Dinner! 2007

[C. sapidus]

Yunnermeier: I would love to try your Japanese dishes, even not knowing what they are.

Bruce, the boys did you good!  Be proud! . . .

. . . Followed by warm apple crisp smothered with heavy cream.......yuuuummmm!

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Brenda, the boys did better than me, as you will see in a moment. I'll take a big piece of that apple crisp, if you don't mind.

Tonight I managed to transform filet mignon into something marginally edible. I marinated the filet in soy sauce, bourbon, garlic, ginger, and sesame oil, and then grilled it medium-rare with a grind of white pepper. I thought the edges were too salty, younger son thought it too peppery, and elder son disliked the taste of bourbon (and I’m OK with that . . .).

Mrs. C and the dogs loved it. Note to self: keep it simple, stupid.

Sides included stir-fried mushrooms with oyster sauce and garlic; roasted bell peppers in sweet rice vinegar; and eternal cucumbers. The mushrooms turned out particularly well – elder son, a renowned mycophobe, converted to mycophilia.

[Peter the eater]

Here is yesterday birthday dinner for my daughter

Beef ribs

pulled pork butt

eggplant parm

baked ziti

tossed salad with balsamic dressing

cole slaw

macaroni salad

soft rolls and garlic bread

Very, very nice.

Although, pulled pork butt sounds a bit like an injury to me. My daughter won't be 21 for another 18+ years, please tell me it gets easier.

I am inspired to download the camera and share some pix, thanks!

[yunnermeier]

Last night:

Salciccia pasta

[Pille]

We went foraging for wild mushrooms last Saturday, and came back with 1.5 kilograms of Lactarius deterrimus mushrooms, close relative of Lactarius deliciosus aka Saffron Milkcaps (mushrooms were weighed after the cleaning). So last night's dinner was a cheesy wild mushroom and potato gratin:

Really, really nice - those mushrooms have a beautiful orange colour, and a very nice, almost flowery, taste.

For dessert we had some apple cake. I think apples will be the theme of our desserts for the next month, as I got 2 huge baskets from my mum last weekend..

[Jamie Lee]

Pille:

I don't know how you do it, but that pic is magazine/museum quality. Wow!

[monavano]

Ajo Blanco, or white gazpacho. Recipe here.

Edited October 3, 2007 by monavano (log)

[DanielM.]

Pressed pork belly.

[monavano]

Pressed pork belly.

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Look at those grill marks! What is being served on the plate with the pork?

[DanielM.]

Monavano, it's a apple-thyme compote-y-ish thing. Thank you!

[monavano]

Monavano, it's a apple-thyme compote-y-ish thing. Thank you!

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PS....mad knife skillz! I wish I could brunoise like that!

[Kouign Aman]

Moroccan lamb meatballs with a spiced tomato-yogurt sauce.

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Do you have a recipe for that sauce? It looks so vibrant.

I like the flavor of yogurt in sauces, but have never made one before.

What kind of seasoning do you use? Coriander? Mint?

[Prawncrackers]

Tea-smoked duck breast with crispy bits and fried rice:

[monavano]

Moroccan lamb meatballs with a spiced tomato-yogurt sauce.

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Do you have a recipe for that sauce? It looks so vibrant.

I like the flavor of yogurt in sauces, but have never made one before.

What kind of seasoning do you use? Coriander? Mint?

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The sauce was very much a delicious surprise. I wanted to go along with the Moroccan theme with the sauce as well as the meatballs. The spaghetti actually worked fine, but I could see serving these (smaller) with pita bread and the sauce for dipping. For the sauce:

3 cups basic tomato sauce (I had some of Marcella Hazan's method on hand)

1/2 small can tomato paste

1 small container plain yogurt (I used fat free)

1 T. cumin

1 T. corriander

1 t. curry powder

1/2 t. cinnomon

salt to taste

eta: the sauce had a vodka sauce look when combined. The leftovers were snarfed up in a day.

Edited October 3, 2007 by monavano (log)

[C. sapidus]

Tea-smoked duck breast with crispy bits and fried rice:

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Prawncrackers: I remember your posting that tea-spiced duck once before. As far as I am concerned, you could post it every night of the week – it looks gorgeous.

Tonight we made Thai chicken with holy basil (restaurant menus often list this as “chicken kapow” ), Indonesian-style green beans in coconut milk, and jasmine rice. We harvested about half of our holy basil plant in the dark – I bet it will look pretty lopsided in the morning.

[Ce'nedra]

Prawncrackers: Goodness! That tea-smoked duck of yours is cooked to perfection!

[yunnermeier]

Yunnermeier: I would love to try your Japanese dishes, even not knowing what they are.

You should! The dishes are terribly easy and only requires one pot (okay and another pot for rice,bowls and spoons/chopsticks).

Hiroyuki posted a gyudon recipe on RecipeGullet. The recipes I used:

Gyudon

Oyakodon

The Oyakodonburi especially tasted exactly like what my Japanese host mums used to make. I find one-bowl meals terribly comforting-especially during the winter!

Edited October 4, 2007 by yunnermeier (log)

[Shelby]

Fried chicken

I was out of potatoes so I made rice to go with the gravy.

Yummy cheese and tomatoes.

[nonblonde007]

Now, I realy want pork belly, and duck, and fried chicken, and Thai, and ......................

Last night, pork tenderloin, smashed buttery reds, and pickled beets 'n carrots.

...........and mushrooms, and gazpacho, and cheese, and ......................

Edited October 4, 2007 by nonblonde007 (log)

[monavano]

Now, I realy want pork belly, and duck, and fried chicken, and Thai, and ......................

Last night, pork tenderloin, smashed buttery reds, and pickled beets 'n carrots.

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That looks delicious. What kind of sauce is on the pork?

[Kouign Aman]

Moroccan lamb meatballs with a spiced tomato-yogurt sauce.

←

Do you have a recipe for that sauce? It looks so vibrant.

I like the flavor of yogurt in sauces, but have never made one before.

What kind of seasoning do you use? Coriander? Mint?

←

The sauce was very much a delicious surprise. I wanted to go along with the Moroccan theme with the sauce as well as the meatballs.

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Oh my, yum. Nice work! I'd order that description off a menu.

Would you mind putting the recipe (and the meatballs) in RecipeGullet so I can find it again in November? I doubt I'll get to it before then, and its high on my want-to-make this list now. I love those flavors, meatballs work well in our house, and tomato brings bright cheer to a grey day.

Now to decide: couscous, rice, quinoa or ??? on the side. Decisions decisions!

(hmmm... can I get ground lamb at Costco?)

[monavano]

Moroccan lamb meatballs with a spiced tomato-yogurt sauce.

←

Do you have a recipe for that sauce? It looks so vibrant.

I like the flavor of yogurt in sauces, but have never made one before.

What kind of seasoning do you use? Coriander? Mint?

←

The sauce was very much a delicious surprise. I wanted to go along with the Moroccan theme with the sauce as well as the meatballs.

←

Oh my, yum. Nice work! I'd order that description off a menu.

Would you mind putting the recipe (and the meatballs) in RecipeGullet so I can find it again in November? I doubt I'll get to it before then, and its high on my want-to-make this list now. I love those flavors, meatballs work well in our house, and tomato brings bright cheer to a grey day.

Now to decide: couscous, rice, quinoa or ??? on the side. Decisions decisions!

(hmmm... can I get ground lamb at Costco?)

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I'll post the recipe on Recipe Gullet, for sure. I've never seen the ground lamb at costco. I got mine at Harris Teeter. In fact, because I usually don't shop there, I usually don't see it. When I came upon it, I went with the whim to make meatballs.

[Jamie Lee]

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Shelby: Are those metal skewers in your fried chicken? Please explain!

(I'm just curious, the chicken looks delish!)

[eynkiora]

Really, really nice - those mushrooms have a beautiful orange colour, and a very nice, almost flowery, taste.

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Whoah...those mushrooms are so pretty! I've never seen anything like that!

[Shelby]

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Shelby: Are those metal skewers in your fried chicken? Please explain!

(I'm just curious, the chicken looks delish!)

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LOL NO, I noticed that today. We pressure cook our chicken after we fry it. The pressure cooker makes it SO tender. My husband made a homemade rack to fit inside the cooker so that the chicken was raised up over the bottom. It drains a ton of the grease off in hopes to make it a bit healthier.

edited to add: It's a 2 level rack, thus the skewer look lol

Edited October 4, 2007 by Shelby (log)

[Ce'nedra]

Really, really nice - those mushrooms have a beautiful orange colour, and a very nice, almost flowery, taste.

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Whoah...those mushrooms are so pretty! I've never seen anything like that!

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I know! Looks almost magical -kind of like from LOTR

Shelby: What's your chicken recipe? Looks so yummy I could lick my computer screen right now hhahaha!

nonblonde007: Your pork and beets look amazing! How'd you do it?

Here's my attempt at Japanese curry ramen (again, made this awhile ago). I made it up as I went along