Food Pr0n

[lady_karelia]

So, Dorkboy brought home this wonderful bottle of 2002 St Emilion last night. I could've just enjoyed it on its very own, no problem, but since he brought a packet of dried morels as well... *grin*

So, yeah, this is what we had for dinner tonight.


In a cast iron skillet, heat some butter and olive oil, fry half a very finely cut onion, then add chicken breast and slightly brown. As soon as it starts browning, add two cups of Chardonnay and one finely cut rehydrated morel. Then add salt and herbs to taste. I used: plenty of rosemary (cracked), some thyme (French - both from Penzeys, bestest evva except homegrown), rock salt, black pepper, a pinch of oregano. Cook merrily over medium heat until liquid is about half reduced. Add creme fraîche (as it is hard to find and prohibitively expensive, I make a substitute: two parts of heavy whipping cream, one part of cultured buttermilk, gently heated for about 20 minutes or until consistency is more creamy than liquidy) to taste. Dump in the oven for about half an hour at 350.

I swear American ovens work differently to European ones. I never used to have a problem to make this dish without pre-boiling the potatoes, but I tried it a few times here, and every single time, the potatoes were way too hard and the egg/creme mixture wasn't done. So now I boil whole potatoes (all roughly medium-sized, a good pound in total) for about five minutes, then cool them, slice them and put them in a buttered oven-proof dish. Whip three eggs, mix with salt, a little nugmeg, black pepper and a cup of creme fraîche, pour over the potatoes. Top with some freshly grated Manchego and a little bit of parmesan, peccorino or grana padano. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Sprinkle fresh parsley on them before serving if you like.

Cut zucchini lengthwise in half, hollow flesh out with a spoon, cut finely. Heat and gently brown finely cut onion in skillet (I used coconut oil for this one), add zucchini flesh and a few finely cut sun-dried tomatoes and a couple of finely cut baby portobella mushrooms. Add a little salt (don't need much here), black pepper to taste, oregano to taste (or any other herb(s) you fancy). Fry over medium heat for a few minutes, then spoon mixture into hollowed out zucchini shells. Place stuffed zucchinis in ovenproof dish, sprinkle with freshly grated cheese of your choice (I used gruyere, but sharp cheddar or manchego will do just as well), bake at 350 for 150 minutes.

As I'm very selfish and know nobody in my family likes tofu, I made this tofu with morel sauce: Soak morels in a glass of wine (white or red, entirely up to your taste). Fry tofu over medium heat until very slightly browned. Put aside. Fry finely cut onion, when it starts to brown, add the morels and its liquid. Cook over medium heat for about five minutes, then add half a cup of creme fraiche or sour cream and cook for another five minutes.

The wine I used for the tofu was some left-over Côtes du Luberon, too old to drink, but not old enough to discard. It might be blasphemy to use a white in cooking when only red is served for drinking, but then I'd be the only one to notice anyway, so I took that liberty...

When I took it all out of the oven, I thought omg, we're gonna eat this for the next three days... But all that's left is about two pieces of potato, lol. So I guess it'll be Spanish omelet for breakfast. :-)

Comments

[queenp71.livejournal.com]

get a thermometer for the oven. Use it to gauge the temp, not the oven setting itself. I've had that problem with a couple of different ovens and the thermometer fixed the problem nicely. AND rather cheaply as you can get a thermometer for the oven for about $5-7.

The other option is to extend the cook time for things like potatoes.

[lady-karelia.livejournal.com]

I think I'll need to extend the cook time for potatoes. It's strange, cuz roast beef turns out fine at the proper setting, whereas the potatoes don't. It'll be potatoes in all shapes and forms for the next few days till I figure it out, lol.

[queenp71.livejournal.com]

you might still consider an in the oven thermometer just to check. The local Wally-hell should carry it, if you aren't too averse to visiting there.

[subvers.livejournal.com]

My LORD but you can cook, girl! I hope your family appreciates you!

[lady-karelia.livejournal.com]

*blush* thank you! I find there's nothing more satisfying than a family dinner in which most of the food is wiped out. :-)

[dickgloucester.livejournal.com]

That all sounds delicious! I think I'll be trying the chicken.

For the potato gratin, we have discovered over time that what it needs is long, slow cooking. Our recipe: 1 lb spuds, finely sliced (a mandolin is great for this), 1 pint of: [mixed cream/milk, with 1 clove pulped garlic, freshly ground black pepper, a little nutmeg, and some salt. Spread the potato in the gratin dish, make sure the liquidy stuff is well mixed, then pour it over the spuds. Dot with butter. Put it in a medium/lowish oven and don't expect to eat for two hours.

As for the ratio of potato to liquid, it doesn't just double if you want to do more. Two pounds of potatoes and two pints of liquid is WAAAAy too much liquid. We've had some mistakes, which is why I don't do this dish when there are guests!

[a-bees-buzz.livejournal.com]

You can also cut the fat/calorie content by using stock instead of cream. The flavor and texture come out a bit different, but very tasty. And yes, long cooking at lower temps works best.

[lady-karelia.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'll keep that idea in mind for warmer days. I don't mind the heavier/creamier dishes in winter when it's cold, but in the summer, I generally prefer lighter foods.

[lady-karelia.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Just making a sauerkraut/potato bake and followed your instructions. It's been in there a couple of hours, and I'll try it shortly, but by the fork poke, it feels thoroughly cooked. And the cream isn't liquid anymore either. I've never tried it without egg, but I rather like the idea. Will report on the success when I've eaten it. :-)

[livingdeadgal.livejournal.com]

Sounds really scrummy, apart from the chicken!
Can you email me please? Same email address as before. I have a German homeschool family trying to find you. Ta :o)

[lady-karelia.livejournal.com]

*nods* I didn't touch the chicken either, only cooked it. :-)

Not her... The Germish homeschool mother contacted me one day in reply to a many months ago email, then wrote again a mere few days later, demanding answers. Erm, I don't think so *snerk*. It was a personal question to boot, yanno? And it didn't even have anything to do with homeschooling per se. Since I don't do pushy, I didn't bother replying. Even less when another few days later, she drove the list mad, asking all and sundry how to get hold of me. *shakes head* She has the correct email address, I just felt a wee bit imposed upon. :-)

[(Anonymous)]

Oh, I thought it was a bloke...shows I don't know much about German names!!! I'll just tell them the email address is correct still, then they can draw their own conclusions ;o)

[lady-karelia.livejournal.com]

It might be someone different. There've been quite a few families moving to the UK from Germland... And just because I run the German homeschool list and lived in England, they think I know everything. I tell each one to contact their local home-ed groups, Education Otherwise, etc, but some are more persistent than others *snerk*. I mean, I've no interest giving them a book-long biograph of me, lol.

[geminiscorp.livejournal.com]

Sounds yummmy!!

[lady-karelia.livejournal.com]

It was. :-)