eG Foodblog Tag Team: slkinsey and Marlene - A tale of two kitchens..

[bergerka]

I would just like to state that there's nothing quite like coming home from a loooong audition trip to Wilmington, DE during which we five singers, mapquest printouts in hand, got lost not once, not twice, but THREE times (I HATE WILMINGTON!!!! ), walking in the door, taking a DEEP breath...and realizing that Sam has cooked. *smile* *wub*

Of course, THEN I took a look at the kitchen. I think he used every dish in the house.

...but that's ok. It's worth it for the smell alone.

More after dinner.

K

[Marlene]

I'll just muddle along here since I'm not Italian, and I don't have the Italian names for things.

First a cocktail:

Don started with a single malt scotch as his his habit on Friday nights. I decided to branch out and try a Manhattan. My mother has this drink every time she comes over and I've never tried it. To be honest, I'm not really sure what she sees in them.

Moving right along, I decided to try something else. This is a Bob Dandy, Dubonnet and Brandy basically. It was somewhat better than the Manhattan.

Along with our cocktails we had a little proscuitto and melon and we just had to try the brie that I picked up today.

Moving on to the main course, I had decided on meatballs two ways and angel hair pasta. One set of meatballs to be deep fried and one to be simmered in wine.

Meatballs for the wine

Meatballs for deep frying

Interestingly enough these meatballs are made with a combination of ground beef, ground pork and coarsely chopped proscuitto.

Frying the meatballs:

Simmering in wine:

This is as close as I get to fresh made pasta folks. I don't make it myself, but I do buy it from the Italian bakery around the corner who does make it fresh everyday.

Finished meatballs in wine:

Finished meatballs fried:

Fresh grated parmesan

Finished dish. Angel hair pasta tossed in melted butter, garlic and parsley topped with the parmesan.

Not that we needed dessert, but we finished with a Zabaglione Gelato with chocolate biscotti.

By the time I'm finished this week, I'm gonna need a new size in clothing! But oh my, it is so worth it!

[Marlene]

Thanks Malene. I will get myself there right after Thanksgiving when I am home from the cottage.

←

It's a great place, but CaliPoutine is right. It ain't cheap

All you had to do is ask.....

You can either look for it in a Middle Eastern store or you can make it. Here are two different recipes from Paula Wolfert's "Couscous and other Good Food from Morocco":

.

←

This is Oakville. I have to look really hard for Asian.

[Marlene]

I would just like to state that there's nothing quite like coming home from a loooong audition trip to Wilmington, DE during which we five singers, mapquest printouts in hand, got lost not once, not twice, but THREE times (I HATE WILMINGTON!!!! ), walking in the door, taking a DEEP breath...and realizing that Sam has cooked. *smile* *wub*

Of course, THEN I took a look at the kitchen.  I think he used every dish in the house.

...but that's ok. It's worth it for the smell alone.

More after dinner.

K

←

Sam and I would need two whole kitchen sets between us if we cooked together. My kitchen was in no better shape.

[slkinsey]

Here is the rest of dinner. First, of course, I had to have a drink.

Tonight it was a Ti Punch. White rhum agricole, a touch of demerara syrup and a lime twist stirred with crushed ice. This is one of Ed Hamilton's rhum agricoles. Excellent!

Here is the pasta, sauced with the tomato that was used to simmer the polpette.

Big plate of polpette.

A portion of polpette on the plate.

[Abra]

Ok, that's my food porn fix for the night!

I just want to add that ras el hanout, at its best, is a wonderful thing. I predict that at least a dozen of you reading this thread will try it and keep some in your cupboards for the rest of your lives. If you've never used it, you owe some to yourself.

[Swisskaese]

All you had to do is ask.....

You can either look for it in a Middle Eastern store or you can make it. Here are two different recipes from Paula Wolfert's "Couscous and other Good Food from Morocco":.

←

This is Oakville. I have to look really hard for Asian.

←

I didn't mean to start a crisis. I am going to put the recipe in RecipeGullet, explain what I do with it in the Middle East & Africa forum and hope Paula Wolfert, ChefZadi and others will also add their two cents.

If you can't find it, you can't find it. It is not the end of the world.

When and if I get to do a Foodblog, I will show you what I do with it and other things I have learned to make since I moved to Israel.

Edited June 4, 2005 by Swisskaese (log)

[johnnyd]

Stunning work, folks!

Back a few pages I caught a glimpse of your beautiful knife, Sam. "SMITH", it said. I googled that and I seem to get a bunch of woodsmen's product. What is the story behind that nice blade?

[Marlene]

I didn't mean to start a crisis. I am going to put the recipe in RecipeGullet,  explain what I do with it in the Middle East & Africa forum and hope ChefZadi and others will also add there two cents.

If you can't find it, you can't find it. It is not the end of the world.

When and if I get to do a Foodblog, I will show you what I do with it and other things I have learned to make since I moved to Israel.

←

No crisis. It's just that Oakville is very, um, suburban.

[Marlene]

Morning folks. The usual coffee, and then madly rushing around to get the house ready for the party this afternoon. In case I haven't mentioned it, this shindig is being catered, so I don't actually have to cook (lucky me!). We're trying a different caterer this time than we used for our Christmas party, so I'm hoping it works well.

Don's gone for a run to work off some of this past week's eating, but I can't say I had the energy!

I'll be back later with breakfast pics.

[Safran]

Oh! Wow!!! "Simple" says Sam...Delightful, I'd say!!!

Marlene, I need a new dress size just READING this! Congrats on the new Whole Foods, btw. Yes, the prices are up there but it's so nice to have a choice. You mentionned paper bags; for Christmas I received a gorgeous Whole Foods canvas bag - a BIG one like I'd never seen before, and sturdy like I can't believe.

[Smithy]

When and if I get to do a Foodblog, I will show you what I do with it and other things I have learned to make since I moved to Israel.

←

I would love to see your foodblog, Michelle! If there's a voting system involved in this, count my vote for you. Soba?

Re shopping bags: we get the choice between paper and plastic, and I always go with paper. Then I forget the next week that I have the paper bags, and I get more instead of re-using them. I used to do the same thing with canvas bags - forget to bring them along, forget they were in the car, whatever. Now I just bring spare paper bags to our Whole Foods Co-op (not part of the chain) or Farmers' Market for reuse there. We have a pretty good community reuse system going.

[JosephB]

Sam, very impressive -- textbook + + .

[ellencho]

Firstly, these photos are phenomenal. I think it's important to live life to the fullest, including eating and drinking well when possible. Also, gotta love the meatball theme last night, you've completely inspired me for Sunday' night's dinner. I'm thinking about stealing slkinsey's idea, and doing the mozz filled meatballs, which leads me to my question: What type of mozz did you use for your meatballs? Fresh mozz or the dryer supermarket hunks that you find in the dairy section. I have fresh, and I'm abit afraid it'll be too moist and leak and ooze through the meatball as it cooks. What do you think?

Edited June 4, 2005 by ellencho (log)

[Swisskaese]

Marlene and Sam your meatballs look delicious. Unfortunately, I can't have cheese inside my meatballs (Kashrut), but I do love mozzarella in arancini.

Sam your sauce looks very good. What did you make it with?

[Jason Perlow]

Tonight it was a Ti Punch. White rhum agricole, a touch of demerara syrup and a lime twist stirred with crushed ice. This is one of Ed Hamilton's rhum agricoles. Excellent!

I'm glad to see the final product -- Ed really went out of his mind with various government regulatory agencies having to change the bottle size and change the labels to conform to US standards -- you can only use 750ml or 1L bottles (or bigger) for liquor products, a number of those French West Indies rums are 700ml or in other weird sizes. I tried several of these rums about a year ago when he was bringing in samples to show prospective clients, they are outstanding, especially the Rhum Vieux.

Demerara syrup should work fine, but when I was in St. Martin, I bought several bottles of Sirop de Canne, which is what you are supposed to use for Ti Punch. I don't think you can easily get it in the US yet. The Demerara is going to be a bit darker than what you normally use, but it should taste fine.

[docsconz]

Firstly, these photos are phenomenal. I think it's important to live life to the fullest, including eating and drinking well when possible.  Also, gotta love the meatball theme last night, you've completely inspired me for Sunday' night's dinner.  I'm thinking about stealing slkinsey's idea, and doing the mozz filled meatballs, which leads me to my question:  What type of mozz did you use for your meatballs? Fresh mozz or the dryer supermarket hunks that you find in the dairy section.  I have fresh, and I'm abit afraid it'll be too moist and leak and ooze through the meatball as it cooks.  What do you think?

←

It shouldn't make too much of a difference, although the meatballs might be less soggy with the dryer cheese. I don't think there should be much concern about leakage so long as the mozz is completely surrounded.

[slkinsey]

Back a few pages I caught a glimpse of your beautiful knife, Sam. "SMITH", it said.  I googled that and I seem to get a bunch of woodsmen's product.  What is the story behind that nice blade?

I have a number of custom made knives I got about ten years ago. They're made with David Boye's cast dendritic steel. Very good edge retention, very aggressive edge. They have Brazilian ironwood handles. Mine were made by a custom maker in Escondido, California named Russ Smith. I'm not sure he's still making knives.

What type of mozz did you use for your meatballs? Fresh mozz or the dryer supermarket hunks that you find in the dairy section.  I have fresh, and I'm a bit afraid it'll be too moist and leak and ooze through the meatball as it cooks.  What do you think?

I used fresh mozzarella, but "supermarket fresh" fresh mozzarella. This is to say, it wasn't like the fresh mozzarella I buy from the guys out on Arthur Avenue where the texture is almost shaggy and when you tear off a piece it starts bleeding milk. But it was the kind of "fresh mozzarella" you'll find in a good grocery store. Once mozzarella is refrigerated, it tightens up the texture considerably.

Sam your sauce looks very good. What did you make it with?

After I browned off the meatballs, I sautéed onion and celery in the same pan to scrape up the brown bits. Then I added some San Marzano tomatoes, simmered the whole thing for maybe 15 minutes and ran it all through the food mill, discarding the fibrous material left behind. Then I cooked the meatballs in the sauce for maybe 30 or 40 minutes, removed the meatballs and tossed in some parsley. That's the sauce I used for both the pasta and the meatballs. Very traditional technique.

If I was going to change anything, I might have soaked the bread crumbs in a little milk to give the meatballs a softer, springier texture.

I decided to branch out and try a Manhattan.  My mother has this drink every time she comes over and I've never tried it.  To be honest, I'm not really sure what she sees in them.

The first thing that comes to my mind is: "What is she making that Manhattan with? Is that Canadian whiskey I see? You can't make a Manhattan with Canadian whiskey. With Canadian whiskey it should be called an 'Alberta' or maybe a 'Saskatchewan' (if garnished with a saskatoon berry). "

If you want to give the Manhattan a chance, get your hands on some rye whiskey (preferably 100 proof) and make the real thing. 2 ounces rye whiskey, 1 ounce red vermouth, 2 dashes angostura bitters, big lemon twist. You'll have a much better chance of liking it then, I bet.

[SobaAddict70]

When and if I get to do a Foodblog, I will show you what I do with it and other things I have learned to make since I moved to Israel.

←

I would love to see your foodblog, Michelle! If there's a voting system involved in this, count my vote for you. Soba?

←

It's in the works is all I can say.

[Marlene]

I'm Canadian Sam, of course it's Canadian Whiskey. But it is after all Canadian Classic, 12 year. I don't think I can get 100 proof here. They make it for the US, but not for us. Go figure.

[Dave the Cook]

Not to get off-topic here, but I'm with Marlene. Manhattans have such a weird sweetness to them that I can't figure out why anyone would like them. Canadian is half rye, half corn, right? So is rye less sweet than corn?

[emmapeel]

Sam, the polpettes were beautiful, I must try that, but of course, I'm not grinding the meat! (Lazy woman here)...

Marlene, did you perfer one or the other of your polpettes?

Great job both of you, and I'll be either one of your housekeepers if you cook for me every night.

edited to say: Sam, I have a similar pasta and I love it, but it always gets caught in the tines of my fork...any advice?

Edited June 4, 2005 by emmapeel (log)

[rjwong]

Sam & Marlene, what cameras are you using for your wonderful photos?

Also, did you have some Italian music in the background with your Italian dinners?

[slkinsey]

Not to get off-topic here, but I'm with Marlene. Manhattans have such a weird sweetness to them that I can't figure out why anyone would like them. Canadian is half rye, half corn, right? So is rye less sweet than corn?

Good straight rye whiskey is spicy and a little rough around the edges. Nothing at all like the smooth sweetness of a blended whiskey. Canadian (blended) whiskey is often called "rye" -- but it really isn't what we would call "straight rye whiskey" down here in the US.

By law, "straight whiskey" is distilled from at least 51% of one kind of grain to no more than 80% abv, aged for at least two years at no more than 62.5% abv in charred new oak barrels, and bottled at no less than 40% abv. No neutral grain spirits or any other substances may be added. So, for example, "straight bourbon whiskey" is made with at least 51% corn, "straight rye whiskey" is made with at least 51% rye, etc. In practice, the percentage of the base grain is significantly higher than 51%

Canadian whiskey, on the other hand, is a blended product. It contains some aged whiskey blended with neutral grain spirits and other coloring and flavoring agents. This is not to say that there aren't some excellent blended whiskies out there. But it really isn't the same thing at all as a straight whiskey. When you figure in the neutral spirits and flavorings, etc. -- there is nothing particularly "rye like" about Canadian whiskey.

In making a Manhattan there really is no substitute for using a good (preferably high proof) rye whiskey. Wild Turkey rye is fairly ubiquitous, and an excellent product. It's bottled at 101 proof.

Sam, I have a similar pasta and I love it, but it always gets caught in the tines of my fork...any advice?

Part of the charm of bucatini/perciatelli is that it's a little unruly. I wouldn't say that it gets caught in the tines of my fork, though. More that it doesn't want to twirl up and stay on the fork as cooperatively as spaghetti or other smaller-diameter strand pasta.

Sam & Marlene, what cameras are you using for your wonderful photos?

Just a Canon Elph. I'm glad you like the pictures. Being friends with an accomplished photographer with great equipment like Ellen Shapiro, I tend to view the quality of my photographs as marginal at best.

Also, did you have some Italian music in the background with your Italian dinners?

Not me. I never play music during dinner. As a musician, I don't feel it's respectful to either the music or the food.

[emmapeel]

"A Week Of Food In Kuala Lumpur" is linking to "Shopping And Cooking In Amsterdam" and as much as I love Amsterdam and consider it my second home, I'd love to see Kuala Lumpur's blog.