LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 7, 2018 7:33:43 GMT -5
I finally got a physical copy of the book and I only read a little at lunch today and I already want to try two or three recipes. DAMN YOU SNAPE There are those I like more than others, but I've yet to be disappointed with anything.
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Crash Test Dumbass
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Post by Crash Test Dumbass on Feb 14, 2018 12:45:00 GMT -5
I finally got a physical copy of the book and I only read a little at lunch today and I already want to try two or three recipes. DAMN YOU SNAPE There are those I like more than others, but I've yet to be disappointed with anything. I'm probably going to have to actually break down and buy this book. I'm not even cooking from it yet (I've been reading it at lunch at work) and there's so much I want to try. This is all your fault.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 14, 2018 13:55:27 GMT -5
There are those I like more than others, but I've yet to be disappointed with anything. I'm probably going to have to actually break down and buy this book. I'm not even cooking from it yet (I've been reading it at lunch at work) and there's so much I want to try. This is all your fault. Happy to oblige! Man, just think if I was up to date on my write-ups. I'm like 7-8 behind at this point, all good-to-excellent! Seriously you won't be disappointed cooking from this book.
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Post by Liz n Dick on Feb 15, 2018 10:40:20 GMT -5
Okay, I have a long love/ambivalence relationship with Smitten Kitchen. I've been a dedicated reader of her blog for many, many years because I love Deb's voice and photography. But I very rarely actually cook any of her recipes, mostly because we have tastes that are juuuuuust divergent enough that more often than not I respond to new posts with, "I'm sure other people would love that, but it's not blowing my skirt up." But also because there haven't been many times in my life when I've tried a whole new recipe for a weeknight dinner and had it fail so colossally that I've had to throw everything out at the dinner zero hour, and the majority of the times that's happened to me it's been working from a Smitten recipe. I resisted the last SK cookbook, but have heard enough rapturous praise about this one, from this forum and from IRL friends, to take a gander. Hugs brought it home from the library last week and I was really impressed by the breakfast and salad chapters. One night a week the picky eater of stately Dick n Hisses Manor works the late shift, so Boomer and I get to eat egg- and veggie-heavy meals. And SK Every Day is rife with very delicious-looking eggy breakfasty stuff and veggie-y salady stuff. So I bought a copy and spent the last week looking forward to Wednesday night, when I'd be making us a dinner of eggs baked in a creamy, cheesy polenta. Nope. The polenta started fine, but veered into "soupy" as soon as I added the corn*. An addition of cheese and sour cream did nothing to improve its texture. The flavor profile was lovely, but by the time the assembly was done I was sliding a dish of eggs nestled into a bog of corn quicksand into the oven. The recipe offered no guidelines on how long it should take to bake your eggs in a bed of creamy, cheesy polenta, but apparently when you're baking eggs in a puddle of swamp goo there is no correct cooking time. After 20 minutes the edges of the eggs were rock hard, while the yolks were still nimbed with a thick layer of uncooked egg white. The "polenta" at this point had become a stomach-turning texture of watery corn milk with swollen, waterlogged flecks of cornmeal floating in it. I'd started cooking a bit late, at 7, and didn't get to sit down to dinner until 8:30 because we had to go out to get Chinese after burying the polenta monstrosity in the backyard. NOT a good showing. Powerthirteen told me on Instagram that he's made this a few times with great success, so I'm definitely going to try it again. The concept is too good to reject out of hand. But it was not a good scene for me last night. *I used corn I'd frozen last summer, so I don't know if that was problematically liquidy. Deb's recipe notes specifically suggest using NJ's summer corn, so dammit, I was trying! She also specifically suggests using high-end Anson Mills polenta in this, and I had some in the freezer but didn't use it. Because Anson Mills says the cook time for their polenta is about 40 minutes, but this recipe says 15. I was conflicted about the instructions here, is what I'm saying.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 15, 2018 12:21:18 GMT -5
People really seem to gravitate toward that polenta recipe. Which I agree sounds amazing. I haven't made it yet, because Baby Snape doesn't eat polenta, so an all-in-one polenta bake is just not the right fit for us.
BUT, so happens Baby Snape will be with her grandparents tomorrow night. Hmmm...
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Post by Powerthirteen on Feb 15, 2018 12:43:08 GMT -5
Liz n Dick We used bog-standard polenta from the bulk bins and store-brand frozen corn; if I had to I'd guess the fancy polenta's what buggered it for you, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Post by LazBro on Feb 17, 2018 15:14:07 GMT -5
#7 - Brussels and Three Cheese Pasta Bake
Before high-tech, tool-assisted mac-n-cheese gets too cozy with its time in the sun, I sensed a window of opportunity to throw my weight around with a classic baked mac. Well ... not classic. This thunderously cheesy and profoundly delicious twist on baked macaroni and cheese isn't remotely traditional. It's bechamel-free, broth-based and loaded with cabbage. But despite its heresies, it just may have you rethinking how creamy, cheesy baked pasta is meant to be done. First things first, this recipe has a full 10 ounces of shredded Brussels sprouts in it, and you know that they're there. It's not hiding them. They're part of the fun! So if you're averse, or if you have a kiddo who's averse, don't think this works as some sneaky "hide the vegetables" trick, like putting carrots in tomato sauce or something. No dice. On the other hand, if you, like me, lurrrrrrve Brussles sprouts, and cabbage in general, you might just start throwing a heap of chopped sprouts into every pasta dish you make. They're perfection here. So how do you make this thing? Cook some pasta to what Alton Brown once called "super al dente." At least 2 minutes short of perfection. Deb recommends a spiral pasta, and I agree. I used cavatappi. Sautee some garlic in a hot pan and then bomb it with the tenner of Brussels sprouts sliced thin. You could use a food processor or box grater to great effect, but I did it with a knife, because I love chopping and hate washing. Once wilted, mix in some lemon zest and butter. Sprinkle with flour and cook "until you can't see it" and then bring on the glugs of vegetable broth until well combined. Simmer to thicken. Not long. Remove from the heat, stir in the pasta and some lemon juice, then bring on your cheese. Deb recommends: parmesan, gruyere and fontina. Deb has a serious lady-boner for fontina. Actually, you know what, while we're at it: Snape's Corner: I love mac-n-cheese, but the real deal homemade stuff is one of the most stealthily expensive dinners I know. And it's all because of the cheese. You're average baked style recipe is gonna call for at least three, and always the good stuff from the cheese counter. I don't blame them, of course. Better cheese makes a better mac. But goddamn. Okay, good block of parmesan. That's about 8 bucks. Good block of gruyere, that's pushing ten. And fontina? Yep, that's gonna be another 8 bucks. Now you're $26 in the hole, not counting other ingredients, and you're making meatless pasta. Sure, you say, but you're not using ALL of that cheese. And you're right. There are probably leftovers on every block. Looking at the price that way is deceptive. But I'm buying for one dish, and homemade mac-n-cheese never fails to pull my breath up short come register time. Anyway, back to business. As the cheese melts and the sauce comes together, season liberally with black pepper, and adjust your salt, then scrape it into a prepared baking dish, topped with some leftover cheese mixture. 25-30 minutes at 400, or until brown, bubbly and amazing looking. Serve. Peeps, it's so good! Rich, cheesy, not too soft (pasta was on point), with that extra hint of texture from the Brussels. The lemon cuts the fat with a nice front-of-the-tongue zing. It's warmth and comfort defined. If there's anything about the dish I could take to task (other than its price), it's that Deb goes a little too hard in her opening piece about it being less heavy than a traditional baked mac. Yeah, there's no milk or cream, but this ain't spa food. It's a bomb, and a very, very good one at that. Image:
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 21, 2018 9:15:01 GMT -5
#8 - Sushi Takeout Cobb
Back when Mrs. Snape and I first started going out, just around the turn of the century, her family had a tradition of going to a teppanyaki steakhouse every Friday night. Specifically, Kobe Steaks in Addison. This was an extreme luxury in my eyes, as my family only ever went to "fancy" places like that on special occasions. I didn't join them every week of course, and the tradition eventually tapered off, but from the age of 15 to 18, up until college, I probably ate at Kobe Steaks something like 30 times. And for many years after, Kobe's (as we call it) was synonymous with fine dining. A special date night kind of place for a couple poor college kids / newlyweds / first-apartment-dwellers. It's all we knew. Half a lifetime later my tastes (and opportunities) have expanded considerably, but we still hold Kobe's dear, and we make it out there maybe once every year or so. (And the hosts, who've been the same 3 Asian dudes since when I was 15, still greet us by name every time). However, it's more than tradition or nostalgia that brings us back. For me, it's the fried rice. Simply the best in the world. For the Mrs., it's the ginger dressing on the salad. Seriously ... amazing steaks, teppanyaki vegetables with soy, and it's a salad dressing that she craves. So when Deb opens the recipe to her Sushi Takeout Cobb with a story of people going gaga over the dressing, and she describes it as being similar to what you get at Japanese restaurants, and the pictured dressing sure looks similar to the Kobe Steaks version, that caught my eye. Could I finally recreate her favorite dressing in the world at home? ... No. But I did make a pretty good salad. The concept is simple: take common sushi restaurant and/or Japanese restaurant ingredients and turn them into a salad, minus the fish, because Deb doesn't really do fish. It's also a bit of a misnomer, as the salad is missing the only essential sushi ingredient: the rice. The thing that "sushi" actually refers to. Anyway, I came for the dressing, so let's talk about that. It's a weird one. In a food processor (maybe a blender, but this ain't a hand dressing), add roughly chopped carrots, finely chopped shallots, a big ol' mess of fresh grated ginger, rice vinegar, white miso, sesame oil and neutral oil. Process until thoroughly combined. Season to taste. The carrots bring a nice sweetness and oddly compelling texture to the proceedings. It also makes it a beautiful orange color. But no doubt this is a ginger dressing. It wears that floral heat loud and proud. To build the salad, start with a base of thinly sliced Napa cabbage, then top with distinct rows of really whatever you like. As written, the recipe uses avocado, edamame (shelled), silken tofu, tomatoes, cucumber and daikon radish, all chopped down to small cubes. I nixed the cucumber, as I do not partake of the devil's melon, and couldn't find a ripe avocado, so those were both out. I added red cabbage and orange bell pepper. It's probably the most colorful dish I've ever made. Anyway, build the bowl, top with dressing, eat! Verdict: decent, but not something I'd run back to right away. The dressing is a good takeaway, something I'll make again, but I think I'd rather serve it on a more traditional salad. I found all that cabbage kind of hard to get through. On butter lettuce, though? Oh yes. And while the cobb-style presentation is pretty, this salad, like all salads, is better the more thoroughly it is mixed. So it made a nice-ish picture, but it's not a practical presentation. It's my least favorite thing I've made from the book so far. Image:
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Post by Liz n Dick on Feb 21, 2018 10:00:57 GMT -5
After the polenta eggs, this was the recipe I was most excited about in this book. But, yeah, like you've suggested here, on a lettuce salad. Because that does look like a lot of cabbage. (The colors, though! It's like those Panera commercials with the voiceover I hate, but all the food looks so colorful!) I'm sorry to hear the recipe straight-up was disappointing, but the dressing just seems so intriguing...
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 21, 2018 10:17:19 GMT -5
After the polenta eggs, this was the recipe I was most excited about in this book. But, yeah, like you've suggested here, on a lettuce salad. Because that does look like a lot of cabbage. (The colors, though! It's like those Panera commercials with the voiceover I hate, but all the food looks so colorful!) I'm sorry to hear the recipe straight-up was disappointing, but the dressing just seems so intriguing... The dressing, at least, is a winner. And who knows. Maybe if I'd used an extra half-cup of the stuff per bowl, the salad wouldn't have ended up seeming so "plain," especially since it's filled with some of my favorite ingredients. Ultimately I think lettuce will be the way to go, though.
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Post by Powerthirteen on Feb 21, 2018 14:05:37 GMT -5
Frankly that looks like a hell of a lot of work for a salad.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 22, 2018 11:30:21 GMT -5
Frankly that looks like a hell of a lot of work for a salad. You know, I find all "dinner" salads to be a hell of a lot of work for what you get. A quick side salad, maybe one green, one extra veg, and a dressing ain't so bad, but any salad that's supposed to have enough crap in it to stand alone is gonna be a PITA.
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Feb 22, 2018 12:42:48 GMT -5
#8 - Sushi Takeout Cobb
I nixed the cucumber, as I do not partake of the devil's melon, Liked for this line. That recipe stood out to me in the book because it kinda looked like she did it just to get the picture. Glad to hear it is good, but probably not gonna be a high priority. Now that brussels sprouts mac and cheese...that's the opposite. Good lord was that delicious.
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Post by pairesta on Feb 22, 2018 12:47:35 GMT -5
Frankly that looks like a hell of a lot of work for a salad. You know, I find all "dinner" salads to be a hell of a lot of work for what you get. A quick side salad, maybe one green, one extra veg, and a dressing ain't so bad, but any salad that's supposed to have enough crap in it to stand alone is gonna be a PITA. I've got Salade Nicoise on deck for my French cooking project this year and I am NOT looking forward to it.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 22, 2018 12:50:25 GMT -5
#8 - Sushi Takeout Cobb
I nixed the cucumber, as I do not partake of the devil's melon, Liked for this line. That recipe stood out to me in the book because it kinda looked like she did it just to get the picture. Glad to hear it is good, but probably not gonna be a high priority. Now that brussels sprouts mac and cheese...that's the opposite. Good lord was that delicious. Ha, yeah! I don't know if this is a common thing, but my friends and I like to refer to things we don't like as "the devil's..." My buddy who doesn't like sour cream calls it the devil's mayonnaise.
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Post by LazBro on Feb 27, 2018 10:23:06 GMT -5
#9 - Everything Drop Biscuits with Cream Cheese
I've shared before my absolute love of "everything" flavor. Four out of five bagels I eat is sure to be an everything bagel. I even keep a shaker of my homemade everything blend so I can have it on popcorn. I've also shared before my absolute love of biscuits, especially my own (which are actually Alton Brown's). So it's a bit baffling to me that it took some lady from New York to bring these two together for me. How have I not already done this? Well, I'm sure glad I've done it now. Let's keep it short today. First, make everything seasoning: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried minced onion, dried minced garlic, coarse salt. Next, make a pretty standard buttermilk biscuit, subbing some of the butter for cold cream cheese. Once your dough comes together - Deb does it by hand here and that's fine by me - portion it into twelve-ish blobs and drop them one-by-one into the seasoning mix, coating them fairly well. Bake them hot at 450F until done. Proceed to eat the whole batch by yourself in a single sitting! The biscuit itself won't replace my old standby. The recipe lacks leavening. Even with the buttermilk to balance out the baking powder, I think it still needs some baking soda to get a more ethereal lift. They were a tad dense, if satisfying. The flavor was excellent, though, pairing the tang of the cream cheese and buttermilk with that oniony-garlicky-salty goodness from the seasoning. It really does taste like an everything bagel with cream cheese, only in biscuit form. I don't know that I'd ever make this exact recipe again, but I'll definitely be adding everything mix to my biscuits on occasion. I think they're probably best just eaten straight or with butter. But to serve I actually split a couple and topped them with sauteed greens, bacon and sunny eggs. Mmm. Image: (the plain one was for Baby Snape)
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Post by LazBro on Feb 28, 2018 9:58:52 GMT -5
#10 - Olive Oil Shortbread with Rosemary and Chocolate Chunks
So a long time ago now, but I never forgot it, our dear The Sensational She-Hulk recommended making shortbread cookies with rosemary. Wow, that sounds amazing! I thought, and then I proceeded to not make shortbread cookies with rosemary for the next 14 months. Lo and behold, I flip the pages of my book and come across a recipe for shortbread cookies with rosemary. And what's more, the recipe uses olive oil instead of butter, and has chocolate! And both the ingredient list and procedure are zen simple! This I had to try for myself. Here's how you do it: In a bowl, whisk together AP flour, powdered sugar, turbinado sugar and sea salt until well combined. Recipe called for a 1/2 teaspoon of salt, but I followed my standard "plus one-half" rule, so I used closer to 3/4 teaspoon. Add olive oil, minced fresh rosemary and semi-sweet chocolate chunks (small) and mix again until it's a pasty ball. You may need to mash it together with your hands. Slap it on your baking sheet between two pieces of parchment and roll it out to a 8- to 9-inch roundish slab. Brush with loose egg white to give it shine, then sprinkle with more turbinado sugar. Be liberal. Bake it 20-25 minutes as one solid cookie. When it's well-browned and crispy looking on top, move it to a cutting board (still hot) and cut whatever shapes you like. Deb says to use a knife, but come on, this is what the humble pizza cutter lives for. Her picture showed smallish rectangles, so I copied that, and I recommend you do the same. Let it cool completely (yeah right) before separating the cookies. Judging the quality of the output against the sum total input, these cookies are the biggest powerhouse in the book. So, so easy to make and "oh my god" delicious. I have trouble deciding what's better. The flavor or the texture? The rosemary is the star flavor for sure, fragrant and intriguing without overpowering everything else. It'll convince people you're fancy. But the texture, my god, they just melt. The genius is in the olive oil: no hassle of cutting in butter, and because it's 100% fat, there's no gluten formation. You couldn't make a tough cookie if you tried. You can mix away in confidence. I'd put them in the top 5 cookies I've ever eaten, and they are surely the best cookies I've ever made. Notes: - Plain olive oil is not a pantry staple of mine. I keep extra virgin olive oil on hand, and also a neutral cooking oil, sesame oil, and whatever weird flavored oils people have given me lately, but just "olive oil" is something I never buy. I'm also never sure in recipes if the author means plain olive oil when they say "olive oil" and whether extra virgin is appropriate. For this recipe, I used store brand extra virgin olive oil. I wouldn't use the really high end stuff for this. - One thing missing from the recipe is an explanation of how to know when the cookie is done. It tells you how long to cook it, but not what to look for. I judged based on the picture, and that seemed to work out okay. Image:
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Post by Liz n Dick on Mar 5, 2018 9:39:44 GMT -5
I am highly suspicious of the quality of this cookie if you have to deploy such a high-end, distractingly adorable prop to distract from it!
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Post by Powerthirteen on Mar 7, 2018 18:24:03 GMT -5
#10 - Olive Oil Shortbread with Rosemary and Chocolate Chunks
Judging the quality of the output against the sum total input, these cookies are the biggest powerhouse in the book. So, so easy to make and "oh my god" delicious. I have trouble deciding what's better. The flavor or the texture? The rosemary is the star flavor for sure, fragrant and intriguing without overpowering everything else. It'll convince people you're fancy. But the texture, my god, they just melt. The genius is in the olive oil: no hassle of cutting in butter, and because it's 100% fat, there's no gluten formation. You couldn't make a tough cookie if you tried. You can mix away in confidence. I'd put them in the top 5 cookies I've ever eaten, and they are surely the best cookies I've ever made. I couldn't tell you if I actually liked these or not, but I do know that I couldn't stop eating them.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Mar 7, 2018 20:12:26 GMT -5
#10 - Olive Oil Shortbread with Rosemary and Chocolate Chunks
Judging the quality of the output against the sum total input, these cookies are the biggest powerhouse in the book. So, so easy to make and "oh my god" delicious. I have trouble deciding what's better. The flavor or the texture? The rosemary is the star flavor for sure, fragrant and intriguing without overpowering everything else. It'll convince people you're fancy. But the texture, my god, they just melt. The genius is in the olive oil: no hassle of cutting in butter, and because it's 100% fat, there's no gluten formation. You couldn't make a tough cookie if you tried. You can mix away in confidence. I'd put them in the top 5 cookies I've ever eaten, and they are surely the best cookies I've ever made. I couldn't tell you if I actually liked these or not, but I do know that I couldn't stop eating them. I can say for sure that I loved the hell out of them.
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Post by Pastafarian on Mar 14, 2018 14:15:24 GMT -5
Liked for this line. That recipe stood out to me in the book because it kinda looked like she did it just to get the picture. Glad to hear it is good, but probably not gonna be a high priority. Now that brussels sprouts mac and cheese...that's the opposite. Good lord was that delicious. Ha, yeah! I don't know if this is a common thing, but my friends and I like to refer to things we don't like as "the devil's..." My buddy who doesn't like sour cream calls it the devil's mayonnaise. That is utter nonsense. Mayo is the devil's sour cream.
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Post by Powerthirteen on Apr 1, 2018 19:26:41 GMT -5
We made two (TWO!) SK recipes for Easter, one from each book. The cheddar swirl breakfast buns from the first book and the semifreddo from the second. The buns came together beautifully; I added bacon and left out the dill, and it's a fantastically soft dough. Hard not to eat all twelve in one day. The semifreddo is a hell of a mess to make, and definitely something you want to carefully read the instructions for before you start. For those of us who have not previously made custard, "cook the egg yolks until pale, thick, and creamy" is NOT adequate, although I don't know how else you'd quantify it, so that step was a little fraught, but it froze up absolutely gorgeously. Again, we did raspberries instead of cranberries because we have literal gallons of frozen raspberries. Very tasty.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Apr 2, 2018 7:38:19 GMT -5
We made two (TWO!) SK recipes for Easter, one from each book. The cheddar swirl breakfast buns from the first book and the semifreddo from the second. The buns came together beautifully; I added bacon and left out the dill, and it's a fantastically soft dough. Hard not to eat all twelve in one day. The semifreddo is a hell of a mess to make, and definitely something you want to carefully read the instructions for before you start. For those of us who have not previously made custard, "cook the egg yolks until pale, thick, and creamy" is NOT adequate, although I don't know how else you'd quantify it, so that step was a little fraught, but it froze up absolutely gorgeously. Again, we did raspberries instead of cranberries because we have literal gallons of frozen raspberries. Very tasty. That semifreddo looks so good, and this sounds awesome. Oh man, I'm so far behind on this thread. I think we hit 26 or 27 recipes made over the weekend. I endeavor to knock out a couple write-ups this week.
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Post by Powerthirteen on Apr 2, 2018 10:27:01 GMT -5
We made two (TWO!) SK recipes for Easter, one from each book. The cheddar swirl breakfast buns from the first book and the semifreddo from the second. The buns came together beautifully; I added bacon and left out the dill, and it's a fantastically soft dough. Hard not to eat all twelve in one day. The semifreddo is a hell of a mess to make, and definitely something you want to carefully read the instructions for before you start. For those of us who have not previously made custard, "cook the egg yolks until pale, thick, and creamy" is NOT adequate, although I don't know how else you'd quantify it, so that step was a little fraught, but it froze up absolutely gorgeously. Again, we did raspberries instead of cranberries because we have literal gallons of frozen raspberries. Very tasty. That semifreddo looks so good, and this sounds awesome. Oh man, I'm so far behind on this thread. I think we hit 26 or 27 recipes made over the weekend. I endeavor to knock out a couple write-ups this week. Speaking on behalf of your reading public, please do.
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Post by LazBro on Apr 2, 2018 15:15:15 GMT -5
#11 - Miso Maple Ribs with Roasted Scallions
I haven't learned a lot from this project. What I mean is ... I've got some awesome new recipes in the holster, but I haven't learned much about food or food culture. Such is the nature of "generic cuisine" blog books like Smitten Kitchen. Deb Perelman isn't Yotam Ottolenghi. She isn't Lidia Bastianich. She's just a New Yorker with skillz. But I have learned at least one thing, and that thing is: miso smells amazing roasted. This was news to me. I've always loved miso but have found few opportunities to put it to work. It popped up briefly in the sushi cobb from awhile ago, but its power is more properly stated here (and thankfully, both recipes use the same kind of miso, so you can get some legs on that carton you bought). Get some baby back ribs. Normally I buy St. Louis cut ribs, because it's almost always more meat for less money, but to be true to the recipe I caved and went for the actual baby backs. Coat them in a mixture of white (shiro) miso, maple syrup and rice vinegar, along with salt and pepper, and then cover the ribs tightly in foil. Bake at 300 for 2.5 hour or until tender. Toward the end of the cook, bring that same mix of miso, maple and vinegar to a simmer on the stove to thicken, stirring regularly to avoid burning. Brush the resulting sauce on the ribs and broil them until dark and tasty looking. Oh yeah, at this point you're supposed to put scallions all along the ribs and broil those too, which I did, but honestly it has no effect on the recipe and may be omitted without worry. The broiling shouldn't take more than 5 minutes or so. Remove from the oven, slice into ribs, serve. Verdict: Holy crap! Maple and vinegar are flavors I'm familiar with when it comes to ribs, but the miso changes everything. Rich, salty, lip-smacking, umami ... everything is heightened in this recipe. These are the best not-smoked ribs I've ever made (and if I'm honest, they may compete with any smoked ribs I've made, too). And for what it's worth, it doesn't taste "Asian" or whatever. It more closely resembles barbecue, but with heretofore unknown depths. Highly recommended, this one. Image:
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Post by LazBro on Apr 6, 2018 10:00:31 GMT -5
#12 - Smoky Sheet Pan Chicken with Cauliflower
"Sheet pan" cooking is all the rage these days. Second only to the Instant Pot, if I had to guess. And why not? All you do is rub everything you plan on eating in oil, hit it with the evening's selection of flavorings, slap it on a tray and roast it until done. Dinner's served. Hell, if you use foil, and why wouldn't you, you don't even have to clean up. It's brilliant ... if it works, and unfortunately in my kitchen that has been no guarantee. The problem always comes down to doneness. All these disparate ingredients, no matter how I chop them, can't seem to get to the stage I like them at all at the same time. You want the meat cooked but not too, you want the veg crisp but not burnt, and on and on. And no matter what in the end, it all tastes kinda samey. Would Deb's stab at the genre be my sheet pan salvation? Actually, kinda yeah. Marinate your bone-in, skin-on chicken of choice in olive oil, white wine vinegar, minced garlic, smoked paprika and salt. The book recommends thighs, drums or even halved chicken breasts, but my store had a special on these "split quarters" - thigh and leg still attached, but split long-wise - that looked perfect for the job. They have not since offered this cut again, strange. Marinate for as little or as much as fits your schedule. When it's go time, dice Yukon gold potatoes (peeled or not), cut cauliflower into chunks, wedge some red onions, and halve some tangy green olives, pitted. Spread veggies out on a foil lined tray and toss with olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper. Nuzzle the chicken down in the veg, and bake at 400 for 30-ish minutes before tossing the vegetables and give it another 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, as in you probably should have done this first, thin slice some red bell pepper and quick-pickle in a brine of white wine vinegar, salt, white sugar. Once the chicken and vegetables are cooked through, top the tray with the red peppers and some parsley. Eat. The success of this recipe comes down to three things: 1) smoked paprika 2) green olives and 3) pickled red peppers. All three bring depth and sharpness to what could otherwise be a bland and fairly starchy dish. By leaning into the acidic ingredients, whether through the marinade, the peppers or the olives, the dish has a surprising brightness, which is good contrast with the earthy heat of the spices. As for the cook itself, it was ... fine. I like my potatoes a little crispier, but all tossed together, with that yummy, smoky, zippy oil that permeates the tray, it was pretty damned edible. And positively easy-peasy to boot. Notes:
- Look at that recipe, and then look at the name: "Smoky Sheet Pan Chicken with Cauliflower." Why cauliflower? Why call out that item specifically, when the base also has potatoes, onions and most unusual of all, green olives? Image:
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Apr 6, 2018 10:18:23 GMT -5
#12 - Smoky Sheet Pan Chicken with Cauliflower
"Sheet pan" cooking is all the rage these days. Second only to the Instant Pot, if I had to guess. And why not? All you do is rub everything you plan on eating in oil, hit it with the evening's selection of flavorings, slap it on a tray and roast it until done. Dinner's served. Hell, if you use foil, and why wouldn't you, you don't even have to clean up. It's brilliant ... if it works, and unfortunately in my kitchen that has been no guarantee. The problem always comes down to doneness. All these disparate ingredients, no matter how I chop them, can't seem to get to the stage I like them at all at the same time. You want the meat cooked but not too, you want the veg crisp but not burnt, and on and on. And no matter what in the end, it all tastes kinda samey.
Parchment paper is superior to foil, IMHO; foil can stick to things sometimes. But yes, the uneven cooking of various meats vs. veggies can definitely be a sticking point to roasting. Glad this one worked out for you.
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Post by Liz n Dick on Apr 6, 2018 10:30:36 GMT -5
Parchment paper is superior to foil, IMHO; foil can stick to things sometimes. But yes, the uneven cooking of various meats vs. veggies can definitely be a sticking point to roasting. Glad this one worked out for you. I'm also in camp parchment paper! Especially when you buy it pre-cut in half-sheet size. But anyway! This recipe does sound really nice, but that's a great point wondering why cauliflower got the nod as the second major player.
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Apr 6, 2018 10:35:21 GMT -5
This grumbling over the title reminds me of how I like flippantly vague recipe titles. Like, Sheet Pan Chicken With Veggie Stuff. There's a menu in town that has "Something Green and In Season" and another with "Mole Verde - Spring Peas and things that are green".
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LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,049
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Post by LazBro on Apr 6, 2018 11:21:23 GMT -5
Parchment paper is superior to foil, IMHO; foil can stick to things sometimes. But yes, the uneven cooking of various meats vs. veggies can definitely be a sticking point to roasting. Glad this one worked out for you. I'm also in camp parchment paper! Especially when you buy it pre-cut in half-sheet size. But anyway! This recipe does sound really nice, but that's a great point wondering why cauliflower got the nod as the second major player. I once considered doing a "Random Thought" post about how those pre-cut parchment sheets were mankind's greatest achievement. I am never without a box in the house. If I even think I'm getting low, I buy another. Though, I'm not 100% on the parchment train. Foil has its place. Parchment is easier, and less prone to sticking, but I think you can caramelize better on foil. You're more likely to get those crispy browned bits I love so much when using foil. And for anything particularly wet or runny, like this dish in fact, the foil is nice because you can cover all of the pan, including over the lip just to be safe. Seepage (and what a sexy word that is!) is more likely with parchment. Which usually is fine, but sometimes is really not.
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