Maggie Mariolis's Profile

Farrotto With Acorn Squash and Red Russian Kale From 'Heritage'

@jstew52 Thanks for pointing that out! It's been corrected.

@TimedEating Interesting question! I've never done a comparison, but sounds like it's worth looking into...

Farrotto With Acorn Squash and Red Russian Kale From 'Heritage'

@Pete's Eats I absolutely agree! However, between when I received the book and the deadline for testing, there just wasn't time to wait for their awesome products to be shipped. Though it speaks to the quality of the recipes that the final dishes still turned out delicious, I have no doubt that everything would have been that much better with Anson Mills grains!

Zucchini "Baba Ghanoush" From 'Plenty More'

Oh geez, earworm, you're right! Earwigs are disgusting! Wow, my bad! :/

Rice Salad With Nuts and Sour Cherries From 'Plenty More'

@mraum You can actually often find them at major grocery stores, and Whole Foods/health food stores are a safe bet, too.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Pomelo and Star Anise From 'Plenty More'

@Historical Art Fox The syrup you could make a week or more in advance, but I wouldn't marinate the citrus for longer than overnight (and I'd be somewhat afraid it may get too sweet at that). You could blanch the sprouts and shallots the day before, and roast them a couple of hours ahead of time, leaving them at room temp. Dress to serve.

@VeganWithaYoYo Yup, just a naughty way of saying supréme :)

Zucchini "Baba Ghanoush" From 'Plenty More'

Yuck, sorry about that! I was thinking more of a musical earwig than a literal, creepy-crawly one. Yes, reference to (non-edible) bugs will be 86'd, though I reserve the right to use the word 'funky'.

Lentil Bolognaise From 'Eat: The Little Book of Fast Food'

Thanks, @ Caml3, for stickin' up for me!

Yup, Slater calls it 'bolognaise,' and it's his dish, so 'bolognaise' it is. As for the annoying it's/its, what can I say? Alas, human error strikes again!

Mushroom Soup and Pasta Bake From 'Jamie Oliver's Comfort Food'

@Disgraceland Sorry about that! The recipe was missing the bouillon cubes from the ingredient list. Thanks for the catch!!

Grilled Shrimp With New Orleans-Style Barbecue Sauce From 'The Big-Flavor Grill'

@Argol I'm with you on the beer/wine, actually :)

@rylchavez Good question! I'm copying and pasting my response from the same question on a different post:
They recommend a two-level fire for all their recipes. They like to leave an area without coals so that there is a safe spot to move the food in case of the inevitable flare-up.
In their words, "We recommend that you always make a two-level fire. It's no more work, and even if you are planning to cook your food right over the coals the whole time, you never know—fires are unpredictable, and it might turn out that one of your steaks cooks faster than others and needs to be moved off the coals to finish up. Even more importantly, having an area with no coals allows you to deal with flare-ups in the proper manner."

Grilled Orange-Glazed Baby Back Ribs With Chile-Peanut Dust From 'The Big-Flavor Grill'

Good questions everybody—I should have addressed these in the review!

@erixmax They recommend a two-level fire for all their recipes. They like to leave an area without coals so that there is a safe spot to move the food in case of the inevitable flare-up.
In their words, "We recommend that you always make a two-level fire. It's no more work, and even if you are planning to cook your food right over the coals the whole time, you never know—fires are unpredictable, and it might turn out that one of your steaks cooks faster than others and needs to be moved off the coals to finish up. Even more importantly, having an area with no coals allows you to deal with flare-ups in the proper manner."

@fritzmd and @RobertaJ and @everybodyelsewhorightfullyquestionsthiscookingtime
I was extremely skeptical about this super-short cooking time, as well! But, surprisingly, the ribs were fairly tender. Not 'fall-off-the-bone' tender, but more than passingly so. They had a little more chew to them than you'd get with slow cooking, but not enough to be distasteful or to turn me off of 20-minute ribs! My baby backs had a particularly meaty end, which I had to leave over the coals for an extra 6-7 minutes to cook through, while I moved the rest of the rack over the cool side of the grill (thanks, two-level fire). Again, in their words, "Nestled under the loin muscle higher up on the hog's rib cage than spareribs, [baby backs] are not only smaller, but the meat is also leaner and considerably more tender...This means that, instead of needing to be cooked for hours over indirect heat like barbecued ribs, these little guys can be cooked directly over the coals in about twenty minutes or so."

Popeyes-Style Buttermilk Biscuits From 'Fried & True'

@dFresh We actually print the recipes exactly as they appear in the book for this column. It was my silly mistake to originally refer to the weight as metric (which I've since corrected). I do know the difference between ounces and grams, I promise!

Tomato Tart From 'The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook'

@AndTroelstein I'd make it beforehand and crisp it up when you get there, unless you have a way of transporting very well-chilled. You don't want the butter in the pastry to get too soft before baking, or you won't get the flakey layers. Hope it's a hit!

Fiery Fruit & Quinoa Salad From 'Salad Samurai'

Sorry about that! The link to the dressing is in the ingredient list now!

Pesto Chango: Try This Simple Tarragon Pesto on Potato Salad

Daniel, I want to eat this immediately!! :)

Chinese Barbecue Pork From 'The Meat Hook Meat Book'

@santiago Cardona No, I removed the skin before slicing the belly.

Chinese Barbecue Pork From 'The Meat Hook Meat Book'

@Ravenous! You are right, the timing was problematic, but the results of all the recipes from this book were truly delicious (even the chili, which was so good, but just too rich for a bowlful)! While we definitely want to share recipes that you should want to make, for Cook the Book specifically, I test recipes from cookbooks about which we think our readers may be curious. If the recipes have issues, I want to be honest about what they are so that you can be adequately informed whether you are making the recipe or buying the book. Frankly, and maybe surprisingly, it's the rare cookbook whose every recipe works flawlessly as written.

Smoked Bacon Rub From 'Pitt Cue and Co.: The Cookbook'

@Cassandra Jane We've corrected it to read '1/2 cup.' Thanks for the catch!

Whole Spicy Smoked Roast Chicken From 'Pitt Cue Co.: The Cookbook'

@oliverstanding I'm sure it would be delicious oven-roasted; the rub would supply a ton of kick on its own. However, the phenomenal flavor that the smoking gives the meat would be missing.

@guy Hmm, just maybe I will... ;)

Hog Mac 'n' Cheese From 'Pitt Cue and Co.: The Cookbook'

@st3ver The Americanized version, converted from metric, was released here in June. In that version, the recipe calls for 1 pound 2 ounces. Thanks for clearing up how that happened!

Crispy Pickled Shiitake From 'Pitt Cue Co.: The Cookbook'

@SiliconValleyGeek
Check out Monday's post (link) about the book and tell us your favorite food to grill in the comments section (we randomly pick 5 winners at the end of the week). Good luck!

Whole Spicy Smoked Roast Chicken From 'Pitt Cue Co.: The Cookbook'

@davmarti
I found this chipotle paste at a couple of Whole Foods here in New Orleans: link

And I admit that I ended up just using this not-roasted garlic paste because I had trouble finding the roasted variety myself, and I was pressed for time: link

However, roasting your own garlic is a very simple proposition. The first step of this recipe details the process: link. Then just mash with a little olive oil and salt, and voila, paste!

Beef Ribs From 'Pitt Cue Co.: The Cookbook'

@TheRealpoppy That's a great tip - thanks!

Beef Ribs From 'Pitt Cue Co.: The Cookbook'

@ryuthrowstuff
The Pitt Cue guys say in the intro to this recipe: "Our ribs come from grass-fed, rare-breed rib-eyes that are kept on the bone for at least 4 weeks, and are hung a further week or so after being removed from the rib-eye, which dries them out a little. The rack, 4 to 6 bones in length, should be stiff, firm, and have a distinctive sweet, nutty aroma. Try to avoid ribs from the wing rib—the ribs flatten out toward the sirloin, are generally cut longer, and contain less intercostal meat."
I had to take what I could get, and the rack I smoked was probably from the wing rib, and was still a little tough after 6 hours, though fairly meaty and really tasty. Aaaand here's where I tell you to go make friends with a butcher. An experienced one might be able to get you the right cut - if not meet the specifics of aging. :)

Beef Ribs From 'Pitt Cue Co.: The Cookbook'

@Traub Click on '5 copies' in the giveaway announcement above, and it will take you to the primary post about Pitt Cue. Tell us your favorite food to grill in the comments section on that post, and we'll randomly pick 5 winners at the end of the week. Thanks!

House Rub From 'Pitt Cue Co.: The Cookbook'

@pfooti Good catch! Sorry about that - it's been corrected to read "1/4 cup..." Thanks!