Dinner! 2008

[MiFi]

Grilled Venison Loin w/sweet potato puree and grilled red pepper and feta compote

Lamb Ragu

Roasted Heirlooms

Roasted Heirloom tomato risotto

Herbed Grilled Chicken w/Quinoa Salad

[sadistick]

Mifi - What liquid do you use for your Heirloom tomato risotto?

[MiFi]

Mifi - What liquid do you use for your Heirloom tomato risotto?

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Ended up being a mixture of veg. stock and the liquid the roasted tomatoes gave off.

[sadistick]

If you don't mind a suggestion -

Make an actual tomato soup (not too thick) and use that as your liquid to cook the risotto.

The result will be the most flavorful tomato risotto you will ever have. I also like adding some oven dried tomatoes at the end for a bit of texture and extra flavor.

[David Ross]

Soy Sauce Chicken garnished with Green Onions and Fried Shallots-

[MiFi]

Croque Monsieur

Roast Turkey Breast and Root Vegetables

[Kim Shook]

Shaya - so nice to "see" you! That pork bun looks amazing!

Daniel - that steak house dinner made me so hungry. It is just perfect. Creamed spinach is actually why I go to steakhouses (that and Oyster Rockefeller ) - mine never tastes as good as theirs!

Bridgestone - ANOTHER amazing steak! Just gorgeous!

Shelby - Lovely canning - I don't think I'm going to get to much of that this fall, somehow. Although Mr. Kim would kill for those jalepenos!

MiFi - what's that cool looking pasta under the lamb ragu?

The 'salad' last night was tomatoes, some of the last of summer's marinated cucumbers and some huge, crunchy radish slices. I had leftover meatloaf and made meatloaf sandwiches with bbq sauce and frizzled onions on garlic cheese bread. Also roasted potatoes. I've done this sandwich a few times. We love cold meatloaf sandwiches, but this is a nice change:

[Daniel]

Quick dinner for the little one.. Cooked two little chicken thighs for her, (a little oil in heavy cast iron) wondra, flour, white pepper, salt, and pepper. Steamed carrots with butter and fresh squeezed oj.. She is starting to use hot sauce!

Edited October 18, 2008 by Daniel (log)

[Daniel]

I made a turkey last night through poaching first and then cooking in a super hot oven.. The results were awesome.. The turkey had been brined for two days and cooked in a pretty intense broth...

Made a gravy, potato puree and roasted acorn squash.

Miss A made this cake with a pound of chocolate and 9 separated eggs.

I have so much turkey soup and turkey leftover.. Perfect way to welcome the cold weather.

Edited October 19, 2008 by Daniel (log)

[Chufi]

There are some great dinner ideas on these pages! So much wonderful food. I really love the fall cooking.. the roasted tomatoes and the roasted squash and the ragu.

We´ve been away on vacation to the Southwest USA.. I´ve cooked every night since we came back, but today was the first day (in a week or so) that I actually had fun in the kitchen. We had our parents over to give them a picture loaded report of our trip ( the eGullet version can be seen here ) and in honor of the many great burgers we had in the US I made this:

mini burgers with cheese and bacon, potato salad, pickles, avocado/tomato salad, beans in smoky barbecue sauce.

[Kim Shook]

There are some great dinner ideas on these pages! So much wonderful food. I really love the fall cooking.. the roasted tomatoes and the roasted squash and the ragu.

We´ve been away on vacation to the Southwest USA.. I´ve cooked every night since we came back, but today was the first day (in a week or so) that I actually had fun in the kitchen. We had our parents over to give them a picture loaded report of our trip ( the eGullet version can be seen here  ) and in honor of the many great burgers we had in the US I made this:

mini burgers with cheese and bacon, potato salad, pickles, avocado/tomato salad, beans in smoky barbecue sauce.

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Wonderful! Keeping in mind what you said about burgers being basically fast food at home and people not getting that burgers can be great food, how did they go over with your parents? Or had you already converted them ?

[C. sapidus]

Shaya, thank you for the kind words way upthread. We have missed your meals and the progress of your young sous chefs.

Everyone has posted a ton of gorgeous meals lately.

Arnab’s Aunt’s chicken curry: (click for recipe). The boys raved about this. Fry a cinnamon stick in oil and then brown chicken thighs with a paste of onions, ginger, garlic, and chiles. Add water, braise until done, remove chicken, and reduce sauce to desired consistency over high heat.

Pullao with carrots and peas: Fry cumin, black cardamom, onions, and ginger. Add chiles, carrots, peas, and garam masala. Mix in yogurt, add basmati rice and soaking water, and steam until done. Garnish with cilantro.

[percyn]

Great Travelblog Klary.

This weekend an elderly Italian friend of the family came over to share her recipe of Meatballs & Sauce. We made about 3 dozen meatballs and simmered them in the sauce for about 3 hours.

Very simple and very delicious

[snowangel]

Arnab’s Aunt’s chicken curry: (click for recipe). The boys raved about this. Fry a cinnamon stick in oil and then brown chicken thighs with a paste of onions, ginger, garlic, and chiles. Add water, braise until done, remove chicken, and reduce sauce to desired consistency over high heat.

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What kind of chiles did you use?

And, to echo Bruce's comment, everyone's meals look, well, just fantastic.

[C. sapidus]

Arnab’s Aunt’s chicken curry: (click for recipe). The boys raved about this. Fry a cinnamon stick in oil and then brown chicken thighs with a paste of onions, ginger, garlic, and chiles. Add water, braise until done, remove chicken, and reduce sauce to desired consistency over high heat.

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What kind of chiles did you use?

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We used three serrano chiles, which provided a nice glow without making the sauce too fiery for younger son.

[Priscilla]

Bruce, Arnab's Aunt's Chicken Curry looks excellent. And all ingredients are usually to hand when one arrives home w/raw chicken, too. I am SO making that.

Last evening Ivan cast-iron-panned stovetop and then oven nice NY strips, which he served w/sliced Russian heirloom Anna tomato from the fahncy tomato guy at the farmer's market, beautiful crenelated red and green, very good flavor and texture, arrayed atop salad mix from another vendor, dressed w/lemon-juice vinaigrette inspired by having watched a Tivo'd Jamie asparagus show. Ciabatta from the Japanese French baker.

[Prawncrackers]

Back to basics this week after some recent excesses, Char Sui Pork & Veg and Pea & Pancetta Linguine Carbonara:

[sadistick]

I like the idea of fresh peas in Carbonara...may have to steal that one!

Doing mexican tonight...pulled chicken in a chipotle sauce, pureed corn with cilantro, chillies garlic and lime then pan fried to caramalize and spicey guac...all topped off with some pickled red onions.

[C. sapidus]

Sichuan tonight, from Land of Plenty: Xie Laoban’s dan dan spaghetti; dry-fried eggplant with green bell pepper and sesame oil; eternal cucumbers.

[percyn]

Sichuan tonight, from Land of Plenty: Xie Laoban’s dan dan spaghetti; dry-fried eggplant with green bell pepper and sesame oil; eternal cucumbers.

Some good stuff coming out of your kitchen as usual Bruce. Is the recipe for the dan dan spaghetti available?

[C. sapidus]

Is the recipe for the dan dan spaghetti available?

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Thanks! Here is an article and the recipe from The Washington Post -- click and scroll

[MiFi]

Bucattini Carbonara

no peas on this version, but they would have been nice

Lacitino kale, potato, bacon and leek fritata

Roast Duck Breast from David Tanis' Platter of Figs with braised cabbage

Leftover duck breast with lentil salad and pumpkin seed oil

[gfron1]

I love that carbonara pic MiFi. And it all looks really tasty!

[Kim Shook]

Prawn and MiFi are just killing me with the carbonara - I have to have that soon!!!

Last night was Robin Miller's (Food TV) Melt-In-Your-Mouth BBQ'd Ribs, southern beans, ziti with sour cream & Parm and slaw:

We really liked the sauce - it was unusual. Not smoky or too spicy, but it was tangy and the combination of spices was really good.

Dessert was a brownie mix fix up that I got from Randi's blog. Just brownie mix (I used Ghirardelli) with Symphony bars baked between the layers of batter:

These were just so good! I really like the Ghirardelli mix - it's the second best I've ever tried (the Barefoot Contessa brand is the best) and I don't mind using it at all if I don't have time to make from scratch.

[CaliPoutine]

Dessert was a brownie mix fix up that I got from Randi's blog. Just brownie mix (I used Ghirardelli) with Symphony bars baked between the layers of batter:

These were just so good! I really like the Ghirardelli mix - it's the second best I've ever tried (the Barefoot Contessa brand is the best) and I don't mind using it at all if I don't have time to make from scratch.

Wow, I'm flattered. I just made this for a casual lunch time catering job and I heard back that the brownies were amazing!! I think the Ghirardelli mix is really good. I always sub out coffee for the water as I think it deepens the choc. flavor.

Regular size boxes of Ghiradelli and Symphony bars are not sold here so I try to grab a few when I'm in MI.