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   Not a big fan of cooked salmon, but that looks really good. Sparrow's grass and spinach sounds like agreat combination.

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Dean Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Retired Admin and Amateur Layabout Joined: May 13 2007 Location: Europe Status: Offline Points: 37575	Posted: August 30 2012 at 18:28
	Not a big fan of cooked salmon, but that looks really good. Sparrow's grass and spinach sounds like agreat combination.
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Equality 7-2521 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Senior Member Joined: August 11 2005 Location: Philly Status: Offline Points: 15784	Posted: August 30 2012 at 18:31
	Raw salmon is just so much better than cooked that it's hard to imagine they're the same meat. However, I always get skittish about eating it outside of a sushi place. Yeah the veggies work well together. I'm not a put cheese on everything guy, but the parmesan works really well with them together.
	"One had to be a Newton to notice that the moon is falling, when everyone sees that it doesn't fall. "

Dean Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Retired Admin and Amateur Layabout Joined: May 13 2007 Location: Europe Status: Offline Points: 37575	Posted: August 30 2012 at 18:44
	I imagine it's the saltiness of the parmesan that's producing the true magic there. Bacon works well with green veg for the same reason.
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Dean Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Retired Admin and Amateur Layabout Joined: May 13 2007 Location: Europe Status: Offline Points: 37575	Posted: August 31 2012 at 12:47
	At this moment in time I'm cooking a lamb tagine - I've just set the pot to simmer so in 90 minutes (give or take) the lamb should be meltingly tender - cooking up couscous for Debs because she likes cooked flour and water paste, I'll serve mine with mashed potato because I'm a heathen philistine. Aside from lamb the tagine also contains some preserved lemons and almond stuffed dried apricots that have been coated in roasted sesame seeds on a bed of onion, red pepper and chopped tomato all doused in a generous dosage of Ras-el-hanot spice blend (bought from the supermarket because I happen to like the one with dried rose buds).
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Atavachron Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: September 30 2006 Location: Pearland Status: Offline Points: 65268	Posted: August 31 2012 at 18:51
	I make a tagine now&then-- so the dry rosebuds kinda substitute for the rose or orangeblossom water in that? I was just thinking of making up a batch of preserved lemons, they make a great gift. And I'm afraid I agree with your wife-- couscous is the perfect starch with that dish (though rice is fine too).

Dean Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Retired Admin and Amateur Layabout Joined: May 13 2007 Location: Europe Status: Offline Points: 37575	Posted: September 01 2012 at 02:31
	To be honest I've never given it much thought - I've tried ras el hanot with and without dried rose buds/petals and prefer with, I've never cooked savoury with rose water so I may try that one day. Since tagine is more a cooking method than a fixed recipe I've never made the same one twice, though Debs (and I) think this one was the best yet - the extra time taken to stuff the apricots with almonds and coat them with toasted sesame seeds was well worth the effort. I've had a Kilner jar of preserved lemons on the go for a couple of years now - I buy small unwaxed lemons that I partially split in quarters and stuff with sea salt then put in the jar and top up with fresh water to completely cover them, just before I seal the jar I put in a couple of sticks of cinnamon and Bob's your auntie. My dislike for pasta is well documented here, couscous is a long way down in the list alongside polenta and macaroni as pasta variants I won't touch (I don't like porridge or grits either), I don't mind egg noodles and love rice noodles, but I'm just not a fan of wheat pasta. Mash potato is just fine and soaks up the tagine juices perfectly. I'm not adverse to serving boiled potatoes with traditional pasta ragu sauce either - it works for Bombay potatoes and patatas bravas so why not bolognese. It's like serving texican chili con carne with rice or corn-chips or spiced potato wedges or in a hollowed out bread roll or slathered over a hot dog or baked potato - each combination works and is perfectly acceptable. However... recently (last week) I did discover the wonder of pasta as an accompaniment rather than the central focus of a meal - I cooked up pork cutlets with mushroom tortellini served with a rich and syrupy red-wine and red-current reduction (an idea modified from the Hairy Bikers) - I served that with a small portion of creamy mashed potato and some fine beans cooked with panchetta.
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Finnforest Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: February 03 2007 Location: The Heartland Status: Offline Points: 16913	Posted: September 01 2012 at 12:23
	I think this post is more suited to the foodie thread than the Indian/Chinese poll....thus moved I had an Indian friend back in childhood. I would go to their house and be instantly knocked over by the smell of spices walking through the door. They would make authentic sauces in their kitchen and introduce me to the difference between "american hot" and "indian hot". Wow! My friend was the only one who spoke English with much success, so when he would leave the room I would communicate with his large family through body language, smiles, etc. It was a great experience. My friend (their youngest boy) was completely americanized and much more interested in the food at our house, while I was interested in his Mom's home made creations. The grass is always greener? They also taught me to play Karom (Carom?), an intensely fun game akin to table top pool. I bought my own board a few years back to play it with my nieces. Sure beats video games. pic below I also had a Vietnamese friend who had just escaped Saigon with gunfire at their back. Same thing. He wanted my Fruit Loops and burgers on the grill. I was interested in his Mom's amazing home made eggrolls. To this day I"ve never had egg rolls that tasted like those she made in her little kitchen, far away from her home. She never said a word to me when I was there, but every time I walked in the door she gave me food. Two of my best friends as a boy. I consider myself lucky not for the friendships alone, but for the chance to have had truly authentic Indian and Vietnamese far better than any restaurant I've been to since. Both made by Moms who had just stepped foot in USA. Edited by Finnforest - September 01 2012 at 12:25

Epignosis Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: December 30 2007 Location: Raeford, NC Status: Offline Points: 32524	Posted: September 01 2012 at 12:45
	I had an Indian friend also when I was a boy. His father owned and operated a motel off the 301 bypass of I-95. I used to spend the night there. His mother cooked authentic Indian food. Some of it I genuinely enjoyed and some of it I pretended to. Very good times and I think people are enriched to have friends from other cultures. One thing I recall about my friend's mother is that she sped like a maniac. I was terrified riding anywhere with her.
	https://epignosis.bandcamp.com/album/a-month-of-sundays

Finnforest Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: February 03 2007 Location: The Heartland Status: Offline Points: 16913	Posted: September 01 2012 at 12:58
	yeah, some of those dishes are pretty strange to food noob kids....i had my share of crinkled faces too. on the flip side, in my friends first week of school here he was served a cupcake in class. not liking it apparently he put it in the back of his desk. it was covered in mold when the teacher had to remove it at the end of the year.

Finnforest Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: February 03 2007 Location: The Heartland Status: Offline Points: 16913	Posted: September 01 2012 at 14:54
	Time to make these delicious snacks again, a late summer ritual. I'm using my own Grandma's recipe, but to save myself some typing....it's close to this one http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com/2008/09/my-grandmothers-refrigerator-pickles.html

Epignosis Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: December 30 2007 Location: Raeford, NC Status: Offline Points: 32524	Posted: September 01 2012 at 15:10
	Thanks for nothing Jim. I totally want a pickle now.
	https://epignosis.bandcamp.com/album/a-month-of-sundays

Finnforest Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: February 03 2007 Location: The Heartland Status: Offline Points: 16913	Posted: September 01 2012 at 15:15


Finnforest Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: February 03 2007 Location: The Heartland Status: Offline Points: 16913	Posted: September 02 2012 at 18:50
	Done. They may not look like much right now, but in 72 hours they will be fantastic to the tongue!

Atavachron Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: September 30 2006 Location: Pearland Status: Offline Points: 65268	Posted: September 02 2012 at 18:56
	oh Jim those look great, or as you say, will look great-- ever try throwing in some orange zest, or garlic cloves?

Finnforest Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: February 03 2007 Location: The Heartland Status: Offline Points: 16913	Posted: September 02 2012 at 19:07
	Orange sounds luscious and I will have to try it.....just the skin, no chunks? Garlic and hot peppers I have tried for sure.....I like to experiment. I'm also big on the retro cooking thing, so this time it was Grandma's basic recipe. I love the whole concept of family recipes being handed down gen to gen. It adds something for me, to know I'm making something my Grandma made so long ago. I'm just weird I guess

Atavachron Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: September 30 2006 Location: Pearland Status: Offline Points: 65268	Posted: September 02 2012 at 19:59
	yes only the outer rind (no pith or fruit)-- not weird at all, I adore Old World foods

Angelo Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin Joined: May 07 2006 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 13244	Posted: September 03 2012 at 13:17
	That looks cool! And probably tastes the same. No pictures, but this is what I make every few months: pickled chillies. 5 red chilli peppers 5 green chilli peppers 250 ml of rice vinegar 2-3 tbsp of cane sugar 1 tsp sea salt Slice chillies, and put in a bowl. Cover with boiling water and leave for 5-10 minutes. Transfer to a glass jar. Put other ingredients in a pan, and boil until sugar has dissolved. Poor over chillies in jar and close the lid. Great with any asian rice dish, or on a meat sandwich for a bit of bite. Sometimes I also add a stalk of lemon grass, cut to small pieces. If I do, I put it in the boiling water together with the chillies. Edited by Angelo - September 03 2012 at 13:19
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Atavachron Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: September 30 2006 Location: Pearland Status: Offline Points: 65268	Posted: September 04 2012 at 01:38
	^ very nice, I like the addition of sugar

Epignosis Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: December 30 2007 Location: Raeford, NC Status: Offline Points: 32524	Posted: September 05 2012 at 17:22
	Attempting my very first beef Wellington tonight. I'm using fresh mushrooms, Prosciutto, and Dijon mustard. If it goes well, I'm already thinking how lovely a "pork Wellington" would be, only with a cinnamon paste and apple compote. Perfect late summer dish.
	https://epignosis.bandcamp.com/album/a-month-of-sundays

Atavachron Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: September 30 2006 Location: Pearland Status: Offline Points: 65268	Posted: September 06 2012 at 23:32
	love Wellington, how'd it come out?-- ever tried Steak au Poivre ? It's pretty easy, you just coat a nice fillet in crushed peppercorns, sauté in a hot skillet till medium, remove to rest, turn down heat and add some brandy & burn off, add a bit of heavy cream, pinch of salt, cook on low till reduced and rich, pour over rested chop. Yum.