Manitoulin test kitchen (Part 2)

[heidih]

wif = what is in fridge?

[Kerry Beal]

Not quite - though that is brilliant!  Actually pasta and whatever can be found to go wif it!

[Anna N]

Cannot just let this go without comment. Kerry's saying "pasta and wif it" is very close to the saying I was brought up with "bread and pull it". which meant as far as I can discover bread and nothing else. It meant the larder/pantry was empty. Although Kerry interprets it differently, I suspect that originally it meant the same thing. Bread and nothing else.

In truth tonight's meal is something I consider my back pocket dinner. As long as I have shrimp in the freezer, canned or fresh tomatoes, and pasta I can throw a meal together. I saute a little garlic olive oil, add some shelled and deveined shrimp, saute briefly, remove the shrimp, cook down some tomatoes with a few hot pepper flakes, return shrimp, add some 35% cream and serve over angel hair pasta. Much to my surprise angel hair pasta or is too exotic for Manitoulin Island!

[Beth Wilson]

Ah yes, the angelhair pasta only makes it as far as Espanola :-)  It was a mystery to me when I lived there too! 

 

Your pasta looks wonderful!

[Anna N]

Melted cheese on the last of the crumpets was breakfast today.

Our lunch guest of yesterday arrived with gifts. A lovely selection of her cake slices and tarts which we sampled and a box of her signature "Toffle". I should have taken a photo BEFORE we demolished them.

[Kerry Beal]

Lisabeth yesterday introduced us to a whole new baking world that we had not been aware existed - that of piecaken.  Does for baking what turducken does for roasting.  

 

Apparently last year there was a Manitoulin Piecaken festival - might have to change our dates up here so we can attend the next one.

 

 

[Kerry Beal]

So I got called in to the ER last night for a rather nasty accident - rug rat was not even in her PJ's yet.  I was there for about 3 hours over my prime baking time.

 

So this morning I used up the last container of half price sour cream to make another sour cream coffee cake.  This time I remembered to put the baking powder in the cake part - it made for a much loftier product.  

 

[Shelby]

Lisabeth yesterday introduced us to a whole new baking world that we had not been aware existed - that of piecaken.  Does for baking what turducken does for roasting.  

 

Apparently last year there was a Manitoulin Piecaken festival - might have to change our dates up here so we can attend the next one.

Oooooooooooh, this is an amazing idea.  

[LizD518]

In truth tonight's meal is something I consider my back pocket dinner. As long as I have shrimp in the freezer, canned or fresh tomatoes, and pasta I can throw a meal together. I saute a little garlic olive oil, add some shelled and deveined shrimp, saute briefly, remove the shrimp, cook down some tomatoes with a few hot pepper flakes, return shrimp, add some 35% cream and serve over angel hair pasta. Much to my surprise angel hair pasta or is too exotic for Manitoulin Island!

 

This is pretty much the same as my back pocket dinner too, although I don't usually have dairy around the house.  I also often add jarred olives (I like the greek dry-cured ones), artichoke hearts & capers.

[Anna N]

This is pretty much the same as my back pocket dinner too, although I don't usually have dairy around the house.  I also often add jarred olives (I like the greek dry-cured ones), artichoke hearts & capers.

Love the idea of the artichokes and capers. Thanks for sharing.

[Anna N]

So lunch was leftover salad. Perfectly edible but decidedly not photogenic. I washed it down with a glass of wine relying on my usual "but it needed using up". Dinner, however, poses a bit of a challenge. Kerry is in emerg today which means she may be trapped there for hours so anything a la minute is off the menu. Then we are nearing the end of our stay here so I would like to empty the freezer. Two honking lamb shanks have been in there since we arrived. This morning I defrosted them, browned them , threw in some onions and some chicken stock and now they are braising in the oven. I am roasting some carrots and some parsnips in the combi oven which will get reheated in the pot with the lamb shanks when they are done. I really dislike vegetables that sit in the oven for hours and hours stewing with the meat. So the aromatics get dumped or puréed and fresh vegetables added just before serving.

Working away from my own kitchen without my treasured cast iron Dutch oven is a challenge. What we have here is a very sturdy stainless steel Dutch oven. I'm sure it will serve the purpose.

[rotuts]

"""  roasting some carrots and some parsnips in the combi """

 

Id love to have a bit more particulars  and of course a zillion pics

 

One would be nice

 

"""   reheated in the pot """

 

this is a bit of a puzzle 

 

rats   leaving tooooooooooooo  soon.

 

[Smithy]

I'll certainly be sorry to see this blog end, but I imagine you will be relieved. :-) One request I have is an inventory of sorts, along the lines of how successful you were at 'using things up' before packing up. That is a perennial problem for me, and judging by discussions here on the forums I don't think I'm the only one.

Meanwhile, keep the pictures and commentary coming, please!

[Porthos]

Anna,  you have inspired me. My DW asked for the piece of beef I'm cooking for dinner tonight to be done in the crock pot.  I got this Dutch oven as this year's "bonus item" that comes with Camp Chef stoves, at least the ones sold at Costco. I did a lot of finagling to replace the stove I already had but this replacement stove has a built-in igniter (the old stove will stay up north for the other ren faire we do). The built-in igniter is so much nicer that using the HotShot et al butane lighters to light the burners.

 

Back to dinner, I have never used the new Dutch oven so I will make dinner in it instead of the slow cooker. My DW told me what she was looking for in the meal and this will work well AND I can brown the meat in the same vessel as it will be cooked in. One less item to clean up.

 

 

 

The pain of working away from your kitchen resonates. When we go on our annual high Sierras fishing trip we rent a house-keeping cabin who's kitchen is furnished with Walmartesque mark-down kitchenware. We take our own pots & pans, my traveling knife roll and gadgets. We clear out the drawers of their junk (carefully stored - I do take care), put our stuff in, and are much happier. We also bring the herbs & spices and that we use in our ren faire kitchen, We may be at 7200 feet on the edge of a lake but we still want to cook well.

[Anna N]

"""  roasting some carrots and some parsnips in the combi """

 

Id love to have a bit more particulars  and of course a zillion pics

 

One would be nice

 

"""   reheated in the pot """

 

this is a bit of a puzzle 

 

rats   leaving tooooooooooooo  soon.

 

So the lamb shanks are braising away in the oven:

The carrots you see there will have given their all by the time the lamb is cooked.

So in the combi oven are these:

Roll cut (more or less) carrots and parsnips, tossed in oil, and steam baked at 425F for 30 minutes. When the lamb is tender, I will degrease the braising liquid, reheat it, add in the roasted carrots and parsnips and perhaps some potatoes (gotta check our supply!).

The carrots and parsnips were perfectly cooked after 30 minutes completely unattended.

Kerry has just produced something I consider indispensable at home but didn't think existed here--a gravy separator. Woo hoo.

[Anna N]

I'll certainly be sorry to see this blog end, but I imagine you will be relieved. :-) One request I have is an inventory of sorts, along the lines of how successful you were at 'using things up' before packing up. That is a perennial problem for me, and judging by discussions here on the forums I don't think I'm the only one.

Meanwhile, keep the pictures and commentary coming, please!

Since we leave most of our dry, canned and packaged goods here I am assuming you mean perishables? If so, it may not be a pretty picture!

[Anna N]

Anna,  you have inspired me. My DW asked for the piece of beef I'm cooking for dinner tonight to be done in the crock pot.  I got this Dutch oven as this year's "bonus item" that comes with Camp Chef stoves, at least the ones sold at Costco. I did a lot of finagling to replace the stove I already had but this replacement stove has a built-in igniter (the old stove will stay up north for the other ren faire we do). The built-in igniter is so much nicer that using the HotShot et al butane lighters to light the burners.

 

Back to dinner, I have never used the new Dutch oven so I will make dinner in it instead of the slow cooker. My DW told me what she was looking for in the meal and this will work well AND I can brown the meat in the same vessel as it will be cooked in. One less item to clean up.

 

Dutch Oven.jpg

 

 

The pain of working away from your kitchen resonates. When we go on our annual high Sierras fishing trip we rent a house-keeping cabin who's kitchen is furnished with Walmartesque mark-down kitchenware. We take our own pots & pans, my traveling knife roll and gadgets. We clear out the drawers of their junk (carefully stored - I do take care), put our stuff in, and are much happier. We also bring the herbs & spices and that we use in our ren faire kitchen, We may be at 7200 feet on the edge of a lake but we still want to cook well.

Much as I have tried over the years to love a slow cooker, bottom line is does not work for me. I have owned every model from the original crockpots to the present day smart cookers and I can't eat the food that comes out of them. I've tried recipes from all sorts of people. Makes no difference. To my taste buds food cooked in the crockpot is just nasty. I understand that working people find them helpful but when you're home all day the Dutch oven works just as well and requires little attention. Just my two cents.

[Anna N]

So there were still some potatoes. The white ones were in the bag and the little red ones were languishing in the bottom of the refrigerator:

They will steam bake in the combi oven at the same temperature and for the same amount of time as the carrots and parsnips. They will make a nice addition to the braise.

[Kerry Beal]

 

Canuck Sazarac for Anna - sadly I'm on call and can't join her.

 

 

[Kerry Beal]

 

You would not believe how meltingly tender the lab shank is in this stew!  

 

 

[Porthos]

Looks beautiful.

[ruthcooks]

Anna, before this thread ends--and I will be so sad--I see you like braunschweiger (liverwurst) as I do.  I want to know if it freezes.  I eat about 3 sandwiches before I am tired of it, then have to pitch it as I don't know how long it lasts.  I always like it with something sweet, and pairing it with raisin bread is one of my favorites.  If only those who make raisin bread would refrain from adding cinnamon to it!  Any knowledge here?

[Anna N]

Anna, before this thread ends--and I will be so sad--I see you like braunschweiger (liverwurst) as I do.  I want to know if it freezes.  I eat about 3 sandwiches before I am tired of it, then have to pitch it as I don't know how long it lasts.  I always like it with something sweet, and pairing it with raisin bread is one of my favorites.  If only those who make raisin bread would refrain from adding cinnamon to it!  Any knowledge here?

Sorry. I have never attempted to freeze it. We can get quite small chubs so it hasn't been an issue. Anyone else try freezing it?

[Kerry Beal]

Anna, before this thread ends--and I will be so sad--I see you like braunschweiger (liverwurst) as I do.  I want to know if it freezes.  I eat about 3 sandwiches before I am tired of it, then have to pitch it as I don't know how long it lasts.  I always like it with something sweet, and pairing it with raisin bread is one of my favorites.  If only those who make raisin bread would refrain from adding cinnamon to it!  Any knowledge here?

I like mine with pickles.  Nice buttery cracker, slab of liverwurst, sweet pickle slice on top - lather, rinse, repeat!

[ElsieD]

I like mine with pickles.  Nice buttery cracker, slab of liverwurst, sweet pickle slice on top - lather, rinse, repeat!

Me too to the pickles. I like mine on a fresh baguette.