Sandbox thread for cooking, nutrition nazis, your fucking lunch, etc.

Is there anything worse than undercooked rice? Those jerks at the deli screwed me today on my stir-fry order.

I have a head of cauliflower in my fridge that's been there for a week - I am also looking for an idea for cauliflower!

Roasted cauliflower with parmesan sprinkled on top?

Last night for dinner (and last week; made it twice because omgsoyum) was blackened chicken stuffed with feta and spinach, served with sauteed chickpeas, onions and lentils on top of raw spinach. kdjfal;skdjf;alskdf

ooh i have one:

chop cauli into florets

to a large bowl add:
2 tbsp oil (canola, peanut, evoo, whatever)
juice of one lemon
3 minced garlic cloves
salt and pepper
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1-2 tsp dijon (depending on how mustardy you want it)
couple pinches of either dried dill or tarragon

whisk, then add cauli, toss to coat. arrange on parchment-lined dish, bake at 400 fro about 30 mins, or until caramelized.

roast cauli flower is the bomb
what is the deal w/ nutritional yeast? i dont think i've ever cooked w/ that

or

boil it, drain it, mash/blend it with some cashew cream (1/2 raw cashews blended till smooth with 3/4 c water - quincie you have a vitamix so you should totes do this), salt and pepper, put into glass baking dish, generous amounts of paprika on top, bake till whenever.

nut. yeast kind of has a cheesy flavour. i like it in moderation: most recipes i use that feature it, i always halve the stated amount. some ppl LOVE that noochy taste, but i find it overwhelming, the cheesy part comes out more if you use less. good replacement for parmesan in cooking.

i am trying to use up all the thanksgiving leftovers in sort-of healthy ways. last night i made roasted brussel sprouts with apples and stuffing croutons, and started a turkey, navy bean and kale soup which will be finished today. i am going to garnish that with stuffing croutons too because i have about a pound of stuffing.

i have been cooking a lot of cauliflower and usually roasting with either a mustard sauce or a olive oil and curry or shallots and bacon.

I think I'll try the puree! But I don't have cashews--I wonder if another nut will work? I have some pecans, some almonds, maybe some walnuts?

i think walnuts would be good? pecans would maybe be too strong. i don't like almond cream at all, but that's bc i hate that marzipan flavour. making nut creams is the #1 reason i want a vitamix! so much better for you than dairy cream (but still totally fatty). maybe also try using a veg or chicken broth in place of water when you blend the nuts.

This is quick n easy: hot lightly pickled cauli.

Sauté sliced garlic, add cauli florets and chopped red chilli, sauté v quickly on high heat. Turn off heat, add 100ml rice vinegar (per 500g cauli). Season with soy sauce.

I just got two calphalon dutch ovens that look almost new at the thrift store for $10 each.
Oh yeah.

Oh btw I made that vegan gravy that just1n3 says is the bestiest gravy in the world. And it was pretty damn good. I made my own veg stock for it (so glad it is finally cool enough to make stock). Veg stock is probably my favorite kind to make, esp since imo the veg stock I have bought tastes like compost dirt. The gravy was yummy but it tastes kind of carroty. I love carrots but it's not a flavor I'm used to in gravy. First time I used nute yeast too; that stuff is funky!

This is the gravy in question, for ref:
http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=6966.0

I used only a tiny drop or two of vinegar instead of a fourth cup. I could not see that much vinegar turning out well!

The gravy was a very nice color, too.

cauliflower

roast @ 350 for an hour w/olive oil & chili powder & sea salt, add a 1/4 cup of stock to finish

or saute red onion & garlic, add cauliflower and cook until tender, toss w/ziti grated parmesan & mint

^copyright mario batali but hey its GOOD

xp to abbs, yeah i made that gravy again for thanksgiving - the carroty taste must come from your stock because mine didn't have that. i also only use maybe a tbsp of balsamic and don't add mushrooms. plus i add fake beef stock to mine, so it's more meaty tasting. it's so rich, i only make it for big holiday meals.

just made these http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/10/pumpkin-swirl-brownies/ except with my usual ridiculously casual substitutions: butternut squash for canned pumpkin, black pepper for cayenne, ginger mixed with the cinnamon, and about half the chocolate made up with cocoa and treacle.

they are pretty good! but kind of... too floury for my idea of brownies?

oooh i like that website! i've made a veganized version of her raspberry scones that was delish.

my fucking lunch is a turkey sandwich and some apples, again
my fucking dinner will be kale, navy bean and turkey stew, again

no complaints about either.

My fucking lunch: leftover beef stroganoff, leftover "butterpeas" -- some strange and wonderful hybrid pea that my dad discovered and grew this year, a delicious cross between blackeyed pea, butterbean and sweet pea.

So much garlic, I'm going to knock someone unconscious at my 3.30 department meeting. Garlic and kale are a match made somewhere wonderful.

I have another crock pot experiment going - black bean, tomato, carrot, cumin, chili powder, veg broth.

BUTTERPEAS! I want to eat them
I decided my favorite easy home sandwich is avocado + salt & pepper + radish sprouts on toasty bread; I think I have told about this before but I am a proselyte for it!

dear deli llama:

paella dinner @ 10PM = not good idea

all best,

yr tummy

I started eating stuff that is making me irrationally dragon-level hungry so I'm going to need a lot of easy home sandwich recipes, keep them coming because the nutritionist is quite expensive. OK thanks sandbox bye.

Oh btw I made that vegan gravy that just1n3 says is the bestiest gravy in the world. And it was pretty damn good. I made my own veg stock for it (so glad it is finally cool enough to make stock). Veg stock is probably my favorite kind to make, esp since imo the veg stock I have bought tastes like compost dirt. The gravy was yummy but it tastes kind of carroty. I love carrots but it's not a flavor I'm used to in gravy. First time I used nute yeast too; that stuff is funky!

i have never made veg stock & always want/mean to, not because the stock i have isn't good but bc it sometimes denudes me of a sense of auteurial control over how i made a meal delicious

imo it is fun as hell to put five pounds of veg in a pot and think 'I am stealing your SOUL, vegetables!'

so glad it is finally cool enough to make stock

Assuming you've got a non-climate controlled kitchen. Here's the second place (besides beans) where a pressure cooker really shines. A thoroughly
cooked stock can take under an hour, there's less heat loss from evaporation, and once the cooker comes up to pressure (15 psi over ambient), one can turn the burner down very low.

I make 8 qts at a time and freeze it in 1 qt ziplocks, and always add a couple of tbsp of Marmite which gives it a nice savoury flavor.

if i had a deep-freeze i would totally be into making my own stock, but as it is, my little freezer is full (i always freeze leftovers, always have frozen bananas and bread, plus vegan cheese, gardein, tomato sauce...).

my blackbeantomatocarrot crockpot soup was pretty delish, btw.

I just moved 10# of beef neckbones from the freezer to the fridge for stock-making this weekend.

I made a clean-out-the-vegetable-drawer minestrone soup the other night. I didn't have stock but I used a lot of tomato puree in the broth. It turned out pretty well. A pinch of sugar helped the flavor.

brussels sproutttsssssss

So I ended up making a cauliflower puree with steamed cauliflower and garlic thrown into the vitamix with a half cup of milk and two ounces of cream cheese, 'cause that's what I had. A little nutmeg, too. Tasty and not a terrible substitute for mashed potatoes if you are on the NN train.

I will pick up more cauliflower from the farmers' market tomorrow and will give the other suggestions a spin!

OK so moving on, will everyone please tell me everything they know about MISO and uses thereof? TBH my experience with miso is only of the japanese (and sometimes korean) soup version in restaurants, which ime is kinda meh.

Also of recent interest: korean bbq prepared at home.

good in salad dressings?

i like to make a paste of miso + hot pepper paste + sesame seeds and put it on/in things
it has a name but of course i can't remember what it is
you may know it as the stuff they serve with bibimbop?

roasted delicata squash w/miso-based dressing and harissa (have made this and it was good - has kale in it too)

and this one is a potato salad from tal ronnen's book:
1lb fingerling or baby potatoes
3-4 handfuls of baby spinach
4 green onions, sliced

Boil the potatoes in salted water till tender. Drain well and slice into rounds. Refrigerate over night.

Add the spinach and green onions.

2tbsp yellow or white miso
1 tbsp agave
3 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
salt & pepper
1 tbsp dijon or whole grain mustard
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 shallot minced
1/2 safflower or canola oil

Add all of the above to a food processor (or whisk in a bowl) and pulse till combined. Slowly the oil until emulsified. Pour over vegetables and toss till everything is coated.

aha ssamjang?

you can google for recipes or just wing it
here is one http://www.trifood.com/ssamjang.asp

tastes good on virtually everything imo (not sweets, obvs)

http://justbento.com/handbook/johbisai/miso-tahini-and-nut-paste

Any tips on what miso to buy? My big-ass "international" grocery store has dozens of kinds, many of which have labels I cannot read because lolmonolingual 'merican. How long will it last in my fridge unopened and how long unopened? I am a pitiable miso novice.

I did manage to procure some ssamjang for my korean-bbq-at-home experiment tomorrow. I suppose it would help if I had any korean bbq experience whatsoever, nevermind at home (I am decently versed in korean non-bbq such as bibimbop, soondubu, panchan, etc.). . . will report back.

But MISO remains a mystery. Also: various types of latin american cheeses and wtf to do with them.

http://www.justhungry.com/handbook/just-hungry-reference-handbooks/japanese-miso-primer

^^^just bookmarked that site, looks good!

For Korean BBQ sesame oil with salt is the best dipping sauce. I love it way more than ssamjang. Also grilling some onions and garlic cloves and mushrooms with it is awesome.

The red to white miso spectrum reflects Japanese climate, as the amount of salt required to prevent summer time spoilage rises going south. So traditionally the more highly salted red (mostly soy) misos came from the south, while less salty, sweeter (with more rice or barley) misos occur further north on Honshu.

I use it almost exclusively for miso soup, and I think I've got a two pound bag of Yamajirushi shiro (white) miso. There are some much more white misos useful for salad dressings, but I hated them in soup.

Could I get a recommendation (specific brand or general miso "class," either would be helpful) for: 1. soup 2. salad dressing 3. bbq marinade 4. dipping sauce component

new food processor is awesome. no more annoying whining noise. it's very quiet and fast and i've used it yesterday and today! i minced garlic and ginger for thai curry yesterday and today i ground fresh herbs and grated parmesan for a chicken coating i just invented. i'm going to invent so many things.

well not grated, i put the cut up cheese in with the herbs and turned it to dust

my dad used all the bread flour while I was away and I never actually made any bread with it

I just bought more bread flour today tbh

Shit, now that my dishwasher is working, I should use my food processor for TONS of stuff instead of dicing or micro-plane grating it all! Curry with pulverized onion mash coming right up!

Bring it!

did i already brag about scoring a mini cuisinart from my sister's cast off pile yet? i am so excited to make pesto.

actually i want to make pesto pistachio butter

pistachio butter? gtfo that sounds awesome

in related pistachio news: the lindt pistachio milk chocolate is delicious.

My boss sent me a big package of calories from Trader Joes, incl some toffees that are coated in dark chocolate and rolled in crushed pistachios. They look like lumps from the cat's litterbox, but they taste GREAT.

I gave a box of those to my mom for Christmas! Rave reviews all around.

They are really, really good -- I need to mention those to my boss so she'll remember them at the next gifting time.

The Lacey's Cookies are good too.

oh god lacey cookies are like crack to me - i can easily eat a whole package in one sitting without even thinking twice

I find they're a little too much toffee per bite, wish they were in smaller pieces so they could have more chocolate and pistachio on them. Otherwise no complaints.

After 10 days in MI, during which I desperately tried to get in enough spinach, kale, brussels sprouts, radishes, salads, quinoa, etc to keep on track, some tastebud-reset was inevitable when everything comes with ham and cheese, or beef and potatoes. Last night I went a steak too far--a hanger steak, to be exact, and now I have a meat hangover.

So today I'm on green tea and some quinoa with tuna, lemon, spinach salad. Until further notice.

also in nut-related tj's news the dark chocolate almonds with sea salt and turbinado sugar are a++++

ahhh lol at "a steak too far".

literally all we have around the house is rich food (leftover osso buco, leftover coq au vin, chocolates, the lamb ragu i braised yesterday) and i think i am going to need to OD on beets and kale next week.

i think this is the recipe my mom used to make with salmon and pesto pistachio butter:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Salmon-with-Pistachio-Basil-Butter-1103

Oh god, bell, those dark chocolate almonds with salt are my favorite non-cheese thing in the whole world.

i disappeared a box of them over the last few days

now I have a meat hangover

i'm feeling like a human spare rib today. sweated BBQ sauce doing pilates this AM, grossing myself out. brussell sprouts & farro for dinner tonight

could probably do with a week off meat myself, but, b_g's coq au vin photos and brownie's duck recipe both looking goooood

(bonus of duck recipe: we accidentally have two nearly full jars of cloves, so any clove-featuring recipes are much appreciated currently.

we tried mulling some wine, in a half-assed "which of these random ingredients we happen to have in the cupboard seem like they might possibly go in mulled wine" sort of way, but then had to admit that neither of us much liked mulled wine even when made by people who know how to mull wine)

if anyone is interested this is more or less the recipe i followed for coq au vin:
http://cookware.lecreuset.com/cookware/product_Coq-au-Vin_10151_-1_20002_20065__

yes, it calls for 2 cups of bacon. i used slightly less than that but just about.

i added celery and carrots to the sauce and substituted pearl onions for shallots in the glazed mushroom mix because it's what i had on hand.

i really have to stay on track with my whole "lower my cholesterol" plan. my breakfast this morning was the french fries that came with the hoagie i ordered for dinner last night.

the hardest part is cutting back on red meat, cheese, and egg yolks. my diet has basically been turkeychickentunaturkeychickentunaturkeychickentuna. today it's tuna for lunch and fish tacos for dinner (the fish is probably cod or haddock).

i got this book called 660 curries and i made black lentil curry from it tonight and it's like a flavor explosion. i think i'm gonna cook through all of it but not the pork parts. there are enough legume curries to go for a while (esp since i have 4 lbs of urad dals i have to use now).

are they split or whole? I bought a bunch a while ago w the intent of making dosa batter but I just don't do it tht mch why bc it takes too much time

bunch of split urad dal, I should say

i want that curry book!

i made the tagliatelle and lamb ragu from the frankie's cookbook which was ready yesterday - came out totally delicious. today i made the beet and avocado salad from the same book and had ragu leftovers. this is really the first time i've taken the initiative to cook for my mom and sister so i am kinda going overboard.

nye menu:

smoked salmon & cc on endive spears
pigs-in-blankets (storebought)
grapefruit/avocado/arugula salad
chicken "bolognese" (more like a ragu, really) on fusilli
leftover birthday cake

champagne, wine. the chef will be sipping gin martini(s)

would do something more adventurous but guests preferences should be accommodated imo

it's a cheap book for what you get, i recommend it. i'm not even a big cookbook person. the urad dal are whole. i was concerned i bought the wrong thing but apparently these have like 10 different names. like everything indian bc they have so many languages i guess

i think split would work really well for any soup calling for them. i don't know why i've never used them before. they have a texture like black beans.

"u rad, doll"

Prosperity dinner tomorrow - pastrami (subbing for corned beef), cabbage, hominy, black-eyed peas.

Worked on condiments today -- a fresh batch of kecap manis and some of Chuck Hughes' apple barbecue sauce to go with a big hunk of oversmoked beef brisket I got from my parents. Prosperity dinner tomorrow I guess. Monday I'm going to make my folks a batch of tom kha gai and blow their minds.

NYE - courgette fritters, salmon-head soup, left over from day before but still v nice. Roman beef stew, with some fresh parpadelle I bought from Italian deli and some braised fennel.

Guys I am so fucking excited abt these kale smoothies. I usually do 5-7 leaves of kale, a banana, a good handful of frozen strawberries, and maybe a cup or so of non-dairy milky bev. This morning I added a heaping spoon of PB and holy shit this just went next level.

I wonder if I could do like choc soy milk with PB and banana and kale?

i don't think i've done that before but i don't see why not because the kale taste is always masked by whatever else you have. i mostly use baby spinach instead because my blender doesn't do kale that well. it's true it's very exciting! i use almond milk and soy protein powder and a banana and frozen strawberries and mangoes.

Just discovered the wonder of avocado smoothies (with almond milk and whatever else I have around - usually frozen blueberries or an apple).

brb, making cream puffs

that's fun!

have you ever made gougeres? they're basically cream puffs with gruyere mixed in to the dough and no filling. i want to make them.

^^ that is exactly the recipe I use - I used to be a pastry chef and made gougeres every day

ground pepper, fresh thyme, and gruyere in addition to the basic pate aux choux

btw my first dozen I tried in tinfoil and the bottoms stuck, the next dozen I did on parchment and the bottoms burned

I miss the professional convection oven I used to use

now I have a bunch of cream puff halves that I will conjure into a misshapen approximation that will be delicious

maybe I will come home early tomorrow and make more, we'll see

the secret is to chill the dough, like, a lot. I used to put it in the freezer for 45 minutes, then into the fridge for another hour or so.

making a 2nd batch now, gonna leave it in the fridge for longer

325 seems like the sweet spot in our home gas oven

this is very great, the sandbox was crying out for a proper pastry chef, we love pastry.