What can you expect in the Food Thread on PF?

[turbo]

I really like my santoku, though I haven't yet gotten my technique down, totally. I'll get plenty of practice this summer, if the weather cooperates and the garden comes in well. We had pizza for supper tonight, and I used it to chop onions, mushrooms, ripe olives... The blade has less rocker than a chef's knife, so the appropriate chopping motion has less vertical range of motion and you end up with a longer contact-area, too. I can see why so many sous-chefs like santokus - it is very efficient for chopping/mincing.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

The stew was fairly good though I think I ought have used cut potatoes instead of whole. Some crushed pepper corns instead of ground pepper probably would have been better too.

 

[turbo]

The santoku has been baptized. It drew first blood from my wife. She's got this Evo-like tendency to injure herself with knives. Her comment to me: "Boy that thing is sharp!" (All of our knives are sharp. That's a lot safer than letting them get dull, requiring more force to cut.) The santoku has no choil, and requires a more controlled grip than the TI chef's knife, even though the depth of the blade provides more clearance for your grip-hand. It's not a good idea to be rushed, inattentive, or distracted when handling blades you can shave with. Film at eleven.

 

[Ouabache]

My wife is taking care of her mother today, so I'm cooking for tonight's meal. New England-style baked beans (no tomato sauce, you Texans!)
Then added 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup of molasses, salt, pepper, 1 tbs of prepared mustard, one large chopped onion and 2 cloves of minced garlic.

This sounds tastey! I sometimes render and add thick smokey bacon to my beans. Just saute my onions and garlic in the smokey bacon grease. Pimentón is another wonderful seasoning that adds another dimension of flavor to New England baked beans. If you like a little zest, I may add some fresh cayenne and minced habeneros to the pot.

I wonder, how's the Maple Sap Run, this time of the year, in your neck of the woods?

 

[turbo]

This sounds tastey! I sometimes render and add thick smokey bacon to my beans. Just saute my onions and garlic in the smokey bacon grease. Pimentón is another wonderful seasoning that adds another dimension of flavor to New England baked beans. If you like a little zest, I may add some fresh cayenne and minced habeneros to the pot.

I wonder, how's the Maple Sap Run, this time of the year, in your neck of the woods?

We sometimes add smoked meats to beans, too. Smoked bacon, shoulder, etc go really well in there. When I make a double-batch, I sometimes bury 4-5 chicken legs in the bottom of the pot. When the beans are done, the meat is just falling off the bone. Chicken legs have a lot of fat in them and I started baking them in beans back when I was in college, instead of using salt pork or bacon. If you like spicy, chipotle is a good additive. I kept that last batch pure and simple, though.

Maple sap started running weeks earlier than normal this year, and lots of producers got caught flat-footed. Those that tapped very early (especially those with vacuum-assist systems) got a nice big run - as good or better than in most recent years. Those that fell behind found that their season was shortened and have stopped evaporating already.

 

[Moonbear]

Nor have I. I thought it might be interesting. I was going to improvise if I didn't a recipe.

I think I may leave out the corn starch too, or at least keep the quantity small. I'm not really looking to have something very thick.

I'll let you all know how it turns out. Just put the brisket in the pot a few minutes ago.

Too bad I missed that recipe sooner. It sounded pretty tasty. I agree on leaving out corn starch from soups. If you need to thicken it a bit next time you try it, a good way to do that is just to mash some of the added potatoes.

 

[Ouabache]

We sometimes add smoked meats to beans, too. Chicken legs have a lot of fat in them and I started baking them in beans back when I was in college, instead of using salt pork or bacon. If you like spicy, chipotle is a good additive.

That sound delicious! I will try chicken in my beans next time. And chipotle is perfect. I use them whenever I have a supply on hand.

I was afraid that might happen with the maples. I am thinking this is going to be even more problematic as spring temperatures continue to shift in years to come. Either they may want to sample more often, early in the season or enlist some instrumentation to monitor the trees.

 

[turbo]

That sound delicious! I will try chicken in my beans next time. And chipotle is perfect. I use them whenever I have a supply on hand.

When my wife and I were living in Bangor early in our marriage, we used to visit a slaughterhouse in a neighboring town nearly every weekend. For some reason, when they processed chickens, they ended up with excesses of chicken livers and thighs, and always had great prices on them. Those ended up being comfort foods in lean times. We would put thighs in our baked beans, and we'd pan-fry the livers with onions and green peppers and serve that alongside nice sharp home-made macaroni and cheese.

Both very cheap and tasty meals with lots of left-over potential.

 

[Evo]

When my wife and I were living in Bangor early in our marriage, we used to visit a slaughterhouse in a neighboring town nearly every weekend.

I thought this was going to be the beginning of a love story.

 

[turbo]

I thought this was going to be the beginning of a love story.

It WAS! You're not much of a romantic. We couldn't afford steaks, roasts, etc, and even avoided buying poultry at the market unless it was on sale. The slaughterhouse's store offered very attractive prices, so we could afford to eat meat regularly (as long as "meat" was chicken thighs and livers).

 

[Evo]

It WAS! You're not much of a romantic. We couldn't afford steaks, roasts, etc, and even avoided buying poultry at the market unless it was on sale. The slaughterhouse's store offered very attractive prices, so we could afford to eat meat regularly (as long as "meat" was chicken thighs and livers).

My mother made incredible gizzards and rice and now gizards cost around $1.79 a pound. They're crazy.

 

[lisab]

Had a lot of leftover ham from Easter, so tonight I made quiche tonight. Tasty but a bit too rich.

Still have a lot of ham, though!

 

[Evo]

Had a lot of leftover ham from Easter, so tonight I made quiche tonight. Tasty but a bit too rich.

Still have a lot of ham, though!

I love quiche. I made my first quiche over 42 years ago. The only quiche was Quiche Lorraine. Swiss cheese and bacon.

 

[lisab]

I love quiche. I made my first quiche over 42 years ago. The only quiche was Quiche Lorraine. Swiss cheese and bacon.

Can't go wrong with cheese and bacon!

Hmm...now, if I had to choose between them, it would have to be just bacon .

 

[Dembadon]

... I made my first quiche over 42 years ago. ...

If the photos I've seen of Dweevo are fairly recent, then your claim is biologically impossible; you'd have had to be at least -10 years old when you made the quiche.

 

[Borek]

Don't worry, she has been 5 when her first daughter was born. We've been through it on many occasions.

 

[Evo]

If the photos I've seen of Dweevo are fairly recent, then your claim is biologically impossible; you'd have had to be at least -10 years old when you made the quiche.

My Facebook picture is 3 years old.

I was baking quiche before I could walk.

I think I'm going to make dark fudge with pecans today, I'm going to cheat and use the chocolate chip and condensed milk trick. I add a lot of cocoa powder to it. Not as good as real homemade fudge, but I don't have the patience to do the whole candy thermometer thing, or worse, the soft ball test.

If anyone wants the recipe for the shortcut stuff, here it is.

Foolproof Dark Chocolate Fudge

Ingredients
3 cups (1-1/2 packages, 12 ounces each) HERSHEY'®S SPECIAL DARK® Chocolate Chips or HERSHEY'®S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
Dash salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

optional: unsweetened cocoa powder


1. Line 8- or 9-inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan.

2. Melt chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt in heavy saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat; stir in pecans and vanilla. (this is the point where I add the cocoa powder to taste, I like my fudge to be super chocolaty) Spread evenly in prepared pan.

3. Refrigerate 2 hours or until firm. Remove from pan; place on cutting board. Peel off foil; cut into squares. Store loosely covered at room temperature.

Note For best results, do not double this recipe.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

If you are a gluten for punishment, here is the best homemade "Real" fudge recipe. I've been making this since I was 10 or 11. My mother was alaways there rolling her eyes and telling me it was going to be grainy because i was too impatient. But that's what I *LOVED* about my fudge, that grainy texture. :!) I must warn you, this is considered advanced candy making now on the internet. I saw someone criticize a fudge recipe online saying that there should have been a warning this was not for first time fudge makers. Well, you know, there's got to be a first time at least once.

Skill Level: Advanced

Rich Cocoa Fudge

Ingredients:3 cups sugar
2/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa or HERSHEY'S SPECIAL DARK Cocoa
1/8 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:1. Line 8-or 9-inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan. Butter foil.

2. Mix sugar, cocoa and salt in heavy 4-quart saucepan; stir in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to full rolling boil. Boil, without stirring, until mixture reaches 234°F on candy thermometer or until small amount of mixture dropped into very cold water, forms a soft ball which flattens when removed from water. (Bulb of candy thermometer should not rest on bottom of saucepan.)

3. Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla. DO NOT STIR. Cool at room temperature to 110°F (lukewarm). Beat with wooden spoon until fudge thickens and just begins to lose some of its gloss. Quickly spread into prepared pan; cool completely. Cut into squares. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature. About 36 pieces or 1-3/4 pounds.

http://www.hersheys.com/recipes/recipes/detail.asp?id=5303

 

[Borek]

Ingredients
3 cups (1-1/2 packages, 12 ounces each) HERSHEY'®S SPECIAL DARK® Chocolate Chips or HERSHEY'®S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
Dash salt
1 cup chopped walnuts
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

You forgot raisins.

 

[lisab]

You forgot raisins.

 

[Evo]

You forgot raisins.

<BANNED>

<BANNED>



I know chocolate covered raisins are really chocolate covered cockroaches, I am no fool.

 

[Evo]

I hate bacon packages. Why aren't they resealable?

 

[lisab]

I hate bacon packages. Why aren't they resealable?

<lisab uses another GOOBF card from her large stack...gives one to Borek too, along with a box of raisins>

What's left to reseal ?

 

[Dembadon]

... What's left to reseal ?

Those are precisely the words that came to my mind when I read Evo's post. Cook all of it; put any leftovers in a ziplock bag to use on a hot sandwich the next day.

 

[Evo]

<lisab uses another GOOBF card from her large stack...gives one to Borek too, along with a box of raisins>

Evo thinks Lisab has been counterfeiting GOOBF cards.

What's left to reseal ?

Those are precisely the words that came to my mind when I read Evo's post. Cook all of it; put any leftovers in a ziplock bag to use on a hot sandwich the next day.

I might need three slices for a recipe, and may not need to cook any more for several weeks.

Oooh, I might try that chicken fried bacon.

 

[rewebster]

walnuts are great in chip cookies----pecans come in a close second---- (too bad I don't bake or have a maid)

 

[turbo]

Oooh, I might try that chicken fried bacon.

Evo is really Paula Deen!

 

[Evo]

walnuts are great in chip cookies----pecans come in a close second---- (too bad I don't bake or have a maid)

For some reason, I can't taste anything when I eat walnuts, any flavor they might have seem to be lost when added to baked goods.

Evo is really Paula Deen!

Uh oh, busted.

 

[rewebster]

For some reason, I can't taste anything when I eat walnuts, any flavor they might have seem to be lost when added to baked goods.

try black walnuts then---they were all over my grandfather's farm --it was another fall ritual to gather and husk them, them leave out to dry for a while


--Pillsbury makes a roll of dough with walnuts---I haven't seen them lately though--may have been 'discontinued'

 

[turbo]

I prefer walnuts over pecans, too, for baked goods. Walnuts have a bit of character and astringency, while pecans seem a bit too bland and sweet. My mother would splurge and buy walnuts for holiday baking, but she'd have to hide them from me until it was time to use them.

 

[Borek]

Evo thinks Lisab has been counterfeiting GOOBF cards.

Lisab has a large collection of GOOBF cards from chat. Probably larger than mine, but even mine is impressive

 

[rewebster]

I prefer walnuts over pecans, too, for baked goods. Walnuts have a bit of character and astringency, while pecans seem a bit too bland and sweet. My mother would splurge and buy walnuts for holiday baking, but she'd have to hide them from me until it was time to use them.

its funny how those taste buds vary from one person to another...

I think I'm what is labeled as a 'taster' ---some green vegetables taste a little bitter but are still pretty tasty--the one thing in all of the 'foods' that don't like is cilantro (tastes like soap for some reason) and would greatly prefer (if the taste buds don't change) never to have it in anything--one of those 'oh, well' 's

 

[turbo]

I love cilantro and dill florets. They are essential in my garden-fresh salsas. I have to stagger-plant dill so some of them will be in flower when it's time for fresh salsa and again when it's time to make the canned salsas and chili relishes. Dill weed is OK, but the tiny florets are out of this world.

 

[lisab]

its funny how those taste buds vary from one person to another...

I think I'm what is labeled as a 'taster' ---some green vegetables taste a little bitter but are still pretty tasty--the one thing in all of the 'foods' that don't like is cilantro (tastes like soap for some reason) and would greatly prefer (if the taste buds don't change) never to have it in anything--one of those 'oh, well' 's

Quite possible, http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/articles/senses/supertaster.shtml"

 

[turbo]

Quite possible, http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/articles/senses/supertaster.shtml"

In a college biology project, some grad students were doing genetic mapping with physical traits, and I had to participate as a subject. One of the stations in the evaluation had lots of little strips of paper, and we were to grab one as we passed through the line, touch it to our tongues, and write down what you tasted. Most people just shrugged and probably wrote "paper". I actually watched the line for a while after I went through (it was the last station in the gauntlet), and didn't see a single person that shared my reaction. I had experienced the most gut-wrenchingly bitter taste ever, and was a bit queasy after the experience. The grad student manning that station kind of broke protocol, but came over to me and said that nobody would ever be able to poison me with mushrooms (alkaloids) judging from my reaction. He asked if I had Native American heritage, and I told him that I did, on both sides of the family. I guess that would have been a really handy "talent" to have if you were foraging for mushrooms and found some that were not known to be safe...

 

[turbo]

Don't get too good at what you do unless you want the job forever! I have always been the go-to guy for sauces, marinades, smoking, grilling, etc, but now I have a new must-do. My wife has been baking breads like crazy, and when breads start to get a little dry, it's time for croutons. We have soups often, and she takes salads to work almost every day, and loves the croutons.

I cube black bread or rye (usually), mix it with garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, oregano, smoked paprika, and ancho chili powder (add your own here) and mix everything up by hand in a bowl. Drizzle cold-pressed olive oil over the whole mess and keep mixing by hand and spread out on a baking sheet and pop it in an oven pre-heated to at least 300 deg. I'm considering working my way up to 350 so that the outsides get crispy faster. Got to move slowly on that front, though, because the croutons are the high spot of her salads every day.