Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

After few months, I love MacGourmet Deluxe. Handles my recipes & notes, allows me to track meal plans, and I figured out to how use the shopping list feature as a freezer and pantry inventory. Works for me.

It lasts longer than the exp date, just like any "spoiled milk" product -- sour cream, cheese, etc.

But I will vote for Tyler Florence's "Better Buttermilk Biscuits". The trick is to pat out the dough, fold over in thirds as for a letter, pat out again, and fold again. Just be gentle. You get lots of layers and lightness.

Cut the spaghetti squash in half from top to bottom. Scrape out the seeds. Put it cut side down, in a strainer or steamer over water in a large pot. Put on a lid. Bring the water to a boil and steam it until you can pierce the skin.

Let it cook, and use a fork to shred out the "spaghetti", scraping from top to bottom, into a large bowl or casserole.

Sauce as you wish -- plain butter & herbs, & parm, quick tomato sauce, creamy sauce. It's a good background for for lots of things. Great with shrimp or scallops.

Two eggplants hopped home from the farm stand last week. I made one batch of 80% "lean" beef meatballs, and one batch of turkey. My meat mix included 2/3 meat and 1/3 Italian sausage out of casing in each case.

The eggplants were peeled, diced, and boiled for 10 minutes before draining and cooling, and going through the food mill.

Grated Parm, grated onion, smashed garlic, eggs and bread crumbs went in with S&P in each case. A #40 disher was used to portion them, and they get flattened in the fry pan -- turn only once.

Eater in chief has declared these the new "goto meatballs". Now I understand why. Might have to get some of those other ingredients.....

Thanks Kenji!

Use your FP, or knife, and cut them into a chiffonade. Saute with garlic, EVOO, maybe some onions, & seasoning, just like the poster before me. Saute until a little bit browned. Add ins are great.

I grew up eating these as a prized boiled fall veggie, but my cooking style is so different. Grandma doesn't care, as long as it's tasty!

Beef liver, not that gritty grainy calves' liver, is more to my taste.
Remove the outer membrane, and any large veins or arteries.
Soak in a pie plate of milk just to cover. It sweetens the taste.
Season & dust with flour to pan fry.

Or, better yet, toss it on a well oiled grill, especially if the slices are thicker.

Do not cook beyond medium rare.

Caramelized onions & pan fried potatoes, plus veg of choice.
Just made this over the weekend. Yum.

Clean the fridge quiche-- A good pate brisee crust, baked up a bit ahead, and then anything chopped smallish and put into egg custard with a grated cheese topping rocks! Bacon, sauteed mushrooms, carrot & squash strings. Too fine.

We just finished up a yummy Weber Rotissed Perdue chicken. Might be the last of the season. Well, some got put away to make a chicken pot pie later this week. We had mashed potatoes, and squash & carrot strings for sides.

I'm making cheese sauce for leftover pasta, broccoli, and pan fried ham steak. Can you say comfort food for cold weather?

Yesterday it was "Quick Cooker" day -- pressure cooker beef stroganoff over egg noodles, with mixed veg on the side.

New this year at a local farm are Golden Crisps. I've used them in a Polish Apple Cake, and an apple tart. They kept their shape & baked up well.

Here's my formula for pierogie dough:

1 C AP flour
1 egg
water to fill 1/ egg shell
1 T cream cheese
pinch of salt

Make as much as you need in the FP.

Let it sit for 30 min in the fridge, and then roll out and stuff.

I like all kinds of fillings...cabbage, potato, savory & sweet.

Seal well, and boil away.

The most important part is browning them in butter until crisp.

Took and early march on this and made potato pancakes for dinner Thursday night. FP grated potatoes & onion, corn kernels cut off the cob, matzo meal, some flour, eggs, S&P. Fried in veggie oil until nice and crispy. The little tendrels of potato shreds stuck out like spider legs. Cool thought for a Halloween meal!