Monthly Cooking Thread - March 2020

[Jamestown1630]

I went to a 'Fat Tuesday Potluck' last week, and one young lady brought Shrimp Etouffee, which I had never had. Instead of rice, she served it over grits, and I was in Heaven.

Here is Chef John's recipe, thoughtfully adapted to frozen shrimp because it's all that many of us can procure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx1yprdgs80

We're coming up on Asparagus Time, and I'm looking for new ways to use it. We can get it nearly all year now, but find the nice big ones in Summer. We usually put it on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and roast it. But if you have favorite recipes, please share.

-JT

[Jamestown1630]

I think I’ve seen that some chefs think asparagus is best done in a pressure cooker for optimal retention of flavor; but we haven’t tried that yet with our Instant Pot.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I’ll ‘see’ that scene and ‘raise’ you, ‘The Jerk!’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP51U_QBx48

[BunnySlippers]

How do you like your Instant Pot?

[jonrick46]

I saw Mexican asparagus on sale for $1.49/LB. I love asparagus.

[Jamestown1630]

LOL!

[Repeal The 17th]

Anyway, like I was saying, shrimp is the fruit of the sea.
You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it.
There’s, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo.
Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried.
There’s pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp,
pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad,
shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich.
That’s about it.

[Liz]

A great technique----works in countless ways, Savory or sweet, making them is addictive fun.
BEGIN Put fillings on counter. Lay phyllo sheets flat. Cover w/ slightly damp cloth to keep from drying out.

Spiral 3-4 buttered sheets with your fingers, then fill with 1-2 tb of something tasty, then fold ends over filling, flip and bake.

Here's what they look like as Cream Donuts.

Fill centers with vanilla custard.

VARY
<><> spinach and feta.
<><> jalapeno cheese, chp olives, taco beef; bake; serve w/ dollop sour cream.
<><> cream cheese & apricot jam; bake; shower w/ conf.

[Jamestown1630]

We like it a lot, especially for certain things. It’s excellent at doing pulled pork; and we’ve done Indian butter chicken, and corned beef and cabbage - all turned out very well.

I want to try a cheesecake in it; but I think so far, the thing I’ve liked best is the way it does pretty decent pulled-pork in very little time.

[Jamestown1630]

I like the spinach and feta.

[nopardons]

LOL...I'm not "mad at you" at all! The #s 3, 5, and 6 seem to be pretty spot on; though my family has been here, in America for many, many, many, generations, I did date an Hungarian when I was in college and he was like all of those things in #6. Though I am "blunt", I've always chalked that up to being a born & bred New Yorker!

Yes, "food IS sort of a religion" and extremely important, to even those of us who are many generations long born in America and very assimilated Americans!

[Jamestown1630]

If anything calls for a stick of butter - and then MORE butter - I’m in.

It sounds great - and Thanks!

[Jamestown1630]

Genes die hard, NP :-)

[Jamestown1630]

We used to get a great frozen Challah loaf at our local supermarket - you just had to thaw and bake it yourself, like those Bridgford loaves. It made a lovely centerpiece for our Thanksgiving, not to mention good eating.

But we don’t see it anymore. I’ve made it from scratch once in my life, but haven’t had the time in recent years.

[Deplorable American1776]

Bookmark... I hope people will post recipes...

[Jamestown1630]

We’ve had quite a few, already.

[Liz]

For those, like myself, who are tired of cheesecakes with inevitable graham cracker crusts, here’s a decadent Middle Eastern-inspired cheesecake. Kanafeh is a Middle Eastern cheese pastry. Simple to make, but looks quite impressive. Layers of flavor and texture that are heaven on a plate. Crunchy w/ almonds and pistachios, chewy from the kataifi pastry, smooth and creamy from the cheese and an extra fillip of the slight perfumed taste of rosewater syrup. Recipe excerpted with permission from The Modern Jewish Table.

Kanafeh Cheesecake

ING 1½ cups superfine sugar 7 fl oz water 2 Tbsp lemon juice ¼ tsp rosewater 7 oz butter, melted 12 oz kataifi pastry (shredded phyllo dough, which can be found in Greek or Middle Eastern markets, or online via Amazon) 9 oz mascarpone cheese 9 oz cream cheese 2 large egg yolks ¼ cup superfine sugar 1 cup blanched almonds

SYRUP BTB sugar, water and lemon juice; simmer on low 10 minutes or until syrupy. Cool offheat, then add rosewater and set aside to be used later.

PASTRY CRUST break apart the kataifi pastry to loosen shreds. Mix the rest of the melted butter in, using your hands, so the pastry is well coated.

CHEESECAKE Beat smooth mascarpone, cream cheese, egg yolks and sugar.

ASSEMBLY Sprinkle blanched almonds over bottom of buttered 11-inch springform. Take half of the kataifi dough and place over the almonds, pressing it down.Spread the cheese mixture over the kataifi, using a palette knife so you have an even layer. Take the other half of the kataifi dough and press over the top. Bake golden 350 deg 30 min. Removero to counter; sprinkle ground pistachios on top. Pour the rosewater syrup ever evenly. Cool, then remove from pan.

SERVE. Gild the lily by adding a scoop of almond cream cheese ice cream, if you wish, as they do in some upscale restaurants.

[Jamestown1630]

Is that all that you have to say about that?

[NorthstarMom]

I use the challah recipe in Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. I don’t know how authentic it is, but served with lemon curd it’s a treat. Of course then I have to make pavlovas with the egg whites left over from making lemon curd. It’s like “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” here.

[Exit148]

Yea- I think he/she is keeping something from us.

[nopardons]

Okay...the recipe follows and is excellent.

1lb jumbo shrimp

The recipe calls for peanut oil, but I use Crisco pure veg. oil

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder ( but I use 2 )

1/4 tsp. salt ( optional )

dash of white pepper

1 egg beaten

1 cup stale beer

Shell and devein the shrimp,pour about 1" ( or a bit more ) of oil into a large frying pan, dip the shrimp into the batter, place the shrimp into the frying pan ( allowing some of the batter to drip beforehand )with the shrimp touching, as they WILL blow up/spread out.

Fry about 3 minutes on each side, or until they are all puffed up and golden brown on all sides. Remove from the pan and place them on paper toweling to absorb the excess oil.

Serve with Chinese duck sauce and mustard, Tarter sauce, or whatever else you like to dip them into.

These make either a great appetizer, or a meal when served with French fries and coleslaw or a salad.