Dinner 2021

[mgaretz]

Chicken rice soup with lots of vegetables: Brussels sprouts, spinach, carrots, corn, peas, onion and celery.

 

 

[liuzhou]

On 5/26/2021 at 9:17 AM, Kim Shook said:

But I made an interesting discovery.  I don’t know if anyone remembers some steaks I made at the beginning of the month that were SO tough.  I figured it was because I accidentally overcooked them.  Which I DID, but that is only part of the reason they were so bad.  I used the same “steaks” from the same place (Tom Leonard’s) for the Beef Stroganoff and they were even tougher and NOT at all over cooked.  We ended up in the store the next day and spoke to the butcher who confessed that these pieces of meat, though clearly marked “filets” and certainly cut and packaged to resemble filet mignon, are actually just “boneless chuck”.

 

Your post came to mind when I read this today.

[Duvel]

Got some nice fresh cod yesterday and was envisioning fish chowder for dinner. Family was feeling like a more caloric alternative, so ...

 

Fish and „chips“ (baked in the oven), with mushy peas. Salt, vinegar and tartare sauce on the side.

 

Edited May 28, 2021 by Duvel (log)

[weinoo]

My first wife was British. Could never understand her love of mushy peas. And for the record, her mother was a terrible cook.

 

Yesterday a friend and I drove up to Great Barrington, MA, where numerous dispensaries are located just over the NY State border. We enjoyed the scenery.

 

By the time I got home after driving through some standard, horrendous rush-hour traffic, I made turkey and provolone sandwiches for dinner.  With carrot and cucumber sticks.  

[TicTac]

Located a new source for gourmet mushrooms, including one of my new favourites - Lions mane.  Forget the unreal health benefits from this fungi, the taste and texture are unreal.  Buttery beyond beliefe.
 

Initially I would slice these but most mushrooms are easily and naturally tear - so I tried that method.

 

Dry sauté just salt and high heat 

 

butter added at the end

 

 

served in crisp gnocchi, fried prosciutto end bits, ricotta salata 

Edited May 28, 2021 by TicTac (log)

[liuzhou]

15 minutes ago, TicTac said:

Located a new source for gourmet mushrooms, including one of my new favourites - Lions mane.

 

Were they dried or fresh?

 

[scamhi]

dinner with a friend last night.

Grilled rib eye and I made a roasted cauliflower laab which was off the charts good. recipe here

wines the St Aubin was great and my Chevillon was corked. Replacement bottle of the Hermitage was awesome.

[Duvel]

3 minutes ago, scamhi said:

roasted cauliflower laab which was off the charts good. recipe here

That sounds really nice - will try soon !

 

Sorry about the wine, though ...

[KennethT]

15 minutes ago, scamhi said:

. Replacement bottle of the Hermitage was awesome.

 

 

 

 

You can't go wrong with La Chapelle with some age!

[Tropicalsenior]

3 hours ago, Duvel said:

Got some nice fresh cod yesterday and was envisioning fish chowder for dinner. Family was feeling like a more caloric alternative, so ...

 

Fish and „chips“ (baked in the oven)

I'm with @weinoo on the mushy peas. But I guess when you grow up with them and somebody sets them in front of you when you're really little you just grow up thinking it's good food. Apparently, nobody fed corn to @liuzhou when he was little.

 

That fish looks absolutely wonderful. I don't know how you got it to look like that in the oven but I sure would like to try it. Would you be willing to share your method and your recipe?

Edited May 28, 2021 by Tropicalsenior
Addition (log)

[liuzhou]

46 minutes ago, Tropicalsenior said:

I'm with @weinoo on the mushy peas. But I guess when you grow up with them and somebody sets them in front of you when you're really little you just grow up thinking it's good food. Apparently, nobody fed corn to @liuzhou when he was little.

 

They tried. They failed.

I wouldn't go looking for mushy peas, but if they turn up I'll eat them. I'll eat almost anything and having lived and travelled in many countries I've eaten a lot of anything.

But I'll no doubt have "He who hated c@rn engraved on my tombstone!" Rest in Peas!

Edited May 28, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[Duvel]

16 minutes ago, Tropicalsenior said:

I'm with @weinoo on the mushy peas. But I guess when you grow up with them and somebody sets them in front of you when you're really little you just grow up thinking it's good food. Apparently, nobody fed corn to @liuzhou when he was little.

 

That fish looks absolutely wonderful. I don't know how you got it to look like that in the oven but I sure would like to try it. Would you be willing to share your method and your recipe?

Truth to be told: this was the first time I made mushy peas. I just thought that if it traditionally is served with fish & ships, I should give it a try. And it was ok. Maybe not something I’d eat on a regular basis, but tasty enough to make it again next time ...

 

And my apologies for the confusion about the fish: the fish was fried, only the potatoes came from the oven. For the fish I used a batter of equal parts flour & potato starch, some baking powder and a beer/sparkling water mixture to thin it down to pourable thickness. Fish was floured, then dipped in the batter and fried in 170 oC oil ...

[liuzhou]

3 hours ago, Duvel said:

with mushy peas.

 

How did you make the mushy peas?

[Tropicalsenior]

28 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

They tried. They failed

Same here with sauerkraut! Personally, corn is not one of my favorites. I can't see that it has any nutritional value served just as corn. Do you feel the same way about things made with cornmeal? Central America and Mexico couldn't survive without their corn tortillas and tamales. I hate them! They are tasteless nasty little things.

[liuzhou]

1 minute ago, Tropicalsenior said:

Do you feel the same way about things made with cornmeal?

 

Yes. I hate corn in all its incarnations. Fortunately round here, potato starch is normally used rather than corn starch for thickening. I can taste the difference and almost throw up if corn starch has been used.

I've never eaten Mexican food largely for this very reason.

[liamsaunt]

Eggplant dumplings alla parmigiana inspired by the ones in Ottolenghi's Flavour that @blue_dolphin posted about a week ago.  Recipe here: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/apr/20/yotam-ottolenghi-dumpling-recipes-aubergine-ricotta-gnocchi-rum-currant-speculaas

 

I did not get everything I needed for the recipe in my latest Instacart shop so had to make some alterations: instead of all eggplant, I used half eggplant and half zucchini/summer squash (shredded and sautéed to cut down on their water instead of roasted like the eggplant was).  I also baked the dumplings instead of pan frying them.  Finally, there was no basil at the store this week and I forgot the olive garnish, so those got omitted.  Despite all that, they were very tasty and a nice vegetarian alternative to meatballs.  Served with broiled green garlic toast and an arugula lemon salad to use up the last of the greens from this week's CSA box.

 

[Duvel]

15 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

 

How did you make the mushy peas?

I used frozen peas, boiled in salted water for 4-5 min, drained, added butter, a bit of heavy cream, salt & pepper and used a potato masher to get to a mushy consistency ...

[liuzhou]

Just now, Duvel said:

I used frozen peas, boiled in salted water for 4-5 min, drained, added butter, a bit of heavy cream, salt & pepper and used a potato masher to get to a mushy consistency ...

 

Ah. Traditional mushy peas as served in English fish and chip places use 'marrowfat peas'. I guessed they are not generally available in Gemany, so I wondered. Never seen cream in mushy peas, either.

But hey, German mushy peas! I'd give them a try!

[David Ross]

Over in the Daily Sweets Thread I posted a photo of a Walnut Tart I made.  Someone reminded me that walnuts also make a delicious pesto.  In fact, my favorite pizza I made last year was a Walnut Pesto Pizza with Fresh Mozzarella.

https://bit.ly/3vuR6yc

 

[mgaretz]

Pizza with mozzarella, mushrooms, red bell peppers and chicken Italian sausage.

 

 

[weinoo]

2 hours ago, Tropicalsenior said:

 I can't see that it has any nutritional value served just as corn. 

 

...corn tortillas and tamales. I hate them! They are tasteless nasty little things.

Now that's just silly. 

 

I go to a tortilleria where the tortillas are made fresh with nixtamal; not only do they taste great, but the place smells wonderful.  And we have a little tamale place where the owner makes 5 or 6 varieties of tamales - fabulous.

And...

Quote

The fiber in corn helps you stay full for longer between meals. It also feeds healthy bacteria in your digestive tract, which may help protect against colon cancer.

Popcorn may also help prevent diverticulitis, a condition that causes pouches in the walls of your colon. In a large study, men who ate more popcorn had a lower risk of getting diverticular disease.

Corn is rich in vitamin C, an antioxidant that helps protect your cells from damage and wards off diseases like cancer and heart disease. Yellow corn is a good source of the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin, which are good for eye health and help prevent the lens damage that leads to cataracts. Corn also has smaller amounts of vitamins B, E, and K, along with minerals like magnesium and potassium.

When it comes to nutrients, color matters. Plant pigments are where you'll find natural chemicals called phytonutrients, which carry the antioxidants. That's why white or yellow corn has fewer antioxidants than blue or purple corn. (These darker-colored types of corn come in chips or taco shells.)

 

 

 

[TicTac]

3 hours ago, liuzhou said:

 

Were they dried or fresh?

 

Fresh.

[Tropicalsenior]

33 minutes ago, weinoo said:

not only do they taste great,

I've had Mexican tamales that I didn't hate but the ones in Costa Rica leave a lot to be desired. All tasteless Masa with meat about the size that you would get in a can of pork and beans or Campbell's chicken soup. The rest is just rice and raisins. It doesn't bother me not to like corn tortillas or tamales because when you go to Mexico there are so many other wonderful things to eat.

Even at my age, my digestive system seems to work just great without all that corn. My mama always said if it's not broke, don't fix it!

Edited May 28, 2021 by Tropicalsenior (log)

[Tropicalsenior]

3 hours ago, Duvel said:

the fish was fried

Thank you, I should have known. There is no way to get fish that looks like that without frying it. I'm always hoping because I don't like to deep fry. One, because I can't get good oil down here to fry with and two, I don't like cleaning up all the splatter. The only air fryers that they sell down here are little bitty things and not worth the money.

[Anna N]

4 hours ago, liuzhou said:

 

Ah. Traditional mushy peas as served in English fish and chip places use 'marrowfat peas'. I guessed they are not generally available in Gemany, so I wondered. Never seen cream in mushy peas, either.

But hey, German mushy peas! I'd give them a try!

Yes, I did a double take on the frozen peas! But I suspect they were better than mushy peas.