rainbowbrown's Profile
What's For Dinner - Part 92 [old]
Last night I made Edna Lewis' "Sausage baked in pastry with vegetables" (In Pursuit of Flavor, Page 130) and it was great. I used bulk sausage I got from the farmer's market, layered with julienned white potatoes, onions, mushrooms, garlic and parsley. A very hearty meal.
What's For Dinner? Part 90 [old]
Christmas limas are a variety of lima beans that are speckled red. They're really good - I got them from Rancho Gordo.
I used rosemary, thyme and oregano from my garden in the braising liquid, which was chicken stock, water and red wine. I also included a chopped tomato and towards the end white potatoes and green beans. It was a great dinner. This year is my first ever eating lamb and I'm having a lot of fun with it. Hopefully next I'll do roast leg.
What's For Dinner? Part 90 [old]
Tonight it's braised lamb shanks and christmas lima beans. Can't wait.
Silly cake question
I am in a similar boat as you, Birmingham. I was never really a cake person, but in the last few years I have started noticing that I like plain, pale cakes. I really like sponge cakes, where the whites of the eggs are beaten separately and then folded into the batter. It makes a very light spongy cake. There is a recipe on Chow that I've been wanting to try - it's a chiffon cake and it looks pretty good.
http://www.chow.com/recipes/28648-basic-chiffon-cake
I would only put whipped cream or fruit on it. No frosting here, either.
Good luck.
What's for dinner? Part 89 [OLD]
Yesterday I was at my grocer's meat counter buying breakfast sausages when I saw a locally raised lamb shoulder in the case labeled as 99 cents. I asked the guy if it really was 99 cents a pound, he looked at me and said no. I figured it was a mistake and was a little sad. He took the tag and looked at it, tells me that the 3 fell off - should be 3.99 a pound, but he'll go ahead and honor the 99 cents a pound. So I get all excited and say "I'll take it!" I went home with a 2.24 pound lamb shoulder roast for $2.22! The thing was raised just on the other side of town and was butchered in house. I'm stoked.
So tonight it's lamb shoulder roast with rosemary, garlic and anchovies. With roasted potatoes and yellow eyed beans. Can't wait.
Allergy to soy, eggs, gluten and shellfish! HELP!
I'll suggest beans and rice, either mexican or southern style. Pinto beans and mexican rice made with tomatoes, onions and cumino, served with corn tortillas and salsa. Maybe even pollo verde along side. Or black eyed peas with rice and corn bread and collards. Of course all of those things would be better with lard and smoked pork hocks respectively, but they'll be perfectly good without the pig's help too. You could put a few chicken legs in with black eyes peas and let them braise.
It's real nice that your thinking about her restrictions. Poor gal, allergic to all that. I thank heavens every day for my fully functioning digestive system.
June 2011 Cookbook of the Month WILL BE Seductions of Rice!
Very good. My library has it. I am thrilled, as a first timer, to take part in COTM.
Roast Chicken Technique
I recently watched the episode of The French Chef with Julia Child called To Roast a Chicken and in it she uses a rotisserie. I was sort of surprised. It hadn't really occurred to me before to do it up that way, but now I am interested. I can't see myself buying an appliance for it, though. Maybe I'll try and convince a friend to get one. :)
I have the munchies, but...
Thank you Miri, I think it's pretty cool, too.
And I can understand the short "fasts" of specific foods to see how they affect a person. It was the only way my co-worker found out exactly what made her stomach so sensitive. It does seem like torture, and I definitely don't want to do it, but it won't last forever and I think it's a fine idea.
Also, you can't just snack on avocados all day long?? Boy, I could. But I'm sort a fiend for the things.
Are there things you eat/avoid every day to be healthy?
Oh boy, if I could eat blueberries every day I sure would. My favorite food ever. Pretty much. But I just don't like the off-season ones that are 5.99 for a tiny package. I sure can't wait until summertime produce - THEN my daily foods will be blueberries and strawberries. Everyday. All summer long.
I have the munchies, but...
GHG is right, that's why I refer it (and tomato, pepper, squash...) as a fruit. I didn't suppose that it was that strange. I am a botanist, though, so maybe I'm just trying to be cute and don't realize it. :) I did find a source - kind of a puff source (under "fun facts"), but still.
http://www.avocado.org/fun-avocado-facts/
I have the munchies, but...
The avocado is a fruit, not a veggie. Plus it isn't hard on the digestion to eat it raw - it is typically eaten that way.
How much milk do you buy/use? (and how do you use it all up?)
I second the ricotta suggestion. I buy a half gallon of milk at a time and I usually use it up just before the expiration date. If I notice that it's coming soon, I drink a glass of Ovaltine (my favorite chocolate milk) and put the rest in a pan for ricotta. The ratio is 1 cup of buttermilk to 4 cups of milk, but that can be cut down. Keep portioned amounts of buttermilk in the freezer for this occasion and you'll never have milk go bad again. That is if your willing to put together a last minute lasagna or pizza or something to use that ricotta.
I have the munchies, but...
This might sound like a boring suggestion, but an avocado with a little salt on top makes a really satisfying cure for the munchies. The reason, I think, is that it's fatty. I don't know if you like them or not, but take a spoon to one and try it out.
Also, when I worked on a farm for a month where the owners were vegans, and had a diet much like the one you described, I ate their homemade bread constantly. I was always craving it. Peter Reinhart has a book called Whole Grain Breads, which has the best recipes I've ever tried for bread made with 100% whole grains. Trust me, a big fat slice of bread with fruit or even nothing on it is really satisfying.
Your lucky he doesn't have you off gluten too. And how about yogurt? It's dairy, but it's fermented.
What's for Dinner? Part 88 [OLD]
Friday I came down with a cold and I made chicken stock. For dinner I had chicken and rice soup + an artichoke.
Saturday, more chicken soup + an artichoke.
Sunday I used the last of the chicken stock in Heidi Swanson's "A Good Soup for the Sick," with the additions of hulled barley, carrots and an anchovy + an artichoke.
(I tend to crave artichokes when I'm sick)
http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/001397.html
And tonight, to finish off and say goodbye to my stock and my cold, I'll have Sunday's leftovers with a poached egg on top (I'm all out of artichokes). And tomorrow I'll wake up right as rain. I'd better, anyway.
What's for Dinner? Part 87 [OLD]
I woke up sick this morning. :( So, I'll make a big pot of chicken stock and turn a little bit of it into chicken noodle soup. Carrots, garlic, leeks, peas and maybe spinach.
What were your last three cookbook purchases...Part 2 [old]
I recently got Canning for a New Generation and I really like it. The recipes are simple, made for small batches and are not heavily reliant on sugar or pectin. You'll enjoy it, I'm sure.
What are you baking these days? May 2011 [old]
I recently got my sourdough starter back into action after being in the refrigerator for about a year. This last weekend I baked a couple of loaves of sourdough sweet bread. I'm also a member of the banana bread club. I don't really like the stuff, but my partner does, so he gets it now and again. I use Nancy Silverton's recipe from Pastries from the La Brea Bakery.
Need an awesome vegetarian chili recipe
I make a pot of meat-less chili every month or so. I started making it when I was a vegetarian and even now that I am no longer one I still make the same veg. chili because my meat-eating man and I still love it. I, personally, don't subscribe to using a meat substitute such as tofu products or grains, I'd prefer to just emphasize the beans.
1. Soak dried beans overnight. I use pinto, black, navy and kidney beans and I mix them all together.
2. Simmer soaked beans in enough water to cover by a couple of inches until tender - one hour or so. By the time the beans are ready the water will have hopefully cooked down to be just about level with the beans.
3. Drain the beans and reserve the thick, dark cooking water.
4. Saute, at med-high heat, chopped onions, garlic and lots of peppers in a little oil, add salt. (I actually use lard or bacon fat, but when I was vegetarian I used oil with great success) As for the peppers - I use a mixture of anaheims, pasillas, jalapenos, serranos and sometimes bell peppers - whatever I can get. I'll use 6 or 7 peppers per batch. I like to broil and peel half of them while leaving the other half fresh. They all get chopped.
5. Once the saute vegetables are softened (5 minutes) add chile powder, cumin, black pepper, and 1 Tbs tomato paste. Cook for a few more minutes.
6. Turn the heat down to medium and add 28 oz of tinned tomatoes, liquid and all. Muir Glen has fire roasted tomatoes that I like to use for chili. Break up tomatoes with your mixing spoon if they are whole. Stir and cook like this for 5 - 10 minutes.
7. Add cooked beans and cook for a few minutes. Then add the bean cooking liquid to the pot and stir, cooking for another 30 minutes to an hour on low heat. Towards the end add a few dashes of worcestershire sauce. Add more salt and spices as needed.
I like to make a big pot of this in a 6 qt. dutch oven and freeze half of it. For a batch that size I'll end up using a total of about 4 cups of dried beans. Also having just noticed that you mentioned a crockpot, I'm confident that you can just throw everything into it after step 3 and it will be great too.
I'm sure whatever method you choose it'll be delicious. Good luck.
Books about Meat
I purchased River Cottage Meat and Peterson's Meat both last weekend and while I have looked through and been pleased with Peterson's book, I have mostly been ignoring it because I've been far too caught up in the River Cottage book. I really love this book. It covers exactly what I wanted a meat book to cover. The fact that it goes into so much detail about the cuts of meat and about game and offal is wonderful. Also I really like the chapters on preserving and meat thrift. What is covered in this book are the sorts of things that I was hoping to learn about. And the recipes all look great. I can't wait to try the steak and kidney pie and homemade salt-pork. I have the opportunity right now to buy a half a lamb from a local farmer and the book is really making lean towards doing it.
Thanks again for the advice. There are still more books mentioned here that I'm sure I'll get to.
Books about Meat
Wonderful. Thanks everyone, I have decided on the River Cottage Meat book for now, the Peterson book next and from then on I'm sure I'll get more and more (and more) as I go.
Books about Meat
I have been slowly learning how to cook meat over the past year or so and am looking for suggestions as to which book(s) I should get on the subject. So far I have been using the Good Cook's series meat books, The Art of French Cooking and the Zuni Cafe cookbook. I've also got Charcuterie. I think I'd like to buy The River Cottage Meat Book, but there are so many books called "Meat" that I'd like to get some opinions on the really good ones.
Duck Giblet Question
Thank you kindly. I do think that the duck was missing its giblets and I am quite glad that I did not just throw the packet contents into my multi-bird, two pot batch of stock.
Duck Giblet Question
A friend of mine purchased a frozen duck at the Cash n Carry and allowed me to take the giblets. When I opened up the bird, all I found was a plastic packet of mush - almost liquid and light brown. I'm really not sure what it is. Is it normal for the giblets to be broken down like that or could it be fat or something? Any ideas? The packaging said "with giblets," but I didn't find any solid organs like I have in other birds. Thanks!
Can Tamales Be Steamed in the Pressure Cooker?
A couple of people mentioned steaming their tamales in a stockpot with a colander in the bottom. I am curious about the water levels throughout the long cooking time. Is the level likely to fall? If so there would be no way to add more water right?
Homemade malted milk powder. Eh?
I'd like to make malted milk powder at home. Is this entirely impossible? I don't know. What I do know is that it is basically barley malt powder, wheat flour and milk powder. All of these things are easy for me to find, but they apparently don't just all mix together to make malted milk powder. According to:
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-malted-milk-powder.htm
They then get evaporated.
Anyhow, because I'm completely obsessive I feel the need to make the stuff, but I can't find a resource as to how it's done. Anyone have any insight on the matter?
Many thanks!
Simple Syrup problem underway as we speak
Simple syrup is merely water and sugar, proportions depend on what your using it for. Simple syrup for bottling and use in cocktails and such is generally 1:1, but a sugar solution can be so many other proportions.
As far as your crystalization, the trick is to not stir it once it begins to boil. If you do, it will probably crystalize. Also, if you don't want it to thicken at all, don't even cook it past boiling.
As far as cooling, patience is a virtue. All you can do it wait, my friend, all you can do is wait.
The beautiful thing about simple syrup is that if you mess up it isn't much wasted if you start over. Good luck!
Tastespotting... oh noes!
Bummer city. I'm glad I've got others to mourn with, though.
humboldt fog funk????
Here Here on the less costly thing. At my local market Truffle Tremor is $19 a pound and for a few weeks it was on sale for $9 a pound. I flipped. I probably bought about a pound of it, and haven't had any since...
humboldt fog funk????
Forgive me if you knew this, but keep in mind Humboldt Fog and Truffle Tremor are aged cheese, unlike chevre which is fresh. So they are much stronger. I don't know if it is common to age goat cheese, but if you've been eating fresh cheese, then yeah, it's quite different. Cypress Grove also makes fresh chevre. I think Humboldt Fog and Truffle Tremor are wonderful, they're pretty unlike anything else. And I think the big deal about Cypress Grove is that they are fairly unique, not that they make the best chevre you will ever have. Then again I live in Humboldt County so I've only had untraveled Cypress Grove products and perhaps something bad happened in transit...don't know. Perhaps you should try their chevre and see what you think.
