Southern style buttermilk biscuits are in the oven, I hope they turn out good! Update: They seem pretty tasty, the bottoms feel a little scorched, but they're tasty to me. Now, to see if they meet approval by the other half, as to whether they're good enough for Xmas dinner.
shift6 what do you use to make that peppermint bark? If I am be so bold to ask you to be specific, like what brand of ingredients, etc.
Holiday Baking Extravaganza Part 6b takes place tonight. Making the orange-chocolate chip cookies again. Much harder to screw those up. I might not do the baking next year.
Oh, I made some biscotti yesterday (good) and some shortbread that goes into a molded pan. That was less good seeing as how the whole point is to look pretty and they did not look pretty.
Please, be bold. This is the cooking thread after all! I'll post the details later with pics and such once I've made it.
I remembered! I got this recipe through one of those high end instructional classes where you're taught how to cook several fancy dishes by professional chefs and then get to eat them. The recipe is theirs (though less verbose) the notes are my own. Miso Broth 3/4 cup white miso 6 cups water 1/4 soy sauce 1 Tbsp sambal oeleck Combine all and simmer gently. Notes: I usually substitute the miso and water with vegetable stock. I also find that 6 cups tends to be a bit much and usually just use a liter (quart) of stock, if I find the risotto is still a little firm I'll just use hot water for the liquid (the horror!!). Risotto: 1/4 cup canola oil 1 medium onion, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 Tbsp fresh ginger, minced 2 Tbsp sesame oil (I forgot this above I think) 1 1/2 cups arborio rice 1 cup dry white wine 1 cup dried sliced shiitake mushrooms 4 green onions 1/4 cilantro, chopped salt and pepper to taste Heat canola oil, add onions, ginger, garlic and sesame oil, saute for 5 minutes or until onions are soft. Add rice, stir constantly until translucent. Deglaze with white wine. Add miso broth one cup at a time until liquid is absorbed, repeat until all broth is used. Add tofu (recipe follows) green onions and cilantro just before serving. Notes: If I'm using dried mushrooms I usually reconstitute them in the broth and then just add them in as I add the broth. If I'm using fresh (which I prefer) I'll saute them in the early part of the risotto (with the onion, garlic, etc.). I'll often skip the green onion and cilantro if I don't have them available, they aren't necessary. I also usually saute the onions on their own for a bit as the other ingredients don't take quite so long, and I season the onions with salt and pepper while sauteing. Spicy Tofu 1 block firm tofu, cubed 2 Tbsp sesame oil 2 Tbsp canola oil 1 Tbsp ginger, minced 1/2 Tbsp garlic, minced 2 tsp 5-spice powder 1 tsp curry powder 1 Tbsp sambal oeleck Combine all ingredients in a bowl and ensure tofu is well coated. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes. Notes: the baking time varies considerably for the tofu. It depends on the size of the cubes and how much liquid is in them. For us it usually takes quite a bit longer, ideally you want a slight crust on the outside with a soft middle. It's notoriously difficult as each cube tends to vary in size and liquid content. I tend to err on the squishier side (which still usually takes longer than 20 minutes) as they can turn quite hard if you overcook them. This is absolutely delicious with a nice kick to it. It also comes out very dark due to the soy sauce which gives it an interesting look. I also have a great smoked salmon risotto that I make which is quite simple. Saute some onions in veg. oil and season with some salt and pepper for about 5 minutes. Add a clove of garlic and 1 1/2 cups arborio rice, stir until translucent. Deglaze with white wine. Add about a liter of vegetable stock a couple of ladlefuls at a time until aborbed, stirring constantly. Once the risotto is done add in some chopped smoke salmon (about 150-200 grams), some cream cheese (about a 1/4 cup) and some lemon juice. Make sure the cream cheese is thoroughly combined and serve. The key is to balance the lemon and cream cheese, you don't want it too sour or too rich. I've thought about putting some dill in the last time but didn't have any, I think it should go well as it compliments all the other flavours.
What did I have for dinner tonight? Sushi and chai tea. Ingredients: Sushi rice (with proper preparations), mysterious fish stick things, avocado, cucumber, cream cheese, and seaweed. Not too bad for my second attempt making it. (The first time was an aesthetic disaster since I tried to roll it without a bamboo mat and cut it with a dull knife.) I'd like to make some nigirizushi someday but I'm wary of working with raw fish. Does anyone else have experience with this? (If not I'll just do my own research.)
I've rolled sushi (both with bamboo mats and doing hand-rolled 'cones'), but I've never used anything raw. Always the imitation crab or pre-cooked shrimp or things like that. The only way I'd trust doing it myself is getting the fish SUPER fresh, as in, caught and cut up that day. The longer it sits, the more risk you'll get with food-borne illness, and I have no idea where the line is between safe and not safe other than never eating leftovers unless it's been cooked previously.
Awesome, thank you ! Now I only have to wait until I can get Shiitake here again - next to impossible in the city I live in. But I wanted to visit friends in January anyways...mmmhhh...
In honour of the season I made a traditional Swedish dish called Janssons Frestelse. You need: potatoes, lots, firm ones, not mealy ones. onions, one, cream, 1/4 l, ansjovis, one tin, [It has come to my attention that what Swedes call Ansjovis is, despite close linguistic similarities, not in any way similar to the Anchovies that foreigners eat. Get a swedish tin, or look for pickled herring as that's the closest similar type of fish] butter, as much as you need Slice onions and cook them in a pot on low heat with some butter until they're soft. Not brown. Soft. Slice potatoes into finger-sized chunks (Brits would call them chips) and stick them in the oven in a spare bowl on 150C. Open the tin. Optionally slice your ansjovis in half. Do not throw away the liquid in the tin. In 15-ish minutes your onions should be soft and your potatoes warm. Cover the bottom of a deep oven-friendly pot with your potatoes. Put anchovies and onion on top of the potatoes, then cover it all with the rest of your potatoes. Make sure you have enough potatoes. Pour cream and the ansjovis liquid on top of the potatoes. You want enough cream that the potatoes are just barely seen sticking out over the surface. Add some white pepper. Cover the dish with a thin layer of dried bread crumbs and put a couple of chunks of butter on top of there to make sure it gets a nice golden brown crisp. Breadcrumbs are optional but make it more presentable. Important with a dish that is otherwise prone to looking rather unappetizing. Cook in oven at 150C for an hour, the potatoes should be soft without falling apart. The end result looks like this. If I had a better camera and some foresight I'd have used my own picture but, alas, a stock photo will have to do. I took a recipe for four and halved it, but it's still ridiculously rich. It's delicious and so simple to make. Caveat. Get swedish Ansjovis. Anchovies are not the same and I cannot be held responsible for the results if you use them. I use Grebbestads.
Using a plastic wrapped bamboo mat is my preferred way to roll sushi for two reasons. The first is it is pretty easy and the paper (or rice) don't stick to anything and the second is you do not get food particles stuck in the mat and increasing the chances of food borne illness. Working with raw fish is pretty simple really. Follow the basic storage and cross contamination rules and it is as safe as anything eaten raw. The real key to buying raw fish for nigiri use is to make sure it is "sushi grade" fish. Unless you live on the coast your fish will probably be frozen, which is fine. Many Asian food stores sell vacuum packed salmon and tuna that meets the criteria to be consumed raw. I would highly recommend finding a good fish monger or quality Asian food store for this. The fish itself should not smell "fishy" but more like salt water or the ocean. The flesh for tuna will be a vibrant pink color (do not get the blood line), and salmon will be a rich peach color. There should also be a good amount of spring in the flesh, in that if you press it it will bounce back. If your finger press stays for a few seconds it is bad fish (clearly cannot do this with frozen). Lastly it will probably be pretty pricey, I cannot remember what we pay per pound, but somewhere around $17-$25 per pound seems about right. When making them make sure you have the sharpest knife possible that is also very slim. Having a "hollow edge" or granton pattern is even better when slicing raw fish since it will reduce friction on the blade and give you a clean cut. Unless you have a knife made for slicing sashimi (a good one is probably $150 or more) I would recommend using either a filet knife or a long meat slicer. Lastly, use a long smooth motion and let the blade do the work, sawing at any meat (fish especially) is bad for the overall presentation and is very likely to tear the fish since it is cut so thin.
Huh. I never knew that, but apparently you are right. Anjovies are not actually anchovies, but rather cured sprats (and they are also apparently cured differently). Swedes do eat real anchovies, but call them something different. Why you have to make everything so confusing, Sweden?! I won't even get into the Byzantine complexity that is buying/importing alcohol in Sweden. I was originally thinking of sending Kalle some beer for his Secret Santa gift, but I very quickly abandoned that endeavor. MADNESS.
I had planned to do moar candying tonight but physics, plus returning some broke shit to Target took forever. So here's what the office is getting tomorrow. Peanut butter cheese fudge. (recipe) Yeah, that's two fucking pounds of powdered sugar, two sticks of butter, and half a pound of Velveeta. Get mad you sons of bitches! Then I decided to do different varieties of candied bacon. That's regular (brown sugar + cinnamon), honey, peanut butter, molasses, and maple syrup. The last batch was in a bit long because I was here on BF reading your guys' goddamn funny posts in the CHICK thread so they got a bit crispy but hey I now know for sure that the smoke alarm works. By the way: molasses candied bacon is, I believe, going to change everything. See you guys in the future!
My cousin and I have taken to making candied bacon for parties; we do it with brown sugar + cayenne pepper. So amazing!
So, as I mentioned before, I made some buttermilk biscuits. These were deemed decent by my SO, but he was actually hankering for some yeast rolls. /gulp Now, my mom is an excellent baker and I learned a lot from her, but she never made yeast-oriented breads. I've always wanted to try, and I have a dough hook on my stand mixer, so what the hell. I'm using this recipe from Deep South cooking (as their biscuit recipe was very tasty) and the dough is currently rising.
Be not afraid of your yeasty friends. They live among us, in the air, and are ready to assist you in adding inches to your waistband. You'll be okay. Just let it double in volume before you shape, then let it get nice and puffy and toss it in the oven. There's all kinds of nonsense about proofing in a steamy oven or arguing over what yeast is superior, but for rolls it's pretty straightforward. Make sure your water is warm enough to wake up the yeast (instant goes straight in with everything else, active dry gets a little warm-up before adding), mix stuff together, let dough hook do all the work for 5-6 minutes, let rise, shape, let rise again, bake, be amazed. Only other thing is maybe consider brushing with a little melted butter when they come out of the oven. Depending on the roll, it adds a nice soft brown top and makes them just that tiny little bit more bad for you.
Thanks! My intimidation level is why I decided to do a test run today, to see if I could make them, and if they were what my SO was looking for. If this is successful, I plan on repeating this feat on Xmas day.
Just a few recommendations. My family seems to enjoy these, and they get raves when I take them to the in-laws. White Dinner Rolls Honey Wheat Dinner Rolls Parker House Rolls Yes, I'm a King Arthur whore. Don't care.
I mentioned awhile back (maybe this was just on IRC!) that I was going to make my first Christmas cake this year and well, I've done it, using this recipe from one of our most popular NZ cooks, Dame Alison Holst. While I was mentally prepared for both how long it takes to bake and the weight of ingredients that go into it, I'm still sort of surprised at how heavy the damn thing is (that's what, 2.5kg of ingredients, basically?) and that three and half hours is a hell of a long time to bake something, especially we you start at 8.30pm. And of course, after it's made my Mum pipes up with all sorts of useful advice about covering the top with tinfoil for the last hour so it doesn't burn/dry out and adding rum via small holes in the top (waste of rum, if you ask me). Thanks Mum! :) THEN - DISASTER. Ok, maybe no so much, but Nic iced it (almond icing + fondant being compulsory, according to her) and FORGOT TO FLIP IT OVER. So now the top is more of a delightful snowscape than a perfectly flat award winner as I was hoping for. Now it's just fingers crossed that it's stays nice and moist for Christmas day, which we're hosting lunch for at our place. We cheat with sushi with one of these. The results are damn good though.
My (in)famous crab enchiladas! I think it's time we blow this scene Get everybody and the stuff together 8 oz crab meat 1/2 cup corn 4 oz cream cheese 1 onion 3 green onions 1/2 cup shredded cheese tortillas 3-2-1 let's jam Preheat your oven to 350. I have an advantage here since I just got done making lemon bars and my oven's already at 350. EFFICIENCY. Step 1: Dice your onion. ... Very funny. DICE YOUR ONION. The green ones too. THE DREAD CHEF WOBBUTS WEAVES NO SURVIVORS! Throw in your corn. Not literally unless you have a really big bowl because then corn will get everywhere. Make sure you drain the corn first because niblet juice really messes up this recipe. Step [Next Number In Sequence]: Add cheese! This is more of an "eyeball it" step, you can use whatever kind of cheese you want, and however much if you like your enchiladas really cheesy or just kinda cheesy. I overestimate since I like my enchiladas somewhere between "Mmm, that's good cheese" and "OMG TUNGUSKA-LEVEL QUESO EVENT!". That ain't EVEN all the cheese, boyo. Because you need half a package of cream cheese. NINJA-SAN! CUT THE CHEESE! HUTTAH! Add the crab. At this point you can also add spices. I added cayenne, a red/black pepper mix, and some chili powder. Because I like my enchiladas like I like my women. FULL OF CRABS. Probably a little spicier than the norm. Ladies. Step next: MIX YOUR SHIT. Appetizing, no? Get a big scoop and drop it on a tortilla. Roll it up without folding in the ends. The best way to do this is fold like a third of the tortilla over the filling, pull back until it's squished in, then roll. Watch the dudes and dudettes at Chipotle sometime. Another good tip - heat up your tortillas first so they roll easier. Don't put tortillas in the refrigerator, people. That is an assembly line of goodness. At this point if you like enchilada sauce (I don't!) you can mix up some enchilada sauce and sour cream and pour it over the top. Me, I just prefer more cheese. Bake in the preheated oven (forgot about that, didn't you?) for 20 minutes, then immediately move it under the broiler, switch to BROIL, and crisp up that cheese on top. One or two minutes is fine. BEHOLD THE AWESOME.
YOU MADE THOSE WITHOUT ME??? No forgiveness! Also, where do you buy your crabmeat? All the stores near me only carry the canned stuff.
Flour tortillas in enchiladas? Gross! Otherwise they look good! Pro-tip: my favorite way to soften tortillas is moisten paper towels, stick the tortillas in between, and then zap them in the microwave to up for a minute. Be wary of steam burns, though!
Cosentino's downtown on 13th & Main. They've got the frozen tinned stuff, but also fresh crab (and other seafood) that's flown in 6 days a week.
Last night I made braised oxtail with a sweet potato mash. It was really good, though the oxtail is intensely rich and filling. Today I'm starting my holiday baking. Mostly its just prep work: a giant meringue and some buttercream for the dacquoise. Tomorrow I'll assemble the dacquoise and bake my mini cheesecakes and tres leches.
Now that the Holiday Baking Extravaganza has wrapped up, it's time to plan for Christmas & New Year's dinners. The plan is thus: Christmas Eve dinner: grilled cheese & tomato soup. Nothing gourmet, just basic, comforting, and delicious. Dessert is spiked hot chocolate. Christmas Day breakfast: stuffed cinnamon French toast. I love this because I can put it together the night before, then just toss it in the oven in the morning. It's great because it takes an hour to bake, which is the perfect amount of time for us to open presents while it cooks. Christmas Dinner: Roast pork loin with pan gravy, apple salsa, and stuffing muffins. Dessert is getting purchased from somewhere... which means I should probably go pick that up today. Damn. New Year's Eve: no plans for dinner (it'll be something easy, like pasta), because we're focusing on dessert: mocha fondue! 5 years after buying it, we're going to use our fondue pot! New Year's Day: The Chili (ie, chicken chili with hominy, potatoes, and serrano chiles)
Received a miniature scone pan from my parents as part of my Christmas loot. Tonight, I'm experimenting with (1) cherry-mango scones (was going to do cherry-anise, but didn't have any many cherries as I'd thought) and (2) something involving bacon drippings, because I don't have enough margarine and it's too late to go get any. Will post pictures if they come out well with the second half of my loot (new camera!). And Bailey's fudge. Because mmmmm, boozy fudge.
Since finding out I'm gluten intolerant I have't really done much in the way of holiday cookie baking but I've recently found a baking mix that is very good so I made pecan balls this year. They are amazing! Next year I plan on making lots of cookies!
Maple bacon scones: success! Bailey's fudge: definitely boozy, and never coming out of the pan in anything vaguely resembling coherent pieces. Cherry-mango scones: (edited:) awesome.
