Weekly Cooking (and Related Issues) Thread

[Jamestown1630]

When the Husband Unit gets around to making his ‘paleo’ version, I’ll post it.

[kalee]

Yes please!

[Jamestown1630]

Umm...I think I ‘get’ it ;-)

[Jamestown1630]

Your post made me curious about adding water to the frying pan (I’d never heard of that) and I found this:

https://food-hacks.wonderhowto.com/how-to/cook-your-bacon-water-for-perfect-texture-no-splattering-0160850/

I’ll have to try it.

[Calvin Locke]

Fish sticks. Now I’m thinking of “Mostly Martha” going ballistic when her shrink suggests fish sticks for her niece.

[Dogbert41]

Interesting! Thanks!

[IamConservative]

I am a vegetarian that eats fish from time to time. Technically, a pescatarian. I do A LOT of roasting. Will offer some tips and ideas as opposed to a recipe.

1) Roasting vegetables before adding them to most any recipe will make your end result better. For example, roast your vegetables before adding them to your vegetable lasagna. Roasting enhances the natural flavor and develops the sugars. A lot of the moisture in the vegetables will evaporate during roasting and then you can replace with stock and seasoning when you add them back to a soup. Major flavor boost.

2) Line your sheet pan with parchment paper and coat is with cooking spray or oil. Makes clean up a breeeze. For you carnivores, you'll find no better place for your bacon drippings than under your vegetable roast. My family loves potatoes roasted in bacon drippings. I can tell you it smells heavenly.

3) Mushrooms and eggplant aren't great to roast. They dehydrate more than roast. You can roast an eggplant if you leave it whole and just pierce it with a fork so it holds it's moisture in, but it comes out mushy. Baba Ganoush is about your only way out.

4) Roasted garlic is very useful and versatile. Mix w/ butter and it makes a wonderful compound butter spread.

5) Roasted stone fruit and roasted lemons are very useful ingredients.

6) Lastly, I like to roast fish en papillote from time to time. In short, roast in a parchment paper pouch. Add your veggies on bottom, fish on top. Care must be taken in cutting and selecting vegetables so the cook time works for your fish. I would suggest starting with Alton Brown's recipe for Salmon En Papillote and then go from there. This is an excellent technique for those days when a pile of dirty dishes is not happening.

[pugmama]

I love these dinners. Here is one our our favs;

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/sheet-pan-cumin-chicken-thighs-with-squash-fennel-and-grapes-56390000

[pugmama]

This is also a nice way to make paella:

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/sheet-pan-paella-with-chorizo-mussels-and-shrimp-56390003

[pugmama]

We like this recipe. I loved the Zuni Cafe in San Francisco and they made the best roast chicken ever.
I add small cut up yellow potatoes and bake them with the chicken.

http://waitingonmartha.com/its-all-easy-zucchini-noodles/

[pinkandgreenmom]

I make sheet pan fajitas.

Cut up red, orange and green peppers into chunks, cut up a few onions into chunks, add cut up chicken breast or beef to pan. I make homemade taco seasoning, add it to some olive oil and drizzle that over the meat and vegetables and cook until done. Serve with tortillas and fajita toppings. Tastes pretty good the next day as leftovers, too.

Very fast easy meal for when my kids have activities that span the dinner hour.

[Liz]

Have you come across this product?

I have Barbara Kafka’s genius recipe for Creamy Lemon Pasta.

She says to best use Cipriani Restaurant brand tagliatelle pasta (retailed in a box).

I cant find Cipriani’s .....I did find Rao’s brand pasta.

Have you seen Cipriani brand anywhere?

[miss marmelstein]

I probably haven’t looked for it because I tend to stick to DeCecco. But I’ll keep an eye out for it. Weirdly, I find the best foreign food products at Job Lot not Food Emporium or Whole Foods or Fairway!

I’ve been making elegant chestnut ice cream since I came across a batch of Maxim’s of Paris chestnut puree at...Home Goods (basically, Marshalls). It sells for about $12 on Amazon and I got it for $4.99.

[miss marmelstein]

I’m going to try the salmon/broccoli traybake tonight. I’ll use rice in place of potato using my rice maker.

[Liz]

Thanks for looking for the Cipriani tagliatelle for me.

OMG that chestnut ice cream sounds unbelievable. You gotta Post the recipe....although I dont know where I’ll get Maxim’s of Paris chestnut puree.

[miss marmelstein]

You can get chestnut puree on line. I can’t find it anywhere in stores now. It was only at Home Goods because it is associated with Christmas. You don’t have to use Maxim’s.

No Churn chestnut ice cream:

1 cup of chestnut puree (or just spoon out what you can from two little jars)
1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
2 T rum

Whisk sugar and cream until soft peaks form.
Mix puree and rum until gloppily smooth
Scrape puree mix into the cream and fold until it is a light tan color.
(I had packaged chestnuts on hand so I cut some of them up and added it to the mixture.)
Put into ice cream containers and freeze.

This is truly an adult ice cream and wonderfully good. I served it with chocolate cake.

[Liz]

Absolutely fabulous recipe....thanks.

[Jamestown1630]

Let us know how it goes.

[pugmama]

There are some good sheet pan and one pot recipes here. I love food52 site:

https://food52.com/blog/20512-sheet-pan-and-one-pot-dinners

[Liz]

These are a tasty side made on a sheetpan.

MAPLE ROASTED VEGGIES

Place on three separate sheetpans---pre-roasted butternut squash wedges, baby carrots, sliced red onions. Pour Maple/Oil over evenly. Roast 20 min; turn once, roast 30 min (veg are golden/tender). Season to taste. Plate veg; drizzle w/ pan juices.

SERVE sprinkled w/ Gremolata.

MAPLE/OIL Whisk ol/oil, maple syrup, oj.

GREMOLATA chopped parsley, pine nuts, orange zest.