Following hot and fast on the heels of my recent escapades with creating the perfect Mint Chip Ice Cream, I plunged back into the artisan ice cream world again this past weekend and ended up with a marvelously smooth, layered toasted butter pecan ice cream that's been my favorite creation to date. Just awesome.
Not all that hard to put together either. Just melt a 1/4 of butter in a pan, add 1/2 cup pecan bits (Trader Joe's sells nice bags of them) and some kosher salt. Toast until the pecans begin to darken and then drain the butter off (you can save the butter for something else though I'm still trying to figure out what but it smells great!) and allow the pecans to cool completely.
Make the basic vanilla ice cream recipe but cut back on the vanilla just a bit. Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker, let it do its thing for 20 minutes or so, then add the chilled pecans (I've taken to freezing them for a couple of minutes) and continue mixing for another 5 minutes.
Pack in containers and chill for a few hours in the freezer or dig right in and enjoy it now. The key is using good heavy cream in the mix and folding it into the milk and sugar mixture, don't blend it or you'll flatten out the resulting ice cream.
Follow up site from a post a few weeks ago about the Salmon and Cucumber Salad calling for some creme fraiche (though I wrote it then as creme fresh), a page on substitute dairy products......
Cook's Thesaurus: Cultured Milk Products
Cultured Milk Products
Saturday, December 20, 2003
Thursday, December 18, 2003
Acing the Mint Chip Ice Cream Final!
I figured it out the other day and had already gathered my ingredients for another run at the fabled Mint Chip Ice Cream Crown. I recognized my first batch mistakes and determined not to repeat them. Hey, if you're gonna screw up, screw up in a new and different way than before.
The differences were subtle but made for a much, much better product. In fact, the vanilla tasted far better than it had in the past by the simple switching of one single ingredient. Of course, when there are only four ingredients in the base mix then switching one can make for a huge difference.
I substituted an ultra pastuerized whipping cream for the heavy whipping cream I'd been using and, instead of blending it all in together. I combined the milk and the sugar with the stick blender and then folded in the cream and the vanilla. It doesn't agitate the cream so much and the whole mixture takes on a much creamier texture from the start.
Another key difference. Chilling the chips in the freezer as well as the mint extract. The colder it is when added to the whirring mixture, the better.
And the main difference that really made it all come together? Getting some Andes mint and chocolate chips at Safeway. They add just the exact right amount of mint flavor without overpowering the tastebuds.
At twenty minutes in, the ice cream had thickened to the point where it was piling up behind the scraper on the side of the bowl. I tasted it and was surprised to find that it didn't dissolve into its component parts very quickly at all. It had cohesed into ice cream and it was very, very fresh and excellent tasting. I removed just under half the vanilla ice cream and put it in a small tupperware box to chill for a few hours in the freezer. Then I started the machine back up again so I could pour in the chips to mix into the ice cream. With just a about a minute left, I pulled the mint extract out of the freezer and poured a very, very small amount into the now halved mixture. It was just the right amount to give the ice cream a minty smell but again without being too much. And it tasted absolutely perfect!
Even not fully solidified, it was the best mint chip ice cream I'd ever had. Smooth with a layering of flavors and each bite begged for more.
And that's the story of how I created the finest mint chip ice cream ever. Next up? I want to try some butter pecan and some peach in two seperate batches (of course, the beauty of this machine is that I can make both kinds at once!).
The differences were subtle but made for a much, much better product. In fact, the vanilla tasted far better than it had in the past by the simple switching of one single ingredient. Of course, when there are only four ingredients in the base mix then switching one can make for a huge difference.
I substituted an ultra pastuerized whipping cream for the heavy whipping cream I'd been using and, instead of blending it all in together. I combined the milk and the sugar with the stick blender and then folded in the cream and the vanilla. It doesn't agitate the cream so much and the whole mixture takes on a much creamier texture from the start.
Another key difference. Chilling the chips in the freezer as well as the mint extract. The colder it is when added to the whirring mixture, the better.
And the main difference that really made it all come together? Getting some Andes mint and chocolate chips at Safeway. They add just the exact right amount of mint flavor without overpowering the tastebuds.
At twenty minutes in, the ice cream had thickened to the point where it was piling up behind the scraper on the side of the bowl. I tasted it and was surprised to find that it didn't dissolve into its component parts very quickly at all. It had cohesed into ice cream and it was very, very fresh and excellent tasting. I removed just under half the vanilla ice cream and put it in a small tupperware box to chill for a few hours in the freezer. Then I started the machine back up again so I could pour in the chips to mix into the ice cream. With just a about a minute left, I pulled the mint extract out of the freezer and poured a very, very small amount into the now halved mixture. It was just the right amount to give the ice cream a minty smell but again without being too much. And it tasted absolutely perfect!
Even not fully solidified, it was the best mint chip ice cream I'd ever had. Smooth with a layering of flavors and each bite begged for more.
And that's the story of how I created the finest mint chip ice cream ever. Next up? I want to try some butter pecan and some peach in two seperate batches (of course, the beauty of this machine is that I can make both kinds at once!).
Thursday, December 11, 2003
Smoked Salmon and Cucumber Salad
Saw this on The Naked Chef last night and tried to get the recipe from the FoodTV.com website but they didn't deign to post it so I copied it as much as I could and think I've got it all. I will be trying this recipe in the next couple of days and will report back on how it scores.
Ingredients:
sliced smoked salmon
shaved cucumber in long slices, lengthwise
2 big tablespoons creme fresh with a little more than a half lemon
zest of one lemon chopped fine
fresh ground pepper
finely chopped chives
What to do with the ingredients:
lay salmon over a plate, follow with the cucumber slabs, drizzle lemony creme fresh over with dollops, follow with lemon zest, fresh ground pepper and then finish with chives and serve with bread and olive oil spiked with balsamic vinegar or serve as is.
Alternative, make salmon and cucumber rollups, secured with toothpicks, then sprinkle other ingredients over rolled up rolls.
It looked gorgeous and I think it will taste just as good as it looks because we love smoked salmon, I just have to figure out what I can substitute for creme fresh because they don't really sell it stateside. Any ideas?
Ingredients:
sliced smoked salmon
shaved cucumber in long slices, lengthwise
2 big tablespoons creme fresh with a little more than a half lemon
zest of one lemon chopped fine
fresh ground pepper
finely chopped chives
What to do with the ingredients:
lay salmon over a plate, follow with the cucumber slabs, drizzle lemony creme fresh over with dollops, follow with lemon zest, fresh ground pepper and then finish with chives and serve with bread and olive oil spiked with balsamic vinegar or serve as is.
Alternative, make salmon and cucumber rollups, secured with toothpicks, then sprinkle other ingredients over rolled up rolls.
It looked gorgeous and I think it will taste just as good as it looks because we love smoked salmon, I just have to figure out what I can substitute for creme fresh because they don't really sell it stateside. Any ideas?
Saturday, November 29, 2003
Fun with the Cuisinart Duo Ice Cream Maker
For those of you who aren't familiar with this pretty damned awesome machine, its a Flavor Duo™ Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker. I can make two different kinds of ice cream at the same time! And yeah, that is pretty damned cool!
Anyway, I've been working off the basic recipe for a little while, its a simple vanilla ice cream recipe but the best thing about vanilla is that it is really easy to spice right the heck up.
Its easy to whip up:
3/4 cup milk (the book calls for whole milk but come on now, who drinks whole milk anymore when its so fattening?)
2/3 cup sugar (I've used turbinado sugar before but it doesn't dissolve as easily)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream, well chilled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
A key tip is to keep the ingredients as cold as possible.
Mix the milk and sugar together until the sugar fully dissolves, stir in the cream and the vanilla to taste. Pour into the machine, let it work for 20-25 minutes, add the chopped chocolate chips in during the last five minutes (tossing the chips into a chopper breaks them up and makes for a better ice cream). Once its all chilled as much as the machine will do it, transfer the thickening ice cream into another container and put it in the freezer to set up for a couple of hours.
I made a chocolate chip the other night that had a hint of cinnamon flavor added and it was just superb.
Tonight's flavor is mint chip and I'm not quite sure how it will come out. I screwed up one important thing and that is don't add the mint extract (which is in a 90% alcohol solution) until the last couple of minutes or you'll affect the mixture's ability to freeze. So my ice cream is in the freezer now, hopefully setting up and turning into beautiful and creamy yumminess.
Some other ones to try are the Eggnog Ice Cream, the full on, cooked Chocolate Ice Cream and the Fresh Strawberry. But there's also Pumpkin Spice, Chocolate Marshmellow Swirl (otherwise known as Rocky Road), Mocha Chip and then, down the road, Pistachio, Butter Pecan and Peanut Butter.
Yeah, the Duo is one helluva cool wedding present!
Anyway, I've been working off the basic recipe for a little while, its a simple vanilla ice cream recipe but the best thing about vanilla is that it is really easy to spice right the heck up.
Its easy to whip up:
3/4 cup milk (the book calls for whole milk but come on now, who drinks whole milk anymore when its so fattening?)
2/3 cup sugar (I've used turbinado sugar before but it doesn't dissolve as easily)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream, well chilled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
A key tip is to keep the ingredients as cold as possible.
Mix the milk and sugar together until the sugar fully dissolves, stir in the cream and the vanilla to taste. Pour into the machine, let it work for 20-25 minutes, add the chopped chocolate chips in during the last five minutes (tossing the chips into a chopper breaks them up and makes for a better ice cream). Once its all chilled as much as the machine will do it, transfer the thickening ice cream into another container and put it in the freezer to set up for a couple of hours.
I made a chocolate chip the other night that had a hint of cinnamon flavor added and it was just superb.
Tonight's flavor is mint chip and I'm not quite sure how it will come out. I screwed up one important thing and that is don't add the mint extract (which is in a 90% alcohol solution) until the last couple of minutes or you'll affect the mixture's ability to freeze. So my ice cream is in the freezer now, hopefully setting up and turning into beautiful and creamy yumminess.
Some other ones to try are the Eggnog Ice Cream, the full on, cooked Chocolate Ice Cream and the Fresh Strawberry. But there's also Pumpkin Spice, Chocolate Marshmellow Swirl (otherwise known as Rocky Road), Mocha Chip and then, down the road, Pistachio, Butter Pecan and Peanut Butter.
Yeah, the Duo is one helluva cool wedding present!
Tuesday, September 16, 2003
Easy Pasta Pomodoro with Fresh Basil, Reggiano and Pecorino
Yesterday was a long travel day and neither of us felt like cooking (in fact, P didn't feel like eating and went to bed at about 8) but I was hungry and ended up doing a little light dinner pasta.
We have a whole bunch of tomatoes from the garden right now and they are in need of being consumed or they'll go bad and that would be a terrible shame.
I started out by boiling some salted water for the angel hair pasta, while it was heating up I cut the tomatoes into cubes, mostly reds but a couple of green zebra striped for color and flavor (and to use them up). Along with some fresh basil, a combination of sweet basil and some of the thai basil and a clove of garlic, peeled and sliced into four thick chunks.
Angel hair pasta cooks rather quickly and I drained it and tossed the pasta into a bowl with a small amount of butter to keep it from sticking. The pot went back on the stove and I added olive oil to coat the bottom, added the garlic and let it sizzle for a few moments before adding the basil. Another moment or two to allow the basil to come up to heat and I added the tomatoes. Salt and pepper were added as well as another dash of olive oil.
The mixture was allowed to heat all the way through and turn into a sauce before being poured over the pasta.
Some fresh grated reggiano parmesiano and some pecorino and it was ready to be consumed as I watched the Giants come back against the Cowboys only to give up a bad kick and allow the Cowboys to kick a game tying field goal that sent the game into an overtime period that the Cowboys prevailed in.
I would have liked to add some fresh oregano to the pasta just as it was finishing up but I didn't have any and I really don't care for the dried kind.
Not a bad nearly instant dinner. I may try it again but this time with a few adjustments. Namely, the basil will be left whole leaf, the tomatoes will be sliced into rounds and the garlic will be crushed to allow more of its flavor to seep out. I'll also cook the sauce over a lower heat so the flavors can meld together more slowly.
We have a whole bunch of tomatoes from the garden right now and they are in need of being consumed or they'll go bad and that would be a terrible shame.
I started out by boiling some salted water for the angel hair pasta, while it was heating up I cut the tomatoes into cubes, mostly reds but a couple of green zebra striped for color and flavor (and to use them up). Along with some fresh basil, a combination of sweet basil and some of the thai basil and a clove of garlic, peeled and sliced into four thick chunks.
Angel hair pasta cooks rather quickly and I drained it and tossed the pasta into a bowl with a small amount of butter to keep it from sticking. The pot went back on the stove and I added olive oil to coat the bottom, added the garlic and let it sizzle for a few moments before adding the basil. Another moment or two to allow the basil to come up to heat and I added the tomatoes. Salt and pepper were added as well as another dash of olive oil.
The mixture was allowed to heat all the way through and turn into a sauce before being poured over the pasta.
Some fresh grated reggiano parmesiano and some pecorino and it was ready to be consumed as I watched the Giants come back against the Cowboys only to give up a bad kick and allow the Cowboys to kick a game tying field goal that sent the game into an overtime period that the Cowboys prevailed in.
I would have liked to add some fresh oregano to the pasta just as it was finishing up but I didn't have any and I really don't care for the dried kind.
Not a bad nearly instant dinner. I may try it again but this time with a few adjustments. Namely, the basil will be left whole leaf, the tomatoes will be sliced into rounds and the garlic will be crushed to allow more of its flavor to seep out. I'll also cook the sauce over a lower heat so the flavors can meld together more slowly.
Tuesday, September 2, 2003
Tomato Goodness
The tomatoes are in full fruiting right now and the backyard smells amazing, the combination of buttery tomato smell combined with the fresh basil, rosemary, peppers and catnip along with the jasmine. Quite an interesting group of smells to explore.
The tomatoes have been excellent, an incredible taste treat to pick a tomato, clean it, slice it up and eat it within ten minutes of picking.
And I've been trying new things with them. Easy tomato based salads that take a couple of minutes to make and taste excellent. By letting the basil infuse into some olive oil before adding the tomatoes the flavors get more thoroughly dispersed. Marinades and sauces are easy to put together. Olive Oil, some garlic, fresh basil (usually a combination of kinds, cinnamon, fresh sweet and purple ruffles), a shot of balsamic vinegar and then a dash of Worchestire Sauce for the smoky undertones. Let it all sit together for a few minutes to allow the flavors to say hi to each other. Then hit it up with some appropriate cheese, pecorino works well because of its ability to stand up to other strong flavors but cheddar is nice too, as is mozzerella. Go with whatever you want to.
There are the three holy flavors of the summer season in my book, maybe four. Fresh tomatoes (not pronounced in the hoity toity tom-ah-toes way but the lower key and more accepted to-may-toes), fresh basil, fresh mozzerella and then maybe some fresh garlic if its going to stand for any length of time. But a favorite plate is to assemble the parts, not chopped into small parts but left with good sized wedges and larger portions of cheese. Drizzled with some high quality olive oil and then sprinkled with some finely chopped basil it is an excellent snack to make and can be as beautiful as it is tasty when prepared well.
On a side note, I just had some peas, green onions and peanuts in a salad together with a light cream dressing. Very tasty and crunchy and a really nice little salad that I'd like to try and recreate myself sometime.
The tomatoes have been excellent, an incredible taste treat to pick a tomato, clean it, slice it up and eat it within ten minutes of picking.
And I've been trying new things with them. Easy tomato based salads that take a couple of minutes to make and taste excellent. By letting the basil infuse into some olive oil before adding the tomatoes the flavors get more thoroughly dispersed. Marinades and sauces are easy to put together. Olive Oil, some garlic, fresh basil (usually a combination of kinds, cinnamon, fresh sweet and purple ruffles), a shot of balsamic vinegar and then a dash of Worchestire Sauce for the smoky undertones. Let it all sit together for a few minutes to allow the flavors to say hi to each other. Then hit it up with some appropriate cheese, pecorino works well because of its ability to stand up to other strong flavors but cheddar is nice too, as is mozzerella. Go with whatever you want to.
There are the three holy flavors of the summer season in my book, maybe four. Fresh tomatoes (not pronounced in the hoity toity tom-ah-toes way but the lower key and more accepted to-may-toes), fresh basil, fresh mozzerella and then maybe some fresh garlic if its going to stand for any length of time. But a favorite plate is to assemble the parts, not chopped into small parts but left with good sized wedges and larger portions of cheese. Drizzled with some high quality olive oil and then sprinkled with some finely chopped basil it is an excellent snack to make and can be as beautiful as it is tasty when prepared well.
On a side note, I just had some peas, green onions and peanuts in a salad together with a light cream dressing. Very tasty and crunchy and a really nice little salad that I'd like to try and recreate myself sometime.
Friday, July 11, 2003
Watching Your Food Grow
Not in the sense of having spent far, far too long in the fridge but in the sense of getting home from work each day and being able to go out and see how much taller, how much fatter and thicker the tomatoes are. How fresh and beautiful the basil looks (well, all of it except for the purple ruffles basil but it's P's least favorite so that's alright).
And today at lunch Zanatto's had Tomato Basil Bisque in their soup bar. A simple and excellent soup that I'm very much looking forward to making from our own garden when the time comes. And its coming, there are dozens and dozens of tomatoes on the four plants that we've got growing on the back patio.
Quick side note, tomato plants have got to be one of the best smelling plants anywhere. There's just something comforting and incredibly appealing about their scent. I can literally just stick my face into the plant foliage and inhale its wonderful smell.
The best thing about having a patio garden is that we can check out the plants at any time, keep them trimmed up, clean off any bug issues (though a container of ladybugs we got totally took care of any bug problems, nothing like 1500 ladybugs chomping on any bugs they find!). So we're planning things to make out of the small garden we've got going. Small now but I know, once we have the space, we will have lots and lots of fruits and vegetables all the time. Herb gardens, old growth Californian fruit trees and vegetables like nobody's business.
I think the first dish that we'll make will be the most straight forward, simple bruschetta made from the three varieties of tomatoes (regular red containers, green zebra stripped and purple toms) and a mixture of the basils, some regular sweet, some thai, some cinnamon basil (which has absolutely the most heavenly scent ever!) and maybe some of the holy basil if the little sucker rebounds. Combined with some other ingredients like thinly sliced red onions and the secret ones and it'll make for one powerfully tasty spread!
But now I'm sure that I also want to give a try to making the bisque. Its a bit like a bruschetta soup but has more of tang to it and less bite. Does that make sense? Anyway, I don't serve the bruschetta soup hot ever. Its a cold soup served on hot days and is refreshing and light. I'll have to get around to posting some recipes up here though or this here blog might just end up withering on the vine like the tomatoes do when I forget to soak them in the morning before leaving for work because it gets so outrageously hot in the back yard during the day.
But damn, it was some yummy soup and I'm excited to give it a run at home now!
And I need to get around to upgrading the comment system on Cooking Stories even though there's really just about no traffic through the site as of yet.
And today at lunch Zanatto's had Tomato Basil Bisque in their soup bar. A simple and excellent soup that I'm very much looking forward to making from our own garden when the time comes. And its coming, there are dozens and dozens of tomatoes on the four plants that we've got growing on the back patio.
Quick side note, tomato plants have got to be one of the best smelling plants anywhere. There's just something comforting and incredibly appealing about their scent. I can literally just stick my face into the plant foliage and inhale its wonderful smell.
The best thing about having a patio garden is that we can check out the plants at any time, keep them trimmed up, clean off any bug issues (though a container of ladybugs we got totally took care of any bug problems, nothing like 1500 ladybugs chomping on any bugs they find!). So we're planning things to make out of the small garden we've got going. Small now but I know, once we have the space, we will have lots and lots of fruits and vegetables all the time. Herb gardens, old growth Californian fruit trees and vegetables like nobody's business.
I think the first dish that we'll make will be the most straight forward, simple bruschetta made from the three varieties of tomatoes (regular red containers, green zebra stripped and purple toms) and a mixture of the basils, some regular sweet, some thai, some cinnamon basil (which has absolutely the most heavenly scent ever!) and maybe some of the holy basil if the little sucker rebounds. Combined with some other ingredients like thinly sliced red onions and the secret ones and it'll make for one powerfully tasty spread!
But now I'm sure that I also want to give a try to making the bisque. Its a bit like a bruschetta soup but has more of tang to it and less bite. Does that make sense? Anyway, I don't serve the bruschetta soup hot ever. Its a cold soup served on hot days and is refreshing and light. I'll have to get around to posting some recipes up here though or this here blog might just end up withering on the vine like the tomatoes do when I forget to soak them in the morning before leaving for work because it gets so outrageously hot in the back yard during the day.
But damn, it was some yummy soup and I'm excited to give it a run at home now!
And I need to get around to upgrading the comment system on Cooking Stories even though there's really just about no traffic through the site as of yet.
Monday, June 9, 2003
Skirt Steak, Blue Cheese Stuffed Burgers and Well Done Salmon Fillets
Ahh, the joy of cooking in the great outdoors. Food smells waft all over camp grounds, an odoral cornucopia for the nose. Burgers and hot dogs over there, bratwursts over here, more elaborate camp gourmet stuff going in pockets all over.
It would be really interesting to peek into everyone's coolers to see what they bring camping. What makes it a camping trip for them. S'mores? Yeah, those go down on the all time list of camping foods. Hot dogs (or sausages for those that just aren't into the snout and tails of a typical hot dog).
It would be really interesting to peek into everyone's coolers to see what they bring camping. What makes it a camping trip for them. S'mores? Yeah, those go down on the all time list of camping foods. Hot dogs (or sausages for those that just aren't into the snout and tails of a typical hot dog).
Friday, June 6, 2003
Camp Cooking
This weekend ought to be an interesting and fun one. We're packing up and rolling south to Big Sur for the weekend with a few friends and a dog.
The hardest part about going on a trip like this is not knowing how much food to bring, what spices must go and all the other myriad food based questions that can arise.
Clothes and camping gear are pretty straight forward but food's subjective and more subtle. You never want to run out of food while camping but you also don't want to haul your entire pantry into the wilderness.
And then, car camping is a very different animal than hiking into the back country where every ounce you bring is another ounce on your shoulders and hips. Car camping is a more indulgent form of camping that allows the chance to bring alot more equipment than is necessary.
But that's half the fun, isn't it? Not having to worry about having enough to eat. Just enjoying the wilderness area. We'll see how the meals go, should be interesting if nothing else. I'll see about adding pics later.
The hardest part about going on a trip like this is not knowing how much food to bring, what spices must go and all the other myriad food based questions that can arise.
Clothes and camping gear are pretty straight forward but food's subjective and more subtle. You never want to run out of food while camping but you also don't want to haul your entire pantry into the wilderness.
And then, car camping is a very different animal than hiking into the back country where every ounce you bring is another ounce on your shoulders and hips. Car camping is a more indulgent form of camping that allows the chance to bring alot more equipment than is necessary.
But that's half the fun, isn't it? Not having to worry about having enough to eat. Just enjoying the wilderness area. We'll see how the meals go, should be interesting if nothing else. I'll see about adding pics later.
Sunday, June 1, 2003
New Month? Let's Start a New Blog
I've been ruminating about starting a new blog for a little while and June 1 seemed like the best day to initiate the concept.
This is a blog dedicated to the culinary side of our days. Recipes that my fiance and I invent, migrate, adjust, update and Californian-ize. This can be something as basic as adding some lemongrass to a marinade to specialized handmade sushi parties.
Since we're just getting started, things may take a few evolutions to get to where we're happy with them. And then we may still change our minds a few weeks later.
I've been ruminating about starting a new blog for a little while and June 1 seemed like the best day to initiate the concept.
This is a blog dedicated to the culinary side of our days. Recipes that my fiance and I invent, migrate, adjust, update and Californian-ize. This can be something as basic as adding some lemongrass to a marinade to specialized handmade sushi parties.
Since we're just getting started, things may take a few evolutions to get to where we're happy with them. And then we may still change our minds a few weeks later.
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