What's Cooking (Take Four)

Homemade chili con carne tonight, which I'll eat using my okay implant (watta Jenise story!).

Wrapped a top sirloin in parchment with butter, garlic, thyme, rosemary, and a few other seasoning; cooked it at 250*F for a little over an hour; took out half (for medium rare) and cooked the other half another 20 minutes (for His Majesty's well-done); and then a reverse sear. Made a quick pan gravy in the searing pan, with a pile of oyster mushrooms added. Finally, 5# of Yukon Golds became Mashed and three little delicatas got roasted. Traditional plate, and very yummy.

I'm making roast pork (well, restaurant-type "boneless spare rib") lo mein tonight.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Tonight I'll have a cold plate: steamed asparagus purchased at a farm in B.C. yesterday and fresh strawberries.

Last night, I had a boneless rib-eye organic steak. I had marinated it all day in Dolin Vermouth, garlic salt, black pepper, fresh thyme, and rosemary. I put it into the cast-iron pan along with green and red bell peppers and fresh garlic and gave it all a fast saute. Easy and quick dinner with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers. It is going to be 109° today, and I will finish off the steak and peppers tonight.

[Jenise]

109!! Ouch. The fires will be starting any minute.

I spent last weekend in BC wine country, and have dined at the homes of friends the last three nights so haven't cooked at home. Last night was extra special because we sat outside on an island-facing ridgeline where two eagles live in a cedar tree maybe 30 feet from where we sat. They flew in and out all evening, bringing prey.

Today I'm being taken out to lunch so probably won't be cooking tonight either--dinner will be a bowl of strawberries.

My breakfast now is tomato juice and low-fat cottage cheese topped with blackberries and strawberries and drizzled with Bordeaux walnut and cherry balsamic vinegar. Then I will be making a slow cooker dinner with cross-cut beef shanks. Cabbage and carrots, onions, and fresh garlic will go into the slow cooker. A sauce made of beef broth, diced tomatoes, brown sugar, white vinegar, dried dill, salt, and cayenne pepper will be the next layer. Shanks will be placed on top. Instead of adding potatoes, I am making a cauliflower mash, which I always add one potato; this will be the base for the shanks at serving. I trimmed my herbs again this morning and am tossing in parsley, thyme, and rosemary. I have never used cabbage in this manner before, but came across several recipes with good reviews, so away I go...

Jenise, how fun for you to see the eagles, no doubt bringing food for the eaglets. Redding has a beloved eagle couple, Liberty and Guardian. I have been following Liberty and her three mates over the years. This is the first year she has had zero eggs. Sad, but they made the best of their time here, building a sturdy new nest which they will return to next year. They are amazing birds. Last year was also sad as the tree their nest was in was dead and had no shade. The two eaglets left the nest early and died from dehydration. Our trusted eagle caretakers and watchers took out the old nest and built a starter nest in another tree nearby. Liberty and Guardian caught on to all this and finished off the starter nest in two weeks of hard work. I am told when they leave here, they go up to the PNW because it is cooler and fishing is better. They will be back to us next nesting season.

My parents lived on the Connecticut shore (Groton Long Point). Ospreys, large fishing hawks, were a common sight. The GLP association had set up a nesting platform in the salt marsh opposite my parent's house and in due course a pair of ospreys built a nest there and raised little ones. On one visit to my parents I brought along the family's 4" reflector telescope so that I could do some osprey-watching. Just one problem--this is a telescope intended for Astronomy and the image at the eyepiece is upside-down. I got a view with the nest upside-down at the top and the heads of the two nestlings pointing downwards. Suddenly a large pair of claws appeared at the bottom of the view and a fish flew up into the nest.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Jenise, how fun for you to see the eagles, no doubt bringing food for the eaglets. Redding has a beloved eagle couple, Liberty and Guardian. I have been following Liberty and her three mates over the years. This is the first year she has had zero eggs. Sad, but they made the best of their time here, building a sturdy new nest which they will return to next year. They are amazing birds. Last year was also sad as the tree their nest was in was dead and had no shade. The two eaglets left the nest early and died from dehydration. Our trusted eagle caretakers and watchers took out the old nest and built a starter nest in another tree nearby. Liberty and Guardian caught on to all this and finished off the starter nest in two weeks of hard work. I am told when they leave here, they go up to the PNW because it is cooler and fishing is better. They will be back to us next nesting season.

Eagles fly past my house all the time, which both Jane and I find very entertaining. They fly low in their hunt for rabbits and chipmunks among the driftwood on our beach. But I don't have any trees like my friend up on the ridge, so the front row seat to nesting eagles was a rare delight. Oh, and they make the best sounds--a high pitched chirp that's like no other. Over the years I've watched a lot of webcams like the one that must enable you to follow Liberty and Guardian. It's a great thing those webcams, helps people be aware of the nature around us and the need to protect it.

Paul, hilarious story.

This weekend I'll be making stir-fried beef with snow peas, but over a bed of Hong Kong-style pan-fried noodles instead of the usual white rice.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Dined out last night for the 5th time this past week, and will do so again today. Only Friday night did I stay home, and a bowl of cherries sufficed for dinner.

A friend gave us two complimentary meal-and-drink coupons for a popular breakfast and lunch restaurant known for its huge quantities. So, this morning Edie had a Belgian waffle, bacon and egg, and I had huevos rancheros Xmas style. It was okay, but not stellar. But at least I won't have to eat for a day or two.

I made a chicken and mushroom quiche scented with rosemary.

I picked up a pound of rhubarb at the green market and baked it into a crisp. Flavors are good but I should have gotten another pound, as its a little skimpy this way. But I've controlled the tartness, got good cinnamon/clove flavors in the oat/walnut crumble, used corn starch to control the juices and added a sprinkle of orange zest. First time I've ever made rhubarb anything so I'm pleased.

First time I've ever made rhubarb anything so I'm pleased.

No time like the present for new beginnings!

Last night's stir-fried beef with snow peas over pan-fried noodles was delicious even though the noodle cake was not evenly browned. It's going to take some practice to get it exactly right.

While researching the technique for making the "two sides golden noodles" (as they're called in Chinese restaurants around here) I read that they originated in Hong Kong. One school of thought is that Hong Kong pan-fried noodles were the origin of the crispy chow mein noodles served in Western overseas Chinese restaurants. It seems like a reasonable conjecture to me. IMO the pan-fried noodles are superior to the crispy noodles because of the textural contrast between the crunchy outside and the chewy inside of the noodle cake.

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-Paul W.

[Jenise]

I made a chicken and mushroom quiche scented with rosemary.

I picked up a pound of rhubarb at the green market and baked it into a crisp. Flavors are good but I should have gotten another pound, as its a little skimpy this way. But I've controlled the tartness, got good cinnamon/clove flavors in the oat/walnut crumble, used corn starch to control the juices and added a sprinkle of orange zest. First time I've ever made rhubarb anything so I'm pleased.

It sounds quite good! I was not a rhubarb fan until a Vancouver restaurant served a savory rhubard crisp topped with seared foie gras to pair with some older barolos. Oh. My. God. It's still one of the most memorable things I've eaten in Vancouver.

I was not a rhubarb fan until a Vancouver restaurant served a savory rhubard crisp topped with seared foie gras to pair with some older barolos. Oh. My. God. It's still one of the most memorable things I've eaten in Vancouver.

Hm, I like a little sweet and tart with my foie so maybe I should try that.

Spinach salad with warm bacon dressing.

This morning's breakfast consists of a sliced hard-boiled egg topped with a dollop of Chili Crisp, a small corn tortilla browned in a pan, filled with Monterey Jack pepper cheese, homemade salsa, fresh cilantro, and a handful of strawberries and raspberries on the side.

[Jenise]

I was not a rhubarb fan until a Vancouver restaurant served a savory rhubarb crisp topped with seared foie gras to pair with some older barolos. Oh. My. God. It's still one of the most memorable things I've eaten in Vancouver.

Hm, I like a little sweet and tart with my foie so maybe I should try that.

My next adventure in rhubarb is going to be as a lightly pickled pizza topping along with bacon lardons and gorgonzola cheese.

[Jenise]

Oh, and tonight I have 17 people coming to dinner. It's a planning meeting and I offered to feed them. The menu:

Tortilla chips with home-made roasted vegetable salsa
Curry cured flank steak
Seared mushrooms in a red wine vinaigrette
Both of the above served on arugula as a main course summer salad
Marinated green olives
An escabeche--lightly pickled carrots, celery, Chinese cauliflower and jalapeno strips
Steamed gai-lan with ginger-sesame aioli
Sugar snap peas with gin and mint
Potato and melted leek salad, mustard dressing
Fresh cherries

My next adventure in rhubarb is going to be as a lightly pickled pizza topping along with bacon lardons and gorgonzola cheese.

Sounds great (even though I don't eat bacon, I can understand the dish). Pure personal inspiration or did you see someone else do that? Would there be a wine match for this? Lambrusco/Bugey Cerdon?

We're big fans of rhubarb and grew up eating my mother's strawberry rhubarb pie. But these days, the only way I use it is to make compote for the daily yogurt and fruit breakfast.

Rhubarb is of course a big and core ingredient in Germany, so there we often drink sparkling rhubarb soda. And rhubarb ice cream is always a summer flavor on my short list.

[Jenise]

IMO the pan-fried noodles are superior to the crispy noodles because of the textural contrast between the crunchy outside and the chewy inside of the noodle cake.
-Paul W.

Absolutely. I do noodle pillows frequently to serve under other things.

And the only crispy noodles I've had in Chinese restaurants were the ones out of a can in my childhood. They've disappeared since. No loss IMO.