What's cooking?

fresh raw pickled

Say wha?

tiled over

Um?

fresh raw pickled

Say wha?

tiled over

Um?

She must still by typing on her iPad.

[Jenise]

fresh raw pickled

Say wha?

tiled over

Um?

She must still by typing on her iPad.

Ha, no!

Fresh raw pickled: no hot brine, no months in a jar. Just an all-day soak in vinegar, salt and garlic.

Tiled: a roast or large piece of meat that's sliced on the bias or diagonal, then laid cut sided up, one piece overlapping another on the plate, often above a sauce or other component of the entree (American definition of entree).

Fresh raw pickled: no hot brine, no months in a jar. Just an all-day soak in vinegar, salt and garlic.

Tiled: a roast or large piece of meat that's sliced on the bias or diagonal, then laid cut side up, one piece overlapping another on the plate, often above a sauce or other component of the entree (American definition of entree).

OK. Better.

[Robin Garr]

This is an amazing way to do lima beans: Rather than simmering them in a lot of water and discarding the flavor-rich liquid, brown onions in olive oil and then braise the (thawed frozen) limas with the onions, s&p and only a few tablespoons of water over very low heat until the beans are creamy and infused with the browned-onion flavor.

I love lima beans and never eat them...thanks for the reminder Robin, this sounds delicious.

Pizza at the local Yacht and Cricket Club.

Yacht and Cricket Club Pizza.JPG

Pizza at the local Yacht and Cricket Club.

Yacht and Cricket Club Pizza.JPG

That pizza looks awesome...how tough is it to become a member?

That pizza looks awesome...how tough is it to become a member?

It's about on par with Augusta National, except we have a camo jacket instead of green.

Tonight it is Asian sweet potatoes rubbed with coconut oil and baked; served with steamed fresh artichokes, and red kale braised with garlic, red onion, lemon juice, then finished in home made chicken stock.

Just finished Saturday night dinner. It was the best meal we've had this week.

We started out with a layer of thickly-sliced shallots and quartered vine tomatoes (ping-pong ball size) on the bottom of a casserole with a splash of white wine. Cooked these in the oven with the lid on, about 185 degrees C, for about 20-25 minutes. Then, stirred up the layer of now-soft shallots and tomatoes, put two skinless fillets of Atlantic salmon on the top, along with a small lemon (rind and pith sliced off) cut into thinnish slices, scattered in between the fillets. The lid went back on, and back in the oven for about 20 minutes. At the same time, two potatoes, with skin still on but chopped into chunks about half an inch across, tossed in EVOO and sprinkled with mixed herbs, cooked in its own covered pot in the same oven. We served this up with some plain steamed broccoli.

Delicious, though I say it myself. The shallots, tomatoes, lemons and white wine cooked into a glorious golden tangy mixture, the fish was well-done but moist, and the potatoes were soft and fragrant with just a hint of golden crust at the edges.

Paired this with a bottle of Chain of Ponds 'Black Thursday' sauvignon blanc (Adelaide Hills, 2011) - crisp, clean, full of apple and cucumber flavours.

It worked out so well I wished I'd had the presence of mind to take a photo of it to post.

Sounds wonderful. I like the idea of a four-ingeredient casserole.

I'm putting together a chicken dish...pieces will be dipped in Dijon mustard and white wine mix, then rolled in a mix of Panko, fresh thyme, fresh garlic, lemon zest, a little butter and evoo to hold to bind the panko. This will be baked to a wonderful, caramelized crispy, yummyness. Haricot Verts, steamed and dressed with fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper. Yukon golds will be mashed and flavored with a bit of truffle butter.

[Robin Garr]

Chain of Ponds.

I visited that winery when I was in Adelaide a few years back! As I recall, a loverly place full of flower gardens, with good wines from a very pleasant wine maker.

Chain of Ponds is a pretty area and the winery of that name makes some nice stuff. The Adelaide Hills region produces excellent sav blanc and this one from Chain of Ponds is a favourite weekday-dinner wine for us.

Today we had a braised guinea fowl on root vegetables with fried potatoes and cabbage salad bavarian style.

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The dessert was a first try for Christmas Dinner on the 25th of December: Strawberry-Mascarpone-Mousse on sourcream-amaretto-sauce with a puff pastry stick.

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Last night marked my first-ever attempt at chicken and dumplings. I used a recipe from Gourmet magazine, via Epicurious that used corn meal and some fresh dill in the dumplings. Came out very nicely - a good, hearty dish for a cold, damp night.

[Robin Garr]

Mushroom paprikash with red peppers, onions and garlic, lots of paprika and organic sour cream.

We are having a white bean, kale and carrot soup. A salad with romaine, celery, shrimp with a dressing of mayo, fresh lemon juice and horseradish.

I had a pound of okra and a pound of shrimp so I made a big pot of shrimp gumbo. It was pretty good but I had to jigger it since the recipe I was following didn't include onion or bell pepper. I added a leek and some yellow bell pepper. And some hot sauce and sausage.

Tonight it is grilled, marinated flank steak, raviolis with home made marinara, with a spinach salad

[Jenise]

Lunch today was a homemade tomato bisque with canapes of avocado on multi-grain toast.

Dinner is going to be at Bellingham's most unusual restaurant called Ciao Thyme. Though they began as a caterer, and they still do cater, they are also an "occasional" restaurant because they do one or two dinners a month called Incognito as well as put on a number of classes. All the cooking and plating is done within full view of the diners who are close enough to interact with all the chefs. Seating is at long community tables, and we always make new friends.

http://ciaothyme.com/events

I browned and seasoned well, a beautiful chuck roast, then browned medium onions cut in half on both sides, then carrots. All this goes in a large, round Le Creuset; then I poured home made beef stock and red wine about half way up the meat, threw in fresh rosemary, French and English thyme sprigs. This will cook at 275° for three to four hours. Two sides; truffle butter mashed potatoes and sautéed Tatchoi from our garden. Our house should smell wonderful when I start cooking this and it sounded perfect for our snowy, cold, rainy, hail kind of day.

[Robin Garr]

Bihari green beans masala, with browned onions, garlic and ginger, coconut milk and Indian spices.