The best laid plans of Meatballs with Lemon sometimes go awry folks, especially if a good friend offers to treat you to Chinese. Clearly, I chose the Chinese last night and cooked nothing (wince). Tonight, I felt as though I had to produce something from the Spoon, but my schedule didn't allow for much preparation. I foolishly chose Frankfurters with Cabbage, thinking how hard can it be? As I was getting ready to go out the door for my exercise class, I reread the recipe and realized the cabbage had to cook for an hour.
That was when your champion of the kitchen (still me, barely) delegated chopping and simmering cabbage in oil to the boys. Thanks P. and N.! When I came back from said exercise there was 18 minutes to go on the cabbage. I referred back to the SS and noted that it wanted me to boil the hotdogs for 10 minutes. I promptly ignored that direction and fired up my panini press. I butterflied the hotdogs and set them to fry in said panini press while whisking up some low-carb mac and cheese. We eat that too often, I think, but it is so good and a really simple recipe. All it takes is boiling some low carb elbow macaroni, start the sauce with 1/4 cup scoop of sour cream and slowly melt 12 ounces of sharp shredded cheese, then combine the sauce with the drained macaroni. Warning, the previous recipe is not SS related, though is a frequent side dish to many Silver Spoon entrees.
By the time the Mac and Cheese was made, the cabbage was ready. I spooned it out onto a platter, drizzled it with white wine vinegar, then topped it with the panini'ed hot dogs. We were all skeptical about the cabbage, how good could cabbage be simmered in olive oil? Turns out, it's pretty terrific. As the cabbage cooks it gets very sweet and tender. The addition of the vinegar offers a nice sour contrast. Yes, yes Silver Spoon, food should not be instant gratification, slow simmered is worth it, good food takes time. . . .Why is it, I always forget that between recipes, oh well. Coming up tomorrow, Lemony Meatballs or bust!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
A Brief Departure from the 'Spoon: Bonus Entry #1
I know this is totally against my self imposed blog rules, but I have to tell you about a non-SS recipe I tried last night from Darina Allen's Traditional Irish Cooking. You may skip the rest of this entry if you want to remain purely Spoonish.
This is the simplest recipe I've ever done for Corned Beef and truly the most successful. All I did was cover a 4 pound cut of corned beef with cold water,added a tablespoon of dried mustard and six small onions in a sauce pan. I brought the liquid to a boil and then covered it and simmered for two more hours. I then added a cut-up cabbage and simmered for about one hour more. Around the 30 minute mark I threw in some potatoes in a separate pan to boil. When everything was done, I had mouthwateringly tender corned beef in a tasty broth with perfectly cooked cabbage. The onions became a part of the broth more or less. I added kosher salt to the potatoes and plated the whole thing with a pot of whole grain mustard. It was delicious!
I didn't stop there, however, and I probably should have with my impending nuptials pretty much one month away. I tried a recipe for Belgian Waffles that came with our brand new Waffle Maker. This was one of the many generous gifts I got from family friends in CT. (Gifts I shouldn't be using yet, according to ettiquette, please don't tell the wedding police!)
N., my Fiance is a big fan of waffles, I usually hate them. That being said, I wanted to try them the non- bisquik way and see if it made any difference. I started out activating some yeast in 105 degree water. Obtaining water at that particular temperature is a pain in the neck. I finally did so and left it to foam for a few minutes while I aerated the flour.
I mixed the flour and salt together trying to fluff it up as much as possible without a sifter. After doing so I set it aside and separated 3 eggs, I added the yolks to the yeast and then added 1/3 cup sugar and combined. I then added the flour and combined that with the sugar mixture, then beat the egg whites until they were stiff and then folded that in with some oil, vanilla and additional water. Then I let it sit while we had dinner (for about an hour) then I made my fiance make the actual waffles. He was thrilled. The machine was incredible! The waffles were really tasty.
I made a salty carmel sauce to go on top. Very simply, I boiled 1/2 cup of sugar in 1/4 cup of water until it was carmel (about 7 or so minutes). Then I added heavy cream, butter and a healthy teaspoon of kosher salt. P. our new houseguest loved it! He said the salt made all the difference. I thought so too.
To summarize, it turns out I like waffles if made from a fussy recipe that is somewhat challenging. Oh boy, less and less foods I don't like. This cannot be good for my waistline or any part of me for that matter. More positvely, I have found my recipe for corned beef for life. This is it, I will never make it another way again. I have tried corned beef in the slow cooker, and pressure cookers and this preparation was far less salty and more tender. I think maybe, when this whole Spoon thing is over, I might look up Darina Allen's book. I can only imagine what other delicious offerings Traditional Irish Cooking might have.
For now back to the Spoon, tonights plan is Meatballs with Lemon and some Quick Tomato Sauce. I'll probably make some spagetti too, the low carb kind, I swear!
This is the simplest recipe I've ever done for Corned Beef and truly the most successful. All I did was cover a 4 pound cut of corned beef with cold water,added a tablespoon of dried mustard and six small onions in a sauce pan. I brought the liquid to a boil and then covered it and simmered for two more hours. I then added a cut-up cabbage and simmered for about one hour more. Around the 30 minute mark I threw in some potatoes in a separate pan to boil. When everything was done, I had mouthwateringly tender corned beef in a tasty broth with perfectly cooked cabbage. The onions became a part of the broth more or less. I added kosher salt to the potatoes and plated the whole thing with a pot of whole grain mustard. It was delicious!
I didn't stop there, however, and I probably should have with my impending nuptials pretty much one month away. I tried a recipe for Belgian Waffles that came with our brand new Waffle Maker. This was one of the many generous gifts I got from family friends in CT. (Gifts I shouldn't be using yet, according to ettiquette, please don't tell the wedding police!)
N., my Fiance is a big fan of waffles, I usually hate them. That being said, I wanted to try them the non- bisquik way and see if it made any difference. I started out activating some yeast in 105 degree water. Obtaining water at that particular temperature is a pain in the neck. I finally did so and left it to foam for a few minutes while I aerated the flour.
I mixed the flour and salt together trying to fluff it up as much as possible without a sifter. After doing so I set it aside and separated 3 eggs, I added the yolks to the yeast and then added 1/3 cup sugar and combined. I then added the flour and combined that with the sugar mixture, then beat the egg whites until they were stiff and then folded that in with some oil, vanilla and additional water. Then I let it sit while we had dinner (for about an hour) then I made my fiance make the actual waffles. He was thrilled. The machine was incredible! The waffles were really tasty.
I made a salty carmel sauce to go on top. Very simply, I boiled 1/2 cup of sugar in 1/4 cup of water until it was carmel (about 7 or so minutes). Then I added heavy cream, butter and a healthy teaspoon of kosher salt. P. our new houseguest loved it! He said the salt made all the difference. I thought so too.
To summarize, it turns out I like waffles if made from a fussy recipe that is somewhat challenging. Oh boy, less and less foods I don't like. This cannot be good for my waistline or any part of me for that matter. More positvely, I have found my recipe for corned beef for life. This is it, I will never make it another way again. I have tried corned beef in the slow cooker, and pressure cookers and this preparation was far less salty and more tender. I think maybe, when this whole Spoon thing is over, I might look up Darina Allen's book. I can only imagine what other delicious offerings Traditional Irish Cooking might have.
For now back to the Spoon, tonights plan is Meatballs with Lemon and some Quick Tomato Sauce. I'll probably make some spagetti too, the low carb kind, I swear!
Friday, March 12, 2010
The Dirty 30! Hamburgers, Steak, and Roasted Peppers a La Silver Spoon
Hi all! I am very excited to write to you after a week or two break in which I wrote thank you notes to many generous friends instead of writing blogs to twelve 13 (Thanks J!) generous followers. My apologies!
Over the past weeks I haven't been cooking too much either. Too busy with the showering of gifts for my impending nuptials to slave away at the stove, I mostly ate things that my fiance cooked or demanded to go to Bollywood Grille. I did manage to cook a few recipes to share with you for this, my 30th blog entry, and although it might be formulaic, they were pretty, pretty, pretty good!
One of the recipes that made me giggle when first exploring the SS was the recipe for "American Hamburgers." I don't know about you but I didn't really think american style hamburgers required much instruction. All I've ever done to cook burgers in the past is make patties and throw them on the grille. Of course, The Silver Spoon expects a little more effort.
I got started by chopping a small onion as fine as I could. I recently had to say goodbye to my beloved pampered chef version of the "slap chop" contraption. It finally cracked after ten years of abuse. In order to chop the onions up as small as possible I was forced to use a knife. My knife skills just aren't up to snuff but to get the desired reults, I used the ridges of the onion as my guide to slice then chop across in the other direction. It is not as fast as the "slap chop" but not as embarrasing either. I mixed 3.5 cups of ground beef with the onions and added a healthy amount of nana salt and pepper. Then the recipe takes a weird turn by instructing us to add a beaten egg to the meat mixture. I did, and then formed the patties. I grilled them in my new panini press Le Creuset pan for about 5 minutes, removing the press pan and adding pepper jack cheese for the last minute. The burgers were juicy and tender, and had satisfying char lines on them. (Thanks again for the great pan R.!)
Later that week I tried the recipe for Delicate Peppers. This recipe is fussier than the aforementioned burgers and instructs us to first roast several whole peppers in the oven for an hour. I started the roasting process and cleaned some part of my house until the timer went off. Next the peppers had to cool for a few minutes. As soon as they were workable I peeled off the skin, stem, membranes and seeds. I chopped the pepper meat and added it to a pan with onions. The SS then instructs that the peppers and onions should simmer for ten minutes. I complied. Then I added four chopped up, seeded tomatoes and cooked the mixture for twenty additional minutes. Oh Silver Spoon, how you love to cook your vegetables!
About 5 minutes into the process that was Delicate Peppers I readied a pan for, "Steaks with Sage." This was a definite error in timing. The steak recipe takes almost no time to prepare and I would have been better to start it in the last five minutes of the pepper recipe. Oh well, our steaks served as appetizers to the pepper dish. I dredged the steaks in flour, fried them in butter topped with a few whole leaves of sage. It was simple, aromatic and a flavorful treat. When it was all put together the peppers turned out to be more of a sauce than a side vegetable. The two dishes complemented each other very well. I would definitely do the two together again. And there you have it, I am caught up and back on the path to cooking enlightenment. This weekend, chicken with some form of peppers and dinner at J and C's house. I can't wait!
Over the past weeks I haven't been cooking too much either. Too busy with the showering of gifts for my impending nuptials to slave away at the stove, I mostly ate things that my fiance cooked or demanded to go to Bollywood Grille. I did manage to cook a few recipes to share with you for this, my 30th blog entry, and although it might be formulaic, they were pretty, pretty, pretty good!
One of the recipes that made me giggle when first exploring the SS was the recipe for "American Hamburgers." I don't know about you but I didn't really think american style hamburgers required much instruction. All I've ever done to cook burgers in the past is make patties and throw them on the grille. Of course, The Silver Spoon expects a little more effort.
I got started by chopping a small onion as fine as I could. I recently had to say goodbye to my beloved pampered chef version of the "slap chop" contraption. It finally cracked after ten years of abuse. In order to chop the onions up as small as possible I was forced to use a knife. My knife skills just aren't up to snuff but to get the desired reults, I used the ridges of the onion as my guide to slice then chop across in the other direction. It is not as fast as the "slap chop" but not as embarrasing either. I mixed 3.5 cups of ground beef with the onions and added a healthy amount of nana salt and pepper. Then the recipe takes a weird turn by instructing us to add a beaten egg to the meat mixture. I did, and then formed the patties. I grilled them in my new panini press Le Creuset pan for about 5 minutes, removing the press pan and adding pepper jack cheese for the last minute. The burgers were juicy and tender, and had satisfying char lines on them. (Thanks again for the great pan R.!)
Later that week I tried the recipe for Delicate Peppers. This recipe is fussier than the aforementioned burgers and instructs us to first roast several whole peppers in the oven for an hour. I started the roasting process and cleaned some part of my house until the timer went off. Next the peppers had to cool for a few minutes. As soon as they were workable I peeled off the skin, stem, membranes and seeds. I chopped the pepper meat and added it to a pan with onions. The SS then instructs that the peppers and onions should simmer for ten minutes. I complied. Then I added four chopped up, seeded tomatoes and cooked the mixture for twenty additional minutes. Oh Silver Spoon, how you love to cook your vegetables!
About 5 minutes into the process that was Delicate Peppers I readied a pan for, "Steaks with Sage." This was a definite error in timing. The steak recipe takes almost no time to prepare and I would have been better to start it in the last five minutes of the pepper recipe. Oh well, our steaks served as appetizers to the pepper dish. I dredged the steaks in flour, fried them in butter topped with a few whole leaves of sage. It was simple, aromatic and a flavorful treat. When it was all put together the peppers turned out to be more of a sauce than a side vegetable. The two dishes complemented each other very well. I would definitely do the two together again. And there you have it, I am caught up and back on the path to cooking enlightenment. This weekend, chicken with some form of peppers and dinner at J and C's house. I can't wait!
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