Dinner - The Polyphonic Food Blog

[Xochitl10]

Buri daikon -- yellowtail collars and daikon slices simmered with ginger, mirin, soy sauce, sake and sugar

Hourenso no goma ae -- parboiled spinach dressed with ground white sesame, soy sauce, sake, and sugar

Iburigakko -- smoked pickled daikon

Steamed rice

[legant]

Buri daikon -- yellowtail collars and daikon slices simmered with ginger, mirin, soy sauce, sake and sugar

Hourenso no goma ae -- parboiled spinach dressed with ground white sesame, soy sauce, sake, and sugar

Iburigakko -- smoked pickled daikon

Steamed rice

You do realize: when you come back to the States, you will prepare dinner for all of us.

[legant]

I just brined my first chicken!

[You'd think I'd just discovered electricity. Three days later and I'm still patting myself on the back. I've been dreaming all day about brining a pork chop for supper. Alas, time is not on my side: CI's ultracrunchy baked (brined) pork chops, sautéed brussel sprouts w/ pancetta and hazelnuts, and cornbread will have to wait until tomorrow night. Tonight:]

Linguini w/ mushrooms, squash and spinach

Vodka cream sauce

Vodka gimlet

[Pat]

I thought last night's dinner was fine, nothing great. But today its leftovers tasted so good as lunch! I made a recipe from Epicurious' quick and easy section, Peppered Beef Stroganoff. It was in fact very easy and very quick which was exactly what I needed when I finally got home at 8 pm last night. I subbed a flavorful rib eye for the filet based on both taste and cost (almost $17 a pound at Safeway in McLean).

That recipe looks good, especially with the pepper component. I bookmarked it to try. I rarely make stroganoff. It's not something my mother ever made. I don't think I ever ate it until I was an adult. The stroganoff I make most often (which is quite infrequently) is a recipe for meatballs stroganoff from Good Housekeeping, ca. 1960.

Last night I experimented with making a dish I saw described and pictured in an eGullet blog: fettat hummus. Once I had constructed it, it struck me as being akin to a 7 layer dip, but focused on hummus. Since I didn't plan ahead and hadn't soaked chickpeas, I used canned. I hadn't made hummus in ages and couldn't remember what recipe I usually use . I went with a Jane Brody recipe, mostly, with a nod to Moosewood, so the hummus had parsley in it and chopped scallions on top, paprika, cumin, and a couple of slugs of tamari sauce (in addition to tahini, lemon juice, and garlic). The 19 oz. can of chickpeas was the perfect size, as the Brody recipe calls for 15 oz or 1 1/2 cups, and that left just enough over for the chickpea layer.

This is how I assembled the dish:

Layer in a glass serving bowl,

fried pita (small rounds, cut in quarters, split in halves)

chickpeas

hummus

thick (i.e. Greek) yogurt with garlic and mint

pine nuts (toasted)

olive oil (drizzled over top)

Serve with additional fried pita quarters.

When I searched online to see if I could get more information on preparation, I saw an Iraqi recipe, which had only chickpeas and not prepared hummus as well. That called for baked pita and drizzling liquid over them on the bottom layer, so I drizzled some reserved chickpea liquid over the bottom layer of pita.

Anyway, this was excellent. We both loved it. The remaining portion is in the refrigerator for tonight. I fried up some extra pita chips, so we're ready to go.

[cjsadler]

Much fancier than usual weeknight dinner...

Roasted beet salad with fried capers and horseradish-creme fraiche dressing

Cod with lentils and grain mustard emulsion (ala Proof)

The texture of frozen cod just isn't any good, though (this was from Trader Joe's).

Dahlia Lounge coconut cream pie

Didn't quite match up to the restaurant... wasn't quite coconut-y enough. This was a super-easy pie to make, though.

[DanCole42]

Much fancier than usual weeknight dinner...

Those are all GORGEOUS and delicious-looking.

-Roast vegetables with fresh herbs

-Warm sourdough bread

-Risotto made with homemade chicken stock

-Roast chicken with thyme, butter, and dijon mustard

It was a simple meal, but the execution was such that my wife called it one of my best efforts ever. The fact that the chicken stock was homemade (from chickens brined as part of the Palena Chicken Project stretching back almost a year) meant that even the plain risotto came out creamy and intensely flavored. My awesome LG convection oven created a crispy skin and a juicy bird. Adding the butter and thyme as the chicken was resting AFTER cooking created a faintingly delightful aroma and a fresh taste in the final product. This is going into my regular rotation, no doubt about it.

[porcupine]

Chicken thighs and drumsticks - placed on a bed of thin lemon slices and rosemary sprigs, broiled about 10 min per side. frequently basted with lemon-rosemary butter. Very crisy brown skin, juicy flesh. This one's a keeper.

[Xochitl10]

You do realize: when you come back to the States, you will prepare dinner for all of us.

That's a lot of yellowtail collars.

[Xochitl10]

I had time on my hands yesterday, so I decided to make a standard Japanese dinner of steamed rice, soup, and pickles, and three other dishes (ichiju-sansai, according to Wikipedia).

Clockwise from left:

Kinpira gobou (simmered burdock root; I'm addicted to this stuff)

Shira-ae (tofu dressing) with konnyaku, shiitake, and carrots

Miso soup with wakame and fu (wheat gluten)

Steamed rice (in the covered dish)

Homemade ponzu

Rice-bran pickled carrots

Katsuo tataki

[Pat]

Baby romaine salad with yellow bell pepper, grapefruit and cucumber, topped with poached salmon; vinaigrette

Meat loaf larded with bacon

Baked potatoes

[Pat]

Homemade applesauce topped with chopped pink lady apples, sliced almonds, and golden raisins

Pork stroganoff with cremini and white button mushrooms, over wide egg noodles, garnished with chopped parsley

[legant]

Lentil soup w/ kielbasa

Cornbread w/ pancetta

Cinnamon raisin bagel chips

[Anna Blume]

Large salad of red leaf lettuce, slivers of dried white peaches & toasted walnuts w shallot vinaigrette

Quiche w a hint of sautéed scallions and whisper of bacon

Half a green apple

Dried white peaches were purchased at Trader Joe's some time ago--much too sweet on their own. Threw them in the freezer. Actually quite good w a tart salad dressing.

Half the dairy Keller calls for in the filling, so not as custardy as the recipe in Bouchon, but needing to use up heavy cream reminded me of what a difference it makes.

As for the pastry, I've decided I really, really like lard when making a savory dish w ham or bacon. This was really one of the best ever:

3 T (39 g) lard

5 T butter (total g of both fats: 114)

5 oz. flour

1/2 t salt

2 T ice water

1 T apple cider vinegar

[Xochitl10]

Pork curry rice with a side of rice-bran pickled cucumbers

[DanCole42]

-Antipasto of olives, reggiano parmigiano, prosciutto, sourdough bread, dijon mustard & roasted garlic olive oil

-My first EVER homemade pasta! Thank you, Santa, for the lovely attachments to my Kitchen Aid! It was a simple tagliatelle, and it came out great! No sticking issues, no clumping, and perfectly cooked

-I tossed the pasta in a saute of chanterelles, shiitakes, and porcinis with some crispy prosciutto, butter, and reduced porcini mushroom water

[Pat]

I discovered a new use for leftover meatloaf: crumbled taco beef for 7 layer dip.

Dinner plans changed rather at the last minute, and the 7 layer dip with tortilla chips (some homemade--the bag of them ran out) was quite good. I'm not even sure what goes into 7 layer dip, but we had that number of layers with no cheese. I realized we were lacking shredded cheddar after we'd already eaten, so I'm not sure what the extra layer was . Maybe it was the meat .

torn iceberg lettuce

chopped tomatoes

chopped black olives

crumbled meat loaf

black beans

sour cream

guacamole

[DanielK]

I discovered a new use for leftover meatloaf: crumbled taco beef for 7 layer dip.

Dinner plans changed rather at the last minute, and the 7 layer dip with tortilla chips (some homemade--the bag of them ran out) was quite good. I'm not even sure what goes into 7 layer dip, but we had that number of layers with no cheese. I realized we were lacking shredded cheddar after we'd already eaten, so I'm not sure what the extra layer was . Maybe it was the meat .

torn iceberg lettuce

chopped tomatoes

chopped black olives

crumbled meat loaf

black beans

sour cream

guacamole

My wife, who grew up in Texas, says that a 7-layer dip is traditionally vegetarian, so the beef is indeed the (oft-added) 8th mystery layer.

[Halloween]

Coffee-Marinated Buffalo Short Ribs

Roasted Kabocha squash (straight, no chaser)

H20 Cocktail

[Pat]

My wife, who grew up in Texas, says that a 7-layer dip is traditionally vegetarian, so the beef is indeed the (oft-added) 8th mystery layer.

Aha! Maybe I'll call this taco dip then .

[cjsadler]

Coffee-Marinated Buffalo Short Ribs

Is this from the Bon Appetit article this month by Bruce Aidell? (I saw that recipe the other day) How were they? Where'd you get the buffalo short ribs? Cibola?

[Pat]

Last night was a margherita pizza on a whole wheat crust (well, part ww), with mushrooms. I intended to put sopprasseta on it as well, but I forgot .

[Pat]

green salad

baguette

veal stew

The stew came out incredibly well. I used a small piece of fatback to start out with, and I'm not sure if that was a key to the incredible flavor or not, but this was some good veal stew. (Veal, carrots, celery, onions, garlic, chicken broth, white wine, cremini mushrooms, barley, parsley.)

[txaggie]

Dinner on Wednesday (made by cjsadler) was gyros and mixed veggies. Dessert was dried cherry compote with fennel shortbread and mascarpone. The gyro recipe was from a recent issue of Cook's Illustrated. The dessert recipe was from Food and Wine this month.

[Halloween]

Is this from the Bon Appetit article this month by Bruce Aidell? (I saw that recipe the other day) How were they? Where'd you get the buffalo short ribs? Cibola?

Yes, that's the recipe, and the short ribs were delicious. I purchased the ribs at Cibola a few months ago, and finally decided to cook them. The recipe calls for low-sodium chicken broth (which i didn't have on hand), so I used regular broth, but forgot to adjust the salt in other parts of the recipe. So, the ribs were a bit salty, but otherwise nicely-seasoned, tender, and rich, without much fat (compared to beef short ribs). My brother has decided that I should add this recipe to the regular rotation!

[zoramargolis]

Farro and lentil salad with roasted peppers, olives, capers, pine nuts, marsala-poached golden raisins, pecorino on a bed of baby spinach

Roast leg of lamb (boneless) with garlic and rosemary

2001 Villa La Selva Felciaia (100% Sangiovese from Tuscany)

I finally got around to cooking some of the farro I've had in the fridge since my August shopping spree at Surfas in Culver City, CA. It was in a strongly vacuum-sealed pouch. It seemed very similar to barley, and I could see making the same salad with barley. It was dressed with roasted and raw garlic, EVOO, red wine vinegar, balsamic, lemon zest and juice, finely chopped scallions, rosemary, thyme and Italian parsley. And I added the tiny bit left of a head of radicchio that I found in the veg drawer. I made it as a main for Veggie-teen and a side for us--but I have to say that as delicious as the lamb was, I would have been totally satisfied with just the farro salad. Definitely a dish I will make again. Next time I might use arugula as a green instead of spinach, for even more flavor. It also could be good with chick peas instead of lentils, but I liked the color contrast of the brown lentils with the pale farro.

The wine was fabulous--rich and full bodied with enough tannin and acidity to handle bold seasoning--and I am a happy camper, because I've got five more bottles of it! Thank you Wine Library =:-D

[Pat]

I finally got around to cooking some of the farro I've had in the fridge since my August shopping spree at Surfas in Culver City, CA. It was in a strongly vacuum-sealed pouch.

Do you recommend that I keep my farro in the refrigerator? I've got a couple of unopened packs in the kitchen cabinets. I'm not making it as often as I was last year. The salad sounds good.

[zoramargolis]

Do you recommend that I keep my farro in the refrigerator? I've got a couple of unopened packs in the kitchen cabinets. I'm not making it as often as I was last year. The salad sounds good.

When I bought it at Surfas, it was in a refrigerated case along with a number of other whole grains, artisanal grits and flours.

[Pat]

When I bought it at Surfas, it was in a refrigerated case along with a number of other whole grains, artisanal grits and flours.

Maybe I should make room for it in the refrigerator, then. I know that quinoa is especially prone to rancidity, but I'm not sure about other grains.

Last night: leftover lamb chops from rack of lamb, pan browned and crusty (not medium-rare anymore but good nonetheless); baked potatoes; braised baby bok choy with mushrooms and garlic.

[Anna Blume]

Do you recommend that I keep my farro in the refrigerator? I've got a couple of unopened packs in the kitchen cabinets. I'm not making it as often as I was last year.

No. At least, in Italy it's sold on shelves next to the dried pasta. I've brought some back that I used slowly to make it last for well over a year. Fine. Not musty, dull or beer-like.

ETA: Moderator: How come you removed this post from the thread dedicated to farro? Wouldn't the information be more useful there?

[Xochitl10]

We had Okinawan soba for dinner on Friday night.

Okinawan soba is not made from buckwheat. It has a thickness somewhere between soba and udon. The toppings of pork belly, kamaboko, benishouga and minced green onion are among the most common.

[Pat]

No. At least, in Italy it's sold on shelves next to the dried pasta. I've brought some back that I used slowly to make it last for well over a year. Fine. Not musty, dull or beer-like.

I guess I'll leave it in the cabinets, then. I really should just use it . I was on this big farro kick early last year and then my fascination dropped off a bit.

Last night was roasted whole chicken with bread stuffing and giblet gravy; buttered parsley potatoes; and, roasted fennel. I'm going to make soup from the chicken carcass today and add some of the leftover stuffing to it .

[Erin11]

Pork Shoulder alla Porchetta (Mario Batalli's recipe)

Wild rice blend (Trader Joe's package)

Celery Root Remoulade (minus celery root as my produce store did not have it - substituted jicama to add to the apple and fennel called for in the recipe)

[zoramargolis]

Mesclun and frisee salad with Meyer lemon vinaigrette

Crabcakes with remoulade sauce based on homemade garlic mayonnaise

Creamy artisanal grits

Collards stewed with onion, garlic and tomatoes

Whole cored apples and pears stuffed with chopped dates, figs, golden raisins, almonds and spices, baked with apple cider reduction/framboise syrup, served with vanilla whipped cream

2006 Tittarelli Torrontes

[rkduggins]

Lemon brined buttermilk fried chicken

Green beans roasted with marjoram and onions topped with fresh lemon juice and Marcona almonds

Turnip gratin

One Trader Joe's salted chocolate caramel

[DameEdna]

One Trader Joe's salted chocolate caramel

[youngfood]

Mussels with Saffron and Mustard (Thomas Keller Bouchon recipe)

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

2006 Cuatro Rayas Verdejo

The mussels recipe was surprisingly easy, though I may have gone a touch heavy on the saffron flavor.

[Woodleygrrl]

we are having a dinner to settle a bet I made and on the menu is cheeseburgers, homemade fries, mac and cheese, adult milkshakes and a veggie dish of some sort.

Anyone have a killer recipie for burgers?

[Heather]

Anyone have a killer recipie for burgers?

Mr. xcanuck, please pick up the white courtesy phone...

[DanCole42]

Anyone have a killer recipie for burgers?

http://www.donrockwell.com/index.php?showtopic=6372

[Heather]

Swedish meatballs: ground beef, ground pork, minced sauteed onion, bread soaked in milk, salt, pepper, allspice, nutmeg. Browned on the stove then popped in the oven.

Gravy made with cream and beef stock.

Rice & steamed broccoli.

[Pat]

Morbiere and baguette

Butter lettuce with avocado, feta, red pepper, radishes, Alphonso olives and balsamic vinaigrette

Meatballs with anchovies (from The Silver Spoon--wonderful meatball recipe)

Buttered egg noodles with Parmesan

Swiss chard with balsamic

[zoramargolis]

Minestrone soup

Marvy Market baguette

Sticky toffee pudding

[Woodleygrrl]

http://www.donrockwell.com/index.php?showtopic=6372

Thanks, yo.

[cjsadler]

Ricotta gnocchi with porcini sauce

Not the most vibrant looking dish, but damn if these aren't super-easy and delicious. Much less work than potato gnocchi (though likely not better for you), plus you don't have to be fussy, worried that you're going to make them tough. As long as you've got your ricotta ready (the supermarket stuff, like I used, needs to be drained in cheesecloth), these can be put together in no time. And you can freeze the leftovers. Perfect dinner party first course here.

[Heather]

Chris, would you post the recipe?

[Erin11]

Extremely cold temps here in Chicago called for comfort food:

Roasted chicken

Garlic mashed potatoes

Rapini - first blanched in salted water, then sauteed in olive oil and garlic

cjsadler - I second the request for your gnocchi & sauce recipe (or link to published recipe)

[cjsadler]

Chris, would you post the recipe?

I modified a Cook's Illustrated recipe a little. Totally quick enough for a weeknight meal as long as the ricotta is ready.

For the gnocchi:

1 lb ricotta

1/4 cup panko

1 egg

1/2 cup grated parmesian

1 tsp salt

pepper

6 T flour

minced oregano (or whatever herb)

If you've got good, thick ricotta from Cowgirl Creamery or somewhere, you're good to go. Otherwise, drain your ricotta for a few hours by wrapping it in cheesecloth (I hung mine in the fridge over a bowl) or layering some coffee filters in a strainer.

Stir up the ricotta to loosen it up a bit and smooth it out.

Mix in the egg*

Add everything else and mix together. Put it in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm up.

Flour a surface. Flour your hands. Grab a baseball size chunk of the 'dough' (if you can't roll it up into a reasonably coherent ball, add more panko and flour)

Roll out into a 'rope' with your hands, like you did when you were a kid with play-doh. Cut into bite size pieces.

Cook in just simmering, heavily salted water until the gnocchi float. Then cook 2 minutes more and throw them into your sauce.

Porcini sauce

Soak about 1.5 oz dried porcini** in about 1.5 cups very hot water for about 20 min

Saute a few minced shallots in butter until browned (along with a few hot pepper flakes if you like)

Deglaze with 1/4 cup white wine, let reduce a bit

Add the mushroom water and reduce a lot

Add 1/2 cup cream and reduce to sauce consistency

Chop fine and add back in the rehydrated porcini mushrooms

Season. Add some chopped parsley.... maybe a dash of balsamic if the sauce needs a bit more acid.

*Maybe mixing the ricotta and egg together using a mixer with a whisk attachment would result in even lighter gnocchi? Something to experiment with.

**A substitute I frequently use is dried shiitakes from the Asian supermarkets-- very cheap compared to dried porcini.

[mdt]

I modified a Cook's Illustrated recipe a little. Totally quick enough for a weeknight meal as long as the ricotta is ready.

For the gnocchi:

1 lb ricotta

1/4 cup panko

1 egg

1/2 cup grated parmesian

1 tsp salt

pepper

6 T flour

minced oregano (or whatever herb)

If you've got good, thick ricotta from Cowgirl Creamery or somewhere, you're good to go. Otherwise, drain your ricotta for a few hours by wrapping it in cheesecloth (I hung mine in the fridge over a bowl) or layering some coffee filters in a strainer.

Stir up the ricotta to loosen it up a bit and smooth it out.

Mix in the egg*

Add everything else and mix together. Put it in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm up.

Flour a surface. Flour your hands. Grab a baseball size chunk of the 'dough' (if you can't roll it up into a reasonably coherent ball, add more panko and flour)

Roll out into a 'rope' with your hands, like you did when you were a kid with play-doh. Cut into bite size pieces.

Cook in just simmering, heavily salted water until the gnocchi float. Then cook 2 minutes more and throw them into your sauce.

Porcini sauce

Soak about 1.5 oz dried porcini** in about 1.5 cups very hot water for about 20 min

Saute a few minced shallots in butter until browned (along with a few hot pepper flakes if you like)

Deglaze with 1/4 cup white wine, let reduce a bit

Add the mushroom water and reduce a lot

Add 1/2 cup cream and reduce to sauce consistency

Chop fine and add back in the rehydrated porcini mushrooms

Season. Add some chopped parsley.... maybe a dash of balsamic if the sauce needs a bit more acid.

*Maybe mixing the ricotta and egg together using a mixer with a whisk attachment would result in even lighter gnocchi? Something to experiment with.

**A substitute I frequently use is dried shiitakes from the Asian supermarkets-- very cheap compared to dried porcini.

What reason did they give for adding the panko? I have made them without before and am trying to figure out what they would add.

[cjsadler]

What reason did they give for adding the panko? I have made them without before and am trying to figure out what they would add.

They actually called for making your own breadcrumbs, but I don't know if they explained that addition. I think it was mainly to help the gnocchi keep their structure (by soaking up some of the ricotta moisture) while minimizing gluten (i.e., instead of just using all flour). Maybe?

[zoramargolis]

Eco-Friendly chicken marinated in salted buttermilk, rolled in seasoned flour and pan fried

Mashed potatoes

Braised collard greens

2005 Dom. Robert Perroud Brouilly