Dinner - The Polyphonic Food Blog

[Pat]

pan-fried sirloin steak with caramelized shallots and shiitakes

mashed potatoes with truffled pecorino

green beans

[zoramargolis]

Charcoal roasted and applewood smoked bone-in pork loin chops*

South Carolina mustard barbecue sauce--many thanks for the recipe, Scott Johnston!

Braised collards

Baby limas (frozen) stewed with onion and bacon

Mashed sweet potatoes

Cornbread (from WFM bakery) with butter and Toigo honey

Magic Hat #9 for me/Pacifico for him

Perfectly ripe yellow peach from Toigo

*I can't remember a pork chop that I have enjoyed as much as this. Thick pork porterhouse purchased at Tenley WFM, done in the Weber Kettle on indirect heat with Cowboy charcoal, with wet applewood shreds purchased earlier this summer from Quaker Valley Orchard at the Dupont Market providing the smoke. Juicy and smoky and out of this world with the spicy, mustardy bbq sauce.

[Sthitch]

3 Pork Hash - Potatoes sauteed with onions, red peppers, breakfast sausage, country ham (from the place in Old Town farmers market), and a really nice smokey bacon (from Cheesetique) topped with poached eggs. A nice excuse for making Bellini's on a Thursday evening.

[Anna Blume]

Country ham w three: crispy fried okra, sliced green tomato and skillet cornbread w fresh corn.

Salt-cured ham slices courtesy of Cibola and quite good.

I think Heather mentioned the Lee Bros. cookbook some time back and after picking up a copy at the library, I have been pleasantly surprised by the few things I've tried, including fried chicken that actually came out moist and perfectly cooked vs. a blackened batch I prepped using Edna Lewis/Peacock instructions (though I soaked pieces overnight in buttermilk vs. the brothers' brine). Their okra recipe is quite good, too. This was the second time I've made it.

Another novelty for me is white cornmeal, the only kind available at time of purchase. Produced in VA. I'll be darned but it bakes up yellow after all. Filled w two ears of Toigo corn. Tomato was a ripe Green Zebra raw vs. an unripe one, cooked.

Stuffed, so small, deep purple plum for dessert. No Bellini for me.

[Pat]

Last night:

Rustic bread from Marvelous Market, with extra virgin olive oil for dipping

Broiled halibut with watermelon salsa

Iraqi tabbouleh [recipe from Bert Greene's Grains cookbook]

[Heather]

Grilled spiced kifte

toasted pita

plain yogurt with mint

chopped salad of cucumber, Vidalia onion, and a homegrown tomato (our tomatoes are excellent this year), dressed with good olive oil and chopped oregano

The kids had ice cream with the babysitter, I had wine and a couple of gin & tonics at a party.

[Pat]

Saturday night dinner:

Lowcountry baked beans with crowder peas

Buttered corn on the cob

Hamburgers on toasted rustic bread with truffled pecorino, iceberg lettuce and beefsteak tomato

The crowder peas, corn, and tomato came from outside vendors at Eastern Market. I had never made crowder peas before. They took a long time to shell, but the recipe I found for making them as baked beans was excellent. I only had 2 cups of beans instead of the 3 called for, but they came out great.

[monavano]

I've been sick all week and finally had a bit of strength to get to the West End Alexandria farmers market today, and I am so happy I did. While not exactly dinner, a late lunch is all I can find the energy to make today--and it was the best taste of summer that I've ever had. Take a look at this bite;

Heirloom tomato, kosher salt, pepper, olive oil and balsamic, topped with pan fried goat chevre rolled in seasoned bread crumbs, with pan roasted/caramelized white corn and chiffonade of basil.

Heirloom tomato and corn from J&W Valley View Farm in Westmoreland County, VA

Chevre from Apple Tree Goat Farm (Richland, PA), sold by Tom the cheese guy

Basil from me

[Heather]

Pizzas, topped with Blue Ridge Dairy fresh & smoked mozzarella, sauteed wild mushrooms, anchovies, and fresh thyme from our garden.

Mache with homegrown tomatoes.

Lemon meringue pie.

[DanCole42]

It may be trite, but taco pizza.

-Grilled flank steak marinated with cilantro, scallions, and serranos

-Pickled onions and jalapenos

-Queso blanco

Cold Circus Boy (the beer, not a dead underage carnie)

[Pat]

Last night was a thrown together skillet dinner with leftover rice, ground beef, sliced yellow squash, onion, garlic, and fresh basil. I used a little white wine, white wine vinegar, worcestershire and cholula for seasoning. Came out pretty well. Dinner started with a salad plate of a couple of leaves of iceberg lettuce, half a sliced beefsteak tomato, and a sliced hard-boiled egg, dressed with a little bottled light ranch.

For dessert we finally had some of a frozen bittersweet chocolate mousse cake that I had made a couple of days before.

[Xochitl10]

Goya chanpuru -- Okinawan stir-fry of goya (bitter melon), ginger, pork, tofu, and bean sprouts, bound with egg.

[zoramargolis]

Goya chanpuru -- Okinawan stir-fry of goya (bitter melon), ginger, pork, tofu, and bean sprouts, bound with egg.

Do you parboil or do anything to the bitter melon before adding it to the stirfry? Does cooking render it less bitter than when it is raw? I bought one out of curiosity once, but tasting a small bite of it -- it was SO bitter -- I couldn't imagine that a larger amount wouldn't render a dish inedible. I pitched it. What am I missing here?

[monavano]

Oven roasted chicken with lemon, oregano and rosemary

aromatic vegetables

pan gravy

mashed pototoes

parmesan asparagus

ciabatta

[DanCole42]

Your gravy is beautiful. Super shiny and clear! You must have "strained" a lot

The last of the tenderloin chain put into a cheesesteak with vidalia onions and mimolette

Braised rapini*

Magic Hat summer blend

*I am SO CLOSE to getting out all the bitterness.

[Pat]

Cantaloupe wrapped with proscuitto and dotted with feta

Mixed rancho gordo beans with ham hock and dandelion greens

The beans and ham hock were done in the crock pot, with the greens added at the end. Awesome. I tossed a dried ancho chile in there partway through, which added a nice kick to the flavor.

[Xochitl10]

Do you parboil or do anything to the bitter melon before adding it to the stirfry? Does cooking render it less bitter than when it is raw? I bought one out of curiosity once, but tasting a small bite of it -- it was SO bitter -- I couldn't imagine that a larger amount wouldn't render a dish inedible. I pitched it. What am I missing here?

I rubbed it with salt and let it sit for about 15 minutes before rinsing it. Then I squeezed out as much of the remaining water as possible. The goya is still bitter after doing this, but not nearly as much as when untreated.

Incidentally, lots of bitter vegetables get eaten here. Japanese cooking seems to use this or some other technique involving salt for removing bitterness. Many of my recipes call for rolling butterbur or unpeeled cucumber in salt or parboiling the bitter vegetable in salted water.

[monavano]

Frittatta-squash blossoms, turkey sausage, red pepper, some leftover Gruyere cheese, onion and garlic

Panzanella salad-old ciabatta, tomato, 3 basils, red onion and capers in a red wine and balsamic vinaigrette

To come: banana bread for dessert..still in the oven

3 basils-Siam Queen Basil, Sweet Basil and Basil Minette

[DanielK]

I rubbed it with salt and let it sit for about 15 minutes before rinsing it. Then I squeezed out as much of the remaining water as possible. The goya is still bitter after doing this, but not nearly as much as when untreated.

Incidentally, Japanese cooking seems to use this or some other technique involving salt for removing bitterness. Many of my recipes call for rolling butterbur or unpeeled cucumber in salt or parboiling the bitter vegetable in salted water. Lots of bitter vegetables get eaten here.

This is exactly how I learned to make Eggplant Parm when I worked prep in an Italian restaurant in college. Cut slices of eggplant about 1/2" thick. Place slices on a shallow pan, salt liberally, cover with wax paper, and make several layers. Then put another pan on top, repeating the process, until the stack is a foot or so high. Then pile 40 or so phone books on top of the whole structure. Don't forget to place the bucket at the end of the counter to catch the gallon or so of water that will leach out! After an hour, the eggplant will be tender and not the tiniest bit bitter. Ready for the breading and frying.

[DanCole42]

BLT

The tomatoes I recovered from a dream I had about Fraggles with the help of an aboriginal shaman.

The bread I stole from Hansel and Gretel - now they'll never find their way home.

The lettuce came from Wegman's.

The bacon came from a pig that offered me three wishes - guess what the third one was.

The mayo I made at home using a mortar and pestle. If you've never made mayo this way, well, do it. The consistency is something akin to Vaseline mixed with heavy cream tossed with summer clouds.

Also, if you do it this way, your arms will look like like Popeye's.

[monavano]

BLT

The tomatoes I recovered from a dream I had about Fraggles with the help of an aboriginal shaman.

The bread I stole from Hansel and Gretel - now they'll never find their way home.

The lettuce came from Wegman's.

The bacon came from a pig that offered me three wishes - guess what the third one was.

The mayo I made at home using a mortar and pestle. If you've never made mayo this way, well, do it. The consistency is something akin to Vaseline mixed with heavy cream tossed with summer clouds.

Also, if you do it this way, your arms will look like like Popeye's.

Wow, that looks great. I have been dreaming of a BLT too. Eve's ciabatta (from Grape+Bean), heirloom tomato, Neiman Ranch bacon and homemade mayo. One trip into Old Town today could yield all I need, with the new farmers market in N. Old Town by the King St. Metro and a trip to Whole Foods.

[Xochitl10]

Dan, your sammich looks amazing! We are drooling.

Our dinner (which again appears to be miso-heavy):

Dengaku tofu: grilled tofu topped with seasoned miso

Nasu no nabe-shigi: simmered eggplants and green beans glazed with miso

The rest of the goya, seeded, inside slathered with miso, and grilled

The neighbor's awesome garlicky cucumber pickles

Miso soup with wakame seaweed and fu (wheat gluten)

Steamed brown rice

[giant shrimp]

Also, if you do it this way, your arms will look like like Popeye's.

i was afraid of this, so i recently purchased a hand mixer.

but this isn't really the best way to get your arms to look like popeye's.

this is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrCmOTnFEFY&eurl=

[Banco]

We're mebers of a CSA here on the Hill, but the wife and kids are away for the week so I'm being inundated with tomatoes, eggplant, etc. I also had a bunch of basil that needed work before it vanished into the ether. So last night I made pesto, sans pine nuts, with some olive oil from Crete that a friend brings us. It had been a long time since I made pesto and I really enjoyed doing it again. I just wizzed it in the food processor and it turned out very well. For the tomatoes I peeled and seeded them, turned them into concassé and cooked them with garlic, olive oil, salt, a bit of fennel and saffron, and a pinch of coriander--pretty basic, but I used a technique form James Peterson's book on sauces: instead of cooking the tomatoes down until the sauce thickened, I strained them half way through cooking and reduced the liquid alone until it was syrupy, then added the tomatoes again. This way the tomatoes maintain more freshness and body. I focussed their flavor with wine vinegar and sugar. Along with the pesto, this will make a great garnish for a soupe a pistou that I plan to make later in the week.

The eggplant I shall subject to the rigors of Fuchsia Dunlop's recipe for "Fish Fragrant Eggplant Slices" in Land of Plenty, one of my favorite cookbooks of all time.

[monavano]

We had leftovers from our roast chicken dinner, followed by slices of banana bread.

We started with fresh market tomatoes. This "hillbilly" variety is sweet and meaty. In cross section, it looks like a blood orange. I paired it with remaining chevre, s/p, olive oil and balsamic.

[Fish]

W00t! My first post!

I made ABT's and spareribs last night for the wife and the guys working on my house:

My spareribs:

They were some happy workers....

[DanCole42]

W00t! My first post!

They were some happy workers....

Welcome! Bacon wrapped ANYTHING is awesome, but those just look beyond incredible. Nice smoke ring on the ribs!

[edenman]

Cooking alot more than usual this week, due to a toe injury:

Monday:

Roasted Beet Salad (sliced beets, goat cheese, cara cara orange slices)

Whole Trout Meuniere, Grilled sausage, capers

Wednesday:

Seared Sea Scallops, Grits

Oven-roasted Black Sea Bass, bed of Chard, Heirloom Tomato, Red Onion, Guanciale Lardons

Tonight:

Green Grits (grits mixed with a puree of guanciale, red onion, and edamame)

The Green Grits were an experiment driven by not wanting to spend any more money at WF than I have been. Not bad, but the texture was a bit too chunky...maybe omit the onion/guanciale next time and flavor with creamier ingredients (guanciale grease + onion powder? seems a bit odd). I've been reading James Peterson's Fish & Shellfish, which produced the inspiration to try whatever whole fish looked good at WF. Was a bit thrown off by the trout's sliminess, but the book tells me that's normal, so we're good. Photos

[bettyjoan]

Hosted a small dinner party last weekend, and it was quite successful. For a cocktail-hour munchie, I prepared skewers of cantaloupe melon, prosciutto, and fresh mozzarella with basil-shallot oil for dipping. The main course was chicken and sausage cacciatore with grape tomatoes, mushrooms, red wine, rosemary, and basil. For dessert, I opted to make key lime cupcakes, and they were probably the hit of the evening.

All recipes came from Bon Appetit magazine--and I was really pleased that such an impressive-tasting spread could be so easy and relatively affordable to throw together.

[Scott Johnston]

I will work for ribs!!!

[Pat]

Bean salad (green and yellow wax beans) with sherry vinaigrette, artichoke hearts, hard-boiled egg halves, crumbled bacon and toasted walnuts.

Gnudi in Tomato Butter Sauce

[Pat]

Cooking alot more than usual this week, due to a toe injury:

Ouch. That toe injury looks bad. I'm glad you're getting more cooking at home time, but I hope it doesn't last too long.

[DanCole42]

Obesity epidemic? Say what?

Deathburger

Two paddies, home ground, made from:

5/8s local sirloin flap from Ashburn farmer's market

3/8s local short rib from Ashburn farmer's market

Topped with:

Kraft American cheese (now with extra yellow!)

Translucently-thin raw vidalia onion ribbons

Dan's Special Sauce made from Tuesday's leftover mortar and pestle mayonaise, worcestershire sauce, and other sundries

Toasted buns

Griddled in grapeseed oil

My first attempt at homemade french fries

Benriner-cut organic russets

Washed, chilled, and double fried in a mixture of peanut oil, olive oil, and bacon fat

Tossed with truffle oil, salt, and pepper

[DonRocks]

Topped with:

Kraft American cheese (now with extra yellow!)

This makes me sad.

[DanCole42]

This makes me sad.

It wouldn't be a death burger without the Altria influence.

[monavano]

Mr. MV just looked over my shoulder at Dan's burger...and drooled on it Seriously looks good. I'll spot you the fake cheese

[edenman]

Ouch. That toe injury looks bad. I'm glad you're getting more cooking at home time, but I hope it doesn't last too long.

You should see it without the bandage But yea, thanks for the well wishes. I'm hoping it gets better too. Hobbling around in flipflops is starting to get old.

[Pat]

Roasted fig-frisee salad

[sherry vinaigrette, toasted nuts, avocado, prosciutto, yellow tomatoes, feta]

Panko-breaded pork cutlets

Wilted baby spinach

Baked beans (leftover from last Saturday)

I found the brown figs at Eastern market this morning. Ooh, they are good.

[porcupine]

Spinach, apple, almond salad with pear balsamic vinaigrette

mushrooms with poached egg (crispy buttons, just-warmed honey and chanterelle, parsley, garlic)

toasted baguette slices with cabra la mancha

spiced goat rib chops

Ridge Paso Robles 2005

rose ice cream with white donut peaches

[Pat]

Sirloin steak

Red potatoes with butter and chives

Corn on the cob

Sliced beefsteak tomatoes with truffled pecorino and frisee

Leftover bean salad

[Xochitl10]

Burritos! We found flour tortillas in the frozen foods section of the big liquor/imported foods market. In them, we wrapped ground beef seasoned with green chile powder, cumin, oregano, garlic, and onion, refried beans (imported), rice, and cheese. So good.

[hillvalley]

Friday night: A friend was gifted with two lobsters and we put them to good use. My new favorite BLT: bacon, lobster, and tomato.

They were basically deconstructed BLT's because I didn't serve it as a sandwich but instead plated it like a napoleon. I made a basil aioli (first time by arm power-who knew it was that easy and so freakin good?) that I spread directly on the tomatoes and then layered the bacon and lobster on top. Three types of tomatoes were used. Really good bread white bread from the bakery at Penn Quarter market served on the side. We had zucchini strips sauteed in some bacon grease and roasted fingerling potatoes on the side. Dessert was baked peaches topped with whipped cream. A nice prosecco to wash it all down.

Saturday night: Spent the afternoon making golden roma tomato sauce and wanted to use some of it for dinner. Inspired by this recipe I did something similar but used the golden tomato sauce, quail eggs, and piave. Excellent comfort food.

[Anna Blume]

Dessert was baked peaches topped with whipped cream.

Lobster construction sounds great. How did you bake the peaches? Sounds virtuous (no pastry), only better.

[Xochitl10]

2008's first batch of takikomi gohan, following the same recipe as last year: chicken thigh, deep-fried tofu sheet, sliced shiitake, and julienned carrot and burdock root, all thrown in the rice cooker with rice, water, and seasonings. Yeah, it's already fall here.

[zoramargolis]

Charcoal roasted herb brined Eco-Friendly chicken

Four-bean salad (green, wax, kidney, garbanzo) - one of Jonathan's favorite summer dishes

Roasted Toigo corn-off-the-cob

Little bitty new potato nubbins

2007 Tiefenbruner Zweigelt Rosé

Trader Joe's mini mint ice cream sandwiches

[Pat]

Baked flounder with lemon and parsley

Green beans

Spelt Farrotto

Frozen bittersweet chocolate mousse with Ben Jerry's vanilla ice cream

The spelt was from a TJ box and had dried red and green bell peppers in it. I'd never tried this particular TJ item before, and it was better than I expected.

[porcupine]

last night:

Ricotta gnocchi with heirloom tomatoes and garlic

Braised fennel with almonds, raisins, garlic, saffron

tonight:

goat curry

some Indian carrot dish tbd

[DanCole42]

I don't feel like cooking tonight. But it's tomato season. We can't not have tomatoes during tomato season. I could do like a caprese or something. Yeah, that could work. Do a caprese. And we can get other stuff to go with it and do like an Italian antipasti buffet. Yeah, that's awesome. We can have like prosciutto and olives and shit. Ooh, jamon serrano! What's that? It's Spanish for prosciutto. Cool. Ooh, a variety pack! Do we have cheese at home? Yeah. Excellent.

We bought way too much food.

Leftovers? These roasted peppers will go great with the chicken tomorrow.

I dig it.

[laniloa]

Final exam tomorrow so needed something quick and easy. Scrambled eggs, basil and prosciutto on a Portuguese muffin. I picked up the muffins at the farmers market and they are amazing. Look like an English muffin but a little lighter and with a sweet-tang. There are a few Portuguese and Brazilian bakeries in the area and now where to explore next.

[zoramargolis]

Eco-Friendly spicy Italian sausage sandwiches with peppers from Tree and Leaf that were roasted on charcoal last night, onions and garlic

Mesclun, frisee and mache salad with Cherokee Purple tomato and cucumber, lemon vinaigrette

Fresh peach, cream and canneles de Bordeaux (from Trader Joe's)

2005 Castle Rock Napa Cabernet