these kinds of books.
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1 hour ago, weinoo said:
Great book and one of my favorite chef's!
Loved his autobiography. Ooooooooo, juice!
Also loved Tony Bourdain's documentary on him, The Last Magnificent. Saddens me he seems to be a recluse now in Mexico. Wonderful place to be, but I can't help think he was wounded from very early on and left a lot of life behind.
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1 minute ago, weinoo said:
Thanks - you should see my wife's reaction when he comes over to say hello! (Years ago, when we were dining at the late, lamented Mesa Grill, Bobby came over to say hi to the people we were dining with and introduced himself to us - she practically fell off the chair; I was like - can you get us another round of margaritas?)
I'm re-reading 32 yolks right now, third or 4th time through. Just closed the chapter on the loss of his dad. Deeply moving, brought me to tears. I love the guy.
In case it's not apparent, Eric and Maguy and I aren't like "this." We're "never met." And I'd fall of my chair too, swooning to my wife and son's humiliation. 😁
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4 hours ago, weinoo said:
What problem is that?
I get it. I'm such an orthodox cat it's extremely hard for me to change up my ways. I know that's hard to discern, because I'm always going on about pushing the modernist envelope and am generally considered "down with it" and "cutting edge" by most younger cooks who know "where I'm at." But it's definitely something I'm going to try. This is probably not at all comparable, but in brewing, you actually want to drive off some volatiles, mostly the precursor to dimethyl sulfide, which can give finished beer a quality of cooked corn. Yum. Perhaps there's something here - desirable loss of volatiles?
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3 hours ago, weinoo said:
Now I know that everyone (or most everyone) here is a pretty good cook. And I get that some people like to think, even while at home, that they're cooking in a fancy schmancy restaurant.
But...
Sadly...
And just going on quick glances, all of these chefs and writers have the same problem as I do with their chicken stocks. And that is, they're letting volatile vapors escape!
P.S. Le B was nice enough to "squeeze us in" for our anniversary next month!
Congratulations, and happy anniversary! Say hi to Eric and Maguy. We're like "this."
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On 1/12/2022 at 12:16 PM, AAQuesada said:
Latest cook books: the Rancho book I'm re-getting after having given away my last copy. The book in Spanish is my mom's (and a recommendation from cousins in Puebla)
Rancho on my cart - looks awesome. Could you talk about Pueblo Y Su Cocina a bit?
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1 hour ago, paulraphael said:
"...James Peterson Sauces book (a gem). " - Can we get an amen! It's in my bedside "speed rail" of books I can't stand not having within arm's reach.
'My reduction days are mostly over too. When I want to make a glace or coulis, I start with proportions pretty close to what I'm hoping to end with. Why lose all those aromatics? The Carême and Escoffier methods seem very dated now. They're about throwing in a whole barnyard full of meat in in the beginning, knowing that most of the flavor will go out the window. You can do better even without a pressure cooker. "
I know you're right, Paul. In every way (losing volatiles; not keen on coulis, old-school or as Bernard Loiseaux called it, "sacrificial meats."). Still, I'm a hopeless luddite romantic. I'll never be able to jettison the old fellas entirely. At least my dog loves me.
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Well, jury's out for me on this jus. Tastes salty to me but my wife died for it. Her threshold is much higher than mine (it helps she's Estonian blooded). I don't like to taste salt at all in anything, unless it's grains of fleur de sel or gris at finishing. Muddier than I like, but then I wonder if as Heidi says, I might have been chasing all these years clarity at the cost of deeper flavor. Keller's "Big Pot" blanching; Alice Waters's decrial of such blanching for looking beautiful but losing flavor. Hmm.
1 hour ago, paulraphael said:What, huh, who?
I've missed the idea that salt can aid extraction of anything in a stock. I'd like explore it (or see if it's explored elsewhere). I don't recall seeing anything about this in Modernist Cuisine or in the old James Peterson Sauces book (a gem).
As far as skimming, those days are long over for me. Ever since Dave Arnold and Nils Noren posted their pressure cooker experiments (and Mhyrvold & Co continued the thread) I've been all PC all the time for chicken and meat-based stocks.
My reduction days are mostly over too. When I want to make a glace or coulis, I start with proportions pretty close to what I'm hoping to end with. Why lose all those aromatics? The Carême and Escoffier methods seem very dated now. They're about throwing in a whole barnyard full of meat in in the beginning, knowing that most of the flavor will go out the window. You can do better even without a pressure cooker.
I'll need a bigger freezer, lol. Mine is an old army tank of a 20 qt. All-American. It's also aluminum. But you intrigued me before, and now I'll have to do it - with a smaller PC.
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1 hour ago, AAQuesada said:
it's a basically a bit less oxidative, easier to drink/or introduce to people who aren't as familiar. i've had this one recently which I liked a lot.
2011 Domaine Dugois Savagnin Arbois Blanc (Sous Voile) - SKU 1221900 (klwines.com)
Cool. Thanks!
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13 minutes ago, weinoo said:
As most good chefs (along with Escoffier) will tell you, it's about the layering and depth of flavors.
Just as in that Septime recipe shown above, there's bouquet and onion and other flavors cooking along with the chicken.
I do like the complex sweetness that comes from aromatics, but add them in final hour. I love Keller's veal stock, but with the remouillage, those veggies are dead. I think if there's one issue I have with it, it's a bit too sweet for me, and I like some (lighter side) roastiness.
Making Ducasse's chicken jus right now. 2# chix parts, 8 oz. butter, 6 garlic cloves smashed, 1/2 tsp salt. Two glaze cycles, mere 20 minutes with very little water. I'm a fan of repeated glazings, which I think Ecoffier does either with his fond brun, or fond brun de veau, maybe both, Keller's "quick sauces." Will report!
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11 minutes ago, AAQuesada said:
Late seeing this but I think Sherry would be a nice pairing or how about a something from the Jura like a Savagnin 'sous voile' K&L does a direct import of Domaine Dugois that can be found a great price for the quality.
I've not had it. Is this a vin jaune?
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19 minutes ago, TdeV said:
To draw the attention of @paulraphael.
Thanks Tdev! I've tried that and for some reason I'm not getting the link suggestions - it just stays as plain text.
-except right now, of course, as I'm confusing this site with a bread site I'm part of (doesn't have this feature). My brain, lol. @TdeV. @paulraphael, you're being talked about!
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The Bread Topic (2016–)
in Pastry & Baking
Posted
Just a couple of late. A pretty typical German bauernbrot, and a French Levain (an everyday one for us, recipe and process, the late French master baker, Gerard Rubaud). The Bauernbrot is high in whole meal rye, but it is soft, moist ("saftig"), very aromatic due to the use of altbrot, just flour made from my leftover and dried dark rye breads. Really helps the dough take in more hydration without becoming too slack.