Dinner - The Polyphonic Food Blog

[Pat]

Cream of tomato soup with garlic croutons and fresh dill

Pot roast with carrots, gravy, and various onions

[Anna Blume]

And I'm with you on the gremolata issue, Daniel. I find osso buco to taste kind of flat without the zing of lemon zest, parsley, rosemary and garlic. I don't add the gremolata while it's cooking. I sprinkle it on each portion just before serving. Marcella can be curmudgeonly in her pronouncements, and she isn't always right.

To each one's own. Closer to home, and in the spirit of having one's cake and eating it, too:

"Osso buco is a classic braised dish of northern Italy, usually garnished with gremolata, a popular condiment made of minced lemon zest, parsley, and garlic. That's fine in the winter, but in spring, I like to add two of my favorite spring ingredients: peas and pea shoots. It's a brighter rendition of the traditional preparation." --Suzanne Goin, Sunday Suppers at Lucques

When I heated up leftovers, I planned to add the gremolata, but didn't. As I said, beef may not be a whole 'nother animal, but it was too distinct to make the extra step worthwhile. Besides, there was lemon peel in the braise (Meyer--sort of a nod to sauté de veau Marengo). The saffron in fritters made w the leftover risotto provided enough yeast to coax the shanks to rise.

[zoramargolis]

To each one's own. Closer to home, and in the spirit of having one's cake and eating it, too:

"Osso buco is a classic braised dish of northern Italy, usually garnished with gremolata, a popular condiment made of minced lemon zest, parsley, and garlic. That's fine in the winter, but in spring, I like to add two of my favorite spring ingredients: peas and pea shoots. It's a brighter rendition of the traditional preparation." --Suzanne Goin, Sunday Suppers at Lucques

When I heated up leftovers, I planned to add the gremolata, but didn't. As I said, beef may not be a whole 'nother animal, but it was too distinct to make the extra step worthwhile. Besides, there was lemon peel in the braise (Meyer--sort of a nod to sauté de veau Marengo). The saffron in fritters made w the leftover risotto provided enough yeast to coax the shanks to rise.

<sings> "Shank you for lettin' me be myself...."

[Anna Blume]

<sings> "Shank you for lettin' me be myself...."

<strumming> "Parsley, zest, ROSEMARY , garlic...."

[Anna Blume]

Fritters of grated, raw beets, chives and leeks topped w light sour cream

Vegetarian borscht: all ingredients sourced locally

Turkey roulade filled w chopped beet greens, moistened w Trader Joe's truffle oil

Artisanal Whole-wheat baguette (boxed mix) spread w all natural, organic margarine

Cantaloupe sorbet studded w slithery slivers of fresh cantaloupe

Chateau Méchant de l'Homme Qui Attend Trop Souvent 2007

[DanCole42]

Ratatouille

Okay. Starting off healthy. A nice, hearty vegetable dish with almost no fat or carbs.

Homemade bread I'd left out on the kitchen counter to proof for the ten hours I was at work

Okay, that's not so great. And the mounds of Danish butter probably didn't help much.

Fresh baked chocolate chip cookies

And now we've just gone and thrown caution to the wind! These were the size of dinner plates. What was I thinking?

[monavano]

Ratatouille

Okay. Starting off healthy. A nice, hearty vegetable dish with almost no fat or carbs.

Homemade bread I'd left out on the kitchen counter to proof for the ten hours I was at work

Okay, that's not so great. And the mounds of Danish butter probably didn't help much.

Fresh baked chocolate chip cookies

And now we've just gone and thrown caution to the wind! These were the size of dinner plates. What was I thinking?

Um...Yummo?

[zoramargolis]

Fritters of grated, raw beets, chives and leeks topped w light sour cream

Vegetarian borscht: all ingredients sourced locally

Turkey roulade filled w chopped beet greens, moistened w Trader Joe's truffle oil

My goodness, aren't you the beet queen. Don't invite Obama or Charles to share THAT meal...

[lperry]

Chateau Méchant de l'Homme Qui Attend Trop Souvent 2007

We've been having mixed green salads to counteract less-than-optimal meals while traveling.

[mdt]

Homemade bread I'd left out on the kitchen counter to proof for the ten hours I was at work

Now that is some over-proofed bread! Did it survive?

Penne pasta with butifara and stinging nettle pesto

Homemade baguettes.

[Anna Blume]

Penne pasta with butifara and stinging nettle pesto

I'll bite. Where did you get the nettles? What flavor did they contribute?

Rob Weland has a nettle soup on his spring menu at Poste, but it's one of the weeds that I have yet to see a resourceful farmer sell in any of the markets I frequent.

* * *

Okay, for real this time:

Grilled, marinated lamb shoulder chop (using a cast iron grill pan)

Sautéed Royal Trumpet mushrooms w Meyer lemon

Braise of new potatoes, artichoke hearts, baby leeks, green garlic and fava beans, sprinkled w chives

Found fresh fava beans at Harris Teeter which is charging more than Whole Foods did last year, but I haven't seen them yet at any other grocery store. You?

[DanCole42]

Now that is some over-proofed bread! Did it survive?

Penne pasta with butifara and stinging nettle pesto

Homemade baguettes.

Yes, actually. It's the only way I can do fresh bread on weekdays. I do the first rise the night before, punch down, then stash it in the fridge. The next day I don't get home from the office until 6, 6:30. So if I took it out of the fridge then it would take an hour to come up to room temperature before I could shape it, then an hour to proof, then another hour for baking and cooling. Then I'm not eating until an hour before bedtime!

But if I take it out when I leave in the morning at 8, it's definitely room temperature when I get home and, if I'm gentle when shaping, it doesn't require much more time for proofing.

I thought about taking the bread to work, stashing it in the fridge here, then letting it proof in the car on the way home. But seeing as this produced a near-perfect loaf I see no reason not to do it again.

I usually use a small amount of yeast, and I guess that helped here.

[zoramargolis]

last night:

panko-crusted fluke filets

remoulade sauce

haricots verts with roasted garlic and lemon

basmati rice

Haagen-Dasz Fleur de Sel Caramel ice cream

Dogfish Head India Brown Ale

[JPW]

I'll bite. Where did you get the nettles? What flavor did they contribute?

IIRC, I saw them at Takoma Park FM on Sunday

Found fresh fava beans at Harris Teeter which is charging more than Whole Foods did last year, but I haven't seen them yet at any other grocery store. You?

Was looking for them last weekend and could not find.

[mdt]

I'll bite. Where did you get the nettles? What flavor did they contribute?

Rob Weland has a nettle soup on his spring menu at Poste, but it's one of the weeds that I have yet to see a resourceful farmer sell in any of the markets I frequent.

* * *

Okay, for real this time:

Grilled, marinated lamb shoulder chop (using a cast iron grill pan)

Sautéed Royal Trumpet mushrooms w Meyer lemon

Braise of new potatoes, artichoke hearts, baby leeks, green garlic and fava beans, sprinkled w chives

Found fresh fava beans at Harris Teeter which is charging more than Whole Foods did last year, but I haven't seen them yet at any other grocery store. You?

I got it at the Arlington Farmer's market last weekend. As to the flavor, think green.

[mdt]

Yes, actually. It's the only way I can do fresh bread on weekdays. I do the first rise the night before, punch down, then stash it in the fridge. The next day I don't get home from the office until 6, 6:30. So if I took it out of the fridge then it would take an hour to come up to room temperature before I could shape it, then an hour to proof, then another hour for baking and cooling. Then I'm not eating until an hour before bedtime!

But if I take it out when I leave in the morning at 8, it's definitely room temperature when I get home and, if I'm gentle when shaping, it doesn't require much more time for proofing.

I thought about taking the bread to work, stashing it in the fridge here, then letting it proof in the car on the way home. But seeing as this produced a near-perfect loaf I see no reason not to do it again.

I usually use a small amount of yeast, and I guess that helped here.

Not over-proofed after 10 hours at RT? Interesting.

If you are interested in bread to make during the week you will probably want to get this book, Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day when it comes out later this year. I was lucky enough to be part of the final round of recipe testing for it and have been very impressed with what can be done with limited time. The mini-baguettes that I made last night had the dough taken out of the fridge 1 hour before being placed in the oven.

[DanCole42]

Not over-proofed after 10 hours at RT? Interesting.

If you are interested in bread to make during the week you will probably want to get this book, Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day when it comes out later this year. I was lucky enough to be part of the final round of recipe testing for it and have been very impressed with what can be done with limited time. The mini-baguettes that I made last night had the dough taken out of the fridge 1 hour before being placed in the oven.

I guess my question would be... how would I know if something was over-proofed? Mold? Foul odor? The runs?

Sound like a cool book...

[giant shrimp]

Rob Weland has a nettle soup on his spring menu at Poste, but it's one of the weeds that I have yet to see a resourceful farmer sell in any of the markets I frequent.

i was hoping to see them pop up again at the dupont farmers market, and now is the time. nettles taste like the way spinach must have been when popeye used it. they stain the water and they must be good for you.

a few strands were floating around in the spring consomme at palena recently. the menu said they came from arlington. palena is also making a great foam these days -- from beets -- for the few of us, apparently, who still appreciate a good foam. when done right, it's the equivalent of carrying a strong flavor on air.

[mdt]

I guess my question would be... how would I know if something was over-proofed? Mold? Foul odor? The runs?

Sound like a cool book...

Over-proofed bread may be very holey (a word?), especially on the top and have substantially less oven spring (less body strength) then if they were properly proofed. You can also get off tastes from the yeast doing there thing at RT for such a long time. The bread may not have as dark of a crust as the yeast eats all the sugar in the bread. Were you following a specific recipe or flying solo?

[DanCole42]

Over-proofed bread may be very holey (a word?), especially on the top and have substantially less oven spring (less body strength) then if they were properly proofed. You can also get off tastes from the yeast doing there thing at RT for such a long time. The bread may not have as dark of a crust as the yeast eats all the sugar in the bread. Were you following a specific recipe or flying solo?

Flying solo (but consistent). Browning was not a problem (although the egg and milk wash may have helped there). Distribution of holes was fine. No off tastes.

Maybe I lucked out?

Future experiments to come...

[zoramargolis]

last night:

oven-braised beef with mushrooms and new potatoes

braised baby kale

Marvy Market baguette

2007 Les Amis de la Bouissiere

[Anna Blume]

i was hoping to see them pop up again at the dupont farmers market, and now is the time. nettles taste like the way spinach must have been when popeye used it. they stain the water and they must be good for you.

I have never seen them at Dupont, Do you remember who brought them?

I intend to get to Arlington one of these days. However, managed to buy some from Mountain View, a farm new to Penn Quarter. Very nice, young couple plus adorable baby. Since they said the nettles take swimmingly to eggs, I plan to make a frittata w leeks and a little grated cheese.

* * *

Dinner last night: Grilled lamb shoulder chop on top of watercress tossed w shallot-Dijon vinaigrette first, then very hot, sautéed Royal Trumpet mushrooms.

Was planning to do a cobbler for dessert, but found a bookmarked recipe for blackberry upside-down cake that I baked instead. Poured plain yogurt on top. Still having trouble w the idea of getting more ascetic.

[giant shrimp]

I have never seen them at Dupont, Do you remember who brought them?

i bought them from nina planck's mother, at the stand across from heinz. i am not sure it is the same farm these days and i haven't seen nina planck's mother around lately.

[Anna Blume]

i bought them from nina planck's mother, at the stand across from heinz. i am not sure it is the same farm these days and i haven't seen nina planck's mother around lately.

Ahhh....! Susan Planck and her husband, Chip, began selling at the Arlington farmer's market almost since its inception. While still fully operating Wheatland, their farm, they also sold produce at Dupont Circle. However, they are in semi-retirement, still living on their land, but acting more as mentors to younger farmers.

Perhaps this is fodder for a different forum, but here's the first online article that crops up in search, should you care to read further: "Saturday Morning Stars" (June 2008) from The Washingtonian.

[zoramargolis]

salad of mache, shaved fennel, orange and sweet onion, citrus vinaigrette

charcoal grilled Eco-Friendly baby lamb chops, briefly marinated with olive oil, garlic, rosemary and mint

charcoal grilled asparagus

lentils du puy

HD fleur de sel caramel ice cream

2003 Dom. Le Murmurium Cotes-du-Ventoux Opera

[DanielK]

Grilled wild alaskan sockeye salmon, marinated in sesame/orange/soy

Broccoli, sauteed in garlic

Challah

mascerated strawberries, with a touch of whipped cream

[Heather]

Grilled lamb burgers with feta & harrissa mayonnaise stuffed in pita bread

Chopped salad w/cucumbers, grape tomatos, sweet onion, fresh oregano, olive oil & red wine vinegar

Ice cream & homemade oatmeal cookies

[Pat]

Last night:

miso soup

crusty baguette

deviled chicken drumsticks

steamed asparagus

Tonight:

Chicken, avocado, and cranberry salad

[The Hersch]

You know, if you peel some white asparagus and cook it in boiling salted water, and meanwhile make a sauce hollandaise, and serve up the former sauced with the latter, you have something really good to eat, which was my dinner this evening, along with a lump of steak and some remarkably tasty "Campari" tomatoes from Mexico.

[DanielK]

Last night:

miso soup

crusty baguette

deviled chicken drumsticks

steamed asparagus

All you needed was an Australian wine to hit every continent with this meal..

[monavano]

Pizza on the grill:

Dough from The Italian Store (survived many, many months in the freezer), fresh mozzarella from blue Ridge Dairy (Old Town market), aged provolone (Cheesetique), roasted asparagus (Del Ray market) and homemade red sauce. We let the pizza stone heat for a while, then cooked the pizza with all burners blasting. The crust charred beautifully with nice blackened spots on the bottom-far more than in the oven.

[Pat]

All you needed was an Australian wine to hit every continent with this meal..

. Sometimes I put together a meal out of all things I need to use soon. I had leftover miso soup from a batch I had made for a sick friend; the baguette was going to be stale by the next day; the chicken had to be used that day or crammed into an already full freezer; and, the asparagus was left from what had not been cooked on Easter.

[zoramargolis]

last night:

charcoal grilled Eco-Friendly Spanish chorizo sausages

charcoal roasted red bell pepper

caramelized onions with tomato, parsley and thyme

pan-sauteed new potatoes

cerveza Pacifico

homemade lemony sponge cake

macerated strawberries

vanilla creme fraiche

[bettyjoan]

My produce delivery yielded some amazing mint, so last night I made a mint pesto (with the mint, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice and zest, and a little kosher salt). I served it with whole wheat spaghetti, sauteed shrimp, tomatoes, and goat cheese. Delicious!

[zoramargolis]

supper al fresco amid the blooming azaleas and the warbling song of a wood thrush:

prosciutto with dried figs

pepper salami

marinated roasted peppers

cippolini onions in balsamic vinegar

chile olives

goat gouda and cherry tomatoes

shaved fennel and orange slaw

beef and sausage polpetti

roasted asparagus with lemon

new potatoes with roasted garlic, sea salt and rosemary

2006 Seghesio Dolcetto d'Alba

later on, after it's had more time to chill, an anachronistic dessert: banana-coconut pudding

[DanCole42]

Pate brisee with asparagus, bacon, caramelized onion, parm, lemon juice, and truffle oil

This was the first time I'd ever made anything even close to a pastry or pie dough (closest thing I've ever done I guess would be biscuits). I was very pleased with the results. I don't know why I made that weird ring thing around the edge... I guess I'm just playing around. But look at all the pretty little layers!

[LowellR]

last night:

panko-crusted fluke filets

remoulade sauce

haricots verts with roasted garlic and lemon

basmati rice

Haagen-Dasz Fleur de Sel Caramel ice cream

Dogfish Head India Brown Ale

This has become one of my favorite recent beer discoveries. While I like brown ales in theory, I find many to be a bit too sweet for my taste. The addition of the India "hoppiness" overcomes any lingering sweetness and leaves a nice, medium-bodied beer that works pretty well on its own or with a variety of foods.

[Demetrius]

Saturday Night:

Grilled NY Strip Steak, Marinated Sea Scallops and Wild Shrimp

Steamed green beans with minced garlic

[zoramargolis]

This has become one of my favorite recent beer discoveries. While I like brown ales in theory, I find many to be a bit too sweet for my taste. The addition of the India "hoppiness" overcomes any lingering sweetness and leaves a nice, medium-bodied beer that works pretty well on its own or with a variety of foods.

If you aren't buying it at Trader Joe's Foggy Bottom store, you should--cheapest price around. Not sure whether the Virginia TJ's carry it, but the MD TJ's stores don't sell any ETOH.

[LowellR]

If you aren't buying it at Trader Joe's Foggy Bottom store, you should--cheapest price around. Not sure whether the Virginia TJ's carry it, but the MD TJ's stores don't sell any ETOH.

Thanks! I'll have to stop by.

[Heather]

My afternoon was a carnival of suck which included my daughter spilling a pint of maple syrup all over the counter and kitchen floor. I had no car, and couldn't think of any takeout I wanted, so last night's dinner was made from what was at hand:

Morningstar Farms soy corn dogs (kids like them as a vehicle for ketchup)

fresh green beans

salad

vanilla ice cream

My dinner was a can of surprisingly good Maesri Tom Yum soup, with chicken, lime juice, and fresh lime leaf added to it.

[zoramargolis]

last night:

I bought an itty-bitty shoulder of baby lamb at Eco-Friendly on Sunday. Couldn't bear the thought of having the oven going in the kitchen long enough to cook it yesterday. So I fired up my new charcoal oven outside. Wrapped the shoulder in a foil packet on a bed of rosemary and garlic, drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper, and left it in the Hasty Bake, with the coals lowered down, for about an hour-and-a-half. The temperature gauge read between 300 and 325. Then I removed the meat from the packet, raised the coals up near the grate and browned the shoulder for about ten minutes per side--the coals had died down quite a bit by then. It rested under a foil tent for about twenty minutes. Then I pulled the meat off of the bones and poured the accumulated juices from the foil packet over it. Wow. Amazing flavor, fork tender. Just enough for two, plus a little bit of tender cartilage for Penny, our Aussie, who has a genetic affinity for sheep and their offspring.

Served with spinach and chick peas a la José Andres. And grill-toasted baguette slices rubbed with garlic and drizzled with olive oil.

I drank leftover dolcetto, which tasted even better the second day. J, who had to work after dinner, drank water.

[DanCole42]

Zora - charcoal oven? Do we have pictures of this enticingly delightful-sounding contraption?

Spinach salad with lemon sage and parm vinagrette

Gnocchi parisienne with sage and brown butter

Dutch oven-baked boule with, coincidentally, imported Dutch butter

I doubt you'd ever see Rachael Ray making something like that from scratch but, you know what? All you RR detractors, if it weren't for her I never would have felt the confidence I do in the kitchen and worked to improve myself to this level.

[DanielK]

Oven roasted beef ribs with onions and homemade bbq sauce

Roasted potatoes with fresh herbs

Ratatouille

Lemonade (initially made by the kids, fixed by dad)

[Pat]

Lasagna

[zoramargolis]

Zora - charcoal oven? Do we have pictures of this enticingly delightful-sounding contraption?

http://www.hastybake.com/grill_continental.html

this is the model I have, pictured with the door closed:

http://www.hastybake.com/grill_continental...p;productID=555

The coals are spread onto a rack that that can be raised up with a crank so that the coals are about three inches under the grill surface, or lowered down about eighteen inches below the grate. So with the door closed and the coals down low, it can function as a slow oven or a smoker. With the coals directly under the grate, it is a grill. There's a door on the side and the charcoal rack slides out so that you can easily add more charcoal. Very versatile and well-designed.

tonight I used it to make cedar-planked salmon and grilled asparagus.

[lperry]

Spinach salad with hard cooked eggs in a honey-mustard dressing.

Mango sorbet. (Prepared when it was warmer).

[Pat]

http://www.hastybake.com/grill_continental.html

this is the model I have, pictured with the door closed:

http://www.hastybake.com/grill_continental...p;productID=555

The coals are spread onto a rack that that can be raised up with a crank so that the coals are about three inches under the grill surface, or lowered down about eighteen inches below the grate. So with the door closed and the coals down low, it can function as a slow oven or a smoker. With the coals directly under the grate, it is a grill. There's a door on the side and the charcoal rack slides out so that you can easily add more charcoal. Very versatile and well-designed.

My husband wants to know how easy this is to clean . I pointed out that it has the grease drain and removable ash tray, but he's still skeptical. We haven't had a grill in several years, and this would make smoking possible too. He wants gas and I prefer charcoal.

[zoramargolis]

My husband wants to know how easy this is to clean

Um...easy compared to what? Not having a grill? And how clean does clean mean? They recommend that you line the ash pan with foil--that makes it a two-second operation to dump the ashes. Then you need to line with more foil. The main cooking grate comes out in two pieces, which makes cleaning fairly simple. When I first got it, I smoked long racks of ribs for many hours. I hadn't assembled the grease trapping system correctly, so there was a fair amount of grease clean-up, but that was my fault. The only thing that I've found that is a challenge to clean is the glass door, which gets discolored when using it as a smoker. Mine isn't as pristine as it was when I got it, but it looks fine and nothing that you burn wood in is going to stay looking brand new. Since I don't have a place to keep it under cover outside, I got the optional fabric cover that is made to fit it. It is just so much more versatile than the Weber Kettles I've used for a zillion years. Raising and lowering the level of the charcoal is the biggest boon. And come Thanksgiving time, I'm going to love being able to smoke a fairly large turkey. I could never do more than a 13-14 pounder in the Weber Kettle, because the lid wouldn't close.

I suspect that the real reason for the question is your charcoal vs. gas debate. With charcoal, you do have ashes to deal with. But you also get flavor that you'll never get on a gas grill. Serious bbqers all use charcoal. I have found the ash removal system in this grill to be much, much less hassle than with my Weber Kettle.

[Pat]

Um...easy compared to what? Not having a grill? And how clean does clean mean? They recommend that you line the ash pan with foil--that makes it a two-second operation to dump the ashes. Then you need to line with more foil. The main cooking grate comes out in two pieces, which makes cleaning fairly simple. When I first got it, I smoked long racks of ribs for many hours. I hadn't assembled the grease trapping system correctly, so there was a fair amount of grease clean-up, but that was my fault. The only thing that I've found that is a challenge to clean is the glass door, which gets discolored when using it as a smoker. Mine isn't as pristine as it was when I got it, but it looks fine and nothing that you burn wood in is going to stay looking brand new. Since I don't have a place to keep it under cover outside, I got the optional fabric cover that is made to fit it. It is just so much more versatile than the Weber Kettles I've used for a zillion years. Raising and lowering the level of the charcoal is the biggest boon. And come Thanksgiving time, I'm going to love being able to smoke a fairly large turkey. I could never do more than a 13-14 pounder in the Weber Kettle, because the lid wouldn't close.

I suspect that the real reason for the question is your charcoal vs. gas debate. With charcoal, you do have ashes to deal with. But you also get flavor that you'll never get on a gas grill. Serious bbqers all use charcoal. I have found the ash removal system in this grill to be much, much less hassle than with my Weber Kettle.

Thanks, Zora. If the glass door is the biggest cleaning problem, that doesn't sound bad at all. If we get the grease draining thing set up correctly and can dispose of the ashes easiy, it should be fine. I'm not the most enthusiastic griller, but I really miss cooking out in the summer, more than I would have thought.