Dinner! 2013 (Part 5)

[basquecook]

Came back from Paris on earlier this week. Had the inlaws over for dinner and a shove off for me as I leave for China this weekend.

Made a cassoulet and then this ham thing we had at a street fair while there.. It was essentially ham in a whole grain buttery mustard sauce with a couple of potatoes.. The potatoes I added as they were left over from the potato we were making.

Started with this super runny cheese and aged gouda (not really in keeping with authenticity but) some smuggled sausages, olives, cornichons and bread. I went to Murray's specifically for Canarcjal Cheese which is a super runny raw milk from Spain where you cut the top of the tom and stick a spoon in it but, this is the best they had. Everyone gets their rude awakening after coming back from a trip.

Cassoulet with ducks sausage and duck, with a duck demi like stock.

Served with a super oniony salad

And my wife's super crispy gold egg potatoes.

For dessert, individual Jean Georges Chocolate Lava cakes.

This was the ham dish I was trying to recreate. Ham from 7 to 9 o clock. Potatoes and sausages on 1 to 630, some bean vegetable on the top. I did a good job and felt my ham was better as it their's was slightly dried out.

Edited October 18, 2013 by basquecook (log)

[Norm Matthews]

Came back from Paris on earlier this week. Had the inlaws over for dinner and a shove off for me as I leave for China this weekend.

Made a cassoulet and then this ham thing we had at a street fair while there.. It was essentially ham in a whole grain buttery mustard sauce with a couple of potatoes.. The potatoes I added as they were left over from the potato we were making.

Started with this super runny cheese and aged gouda (not really in keeping with authenticity but) some smuggled sausages, olives, cornichons and bread. I went to Murray's specifically for Canarcjal Cheese which is a super runny raw milk from Spain where you cut the top of the tom and stick a spoon in it but, this is the best they had. Everyone gets their rude awakening after coming back from a trip.

Cassoulet with ducks sausage and duck, with a duck demi like stock.

Served with a super oniony salad

And my wife's super crispy gold egg potatoes.

For dessert, individual Jean Georges Chocolate Lava cakes.

This was the ham dish I was trying to recreate. Ham from 7 to 9 o clock. Potatoes and sausages on 1 to 630, some bean vegetable on the top. I did a good job and felt my ham was better as it their's was slightly dried out.

That looks really good and is making me hope I can find some big meaty ham hocks at the market soon. It's getting to be that time of year here.

[huiray]

Couple of recent dinners.

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

• Watercress wilted in chicken slow-simmered broth w/ some chicken skin.

• More Hazan tomato sauce w/ spaghetti [Garofalo]. (I've been on a Hazan TS kick lately)

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• Broiled turmeric chicken wings ( 黃薑雞翼 / 黃薑雞翅 ) chez huiray. This has various condiments and sauces &etc in it, far more than just turmeric. ;-)

• Tuscan kale in pork stock (not pictured).

• Maitake mushrooms (fresh) and snow fungus (rehydrated) stir-fried w/ scallions (not pictured).

• White rice (Basmati) [Zebra brand]

Edited to add alternative Chinese terms

Edited October 19, 2013 by huiray (log)

[rotuts]

basquecook

I just noticed you have some pretty spectacular copper pots!

good for you !

ie the food in them has to taste 50 % better. for sure.

[basquecook]

Ha! I don't know about the food tasting better but, it's a lot easier to cook things for a long time in. I would hope to make something taste good in an easy bake oven. I have this huge copper stock pot that I keep on the fire for 48+ hours and I don't worry about it. Also the double boiler and the Carmel pots are where I really see a difference. But I like the cast iron enamel pots I have and the clay pots I cook with. I like everything. It's not a must but certainly nice to have. I definitely am fortunate with regards to having some pretty great cookware.

Edited October 18, 2013 by basquecook (log)

[mm84321]

White truffle from Alba

Butternut squash veloute, white truffle whipped cream

Scallops with broccoli and white truffle

Poularde with white truffle, autumn vegetables, sauce fleurette

Poularde consomme with white truffles

[Shelby]

Wow MM. Lotta truffle going on there!

[patrickamory]

OMG mm. You are living the good life!

[C. sapidus]

Beef Stroganoff, adapted from Please to the Table. Leftover grilled strip steak, fried onions and shiitake mushrooms, flour to thicken, and a sauce of concentrated beef stock, Dijon mustard, heavy cream, and sour cream, finished with S&P, parsley, and fresh dill. Served over egg noodles, with kale salad on the side.

Mrs. C said it was the best Stroganoff she ever had.

[mm84321]

Egg with spinach and white truffle

Sweetbreads with fregola sarda and white truffle

[rotuts]

C. sapidus

i love Beef Stroganoff

you have convinced me to try this with some of the SV beef i have 'aging' in the freezer cooked in their own SV bags.

many thanks

[Panaderia Canadiense]

A pair of Lazy Bastard dinners from my table - this is what we do around here when we want something gourmetish but don't want to take the extremes of time to prepare it. Both were

Firstly, LB "Bolognese" - ground beef fried up with spices and a couple of dollops of leftover tomato sauce. That's Andina on top, a local ripe cheese similar in character to Asiago.

And finally, LB "Beef Bourginon" - chunks of beef in quick gravy with red wine and mushrooms (and other veg). In a mashed potato moat!

[patrickamory]

I wanted to make spaghetti marinara they way you get it in old-school Italian red-sauce restaurants here in New York (a rapidly vanishing breed). Usually it's a side to a main course like veal piccata.

I had a hunch that a transplant like Lidia might have the key to getting it right, so I tried her recipe here, twice.

The first time I couldn't get my hard-earned real Italian pasta lessons out of my head (Marcella Hazan's strict instructions, Mario Batali yelling "the sauce is a CONDIMENT!!!"), and though it was tasty, it didn't taste like it does at Gene's or Frost. Too much pasta in relationship to the sauce, the pasta too al dente, too much olive oil. The second time, I cooked the pasta past al dente, and left it to the diners to toss it themselves. As per below, I also plated it more sloppily

First time:

Second time:

Can I say... this dish is like crack. Highly recommended.

[Shelby]

Yeah, I like a lot of sauce with my pasta. So un-Italian of me, I know

[gfweb]

I've eaten in Lidia's restaurant in Pittsburgh three times. It sucked each time. But the pasta was good.

re: Batali's "sauce is a condiment" insistence...feh. I don't want to eat authentic,I want to eat good eg I like NY pizza much more than the authentic Naples stuff.

[patrickamory]

Not to tangent-ize, but there are authentic Italian cuisines and authenic Italian-American cuisines. I completely agree, I want to eat good. This post was not meant to value one style over another though - I've had too many incredible versions of pasta in various idioms. That said, most of the pasta I cook is in the Hazan style.

[rotuts]

Ive followed Lidia with her PBS cooking shows. I think there is a lot to learn by watching them.

i have noticed that over time there is an Economic Incentive to make Big Bucks

Ive no problem with that. after all, Its not McDonalds.

thanks for the 'review' of Lidia my All Over Restaurants. i do mean that.

back a time, a really long time, there was an Italian Show on PBS

http://www.amazon.com/The-Romagnolis-Table-Italian-Recipes/dp/0316755621

moving to the BOS area, they 'the above' had a restaurant north of me that I went to specifically. cant remember where

it was Superb. good for them. not the North End, but just as good.

Im not sorry to admit I am a Keen Student Addict Of PBS cooking shows

back then, in Black and White, I saw the French Chef. I made one of those Items.

the rest is History.

[Norm Matthews]

An Asian friend gave me this recipe last spring and I have been wanting to try it ever since. It's Caramelized Oxtails. Caramelized sauce is butter, shallots, garlic, jalapeno, sweet soy sauce and beef broth. It has not been garnished yet but will be with green onions and lemon juice.

[chefmd]

Sous vide lamb shank with cranberry beans/spinach/roasted tomatoes. I was hoping for some left over meat to serve with pasta tomorrow but sadly there is nothing left.

[Shelby]

Lovely meal, ChefMD! I have to ask, what is the bird? logo? bird with a baseball mitt on? the glass?

[chefmd]

My husband collects plastic college cups. This one is VA Tech Hokies. Wanna see another college cup? Just ask. There is a good chance that we have it.

[weinoo]

Broasted quail. Pan fried corn-off-the-cob. Roasted acorn squash and peppers. Corn cakes. Jus.

[gfweb]

2013_10_19 Dinner quail.JPG

Broasted quail. Pan fried corn-off-the-cob. Roasted acorn squash and peppers. Corn cakes. Jus.

Broasted is a trademark infringement unless you made it in a genuine Broaster. Looks great though illegal.

[heidih]

Ponying on gfweb's comment - Mitch can you tell us what you mean my the term in this instance?. Members have been posting a good bit of quail and my craving has reached lift-off status.

[C. sapidus]

rotus – You are quite welcome, please do let us know how it turns out

End of summer says BBQ, but the chill in the air says braising. Why not do both?

BBQ ribs – St. Louis cut ribs, dry-rubbed and smoked on the Big Green Egg, mopped with an apple cider concoction whenever I thought about it, and brushed with BBQ sauce in the last half hour.

Lemon brown sugar BBQ sauce – Ketchup, brown sugar, molasses, lemon zest, lemon juice, dry mustard, onion powder, Worcestershire sauce, and black pepper, whisked together and simmered to thicken and meld.

Ribs rubbed:

On the Big Green Egg. Proper hydration is critical for BBQ:

Green beans braised with tomatoes – With garlic, anchovies, oregano, and S&P, braised for nearly an hour

Braised potatoes with garlic and bay leaves – Braised until tender and then fried in the sauce.