Gathering Dust in my Storecupboard

[KaryLou]

I have to stop buying foodstuffs which look gorgeous, but for which I have no use whatsoever. The following items have been gathering dust in my cupboard for some time now - could anybody help me out with culinary possibilities?

1. Raspberry Balsamic Vinegar. I tasted some in the shop. It was delicious. So I bought a bottle of the stuff. It remains sealed. What was I thinking?

2. Pomegranate molasses.

3. Camargue salt. Ok, I admit it: despite never having come across this before and despite a hefty price tag, I just couldn't resist the pretty packaging.

[Jinmyo]

Karylou, give 'em as gifts to rubes who'll be impressed.

[Anna N]

I have to stop buying foodstuffs which look gorgeous, but for which I have no use whatsoever.  The following items have been gathering dust in my cupboard for some time now - could anybody help me out with culinary possibilities?

2.  Pomegranate molasses.

http://www.foodtv.ca/recipes/recipedetails...recipe_3080.asp

This is Christine Cushing's ingredient of the minute according to her TV show!

[Jinmyo]

Christine Cushing.

[Steve Klc]

KaryLou--use the Camargue as you would any sea salt--where you want to taste and feel the crunch of the salt crystal. (It's a waste to dissolve it. Use regular salt for that.) Sprinkle it on some foie gras just before serving (if you are so lucky) or toast up some brioche, drizzle the toast with melted extra bittersweet chocolate and sprinkle with a few grains. It can go well with many caramel or chocolate desserts.

Drizzle some of the pomegranate molasses on a plate--pour a layer of olive oil over it--and then dip good crusty bread into it.

I can't speak about Ms. Cushing, Jin, seeing as I'm south of the border, but that pomegranate glazed pork tenderloin does sound good. And that site sure looks pretty.

[Andy Lynes]

I've had venison with chocolate and raspberry sauce before which is quite lovely and you could maybe use the vinegar in such a sauce. Raspberry vinegars were big around the late 80's and the Nouvelle Cuisine fad and then became about as cool as kiwi fruit served with fish.

[Jinmyo]

Steve, Cushing told people doing a call-in that mirin (sweet cooking wine) is rice vinegar (su).

Yes, the FN Canada site is quite well done. There are some interviews with St. Mario and Vic Chanko (A Bourdain) that I've posted about before.

[Belmont3]

Karylou, use the Raspberry Balsamic Vinegar as a drizzle over some bread with a Hazelnut encrusted Brie.

[Kikujiro]

There's clearly no excuse for raspberry balsamic, but pomegranate molasses is a perfectly respectable ingredient used in much middle-Eastern cooking. The Moro cookbook (which generally rocks) has this to say:

Pomegranate molasses ('dibs rumman' in Arabic) is a syrup made by boiling down the juice of sour Iranian pomegranates until it thickens and changes in colour from red to rich auburn brown. It has a colour and consistency similar to black treacle and is sweet-sour in flavour. Common in Syria and Lebanon, it is used for flavouring soups and stews, sauces, meat and fish, as well as for dressing salads or vegetables, or diluted as a drink.

The book's own uses include a marinade for grilled quails. One day I will invent a stunning cocktail that features the stuff

Edit: oh yeah, I should finish that link.

Edited January 6, 2003 by Kikujiro (log)

[Jinmyo]

I've used pomegranite molasses. But not for about two years. I'll have to check and see if it's still lurking somewhere and chuck it.

[Anna N]

Steve, Cushing told people doing a call-in that mirin (sweet cooking wine) is rice vinegar (su).

Christine does make a fair number of such boo-boos but she's live and trying to cook and answer questions simultaneously while listening to her floor manager counting down the seconds to an ad break - I just admire anyone who can multitask in front of a live audience like that.

She certainly attracts some interesting guest chefs, including, I believe, Eric Ripert.

She's also a linguist turned chef - interesting career development!

[Jinmyo]

Anna, her current call-in live program is certainly an improvement over her previous series.

[Steve Klc]

So the true spirit of Sara Moulton lives on!

[cherrypi]

Try this excellent recipe for muhammara (hot & sweet red pepper dip with walnuts and pomegranates), from Paula Wolfert's Cooking of the Eastern Mediterranean :

http://www.paula-wolfert.com/recipes/mouhamara.html

(It's spelled muhammara in the book, but mouhamara on Wolfert's website...)

Wolfert recommends serving this dish with meat or fish kebobs, crisp pita triangles, or lavash.

[Suzanne F]

Add some pomegranate molasses to the ground lamb when you make kofta. Sprinkle the salt on poached fish. Chuck the vinegar.