Dinner! 2012

[ambra]

I didn't get a chance to say thank you to Prawncrackers and Franci for the recipes....thank you both. I will be trying them for sure.....I've got 2 kilos of salt cod in my freezer!

[threestars]

That cauliflower looks lovely! Been craving for cauliflower the other day.

[MikeHartnett]

Franci, that meal is very interesting. Sort of juxtaposes the traditional meat and side of vegetables.

[Paul Bacino]

Made " Chicken Fried Steak " at my sons request for his birthday>

Bacon Milk gravy with Yukon Gold Potato

[judiu]

Made " Chicken Fried Steak " at my sons request for his birthday>

Bacon Milk gravy with Yukon Gold Potato

Paul, you're killin' me, here!

[djyee100]

Franci, how did you cook the cauliflower? Was it battered and deep-fried?

[Franci]

I didn't get a chance to say thank you to Prawncrackers and Franci for the recipes....thank you both. I will be trying them for sure.....I've got 2 kilos of salt cod in my freezer!

You're welcome, Ambra.

That cauliflower looks lovely! Been craving for cauliflower the other day.

Thanks Threestars

Franci, that meal is very interesting. Sort of juxtaposes the traditional meat and side of vegetables.

I didn't do on purpose to start with but then I thought why not...lately I've been thinking I should keep more often meat as a condiment as at my grandmothers times.

Made " Chicken Fried Steak " at my sons request for his birthday>

I had to google to check what is meant with it. Expanding my vocabulary. Is it a regular flour/egg/breadcrumbs?

Tonight we had risotto al salto. I always make more "risotto giallo" for the purpose and minestrone

[Franci]

Franci, how did you cook the cauliflower? Was it battered and deep-fried?

I precooked in the pressure cooker for 2 minutes. Battered and pan-fried just to get a nice color and finished it in a moderate oven on a grill.

Edited January 9, 2012 by Franci (log)

[dcarch]

Sure sure sure you guys can cook, but can you make leftovers?

---------------------------------------

Holiday cooking can be exhausting (mentally). No cooking, just leftover meals.

Leftover Hanukah meal - Frozen brisket sous vided back to medium rare on rejuvenated wild rice bread.

Leftover Christmas meal – Frozen rib roast sous vide back to medium rare with muchroom sauce.

dcarch

[LindaK]

Tonight we had risotto al salto. I always make more "risotto giallo" for the purpose and minestrone

Franci, are risotta al salto the "pancakes" in your photo? They look delicious. Are they just refried risotto?

[MikeHartnett]

Franci, that meal is very interesting. Sort of juxtaposes the traditional meat and side of vegetables.

I didn't do on purpose to start with but then I thought why not...lately I've been thinking I should keep more often meat as a condiment as at my grandmothers times.

Very much in agreement on that.

[Norm Matthews]

I made chicken vegetable soup with chicken bones and parts not used for the chicken parmesan the other day.

[rarerollingobject]

Sure sure sure you guys can cook, but can you make leftovers?

Showoff!

Dinner here was mussels with butter, garlic, shallots and white wine. And green salad.

[SobaAddict70]

Orca beans. This is an heirloom bean that hails from Mexico. This was combined with:

2 cups of water

3 bay leaves

a smashed garlic clove

and simmered for a little over an hour, then combined with

mirepoix

Chinese chicken stock

salt

white pepper

parsley leaves and stems

thyme leaves and stems

and cooked until the beans were tender.

Haddock, with heirloom beans and aromatic vegetables

Edited January 10, 2012 by SobaAddict70 (log)

[Blether]

A quick carbonara, with home-made bacon and farm egg:

- and garlic. So sue me.

[threestars]

I really admire how dcarch design the food on plate! It's just awesome!

[Paul Bacino]

Franci,

I love watching what your cooking. Thanks

Oh Yeah " Chicken fried steak "-- essentially made with beef---Top round/bottom round/ cube steak/ sirloin that has been tenderized ( jaccard or pounding )

Yes I do seasoned Flour ( 2C AP flour--1/8 C Malbar Black pepper, 1T paprika, 1T Cayenne Pepper, 1T Garlic Salt ), here I bag shake the cut-- then I go back and jaccard the flour into the cut, then into a mixture of egg/buttermilk/ water, then back into the flour. The last breading some people use Panko or crush corn flakes. This rests for about 1 hr to set the mixture.

Then I do more a deep fry. Peanut oil and Lard ( Yikes )

I make a separate Bacon Gravy to top

Cheers

Paul

[Franci]

Tonight we had risotto al salto. I always make more "risotto giallo" for the purpose and minestrone

Franci, are risotta al salto the "pancakes" in your photo? They look delicious. Are they just refried risotto?

Yes. I make pancakes rather than a big cake becauce we like to have more crust. Traditionally the starch in risotto and the cheese are more than enough to bind it but my risotto was not properly done (no cheese in there, no butter, no marrow) so I cheated and added egg.

I really admire how dcarch design the food on plate! It's just awesome!

Agreed. It reminds me of someone else I meet on the net, not because the food is alike but it is just a general sense of beauty.

[Franci]

Franci,

I love watching what your cooking. Thanks

Oh Yeah " Chicken fried steak "-- essentially made with beef---Top round/bottom round/ cube steak/ sirloin that has been tenderized ( jaccard or pounding )

Yes I do seasoned Flour ( 2C AP flour--1/8 C Malbar Black pepper, 1T paprika, 1T Cayenne Pepper, 1T Garlic Salt ), here I bag shake the cut-- then I go back and jaccard the flour into the cut, then into a mixture of egg/buttermilk/ water, then back into the flour. The last breading some people use Panko or crush corn flakes. This rests for about 1 hr to set the mixture.

Then I do more a deep fry. Peanut oil and Lard ( Yikes )

I make a separate Bacon Gravy to top

Cheers

Paul

Lovely. Something that also my son would request for Birthday

[Rico]

Some people salt them and blanch them like eggplant. I like the bitter. In a broth prep just like yours I like a larger broth to melon proportion and I cook them longer - they look more pale than yours. I also think that they benefit from being eaten in a family style multi-plate meal so that they are an element of the meal rather than a separate course.

Thanks, Heidi. I've got a feeling I'm just not acclimated to the bitterness - next time I'll go for a longer cooking time and see how it turns out. And I can definitely see how they'd work better as a part of a meal rather than the whole shebang.

And RRO, you have taken me back to my two-hour stint in Bruges, driving to Paris from Amsterdam. We took a detour there for lunch (after driving around the city three times trying to find the road in), and those mussels appear to recreate that lunch perfectly (though we went with the less-healthy options of fries and beer). To this day it's one of the most pleasantly memorable meals I've ever had.

I've continued on with the Red Lantern, and found a new personal favorite - the suon nuong (forgive the lack of accents), or chargrilled pork, just served with some jasmine rice and the dipping fish sauce. I told my wife the fish sauce was just called 'Asian dipping sauce.' She likes it better that way.

[kayb]

RRO, those ribs are about enough to persuade me to make the plunge into the world of sous vide.

Franci, love the cauliflower! I will have to try that. Also, the risotto al salto looks wonderful. What's the difference in that and arancini, other than the shape and the cheese inside the arancini?

dcarch, the leftovers -- I'll eat leftovers at your house any time!

Paul, good-looking chicken fried steak. You could shame a lot of small-town Southern diners with that one!

[deensiebat]

Miso-creamed kale. Perhaps not the healthiest kale dish out there, but arguably one of the most delicious.

[Franci]

I've continued on with the Red Lantern, and found a new personal favorite - the suon nuong (forgive the lack of accents), or chargrilled pork, just served with some jasmine rice and the dipping fish sauce. I told my wife the fish sauce was just called 'Asian dipping sauce.' She likes it better that way.

Need to check that. I also have the Red Lantern and only made a few recipes so far. Thanks

Franci, love the cauliflower! I will have to try that. Also, the risotto al salto looks wonderful. What's the difference in that and arancini, other than the shape and the cheese inside the arancini?

Thanks, Kayb

To me arencini/e and risotto al salto have in common the rice and the saffron, although in the east part of sicily the arancini are without saffron. Risotto al salto is made with leftover risotto alla milanese, usually cooked in a lyonnaise pan with butter. When nicely brown on one side, it is flipped on the other side (salto in Italian), can be dusted with parmigiano at the end. It can be stuffed (mushroom, snails).

Arancine/i should be made with a rice pilaf, the filling can be different depending from the area, breaded and deep fried. But this is a subject were people will argue and argue about the name, what kind of rice, cooking methods, eggs/no eggs etc.

Tonight we had lamb chops with roasted onions, fennel and zucchini. I had a small piece of goat cheese as dessert, hopefully I can start to enjoy it again.

[SobaAddict70]

Penne with turnips, leeks and ricotta cheese

[kayb]

Recent dinners:

Tomato bisque, topped with basil. Had it with cheese and (gluten free) crackers.

Grilled steaks for the kids t'other night. I had mine with a caprese. Didn't show the cut version because, well, I overcooked it a tad and I was kinda ashamed.

Bouef bourguignon over mashed potatos. Perfect dish for a cold, wintry, rainy day.