What can you expect in the Food Thread on PF?

[Jimmy Snyder]

This is the food thread.

That will be $50. Greg can arrange the transfer of your money to my account.

How's it going Evo? Wait a minute. Don't answer that.

 

[Evo]

How's it going Evo? Wait a minute. Don't answer that.

<snork> There is a $30 post review fee.

 

[rootX]

So, I am planning to buy some chicken and pork.

I still have to figure out what to do with them but in the end, I am hoping for something soft and hot with no raw taste at all!

 

[Evo]

I've been buying Tostitos brand tortilla chips for years. I've tried others and didn't care for them. I just tried On The Border tortilla chips. These are the best commercial chips I've eaten. They are light, but super crispy and yet strong. They are full of air bubbles, as if you had fried them at home. Tostitos somehow seem to be missing these airy pockets and their chips are heavy and dense in comparison.

Bad news, is I can't stop eating them.

 

[Evo]

Buuuurp. Too much rotel cheese dip with hamburger and chips. uuuuggghhh

That was supposed to be for New Year's Eve chat, but I couldn't resist making it. I am a BAD person. I guess I'll make spinach and artichoke dip, but I'll need more chips.

What's everyone else making?

 

[turbo]

Sauted ground beef and onions with home-made pizza sauce, in wonton wrappers and broiled. Mozzarella cheese sticks wrapped in wonton wrappers and fried in peanut oil. There will probably be more.

 

[HeLiXe]

Jamaican rum cake is so good

 

[Evo]

Jamaican rum cake is so good

I can has rum cake? :shy:

 

[dlgoff]

I'm going to have the other half of the 16 inch Turkey and Swiss cheese sandwich I purchased in Topeka today for lunch. It's garnished with lettuce, onions, tomatoes, black olives and lots of mayonnaise. This should go good with a glass of Wheat Beer.

 

[HeLiXe]

*gives Evo a giant slice*
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2292/2122516017_8de6246401_o.jpg
seriously ... I don't know whether I'm drinking rum or eating cake

 

[Evo]

*gives Evo a giant slice*
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2292/2122516017_8de6246401_o.jpg
seriously ... I don't know whether I'm drinking rum or eating cake

OMG! OMG!

Evo wants!

 

[rhody]

OMG! OMG!

Evo wants!

Take a virtual bite, Evo, then pray for an adrenaline rush. That is as good as it is going to get !

Rhody...

 

[turbo]

My father's "baby sister" used to make the most delicious rum-soaked mincemeat pie for Thanksgiving. The alcohol was all cooked out, of course, but the savvy adults used the rum as an excuse to try to steer us kids to the fruit pies, cakes, etc, so they could have the mincemeat pie to themselves.

 

[Moonbear]

I made duck a la Moonbear tonight. When I thawed the duck, I was planning on duck a l'orange, but never got around to getting any of the ingredients, so improvised with what I had. Roasted the duck with basic poultry seasonings while making a sauce for it. (Turbo, close your eyes so you don't cringe too much.) I only had beef broth from the store and no bones or stock, so it ended up a bit too salty making a reduction sauce with that. It came out well enough, I'll do the recipe again with homemade stock next time. (Okay, you can open your eyes again.)

So, I started out sauteeing garlic and onions in oil...started with a hot pan to slightly brown the garlic, then reduced the heat to let them clear. I added the zest of one lemon, let it saute a bit longer, then added juice fom half the lemon (the other half I cut into slices and put on the duck while roasting, though I don't think it did anything much). Then I added half the broth and some celery along with everything from the duck that wasn't getting roasted...the organs, neck, tail that was still attached and I snipped off and some extra skin that would only be needed if you wanted to stuff and close the cavity. I added some black pepper and a bay leaf at that point, and I let that simmer and reduce about an hour, then added the remaining broth and let it reduce another 45 min. I basically went from 4c liquid to 1c liquid. I strained that and set aside. I then melted about a tablespoon of butter and added a generous splash of triple sec (because I still wanted at least a hint of orange) and a more generous couple of splashes of dry sherry and let that reduce down a bit, and added about a half tablespoon of flour and stirred over medium low heat for a while until everything started caramelizing to a dark brown (it wasn't enough flour to thicken the sauce, but the caramelization for flavor is what I was aiming for, though it did have a texture similar to a roux). I added a little of the actual pan drippings, since the duck was nearing the end of roasting by then, and then whisked the reduction back in and brought it to a slow boil just to thicken very slightly...I didn't want gravy, but was aiming for a sauce just thick enough to cling to the duck when poured over it. After the duck rested out of the oven, I cut off the breasts, removed the skin (because I haven't mastered crispy duck skin no matter how brown it gets) and sliced into thick slices against the grain, put some on a plate and poured a couple spoonfuls of sauce over it. Yummy! It was even better than I expected considering the broth I used and that I was just randomly adding ingredients as I went.

 

[Evo]

I made duck a la Moonbear tonight. When I thawed the duck, I was planning on duck a l'orange, but never got around to getting any of the ingredients, so improvised with what I had. Roasted the duck with basic poultry seasonings while making a sauce for it. (Turbo, close your eyes so you don't cringe too much.) I only had beef broth from the store and no bones or stock, so it ended up a bit too salty making a reduction sauce with that. It came out well enough, I'll do the recipe again with homemade stock next time. (Okay, you can open your eyes again.)

So, I started out sauteeing garlic and onions in oil...started with a hot pan to slightly brown the garlic, then reduced the heat to let them clear. I added the zest of one lemon, let it saute a bit longer, then added juice fom half the lemon (the other half I cut into slices and put on the duck while roasting, though I don't think it did anything much). Then I added half the broth and some celery along with everything from the duck that wasn't getting roasted...the organs, neck, tail that was still attached and I snipped off and some extra skin that would only be needed if you wanted to stuff and close the cavity. I added some black pepper and a bay leaf at that point, and I let that simmer and reduce about an hour, then added the remaining broth and let it reduce another 45 min. I basically went from 4c liquid to 1c liquid. I strained that and set aside. I then melted about a tablespoon of butter and added a generous splash of triple sec (because I still wanted at least a hint of orange) and a more generous couple of splashes of dry sherry and let that reduce down a bit, and added about a half tablespoon of flour and stirred over medium low heat for a while until everything started caramelizing to a dark brown (it wasn't enough flour to thicken the sauce, but the caramelization for flavor is what I was aiming for, though it did have a texture similar to a roux). I added a little of the actual pan drippings, since the duck was nearing the end of roasting by then, and then whisked the reduction back in and brought it to a slow boil just to thicken very slightly...I didn't want gravy, but was aiming for a sauce just thick enough to cling to the duck when poured over it. After the duck rested out of the oven, I cut off the breasts, removed the skin (because I haven't mastered crispy duck skin no matter how brown it gets) and sliced into thick slices against the grain, put some on a plate and poured a couple spoonfuls of sauce over it. Yummy! It was even better than I expected considering the broth I used and that I was just randomly adding ingredients as I went.

Ooh, sounds good! But all of your recipes sound good!

 

[turbo]

I made duck a la Moonbear tonight. When I thawed the duck, I was planning on duck a l'orange, but never got around to getting any of the ingredients, so improvised with what I had. Roasted the duck with basic poultry seasonings while making a sauce for it. (Turbo, close your eyes so you don't cringe too much.) I only had beef broth from the store and no bones or stock, so it ended up a bit too salty making a reduction sauce with that. It came out well enough, I'll do the recipe again with homemade stock next time. (Okay, you can open your eyes again.)

Ack! I looked! I'm horribly scarred!

My wife made a lovely black-bean soup yesterday. She used the chicken-stock from the roasted chicken we had a day before, included fire-roasted red peppers, our frozen jalapenos, and some other minor ingredients, and came up with a KILLER! I like to let such soups "age" overnight in the 'fridge, but I had a big bowl of it today, and it surpassed my expectations. The replacement-window guys came over yesterday, and I had to take off with Duke to avoid their colognes, etc. My wife said that they both kept commenting about how great this little house smelled. Duh! She is the best soup-maker ever! Real-estate agents like to tell people to have an apple pie in the oven for showings. They never smelled my wife's soups and stews.

 

[rhody]

What do you think, is this a winner or not ?

Hot Chilli Chef - Recipe 2



and while we are at it, this one...

Scallops with Sweet Red Chili Sauce



Rhody...

 

[turbo]

You should never do anything like that to scallops! Buy them fresh and sweet and pan-fry them in butter with nothing added.

 

[netgypsy]

fresh caught bay scallops sauteed in butter with a touch of garlic and lemon. drool

 

[Evo]

fresh caught bay scallops sauteed in butter with a touch of garlic and lemon. drool

Bay scallops taste best, but after the blight that almost wiped them out, cheaper, not as succulent sea scallops were they only thing available, so they were hyped. Bay scallops are something the younger generation is mostly unaware of and don't realize that most if not all old recipes calling for scallops meant the tiny bay scallops. Such a shame.

 

[rollcast]

I've only had scallops once and it was in some fancy posh upmarket restaurant. But Bejesus where those things tasty. Pitty there was only 3 of them on the plate though.

Although you can't beat some battered scampi with chips.

 

[netgypsy]

The bay scallops we eat are the ones we catch ourselves although our local Publix sells bay scallops and we do know the fake ones when we see them.

Tell me more about the blight. I read about one in the 1930's that hit the eel grass but can't find the one in the 80's.

We started scalloping in 1980 on the gulf and there were a lot of them there. Since then the season is shorter and you have to go further north on the gulf but family members had good luck this year getting a nice number of bay scallops. Another family member did get fake sea scallops in a restaurant and informed the manager.

There is a list put out that tells you what fish are endangered and we try to avoid those. We stick to things like haddock, catfish, whiting, anchovies, sardines, and a few others and avoid tuna, cod, orange roughy, black sea bass and number of others listed as being very much endangered. There is at least one tuna that is supposed to be OK but I can't remember which. Blue fin is the most endangered. I saw one swim past once when in the Keys and was just enthralled. It was like a piscean fighter plane it was so fast. Shark are threatened also.

Florida lobster (big crayfish) are very scarce now but they are making efforts to restore over harvested species.

I read that just a couple of days ago millions of scallops were put back into the gulf of Mexico. I know they're reseeding the reefs. Can't remember what is killing them though.

I guess we'd all better find some great recipes for jelly fish because supposedly they will be the last species standing if we don't get harvesting under control.

 

[Evo]

Tell me more about the blight. I read about one in the 1930's that hit the eel grass but can't find the one in the 80's.

Here you go, in other areas the loss of shark population has resulted in an increased ray population, which also eats the scallops.

Brown Tide and Scallops

Since 1985 bay scallop populations have been decimated by repeated blooms of the brown tide algae in the 1980's and 1990's. Brown tide is caused by an increased growth of a golden-brown algae, or phytoplankton, making the water very murky with a coffee brown color, hence the name "brown tide". This phytoplankton prevents the bay scallop from feeding properly, causing bay scallops to starve during brown tide blooms. Furthermore, the large number of brown tide organisms in the water shade out sunlight from reaching eelgrass plants, causing them to die off. With the loss of the scallops preferred eelgrass bed habitats, it becomes more difficult for scallops to recover. Commercial harvesting of bay scallops has drastically decreased since the first brown tide bloom 21 years ago. The scalloping industry in New York has yet to recover from the devastating effects of the brown tide.

http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6946.html

 

[netgypsy]

Interesting. The last time we went to the keys and actually looked at the bottom (snorkels and masks and pulled behind the boat) we noticed the grass was covered by a brown sludgie material and just figured it was because of the lack of sewage treatment. Red tide has also caused problems several times and family members who live down there say it even makes it difficult to breath when the red tide is present in the area.

 

[netgypsy]

No comparison - bay scallops are droolworthy for sure

I do wonder why we don't eat the entire scallop though. We eat whole oysters, clams but not scallops. I think the Chinese eat the whole thing but their cuisine is very broad anyway so it's not surprising.

I also ran across an article about trying various substitutes for eel grass to increase the scallop population. Easter basket grass after the bunny has left?

 

[turbo]

Mmm! Supper is a huge sandwich from the butcher-shop/deli. Roast beef and mayo on a split baguette, loaded with black olives and jalapenos and bacon, Then topped with pizza-cheese and broiled. I'm glad we don't live closer to that shop.

 

[turbo]

Supper tonight was a wonderful meatloaf and vegetables. The meatloaf was made with ground buffalo meat. Buffalo is tasty, and very lean. I could tell the difference when serving myself - very little fat in the bottom of the casserole dish, compared to ground beef.

 

[netgypsy]

Sounds great. Have you tried ostrich or emu burger meatloaf? They taste more like chicken

What was used to keep the buffalo moist in the meatloaf?? For salmon patties we soak a slice of bread, wring it out, then squish it into the salmon with one egg and some seasoning.

My dad used to make an awesome turkey meatloaf that was very different from typical meatloaf. I'll have to try to find the recipe.

 

[turbo]

Sounds great. Have you tried ostrich or emu burger meatloaf? They taste more like chicken

What was used to keep the buffalo moist in the meatloaf?? For salmon patties we soak a slice of bread, wring it out, then squish it into the salmon with one egg and some seasoning.

My dad used to make an awesome turkey meatloaf that was very different from typical meatloaf. I'll have to try to find the recipe.

Some bread, chopped onions, and egg. The meatloaf was wonderful! And I have lots left over for lunches.

 

[Borek]

This is 51-year old TV health guru Gillian McKeith; advocating a holistic approach to nutrition and health, promoting exercise, and a vegetarian diet high in organic fruits and vegetables.

She recommends detox diets, colonic irrigation, and supplements.

This is 51-year old Nigella Lawson; a TV cook...

who eats meat, butter and desserts and washes it down with wine.

Do you still have any questions?

 

[turbo]

This is 51-year old TV health guru Gillian McKeith; advocating a holistic approach to nutrition and health, promoting exercise, and a vegetarian diet high in organic fruits and vegetables.

She recommends detox diets, colonic irrigation, and supplements.

This is 51-year old Nigella Lawson; a TV cook...

who eats meat, butter and desserts and washes it down with wine.

Do you still have any questions?

Questions are pretty much answered.

 

[Monique]

Do you still have any questions?

Clearly it's not a fair comparison. I'm sure Gillian McKeith can look a lot better with the correct lighting and stylists, Nigella Lawson can look a lot worse in the reverse case.

For comparison, just take a look at the following pictures. Reality can be harsh.
http://seehere.blogspot.com/2006/08/celebrities-without-makeup.html

 

[netgypsy]

Absolutely - and the factor not mentioned is SUN. The ULTIMATE AGER for caucasians.

The ability to look as though you have no makeup on and look wonderful is exactly what today's makeup allows you to do. And the second lady - who knows what "enhancements" she's had. Scrub them both and take photos in bright sun light and scars for plastic surgery will show also.

 

[Moonbear]

Absolutely - and the factor not mentioned is SUN. The ULTIMATE AGER for caucasians.

For everyone, actually. While someone with darker skin has more protection from sun exposure than a lighter skinned person, it's not absolute protection. They too should be using sunscreen and avoiding excess sun exposure to prevent skin cancer and premature aging of the skin.

On the other hand, no extreme in lifestyle or diet is healthy. Eating absolutely no animal products and interferring with function of the large intestine with colonics and such is no better or worse than consuming excessive amounts of meat and fats. Neither is healthy.

 

[netgypsy]

Colonics are indeed VERY bad for your health. I have a friend who was going to start using them until I brought her about ten pounds of documentation on the damage it does.

it was previously thought that fats were bad but now there are of course the good and the bad fats and transfats are considered the worst as well as refined sugar and flour. The Ornish diet which is all veggies does work to clean out arteries but the meditation section is critical. The low carb diet also cleans out arteries and we've had personal experience with both working very well - cleaning arteries that were 95% block down to 40% in both diets. The Ornish diet had to add tofu because the fat intake was too low and people were losing their hair. The low carb diet ends up fairly high good fats because too much protein stresses the kidneys, so both can be too extreme. It didn't hurt that both the people who were successful in clearing their arteries also stopped smoking. Ornish won't even accept you if you smoke.

My personal favorite is the nut diet cause sometimes you just feel like a nut.

Speaking of dark skinned people with sun damage I had a student whose doctor told her had sunburn. It turned out it was scarlet fever and it went into rheumatoid arthritis before they caught the mistake. She had strep and didn't say anything because she was already booked on a cruise and wanted to go.