09 Thursday Apr 2009
Posted in Bread, Celebrations, Main Dish
Well, the season is upon us. It’s time for our Lamb Dinner and here is how it is shaping up.
Green Salad
Pancetta Wrapped Asparagus with Citronette
Dried Corn
It should really be a fun dinner. And of course, Robin will come up with a great wine! Jerri Nelson, Idaho Hotel, Silver City, Idaho, sent us the recipe for the asparagus, so Robin and I decided to revise the menu for Easter. That dish really looks good.
07 Tuesday Apr 2009
Posted in Recipe By: Robin Young, Recipes
We wanted something different to go with Roast Beef last night. So, to change from the “standard” French Fry type potato, Robin came up with these Sweet Potato Fries. A good sweet change from the “standard”. Enjoy!
2 medium-sized Sweet Potatoes*
2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
½ t Cumin
½ t Oregano
½ t Coriander
1 t Kosher Salt
1 t Parsley
Fresh Ground Pepper (about 10 turns of a pepper mill)
*you want 1lb sweet potatoes after they are peeled, sliced, etc. If you weigh them at the store make sure you have a little more than a pound to allow for the peeling, and tossing of small pieces.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Put the sweet potatoes in a bowl and drizzle the olive oil over them. Use your hands to make sure each one is coated. If you’ve got more than a pound of sweet potatoes, add a little extra olive oil. They should all be glistening.
In a separate bowl, combine all of the herbs and spices. Then sprinkle on the oiled potatoes and continue to toss until well coated.
Place the fries on the baking sheet. It’s very important that they are not touching.
Place cookie sheet in pre-heated oven and set the timer for 15 minutes. Don’t open the oven door, not even for a peak! Let them do their thing.
After 15 minutes take pan of oven and flip the fries. Put the pan in the oven and cook for another 15-20 minutes. Just keep an eye on them. They should be nice and golden brown. Crispy crunchy on the outside, and sweet and soft in the middle. Take them out of the oven and serve immediately. They cool off very quickly so they’re best eaten right away. Serves about 4.
05 Sunday Apr 2009
Posted in Food, Food Prep, Recipe By: Robin Young, Wine Dinners
Scallops and Asian Slaw
Buddy, like Mama Cass, “Singing For His Supper” The Scallops, Sea Scallops, were broiled with salt, pepper, garlic sliced thin, Old Bay Seasoning and Paprika. The slaw was Robin’s and the recipe is listed below. It was super with the scallops. Both were excellent with a 2005 Moscato D’Asti, an Italian bubbly wine, full of fruit and slightly sweet. It went extremely well with the dinner.
8 Servings
Cabbage is chock full of nutrients including vitamin C and indoles, important cancer-fighting compounds. In addition, red cabbage also contains anthocyanins, the purple pigment with strong antioxidant activity commonly found in blueberries. In the winter months, cabbage is an abundant nutritional resource when other fresh produce is either expensive or unavailable. This recipe calls for a lot of salt, but it is used in this dish to soften the cabbage. Then it is thoroughly rinsed off so the recipe doesn’t provide too much sodium. This coleslaw is colorful and makes a delightful accompaniment to any meat, fish or vegetarian main dish. The garnish of minced scallions and toasted sesame seeds brings out the flavor of the slaw and adds additional crunch.
Ingredients:
1 medium head green cabbage
1 medium head red cabbage
3 tablespoons sea salt
3 large carrots
1/4 cup minced scallions
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Dressing:
2/3 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons dark-roasted sesame oil
Instructions:
1. Discard the outer leaves of cabbages. Cut heads in quarters; remove and discard cores. Slice cabbage thinly or shred in a food processor. Layer the cabbage in a large bowl with the sea salt. Toss to distribute salt evenly and let cabbage sit for 1 hour to soften.
2. Meanwhile, peel the carrots and grate them into thin shreds.
3. Drain off any liquid produced by the cabbage and rinse the cabbage well in several changes of cold water to remove excess salt. Taste the cabbage; if it is still too salty, rinse it again.
4. Add carrots to the cabbage and mix well.
5. Whisk the rice vinegar, brown sugar and sesame oil together in a small bowl.
6. Pour the dressing over the cabbage and mix well. Let chill. Garnish with minced scallions and toasted sesame seeds before serving.
Nutritional Information (Per serving)
126.8 calories
3.7 g total fat (0.5 g sat)
0.0 mg cholesterol
23.7 g carbohydrate
3.6 g protein
5.7 g fiber
04 Saturday Apr 2009
Posted in Photos, Recipe By: Robin Young, Wine Dinners
So, now that the kitchen is really finished – the final grouting was done today – it’s time to get serious about using the appliances. Not to be outdone, I made a Halibut Beurre Blanc and Baked Potatoes and Robin made some wonderful Chinese Long Beans. An awesome dinner! It is such a delight to use appliances – gas stove and modern microwave – that are “controllable”. Along with that we had a delicious 2006 Cold Springs Winery Idaho Riesling. (Good job, Jamie!) Wonder what else we can come up with. Is it time for Robin to do a Sauce Class? Or a Paella Class? Hmmm. Cheers!
Robin’s Chinese Beans:
Make these tasty green beans as spicy as you wish by adding more or less hot chili flakes. The dish is good served hot or at room temperature
Serves 6
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
Hot chili flakes to taste
1 pound green beans, trimmed
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons thinly sliced garlic
In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and chili flakes. Set aside.
Place 1/4 cup water in a large skillet and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the green beans, cover the pan, and cook until the beans are crisp tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, and drain any water that remains in the pan.
Add the oil, ginger, and garlic to the beans in the skillet and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until the beans are lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Do not let the garlic burn. Add the soy mixture to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens and glazes the beans, about 2 minutes.
Transfer to a platter and serve the beans hot or at room temperature.
03 Friday Apr 2009
Posted in Food Prep, Food Trivia, Interesting Information
Those of us who like to bake – that was not always the case for me – have at least at sometime in the past, been confused about “gluten” and “protein” levels in different flours. What’s the difference between Bread flour and Pastry flour, for instance.
First, lets start with “gluten”. “High protein flours are generally recommended for yeasted products…” that require a lot of structural development in order to keep their shape and strength: The development of gluten. (2004, Baking Illustrated. Page 1) It is the gluten produced by the protein in the flour that produces elastic sheets in the dough that expand with the gas produced from the yeast. Flours are categorized by their protein levels.
That said, let’s look at the protein levels, or the ability of a flour made into a dough, to produce high glutens. The two are related.
Bread Flour – Protein content about 14 grams per cup. (There are 27 grams to the ounce) This is the flour of choice for yeast doughs. A slightly higher proportion of protein is available to professional bakers, such as your local pizza maker. In most cases, if a recipe calls for a high gluten flour, bread flour will work just fine.
All-Purpose Flour – Protein content 10 – 12 grams per cup. This staple flour is usually a blend of high gluten hard wheat and low gluten soft wheat flours. All-Purpose flour from the supermarkets, Pillsbury and Gold Medal – flours milled in the northern United States – have the 10-12 grams per cup. However, there are variations of All-Purpose flours between brands. For instance, King Arthur All-Purpose flour and Hecker’s have protein levels as high as 12 – 13 grams per cup. Almost as high as Bread flour. Southern brand flours, such as White Lily are low in protein, about 9 grams per cup. When a recipe calls for All-Purpose flour, you can use either bleached (chemically induced whiteness) or un-bleached (no chemical additives).
Cake and Pastry Flour – The lowest of the protein levels at about 8 grams per cup. These flours are used when a tender crumb is desired. Cake flour is chlorinated to make it whiter, Pastry flour is not. Cake flour can be found in most grocery stores, Pastry flour is not always available. If you cannot find Pastry flour, combine 3 parts of All-Purpose flour with 1 part of Cake flour.
So there you have a short discussion on the different types of flour and why some are better suited for breads and the like and others are better suited for piecrusts and cakes.
1996 Baking With Julia, William Morrow and Company, New York
2004 Baking Illustrated, Editors of Cook’s Illustrated, America’s Test Kitchen,
Brookline, MA
2006 Bob’s Red Mill Baking Book, John Ettinger, Running Press, Philadelphia, PA
02 Thursday Apr 2009
Posted in Food Trivia, Interesting Information
And from Rudy’s – Cooks Paradise in Twin Falls (ID), we have the following trivia:
This Week in the History of Food & Drink:
April 1: National Sourdough Bread Day…no kidding!
April 2, 1863: THE RICHMOND BREAD RIOTS – Shortages of food caused hundreds of angry women gathered in Richmond, Virginia to march on the governor’s office and then on the government commissary to demand bread. It ended in a riot when they broke into the commissary and then other shops & buildings and carried out anything they could carry. Even the hospital reported losing over 300 pounds of beef. Arrests were made, but at the request of authorities, the newspapers downplayed the incident, and records were later destroyed when the Confederate government fled and burned much of the town behind them.
April 3, 1985:.The Brown Derby Restaurant in Hollywood, California closed after 57 years. Robert Cobb, owner of the Brown Derby, created the Cobb Salad there in 1936.
April 4, 1828: Casparus van Wooden of Amsterdam, patented chocolate milk powder.
April 5, 1764: The Sugar Act passed in Britain, placing new restrictions on the import of molasses to America.
April 6, 1930: Twinkies go on sale for the first time.
April 7: World Health Day
They come up with some really interesting trivia! Cheers!
02 Thursday Apr 2009
Posted in Celebrations, Food, Recipe By: Bob Young
It’s not always that someone reaches the age of 67, but I did today. Actually, it’s a celebration that has lasted since Sunday and may go through this Friday.
On Sunday, Sophia, Carlynne, Robin, Mac and Marnie and I all went to Brick 29 in Nampa for a Birthday Brunch.
The selection is always great. But do make reservations – They get extremely busy!
(Robin was really laughing at something!) But then on 1 April, Robin and I fixed dinner in our NEW kitchen! Please note the Fresh bread and the 2004 Ravenswood Teldeschi Zinfandel from the Dry Creek Valley (CA). An awesome wine! Rich and full; deep, dark purple color.
The wine went very well and stood up to the Roasted Potatoes and Onion with Garlic, Sage and Thyme; the Asparagus with Lemon and Garlic; the Rib Eye Steaks. Such an awesome dinner. Did I mention that we made this here, at home, in our NEW kitchen?
I tried a new marinade with the Rib Eye before I grilled it.
Big Red Marinade
1 1/2 c Red Wine
1 1/2 Red Wine Vinegar
1/3 c Olive Oil
4 t Rosemary, dried
5 Garlic cloves, minced
3 t Thyme, dried
Rib-Eye steaks
The night before grilling, combine all ingredients of the marinade and blend with an immersion blender. Place the Rib-Eye Steaks in a zip lock bag. Place in the refrigerator and turn at least twice. Remove from refrigerator 2 hours before grilling. Grill on a hot grill.
What an awesome couple of days! Thank-You everyone for such a great time!
28 Saturday Mar 2009
Posted in Food Prep, Recipe By: Bob Young, Recipes
To celebrate National Spanish Paella Day, I just had top make a Lamb Paella. It really turned out good!! And it went very well with the Basque Sheepherder’s Bread, recipe in a prior post.
Here is the Lamb Paella. The recipe is printed below.
It was good to have Geno and Debra to try this with me. We will probably see this again, some day!
Authentic Lamb Paella
· Olive Oil (enough to cover the bottom of the paella pan)
· 1 med Yellow onion, diced
· 6 cloves Garlic, chopped
· 2 lbs Lamb, cut into chunks
· 2 Chorizos, diced
· ¼ lbs Green Beans (Spanish-bachoqueta)
· 4 med Roma Tomatoes, ripe and chopped
· 2 Roasted Red Bell pepper, cut into strips – roast your own
· 2 Roasted Yellow Bell pepper, cut into strips – roast your own
· 1 t Saffron
· 2 t of smoky Paprika
· 8 cups Beef stock, warmed to 190 degrees F
· 3 c Spanish Rice
· Sea Salt ( to taste)First, add the olive oil to the paella pan and cook the onion and until it is translucent over med low heat. Add the garlic and stir. Add the lamb and cook until lightly browned. Add the diced chorizos and cook for 4 minutes. Then add the green beans and cook them together with the meat. While they are cooking, make a clearance in the middle of the paella pan and fry the chopped tomatoes and roasted peppers until they look a little pasty, quickly adding the paprika and saffron, stirring quickly and immediately adding the beef stock until it is almost to the top of the paella pans edge.
Cook all the ingredients for about 20 minutes over a high simmer and tasting for salt. After 20 minutes we add the rice, distributing it evenly, making sure the rice is covered with liquid. The heat should be medium high, not interrupting the boil. It takes about 20 minutes for the paella rice to cook. Do not stir the rice once you have added it to the paella pans, just change its position so that the heat gets to all parts equally. All the stock should be absorbed when finished. Take the paella off the heat and let stand for about 10 minutes covering the top with newspaper. If the rice has been cooked correctly, the rice grains should be loose, not clumped together or having a mushy texture.
For a fantastic table presentation, small wedges of lemon can decorate the border and branches of Romero (aromatic herbs) in the middle. Now you are ready to dig into your paella with wooden spoons and eat directly from the paella pans!
There it is. Cooking time is about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Not in the recipe – for the final 10 minutes, add about one-half cup of a red table wine and let the rice absorb it. This recipe will easily serve 10 – 12 people.
27 Friday Mar 2009
Posted in Bread, Food Prep, Photos, Recipe By: Bob Young
Today is National Spanish Paella Day! Really it is! I talked to Robin this morning and they are going to try to make Winnemucca, NV tonight and get some paella. But, one can not have paella without Basque Bread. I think I found a recipe. Check out the slides – they follow the recipe, more or less!
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| Make a Smilebox slideshow |
Here is the recipe:
Basque Sheepherders Bread
1 1/2 c 160 degree tap water
5 T Butter, soft and at room temperature
1/4 c Clover honey
1 1/4 t Kosher Salt
1 1/4 T Active Dry Yeast
3 1/2 c All-Purpose Flour
1 1/4 c Whole Wheat Flour
Salad oilIn a large bowl, combine hot water, butter, honey and salt. Stir until butter is melted; let cool to about 110 degrees. Stir in yeast; cover and set in a warm place until bubbly, about 15 minutes. Beat in about 1 1/4 cups Whole Wheat flour to make a thick batter. Stir in about 3 ½ cups of All Purpose flour to make a stiff dough. Scrape dough onto a floured board. Knead until smooth and satiny, 10 to 20 minutes — adding as little flour as possible to prevent sticking. Place dough in a greased bowl; turn over to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled — about 1½ hours.
Punch dough down and knead briefly on a floured board to release air. Shape into a smooth ball. With a circle of foil, cover the inside bottom of a 5-quart cast iron or cast aluminum Dutch oven. Grease foil, inside of Dutch oven, and lid with oil. Place dough in Dutch oven and cover with lid. Let rise in a warm place until dough pushes up lid by about ½ inch, about 1 hour. (Watch closely.) Bake, covered, with a lid in a 375-degree oven for 12 minutes. Remove lid and continue to bake until loaf is golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped.
Remove bread from oven and turn onto a rack to cool. You might need a helper. Peel off foil and turn loaf upright. Makes one 2 1/4 pound loaf.
So there’s the bread. Now for the Lamb Paella and the wine. Yum-O!
23 Monday Mar 2009
Posted in Food Trivia, Interesting Information
From the latest newsletter from Rudy’s – Cooks Paradise in Twin Falls, Idaho – if you have never been there, try to go sometime, you won’t be sorry – I received the following information. Enjoy it!
“
March 23, 1857: Fannie Merritt Farmer was born. American culinary authority, and author of the 1896 edition of ‘The Boston Cooking School Cook Book’ which became known in future editions as the ‘Fannie Farmer Cook Book.’ Director of the Boston Cooking School, and founder of Miss Farmer’s School of Cookery. She is often cited as the first cookbook author to introduce standard measurements.
March 24: National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day
March 25, 1775: Pecan Day. George Washington planted pecan trees (some of which still survive) at Mount Vernon. The trees were supposedly a gift to Washington from Thomas Jefferson. (Some sources date this planting at 1799).
March 26, 1753: Benjamin Thompson, Count von Rumford was born. American physician who invented the percolator, a pressure cooker and a kitchen stove. He is frequently credited with creating the dessert, Baked Alaska.
March 27: National Spanish Paella Day!
March 28, 1968: ‘Whiskey On A Sunday’ was recorded by the Irish Rovers.
March 29, 1886: Coca-Cola was created by Dr. John Pemberton.”
Just some interesting foodie trivia! Look at Friday, March 27th!
Boise Foodie Guild 