Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Thread

[Liz]

Lime lovers stick together....LOL.

[Ellendra]

Roast beef or chicken, cooked so it’s fall-apart tender. Roast some carrots in the same pan so they soak up the juices and disintegrate. Mashed potatoes and gravy on the side.

If that’s still too much chewing, mince some of the meat and mix it in with the gravy. You can use a food processor or blender for that.

[Jamestown1630]

I don’t think I’ve ever had a Key lime. How are they different from other limes?

[Jamestown1630]

That really is nice. I like the video on Baklava. I’ve made Spanakopita, but not Baklava yet.

[Liz]

The key limes are smaller than the usual “Persian limes” ....and they’re tarter.

I personally make all my recipes using Persian limes....to me they taste better....and you get more juice and zest.

[leaning conservative]

One of my very favorite desserts. May have to make one now ; )

[leaning conservative]

I could actually eat my weight in spanikopita!

[Liz]

Easy recipe.....make it in a jif.

[Jamestown1630]

It’s very good; but I always wonder how/when the traditional recipe developed. We buy Phyllo frozen, from the grocery store, and it’s been made on sophisticated, modern machines. Those satin-thin leaves can’t be easy to make by hand! and I wonder how it was done or what the recipe was like, prior to all of the whiz-bang machines/processing that we have now.

I thought I’d look it up, and the Wiki is interesting on this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filo

[Rainbow Rising]

Thank you for the suggestions! It’s been about 10 days since the surgery and the pain has decreased a lot. So I’m feeling more adventurous, and your suggestions sound just right. I may try the crustless quiche this weekend.

[Liz]

JT mentioned making Baklava. This one of the easiest Baklava recipes around and the taste is just as good as the hours-long versions. The fine-grnd-filling is like a Greek restaurant except the authentic Baklava uses rosewater syrup.

EASY BAKLAVA / uses cup melted butter, 16 oz pkg frozen phyllo.

METHOD Layer in buttered 9x13" baker, 6 sheets phyllo, melted butter brushed on lavishly, 2-3 tbl fine-blended nuts/cinnamon, repeat; end w/ 6 sheets phyllo; butter top.

Cut thru to bottom in four long rows, then (nine times) diagonally to make 36 diamond shapes.

Bake 350 deg 25-50 min golden/crisp (cooks fast). Remove to counter; immediately spoon hot syrup over. Cool completely.

SERVE in ruffled parchment cupcake papers. Freezes well, too.

SYRUP--BTB gently cup ea sugar/water. Stir in 1/2-3/4 c honey, tea ea vanilla, lemon zest; simmer/thicken 20 min.

FILLING Blender fine lb chp mixed nuts, tea cinnamon.

[Ellendra]

Just about every culture that has bread, has some variation on phyllo dough. I think at some point, every pastry chef tries to see how thin they can get their dough. It probably started as a personal challenge, like the potato chip.

Then, the fact that it tastes so good that way was what kept it going :)

[Jamestown1630]

The inherent “stretchiness” of dough helps a lot:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWghfdJWsuM

[lizma2]

My experiences w/creamed corn involved using a napkin to get rid of it from my plate when I was young.

ROFL! Mine was with liver under my mashed potatoes or skirt it off my plate to the floor and the dog!!

[lizma2]

I’m slowly starting to wind down. Getting involved in my local GOP women’s club. I’m havin a hoot.

[lizma2]

HOW IN THE HECK DO THEY DO THAT??? LOL!

First saw this noodle making on “Yuan Can Cook”. This is too cool!

[Aliska]

I did some research on King Cakes a couple years ago, never got around to making one. This I thought was the prettiest one with the translucent frosting from Sucre. It seems they are not selling them this year.

I figured out how to get that translucent look with little sprayers and some special food coloring I got at amazon.

But I never figured out the best recipe for my King Cake.

From Just a Pinch I just got a recipe for Polish "Paczki". I would like a dough similar to that (seems a lot like my Ferden recipe but no cardamom). It has to be deep fried but I would like it like a bread in a ring (Bundt or like an English Tea Ring), filled with some cream filling (big no no from the person who submitted the recipe), and frosted like my picture if I could get the right look to it. And no raisins. I hadn't thought about this idea very long so maybe I could come up with something a little different.

I wanted to stick to a more traditional King Cake but more and more people seem to be doing their own thing. Don't know if I'd want to put a baby in it but you can buy those and beads at Amazon.

Paczki Recipe on Justapinch

[Aliska]

I made the condensed milk version last year, and it didn't turn out right.

Years and years ago, and I think we talked about this on this forum before), I made one very similar to the linked recipe. It was delicious, very rich, and I had to eat the whole thing myself. There's also a version with lime jello but I think I didn't do that one.

I would add some green food coloring.

And I have my bottle of Angostura bitters sitting on the dining room table. Every so often I shake it up and take a sniff. Intoxicating!

So last week I had some Old Orchard frozen Orange Pineapple juice and put some bitters in that. Didn't taste very good. And I probably wouldn't put a full two tablespoons in a pie either, maybe just one.

No picture with the link.

Key Lime Pie with Angostura bitters cooked in a double boiler

I don't have the recipe I used so many years ago any more, but I do remember it had a graham cracker crust. Your picture sure looks pretty though. Maybe I will try yours but with just a little green food coloring, not overdo it. But I think ripe key limes are yellow with a more yellow juice.

The store actually had some key limes, tiny little things, was tempted to buy a bag but didn't, and I thought I'd press out the juice with my garlic press. Now I see they have bottled key lime juice.

[Liz]

Angostura bitters in key lime pie is interesting.

Course, one cannot possibly have a superb Manhattan cocktail w/out a drop of Angostura bitters in it.

I’d really hate to use A/B for anything else but my Manhattans.

[Liz]

The Vanity Fair Oscars party in Beverly Hills at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, required five months of planning and preparation and a team of 250 employees.....the third year famed chef Thomas Keller and his Beverly Hills outpost of Bouchon have participated in the event.

Started with an assortment of deviled eggs and truffle-mascarpone croquette canapes.

Salad course was a deli salad served with marinated garden vegetables and sauce piperade.

The main course...classic chicken pot pie, salmon en croute and black truffle lasagna.

For dessert....banana splits and a variety of mignardises, including candy bars made with chocolate malt nougat with caramel, covered in milk chocolate. (hat tip SF Gate)