Culinary goals for 2014

[liuzhou]

I"ve never been a baker. Cakes do not interest me,at all. And the breadmaker machine does its job.

However, I'm hoping to crack pastry. Shortcrust and flaky/puff pastry. For savoury applications -pies especially.

Steak and Kidney Pie! I haven't had S+K Pie for decades!

[David Hensley]

Sadly, I'm afraid that I must re-evaluate my financial and equipment resources, and abandon my charcuterie goals for the upcoming year.

I will instead substitute the goal of gaining some depth of knowledge regarding pasta; plain, filled, egg, water, Italian, Asian, or American...

Although this makes me quite sad, I will switch goals nonetheless, and hope that I can accomplish something...

[annabelle]

Just think of it as a recalibration, Dave. You can get started on charcuterie this fall.

[heidih]

David - that is still a pretty huge goal with enormous depths to plunge. Hope to see reports of your progress. A helpful approach can be to taste as much great stuff as you can so that you have comparison baselines.

[mkayahara]

I'm curious, David: what made you reconsider? There's a lot of charcuterie that can be explored with relatively minimal equipment. (Though, of course, I have access to a fair amount of equipment at work...)

As far as pasta goes, you could do a lot worse than read the relevant chapter of Paul Bertolli's Cooking By Hand.

[BeeZee]

Bagels. I've never made bread, but bagels seem a bit more approachable. Heck, the ingredients are cheap and I'm paying $1 a bagel, so if one batch turns out edible I'm ahead. And I've seen some gorgeous homemade ones posted recently by Ann_T, which rekindled my resolve.

[David Hensley]

I'm curious, David: what made you reconsider? There's a lot of charcuterie that can be explored with relatively minimal equipment. (Though, of course, I have access to a fair amount of equipment at work...)

As far as pasta goes, you could do a lot worse than read the relevant chapter of Paul Bertolli's Cooking By Hand.

Honestly, I just failed miserably to account for the requirements of the subject (charcuterie). I don't have the space or the facility to do this at home, I'm afraid.

I'll still play with it at home, curing and brining things of course, but my larger ideas will have to go unexplored, for now.

Pasta is still quite do-able though, and tomorrow afternoon, I'm doing a bit of pasta work with a local food columnist, I hope things get interesting...

[Porthos]

I'm very happy with my roasted asparagus and roasted Brussels sprouts. My two attempts at zucchini have left me wondering what else to try. I LOVE zucchini but both times the roasted zucchini has picked up a distinct bitter note, more so the second time. The second time was quartered lengthwise, most of the seed section trimmed off, drained on paper towels to draw out excess moisture, then olive oil, salt, pepper and oregano then into a 450 degree convection oven until they showed some color.

Fresh Brussels sprouts are easy. Frozen are more work - a 1 lb bag's worth into the microwave for 2 minutes to get the thawing started and then spread out on a baking sheet in a 170 degree oven until they have dried sufficiently. If I don't do this they kind of steam in the oven instead of a doing good dry roast that brings out the color.

[ChrisTaylor]

I've ticked off my goal for 2014: shucking oysters. Managed to get through a batch today without ruining any. A couple weren't as brilliant as I'd have liked but all of them ended up presentable. Much better than my first attempt, during which some of them ending up so riddled with bits of shell grit that I had to dump them. Shame the serving method--my first attempt or taste of grilled oysters--wasn't as nice as a squeeze of lemon juice and drop of Tabasco would've been.

Now I need to find something else to do.

Edited March 1, 2014 by ChrisTaylor (log)

[nakji]

The year's almost half over! I wonder how everyone's getting on with their goals. I didn't make any goals at the beginning of the year, as I was knee-deep in school work, but the summer holidays always act as a "reset" button for me, and now I'm facing down a summer with access to good flour and an oven. I'd like to learn to start making a reasonable loaf of bread. I'll be following the "Bread" topic to get my feet wet.

[lesliec]

Hi Erin. Haven't chatted to you here for years!

If you haven't already, also have a look at the no-knead topics. My favourite (there are others) is Artisan Breads in 5 Minutes a Day. It's a very easy way to get very satisfactory bread.

[Darienne]

 

Two goals:

First one to get back to having folks over for lunch, with or without dogs.  Family health problems have put us behind in our usual lunching custom.

 

Second one and more interesting perhaps is to make all the recipes in my latest purchase: Power Hungry: The Ultimate Energy Bar Cookbook.  Camilla V. Saulsbury. To date, I've made about 6 or 7 with delicious results.  I've also begun an eG topic," Power Hungry": making the bars from recipe #1.  So far, it's been fun.  Just finished making: Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars.  They just might be the best one yet.

 

 

Thanks, Nakji, for re-starting this topic.

Went back and found my earlier post.  Totally forgotten about it.  We haven't gotten all that far in having folks over for lunch, but we have made a start.

And as for the Power Hungry thread.  I see that I mentioned the Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars.  Well, they are so good that I have continued to make them regularly, and tried other bars only occasionally.  Have to get back to that...

 

Would like to add a couple of new salads to my repertoire.  Salads which are not primarily greens in this case.  Really need a good bean salad.  Calipoutine's ex-M-i-L's bean salad is THE BEST...but it's pretty high in sugar and I'd like a bean salad without sugar.  So far, I've not found one.  They are all not to my taste, although I love beans and we eat them a lot.  Just not in salads.

 

Not lofty goals, but still mine own.

[Smithy]

I'm not doing well against my goals. Fresh pasta a few times, but certainly not competent at it. Still no sourdough starter to my name. Hmm. :-(

Darienne, have you tried using a simple vinaigrette in your bean salads? That's how I generally do mine; I agree that most bean salads are entirely too sweet.

Edit: in re-reading your post I see you didn't think the salad in question was too sweet; you were trying to reduce the sugar. Not the same thing at all. For what it's worth, my DH usually makes his vinaigrettes with white balsamic vinegar. That vinegar contains some sugar, but less than one might add if simply adding honey or sugar to a recipe. It adds a sweet/tart note that you might like.

[Darienne]

Smithy, I should have mentioned that I have tried a number of bean salads with different vinaigrettes and I just don't really like them.  The salad, while sweet, is very pleasing, especially as one of a number of salads to choose from.  But it has a ton of sugar in it and the DH really objects to that.  Thus the search...

 

This is a regular summer supper for us:  romaine or greens on the plate with a chopped tomato on top, and then a number of salads to choose from: cole slaw,  broccoli and cauliflower salad, sweet potato, poblano, corn and black bean salad ( a combination of 3 recipes), tabouleh, a chickpea and grape tomato salad, a quinoa salad...etc, etc.  Plus a dish of hummus, fresh bread, canned corn beef (a guilty pleasure), cheddar cheese, etc.

 

Not a necessity.  Just searching for this optimum plain bean salad.  A 2014 goal.

[SobaAddict70]

Smithy, I should have mentioned that I have tried a number of bean salads with different vinaigrettes and I just don't really like them.  The salad, while sweet, is very pleasing, especially as one of a number of salads to choose from.  But it has a ton of sugar in it and the DH really objects to that.  Thus the search...

 

This is a regular summer supper for us:  romaine or greens on the plate with a chopped tomato on top, and then a number of salads to choose from: cole slaw,  broccoli and cauliflower salad, sweet potato, poblano, corn and black bean salad ( a combination of 3 recipes), tabouleh, a chickpea and grape tomato salad, a quinoa salad...etc, etc.  Plus a dish of hummus, fresh bread, canned corn beef (a guilty pleasure), cheddar cheese, etc.

 

Not a necessity.  Just searching for this optimum plain bean salad.  A 2014 goal.

Would you be open to a bean salad that had, say, green beans, chickpeas and white beans, and had a slightly sweet dressing? Bacon might be involved. I'm playing around with ideas in my head at the moment. Green beans will probably start appearing in a few weeks, after which I'll be able to test a few things.

When I say "slightly sweet", I mean 1 tablespoon sugar at most, although I might end up with something that uses the natural sugar present in fruit and vegetables instead of refined table sugar.

Edited June 16, 2014 by SobaAddict70 (log)

[FrogPrincesse]

Reviewing my list from last year...

 

 

I think I've achieved my goal regarding cocktail experimentation and tiki drinks (cf. the Spirits & Cocktails forum).

 

I've made bread regularly, including fougasse, Italian semolina bread, and a bunch of others, but haven't made sourdough yet. I got distracted and did not make confitures, caramels, or vinegar in 2013. I hope to do that this year.

 

Adding to the list: make falernum, perfect my ravioli technique, and learn more fabulous chocolate tricks thanks to the eG workshop.

 

Also I really want to make duck confit and this may be an excuse to buy an Anova... we shall see.

 

Mid-year review (thanks for the reminder, nakji!) -

No attempt at sourdough yet. I have made marmalade earlier this year, and have just bought a bunch of apriums to make jam. Caramels and vinegar still on the to-do list.

Falernum made and a new batch planned for soon. Ravioli made but I need more practice. I did not get a chance to attend the eG workshop this year.

Anova ordered...

[Darienne]

Would you be open to a bean salad that had, say, green beans, chickpeas and white beans, and had a slightly sweet dressing? Bacon might be involved. I'm playing around with ideas in my head at the moment. Green beans will probably start appearing in a few weeks, after which I'll be able to test a few things.

When I say "slightly sweet", I mean 1 tablespoon sugar at most, although I might end up with something that uses the natural sugar present in fruit and vegetables instead of refined table sugar.

I should be exceedingly grateful for said salad.  Please post either online or PM me.  Not at all concerned about 1 tablespoon of sugar.  Thanks.

[BeeZee]

I make it a soft goal to buy/prepare something I hadn't done before every year. Often it's a minor thing (bought white miso, made miso marinated fish). More ambitious goals (ie, bagels from scratch) have to happen when the stars align. Yesterday I bought fresh fava beans at a local farmer's market and prepared them, I had never done so before. I may have only had fresh favas once before in a restaurant, so it was nice to experience the unadulterated grassy flavor.

[Porthos]

So it's just about two months before the year is up. I gave up on Zucchini for roasting. I still need to find one more veggie to try roasting. I big-time dislike gourd-type squashes so they aren't  in the running. The very smell of sweet potatoes and yams cause a gag reflex in me.  I have no idea if broccoli roasts up very nicely or not. I'm just not sure what to try to fulfill my 2014 culinary goal. Am I missing something obvious to try?

[gfweb]

Cauliflower.

[Porthos]

Can you suggest any seasoning choices? Cauliflower has always been an excuse for cheese sauce in my past.

[Smithy]

I recently tried a recipe - not sure now where it came from - for roasted cauliflower that was dipped first in a spicy yogurt mixture. The spice mix, as I recall, was something like curry powder, coriander, pepper, maybe smoked paprika. Roast until the yogurt coating is dry and golden. The only thing I didn't like about it was that, in the interests of being easy, the cauliflower was roasted whole. I thought the yogurt coating was so good the it needed more - as in, cut the cauliflower into chunks first. If I remember where I spotted the recipe, I'll report back here with more details and a link.

[Mjx]

I'd really like to master rye bread. My wheat/wheat hybrid loaves are always good, no matter how experimental I get with them, but my rye bread is tragic. I made a rye loaf the other day that I was certain would not fail, since it was only half rye, but it was the same gummy, poorly-structured disaster I generally produce. I do have a recipe from a frined whose rye loaves are routinely gorgeous, and I'm gearing up to try that.

[FrogPrincesse]

Reviewing my list from last year...

[...]  haven't made sourdough yet. I got distracted and did not make confitures, caramels, or vinegar in 2013. I hope to do that this year.

 

Adding to the list: make falernum, perfect my ravioli technique, and learn more fabulous chocolate tricks thanks to the eG workshop.

 

Also I really want to make duck confit and this may be an excuse to buy an Anova... we shall see.

 

Oh dear. Only a couple of months left. I've checked confitures and falernum off the list, but still have to make sourdough bread, caramels, vinegar, and get more batches of ravioli under my belt.

 

And the Anova should be arriving soon...

[gfweb]

Can you suggest any seasoning choices? Cauliflower has always been an excuse for cheese sauce in my past.

Roasting it rubbed with olive oil is great. Either roast florets or "filets" of cauliflower.  Let it get really really dark. Sprinkle w salt.