Dinner! 2007

[David Ross]

In Eastern Washington, this is the best time of year for produce at our farmer's markets-we still have days in the 85-90 range, but it is cooling down a lot at night. So our produce is still ripening and getting sweet during the day and then starting to slow down the growth cycle at night. I always say September is our best month for summer vegetables and fruits.

I made a Smoked Tomato Soup last night with some huge, fresh tomatoes from over in the Yakima Valley. I smoke whole tomatoes in the barbecue and then skin, seed and puree them. I add a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper and some chopped basil. Then strain so that all is left is smoked tomato juice. I served the soup chilled with a salad of cucumber that is tossed with dill and rice vinegar. I served the cold soup with some butter-poached prawns.

Then a New York strip, Shoestring Fries and very sweet yellow corn from the produce stand. I don't like that funky 'bi-color' corn-I think the yellow corn we get is the sweetest and has the most pure corn flavor. Lots of butter on the corn.

[Peter the eater]

Razorfish in black bean sauce, a favourite in our house that never disappoints:

Wow, that looks spot on! Razor clams are the most under appreciated bivalve around here. And there are lots around - nobody seams to like them except for the gulls. For selfish (shellfish?) reasons I hope it stays that way.

[Emily_R]

David --

That smoked tomato soup sounds OUT OF THIS WORLD (not to mention the butter poached prawns. Drool) ! I don't have a smoker, but it is making me think of trying to rig something up with my gas grill, as I have a large supply of dried applewood from trimming our apple trees this spring... How long do you typically smoke the tomatoes for? I'm assuming it is at fairly low smoker heat?

Emily

[llc45]

I'll second how good the smoked tomatoe soup recipe sounds! Last night I made a chili rubbed ribs recipe from Epicurious. We had some for dinner and are taking the rest to a barbeque today to throw on the grill.

[weinoo]

Here's what I made for dinner Friday night...let's call it the farmer's market special!

Heirloom Tomato Salad (about 10 kinds!) with Basil, Mozzarella and Olive Oil...

Then, Penne with New Potatoes, Green Beans and Pesto...

Followed by Tamarack Hollow Farm's Pork Chop, Bi-Color Corn and Zucchini Saute and Wild Arugula and Parsley Salad...

Followed these courses with a cheese platter, and then dessert, which you can see right here!

[hathor]

Hey! Mitch is taking pictures!

Really nice looking pork chops, Wienoo!!

[David Ross]

David --

That smoked tomato soup sounds OUT OF THIS WORLD (not to mention the butter poached prawns. Drool) ! I don't have a smoker, but it is making me think of trying to rig something up with my gas grill, as I have a large supply of dried applewood from trimming our apple trees this spring... How long do you typically smoke the tomatoes for? I'm assuming it is at fairly low smoker heat?

Emily

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You can easily smoke the tomatoes using your gas grill. Just put some wood chips in a foil packet and place it over the hot part of the grill. Put the tomatoes on a cool part of the gas grill. Shut the grill and the heat will start to cook the tomatoes and the chips will start to smoke. It's basically the same method I use on my charcoal grill.

I put the whole tomatoes in one of those disposable aluminum pans and drizzle them with some olive oil and season with salt and pepper. I smoked them in my Weber kettle grill with a charcoal fire for about 20 minutes. I soaked some alder chips in water and added them on top of the charcoal and put on the top of the grill. I smoked about 8 large tomatoes.

The skin of the tomato had started to crack so they were easy to peel. Then I cored the center and removed any seeds. I put the tomatoes in a food processor and added a bit of olive oil, chopped fresh basil, salt and pepper.

On occasion I put the pureed tomatoes into a saucepan over medium heat and add a bit of tomato paste. This helps to reduce the tomato soup and thicken it up. Then I strain out the solids and chill the soup in the refrigerator. You end up with this intensely flavored cold tomato broth.

For the cucumber salad I started with your basic cucumber that I peeled and seeded. I use a Japanese slicer to cut the cucumber into strands that sort of look like cucumber spaghetti. I add some dill, salt, pepper and a bit of rice vinegar to the cucumber strands. It adds a nice crunch and another flavor to the tomato soup.

I learned the method of butter-poaching prawns out of Thomas Keller's French Laundry Cookbook. I use this method a lot. It is a wonderful technique of cooking prawns, lobster or scallops. The prawns in this dish were tender, juicy and had a delicious silky coating of butter.

I've often heard a story about the reason this butter-poaching works so well is because seafood lives in water-aka a liquid-and as such, it should be cooked in some sort of liquid-like butter and water-to keep it moist.

I combined about two tablespoons of water and a stick of butter in a saucepan over medium low heat. The water keeps the butter from browning. You let the butter melt into the water and add raw prawns. Then you gently swirl the prawns around the saucepan, basting them with the butter/water bath. I used extra large prawns in the 8-10 per pound category. The prawns were done after about 4 minutes.

This is a really great late Summer dish because it uses the last of the Summer's tomatoes. In our area of Eastern Washington, September tomatoes are the best because they are so sweet and tender. It's a refreshing and light dish, even with the added richness of the butter-poached prawns.

Let me know how it turns out for you.

[Prawncrackers]

Snap weinoo , pork chop too!! Weird, because i've not cooked a pork chop in living memory.

Tamworth pork chop pan-fried with sage butter, crackling, potato & beetroot dauphinoise and peas:

Edited because i can't spell beetroot!!

Edited September 2, 2007 by Prawncrackers (log)

[percyn]

700 pages whoohooo !!!

[percyn]

Prawncracker, any special preparation for the razor clams before stir frying them?

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No, i don't really bother anymore. I used to soak them for a couple of hours in a few changes of water but i still found you can't really avoid the grit, so nowadays i just give them a quick scrub. Either they're gritty or they're not! I did try once to squeeze the dark crap out of them but it's quite an unpleasant task as they squirm... a lot. So I clean them up after they're cooked, remove the 'beak' and clean out as much of the green crap as possible.

...

Have you tried soaking them in some water with corn meal? From what I am told, the clams eat the corn meal, which cleans out their digestive tract and the gritty sand in it.

[Prawncrackers]

Percy, I've tried that whole corn meal routine for cleaning razorfish and for me it wasn't very effective. I'm convinced the only way to clean them properly before cooking is to squeeze them whilst they're still alive. Mind you it's such an unpleasant task that i've also convinced myself that it makes them tense and therefore cook up tough. That's why i clean them after they're cooked. That's my excuse and i'm sticking with it.

Edited to say i've added the Razor Clams in Black Bean Sauce to the Recipe Gullet.

Edited September 2, 2007 by Prawncrackers (log)

[Priscilla]

Last evening, on a day that reached a mere 104, (109 predicted for today), had to be fast, and appeal to heat-flagged appetites.

Ground lamb from the Middle Eastern market with a packet of Sadaf kebab seasoning made into small patties and, when the temp dropped near 90-something, cooked outside (quickly!) on the butane burner. Used for sandwiches with fresh pita, Ivan's excellent tomatoes, yogurt-garlic-cucumber sauce, sparkling water, and sturdy icy St. Clements chardonnay. A couple of eps of A Bit of Fry and Laurie, with those South African sorbets in their respective fruits from Costco.

[christine007]

Prawncracker, any special preparation for the razor clams before stir frying them?

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No, i don't really bother anymore. I used to soak them for a couple of hours in a few changes of water but i still found you can't really avoid the grit, so nowadays i just give them a quick scrub. Either they're gritty or they're not! I did try once to squeeze the dark crap out of them but it's quite an unpleasant task as they squirm... a lot. So I clean them up after they're cooked, remove the 'beak' and clean out as much of the green crap as possible.

...

Have you tried soaking them in some water with corn meal? From what I am told, the clams eat the corn meal, which cleans out their digestive tract and the gritty sand in it.

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I bow toyou, you are the dinner master!

We had bLTS based on the fresh garden tomatos.

[doctortim]

David, I can't wait to try cooking that tomato soup!

Tonight: Potato gnocchi with bacon, tomato, and avocado.

[Shelby]

Dove season opened on Saturday here in Kansas!

Nothing better than doves, stuffed with peppers, wrapped in bacon a grilled.

Before they hit the heat

After grilled

As we clean the doves, we save the hearts and livers. They are quite good!

I roasted some peppers, took the skin off, and stuffed them with the hearts, livers and a bit of cheddar cheese. Then I put them in the oven for about 20 mins.

[monavano]

David, I can't wait to try cooking that tomato soup!

Tonight: Potato gnocchi with bacon, tomato, and avocado.

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Beautiful gnocchi! They just look so perfect.

[monavano]

From the farmer's market dinner tonight: Fried green tomato with fresh mozzarella and tomato sauce ( a la Marcella Hazan), sauteed squash with thyme and parm. Not seen: Mirai corn on the cob.

[sazji]

Mind you it's such an unpleasant task that i've also convinced myself that it makes them tense and therefore cook up tough.  That's why i clean them after they're cooked.  That's my excuse and i'm sticking with it.

I think getting thrown into a pot of boiling water might make me a little tense.

[David Ross]

Dove season opened on Saturday here in Kansas!

Nothing better than doves, stuffed with peppers, wrapped in bacon a grilled.

Before they hit the heat

After grilled

As we clean the doves, we save the hearts and livers.  They are quite good! 

I roasted some peppers, took the skin off, and stuffed them with the hearts, livers and a bit of cheddar cheese.  Then I put them in the oven for about 20 mins.

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The dove looks and sounds delicious. Would your recipes work as well with quail?

[Shelby]

Dove season opened on Saturday here in Kansas!

Nothing better than doves, stuffed with peppers, wrapped in bacon a grilled.

Before they hit the heat

After grilled

As we clean the doves, we save the hearts and livers.  They are quite good! 

I roasted some peppers, took the skin off, and stuffed them with the hearts, livers and a bit of cheddar cheese.  Then I put them in the oven for about 20 mins.

←

The dove looks and sounds delicious. Would your recipes work as well with quail?

←

Thank you so much, David! As much as I hate to see summer leave, I do enjoy the fall when hunting and football start. In fact, I'm spending today cooking and re-doing my decor in fall items.

We make quail quite often using this same method. Teal season opens next Saturday and those little ducks taste wonderful by doing the same thing to them.

[jrt]

Everyone's food looks amazing--I cannot keep up.

Tonight I made a lazy dinner.

Miso soup (with enoki mushrooms, tofu, and green onions), an assortment of store-bought oshinko, and sticky rice. Nice and clean.

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That looks perfect. Do you use a homemade dashi? I have been using some powdered stuff from a tube-like packet...

[AllanSantos]

Hi folks!!!!

First post in this thread. Everyones dinners look so good I've always been hesitant to post pics. The wife and I had some friends over for dinner and a hang tonight. Some decent food came out of it so here's half of it since I forgot to take pics of everything:

Bay scallop seviche and some (store bought) salsa:

Then some pizza with smoked mozz, slow roasted tomatos and basil:

Then it was onto some burgers with some tarragon butter and a roasted garlic mayo. Then after walking the dogs around the block, we finished off the evening with some vanilla ice cream made from the Bouchon book.

A great afternoon and evening.

Allan

[purplewiz]

No posts since yesterday, how unusual. Tonight we made chicken in southern-style red curry, served with basmati rice, cucumbers, and garden tomatoes. Wow, this was freaking delicious. Details on Thai Cooking at Home.

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We're in the middle of moving, we're eating out pretty much all the time, and looking at your curry makes my mouth water and makes me miss cooking! That looks so beautiful and so delicious!

Marcia.

[purplewiz]

Hi folks!!!!

First post in this thread.  Everyones dinners look so good I've always been hesitant to post pics.  The wife and I had some friends over for dinner and a hang tonight.  Some decent food came out of it so here's half of it since I forgot to take pics of everything:

Bay scallop seviche and some (store bought) salsa:

Then some pizza with smoked mozz,  slow roasted tomatos and basil:

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Both dishes look just wonderful!

Marcia.

[C. sapidus]

We're in the middle of moving, we're eating out pretty much all the time, and looking at your curry makes my mouth water and makes me miss cooking! That looks so beautiful and so delicious!

Marcia.

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Marcia – Thank you very much, and best wishes for your relocation. May you have graceful movers and well-labeled boxes.

Brenda and Jamie Lee – Thanks for the kind words.

AllanSantos – Welcome to dinner, the ceviche looks particularly nice.

We just returned from Wisconsin for a family reunion and 80th birthday party. For fifty hungry guests, Mrs. C made her ever-popular cabbage salad. I made five-spice chicken wings and hjshorter’s delicious cilantro-peanut sauce (click). Thanks for posting the recipe, Heather – folks raved about the sauce. We used freshly-picked mint from the hosts' garden.

The hosts provided brats, burgers, ribs, beer, pesto salad . . . . SIL made the birthday carrot cake with lemon-cream cheese icing, beautifully decorated with flowers from the garden.

Forgot to take pictures, of course.