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The Ten Most Recent Posts By dbcurrie
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, April 28, 2008 at 1:08 AM
What odd things have you tried that worked?
Here's my latest: I was planning on baking some bread, not unusual since I bake almost all the bread we use. But when I opened the fridge to grab the jar of yeast, I spied the leftover refried black beans, and thought, "hmmmm, I wonder what that would do in bread?"
And yes, I dumped the beans into the bread dough. And yes, it was a success. The flavor was subtle and I doubt anyone would guess what was added, but it was good.
So -- what crazy things have you done -- by accident or on purpose -- that actually worked out well?
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, April 27, 2008 at 1:16 AM
A friend gifted me with a whole lot of lemons, and although I love lemon, I'm thinking that I ought to start considering how I'm going to use or preserve these things.
I don't want to make lemoncello. I was thinking that I could simply juice them and freeze the juice in cubes.
Anybody got any other ideas?
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, April 7, 2008 at 11:06 PM
Do you have an ingredient -- a spice, herb, aromatic -- that tends to creep into every meal you make? For example, do you feel like your meals aren't tasty enough unless there's jalepeno involved? Or is there some herb you can't live without?
Do you know people who take this to an extreme? Would you like to pick them up and shake them and tell them that there can be mashed potatoes without garlic, and that basil isn't one of the four food groups? Do you know someone who puts hot sauce on everything to the point that you wonder why they bother with any other flavors?
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, March 29, 2008 at 12:31 AM
What foods do you like plain, or nearly so?
I really like most veggies with mimimal additions. Asparagus, simply steamed, is wonderful. Broccoli or cauliflower, the same. Maybe a little butter, but not required. I adore red potatoes. steamed in their skins, then peeled and eaten with just a tiny sprinking of salt. Tomatoes, plain or with just a teeny bit of salt are wonderful.
Of course, sometimes I'll change things up a bit, but it's not unusual for me to serve veggies that are very, very plain. Mmmmm...veggies!
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, March 29, 2008 at 12:02 AM
For example, a woman was reading the nutrition label on a bottle of olive oil, and I heard her gasp and put it down as though it bit her, as she commented "All the calories are from FAT!"
Another time, a woman was telling her daughter how to pick a good bunch of broccoli, and the ones she was telling her were the best were the ones where the flowers were just about to open, rather than looking for the ones with tiny, tight buds.
Or, a woman explaining that you couldn't eat her leftover turkey stuffing cold the next day because it had pork sausage in it, and "you can't eat pork cold, or you'll get sick."
Or the woman at the farmer's market who was complaining about the potatoes at a certain booth because they still had dirt on them.
Have you heard any interesting food comments that made you just shake your head in puzzlement -- or amusement?
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, March 26, 2008 at 6:57 PM
I've been looking for Romanesco broccoli ever since I first saw it on TV. Not looking terribly hard, to the point where I'm thinking about ordering online, but I keep an eye out for it when I'm shopping. It looks interesting.
Imagine my surprise when I was at the local chain grocery store and I was walking past the cauliflower display...and lately they've begun stocking cauliflower in purple, gold and green as well as white...and I noticed that the green stuff had a different pattern to it. A closer look, and yes, this isn't the roundish variety, this is the pointy spiral Romanesco...it was a fairly small head, and the points weren't as pronounced as some I've seen photos of, but these are definately not the usual. It was labeled "brocoflower" with the same price as all the other variants.
It's possible what I got is actually a cross and not a true Romanesco, but I was happy to find it. At least this is close. Maybe later I'll find more of them, with even nicer peaks and spirals.
Yes, this isn't as exciting as finding a truffle in the portobellos, but it was a nice surprise.
You find anything interesting at the grocery lately?
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, March 10, 2008 at 12:37 AM
I finally found -- and bought -- Spanish chorizo, so I made paella. For the first time ever. Used a recipe from Daisy Martinez. Mostly. Since fresh mussels are unheard-of around here, I skipped the mussels and clams and used sausage, chicken and shrimp. And I arborio rice.
It was okay. Just okay. Not great. After wanting to make paella for so long, and after having people tell me how great it was -- it was underwhelming. And I wasn't all that crazy about the sausage. But it's not like I could be choosy about brands. This was the first time I found chorizo that wasn't the mexican style.
Of course this is the kind of dish where there are billions of recipes, and believe me, I looked at a lot of them...and apparently didn't make a great choice.
So, does anyone have a paella recipe that they've tried, and that will knock my socks off? I'll buy the sausage again, if it's required for flavoring, but if you've got an easier to find substitution, I'm all for that.
As for seafood, like I said, fresh seafood is just about impossible. So if we can go with frozen shrimp and/or scallops (or no seafood) that's going to be a lot more doable that trying to find mussels and clams that scare me when I see them in the store.
Oh yeah. I don't have a paella pan. I used a Calphalon everyday pan, which is sort of close to the right shape. If I absolutely NEED a paella pan to make this work, I'll buy one.
Sigh. I love rice. I love shrimp. I love chicken. I didn't love this paella.
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, March 8, 2008 at 3:49 PM
The "things I never buy" thread got me thinking about things I despise on their own, but sometimes I'll buy them for a particular recipe. Like margarine. I never, ever buy it, and I'd rather eat dry toast than with margarine. I'd never use it as a substitute for butter. Bu I do have a bread recipe that uses margarine and it's not the same with anything else. So sometimes I buy margarine just for that recipe.
I hate rolled oats and instant oatmeal (I love the steel cut) but sometimes I'll buy rolled oats for oatmeal cookies or other recipes.
Instant pudding? Not a big fan. I can't imagine how I'd ever serve it on its own. But I have an ice cream recipe that uses instant French Vanilla pudding in the base, and my FIL absolutely loves it.
Jell-o? Always hated it, always will. But I wouldn't object to using it in a recipe if someone I trusted told me that it was fabulous. Seems to me I used to use it for something...but I don't recall what it was.
What about you?
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, March 8, 2008 at 12:23 AM
You're hungry, but you've got no time to cook...or maybe it's just too close to mealtime to indulge in anything big. You just want a little something to stave off the hunger. You want a little snack. A little handful of something that you can nosh on. What is it that you always have on hand that you're most likely to reach for?
Me, the number one snack would be breadsticks. And I think I'm addicted to sesame seeds, so that's usually what I make. Sometimes they're cheesy or herby, but there are usually some sesame ones in there. I can grab a couple breadsticks and walk out the door, or sit at the computer and crunch on them.
If I'm hungrier, or the next meal is a little farther away, I might grab a handful of nuts.
You?
From Talk
Posted by dbcurrie, March 5, 2008 at 1:28 AM
I went on a shopping excursion and came home with buffalo mozzarela. We had some tonight, sliced, with some tomatoes, olive oil...
I'd like to use it as a topping over something I cook tomorrow, so it gets all melty an brown. I was thinking maybe pasta, or maybe some sort of veggie thing topped with cheese.
Maybe layered zuccini, roasted red peppers, onion, ??? other cheese in the middle. Maybe some tomato sauce in there, breadcrumbs??? And then topped with the mozz and baked.
Or a real recipe would be good.
I dunno. Any ideas? I don't want it to sit around too long and get funky.
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