Slim Pickins' Pork

New Book (Zuni Cafe) and for the love of sage

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:55:00 +0000

After a few days off, I decided that my next foray into the world of cookbooks will be The Zuni Cafe Cookbook by Judy Rodgers, who owns and runs the restaurant of the same name in San Francisco (which I happened to visit in August).

Like any good San Francisco cook, Judy Rodgers worked in Chez Panise under Alice Waters, and, unsurprisingly, this cookbook reflects her passion for local ingredients and simple foods. Unlike most new American cuisine how-to manuals, the cookbook and cafe tilt a bit more Italian than French, although her experience in French restaurants certainly is evident as well.

If I'm going to tackle what many of those in the know consider one of the best restaurants in America, I might as well go big, as in pig big:

That's a fresh picnic ham from this guy, which I've want to roast for quite a while now. I've had plenty of luck with Paula Wolfert's slow roasted version, but this time I go with Judy's version of porchetta. In Italy, porchetta is basically street food-a whole deboned pig, stuffed with herbs, slow roasted and then served on bread.

Typically home versions use the pork shoulder, but that picnic ham looks so good, I gotta give it a try.

Deboning it was surprisingly easy, and then it got stuffed with a variety of herbs (rosemary, sage, fennel), as well as garlic and capers:

After tying it up, I use Paula Wolfert's technique for roast picnic ham-a hot oven (450) to crisp the skin, and then low and slow (225 for 4 hours) to finish it up.

I'm ready to eat:

For some reason, I managed to pick up all the sage recipes in the book: sage and bacon peas (super fantastic) and sage and onion polenta (also good), so why not tie the whole meal together with some sage pesto? I decided to forgo the food processor and made it the old fashioned way:

The dinner was great, but on some homemade foccacia bread with ricotta cheese, the leftovers are even better:

Back to the Grill

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:24:00 +0000

My grills are mad at me, and for good reason. My recent adventures with The Cooking of Southwest France did not afford many opportunites for cooking over the open flame.

To rectify that, in the break before my next cookbook adventure, I went back to a classic, beer butt chicken.

The particular recipe I use is pretty basic, so and any rub recipe will work (I like mine, which uses summer savory, a great addition):

Once they've been rubbed, you know the drill-in goes the beer can, and off to the grill they go. I don't think my sense of humour is that juvenile, but this sight always makes me crack up:

I've gotten into the practice of misting the chickens with a mixture of probably 6 parts beer (Yuengling), to one parts olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

I can't make beer butt chicken without my wife's favorite side, sweet potatoes roasted directly on the coals:

I also make a batch of buttermilk biscuits, and, like always, they fail to impress (maybe since I was born a couple of hours from the Canadian border, I'll never be able to make true Southern staples). Whatever the case, the meal as a whole went off well.

Today was a good day

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 01:09:00 +0000

Cheers!

Saving the Best for Last: Cassoulet and The Cooking of SW France

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 01:21:00 +0000

As the title indicates, after reading The Cooking of SW France it become apparent that cassoulet, more than any other dish, personifies this region's culinary soul.

Hearty, simple, complex, rustic, elegant, are all words that come to mind when tasting a good cassoulet. The problem, as Wolfert notes, is that there are as many versions of this simple meat and beans dish as their are French grandmothers.

I decide to give the slightly unorthodox Catalan-version a try: duck confit? non, sausage? oui (let's not get crazy, this isn't some fusion cassoulet here), and finally, lamb:

That's about 3 lbs. of lamb shoulder browned, then simmered with pancetta, onions, plenty of garlic, some diced tomatoes, and white wine until tender.

Meanwhile, the real star of the dish, white beans, are simmered with bacon rind and sausage. The beans, lamb, and sausage get layered and then baked until a crust forms on top. Very simple, very delicious:

I've made other cassoulets in the past, and this one was right up there, a fitting end to a great cookbook. I'll embark on a new cookbook adventure shortly, so stay tuned.

Duck + red wine + fried cornmeal=Heaven

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:45:00 +0000

Sometimes there are recipes that are so rich, so unctuous, that they practically jump off the page screaming "cook me!"

My most recent foray into The Cooking of Southwest France resulted in precisely one of those dishes, duck cooked in red wine, referred to as a salmis (the recipe can be found here).

Like some other dishes I've cooked, this requires little more than meat, red wine, and time. The actual component that sent it over the top, however, wasn't in the dish itself, but in the pan fried polenta that served as the basis of the stew:

Good? You bet; this one's definitely going on the steady rotation.

The Happiest Time of Year

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 00:04:00 +0000

Is there any doubt that fall is the best time of year, especially if you love to cook? The farmer's markets are still overflowing with summer's bounty, but with the cool weather, heartier soups, stews, and other fare are back on the table (literally).

The one thing I enjoy more than cooking in the fall is getting outside to enjoy the cool air and beautiful foliage. This Sunday we decided to combine the two with a picnic at Highbanks Park, one of many beautiful metro parks surrounding Columbus.

Tops on my list of picnic foods are rillettes, shredded meats (yum) bound together by fat (yummier). This time I went to The Cooking of Southwest France and its version of duck rillettes.

These are pretty simple to make; combine cut-up duck thighs, chunks of pork, salt, pepper, shallots, a bit of wine, and some rendered lard and cook in a low oven for about four hours:

When the meat is falling apart, shred and blend with some fat, making sure to season aggressively, a necessity since these are served cold.

While the kids went with peanut butter and nutella sandwiches, both the wife and I enjoyed the rillettes (but especially my wife):

After a long hike in the cool outdoors there are few better ways to warm up than with a big bowl of soup. In keeping with the spirit of the season, I cranked out some butternut squash soup, also from The Cooking of SW France. This, along with a rich dunkelweizen, completed what I hope to be one of many fine fall days:

Bloody sausage

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 00:40:00 +0000

A while back, just after getting my whole hog, I decided to give a shot at blood sausage, or blood pudding as my relatives in Scotland would say (here's the original post).

While I've become more adventurous in my eating (thanks in part to my wife, who is Asian, and therefore will eat just about any type of food), blood sausage has always been something I've enjoyed.

So, when I came across a recipe for blood sausage, potatoes, and apples in my latest project, The Cooking of Southwest France, I had to give it a try, especially given how easy it was.

Fry some quartered tart apples (I used ones I picked myself), add some sauteed thinly sliced potatoes, and cook in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes, then top with thin slices of blood sausage for five minutes:

One thing you'll notice is that the diameter of the sausage is rather small. I've been using the standard 32/35 mm casings and have been a bit dissapointed that they shrink while cooking. I'm going to upgrade to a larger size and see if that helps.

Trotter goodness

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 15:48:00 +0000

As I note on the description of my blog on the right, one of my goals is to convince my kids to eat pig's feet. Well, not only can I cross that off of my to-do list, I better add trotters to my regular rotation, because both boys, especially the younger one, absolutely devoured them (I'm so proud, I'm getting a bit misty).

Again, this recipe is from The Cooking of Southwest France, the book I'll be working through over the course of the next couple of weeks.

The first step is, of course, scoring about four trotters (mine were from the Old Spot, but an Asian Market is probably a good start, and with this economy, more supermarkets are carrying them as well):

After soaking them in cold water and a tablespoon of vinegar for a few minutes, toss them in a large pot with some aromatics (onions, carrots, bay leaves, peppercorns), cover with water, and simmer for about three hours, or until tender.

When the trotters are cool enough to handle, remove skin (keep intact if you can, I didn't), meat, and all the other gelatinous goodness. Lay the skin flat on a piece of aluminum foil, sprinkle the rest of the trotter on top, roll up into a sausage, and return to poaching liquid for about five minutes.

Toss in a ice bath to cool off, and refridgerate it for up to three days (we ate it right away, but the flavor gets better over time). When ready to serve, slice thin:

We ate it with dijion mustard and potatos slow roasted in lard (also from the book, and also delicious). I was fortunate enough to capture my youngest's enjoyment on film before he devoured the lot:

Veggie tart and pie

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:49:00 +0000

Although I earlier lauded The Cooking of Southwest France as a homage to pork and duck fat, for my first recipe from the book, I'm going vegetarian.

I've always been a sucker for savory pastry dishes (Cornish pasties in particular), so the recipe for the leek and mushroom tart was a no-brainer.

The recipe itself couldn't be easier; it begins with a pretty standard pastry dough , although she calls for whole wheat flour (any savory pastry dough would work).

For the filling, saute about a pound of cleaned, thinly sliced leeks in butter until softened and the butter is absorbed. Spread evenly on pastry, add eight ounces of thinly sliced mushrooms, and top with about a half cup of creme fresche (I used sour cream). Add the top layer just like a standard pie, brush with egg wash, and bake in 425 oven for 15 minutes, drop the oven down to 375 and back for an additional 20 minutes:

We had friends out this weekend, and to show them the finer side of central Ohio, we took them to a nearby apple orchard:

When life gives you apples (20 pounds worth), you'd better make apple pie:

Cookbooks? Yea or Nay? (the start of a new project)

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 17:42:00 +0000

Ever since I started cooking seriously, I've been a sucker for cookbooks. Pretty pictures and lots of pork fat? I'm there. Recently, however, there have been some discussions, like Micheal Ruhlman's post, on what function cookbooks serve in actually teaching us amateurs how to cook.

A major critique of cookbooks that has emerged from this conversation is that they teach people how to follow directions, but not the techniques needed to allow one to create a unique dish wholly your own. Thus, the logic goes, we should be learning techniques at cooking school and limiting our reading to texts like those produced by the the Culinary Institute of America.

I agree with both these arguments: most cookbooks aren't particularly good at teaching, and aspiring home cooks should have sound fundamentals. That said, I think there are a number of "cookbooks" that are tremendously useful and instructive, and I myself have learned a lot from many cookbooks (oftentimes when I least expected it).

Therefore, in defense of cookbooks, I am going to begin a project whereby I immerse myself in a cookbook for a couple of weeks and report how it has changed/improved my approach to cooking. This is not a "cook the book" model, but rather an excuse to spend quality time with some really first rate cookbooks.

The first book was really a n0-brainer, Paula Wolfert's The Cooking of Southwest France. Paula Wolfert is perhaps the most gifted author in capturing a sense of place when writing about a specific cuisine, and it doesn't hurt that she makes liberal use of pork and duck fat in many of her recipes. Look for cassoulets, using a whole duck, beak to tail feathers, and other creations!

Sausage Day

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:29:00 +0000

Despite the brief uptick in temperature, Autumn's arrived again in Central Ohio, and that means that soon enough it'll be time for me to get another pig from Dave at Spring Hill Farm. Problem is, I still have some of the Old Spot I got last year still in the freezer

Part of the remaining piggy parts literally chilling in my freezer is simply a large package of various meat trimmings labeled "sausage." Since I'm not one to argue much, let's grind us some meat!

I reckon there is nearly 15 lbs. of trimming, so I decide to go with three different sausages: a Toulase sausage recipe from Paula Wolfert's The Cooking of Southwest France, a simple fresh sausage similar to Rulhman and Polcyn's fresh garlic sausage recipe from Charcuterie (subbing roasted garlic for fresh).

The final recipe is inspired by what has been the most memorable sausage I've ever eaten, a simple fresh pork and leak sausage my wife and I enjoyed while we were in Wales.

Although I didn't have a decent recipe to start with, my Scottish butcher connection John provided some valuable insights on where to start.

The day started with a dark omen when I broke the blade on my super duper meat grinder. Fortunately, the KitchenAid proved to be a reliable substitute.

After much grinding and stuffing, my kitchen was strewn with sausage:

As a bonus, I ground about 15 lbs. of fat back and rendered it down into lard. I'm not messing around with this stuff; I'm storing it in gallon containers to be used whenever I get the deep frying itch (which is pretty often).

Grilled sausage obviously rules, but now that I'm awash in pork fat (not literally, at least not while I'm typing this), why not confit a few for cassoulet:

Yes, that, my friends, is a bunch of sausage swimming in pure pork fat-life is good!

Epic Fail

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 01:27:00 +0000

In my previous post, I passed off the "busy" claim as a reason for my lack of activity. The real reason, however, was much more serious-you see, I had a food-related failure so epic, it took about a month to crawl out of my cave of self-pity.
It all started innocently enough with my Old Spot's head (you can see what he looked like pre-butcher here):

Anyhoo, instead of making a nice and simple head cheese/brawn/coppa di testa (which really just requires boiling the bugger), I decided to fly close to the sun with this technique for porchetta di testa posted by Chris Cosentino, noted offal enthusiast:

That's right, lots of cutting, folding, fussing.

Long story short, I didn't have the chops to pull it off and produced a nasty bit of meat. I did learn my lesson, and next time I'll be much more modest in my endeavours in the kitchen. To that end, look for an uplifting post about sausage coming shortly.

Back into It

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 00:17:00 +0000

I've been MIA for a while, mainly catching up with various work-stuff and getting adjusted to another school year. Anyway, I was inspired to post by my first real sampling of pancetta I made with my Old Spot Hog documented here. I don't have a picture, but take my word when I say it was luscious-the fat to meat ratio was perfect (meaning most of it was pure fatty goodness).

Anyway, it provided the perfect base for a quick pasta dish: saute a diced onion and a coupled of minced garlic cloves in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, add about a 1/4 lb. of diced pancetta, cook on very low heat until all the fat has rendered, and then toss in a large can of good quality canned tomatoes and cook down. When served over pasta, the fat coats everything in a porky goodness.

San Francisco

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 16:10:00 +0000

My profession's annual conference was in San Francisco this weekend, and although I had plenty of work-related things going on, I did manage to sneak out and enjoy one of the best cities in America. The two highlights had to have been Oliveto and the Ferry Building.

Oliveto is a great rustic Italian restaurant in Oakland, and the food was fantastic. They had a wood fired brick oven, so I had to get the pizza, which was very nice. My favorite dish was the red-wine braised squid, absolutely perfect (sorry, no camera, so no pics). Incidently, I've not heard a lot of great things about Oakland, but the neighborhood where Oliveto is located was really very charming, and altered my perception of the city.

The Ferry Building is a great market with an amazing array of food; great cheese, bread, and produce (I think I ate about fifty fresh figs, which are a bit hard to come by in Ohio). My favorite place, not surprising, was Boccalone, just a great array of cured meats. Truly an homage to the humble piggie.

I also managed to hit the Zuni Cafe and enjoyed a great meal (as well as my first sampling of West Coast oysters-I found them much brinier and less sweet than the ones I'm used to in New Orleans).

San Francisco is, of course, a great beer town, and although I didn't get to go to the Anchor tour (which I've done in the past and is amazing if you can get in), I did manage to hit two great beer bars, the Toronado, and Rouge Public House.

Finally, although it caused me to be late to a professional meeting (thanks Steve!), I did take the BART to the In-and-Out Burger in Dade City, which puts every other fast food joint I know to shame.

It'll probably be five long years before I get back to San Fran, but I think I took enough good food to last me.

Beans and sausage

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 10:54:00 +0000

Pork and beans are, to me, one of the most delicious combinations in the world-baked beans, cassoulet, and a whole host of other hearty dishes make use of the simple bean and humble piggie. One of the reasons why this is such a great peasant dish is that the beans (cheap and healthy) quickly take on the flavors of the pork, making it a great way to make a little meat go a long way.

One of my favorite (and easiest) combinations is from Rick Bayless's Mexican Everyday; cook up a pound of loose chorizio, and a pound or so of cooked black beans, and simmer until it is one big delicious mess. Smear a crusty loaf with some guacamole, add beans/sausage mixture, and enjoy:

All around good stuff.

Ohio's Bounty

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 19:40:00 +0000

Although cool (no complaints here), summer is in full swing in Central Ohio, and the farmers' markets are beginning to abound with the produce. This weekend we all headed down to the North Market's farmer's market to see what we could rustle up. Not surprisingly, there was summer squash, eggplants, and peppers aplenty:

Lately I've had a hankering for a simple grilled veggie salad, so I fired up the brinkman. Since a meal consisting of grilled veggies seemed a bit one-dimensional, I all grilled up some flatbread (standard pizza dough) and hunks of provolone cheese, which I combined into a cheesy, bready pile of smokey goodness:

I also made up a quick roasted garlic sherry vinaigrette that went very well with the meal, using the standard 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar/acid ratio. I'm looking to a few more of these harvest feasts before the end of summer.

Jambalaya

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:01:00 +0000

I've never made any secret of my love of cajun and creole food, and look forward to to my once-every-three years visit to New Orleans. In fact, Emeril's Louisiana, Real and Rustic, was one of the first cookbooks I bought.

After visiting Couchon this spring in New Orleans, I was particularly excited about Donald Link's first cookbook, Real Cajun, an homage to the rustic food that, in my humble opinion, is one of the best regional cuisines in America.

The first recipe I tried was the chicken and smoked sausage jambalaya, which didn't disappoint:

I added some tasso along with the andouille, since a dish probably can never have too much smoked meat. The recipe was a bit more involved than others I've tried, but the results were well worth it; I look forward to many more great meals from this book. If you're hankering for more great New Orleans food, check out Nola Cuisine.

The Craftsman in Minneapolis

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 14:29:00 +0000

We're finally back from the great white north, but now that I have access to high speed Internet (actually, it already feels slow), I wanted to write one final post about a great restaurant in Minneapolis, The Craftsman. This place is one of many around the country that is happily embracing both piggies and the nose to tail ethos.

With four carnivores, we decided to share dishes, and the menu didn't disappoint. Obviously, the chacuterie platter is a must, and this one didn't disappoint:

Home cured salami, lamb pate (yum), chicken liver pate were all great, as was the local artisan cheese, including a great funky blue.

One of our favorite entrees was the confit rabbit leg with polenta:

Pork belly is a mandatory entree, and it was also excellent:

Given my wife's love of steak, we ordered the grass fed hanger steak, which was grilled to perfection and accompanied by some great frites:

All in all a must-eat place for the discerning carnivore.

Bastille Day Tart

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:10:00 +0000

In honor of Bastille Day, Reils and I decided to make a French-themed dessert. Reils suggested cake, but given the whole, "let them eat cake" thing (apparently Reils is a closet monarchist) we went with a tart:

We used this recipe from Epicurious as the base, with a few minor tweaks.

First, for the lemon curd we substituted some homemade lemincello for the lemon juice. Then, because we wanted a red, white and blue tart, we used a mixture of raspberries and blueberries, macerated in a bit of rum. All in all, not a bad effort for a couple of Francophiles

Making Jerky

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 12:47:00 +0000

We've managed to leave the kids behind with the grandparents for a few days and are enjoying some down time in Minneapolis with Reils. These get-togethers usually center around food and this one is no different. We've already hit a few good restaurants (more on that in another post), but we'll also do some cooking as well.

Our first project is beef jerky, something neither of us has ever tried. Fortunately we have Charcuterie as a guide. The recipe itself couldn't be easier. First, slice up about 2 lbs. of top round into 1/8 inch strips, removing as much fat as possible. Reils seems to have the hang of it:

Next, toss it with the curing mixture (1 1/2 tbsp kosher salt, 1 3/4 tsp of both garlic and onion powder, and 1/4 cup of minced chipotles in adobo). Normally this has to marinate for 24 hours, but Reills has a crazy vacuum marinating contraption (which we've also used to make lemincello) that does the job in 40 minutes:

Finally, it's into a 100 degree oven (the recipe calls for a 90 degree oven) for about 18 hours. Once its out, it is ready to eat:

Very tasty jerky, and very easy, could have been a bit spicier, maybe next time....

Duluth and Charcuterie

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 02:49:00 +0000

We’ve managed to once again make the trek across the Midwest and are now firmly ensconced in Northern Minnesota. Sure, the calendar says late June, but summer such as it is can be hard to find here; as it feels closer to spring than summer. Fortunately, a few days ago was a “warm” summer day in Duluth (low 70s), so we took advantage to take a swim in Lake Superior. Although this picture is visual proof that I made it all the way in, I think my brain froze and I have no memory of the event itself (probably why I'm grinning like an idiot):

This was the first time I’d ever experienced my survival instinct kicking in, and it was saying, loud and clear, “if you don’t get out of this water immediately, you will lose some extremities.”

I was proud of the kids, they both made it in as well, but we were all bested by my dad, who stayed in the longest.

Afterwards, we explored Canal Park, a quaint little spot on the lake in Duluth with lots of cool little shops. It was here that I experienced what may end up being the highpoint of the entire trip. Northern Waters Smokehaus is a little charcuterie shop in Canal Park; I’ve been in it before, but never really looked around too much. I decided to pick up lunch there (along with their cured meats and fishes, they have a nice variety of sandwiches) and by some lucky coincidence I struck up a conversation with the owner, Eric Geordt.

After talking for a few minutes, Eric graciously offered to show me his curing and smoking set up, which is all done in-house. The Smokehaus makes a variety of cured meats and fishes, and a range of Southern European style dried sausages, including chorizo and sauscion sec. It didn’t need to talk to Eric for long to realize that he is both very knowledgeable and very passionate about his craft. He described in detail the process of fermentation and drying process, showed me his curing room, and gave me some really useful pointers for home curing (I didn’t have a camera, so no shots of beautiful lengths of sausages slowly curing). Not suprisingly, Eric also is into sustainable food, he sources all of his pork (Berkshires) from local farmers in Minnesota.

After seeing all those cured sausages, I was ready for a sandwich, and the Smokehaus’s liver pate with cornichorns and mustard on a baguette didn’t disappoint:

If you happen to find yourself in Duluth, stop by the Smokehaus, you won’t be disappointed. Thanks again Eric!

Blog Redux: BBQ Pork Tacos

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:31:00 +0000

I'm not the most original guy; I see something bright and shiny on the Internet, and I have to give it a try. Such was the case of Saucisson MAC's recent BBQ pork post for carnitas pibil. The timing of this post couldn't have been better; I'd been a bit bored with the smoker lately and didn't feel like doing the same old pulled pork again.

The procedure couldn't be easier; hit the shoulder up with a rub of spices, the most important of which is achiote powder (I found mine in a local Latino grocery store), wrap in banana leaves, and smoke until delicious:

I was too covered in pork grease (that's a whole other story) for a shot of the taco itself, but with some black beans (also smoked), hot sauce, and some pickled red onions, it was a meal to enjoy.

Bones, delicious bones!

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 17:19:00 +0000

Sometimes the simplest ingredients are the most decadent. Marrow is a case in point: roast some bones, spread on good bread (homemade sourdough in this case), top with some fresh herbs and salt, and you've got one of life's simple pleasures:

I've never actually made marrow before, but people speak about it with such reverency that I had to try it (and it's basically pure fat, so what's not to like?). Fortunately, Mark Bittman, he of simple cooking, has a great recipe courtesy of Fergus Henderson, one of the original advocates of offal.

Unfortunately, I couldn't procure any 3-4 inch long marrow bones, but I did get some cut up femur bones, which roasted up very nice:

The verdict is in and this stuff is gold-it doesn't have a real strong flavor, but with the parsley, shallots, and sea salt, it is just good!

Lucky we had the marrow, because I doubt we could have made a meal out of our most recent fishing outing:

Festival Foods-Gyros!

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:54:00 +0000

I love going to the many festivals here in central Ohio, from Artsfest (last weekend) to Festival Latino. The main reason, of course, is the food, and one of my favorite walking around eats is the gyro. It's the perfect summer food; savory meat, cool sauce, and a warm pita to prevent you from getting too messy:

With those slowly turning spits of meat, I always thought making gyros at home was, to quote O Brother, Where Art Thou, "prit nigh hopeless." Turns out, I was wrong-Alton Brown has the complete recipe, except pita bread, here, and you can get a good pita recipe here.

I used a whole lamb shoulder, which I ground using the fine die in my kitchenaid. After baking the lamb meat, I weighted it down overnight, sliced it up, and froze what I didn't need

Gyro meat, Tzatziki Sauce, lettuce, tomato, and fresh baked pita, I'm in heaven:

What festival food is next-if my wife and kids have their way, I'll be trying my hand at funnel cake.

Cooking and Life

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:59:00 +0000

Sorry for the ambitious title, but with two young kids, I've been giving a lot of thought to the place of cooking in our day-to-day routine. Like almost everyone that cooks, I love it not necessarily for the food, but for the sense of community it can create among love ones. I grew up in a house where sit-down meals where the norm (yup, even breakfast on weekdays), and I want to continue that tradition.

The challenge is balancing the time we share over a good meal with the time and effort it takes to actually prepare it. In other words, I've found that cooking has to be organic, something that is a natural part of our daily routine, rather than something that disrupts it and causes stress.

These are long-simmering ideas, but the impetus for this particular post was spurred by the arrival of warm weather here in Ohio. We like to get out and about with the kids (swimming, biking, playing tennis, going to festivals), which can make it even harder to find time to cook a decent meal (hailing from MN, we also try to take advantage of winter such as it is in Ohio).

Thus, with that unnecessarily long intro, I've compiled a list, not of recipes, but of ingredients and techniques, that can be prepared relatively quickly (or with little effort) and meet my other criteria for enjoyable cooking: 1) prepared from scratch, the part of cooking itself that I love so much, 2) affordable, and 3) healthy:

1. Soups: I like to throw mine together a couple days ahead of time while making other food; it invariable gets better if it has a chance to mellow in the fridge. Soup is obviously great for warming you up in the winter, but cold soups (which often don't require any cooking) are just as welcomed in the summer. Here's a shot of some gazpacho I made for dinner this weekend after hiking:

2. Sausages: Yes they take a bit of time to make but once you've got some in the freezer, you've got a quick meal (and with some kraut or peppers on a bun, a complete one). I stuff mine, but even loose sausages can be fried up quickly; think of them as a very savory hamburger.

3. Chunk of meat + time + low oven + wine (maybe): Even if you don't have a smoker, you can make a great meal out of a big tough cut of meat (pork shoulder or picnic ham, beef shank) by tossing it in a low (250 degree) oven overnight. Cut it up, throw in a bottle of wine, and the same technique will produce a delicious stew. Examples can be found here, here and here.

4. Couscous/beans/pasta: Dave at Webercam has a great, super easy way to prepare couscous that can be found here. Tossed with some roasted or grilled veggies and a bit of olive oil and vinegar, it makes a great side. The same can be said for other types of pasta and beans as well. Healthy and delicious!

5. Pizza: pizza dough is easy to make at home in large batches and it freezes well. I like to pull mine out of the freezer the night before, then take it out the fridge in the morning to warm up. Toppings can be as simple as tomatoes, cheese, and garlic, or you can go all out-I like caramelized onions, andouille, corn, and garlic. I've found it is pretty hard to screw up a pizza.

6. Portable grill: I love this little Weber, and am always using it in the summer, even when I'm at home. Perfect for grilling sausage and veggies, and even whole fish!

Any other things to add? I'd love to hear about them so that I can steal, er, borrow from you!