Dinner! 2010

[ChrisTaylor]

Larousse Gastronomique recipe #46

Loin of lamb a la bonne femme.

[Rico]

Wow, Chris, that project sure does produce some nice results, doesn't it?

Dakki, if you have any problems putting away that many steaks, I'd be happy to serve as a taste tester.

And dcarch, what's there to say except that once again your food and presentation has floored me.

Futurewife had the first of three wedding showers and brought home a bunch of stuff. One of those things being a panini maker. Which I instantly commandeered to make an Eggplant Panini.

[Dakki]

Steak tacos with cheese, same salsas as last time.

Sorry about the crappy pic, I was hungry.

[robirdstx]

We've had many various meals since the last time I posted on this thread, but I have been very lazy and have not been using my camera to capture our dinners until tonight:

Magret Duck Breast on Sweet Potato Puree and Sauteed Kale

[kayb]

No photos...but I had dinner at my favorite Hot Springs restaurant tonight -- Central Park Fusion -- a 6-oz filet topped with Boursin butter, atop a bed of truffle-oil flavored polenta with roasted corn and a side of wilted greens (which I did not eat, because, well, greens, and I'm squicky about that). Pretty marvelous. I'm so grateful to have a restaurant of that quality within a 20-minute drive (and that far only because I live way out on the lake...)

[suzilightning]

wednesday night was salisbury steak made with ground buffalo, some beautiful baby bellas and some good beef broth. served with honey glazed carrots and whole wheat egg noodles.

john is off to the hudson valley for a concert and a hike this weekend. he is due back on sunday so i have a piece of beef in the fridge marinating for sauerbraten. red cabbage, some green beans and mash or spaetzle to soak up that gingery gravy.

having a friend over for dinner tomorrow and sending her home with some food to tide her over after a procedure she is having on monday. some homemade oatmeal bread - a new recipe but i'm not satisfied with it yet - some cranberry bars and leftovers - baked macaroni and cheese. i'm craving yellow and green squashes so i'm thinking a tian with some tomatoes, shallots and some herbs.

[Dakki]

Steak in the style of Ducasse, same as last time. No pic since it would be redundant.

This time I got the doneness right and it is fantastic. Unfortunately the browning isn't quite what I'd like it to be so... keep practicing?

[robirdstx]

Burgers on the grill (no photo - still being lazy) on homemade buns with choice of condiments - ketchup, mustard, mayo, dill pickle slices, onion, and tomato. The buns were buttered and "toasted" on a griddle on the stove. So good!

[plum tart]

Pasta with fresh pasta clams - pancetta browned in olive oil, lots of garlic, parsley, and a couple of Turkish dried peppers added, then the clams. Poured in some white wine and the juice of a lemon. Steamed the clams until they opened (they ALL opened!) tossed it all over the pasta and added some more fresh parsley. I toasted bread crumbs to sprinkle on top. An excellent quick meal. Good with an arugula salad lightly dressed.

[Genkinaonna]

Pork Schnitzel, spaetzle and wilted spinach, with mustard cream sauce...the nearest German restaurant is 45 in away and WAY overpriced. This was a satisfactory approximation...I'm pleased.

[David Ross]

I can rarely find a Rack of Pork in the market, but this time of year our Costco always offers it. I'd never prepared it on my rotisserie before, but knowing how juicy and delicious chickens are after turns on the spit, I figured I would try the pork. Voila--same results as fowl--moist, tender meat. (Now had this been one of the "heritage" breeds of pig I think the meat would have had more flavor, and this was pretty darn good).

Served with Red Cabbage and Apple and Potato Dumplings, (which were incredibly bland and won't be served again, at least not with this recipe).

[ChrisTaylor]

Recipes 47-49 from Larousse Gastronomique:

Fried entrecote.

Pont-neuf potatoes.

Clafoutis.

[Borgstrom]

Striped bass with roasted poblano vinaigrette and yellow pepper grits

[robirdstx]

Tonight we had BBQ Baby Back Ribs and Sweet Potato Fries. I put the rub on the ribs this morning and let them sit for about six hours in the fridge before covering them with foil and putting them in a 450 degree oven for one and quarter hours. Then I slathered them with KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce, wrapped them tightly in foil, and kept them at 200 degrees for another hour and a half. When ready to eat, we fired up the gas grill and put them on for just a few minutes to give them a light char. The fries were from frozen, done in the deep fryer as the ribs came off the grill, salted and served with ketchup for dipping.

[menuinprogress]

Ricotta Gnocchi with Sausage and Fennel - from the Lupa recipe.

[Prawncrackers]

A couple of dishes clearing out the freezer of some veal shin, halibut, prawn-heads and chicken stock. I decided to use saffron in both dishes to make things a little interesting. First up is a classic Osso Bucco Milanese. The veal was cooked in a pressure cooker for 30 mins, the whole dish only took an hour from start to finish. I made it on Sunday but now I'm thinking this could actually be a mid-week dish!

Whilst making the first dish I used the trimmings from the sofrito to make a prawn-head stock for the Monday dish of halibut, saffron potatoes, braised little gem & peas, brown shrimp and creamy prawny sauce. This dish ate really well, the potatoes were soft and mashed into the sauce to soak it all up.

[ScottyBoy]

Oh wow, that halibut dish, great looking stuff!

[C. sapidus]

We started dinner with a glass of coquito, a Puerto Rican version of eggnog made with coconut milk. A friend gave us a batch, and quite frankly I could have skipped dinner for more coquito. Must. Get. Recipe.

”Express” bhaji, from My Bombay Kitchen. We used a mix of spinach, red chard, and scallion greens, stir-fried with green chile and julienned ginger.

Murgh masala (chicken in onion tomato gravy): I doubled the recipe from Classic Indian Cooking. Half went to a pot luck at work; the rest stayed home for dinner. Served with basmati rice, courtesy of Mrs. C.

I snapped a couple of pictures while cooking. Chicken thighs were de-skinned, chopped through the bone, browned, and set aside. Ten cups of thinly-sliced onions were then slowly brown-fried in the rendered chicken fat (they still had a ways to go in the picture). Add chopped garlic, grated ginger, Ceylon cinnamon, green cardamom, cayenne, and turmeric, and then simmer with chopped tomatoes, boiling water, and chicken. Finish with chopped cilantro and roasted, ground cumin.

[ChrisTaylor]

That looks good. A nice curry is one of life's greatest pleasures.

[dcarch]

I am happy that I am not the food judge here. I will have a difficult time to make up my mind who is the best!

Great show everyone!

dcarch

[Rico]

Made some Spicy Red Pepper Shrimp skewers. For some reason, it was like 70 degrees last night in Dallas. And that's a great grilling opportunity I didn't want to waste.

[bmdaniel]

I also grilled in Dallas - SRF Wagyu Fajitas, with bell peppers and guacamole.

dcarch I certainly am not, but I'm going to try to post more.

[dcarch]

Made some Spicy Red Pepper Shrimp skewers. For some reason, it was like 70 degrees last night in Dallas. And that's a great grilling opportunity I didn't want to waste.

If you put those shrimps in front of me, they would be gone in 1.26 seconds. Nice photo

I also grilled in Dallas - SRF Wagyu Fajitas, with bell peppers and guacamole.

Very respectable preparation. Invite me next time. :-)

-------------------------------------

Too much meat recently. Made stuffed tofu and whole wheat bread.

dcarch

[Prawncrackers]

Cool bread, how did you make the moulds?

[dcarch]

Cool bread, how did you make the moulds?

Thanks.

The mold was made using food-grade high temperature (500 degrees F) silicone rubber.

dcarch