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Deep Run Roots by Vivian Howard


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8 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

Welcome to the club :D!

Ah yes.  Another reason I like my Kindle version. 

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Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

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Today, I set out to make the Jalapeño Peach Chicken, essentially either chicken wings or drumsticks roasted with a jalapeño peach glaze.  I was delighted that the recipe made enough glaze for several jars but I was very peeved by my peaches as at least half of them had gone brown in the middle.  I know late season peaches are a crap shoot but I figured a recipe for a glaze like this could tolerate fruit that lacked perfect texture. I just didn't expect so many totally crappy peaches - yuck!  

Luckily, I had extra peaches and salvaged enough for the recipe. It came out OK but would probably be better with perfect fruit.  

Here's the peaches, jalapeños, onion and ginger ready to go:

IMG_3836.jpg

 

And a few wings, cooked in the Cuisi steam oven.  I put them on broil just a bit too long at the end :$.  They were OK - moist, well-cooked chicken with a sweet-spicy glaze.  

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I'd probably prefer regular, crispy-skin CSO thighs served with some grilled or broiled peaches that had been brushed with the glaze.

 

I also made a deconstructed version of the Pecan, Pepper Jelly and Stinky Cheese Panini that appears in the pecan chapter.

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The recipe calls for spreading the bread with the glaze,  a layer of cheese and some chopped Salt & Butter Roasted Pecans and cooking it like a grilled cheese sandwich.  The triple-crème Brie I used was so melty that I figured it would ooze out all over the place if I tried to make a grilled sandwich so I just topped it with some of the jalapeño peach glaze and nibbled the salted, roasted pecans separately.

The spicy-sweet-tart glaze is a perfect partner for the rich cheese.

 

 

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@gfweb

 

""   except those involving okra ""

 

indeed.  we can put Shelby in charge of that chapter.

 

Im just very glad   VH did not include a chapter on  Green Bell's 

 

I would not have been able to open the book in that case.

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4 minutes ago, gfweb said:

I'm really impressed with this book. Good looking recipes (except those involving okra) that are novel and very well explained. Howard seems like a good and thoughtful human too.

Although not every recipe appeals to me I must agree with you that this book is not just tweaking recipes that we have all seen before but offers some unique and interesting dishes. I find Howard much easier to take "written" than "oral".  

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

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Sweet Potato Mostarda

 

Now that's different. If the stores were open today I might just be out there gathering ingredients. 

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

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3 minutes ago, Anna N said:

Sweet Potato Mostarda

 

Now that's different. If the stores were open today I might just be out there gathering ingredients. 

I thought that sounded good as well.  Last year, I made some pickled winter squash and was rather ambivalent on them.  I'd certainly give these a try to see if I like them better.

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The watermelon chapter.....part 1

BLUF - that Pork with Red Curry-Braised Watermelon is a keeper!

 

Here's my little 5 pounder watermelon, purchased in O.o October O.o because of my desire to try the recipe for Pork and Red Curry-Braised Watermelon.  I wanted to try it since the Watermelon episode aired a few weeks ago but haven't seen a watermelon in the stores or farmers markets in ages and figured I'd have to wait until next year.  Then I picked up this puppy at Trader Joe's last week and figured I'd have a look-see before committing to the recipe.  

As you can see, the skin is quite thin, so I wasn't sure if pickled watermelon rind will happen or not. 

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I remembered that in the TV episode, there was mention of watermelon preserves made with rind chunks the size of a biscuit, to be served on a biscuit with a slice of country ham.  

So I went ahead and cut the thickest parts of the thin rind into slabs and I'll try making a mini batch of the pickle.  The melon flesh is certainly not as flavorful as a summer melon but the texture is good, juicy and crisp with a sweet watermelon flavor.  Not mealy at all.  

IMG_3845.jpg

 

Here's the watermelon rind ready for an overnight in the fridge in a salt brine.  At least I should be able to see if I like the flavor balance in Vivian's pickle recipe.

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Given the strong flavors (vinegar, honey, red curry paste, fish sauce) in the pork dish, I don't think a slightly toned-down watermelon is going to detract from anything so I'll go ahead with that as well. 

The cookbook calls for pork shoulder or blade steaks while the recipe from the TV episode used country-style pork ribs.  All the pork shoulder steaks at the stores I visited were cut very thin so I went with these country-style ribs, which are rather bigger than I usually see but I believe they will be good for a braise..

The top 2 here are boneless and ~ 12 oz each.  The bottom one, with the bone, is 16 oz.  I decided to use the one with the bone in a half-scaled recipe and freeze the other two for later.

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I browned the meat in a cast-iron skillet and put the whole thing into the Cuisi steam oven instead of cranking up the big oven.

Here we are out of the oven:

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And on the plate, atop some IP-cooked brown rice for a late lunch:

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Very nice balance of flavors - spicy, sweet and tart.  Yum!

Vivian said everyone would think the watermelon was a tomato.  To me, it's sweeter and has a different texture than tomato but I would never guess watermelon!

Put this one on your list to try when you find a good melon.

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@blue_dolphin  

 

a lot of Kudos your way.

 

the pork Tranche you selected  has the ' 7 bone " in it  i.e. the scapula  

 

in your pic   the hunk of meat above the bone , and to the L of the ' 7 ' is the Balde

 

in beef   its about as tatty as beef gets, once you deal with that inner membrane.

 

that being said 

 

 

nice   very nice.

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How can you not love a book (and a chef) who thinks rutabaga is worthy of a whole chapter and a recipe like this?  

 

Duck, Date, and Rutabaga Potpie with a Duck-Fat Biscuit Crust

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Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

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20 minutes ago, Anna N said:

 

How can you not love a book (and a chef) who thinks rutabaga is worthy of a whole chapter and a recipe like this?

 

 

Hmmmm! I very well may buy this one!

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~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

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27 minutes ago, DiggingDogFarm said:

 

Hmmmm! I very well may buy this one!

 I know that lots of people turn their noses up at rutabaga but it's always been one of my favourite vegetables.   It is deserving of the respect she gives it.  

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Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

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Rutabaga = swede correct?

 

I love cheesy swede casserole with haggis. Boiled mashed swede layered with cheese, lots of salt and pepper. Some butter if I am feeling extra naughty. Delicious.

Edited by Tere (log)
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2 minutes ago, Tere said:

Rutabaga = swede correct?

 

I love cheesy swede casserole with haggis. Boiled mashed swede layered with cheese, lots of salt and pepper. Some butter if I am feeling extra naughty. Delicious.

 

Yes, I knew it as swede before I came to this country.

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

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I can't put this cookbook down.  This book is like coming home to a cozy house.  I've found myself nodding several times in agreement with her words.  I think she's an excellent writer and boy ...not that I'm anywhere near the great chef she is....but her recipes are so something I would make/have made --the tomato section is awesome.

 

She talks about canning tomatoes.  As many of you know, I can the hell out of them every summer and enjoy them so much in the winter.  She says that you can use whatever size jar you like, but she prefers wide mouth because the regular size are only good for storing toothbrushes.    Amen, sister.  I only use the regular size when I'm completely out of the wide.

 

And then she peels her tomatoes (not on everything like I do, but still).  My mom always peeled tomatoes by using the back of a knife and running it lightly, but firmly from the stem of the tomato to the bottom.  It loosens the skin making it easier to peel.

 

I had never heard of Vivian until this book.  I'm so so glad the cookbook fairy knew me well enough to give this to me.  It's an awesome book.

 

And I'm only a little over half-way through it.....

 

edited to also say I have turned down so many pages of recipes to try, it looks like I've turned down every page lol.

Edited by Shelby (log)
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Shelby, you will love her tv show on PBS and pretty well all the episodes are on line.  Start at the beginning!

mine's coming Thursday, hope I am back from the airport when the Purolator truck comes...it's Brian behind the wheel....yes I know his name.  I see him on a regular basis, ha, ha:P

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I tried Roasted Grapes, Brussels Sprouts and Sausage (pg 541).  I didn't have muscadines (who does?) so I subbed red grapes. Everything else was the same ...425 x 25' in the CSB.  Muscadines may be key to this. It was tasty, but hard to eat and not as bound together as her photos appear. Perhaps smaller pieces of everything would help.  Further studies pending.

 

The roasted grapes with salt and black pepper and dijon were quite something by themselves.  I could see them paired with lamb.

 

 

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