Spaghetti carbonara (p. 329)

First of all, welcome to all the new readers that have wandered over from the foodie blogroll! I try to post when I actually made the food, not when I post, so this blog hasn't been ignored for several weeks like it looks. Don't forget the contest!

I recently made a big list of how much progress I have made in every TJOC chapter. I am doing extremely well in certain chapters (stocks and soups for example) and doing very poorly in other chapters (pickles and relishes, where I have made zero recipes). You think this would have motivated me to bake more cookies and make more game. Instead, I decided to make Spaghetti carbonara (p. 329), a recipe from a chapter I've been making excellent progress with. This will be a short post because it was an extremely easy recipe.

I love recipes that start by sauteing bacon in olive oil:



So much bacon!



White wine was added and then cooked until it evaporated.

I mixed three eggs, some Parmesan, and salt and pepper in a little bowl:






And then added the bacon and the egg mixture to hot pasta (which cooks the egg):



Tasty and easy--a perfect combination. I really recommend this recipe and I will make it again in the future. It fried up well the next day too

Deviled ham or chicken spread (p. 180), Broiled shrimp or scallops with persillade (p. 387), and Cornmeal waffles (p. 647)

First of all, don't forget to enter the contest!

Mom had leftover ham in the fridge when I got to her house. I thought it would be the perfect time to make ham salad--mom likes ham salad whereas I find it absolutely disgusting (something about pink paste just doesn't make me hungry). I thought Deviled ham or chicken spread (p. 180) would be perfect (especially since I had just been to Penzey's and some terrific paprika on hand).

The recipe was simple--diced ham, mayonnaise, chicken broth, some fresh parsley out of mom's garden, paprika, and a bit of salt and pepper went into the food processor (I halved the recipe because mom didn't have enough ham for the full recipe).



And processed it:



I found it horrifying but mom thought it looked delicious. If you like ham salad, it's a good use of leftover ham. The paprika gave it a more robust flavor than most meat salads (doesn't that sound disgusting? "Meat salad"?).

Mom also had a bag of frozen shrimp she wanted me to use during my visit. While looking through the shellfish recipes, I spotted the perfect recipe--Broiled shrimp or scallops with persillade (p. 387). I figured it was perfect because it used fresh parsley and mom had a fecund parsley plant right outside (fecund--now there's a GRE word!). A persillade is apparently a mix of chopped parsley and garlic and is often mixed with breadcrumbs.

I spread the shrimp on a jelly-roll pan and sprinkled them with some olive oil.




In a bowl I mixed breadcrumbs, parsley, and (more) garlic (than the recipe actually asked for). I covered the shrimp in the breadcrumb mixture.



And into the oven it went. It's only supposed to broil for a couple minutes on one side and a couple of minutes on the other side. After the first couple minutes, I thought "uh oh":



As you can see, the shrimp started to burn (or rather, the breadcrumbs on the shrimp started to burn). So if you make this recipe--keep your eye on it! I think it would be much easier in my electric broiler than it was in mom's gas oven (easier to watch, at least). The shrimp was still really good though and I loved the breadcrumbs--delicious and easy. I will make this again but I really need to watch it better next time!

For some mysterious reason, I thought Cornmeal waffles (p. 647) would be the perfect accompaniment to the shrimp. It probably had more to do with the fact that I didn't want to leave mom with a bunch of leftover buttermilk and thought I should knock out another recipe that requires a waffle iron than that I thought the two foods went together. The recipe started similarly to the other waffle recipes. I mixed buttermilk, melted butter, maple syrup, and egg yolks in a bowl. Flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt went into another bowl.

(This picture isn't totally accurate, obviously the garlic, parsley, and breadcrumbs weren't involved in the waffles and the melted butter was added to the wet ingredients):




The wet ingredients were mixed into the dry ingredients...and then...

I needed to whip up the egg whites in another bowl. Whipping egg whites was (embarrassingly) something I've been really afraid of--which was one of the reasons I decided to start TJOTJOC. First I tried to whip the egg whites by hand, which was never going to happen (it takes several minutes of fast whisking--apparently I don't have the stamina!). Then I put the whisk attachment on mom's Kitchenaid hand mixer and *bam* there it was! Not very difficult--I think I may have moved past my fear!

The egg whites were then added to the batter:



And folded in. I didn't know how far to fold them, so there were still lumps of egg white when I finished (this picture is pre-finish but not much):





The waffles were AMAZING. OMG they were delicious. They were light and fluffy and cornmeal-y (and I LOVE cornmeal muffins/bread/pancakes/etc). Since the maple syrup was already included, a little (or a lot) of butter and they were ready to go. I actually wanted to continue eating these long after I was full. Plus they froze perfectly (as waffles should). I can't recommend these enough!

Buttermilk waffles (p. 647) and Eggs baked in a muffin tin (p. 199)

First of all, don't forget to enter the contest! I'm extending the deadline because I'm so behind in posting. I was in Des Moines visiting my mom so one of my best friends, E, came to visit from Kansas City. We stayed out (late) catching up and decided to get some breakfast before going shopping. I decided to make Buttermilk waffles (p. 647) and .

The waffles were really simple. The wet ingredients (eggs, butter, and buttermilk) were mixed together:



In another bowl, the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt) were mixed and I made a well in the center. At this point I thought that it would have been a good idea to read this recipe before starting so I could have used a bigger bowl--it wasn't much of a well.



The wet ingredients were poured into the dry and it was briefly mixed. Don't worry if there are lumps--there are supposed to be lumps, overmixing the batter will ruin the waffles. I used a measuring cup to transfer batter to the waffle iron.



Several years ago, my mother kept complaining that she wanted a waffle iron. I knew full well she wasn't going to use it more than once a year so I refused to buy her one. Then, one day, I was out with my friend Ben at garage sales and we found a waffle iron for two dollars. It works perfectly, even if it is rather ugly:



The waffles were tender, fluffy, and delicious. They were easy to make, didn't stick, and were terrific. I think they were better than the waffles that I made earlier. I would (and will) make these in the future--and it made six waffles, exactly like it said (so if you are making waffles for a big group, make sure to at least double the recipe).



I thought that I should make something else to go with the waffles and the recipe for Eggs baked in a muffin tin (p. 199) jumped out at me (OT--I hate when people misuse the word "literally" as in "it literally jumped out at me". Unless words are attacking you, in which case you may want to seek medical attention, it didn't literally do anything).

I greased my mother's thousand-year-old muffin pan with some butter and then sprinkled some grated Parmesan and diced ham into each cup.





I cracked an egg into each of the spaces.



The recipe recommends a water bath but mom didn't have a big enough pan, so I didn't bother.




It didn't matter--they were absolutely perfect. And adorable! This may be the cutest breakfast item I've ever made. Plus they were delicious with bread. The Parmesan and ham were a great addition and it was a terrific way to make portioned eggs for a group.





And I'm sure that all of you are wondering what I bought when we went shopping :) I found my outfit for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner! I found a BCBG dress for 70% off!



And I ABSOLUTELY LOVE these Calvin Klein shoes. LOVE LOVE LOVE them. These shoes were amazingly on a double sale and then mom also had a coupon! Perfection.

To do list meme

I am amazingly behind in posting again because I have been so busy--but I have cooked a lot, so keep your eyes peeled (possibly the most disgusting metaphor ever) for new posts (which will be backdated like always).

As most of you know, I almost never do meme's on this blog because it's a food blog and I figure you don't care. But I really adored this list and I would love to know what the rest of you have done. (I stole this from http://littlestorydesigns.blogspot.com/ )

I've bolded the ones I've done.
1. Started your own blog--and here it is!
2. Slept under the stars--although it's difficult in Iowa, too many bugs in the summer.
3. Played in a band--sure! Oh, you mean a rock band? Well, I've been in concert band and marching band, close enough :)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower --awesome but no
6. Given more than you can afford to charity--pretty much every Christmas.
7. Been to Disneyworld/Disneyland--when your grandparents live in FL, this is a given
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables--I hate gardening but I love gardens
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train--I've even had a sleeper car :)
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you were not ill--sorry high school!
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors--and it was amazing! I would like to go to some of the other birthplaces
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke--this is the least likely to happen on this whole list
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling--second least likely to happen. I hate breathing when I'm underwater
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater--although I live about three blocks from one
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class--just one!
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check--only once.
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar--I have several caviar stories :)
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been laid off from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book--this is one of my major life goals
81. Visited the Vatican--three items on this list ticked off from one visit to Rome!
82. Bought a brand new car--only ever had new-to-me
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake--seen it but never swam in it
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Tuna-vegetable casserole (p. 97)

I was heading to Iowa for a few days and decided to whip something up for Josh to eat while I was gone. Something with tuna was the obvious choice since I hate it so much--I even hate the smell of it, so I thought Colorado to Iowa might be the perfect distance between tuna and I. Tuna-vegetable casserole (p. 97) seemed about perfect.

The recipe was simple. Saute mushrooms and onion in a half stick of butter (I love butter--and mushrooms, so maybe the recipe wouldn't be so bad...):





After the vegetables are tender, I mixed in some flour, and then whisked in some milk.



It occurred to me--I had just essentially made cream of mushroom soup! So when you make a quick casserole you must be able to skip all those steps. I wondered if it would matter.

A cup of cheddar and some pouch tuna were added to the milk mixture.




Cooked egg noodles, parsley, and a little salt and pepper were then added and cracker crumbs (and, full disclosure, crushed potato chips, Josh's favorite) were added to the top, with some butter, and into the oven it went:




(I don't have an after shot--just imagine this but darker)

How was it? (This was all second-hand, obviously) Josh said it was delicious but that (and I quote) it would be better with crushed Funyuns on top. He said it was much better than cream of mushroom soup casserole. And it was really easy. So if you don't want to go the Sandra Lee route, I really recommend this recipe.

That being said, re-read the title. Where exactly are the vegetables in this recipe? Do the mushrooms and onions really count? Don't you expect more vegetables when "vegetables" are in the title?

Shortbread crust (p. 667), New York-style cheesecake (p. 744), Chocolate satin frosting (p. 796), and Fresh raspberry sauce (raspberry coulis)(p. 853)

I love cheesecake. Absolutely love it. I even remember my first experience with cheesecake--I was about five years old and visiting my aunt in New York. We went to a high-end restaurant in Manhattan and I ordered the cheesecake. The rest is history. I spent years selecting cheesecakes at every restaurant I went to (usually instead of a meal). I remember eating at The Cheesecake Factory when they were still cool and made their cheesecakes in-house, before they had a 100 page menu complete with ads. But I haven't made my own cheesecake for years (although I have three sizes of springform pans).

When I saw that the Shortbread crust (p. 667) was an option on the randomized list, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to make a New York-style cheesecake (p. 744). "New York" refers to the cooking method--extremely high heat followed by low heat.

Readers know that my main problem with baking recently has been the high altitude--I was hoping it wouldn't affect the cheesecake.

I made both recipes concurrently. The crust was easy. Flour, sugar, a little lemon zest, and a bit of salt were whisked together. A stick of butter was then mixed in. I used my pastry blender to mash it until it resembled coarse crumbs and then added an egg yolk.



The recipe asked for a nine inch pan. I only had a 8.5" and 9.5" pan. I decided that the smaller pan would be easier to fit in the refrigerator, so that's the one I used. I patted a third of the dough into the pan and then baked it.



The bottom crust came out beautifully!



The sides were then patted into the pan, making sure that the bottom crust was connected to the side crust. I realized as I was patting the crust that I didn't rebutter the pan--the recipe didn't call for it but I was really hoping that the sides wouldn't stick to the pan.



The cheesecake recipe was actually really easy. I took five packages of cream cheese (the expensive part of the recipe) and beat them until they are fluffy, then mixed in some sugar and flour (necessary if you want a denser texture, which I did). I then added in a little lemon zest (thank god for the microplane!) and vanilla, followed by five large eggs and two more yolks, one at a time. Finally, some heavy cream. Easy!

There are some important points to keep in mind--the ingredients should be room temperature because if they aren't you will probably end up overbeating the batter.



I poured the cheesecake into the crust. There was extra filling that I threw away, which is horrifying, but I didn't want to overfill the crust and didn't have a little pan.



The cake was baked for 15 minutes at FIVE HUNDRED DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. You might wonder why I capitalized that--it is such an enormously high temperature that you have to capitalize it. My stovetop was smoking. Then you lower the temperature to 200 degrees for an hour. Finally, the oven was turned off and the oven door was propped open (easy if you have an electric oven, more difficult if you have a gas oven) for another half hour.



The cake was capital letter BEAUTIFUL! It wasn't caved in the middle, it wasn't cracked, it was perfection.



I cooled it overnight in the refrigerator and popped the springform off--perfection! The crust looked beautiful! It didn't stick at all!




The inside--terrific.




I know you are impressed--as you should be :) The cheesecake was creamy and flavorful. The texture was perfect--creamy but not like a Jello cake, dry but not too dry. The crust was amazing and I usually cut the crust off--like a thin cookie on the bottom of the cake. I loved it. I would make this again but for a bigger crowd than the two of us (we are eating a LOT of cheesecake).

But what is a cheesecake without toppings?? I made two.

First, Chocolate satin frosting (p. 796). I only made a half batch of this because I knew I didn't need the full three cups. A half cup of heavy cream was boiled in a small saucepan. Three ounces of unsweetened chocolate were then added (but not stirred in) and the pot was left off heat for exactly ten minutes.




When it was done, I added the chocolate mixture to sugar, butter, and vanilla.



And then processed until it was smooth.



Parts of it were a little gritty (probably because of the sugar) but the flavor was really good. It wasn't bitter (I don't like dark chocolate) and was really smooth. When I melted it, it was pourable. When it cooled it was the consistency of frosting. TJOC recommends smearing it on graham crackers--that would be absolutely delicious, especially with a marshmallow or two.

I also decided to make a fruit topping, specifically Fresh raspberry sauce (raspberry coulis) (p. 853). There are four coulis recipes in TJOC, which is hilarious because they are all exactly the same. Add a pint of fruit, some sugar, and a little lemon juice, and blend:



Strain (if need--this step is in the raspberry and blueberry recipes but not the strawberry or mango).



And it's done! You can probably tell that I used a half pint blackberries and a half pint raspberries (because that's what was on hand).




Incredibly delicious! An intense berry flavor, no seeds, a perfect compliment to the cheesecake. I will definitely make this again because it was so easy. It would be really good on ice cream too.

Contest Number 3!! Win an awesome recipe box!! Ends 6/30

I want to preface this by saying that I'm posting five more posts in the next day or two and they will be backdated behind this blog--be sure to check for them (especially the cheesecake entry!).

First things first--I PASSED MY PRELIMINARY EXAMS! And did quite well on them :) Exciting!


Second, I love the Flight of the Conchords. Absolutely adore them. Don't know FotC? Here are a couple examples:







Josh and I went to see them at Red Rocks a couple weeks ago. Red Rock Amphitheater is a pretty awesome outdoor theater just outside of Denver.



It was a TERRIFIC concert with new songs. Loved it!

In other miscellaneous news, I went to New Orleans (I adore NOLA). Crayfish is extremely common in NOLA and, yet, I can't figure out how to eat it. You will be sitting in a very expensive restaurant and get served this:



How do you eat it? I know the correct method involves twisting off the head but I can't do it correctly. It seems bizarre to eat with my hands in an expensive restaurant. ::sigh:: I think I'm going to choose against them from now on.

So on to the contest! To enter, comment on the blog and answer the following questions:

1. Favorite concert you've attended
2. Favorite city for food
3. Have you ever ran across food you've had no idea how to eat?


So what will you win? I commissioned this awesome recipe box on Etsy from GottaHaveitNow.

A perfect way to keep your recipes organized. The box is decoupaged with clippings from vintage cooking magazines.





The contest will end July 30th. Comment on this thread (answering the questions) for one entry and receive a second entry for posting a comment on another entry on this blog. Sorry international readers--unless you have a shipping address in the US.

Portuguese greens soup (caldo verde) (p. 139), Corn pudding (p. 271), and Stuffed cabbage rolls (p. 263)

All the recipes in this blog entry are held together by a common thread--they all include a strange ingredient, starting with the least strange and going to incredibly bizarre.

I work with a Portuguese-American guy who often talks about his grandmother's Caldo Verdo soup, which always sounded delicious. I wasn't confident that TJOC's Portuguese greens soup (caldo verde) (p. 139) was going to be the same (based on their track record of TJOC Italian recipes vs. my Italian grandmothers recipes).

It was any easy start--sautee onions and garlic in olive oil, add chicken stock, thinly sliced potatoes, salt, and pepper.




When the potatoes were soft, I mashed them a little. TJOC asks for linguisa, chorizo, or smoked sausage. My grocery store had neither linguisa or chorizo (well, the appropriate chorizo at least) so I had to buy smoked sausage (doesn't seem very authentic). There are two types of chorizo, a Mexican type that is a fresh sausage and a Spanish type that is smoked. I was assuming that the recipe required the Spanish style. I thought using plain smoked sausage (almost a kielbasa) was mildly strange, similar to throwing summer sausage into minestrone.

The smoked sausage was fried and then added to the pot. A cup of the soup was added back to the pan, the browned bits were scraped up, and the liquid was added back to the pot.



Eventually, four cups of shredded red chard was added. I think a more authentic version would use kale but chard was on sale at the store for $.99/bunch so that's what got used.



This soup was very tasty. I really enjoyed it and it heated up extremely well. The flavors mixed together perfectly, the potatoes added some creaminess, and the sausage gave a nice smoky tang. I will definitely make this recipe again.

Onto the next bizarre recipe--Corn pudding (p. 271). This is one of those recipes where you simply mix ingredients together, pour them into a pan, and bake--easy! Corn, milk, eggs, butter, flour, salt, and the mystery ingredient were mixed together.

What was the mystery ingredient? Vanilla. Yes, vanilla in a corn pudding.





It was poured into a buttered baking dish and baked for about 45 minutes.




It was very, very strange. Josh wondered why the corn pudding tasted like ice cream--I would imagine that it was due to the vanilla (and it did taste a bit like corn ice cream or something you would eat on Iron Chef). The corn was held together by what was almost a custard. I can't say I'll make this recipe again. There are better corn casseroles out there.

One of my good friends during my undergraduate degree, Al, would occasionally invite a bunch of us over to dinner and make a big meal. Sometimes she would make cabbage rolls--and her cabbage rolls were absolutely delicious. I've always wanted to try to make them and never actually done it. When I saw cabbage on sale at the grocery store for $.39/lb I decided I would see if TJOC's recipe--Stuffed cabbage rolls (p. 263)--was as tasty.

The filling was pretty simple--ground beef, an egg, some bread crumbs, some uncooked white rice, water, a grated carrot, an onion, a garlic clove, some salt and pepper were mixed (by hand--always fun).





Once that was done, I popped the cabbage into some boiling water so that it could be more easily peeled. The book says that you can also freeze the cabbage but we have such a tiny freezer that there was no way I could even fit the tiny cabbage in.




So a leaf of cabbage at a time was removed and filled with the stuffing.



They were wrapped up (like burritos) and tied with butcher twine. TJOC says the recipe makes 12 rolls. I made about 20 so I must not have been filling them full enough--or my cabbage had smaller leaves than it was supposed too. I don't think I could have fit more filling into them and still managed to get them closed!




Onto the sauce--a cups worth of the remaining cabbage leaves were chopped up and sauteed with some onion in a little vegetable oil.




Now you might be asking "None of those ingredients seem particularly strange. Why is this recipe in this particular blog entry?". The answer? Right here:



Gingersnaps. Eight crumbled ginger snaps (I put them in a Ziploc and pounded them with my meat mallet). Sounded really gross to me but what do I know? The gingersnaps got added to the cabbage and onion along with a big can of tomatoes, a cup of water, some brown sugar, a little lemon juice, and...what is that? Sour salt? What the heck is sour salt? I consulted Professor Wikipedia. Apparently, sour salt is calcium citrate, which is sour and salty (imagine that--sour salt is sour AND salty). I certainly didn't have it in my cupboard, so it had to be cut. Does anyone actually have sour salt in THEIR cupboard?



The cabbage rolls were added to the pot.



How was it? Good but strange. The cabbage rolls added a bizarre, almost smoky flavor that I seriously disliked. The cabbage was delicious, the filling was delicious, but the sauce--I don't know about the sauce. I think if I made these again I would contact Al for her recipe--it was much better. I will never add gingersnaps to a savory recipe again. Do you have any recipes that have strange ingredients?