eG Foodblog: Kerry Beal and Anna N (2012) - Mixing it up in Manitoulin

[CaliPoutine]

How far are you from Sudbury? I bought some of those same Oxo containers at Home Goods( same as Home Sense) and TJ Maxx( same as Winners). They were on clearance too. I like to store my dry goods in them.

I miss those thrift stores in Ontario. I still cant find those metal ice cube trays I love so much.

[judiu]

So the steamed buns are now on their second rise:

Since it would be pointless to make 50 buns, I have discarded more than half of the dough. The book suggests that working with less than the full quantity for the mixing of the dough is not a good idea. I went along with it. In retrospect I think you could cut the recipe in half quite satisfactorily.

I also made up a small batch of miso butter:

We have lots of asparagus in the fridge and asparagus with miso butter and a poached egg is another Momofuku recipe that I have tried and enjoyed, I thought that it would make a nice lunch tomorrow. We shall see.

Now I am off to make the white wine sauce for tonight's non-Momofuku meal - Mussels in White Wine with a baguette (store-bought I am afraid).

How the heck did the Cowardly Lion end up in your miso butter? (He's just left of center in the middle part of the bowl, for people with less sense of the ridiculous than I) I've heard of Tiger Butter, but lion butter? Nah!

[ScottyBoy]

I did some fried pork skin today. Just scraped off the fat and dehydrated. Can I ask about the poaching you did to yours? Looks like it leeds to a whiter and better result.

[Anna N]

I did some fried pork skin today. Just scraped off the fat and dehydrated. Can I ask about the poaching you did to yours? Looks like it leeds to a whiter and better result.

It was boiled hard uncovered for 1.5 hours in lots of water with the water being frequently replenished, drained and chilled, again uncovered, before the fat was scraped off.

[Kerry Beal]

How far are you from Sudbury? I bought some of those same Oxo containers at Home Goods( same as Home Sense) and TJ Maxx( same as Winners). They were on clearance too. I like to store my dry goods in them.

I miss those thrift stores in Ontario. I still cant find those metal ice cube trays I love so much.

I saw 2 of your metal ice cube trays yesterday - joked with Anna that I was going to pick them up and send them to you!

About 1 1/2 hours from Sudbury - if you listened to my new GPS though it's about two and half hours. As you get closer to Little Current the minutes kept dropping away - Anna and I figured when the minutes got less than the actual time we would have disturbed the space-time continuum and 'poof' - we'd disappear in a little puff of smoke.

[Kerry Beal]

How the heck did the Cowardly Lion end up in your miso butter? (He's just left of center in the middle part of the bowl, for people with less sense of the ridiculous than I) I've heard of Tiger Butter, but lion butter? Nah!

Oh my god - he is in there - and now I've eaten him...

[Kerry Beal]

I did some fried pork skin today. Just scraped off the fat and dehydrated. Can I ask about the poaching you did to yours? Looks like it leeds to a whiter and better result.

I know a lot of recipes seem to call for the poaching - I think pressure cooking it is the quick and dirty way to get it done.

Results were certainly light in colour - but they tasted too much like the pork rinds you get in bags in the grocery store - I still like a bit of a nice greasy porky taste in my rinds.

The chicharrón I want to copy most are the meaty, fatty, crispy ones I picked up when we were picking up meat for the Heartland gathering I think in Kansas City - they were strips of whole pork rind - I've tried to make them once when I was up here - they were OK but still a poor imitation of the ones I had there.

[Kim Shook]

I think those Sesame Ginger Rice Krispie treats are a Milk Bar recipe. At least that's who deensiebat attributed them to. She made them awhile back and I made them for Valentine's Day. They did end up softer than a regular Treat, but still very good. They are better a couple of days after you make them.

[Kerry Beal]

I think those Sesame Ginger Rice Krispie treats are a Milk Bar recipe. At least that's who deensiebat attributed them to. She made them awhile back and I made them for Valentine's Day. They did end up softer than a regular Treat, but still very good. They are better a couple of days after you make them.

Ah yes - indeed they are! So I've inadvertently stuck to my theme.

[Tri2Cook]

Those reserved bottles at this end were apparently picked up. They've disappeared from the inventory. The current LCBO inventory on that is showing 17 bottles left but they're scattered around at 9 different stores. Glad you were able to find a few anyway.

[Kerry Beal]

When I was a kid my mom would make what she called an omelet sometimes on the weekend. She made a standard omelet too - but this one was special.

Egg whites beaten.

Egg yolks beaten with a bit of sugar until they were light and fluffy.

Folded together - not quite as much as I have - that was always my tendency to over mix.

Preheated cast iron frying pan with lots of butter on the stove top.

A few minutes on the stove top to brown the bottom

Into a hot oven until browed and puffy.

Served with globs of jam - I found apricot preserves in one of my boxes - there was a bit of a last minute crisis - cause there are no other jams of any sort in the fridge - and this is NOT a Branston pickle sort of dish!

[Kerry Beal]

Those reserved bottles at this end were apparently picked up. They've disappeared from the inventory. The current LCBO inventory on that is showing 17 bottles left but they're scattered around at 9 different stores. Glad you were able to find a few anyway.

I figure the two in Tobermory, the two in Owen Sound and possible the two in Markdale are mine on the way back down from the ferry on Wednesday! I have discovered there are some agency stores not too far from my home in Southern Ontario - so I'll make a few calls around when I get home and see if they have any bottles.

[Kerry Beal]

So normally a blog goes Sunday to Saturday - but as no one is following us - Heidi has given us the option to blog a little longer. It's the long weekend up here - we've got a few more things to clean out of the fridge/freezer before we head home mid week so we'll keep at it for another day or two.

Please keep those questions and comments coming - it keeps us motivated to perform!

[Anna N]

While Kerry enjoyed a sweet omelette this morning, I have to say that sweet is not my style this early. I enjoyed an omelette stuffed with mushrooms and scallions and served with a couple of slices of leftover pork belly:

[Kim Shook]

Glad to get a little extra from you two!

[kayb]

Love the sweet omelet. Got to try that.

Also love that y'all are continuing into this next week! Great stuff!

[teagal]

Glad also your blog is longer. Enjoying it. I was so excited to get the Milkbar cookbook and enjoyed it as a read, but the few things I've made I probably won't make again. Nothing has wowed me and I really was expecting it to. Used the Liquid Cheesecake in a trifle for Mother's day and everyone loved it, but they aren't used to 'from scratch' baking. To me it was a little salty.

Edited May 20, 2012 by teagal (log)

[Shelby]

Thrilled that you're going to go longer!

Those zebra mussels are so terrible here in Kansas. Our lakes are suffering greatly due to those little suckers.

I love your latest drink glasses.

[Tri2Cook]

Used the Liquid Cheesecake in a trifle for Mother's day and everyone loved it, but they aren't used to 'from scratch' baking. To me it was a little salty.

The Liquid Cheesecake recipe is about 3x the sugar to cream cheese ratio I usually use in my cheesecakes but I haven't tried it yet so I don't want to say I don't like it.

[Marlene]

Kerry, what rum are you looking for? If there are any at the Bracebridge or Gravenhurst LCBO's I could pick them up for you.

[Anna N]

So after Kerry's attempt at Modernist Fries, both of us had a yen for some simple old-fashioned ones! Kerry was called out about an hour ago so I've peeled some russets and stuck them in ice water for an hour. I will blanch them in 325F oil, cool them off and they will be a fast snack at some point today. Kerry began preparations for some Vietnamese chicken before she was called away so I'm guessing that will be dinner tonight. Love Vietnamese chicken.

[Kerry Beal]

Kerry, what rum are you looking for? If there are any at the Bracebridge or Gravenhurst LCBO's I could pick them up for you.

It's the Bacardi 1873 - but it's only worth checking the agency stores - cause it's not showing up anywhere else within easy reach!

[Kerry Beal]

Binned the batch of rice crispy squares - when I went to take them out they were wet and not crunchy on the bottom. So remade quickly with powdered ginger and they were half gone by the time I left emerg.

Here are the wet gloppy bits from the bottom.

Edited May 20, 2012 by Kerry Beal (log)

[Kerry Beal]

Had to run over to the grocery store today to grab some ginger as I foolishly ground all my fresh stuff up yesterday to make the ginger juice for the ill fated rice crispy squares. Noticed a couple of nice clementines so grabbed them for pressure cooker experiments.

Clementines in pressure cooker with a bit of Ikea elderflower syrup and a tiny bit of water.

Clementines post cook - at this point I cooked down the syrup still in the pan until it was thick then bunged the whole thing in the TMX. Realized that I had intended to remove the seeds - so pulled the partially ground up bits back out and did that!

Finished puree - I'm thinking in the Fine Cooking Bakeshop muffins this might make a nice addition.

Edited to change Cook's Illustrated to Fine Cooking.

Edited May 20, 2012 by Kerry Beal (log)

[Tri2Cook]

That puree is making me drool. How forward is the bitterness from the zest/pith?