Dinner! 2004

[Malawry]

Friends go great with salad!

[NeroW]

I know it's June, but . . .

This morning I woke up with a major jones for comfort food, which to me, means beef carbonnade with egg noodles (and maybe the second bowl with a little sour cream). It doesn't really matter what time of year it is--when I want it, I got to get it.

So I made a huge batch of beef carbonnade. With egg noodles.

Used Czechvar Lager this time. Not bad! Drank the 4 I didn't put in the Le Creuset.

Does anyone else have the "problem" of their favorite comfort foods not translating very well seasonally? Seems like all my comfort foods are cold-weather foods.

[culinary bear]

steamed jersey royal potatoes, fresh salted goat's butter, maldon salt, fresh black pepper.

bliss.

[Varmint]

Pan roasted wild salmon, roasted beets on a bed of swiss chard in a creamy balsamic reduction, and oven roasted redskin potatoes. This was the first "real" meal I cooked for Mrs. Varmint in a couple of weeks.

She hasn't filed for divorce yet.

[Mayhaw Man]

When I was scrolling down and I hit your post the first thing I thought was, "Look, Varmint fried a bunch of pies. Man, I bet those are good!" I then read the captions, it looks pretty good, but now I want a pie.

On my last night before the boys and my wife get back I had:

boudin

purple hull peas

biscuits

and a popsicle for dessert

I love popsicles. All kinds. Haven't met one I didn't like yet.

[jackal10]

Sunday Lunch rather than dinner.

My collegue Nigel had a double magnum of Ducru 1967 that he feared would not last. Naturally we had to help him drink it. I provided the food, fairly plain, so as not to distract from the wine, the star of the show. Since it was a glorious summer day we cooked mostly in the outside wood oven, and ate al fresco...

14 of us sat down.

Nigel decanting. Note the candle and the silver funnel. Thge other bottles were standbys in case the Ducru was undrinkable.

We had:

Amuse: Radishes wih shallot butter chantilly and Fleur de Sel

Fresh baked Foccacio

Marbled tea eggs, stuffed

Shot glass of Lettuce and Lovage veloute

2003 Mas de Bressades Cuvee Tradtition Rose Costieres de Nimes

Planked salmon

Roast Asparagus

Hollandaise

2001 Rolly Gassman Terroirs des Chateaux Fort Edelzwicker, Alsace

Samphire

Long time (7 hours) Low temperature cooked rare Roast Beef

Roast purple potatoes, Butternut squash, Parsnips, Onions

New potatoes (Arran Pilot)

Carrots, purple mange-tout, broad beans, broccoli

Jus

1967 Ducru Double Magnum

Cheese: Stilton, Aged Farmhouse Cheddar, Munster, Morbier, Brebis, Cotherstone

Onion and Rasin bread, biscuits

Strawberries (variety Eros)

Green Goosberry Pie

Rhubarb Pie

1976er Erbacher Honiberg Riesling Spatlase Schloss Reinharthausen

1976er Erbacher Siegelsberg Riesling Spatlese Schloss Reinharthausen

Coffee

Financiers

1943 Ch Caillou Montbazillac

The Ducru was amazing. Far from fading, as feard, it actually came out int he glass, perfectly balanced.

The pair of Spatlese were interesting. Identical year and shipper, but differnt vinyards. The Siegelsberg was full, and lemony. Perfect with strawberries. The Honiberg was more complex and almost smoky, at least to my taste.

Outrageous. We had drunk the equivalent of a bottle each, over about 4 hours, but while everone was lively, nobody had drunk too much. Fabulous.

Edited June 14, 2004 by jackal10 (log)

[Camdon]

green curry with grilled pork tenderloin (marinated overnight with sort of thai spices) i made tonight: fresh baby vegetables from Wegmans played perfectly into the dish.

Yum! Now I need a curry fix.

[NeroW]

Jackal10, I love you.

[magnolia]

I love popsicles. All kinds. Haven't met one I didn't like yet.

So do I ! And I found what looks like an awesome recipe in either "House and Garden", "Home & Gardens" or one of the other decorator-y magazine my mom gets (I cut out the recipe so don't remember the magazine). However it calls for "white chocolate flavored pudding mix", and on my last day in NYC I looked in three big supermarkets and none of them had such a thing.

Any idea what company might make this stuff ? Brand name was conspicuously absent from the recipe. Though it has two strikes against it...it's white chocolate - and it's pudding mix...I admit to being smitten by the photos).

I'm in London, perhaps by some miracle someone knows where in the UK it might be available? Otherwise, if available in New York City...I can ask a friend ito bring it over...Sorry if this is too off-topic ! But popsicle recipes would be a good thread...

[spaghetttti]

Last night was Salmon night. Started with salmon roe and then threw the filets on the grill. Green beans sauteed with butter and garlic and a creamy gratin of potatoes were the sides. Icy cold limeade to quench the thirst.

[tastykimmie]

Last night was Salmon night. Started with salmon roe and then threw the filets on the grill. Green beans sauteed with butter and garlic and a creamy gratin of potatoes were the sides. Icy cold limeade to quench the thirst.

OH MY GAWD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[helenas]

don't know what happened as i got some stupid lycos search page after the posting

Edited June 15, 2004 by helenas (log)

[helenas]

Chicken/chickpea tagine in rich sweet tomato sauce with a bite of young ginger and aleppo pepper:

[binkyboots]

*must buy tangine, now!*

suddenly my improvised casserole and foil tent arrangement looks so skanky.

anyhow, dinner last night

chicken cooked in my latest car boot find, a rommertopf, mmm.. really good chicken.

garlic bread & salad

edited for spelling

Edited June 15, 2004 by binkyboots (log)

[hathor]

chicken cooked in my latest car boot find, a rommertopf, mmm.. really good chicken.

What is a rommertopf? And why did you find it in your car boot???

[binkyboots]

chicken cooked in my latest car boot find, a rommertopf, mmm.. really good chicken.

What is a rommertopf? And why did you find it in your car boot???

hehe,

rommertopf heaven!

I might find one in our car boot, goodness knows it needs a clean, lol, I found it (and a very nice spice grinder) at a car boot sale, kind of a big garage sale, last week and have been itching for a chance to play with it!

it makes the chicken incredibly tender and, chickeny, also you get lots of lovely stock, wierdly without adding any liquid to it

[hathor]

chicken cooked in my latest car boot find, a rommertopf, mmm.. really good chicken.

What is a rommertopf? And why did you find it in your car boot???

hehe,

rommertopf heaven!

I might find one in our car boot, goodness knows it needs a clean, lol, I found it (and a very nice spice grinder) at a car boot sale, kind of a big garage sale, last week and have been itching for a chance to play with it!

it makes the chicken incredibly tender and, chickeny, also you get lots of lovely stock, wierdly without adding any liquid to it

OH... a clay casserole!! rommertof has a much better sound to it!

I am a huge believer in cooking in clay!! (not to mention being an aficionado of exclamation points....)

[suzilightning]

it is hot and sticky in northern nj...

when john got home(early since he was at work till almost 1 am last night) we shared a chilled bottle of a 2002 e. guigal cotes du rhone rose i picked up for about 7.00 a bottle in a mixed case. it was very light and tasted of grapes and raspberries. chilled was the way to enjoy this appertif wine. and we sat and talked...

since it was so hot and my appetite(s) are not back quite yet i had two pieces of toasted semolina bread with fontinella cheese. john had grilled shrimp marinated in lemon and fresh tarragon over spinach with green beans in a sherry vinagrette along with a piece of toasted semolina bread.

for lunch tomorrow he will have a cabernet bison burger with a side of macaroni cheese and for dinner the remaining beans, spinach and grilled shrimp.

Edited June 16, 2004 by suzilightning (log)

[KateW]

I just had to say, and it's too bad he's not in Q&A anymore or I'd kiss his feet, that Alton Brown's ribs are awesome. I didn't use exactly his dry rub recipe because I remember him saying in the show that you can use anything you want for the last 1 part. So I made my own. I used one rack of beef ribs and one of pork. They were SO GOOD. I never knew how much I liked ribs.

I really have to set up the webcam again. The recipe is on foodtv.com if you search for alton ribs.

[Susan in FL]

One of the highlights of late, two or three weekends ago I think...

Herbed Clam Fritters, with a new sauce invention that I can't remember right now nor can I find where I wrote it down.

Grilled Duck Breasts with Orange, Ginger, and Golden Balsamic Sauce

Israeli Couscous with Peas

Yellow squash from our garden

Cabrales Cheese Souffles with Endive and Asian Pear Salad

This was a great wine dinner, but again not remembering such details as which wines we drank is a price I pay for not posting on this thread right away.

Some others...

A recent weeknight dinner that was especially good was Indian-Spiced Halibut with Mint Yogurt Sauce, and Mixed Vegetable Curry.

It's hot, daaamn hot. Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam keeps running through my head. Earlier this week, I pumped up the A.C. nice and cold, and cooked my first beef brisket, "Lil Pachter's Jewish-Style Braised Brisket," recipe from Saveur. With it I served plain ol' boiled potatoes for the yummy sauce and Carol Field's Matchstick Zucchini Salad, a test recipe for Leite's Culinaria.

There was some of that yummy sauce left, and last night I had fresh fruit, cheeses from DiBruno Brothers, and the left-over sauce over pasta.

[Susan in FL]

Good Evening... Tonight I'm posting right away, while the flavors still linger in my mouth. Russ cooked; he picked the first course based on what looked best in the seafood market, and I picked the main course, a recipe I cut out of Saveur.

He created a red wine reduction/butter sauce with some Asian notes, for dipping outstanding fresh raw tuna, icy cold, and on the other side of the plate, still hot from the stove, pan-seared fresh dry scallops.

Schnitzel Holstein (Veal Cutlets with Fried Eggs)

[NeroW]

Susan, schnitzel a la holstein is one of my absolute favorites. I'm not even hungry--at least, not really--and my stomach growled just looking at your picture.

[hathor]

MMMMMM! Susan in Fl: your stuff looks great!!! Can you post the recipe for the dipping sauce? Just an ingredient list would be fine. Thanks!

Last night we had:

BBQ roast quail served over toasted Israeli cous cous

Snow pea pods with soy/lime dressing

Cucumber red onion salad with yougurt dressing

And the first really good peaches that I've seen in the market...donut peaches cut up with blueberries. A great combination.

[RSincere]

This is my first post--I've been reading this board for a long time, but hesitated to sign up because you all are wayyyy over my head. But that's why I'm here, I'm trying to learn to do better. I moved out on my own 10 years ago, not even knowing how to make macaroni and cheese out of the blue box. The learning curve has been very slow, compounded by the fact that I just started eating meat a few years ago after 14 years as a very strict vegetarian. As far as my cooking goes, I'm now probably about one step above Sandra Lee. Also working on my palate--I'm afraid of way too many foods, and only tried vinegar/oil dressing for the first time last week. I liked it! Thought I hated anything with vinegar in it.

Right now I'm reading "How to Cook Everything" cover to cover.

I can't do a bio until I do two posts, otherwise I wouldn't have unloaded here.

Just giving y'all a warning, so you can ignore my posts in the future if you don't have the patience for my ilk!

Lunch:

Tortellini from dried, with canned pasta sauce that I doctored up with sauteed garlic and fresh parsley and basil, and shaved Parmesan.

Dinner:

Campbell's Tomato Soup and cheese quesadillas with salsa and sour cream.

I have a lot of pantry stuff like canned tomato soup and pasta sauce to use up.

Rachel Sincere

Edited June 17, 2004 by RSincere (log)

[Toliver]

I have a lot of pantry stuff like canned tomato soup and pasta sauce to use up.

Welcome Rachel!

You're in good company so post away.

And don't "Pooh-pooh" the pantry stuff. It has its time and place, especially when you when you get home late from work and don't have time to make something from scratch. Ain't nothin' wrong with it.