What's Cooking (Take Four)

I'll bet your house smells GREAT!

Yes, it did!

My French cooking group on Facebook is having a challenge this week to use apples in a savory way.

For next time: Guinea Hen Normande. Basically roast chicken in a pot but using calvados, apples, and cream. Totally works.

This morning shortly after shrugging off my own desire to be involved, something reminded me that a one-off thing I did once involving apples and sourdough in a savory bread pudding, and that when I met Bob his favorite dessert in the world was bread pudding with a whiskey sauce. He's ordered it a number of times in various restaurants since we've been together and I'm not sure he's ever had one he totally loved, but he still thinks of it as his #1.

Savory bread pudding is called "stuffing".

Jenise I love stories like that. Now and then a story pops into my mind. After I read yours, I recalled once when Gene and I were going together and having a steak dinner at our favorite steak house in Eureka, and typical of me, I loved the loaded baked potatoes more than the steak, I never finished the steak but always got a go-to bag so I could have it for lunch the next day. Gene looked at me and said, "You should finish your steak, it's expensive." I was feisty and knew the type of guy I wanted to marry. I said, " Here is lesson number one for you to learn...do not tell me what to eat or do, I am a grown-up woman and do what I feel is right for me." He said, "Yes mam" Gene and his dad owned a butcher shop and locker storage where folks could store their frozen meat in those days.. I grew up eating fish, chicken, and rabbit, and lots of veggie soups. Hardly any beef.

[Jenise]

Good luck, Larry. So in the meantime you'll feel that weird stud in your mouth? Ugh.

Last night's dinner was fantastic. The apple sourdough pudds were to die for. I did three layers of bread and two layers of sliced apples in large muffin tins. The pour-over was eggs, cream, chicken broth and peach nectar from some deluxe canned peaches we had last weekend. No other salt or sugar added. The 'gravy' had Rittenhouse Rye in it. Just terrific.

Yesterday at the Thai grocery I got a 2-pound package of very fresh rice noodle sheets (ho fun). These are soft and pliable even when cold and I had no problem getting them unfolded without breaking. So tonight I'm making Cantonese beef chow fun using half of them. The other half will become Thai mahogany fire noodles. I don't see good quality ho fun around here very often.

-Paul W.

Good luck, Larry. So in the meantime you'll feel that weird stud in your mouth? Ugh.

Tongue doesn't feel much of anything. The stud is pretty much below the gum line. No problem, no ughs.

The beef chow fun was excellent and easy to make. The only tricky bit was unfolding the rice noodle sheets. Better than what our local Chinese restaurant can do, but alas, missing that wok breath nuance. Cooking indoors I just can't get the wok hot enough. It's too cold now to cook it outdoors on the 100,000 BTU gas ring, but I'll be trying that in the spring.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Paul, beef chow fun is one of my very favorite things. I've never tried to make it at home--not that I couldn't, I realize it's not all that hard. It's just not something I've tried. The right fresh noodles would, of course, be requisite.

You can make beef chow fun from dried rice noodles but it's just not the same. If you have to work from ho fun noodle sheets, make sure that they are pliable or they'll crack when you try to unfold them. I have a couple of recipes for making ho fun from scratch but I've never tried it. You mix up a batter, pour it in a flat pan, steam it until it sets, then peel the noodle sheet from the pan.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Rather buy them. The batter would be easy enough for steaming a flat pan? Not in my kitchen.

The batter would be easy enough for steaming a flat pan? Not in my kitchen.

The traditional way this is done in China is to use a cake pan perched over boiling water in a wok. 8"x8" non-stick cake pans would work well.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Savory bread pudding is called "stuffing".

No sir! Stuffing is or can be a form of bread pudding, but stuffing doesn't usually include a custard where bread puddings most certainly do. My little individual puddings were definitely not stuffing.

Today, I am making shrimp, scallops, sundried tomato, white wine, clam juice, lemon zest, and juice with thin spaghetti. Fresh basil is added in at the finish. This is one of my favorite recipes, and I am looking forward to it as I have not had pasta in a while. I will have green salad, with cukes, mandarin orange wedges, and a citrus vinaigrette. Yesterday I made a pot of Ayocoto Morado Beans, seasoned with bay leaves, fresh garlic, salt, shallot pepper, and a splash of juice from Bruno's Wax Beans. They are yummy. I like having beans for lunch on cold days.

[Jenise]

Sounds delish. Tonight I'll be braising beef shanks, two thick slices. Recently Karen mentioned making beef shanks and I commented that I never see them here. That's still true--I bought mine in Canada.

I've started on a raisin-walnut bread. We'll see.

I used a Peter Reinhart recipe, and the bread turned out quite wonderfully.

[Jenise]

Jenise I love stories like that. Now and then a story pops into my mind. After I read yours, I recalled once when Gene and I were going together and having a steak dinner at our favorite steak house in Eureka, and typical of me, I loved the loaded baked potatoes more than the steak, I never finished the steak but always got a go-to bag so I could have it for lunch the next day. Gene looked at me and said, "You should finish your steak, it's expensive." I was feisty and knew the type of guy I wanted to marry. I said, " Here is lesson number one for you to learn...do not tell me what to eat or do, I am a grown-up woman and do what I feel is right for me." He said, "Yes mam" Gene and his dad owned a butcher shop and locker storage where folks could store their frozen meat in those days.. I grew up eating fish, chicken, and rabbit, and lots of veggie soups. Hardly any beef.

Karen, sorry I missed this the first time around. Made me laugh, I can just picture you setting Gene straight. And I know you, like me, think nothing that goes into a doggie bag is ever wasted.

Dinner plan for tonight: veal bolognese. To entertain myself, I'm going to not do it my usual way but look up and use another recipe (none specific in mind).

I made carrot soup last night. Simple recipe, but good.

I made carrot soup last night. Simple recipe, but good.

I've always liked the KISS method of cooking, and I have learned how to delete many steps. Julia
Child and the well-known chef from the French Laundry have so many steps in their recipes, makes me tired just reading. I have both books and refer to them now and then, but I still tweak them.

I made carrot soup last night. Simple recipe, but good.

I've always liked the KISS method of cooking, and I have learned how to delete many steps. Julia
Child and the well-known chef from the French Laundry have so many steps in their recipes, makes me tired just reading. I have both books and refer to them now and then, but I still tweak them.

I have not read the FL book exactly because he is famous for being fidgety and I've heard the recipes all take a long time to make.

I have a happier view of Julia's works. I think she felt the need to teach technique, as well as to write the recipe, so I am fine to skip over 'how to peel a pearl onion' when I see it for the 20th time.

[quote="Jeff Grossman"I have a happier view of Julia's works. I think she felt the need to teach technique, as well as to write the recipe, so I am fine to skip over 'how to peel a pearl onion' when I see it for the 20th time.[/quote]

I finally learned how to quickly peel pearl onions by buying frozen peeled pearl onions in a bag.

I have not read the FL book exactly because he is famous for being fidgety and I've heard the recipes all take a long time to make.

I often tell the story of shortly after we were married Betsy decided to make Keller's butterpoached lobster with pommes maxim. She was hard at work when I got in from work at 5 or 6, I think we ate dinner about 10 (and kitchen looked like a war zone). But it was delicious! Making the beurre monte and poaching lobster was easy part. The potatoes, leek confit, and vegetable brunoise garnish were time consuming. But I think the champ was the beet essence, which took a couple of hours (for a couple of tablespoons to drizzle).
We've done butter poached lobster since, but NEVER beet essence.

... I think the champ was the beet essence, which took a couple of hours (for a couple of tablespoons to drizzle)...

Ha!

One of those things designed for a team of cooks..

I often tell the story of shortly after we were married Betsy decided to make Keller's butterpoached lobster with pommes maxim. She was hard at work when I got in from work at 5 or 6, I think we ate dinner about 10 (and kitchen looked like a war zone). But it was delicious! Making the beurre monte and poaching lobster was easy part. The potatoes, leek confit, and vegetable brunoise garnish were time consuming. But I think the champ was the beet essence, which took a couple of hours (for a couple of tablespoons to drizzle).
We've done butter poached lobster since, but NEVER beet essence.

Yikes, what a story!

Other chefs are also fidgety, it's not just Keller. I recall taking the time to make porcini powder for a supposedly-killer mushroom soup.

Eh.