Dinner! 2007

[rwsweet]

Thanks, eynkiora! Based on the other pictures I've seen on this thread, that's a huge compliment. The fun play on the colors was my girlfriend's idea. I only wish we could have found green mozz and white tomatoes to go with the red basil.

[purplewiz]

Marcia:

If I can post those anemic scallion pancakes, you surely can post whatever you're cooking! 

That's kind of the problem....I'm not really cooking much right now . We moved and then have had one crisis after another so the kitchen STILL isn't really stocked and by the time we start to think about dinner we're too starved to go to the grocery store and then cook.

I used to post a lot more here...and yes, the ordinary stuff like grilled hot dogs, cole slaw, and deviled eggs! I also want to encourage those who cook the ordinary foodstuffs of day to day dinners because those are the foods we remember and turn to when we need comfort.

I'm really looking forward to having the time and energy to cook again, even if it still is annoyingly awkward in my new kitchen. And yes, I'll take pictures and post 'em!

And your scallion pancakes still look so good and eggy and delicious and exactly the kind of food I was in the mood for !

Marcia.

[prasantrin]

Tonight I made, for the very first time that I can remember, meatloaf. I used Alton Brown's recipe from Good Eats, with some changes. It had a wonderfully crisp exterior, though the interior was a bit dry (I used an 80-something% lean ground beef). The first slice (a nice crispy end bit) went between two slices of a nice boule with a bit of ketchup. Would have been better with a slice of tomato, but there was none to be had.

The second, thinner, slice went straight into my mouth from the plate.

Caramels from Kerry Beal's recipe (with some sea salt stirred in at the end) for dessert, and life is good in Japan.

[Pille]

Borscht, made with beets, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and beet greens:

Thanks go to Pille for inspiring me. 

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You're welcome, Jensen!

[Prawncrackers]

The ruby redness of the Borscht looks brilliant! Makes me want to try it for myself for the first time. It's never appealed to me before, does it taste as good as it looks?

There's an autumnal feeling in the air today. So instead of the Italian style Osso Bucco dish i usually cook i did a more unctuous braised veal shins in red wine. It was very much like a beouf bourginon, very satisfying and suited the weather nicely!

I also couldn't resist taking a snap of the bone marrow on toast - a little fleur de sel and arbequina olive oil, i was in heaven!

[Jensen]

The ruby redness of the Borscht looks brilliant!  Makes me want to try it for myself for the first time.  It's never appealed to me before, does it taste as good as it looks?

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Better. The Spawn, who hates beets AND caraway, scarfed it down.

My recipe is here and the inspiration for that recipe is on Pille's Nami-Nami blog.

The only tip I have for borscht is this: resist the temptation to add meat/sausage. I have done that in the past and it just doesn't work out.

(Oh, the osso bucco looks great. Hell, the potatoes alone look great!)

[KristiB50]

Shrimp with Piri Piri. The fiery and tasty national dish of Mozambique

[heidih]

Shrimp with Piri Piri. The fiery and tasty national dish of Mozambique

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Inspirational! Did you eat it rolled up in the lettuce with the rice inside? Love hands-on food..

[KristiB50]

Yes I did!

I love hands on food too.

[Marlene]

Roasted butternut squash, fingerling potatoes and steak au povire.

[David Ross]

Hello everyone. I've not been posting much for the past two weeks. Computer issues which is really a pain in the you know what, and then too busy to devote my normal amount of time to cooking.

But tonight I hit a couple of homers.

First-Dungeness Crab Cakes. My fishmonger got 100lbs. of fresh Dungeness out of Alaska delivered to his store on Friday morning-and I happened to stop by at 10am, only one hour after he had opened and started selling the beauties. (I found out that most of the restaurants in town only take deliveries of fresh seafood Wednesday thru Saturday-but my fish guy gets fresh seafood delivered in 6 days a week. Yeah!).

Now you probably know we take our crab cakes pretty seriously up here in the Northwest. I bind mine with homemade mayonnaise rather than just using an egg. I dip the crab cake in fresh bread crumbs, then fry them in only clarified butter. A dollop of the mayonnaise on top of the crab cake just adds to the richness of this dish. It's actually pretty decadent-and delicious.

When I looked over the fresh seafood in the market I immediately put my sights on the fresh Black Cod. My fishmonger had gotten some whole black cod delivered that morning-fresh out of Alaska. Black Cod is also sometimes called 'Sablefish.' It is buttery, soft, oily and tender.

I used an old recipe from the Alaskan Brewing Company for the sauce. I cooked with their 'Smoked Porter Ale' ale a few years back at a local cooking expo. We used the Smoked Porter to make a glaze for Black Cod. The Smoked Porter is a thick, dark beer. The smoke comes from the malt-which is smoked over old alderwood boards that were once part of a fish cannery. Pretty unique isn't it? Using alderwood from a fish cannery to smoke malt for Porter.

You can get the recipe for the smoked porter sauce off their website. But buyer beware-Alaskan Smoked Porter is very rare and they only release it once a year, usually in December. I was lucky my fishmonger had BOTH the Black Cod and the Smoked Porter.

I thought the recipe off the website was a bit sweet for my tastes, so I added some 'Chinkiang Black Vinegar' (Chinese Black Vinegar), to make the sauce more sour. I served the cod on a bed of bok choy and mushrooms.

[rooftop1000]

Another Sunday afternoon....another birthday dinner. My M-I-L's today and just the 3 of us for dinner.

I started with a orange and yellow tomato salad with cucumbers and spicy poached shrimp

and a little something to discuss our upcoming trip to Munich over...Pork Schnitzle, potato dumplings, red cabbage and gravey

Pinot grigio in the glasses and bakery German Chocolate cake and coffee later

tracey

[Domestic Goddess]

Today was KyHubby's birthday and I made his favorite: Roast Beef with Veggies (+ Gravy).

Birthday boy's plate...

And dessert was bananana bread...

[Shelby]

Great looking dishes everyone!

David I am especially drooling over your crab cakes! What kind of spices do you add to those?

And, would you mind shipping me some

[Shelby]

So, this isn't pretty to look at, but it was really good! I'm the contributor of the "not so pretty meals" here

Venison meatloaf with green beans and mashed 'taters

The meatloaf turned out really good. I had some leftover rice that I mixed in. I put big slabs of fresh mozz cheese in the middle and topped the loaf with slices of tomatoes out of the garden.

I like some mashed taters with my butter

[yunnermeier]

Everyone's food looks so comforting... yum

[David Ross]

Great looking dishes everyone!

David I am especially drooling over your crab cakes!  What kind of spices do you add to those?

And, would you mind shipping me some 

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For the crabcakes I start by making a homemade mayonnaise-egg, lemon juice, dijon mustard, salt, pepper and add both olive oil and canola oil. Any basic mayonnaise recipe will do. I use a blender. This recipe also called for worcestershire and Tabasco in the mayonnnaise. I didn't add any herbs or other seasonings.

In the crab cakes I use fresh Dungeness crab, red bell pepper, green bell pepper, green onion, some of the mayonnaise and then a bit of fresh white bread crumbs. I added just a bit of Paul Prudhomme Seafood Magic Cajun seasoning.

Then I saute the crabcakes in a non-stick skillet using clarified butter-about 3-4 minutes per side just until they get a nice golden brown color and a bit of crust.

Thanks for asking. I'm thinking of doing a platter of little crab cakes for an office Holiday party-if my company will spring for the cost of the crab.

[monavano]

Lamb chops with rice and peas, and sauteed mushrooms. Bite:

[monavano]

David, beautiful pics. The DC/Maryland area takes the crab cake serious too and man, that looks good!. Shelby's meatloaf makes me wish the temperature here would drop about 30 degrees

Edited October 8, 2007 by monavano (log)

[Shelby]

David, I'll spring for the crab

Seriously, thanks for the recipe. I really really want to make this. I have to order the crab--it's like $25 a crab and that doesn't include shipping

Monavano lol it was like 90 degrees here yesterday, but meatloaf sounded so good I couldn't resist.

[David Ross]

By the way, our crab season is starting to wind down. The new season will start about December 1 depending on ocean conditions, so if you can wait until then to order or buy Dungeness Crab from the Pacific Northwest, you'll be in for a treat of the first of the season crab.

[monavano]

By the way, our crab season is starting to wind down.  The new season will start about December 1 depending on ocean conditions, so if you can wait until then to order or buy Dungeness Crab from the Pacific Northwest, you'll be in for a treat of the first of the season crab.

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David, do you have an online source for crab delivery?

[David Ross]

By the way, our crab season is starting to wind down.  The new season will start about December 1 depending on ocean conditions, so if you can wait until then to order or buy Dungeness Crab from the Pacific Northwest, you'll be in for a treat of the first of the season crab.

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David, do you have an online source for crab delivery?

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Try www.pikeplacefish.com. It's the guys who throw the salmon at the market in Seattle. While the throwing bit is a part of their shtick to tourists, they do have really good seafood. I looked at the site today and their Dungeness crabs are $24.95 each. I think they would be reliable. Since I live in Spokane, (only a 45 minutes flight from Seattle), I can get fresh crabs within a day of harvest so I don't have to shop online, but I'm sure the guys at the market would ship you really fresh crabs.

[Shelby]

By the way, our crab season is starting to wind down.  The new season will start about December 1 depending on ocean conditions, so if you can wait until then to order or buy Dungeness Crab from the Pacific Northwest, you'll be in for a treat of the first of the season crab.

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David, do you have an online source for crab delivery?

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Try www.pikeplacefish.com. It's the guys who throw the salmon at the market in Seattle. While the throwing bit is a part of their shtick to tourists, they do have really good seafood. I looked at the site today and their Dungeness crabs are $24.95 each. I think they would be reliable. Since I live in Spokane, (only a 45 minutes flight from Seattle), I can get fresh crabs within a day of harvest so I don't have to shop online, but I'm sure the guys at the market would ship you really fresh crabs.

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That's where I get mine, too.

[C. sapidus]

I am enjoying the hearty fall meals and lovely seafood. Tonight the boys requested ribs.

We also had eternal cucumbers (long gone by dinnertime), and Rohati’s crisp-fried potatoes with chile and shallot sambal (from Cradle of Flavor (click).

For dessert, I helped the boys make hot fudge sauce for ice cream sundaes. Home-made Russian imperial stout for me (picture from yesterday). Apparently, we brewed two cases of beer and completely forgot about the second case. Bonus beer!