Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Thread

[CottonBall]

In Highlands? Is that an Italian restaurant?

[leaning conservative]

No, I should have been more clear. Both her dentist & Iannucci’s are on Hendersonville rd. In Asheville. Yes, it’s Italian.

[CottonBall]

Awesome! I’ve been wanting to find a great Italian place nearby. And around here, an hour and a half is close enough to nearby :-)

[Yaelle]

You guys are all in such lush green areas of the country. We hardly have two seasons here. Hot and less hot. And dry year round. I wanted to plant a garden but water is so expensive here (armpit of Los Angeles, seriously the highest temps in the basin).

[RegulatorCountry]

It’s been hotter than usual for July and the lawns are already scorched, that usually doesn’t happen here until August. Going to be a busy Fall reseeding lawns.

[kalee]

When I make tomato pie, I give the tomato slices a few fast spins I the salad spinner. After it bakes, I letb it sit for a few minutes to settle. Cutting it straight from the oven seems to make it have more juice?.

[lizma2]

I never thought of that! DUH. Thx!

[NorthstarMom]

Interesting. I don’t have a salad spinner, but I can let it rest a bit before cutting. I love this recipe, but the soggy crust really is a let down.

[Liz]

Some professional chefs solve the soggy pie crust bottom by glazing the crust——painting it using a beaten egg white.

Par-bake the crust at four hundred deg to set the glaze....then add filling.

[NorthstarMom]

Thanks!

[pugmama]

We are drowning in produce from the garden-have been making and freezing sauces, pestos etc and freezing it. We planted tomatillos and they are also growing like crazy. I made this last night will all fresh veges and it really was wonderful. The garnishes really added to the flavor. Garden Gazpacho with Fresh Tomatillos For the soup: • 2 large cucumbers, coarsely chopped • 1 large green bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped • 1/2 medium head lettuce, any tender and mild (not bitter)
variety, coarsely chopped • 1 medium ripe avocado, pitted, peeled, and coarsely chopped • 2 scallions, coarsely chopped • 1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves • 1 cup hulled and coarsely chopped fresh tomatillos
(or 3/4 cup store-bought salsa verde) • 1 mild or hot fresh green chili pepper, seeded and minced • Juice of 1 lime, or more, to taste • 1 teaspoon ground cumin • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste Additions: I added about 2 lbs mixed cut up tomatoes as well as 1/2 cut up red onion, and 1-2 tbsp red wine vinegar. To garnish: • 1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped ( I put this in the soup ingredients). • 1 medium red bell pepper, finely diced • 1 medium avocado, peeled and finely diced • 1 medium mango, pitted and finely diced, peaches or any other fresh melon finely diced • Juice of 1/2 lime • Fresh basil leaves Combine  all the soup ingredients in a blender with 1 cup water ( I added tomato juice instead. I would have added clamato juice but didn’t have it). Process until pureed, with a little texture remaining. Transfer to a large serving container. Stir in more water as needed to give the mixture a medium-thick consistency. Cover and refrigerate for an hour or more, until thoroughly chilled. Just before serving, re-season to taste, combine the garnishes in a small bowl and stir together. Top each serving of the cold soup with this mixture. I also garnished with small cooked shrimp and then drizzle over some balsamic glaze ( the kind you get at Trader Joe’s)

[pugmama]

Love Ina’s panzanella recipes-her greek one is good too.

[pugmama]

This is a great recipe for ham and biscuit bread. I like Rebecca Lang’s southern recipes.

http://www.rebeccalangcooks.com/pdf/Post%20and%20Courier.pdf

[Jamestown1630]

That looks good, and so do the Blackeye Peas!

[pugmama]

I have been making these since I discovered this magazine and site. There are also great recipes for pimento cheese.

http://gardenandgun.com/recipe/pimento-cheese-biscuits/

[trisham]

I love it. Thanks, pugmama!

[pugmama]

I make this several times a year and we really like it:

http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/potato-tomato-gratin-1962279

[Covenantor]

Nice tip.

[pugmama]

Made this last week and we really liked it.

https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/heirloom-tomato-zucchini-galette-honey-thyme/

[Jamestown1630]

That looks good, too.

I found this in the BHG newsletter today, Tomatillo Pulled Chicken Sandwiches:

http://www.bhg.com/recipe/tomatillo-pulled-chicken-sandwiches/