Dinner! 2004

[Behemoth]

Left work early to get everything a-bubble.  Got sidetracked and ended up eating three jalepeno poppers and one buffalo wing at 11pm at a dirty bar :angry:

I could use some Jalapeno poppers right about now. So far my semester has been a b****. Barely any time to cook. Two nights ago it was quite cold, we had chickpea & pasta soup, an easy M. Hazan recipe I just plain love. We also had slices of spanish chorizo fried in white wine but the spouse stole the plate before I could get a photo:

Last night I was stuck in Urbana so I had two tacos from the little taqueria next to the department. And the rest of the can of peanuts I bought last week. And several hours of grading. Feh.

Tonight I feel the need to make something with my celeriac. It is all of a sudden too warm for soup, so maybe a lighter version of a remoulade with yogurt instead of mayo, more of that chorizo or something -- dunno, frankly now I want a jalapeno popper.

Edited October 7, 2004 by Behemoth (log)

[SiseFromm]

Hamburgers! Boy were they good too. It's been awhile since I've indulged. These were fresh-ground Chuck loaded with plenty of sea salt, black pepper, and bits of Shropshire Blue cheese from England. Grilled medium rare over charcoal and red-wine soaked hickory chips on eggy buns with house-made tarragon mayonnaise and crisp green lettuce. Soooo tasty.

[eunny jang]

Pho shizzle

A seven-hour stock of beef neckbones, oxtail, onions, star anise, ginger, cinnamon, fish sauce, and daikon for sweetness. Compulsively skimmed and degreased. Rice noodles, paper-thin slices of fat brisket, more onions, scallions; boiling broth ladled over at the last second.

Some summer rolls in the background; they look like they were mostly carrot, but they were beatiful and shrimpy and tasty, I swear!

Condiments: quick nuoc cham, sweet chile-garlic sauce, quick peanut sauce, hosin sauce.

Garnishes: holy basil, cilantro, bean sprouts, lime wedges.

It was really, really good, but I can't see ever making pho at home gain - it seems silly to invest eight hours and $20 worth of meat when Pho 75 down the street dishes up an equally tasty bowl for $5.75.

[Susan G]

Steamed baby bok choy, chicken and vegetable potstickers, hot and sour soup (with extra wood ear mushrooms!), and a roasted duck I picked up at the Chinese market............where I met a Mandarin-speaking Cambodian - -oooohhh.

[Milt]

For last evening's meal, I prepared a large cheap pork roast - eight pounds counting the bone and fat. It was delicious. To accompany the pork, I made deviled eggs and a wonderful rice accompaniment from a recipe in The Rice Book. Long grain basmati cooked in chicken broth with green onions, coriander, cumin and tumeric. A fresh spinach salad and glasses of water and we ate well. I forget that sometimes simple is best. This was a good reminder.

[malarkey]

last night: an omelette with smoked salmon, capers and red onions, greens with a dijon-harissa vinagrette. Homework for dessert.

[little ms foodie]

Eunny your pho looks awesome!!!

We stuffed whole trout last night with onion and lemon slices then broiled. Topped the fish with a fantastic sauce of hard apple cider, shallots and butter. yum!!! served on a bed of wild rice. no pictures, I keep forgetting! Maybe this weekend!!

[percyn]

Eunny,

I have an idea (and you should all be shocked)...

You can make a slightly bigger batch of your wonderful daily dinner, freeze the extra portion, post the dinner de jour here and then take online orders for overnight delivery for dinner the next day

I can be your first customer (and business consultant, if needed)

Edited October 8, 2004 by percyn (log)

[lovebenton0]

Dinner tonight -- larb made with lightly pecan-smoked chicky leg rescued early off the grill last night, and some of yesterday's batch of chicken stock as a starter. Prik Khing (Maesri paste) for the main course. The Chinese long beans have been ugly at market the past couple of weeks but the baby green beans were slender and lovely so I went with those. No complaints around here.

Larb with Romaine and rice

Prik Khing

[Malawry]

Duck stock soup with fried onions and chicken leg meat (there has to be a more artful-sounding name for this...)

Pork chops with apples and sauerkraut

Salad with matchstick vegetables, dijon vinaigrette

Farfelu 2002 Virginia Fou de Blanc. We so crayzee.

[Susan in FL]

I'm way behind. This was tonight's dinner: bruschetta; grilled prime rib; and a pasta with anchovies, red peppers I roasted a couple of days ago, garlic, olives, bread crumbs, etc.-etc.-etc.- Russ gave me the bone from this nice little prime rib roast for two (with one bone), one example of many ways to say I love you.

Last night was hamburgers on the grill, after happy hour out.

Let's see... this past week... went out one night and had pho. Yum.

Another night I made roasted eggplant dip and spiced pita chips and veggies. The recipe called it a milder version of baba ghanoush, as it had no tahini. I think that was the night we grilled steaks and peach halves, roasted cauliflower! and had penne pasta with butter and fontina with it.

Now we are about to have some apples sauteed in butter and Johnnybird's toast dope, with vanilla ice cream on top.

I apologize for the close-up photos, which are not so gentle on the eyes. I'm experimenting and practicing on my food photography. I wish I could do better on the close-ups, but I'm not good at that.

[hayasaka.k]

I have been rather intimidated to post here (eunny--I am convinced you're a food mag photographer!); but your efforts are so marvelous to see! Welcome the n00b--I have yet to catch up on all 243 pages but I'm earnestly working my way backwards! Here are some clips of the past few nights...

One very late night that turned into a morning...does this count?

My eggs beenie (fresh croissants, roasted tomatoes, soft-poached eggs, aioli + basil) along with some crunchy unripe cantelope.

Our actual dinner that night:

Makings of roasted lamb shoulder with red wine reduction, miso-glazed carrots and rice.

Tonight's mish-mash of fridge+freezer delinquents:

My boyfriend's happy salute to eGulleters.

Ginger shiitake-stuffed pork something or another with pear&parsnip puree, stir-fried napa(?) cabbage and apple cider jus.

Dessert! Concord grapeman sorbet. (Yes, that's an ice cream tub lid you spy in the background but the sorbet was home-made; I swear! )

Edited: to fix links.

Edited October 10, 2004 by hayasaka.k (log)

[petite tête de chou]

Chicken and corn chowder with thyme

B.L.T sandwich

Black grapes and cran/rasp juice.

[percyn]

I made a bastardized version of a Goan fish curry using some Cod (which I have never tasted before in its fresh form). Was quite good, but I made the mistake of serving it with brown basmati rice, which was the wrong taste and texture.

←

Adam,

Do you mind posting your goan curry recipe? You are correct, Goan curry is best with almost over-cooked basmati rice (can substiture with Jasmin if you don't have basmati).

[percyn]

I have been rather intimidated to post here (eunny--I am convinced you're a food mag photographer!); but your efforts are so marvelous to see! Welcome the n00b--I have yet to catch up on all 243 pages but I'm earnestly working my way backwards! Here are some clips of the past few nights...

Hayasaka,

Are you sure you are a noob? Those pictures look quite good and I am sure the food tasted even more scrumptious.

BTW, I have been thinking about creating a breakfast topic on this forum (surprised I could not find an existing one) and took your lead to create one.

Folks, feel free to post your breakfast creations in the Breakfast! Topic

[Behemoth]

Was craving Korean food, so decided to test drive the bulgogi recipe out of my new cookbook. Clockwise from top left: Perilla & red lettuce leaves, bulgogi, gochujang with vinegar dipping sauce, doraji (bellflower) kimchee that I can get fresh at my local Korean grocery, and finally a quick cucumber salad with ground roasted sesame seeds.

(Sorry the pic is a little big, I realized it after uploading so now I can't edit...moderators?)

With a couple more side dishes, some soup and noodles, this would be great for a dinner party. The bulgogi marinade was phenomenal. Yum.

Edited October 10, 2004 by Behemoth (log)

[eunny jang]

Behemoth: AWESOME!!!!

Looks spectacular. What did you think? How did you cook the meat?

Bellflower is the best, huh? I keep trying to think of ways to use it in non-Korean preparations, but haven't been able to think of anything clever thus far. Great picture!

[tupac17616]

Wish I had taken pictures of the feast my mother and I made for my father's birthday dinner last night, but we were all starving by the time all the food was ready, so no time for pictures Anyway, here is what we had, in no particular order:

Butternut Squash Flan with Parmesan Sage Sauce

Bacon-wrapped Shrimp stuffed with Jalapeno and Cheese

Mixed Green Salad with Grape Tomatoes, Dried Apricots, Crushed Walnuts, and Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing

Bacon-wrapped Dates with Honey, Brown Sugar, and Balsamic Vinegar Glaze

Grilled Ribeye Steaks with Maytag Blue Cheese Butter

Salt-crusted Baked Potatoes

Steamed Asparagus with Lemon Juice and Lemon Zest

Sauteed Cremini Mushrooms with Butter

Nice, crusty loaf of Country French Bread and Garlic Parmesan Croutons

Oven-Roasted Figs with Mascarpone Cheese, Honey, and Toasted Pine Nuts

Italian Coconut Cream Cake

Mexican Chocolate with Mexican Vanilla Ice Cream

Lots of time was spent in the kitchen and at the grill, preparing this feast for my father, and a great time was had by all. I am still full today. Ahhh, what a meal

[Susan in FL]

the feast my mother and I made for my father's birthday dinner last night

I would like your mother and you to cook my birthday dinner!!

[suzilightning]

last night's dinner was fredh cornbread, catfish and green beans

tonight was unique

johnnybird and i shared a bottle of 1996 cristal(my 50th birthday present)

dinner was duck breast with a port sauce, pastina and a cauliflower and broccoli saute.

and we shared a bottle of pinot noir.

[tupac17616]

I would like your mother and you to cook my birthday dinner!!

←

Thank you very much. I am very much an amateur in the kitchen, though. Just a young guy who loves to eat, and loves to cook, so I'm always trying to expand my repertoire in the kitchen. But I (along with many other eGullet-ers, I'm sure) am always in awe of the stuff you post on this dinner thread. The stuff you make always looks so tasty. If everyone cooked and ate the way you do, I have a feeling the whole world would be a very happy place

[ludja]

Wish I had taken pictures of the feast my mother and I made for my father's birthday dinner last night, but we were all starving by the time all the food was ready, so no time for pictures 

...

Italian Coconut Cream Cake

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Sounds like an incredible feast tupac. Can you describe the Italian Coconut Cream Cake some more? It sounds great...

Since I still have access to good tomatoes, I made one of my favorite risottos with fresh tomatoes (and pancetta, onions, etc). Had it with a salad last night and managed to save some to make risotto cakes (chilled, brushed w/egg, rolled in dried bed crumbs and pan fried) tonight served with buttered green beans. Yum.

Edited October 11, 2004 by ludja (log)

[Susan in FL]

.....risotto cakes (chilled, brushed w/egg, rolled in dried bed crumbs and pan fried) tonight served with buttered green beans.  Yum.

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I'm glad you mentioned how you make risotto cakes from leftover. Do you use that method no matter what kind of risotto it was, or was that preparation particularly for risotto with tomatoes? I usually have trouble with mine breaking when I'm frying them, so I'm thinking your brushing with egg before you rolled them in bread crumbs might help that.

Mmmm, rolling in "bed" crumbs... that sounds like fun!

Edited October 11, 2004 by Susan in FL (log)

[Susan in FL]

My husband, "Prepcook" on eG, was again much more than the prepcook and cooked dinner outdoors last night... Deep-fried cornish hens (our grill has a deep-fryer) and grilled vegetables. Delicious! The idea of deep-frying cornish hen halves came from eG, and to give proper credit, sorry I can't remember from whom on what thread.

[ludja]

... risotto cakes (chilled, brushed w/egg, rolled in dried bed crumbs and pan fried) tonight served with buttered green beans.  Yum.

←

I'm glad you mentioned how you make risotto cakes from leftover.  Do you use that method no matter what kind of risotto it was, or was that preparation particularly for risotto with tomatoes?  I usually have trouble with mine breaking when I'm frying them, so I'm thinking your brushing with egg before you rolled them in bread crumbs might help that.

Mmmm, rolling in bed crumbs... that sounds like fun! 

←

I use that prep for any type of risotto. That being said, I haven't made risotto cakes from ones that contain seafood, etc. Usually for risotto cakes I use simpler risottos with the add-ins in small pieces ('plain' parmesean, tomato, lemon, mushroom, other vegetables....).

Re: the breaking, I tend to keep my risottos a little on the moist side. Maybe this helps in them sticking together later after being chilled? In any case, the mix is pretty sticky even after a night in the fridge. Also, I form them relatively small (~ 3 inch diamter) and pretty thick. I lke the contrast of the crisp exterior and the creamy insides. A beaten egg or yolk or white is good for covering with crumbs.

Last night I just garnished wth the green beans, but I also like serving them with seasonal vegetable ragouts for a nice appetizer or a vegetarian main course.

p.s. the deep-fried cornish game hens and grilled vegetables look delicious.