Dec 27, 2009

Cool Gadget: 3-Tier Oven Rack

Probably won't fit in our tiny oven, but you can be sure I'll be digging out my tape measure to be sure!! I could have used this for my last few dinner parties...

via Serious Eats

This is Why You're Fat - Now in book form!!

This might help motivate us all to eat little better after the holiday season's excessive food-related debauchery!



via Serious Eats

Dec 17, 2009

Ratios for iPhone - Now available!

You may have read about its imminent arrival here, but it's now officially available! $4.99, as predicted. Have fun!

Besaluuuuu

Johnathan Kauffman, Seattle Weekly food writer, will be leaving his post at the end of the month to move back to San Francisco as the restaurant critic for SF Weekly.

He writes, "Seeing as how my last day on Voracious will be next Wednesday, December 23 (though reviews will appear in print for a few weeks afterward), over the coming week I'm making a list of the 10 foods, people, and aspects of the local food scene I'll miss most."

First entry on his list? Coming in at #10, James Miller's croissant at Besalu. Read it here!



Never-ending wine glass

As you sip your wine from a goblet that's joined at the hip to a bulb-shaped carafe, a combination of air and water pressure automatically causes more wine to flow and refill your glass. Lovely and practical!


From The Food Section

Dec 14, 2009

Today's Gross-Out

Ugh. This is probably the most disgusting ad I've seen all year. According to the stats presented here, drinking one soda per day will add 10 pounds to your frame in one year. I believe it, but I'm sorry I couldn't just have read about it instead of watching this guy slurp down chunks of human fat. And the quivering mass at the end made me feel weak in the knees. But not in the good way. Yechhh.



via Serious Eats

Cookie Bake 2009 Recap!

Let’s see…It’s been a full week since our cookie bake. First, recovery from the ensuing sugar coma, which took days. Then, general life business set in, coupled with minor medical procedures and sports injury. Now that it’s Monday, it seems like time to get a move on and finish putting together a cookie bake recap!


Favorites included the pain d’amande, the cardamom cookies, and the chai almond cookies…But that’s only based on three people’s votes, so feel free to argue the point! Also, did I miss any on the list below?

Meg got stuck with about 4,354 extra cookies, and some suggestions were made for how to avoid this sort of hefty overage next year. Among them:
  • Limit to one recipe/person
  • Divvie up leftovers equally
  • Each person takes home the extras s/he baked
The baking events were followed by a delightful lunch of hidden beet salad, turkey-carcass french onion soup, and vegetarian taco stew.

The Roundup!

Anne:
Pain d'amande - This was amazing-really crisp and delicious! Supposedly very easy to make, too. Recipe is from David Lebovitz’s blog, found here.
Lavender shortbread - Mmmm. What more needs to be said?
Rick:
Chocolate-dipped Peanut Butter Filled Peanut Butter Cookies - Just what they sound like, and they were yummy-yummy for the chocolate and peanut butter set!
Shawn & Fernando:
Bacon Brittle - Could of added more cayenne, but overall turned out really nicely! Although quadrupling the recipe was probably not necessary...
Cardamom Cookies - Sandy shortbread-type cookie. The batter tasted wonderful - and got more "cardamom-y" overnight.
Chocolate Chip, Pecan and Cranberry Cookies – I sadly discovered that switching from sucanat to granulated sugar definitely changed things for these cookies, but at least the texture improved the next day!
Joyce:
Toffee Bar cookies – Toffee and chocolate and other stuff, oh my! The infamous 3/4 sheet of bar cookies - turned out to be really tasty!
Jessica:
Turtles - Super fun idea, and oh-so-cute: a square mini pretzel, topped with a Rolo, and baked!
Chai Almond Cookies – cardamom-y and dusted with powered sugar – a win-win combination described as “Mexican Wedding Cookies for Grown-Ups!”
Barbara:
Krumkake - Labor-intensive (poor Barbara), but really simple and fantastic in that simplicity - could be filled with cream, caramel, fruit, jam, chocolate, or eaten on their own!
Sam and Michael: - We were bummed they couldn't make it--Sam was sick!
Meg:
Spiced walnuts – Meg said something about overcooking the sugar, but I loved these
Damian/Frank:
Sugar Cookies - the sprinkles were really festive and this holiday classic was a hit with everyone!
Chocolate peppermint sandwich cookies - Wonderful texture, wonderful flavor, beautiful to look at! Did I mention they were delicious?
Peanut-butter M&M Oatmeal Cookies – Eating these transported me to somewhere back in my childhood! Yum!

Dec 9, 2009

Ratios - Now on your iPhone

This app is coming soon, and is based on the Michael Ruhlman book we used at our place a couple of months ago when we met here for cooking group. The photos look pretty neat!

According to Ruhlman's website:

What You Get:

–THE 32 CRITICAL RATIOS that form the backbone of the culinary arts, with instructions: doughs, batters, meat preparations, custards, sauces (pasta dough and pizza dough, sponge cake and pancakes, fritters and crepes, stocks and sauces, crème caramel and chocolate sauce.

–A CALCULATOR that figures out how much of each ingredient you need, no matter how many or how few people you want to serve.

–An OUNCES-TO-GRAMS CONVERTER (ratios work no matter what unit you choose to use!).

–DELICIOUS VARIATIONS FOR RECIPES on all the ratios, ideas for the creation of new dishes according to your tastes.

–An easy way to STORE YOUR OWN RECIPES and notes that you’ve created from the basic ratios.

–Quick fun ways to SHARE what your cooking with your fellow cooks, on Facebook and on Twitter.

–Ratios is also a great way to understand and TWEAK YOUR OWN RECIPES, to help you make your pancakes even fluffier, your pizza dough crisper, your crème brulee richer.

via Eat Me Daily

Lard Caramels!

Another porcine delight:


An excerpt from this article in Eat Me Daily:
"What do you get when you replace butter with lard in a caramel? Humphry Slocombe Boccolone lard caramels, an unlikely marriage of pork byproduct and candy, offering melty, meaty sweetness that blows the mind. So decadent, Chris Cosentino recommends you enjoy them in private, “so not everyone sees your ‘Oh’ face.” We’d have to agree."

Wow-Now THAT'S some powerful advertising!

via Eat Me Daily

It's a very bacon Christmas

Deep down, I truly don't know how to feel about my deep desire to order these Bacon Tree holiday postcards:
Get yours at Etsy, 5 for $5!

via Eat Me Daily

More on Julie Powell's new book, "Cleaving"


We discussed this book briefly at the Cookie Bake on Sunday, and I figured I could post some more information here for you to check out of you wanted.

In case you missed that discussion, this is the same Julie of "Julie and Julia" fame, and her second book is allegedly a great deal grittier than her first.

Points of discussion in this review by Paula Forbes on Eat Me Daily:
  • Her discovery and subsequent fascination of butchering
  • An extramarital affair
  • The dissolution of her marriage when said affair is exposed
  • General overdose of TMI
Paula's review seems overwhelmingly "Meh..." in flavor, but to round out the selection of opinions, here are some other folks' reviews, should you care to indulge:
  • WSJ review: "Her debut book was authentic and disarmingly honest, and it originated in a task that she had assigned herself: Spend a year cooking Julia Child's recipes. 'Cleaving' often feels forced, like a chore performed to please an agent, a publisher and maybe a movie studio."
  • Christine Muhlke of the New York Times reviews it: "Her reliance on snark and pop-cultural references is cheap, but her sincere interest in butchery and love for the Fleisher’s crew bring the book’s slasher scenes to life."
  • Jezebel reviews it: "It's a disingenuous return to the primitive, but it's suspiciously on-trend."
  • Interview with the New York Post: "You know, some people are cool with it and some people aren’t. My mother decided not to read the book and to sort of let that go on by, which I completely understand." Also, one of the three comments: "This is entertainment? Good thing MSG carries hockey regularly otherwise there would be nothing at all on TV."
  • Times Online reviews it: "...more often than not it’s clumsy. Mulching around in a pig carcass, she complains about the glove she has to wear: 'Now I know why men hate condoms.' Bleurrghhh!"
  • Interview with Double X: On the sex scenes: "People seem to be quite shocked by some of what I portray, but it all seems fairly tame to me, compared to what you read a lot of male authors write about. Though the opening of Chapter Eight is when I always find myself saying, “And THIS is why my mother cannot read this book.”
  • Interview with Publishers Weekly: "If [readers] come out of the Nora Ephron romantic comedy, there’s going to be some psychic whiplash."
  • SF Gate reviews it: "...Powell's writing talent is considerable. But the book's failings overwhelm its strengths, and by a lot. For one thing, the inclusion of recipes in the book makes no sense. Powell is not a chef and cooking has next to nothing to do with the story. So the recipes only distract from the narrative."
  • Interview with Epicurious: "...I'm hoping to write some fiction. Two memoirs before the age of 40 is PLENTY."
via Eat Me Daily

Dec 4, 2009

The importance of resting meat

In a nutshell, the Food Lab has determined that this oft-heard exhortation is, in fact, pretty darned important-complete with scientific evidence!


"This is a picture of a steak that was cooked in a skillet to medium rare (an internal temperature of 125°F or 51.7°C). The steak was then immediately placed on a cutting board and sliced in half, whereupon a deluge of juices started flooding out and onto the board.

The result? Steak that is less than optimally juicy and flavorful. This tragedy can be easily avoided by allowing your steak to rest (to 120 degrees in the center!) before slicing."

What's your opinion, Kissers?

via Serious Eats

Dec 3, 2009

Artisan meat and cheese platters at the Swinery!

You, too, can enjoy this platter of porky perdition from The Swinery at your own holiday party! They are accepting orders now for the holiday festivities.

From their website:
"Each Artisan Meat & Cheese Platter includes three kinds of world-class dry-cured meats and three kinds of excellent cheese, plus a jar (two for the large platters) of our house-made rillettes spread.

You can also get an all-meat platter (pictured above, with our house-made porchetta, venison terrine, and pâté de campagne, plus Zoe's Meats' chorizo, coppa, and Genovese salami. An all-cheese version is available as well.

Platters are $39.95 (serves 10) or $69.95 (serves 20). Orders should be placed 24 hours in advance and can be phoned in to 206.932.4211. "


The Swinery

Hamburgers to beef tartare: Julia Child on Letterman

A Letterman episode from 1987 featuring Julia Child. Plans to prepare a hamburger morph into beef tartare when a burner malfunctions on the show. Very entertaining! My favorite part:

Julia Child: "You're going to love this!"
Letterman: "Oh, I'm not going to be eating it...so..."
Julia Child: "Why not?"
Letterman: "Well, it's just, it's raw beef, and you get..."
Julia Child: "Oh you should!"
Letterman: "...well, you get dysentery from eating that, won't you?"
Julia Child: "Oh, no, no!"
Letterman: "Hepatitis?"
Julia Child: "No!"
Letterman: "What...what do you get from eating uncooked meat?"
Julia Child: "You get healthy!"



via Eat Me Daily

Dec 1, 2009

Why didn't I think of that? Straining Ladle

Might be a good stocking stuffer for a cook on your list!

via Incredible Things

Hamburger Macaron!


Wow!

Helen Rosner of Eat Me Daily made this "hamburger macaron" with the help of I Love Macarons by Hisako Ogita. The macaron features cocoa-tinted macaron "buns," dried plum "patty," coffee buttercream "cheese," green decorating sugar for the lettuce and pickles, dried apricot "mustard," and raspberry jam "ketchup."

via Serious Eats

Nov 30, 2009

Another reason to support local and sustainable meat and poultry


Yech.

Consumer Reports presents its findings that a full TWO-THIRDS of whole broiler chickens purchased nationwide harbored salmonella and/or campylobacter - the leading bacterial causes of foodborne diseases. This is better than results from 2007, when a similar study resulted in eight out of ten contaminated broiler chickens. Worse today, however, is that more than 60% of contaminated broilers were resistant to at least one antibiotic.

Scary.

There is a glimmer of hope: Store-brand organic chickens had NO salmonella at all. More than half still tested positive for campylobacter, but at least they were cleaner than the bigger brands. Most contaminated? Tyson and Foster Farms.

I'm definitely thinking twice about my chicken-buying behaviors!!

Cookie Bake 2009!

So far, here is the list we've come up with. This Sunday, 10am - Should be a marvelous time for all! More to come regarding lunch, and let me know if I missed anything. Yum!

Anne:
Pain d'amande
Rugelach
Rick:
Mexican Wedding Cookies
Chocolate-dipped Peanut Butter Filled Peanut Butter Cookies
Shawn & Fernando:
Bacon Brittle
Cardamom Cookies
Chocolate Chip, Pecan and Cranberry Cookies
Joyce:
Dipped apricots
Chocolate-covered pretzels
Chinese noodle cookies
Jessica:
Turtles
Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls -OR- Ginger Molasses Cookies
Barbara:
Krumkake
Sam and Michael:
Gingersnaps (Gluten free?)
Soft Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Meg:
Coconut Macaroons
Damian:
Sugar Cookies
...and...

Nov 24, 2009

Pasta with Chocolate

I read about this in an article referencing an Italian tradition of adding chocolate to savory dishes to deepen and enrich the flavors.

From the article:

"It's only the addition of sugar that makes chocolate sweet. Fine dark chocolate, like fine wine, has an amazingly complex taste profile, with hundreds of distinct nuanced aromas and flavors," Mantelli says. "Chocolate is, or should be, in everyone's spice rack."

Among the most classic and simplest uses of chocolate in savory food is as a topping to certain pasta dishes. One simple recipe is to toss cooked pasta with ground walnuts and gorgonzola cheese and top it with grated dark chocolate. Chocolate is also incorporated into fillings for ravioli, such as the Italian fall favorite pumpkin-chocolate ravioli served with a brown butter sage sauce. [Bold emphasis mine!]

And here is another recipe:

Pasta with Sage and Chocolate

Chocolate adds an unexpected rich, deep flavor to this simple pasta sauce. The recipe is courtesy of G.B. Martelli of the chocolatier Venchi S.p.A.

• 1 pound spaghetti or fettuccine

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter

• 4 shallots, finely minced

• 20 fresh sage leaves, plus more for garnish

• Freshly ground black pepper or crushed red pepper, to taste

• 1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

• 1 to 2 ounces Venchi Chocaviar bits, or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely grated

Prepare the pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and saute the shallots and sage leaves, for about 8 minutes, until the butter is golden brown.

Toss the pasta with the sage-shallot butter and about 1/4 cup of the pasta's cooking water. Season with pepper.

Serve topped with the cheese and a generous sprinkling of Chocaviar or grated chocolate. Garnish with sage leaves.

Makes 6 servings.

via Pittsburgh Live

Thanksgiving Turkey Cake!

Lovely, and maybe even vegetarian-friendly! Available in "white meat" and "dark meat" from Madison Park Bakery:



via Serious Eats
Shawn - nice job getting us started. The description of the business meeting captures the atmosphere nicely! Thanks for setting us up. -Meg

Nov 20, 2009

Bacon Mug

It's a mug made out of bacon, and filled with melted cheese! We MUST try doing this...anyone game for brunch?

via Neatorama

Cookie and wine pairings

I found an article in the Seattle Times last year about grown-up beverages with which to wash down all our holiday cookies. I wanted to share it in light of our upcoming cookie bake on December 6th!

Original article found here, excerpt below:

Rum balls with a Dark and Stormy cocktail: “Rum in the drink and rum in the candies, what else do you need?” says Miller. To make a Dark and Stormy, mix 2 ounces of dark rum with 3 ounces of ginger beer. Serve over ice.

Snickerdoodles with cream soda: The cinnamon sugar on the cookies pairs well with the vanilla in the soda, esp when the cookies are dunked.

Shortbread and sparkling wine: A dry Champagne cuts through the rich, buttery flavor of the cookie.

Molasses cookies with hot spiced apple cider: In this combination, the spices in the cider stand up to the rich molasses in the cookie.

Lace cookies with a late-harvest riesling: Like lace cookies, a late-harvest riesling is light and delicate. The wine’s peach and apricot flavors also work well here.

(and more in the article!!!)

Annual KTC meeting and dinner at William's

The group convened at 5:30pm last Saturday the 14th to hold our annual Kiss The Cooks meeting and dinner at William’s house. The night opened with a delightful sparkling wine from New Mexico (Gruet?), and in the course of just a few short minutes, small talk degenerated from “Hi, how are things?” to cigarettes to potty training to out-and-out hazing.

After a beautiful welcome and introduction from William, the first order of business was whether to allow Frank, who had left the group the year prior, to re-join the group. Much mirth ensued as current members discussed what would be required of Frank as compensation for permitting him to return. Choices were, 1. prepare dinner for the group, 2. perform a strip tease, 3. write an essay entitled “Umami or Upapi, and Why,” or 4. perform the “I’m a Little Teapot” song with appropriate arm and hand movements.

In short order, we also discussed the following business:

  • A “yes” to offering the KTC experience in charity auction events in 2010, but at 2 guests per event instead of last year’s 4 per event
  • Improved documentation of our monthly cooking get-togethers, including photos, recipes, and more via a private blog
  • In 2010 we would like to try inviting special culinary guests to join us for our monthly cooking get-together
  • We’d like to branch out in terms of our creativity, cooking by “themes” and expanding our offerings to include some interesting non-alcoholic beverages
  • Traveling together: We’ll try for Lopez or Whidbey in late winter and perhaps look into Walla Walla later in the year to visit Mikey

We called Frank in to give him our enthusiastic approval of his return (as well as a bit of a hard time), and to our surprise (and to many’s disappointment), he elected to cook dinner for the group instead of the aforementioned strip-tease or performance of “Teapot.” At 6:30, dinner was served.

The group filed into William’s dining room, transformed into something even more special than usual by his incredibly beautiful quilted placemats, chargers and table accessories. Stunning stuff!

Now…on to William’s culinary masterpieces (this is the part where we realize that photos would have been particularly nice to have added to this format!):

SOUP: Leek and apple soup in a chicken stock base, with a beautiful velvety texture thickened with potatoes. Perfect for the weather!

SALAD: Slices of heirloom tomato and wine-poached pears served over butter lettuce, topped with bleu cheese, candied pecans, and truffle salt. Yum!

BOEUF BOURGUIGNON: Homage to Julia Child, marvelous execution and rich taste, served over smashed potatoes instead of noodles.

ZABAGLIONE: Sweet Italian dessert made by furiously whipping egg yolks with marsala wine and sugar, served warm in a goblet. Some were eating it straight out of the mixing bowl by the end of the night!

TONIGHT’S LESSON: Cognac is a fabulous secret ingredient. It reduces bitterness caused by accidental over-searing of meats, it enhances complexity of a dish, it adds a special touch to candied nuts…AND it makes the person or persons cooking feel really smiley and warm!