Dinner! 2011

[Franci]

Tonight we decided to open the paletta de pata negra 5 jotas we got for Christmas, so we got that for appetizer and then breaded sweetbreads and artichockes.

Pata negra is definitely on my top ten (or maybe five) highly rewarding foods. Very happy. I'm going to miss that when we move back to the US

That is a thing of beauty!

Franci, I have purchased slices of pata negra bellota in the US. Not sure if it is exactly the same as what you get in Europe, but tasted pretty close.

Ah, Percyn. I'm sure we are going to buy some, just because we love it so much. But definitely it's not going to be the same. We got it from this guys, it's been already the 3rd year and the prices are going to be very different.

P.S.: Never had the opportunity to say it before. I love you egg dishes.

Edited December 29, 2011 by Franci (log)

[Franci]

Almost embarassed to post after mm84321 dishes but my little one was not very happy around dinner time.

We had saute' foie gras with quinces and a reduction of the quinces juice plus sherry, orange juice, ginger, honey and vanilla. Nice but I still love much more mi cuit foie gras.

More pata negra because I was still hungry.

[rarerollingobject]

Beautiful meals, Franci and percyn!

(And I say that as someone who has basically been living on ramen and beer for six months, so pure hunger is my qualifier!)

[dcarch]

rarerollingobject,

We miss your cooking!

dcarch

[gfweb]

Where you been? Back to college?

[rarerollingobject]

Thanks, dcarch! I miss your spectacular creations too..I still think about your Jackson Pollock! Heh.

gfweb - more or less, yeah. Just life having its way..bought a new house (with a much bigger kitchen!), changed jobs, hit an intense period in my MBA. All of which has added up to no time, no energy, no appetite, no will to cook.

Can feel it coming back though..am off to the fish markets now for some squid for the paella I have a sudden hankering for. Will report back!

[Prawncrackers]

All this talk of pata negra reminded me that I made a little Spanish inspired meal a couple of weeks ago. We started with a little board of pata negra ham and my own home-made chorizo, canned razor clams, tortilla, teal escabeche and bacalao fritters. I also cracked open a can of Spanish sea urchin and made little crostini with lardo but forgot to photo it (doh!). Our guest brought over a wicked chocolate fudge cake and I also made some crema catalana. A knockout meal!

[patrickamory]

Prawncrackers, that first photo is incredible. How did you take it?

[dcarch]

Thanks, dcarch! I miss your spectacular creations too..I still think about your Jackson Pollock! Heh.

gfweb - more or less, yeah. Just life having its way..bought a new house (with a much bigger kitchen!), changed jobs, hit an intense period in my MBA. All of which has added up to no time, no energy, no appetite, no will to cook.

Can feel it coming back though..am off to the fish markets now for some squid for the paella I have a sudden hankering for. Will report back!

If you don't post your wonderful creations, I am going on a hunger strike. :-)

dcarch

[mm84321]

I found some really great black sea bass at the docks this morning. I decided to make Daniel Boulud's signature "Crisp Paupiettes of Sea Bass in Barolo Sauce". The whole process, from start to finish, was totally satisfying.

[nikkib]

Mm84231that is stunning! Prawncrackers what a delicious looking meal! Rro- I agree with dcarch! Piccies please!

[rarerollingobject]

mm84321, that's incredible.. is the fish wrapped in potato? How'd you get such long strips?

Prawncrackers, fantastic meal as usual but I'm pining for a pic of the uni on lardo! I didn't know you can get uni in cans, does it compare to the fresh stuff?

Here, I made arroz negro, squid ink paella with these pretty little fellas:

There's no real way to take an attractive picture of black paella but it was very tasty, especially with the extra garlicky aioli (six cloves, when the recipe called for two!)

[SobaAddict70]

Finished off the last of the fish soup I made a couple of weeks ago -- defrosted the leftovers and just heated it up, served with some crisped up French bread in olive oil. Also uncorked a bottle of pinot gris.

Also tested a new dish (new for me, that is):

Brussel sprouts, with slivered almonds and pecorino cheese

Recipe on the blog.

[Prawncrackers]

Prawncrackers, that first photo is incredible. How did you take it?

Cheers mate! Yeah this photo does pop doesn't it? It was just taken, as usual, on the fly with the flash on my SLR bounced off the ceiling. The exposure was just right, I didn't have to do anything to it. If you're intersted then the exif info is here. Unlike the last one of the bacalao, it came out really dark and I had to brighten it. The metering on my camera is a little erratic.

Prawncrackers, fantastic meal as usual but I'm pining for a pic of the uni on lardo! I didn't know you can get uni in cans, does it compare to the fresh stuff?

Here, I made arroz negro, squid ink paella with these pretty little fellas:

There's no real way to take an attractive picture of black paella but it was very tasty, especially with the extra garlicky aioli (six cloves, when the recipe called for two!)

You know they can (tin-can that is) all kinds of seafood in Spain. I think my favourite are the Catabrian anchovies aka pure concentrated umami. The canned sea-urchin were a bit disappointing, very broken and mushy, not the fat lobes you see in the shell. The flavour was good if a little mild but topped with the just melted lardo was very tasty. Nice to have in the store cupboard I suppose but does not compare with fresh. Which is a shame because the canning process does change and some say improve the flavour of oysters and mussels. I still have some canned angulas (baby eel) from a recent trip to Barcelona, will definitely post a pic of those when I crack them open.

I think you did a good job with the black paella. You do need a few ink sacs to get it that black. Sometimes you think about picking one big squid for this kind of dish but the ink from one sac gives an unappetising murky grey colour.

[Franci]

Prawncrackers, beautiful spanish meal! Your photos a gorgeous. I'm left with no camera, so taking very bad pictures with the Ipad. I think I'll suggest a camera as a present to my FIL for next visit

After seeing your picture I went to defrost the pieces of desalted baccala' I had in the freezer. I'll see what we can make tomorrow with that.

Rarerollingobject, I also like very much your food, hope you'll find time and strenght to post again.

SobaAddict70, need to come and check your recipe!

Since I had some extra quinces, I decided to make again lamb necks and quinces from Obb bits. It's a delicious recipe! Today I hit my head on the wall, when my mom tossed the leftover sauce

Edited December 31, 2011 by Franci (log)

[dcarch]

Rarerollingobject, I am happy that you are cooking again. I can end my hunger strike now. :-)

Anyway, busy time of the year. I will be selfish just to enjoy everyone's fantastic cooking and not commenting.

Regarding cutting food thin, with a sharp knife and a little practice, it can be done.

dcarch

Edited December 31, 2011 by dcarch (log)

[patrickamory]

rro, I think the photo of the paella came out great actually - looks delicious.

Prawncrackers, thanks for that, so +2 on contrast, saturation and sharpness, right? Going to have a go with these settings on my camera for my upcoming Dinner shots, though my compact Leica won't allow me to bounce the flash unfortunately

[mm84321]

mm84321, that's incredible.. is the fish wrapped in potato? How'd you get such long strips?

Indeed it is. I just used a very large baking potato. They are quite large here in the states.

[ScottyBoy]

Fantastic all around!

I'll be back in photo mode after I move to my new loft.

Dream kitchen, check

Giant dinner table, check

Private dinners using MY kitchen...finally

It's all coming together... 2012 = full of win

[mm84321]

Found great monkfish today. This recipe is called "Light and Shadows" from Michel Bras. Another extremely satisfying dish to both cook and eat.

Happy new year to all.

Edited December 31, 2011 by mm84321 (log)

[ScottyBoy]

Love it when people document but could you right some descriptions for the pictures please?

[mm84321]

So, first is obviously the monkfish tail, head off, as it's not a very charming sight. Then, it is skinned, and both fillets are taken off the bone and cleaned of all sinew, and the nerves that run down the length of the tail are removed. There are pitted black olives on a baking sheet that are dehydrated over night at 180ºF, then blended with olive oil the next day to make the black olive oil you see in the pan. The monkfish is "poached"/sauteed very gently in the olive oil, and it is served with mustard greens, ground mustard seeds, dehydrated olives, and more black olive oil.

[Anna N]

...

There are pitted black olives on a baking sheet ....

Thank you lordy. I thought they were prunes and was reaching for my meds!

[Country]

Regarding cutting food thin, with a sharp knife and a little practice, it can be done.

dcarch

Nice work! Thanks for the pics.

[mgaretz]

We recently got a new electric pressure cooker. Used it tonight to make a great beef stew. Meat, carrots, celery, onion, new potatoes and peas. Sauce used a chicken broth and red wine base with some soy, ketchup and porcini mushrooms. Thickened without effort by adding 1/4 cup of pearl barley.

Forgot to take a shot before serving - this is the leftovers in the serving bowl we'll eat for dinner tomorrow or the next day.