Tonight I tried the previous recipe for Biscuits, except using buttermilk instead of normal milk. I'm not sure if it was the buttermilk, or something I did, but the bottoms burnt pretty badly. Otherwise, the texture and taste turned out perfectly, but not really any different than before (using milk). So, given that I got basically the same results either way, I'm going to go with the method that required the non-specialty ingredient. Okay, one more change to go (half whole wheat flour), then I think I'm pretty much done.
Tonight I also made a cherry cobbler. I was thinking about my previous recipe, and had a thought: in evolutionary biology (my day-job), there is this concept called an "adaptive peak." It's a situation where you have evolved to the best you can be, and no small changes will bring improvement. You are not necessarily the best you can be, just the best in that template. How does that involve cooking? Well, lately I've been making tinkering and tinkering with one recipe for cobbler. I'm convinced that within a couple more iterations, I'll have the best possible version of that recipe (if I don't have it already). But, it could be that there is a radically different cobbler out there, that is even better. So, I thought I'd try something radically different, just to give it a test.
Tonight's cobbler was made of the standard cobbler filling (except cherries this time, which turned out really well), with biscuit dough as a topping. Literally, I made extra biscuit dough, and then dropped a lot of half-sized biscuits on top of an already cooked filling. I then put this concoction in a 500F oven, and baked it for 9 minutes (the same as the biscuits). The result: a cobbler that tasted like biscuits sitting on top of fruit filling, rather than a well-integrated desert. The bottoms of the biscuits soaked up a little of the juice, but for the most part, it was pretty separate, and tasted pretty distinct. I could maybe try adding sugar to the biscuit dough if I really wanted to try this again, but at this point, I feel like it's probably not worth continuing down this avenue.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Buttermilk Biscuits #3
Tonight I made a third attempt at buttermilk biscuits, and they essentially turned out perfectly. Here is the recipe I used:
2 c unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
4 T lard, cold (straight from the fridge)
milk (see below)
Preheat the oven to 500F. Sift the dry ingredients together. Add the lard, and squish into the dough with your fingers for a couple minutes. It is done when there are still lots of small (pea-sized or smaller, maybe a few larger) lumps in the flour, but flour looks like corn meal, and if you take a handful of any amount of flour and squish it in your hands, it will somewhat hold its shape. Add milk, not much at a time, and stir with a spoon, until you have just enough for the dough to hold together. It should not at all be sticky or tacky, and even feels a little dry on the outside. Pat the ball of dough together with your hands, but don't really kneed it. Let it rest for a few minutes on the counter. When the oven is ready, tear pieces of dough into about 1/4 or 1/3 c lumps, shape them into half-circles, and place them on an ungreased pan. Bake them for ~9 minutes.
This turned out really well. They were easy and fast to make. The texture was perfect (not too gummy like #1). The lard added a nice subtle flavor, without being overpowering like butter. Overall, I'm really happy with this. In the future, when I'm cooking for vegetarian or Jewish friends, I'll use shortening as a substitute, rather than butter.
As I said, this might turn out to be the finished "master" recipe, however I have two small variations I really want to try. First, I don't actually use buttermilk in this recipe, and want to see how that would alter the flavor. Second, I would like to try the same recipe, except substituting half of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour. However, in both cases I will use the same proportions and techniques as before.
But yay, this might mean 1 down and 6 to go!
2 c unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
4 T lard, cold (straight from the fridge)
milk (see below)
Preheat the oven to 500F. Sift the dry ingredients together. Add the lard, and squish into the dough with your fingers for a couple minutes. It is done when there are still lots of small (pea-sized or smaller, maybe a few larger) lumps in the flour, but flour looks like corn meal, and if you take a handful of any amount of flour and squish it in your hands, it will somewhat hold its shape. Add milk, not much at a time, and stir with a spoon, until you have just enough for the dough to hold together. It should not at all be sticky or tacky, and even feels a little dry on the outside. Pat the ball of dough together with your hands, but don't really kneed it. Let it rest for a few minutes on the counter. When the oven is ready, tear pieces of dough into about 1/4 or 1/3 c lumps, shape them into half-circles, and place them on an ungreased pan. Bake them for ~9 minutes.
This turned out really well. They were easy and fast to make. The texture was perfect (not too gummy like #1). The lard added a nice subtle flavor, without being overpowering like butter. Overall, I'm really happy with this. In the future, when I'm cooking for vegetarian or Jewish friends, I'll use shortening as a substitute, rather than butter.
As I said, this might turn out to be the finished "master" recipe, however I have two small variations I really want to try. First, I don't actually use buttermilk in this recipe, and want to see how that would alter the flavor. Second, I would like to try the same recipe, except substituting half of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour. However, in both cases I will use the same proportions and techniques as before.
But yay, this might mean 1 down and 6 to go!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Refried Beans
Okay, this is a recipe I've made recently for the Fry Bread. It's really good. Something I developed when I was in the Peace Corps and couldn't buy refried beans:
1 lb dry pinto beans (black beans work in a pinch)
2-3 T lard
1 large onion, dice into small (1/4”) pieces
2-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 T chili powder
Salt
Handful of shredded cheese (optional)
Small cup of milk (optional)
2-4 diced chipotle chilies in adobo sauce (optional)
Soak beans in water for 8 hours, and then boil until they are soft. Mash the beans, and the bean water, until they are mostly broken up. This can be done in a food processor, or with a fork or potato masher. Add water if needed, it should be slightly more wet than you want the final product to be. Heat lard in a frying pan, and fry onions and garlic until they are translucent. Add chili powder, and salt to taste. When onions are cooked through, add beans. Fry for a couple minutes. Add in cheese, milk, and chopped chipotle peppers, if desired.
1 lb dry pinto beans (black beans work in a pinch)
2-3 T lard
1 large onion, dice into small (1/4”) pieces
2-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 T chili powder
Salt
Handful of shredded cheese (optional)
Small cup of milk (optional)
2-4 diced chipotle chilies in adobo sauce (optional)
Soak beans in water for 8 hours, and then boil until they are soft. Mash the beans, and the bean water, until they are mostly broken up. This can be done in a food processor, or with a fork or potato masher. Add water if needed, it should be slightly more wet than you want the final product to be. Heat lard in a frying pan, and fry onions and garlic until they are translucent. Add chili powder, and salt to taste. When onions are cooked through, add beans. Fry for a couple minutes. Add in cheese, milk, and chopped chipotle peppers, if desired.
Cobbler #3
I actually made strawberry cobbler about a week ago as my contribution to a potluck party. The recipe was exactly Paula Deen’s recipe, except with lots of corn starch in the sauce, and strawberries. I didn’t get a chance to each much (and was a little drunk when I did), so I’m not really counting that as an attempt. That said, everyone that tried it seemed to really like it.
Tonight, I wanted to try something a little different. One thing I thought eating the topping last time was that it felt too homogenous, so I decided to try to fix that using oats. Here is the recipe (it’s nice, it’s finally different enough that I feel like I should type it all up):
Topping-
½ c unbleached all-purpose flour
½ c white sugar
¼ c oatmeal
1 t baking powder
pinch of salt
¾ c milk
4 T butter
Filling- (this part was less well measured)
~2 c frozen strawberries
~¼ c water
~¼ c sugar
~½ c sugar
~2 T minced fresh ginger (I wanted to try this combo)
pinch of salt
Preheat toaster oven to 350F. Throw everything in the filling in a pot, and boil it until the sauce thickens. Combine the dry ingredients in the topping. Stir in the milk until it is as homogeneous as possible (the oats will provide some lumps). It should be very liquidy. Melt your butter, and pour it in the bottom of a bread pan. Pour flour mixture on top of that. Pour your strawberry filling on top of that. Put in the over for 40 minutes. Remove, and let cool slightly.
So, how did it turn out? Well, I like the heat that ginger adds, but 2T was too much. Next time I think I’ll try 1. Also, the cobbler lacked structural support, and was really gooey. Like, too gooey. Next time, I think I’m going to try adding another ¼ c of flour. The recipe had originally be for ¾ c, but I replaced it with the oats. Bad idea. Next time, I just add the oats directly in (or possibly almonds).
NEXT DAY EDIT: Okay, I tried it the next morning. The ginger actually wasn't too bad, unless you bit into a piece of it. I think it was just that I hadn't let the cobbler properly cool. Maybe next time I'll just boil the ginger for a while, and then remove it. Also, trying the topping a second time, I had a few thoughts. It was kind still kind of gooey, but I really liked that it had integrated in with the fruit. It really didn't feel like they were separate things. Also, despite my attempt with the oats, I couldn't actually notice any textural differences. So, next time, if I want to add texture, I use nuts.
I'm seriously thinking that next time, instead of making the dough like Yorkshire Pudding (completely homogeneous, slightly runny, and with all the fat on the outside), I might try the same thing, except making it more like biscuits (rubbing cold butter into the dough, and maybe not adding quite so much milk). I wonder if that will still expand out over top of the fruit? Hopefully it will give the topping a real crumb texture, rather than the fairly homogeneous cakey texture it has.
Tonight, I wanted to try something a little different. One thing I thought eating the topping last time was that it felt too homogenous, so I decided to try to fix that using oats. Here is the recipe (it’s nice, it’s finally different enough that I feel like I should type it all up):
Topping-
½ c unbleached all-purpose flour
½ c white sugar
¼ c oatmeal
1 t baking powder
pinch of salt
¾ c milk
4 T butter
Filling- (this part was less well measured)
~2 c frozen strawberries
~¼ c water
~¼ c sugar
~½ c sugar
~2 T minced fresh ginger (I wanted to try this combo)
pinch of salt
Preheat toaster oven to 350F. Throw everything in the filling in a pot, and boil it until the sauce thickens. Combine the dry ingredients in the topping. Stir in the milk until it is as homogeneous as possible (the oats will provide some lumps). It should be very liquidy. Melt your butter, and pour it in the bottom of a bread pan. Pour flour mixture on top of that. Pour your strawberry filling on top of that. Put in the over for 40 minutes. Remove, and let cool slightly.
So, how did it turn out? Well, I like the heat that ginger adds, but 2T was too much. Next time I think I’ll try 1. Also, the cobbler lacked structural support, and was really gooey. Like, too gooey. Next time, I think I’m going to try adding another ¼ c of flour. The recipe had originally be for ¾ c, but I replaced it with the oats. Bad idea. Next time, I just add the oats directly in (or possibly almonds).
NEXT DAY EDIT: Okay, I tried it the next morning. The ginger actually wasn't too bad, unless you bit into a piece of it. I think it was just that I hadn't let the cobbler properly cool. Maybe next time I'll just boil the ginger for a while, and then remove it. Also, trying the topping a second time, I had a few thoughts. It was kind still kind of gooey, but I really liked that it had integrated in with the fruit. It really didn't feel like they were separate things. Also, despite my attempt with the oats, I couldn't actually notice any textural differences. So, next time, if I want to add texture, I use nuts.
I'm seriously thinking that next time, instead of making the dough like Yorkshire Pudding (completely homogeneous, slightly runny, and with all the fat on the outside), I might try the same thing, except making it more like biscuits (rubbing cold butter into the dough, and maybe not adding quite so much milk). I wonder if that will still expand out over top of the fruit? Hopefully it will give the topping a real crumb texture, rather than the fairly homogeneous cakey texture it has.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Hot Wings #5
I had this funny conversation with friends recently. Apparently the chicken wings are now so in demand that they're having trouble selling the rest of the chicken. My dad had actually commented that they're sold for like $4/lb (I don't remember how much I paid for my bag, in part because when I bought it the exact weight wasn't clearly displayed). And to think, I used to throw them in the stock pots...
Okay, tonight I decided to finally give the cheating method a chance. I steamed the chicken for 20 minutes, put it in the fridge for like 15 minutes, and then cooked them in a 450F oven for 25 minutes. The sauce was made of 1 part hot sauce to 1 part butter.
The skin turned out just perfectly, and it was still moist inside, but not slimy. And the sauce, tasted perfect (but burned a bit). I can see now why everyone just does it this way. The sauce was still a little thin though.
I did eventually try to add a little corn starch into the sauce. The problem is, I added too much, and it turned out more like a roux, or a paste.
So, I don't know, there is a part of me that doesn't want to rely on having hot sauce. Like, I'd really like to be able to make it FROM SCRATCH. So, we'll see. I'm going to keep trying to make it without relying on bottles of hot sauce.
Okay, tonight I decided to finally give the cheating method a chance. I steamed the chicken for 20 minutes, put it in the fridge for like 15 minutes, and then cooked them in a 450F oven for 25 minutes. The sauce was made of 1 part hot sauce to 1 part butter.
The skin turned out just perfectly, and it was still moist inside, but not slimy. And the sauce, tasted perfect (but burned a bit). I can see now why everyone just does it this way. The sauce was still a little thin though.
I did eventually try to add a little corn starch into the sauce. The problem is, I added too much, and it turned out more like a roux, or a paste.
So, I don't know, there is a part of me that doesn't want to rely on having hot sauce. Like, I'd really like to be able to make it FROM SCRATCH. So, we'll see. I'm going to keep trying to make it without relying on bottles of hot sauce.
Navajo Fry Bread #1
Before I start, I've decided to add koeksisters to my list of recipes to learn. Koeksisters are kind of like a South African donut, in that they are fried bread in syrup.
Navajo fry bread was one of the recipes I tried to perfect last summer and failed at, so I'm trying again. I've looked up several recipes on the internet, and all of them basically have the following ingredients list:
1 cup unbleached flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon powdered milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup water
Vegetable oil for frying (enough to fill a pot 1")
I'm a little hesitant to change anything, because I'm told there is some tradition behind these. From what I understand, in the mid 1800s, the Navajo were forced into camps that were crowded, and where provisions were very short. The government supplied them with basically the above ingredients, and fry bread was developed as a way of eating it. The original recipe (and history) was obtained from http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/NavajoFryBread.htm.
For attempt #1, I mixed the dry ingredients, and then poured in the water. I tried to mix it as little as possible, just until it came together. I then cut the above into 4 balls, and rolled them out really thin, and fried them for 40-60 seconds per side in deep frying oil.
My first attempt went decently. I live in Arizona, so usually I'm used to the air (and flour) being so dry that you need to add more water, although in this recipe it turned out just right. The dough was really sticky difficult to work with though, and often tore when I was rolling it out. In the end, it was really thin, and kind of crunchy in some places. Also, in the first two pieces I tried to fry, a giant bubble formed at the bottom of the frybread, lifting it out of the oil, so there were big white spots.
Next time, I'm going to try one of two things: either I'm going to really kneed the dough (so it becomes more ball like), or I am going to let the dough rest for several minutes, so that the flour can absorb the water and not be so sticky. Additionally, I think I'm going to try making only 3 balls, so that I don't feel like I need to roll them so thin to make them a good size.
Navajo fry bread was one of the recipes I tried to perfect last summer and failed at, so I'm trying again. I've looked up several recipes on the internet, and all of them basically have the following ingredients list:
1 cup unbleached flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon powdered milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup water
Vegetable oil for frying (enough to fill a pot 1")
I'm a little hesitant to change anything, because I'm told there is some tradition behind these. From what I understand, in the mid 1800s, the Navajo were forced into camps that were crowded, and where provisions were very short. The government supplied them with basically the above ingredients, and fry bread was developed as a way of eating it. The original recipe (and history) was obtained from http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/NavajoFryBread.htm.
For attempt #1, I mixed the dry ingredients, and then poured in the water. I tried to mix it as little as possible, just until it came together. I then cut the above into 4 balls, and rolled them out really thin, and fried them for 40-60 seconds per side in deep frying oil.
My first attempt went decently. I live in Arizona, so usually I'm used to the air (and flour) being so dry that you need to add more water, although in this recipe it turned out just right. The dough was really sticky difficult to work with though, and often tore when I was rolling it out. In the end, it was really thin, and kind of crunchy in some places. Also, in the first two pieces I tried to fry, a giant bubble formed at the bottom of the frybread, lifting it out of the oil, so there were big white spots.
Next time, I'm going to try one of two things: either I'm going to really kneed the dough (so it becomes more ball like), or I am going to let the dough rest for several minutes, so that the flour can absorb the water and not be so sticky. Additionally, I think I'm going to try making only 3 balls, so that I don't feel like I need to roll them so thin to make them a good size.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Hot Wings #4
Okay, this time, I essentially repeated attempt #3, but with a few exceptions. First, instead of using a food processor, I tried to grind the skins with the bottom of a spice jar (since I don't have a mortar and pestle). Second, I steamed the wings for 10 minutes, then baked them at 400 for 25 minutes. Last, I added a big spoonful of cornstarch to the sauce.
Here were my thoughts:
-It still tastes pretty good.
-The sauce stuck really well to the wings, in part because of how sticky the wings felt when they came out of the oven (I wiped them off with a paper towel, and in once case might have peeled a tiny bit off).
-The sauce was much thicker than before, but still had a translucent and slightly runny look to it.
-The sauce still had chunks in it.
-The wings weren't very crispy.
My thoughts for next time:
-Next time, I think I will put more butter in the sauce. Also, I will let it cool a bit before adding the wings in.
-Before adding the cornstarch and butter to the wing sauce, I will strain the chili skins out.
-Alton Brown's recipe called for refrigerating the wings before roasting them in the oven. I thought I could skip that step and put them directly in the toaster-oven, but I'm really starting to think I can't. Next time, I will put the wings in the fridge while the oven pre-heats.
Here were my thoughts:
-It still tastes pretty good.
-The sauce stuck really well to the wings, in part because of how sticky the wings felt when they came out of the oven (I wiped them off with a paper towel, and in once case might have peeled a tiny bit off).
-The sauce was much thicker than before, but still had a translucent and slightly runny look to it.
-The sauce still had chunks in it.
-The wings weren't very crispy.
My thoughts for next time:
-Next time, I think I will put more butter in the sauce. Also, I will let it cool a bit before adding the wings in.
-Before adding the cornstarch and butter to the wing sauce, I will strain the chili skins out.
-Alton Brown's recipe called for refrigerating the wings before roasting them in the oven. I thought I could skip that step and put them directly in the toaster-oven, but I'm really starting to think I can't. Next time, I will put the wings in the fridge while the oven pre-heats.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Buttermilk Biscuits #2
Tonight I took my second shot at buttermilk biscuits.
For my first try, I used a recipe out of "I'm Just Here For More Food" by Alton Brown (which is the best cookbook I think I've ever seen, I've started recommending it to anyone who mentions wanting to learn more about baking). He printed a famous old recipe, which I believe was what came on the back of shortening packages. He added in a story about how his good ol' Southern grandmother would argue with other Southern grandmothers about whether it was better to use shortening or lard, but how if any yankee mentioned using butter they would gang up on them. So, I tried shortening.
The biscuits turned out really well. Like, I wasn't sure what improvements could be made. Instead of rolling the biscuits out and cutting them (like the recipe said), I just kind of dropped them onto a baking sheet. They weren't pretty and round, but tasted great. They were a little gummy the first time I ate them (which according to the instructions means I put in too much milk), but after a day of sitting in the refrigerator, were wonderful. They had a great flavor, and a great flaky crumb.
Oh, and one thing worth pointing out, the recipe didn't actually call for buttermilk, so I just used normal milk.
Tonight, for the sake of something different, I decided to try a recipe out of "The Best Recipe: Soups & Stews." The biggest differences seemed to be: a) they used butter, instead of shortening, b) everything was done in a food processor (whereas before it was done by hand), c) I used an ungreased baking sheet, d) this time I used milk+vinegar to simulate buttermilk, and e) the recipe included 1t sugar. Overall, the biscuits weren't as good. I think I actually liked the butter flavor less. Also, the biscuits were too crumbly. Like, the outside was crispy and crunchy, a bit more than I would have liked. The biscuits always felt like they were on the edge of falling apart. The big benefits of this recipe, however, were how easy it was to make (literally, the slowest part was heating the oven).
So, next time, I think I'm going to try to see if I can do the Brown recipe in a food processor (like the Best Recipe one). I might also give lard a shot, and see how it does.
For my first try, I used a recipe out of "I'm Just Here For More Food" by Alton Brown (which is the best cookbook I think I've ever seen, I've started recommending it to anyone who mentions wanting to learn more about baking). He printed a famous old recipe, which I believe was what came on the back of shortening packages. He added in a story about how his good ol' Southern grandmother would argue with other Southern grandmothers about whether it was better to use shortening or lard, but how if any yankee mentioned using butter they would gang up on them. So, I tried shortening.
The biscuits turned out really well. Like, I wasn't sure what improvements could be made. Instead of rolling the biscuits out and cutting them (like the recipe said), I just kind of dropped them onto a baking sheet. They weren't pretty and round, but tasted great. They were a little gummy the first time I ate them (which according to the instructions means I put in too much milk), but after a day of sitting in the refrigerator, were wonderful. They had a great flavor, and a great flaky crumb.
Oh, and one thing worth pointing out, the recipe didn't actually call for buttermilk, so I just used normal milk.
Tonight, for the sake of something different, I decided to try a recipe out of "The Best Recipe: Soups & Stews." The biggest differences seemed to be: a) they used butter, instead of shortening, b) everything was done in a food processor (whereas before it was done by hand), c) I used an ungreased baking sheet, d) this time I used milk+vinegar to simulate buttermilk, and e) the recipe included 1t sugar. Overall, the biscuits weren't as good. I think I actually liked the butter flavor less. Also, the biscuits were too crumbly. Like, the outside was crispy and crunchy, a bit more than I would have liked. The biscuits always felt like they were on the edge of falling apart. The big benefits of this recipe, however, were how easy it was to make (literally, the slowest part was heating the oven).
So, next time, I think I'm going to try to see if I can do the Brown recipe in a food processor (like the Best Recipe one). I might also give lard a shot, and see how it does.
Cobbler #2
Boy, it's been so long that I've now made biscuits. I should really do this.
There is an old recipe that I have always used for cobbler by Mad Coyote Joe (a local guy who had a cooking show when I was young). It's amazing enough that I've been wondering why I'm trying to improve it. I guess it's just so different than what most TV shows do for cobbler. Basically, for the filling, you use blackberries. You put 3/4 of them in whole (mixed with cornstarch, lemon juice, and sugar), and the other 1/4 you blend, add water to, and boil into a sauce. You put all this into a baking dish, and top it with a slightly crumbly topping (sugar, eggs, flour, salt, & baking powder), and then pour a melted stick of butter on top of this, and bake it.
If nothing else, a summer of trying to improve on Mad Coyote Joe's recipe might just end in me admitting that it is indeed the best dessert on Earth (something I've always kind of suspected).
So, my first new cobbler recipe was by Alton Brown (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/rhubarb-peach-cobbler-recipe/index.html). I used this, except instead of peaches and rhubarb, I used strawberries. Taking after Mad Coyote Joe, I blended some of the berries in a bit of water. I used frozen strawberries, because that's what I have. Also, because I didn't have lemon, I used a little bit of red wine vinegar. Overall, this was a little disappointing. The filling tasted just fine, but it was really runny. In the future I think I should avoid adding water. I also might need to start adding more cornstarch. As for the crust, it tasted too separate from the filling. It tasted okay, but wasn't, like, incredible. Also, the bits of topping that were cooked inside the strawberry mixture turned out gummy.
Next, #2. Before attempting #2, I read though "The Best Recipe." It said that cobblers could be classified into 3 types of crust (shortbread/biscuit, pie, and cookie), and also had recipes for probably a dozen possible fruits that could be used. One such fruit was mangos. So, because they were 2/$1 at Fry's, I decided I'd try that. For the crust, I used a half recipe Paula Deen's recipe (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/peach-cobbler-recipe/index.html), except using 2 sliced mangos, and cooking it all in a bread pan. Instead of self-rising flour, I added 1 t of baking powder. It actually turned out really amazingly, for the most part. I'd actually say it gives Mad Coyote Joe a run for his money. In this recipe, you put the fruit on top of the dough, so when it bakes, it rises up and covers it (basically consuming it). The crust, well, it is smoother than Mad Coyote Joe's, I'm not sure which one I like better. My one disappointment: mango makes for a really really bad cobbler filling. Next time I'm switching back to strawberries (or maybe even blackberries) and trying it again.
I actually have a BBQ I'm going to on Friday, I might use that as an excuse to try this again.
There is an old recipe that I have always used for cobbler by Mad Coyote Joe (a local guy who had a cooking show when I was young). It's amazing enough that I've been wondering why I'm trying to improve it. I guess it's just so different than what most TV shows do for cobbler. Basically, for the filling, you use blackberries. You put 3/4 of them in whole (mixed with cornstarch, lemon juice, and sugar), and the other 1/4 you blend, add water to, and boil into a sauce. You put all this into a baking dish, and top it with a slightly crumbly topping (sugar, eggs, flour, salt, & baking powder), and then pour a melted stick of butter on top of this, and bake it.
If nothing else, a summer of trying to improve on Mad Coyote Joe's recipe might just end in me admitting that it is indeed the best dessert on Earth (something I've always kind of suspected).
So, my first new cobbler recipe was by Alton Brown (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/rhubarb-peach-cobbler-recipe/index.html). I used this, except instead of peaches and rhubarb, I used strawberries. Taking after Mad Coyote Joe, I blended some of the berries in a bit of water. I used frozen strawberries, because that's what I have. Also, because I didn't have lemon, I used a little bit of red wine vinegar. Overall, this was a little disappointing. The filling tasted just fine, but it was really runny. In the future I think I should avoid adding water. I also might need to start adding more cornstarch. As for the crust, it tasted too separate from the filling. It tasted okay, but wasn't, like, incredible. Also, the bits of topping that were cooked inside the strawberry mixture turned out gummy.
Next, #2. Before attempting #2, I read though "The Best Recipe." It said that cobblers could be classified into 3 types of crust (shortbread/biscuit, pie, and cookie), and also had recipes for probably a dozen possible fruits that could be used. One such fruit was mangos. So, because they were 2/$1 at Fry's, I decided I'd try that. For the crust, I used a half recipe Paula Deen's recipe (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/peach-cobbler-recipe/index.html), except using 2 sliced mangos, and cooking it all in a bread pan. Instead of self-rising flour, I added 1 t of baking powder. It actually turned out really amazingly, for the most part. I'd actually say it gives Mad Coyote Joe a run for his money. In this recipe, you put the fruit on top of the dough, so when it bakes, it rises up and covers it (basically consuming it). The crust, well, it is smoother than Mad Coyote Joe's, I'm not sure which one I like better. My one disappointment: mango makes for a really really bad cobbler filling. Next time I'm switching back to strawberries (or maybe even blackberries) and trying it again.
I actually have a BBQ I'm going to on Friday, I might use that as an excuse to try this again.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Chicken Pot Pie #1
Made two dishes tonight, Chicken Pot Pie and Mango Cobbler. I'll talk about the Pot Pie now (too tired to do both, I'll write it tomorrow).
So, when I say "Pennsylvania Pot Pie," this is something my dad described, that sounded a lot more like what some people call "Chicken & Dumplings." Basically, stewed soup with slices of a thick noodles. For try #1, I used a Cat Cora recipe (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cat-cora/chicken-and-dumplings-recipe/index.html) with a couple exceptions: First, the chicken part just chicken, salt, pepper, and water. Also, I only used a chicken breast (since it was just for me). I did a 1/3rd recipe for the "Dumpling" part, except I didn't measure the amount of milk (just added it until it all came together). Last, when I finished cooking the chicken, I removed the bones and shredded it.
Overall, everything came together and tasted really great. I suppose chicken soup like that is hard to screw up. The pot-pie/dumpling part tasted great. Not too soft, not tough, my only problem was in how to keep it layered right as I'm spooning it out. My one problem is that I'm not quite sure if this is "right." I think I'm going to need to make it for my dad (or someone else from central Pennsylvania) to get a review. Overall though I'm not sure if there's anything I need to change.
So, when I say "Pennsylvania Pot Pie," this is something my dad described, that sounded a lot more like what some people call "Chicken & Dumplings." Basically, stewed soup with slices of a thick noodles. For try #1, I used a Cat Cora recipe (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cat-cora/chicken-and-dumplings-recipe/index.html) with a couple exceptions: First, the chicken part just chicken, salt, pepper, and water. Also, I only used a chicken breast (since it was just for me). I did a 1/3rd recipe for the "Dumpling" part, except I didn't measure the amount of milk (just added it until it all came together). Last, when I finished cooking the chicken, I removed the bones and shredded it.
Overall, everything came together and tasted really great. I suppose chicken soup like that is hard to screw up. The pot-pie/dumpling part tasted great. Not too soft, not tough, my only problem was in how to keep it layered right as I'm spooning it out. My one problem is that I'm not quite sure if this is "right." I think I'm going to need to make it for my dad (or someone else from central Pennsylvania) to get a review. Overall though I'm not sure if there's anything I need to change.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Chicken wings attempt #3
I'm starting this recipe in the middle of several attempts. My goal was to make basically good, classic, buffalo style chicken wings. For my first attempt, I tried a Bobby Flay recipe for sauce (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/hot-wings-with-blue-cheese-yogurt-sauce-recipe/index.html), except instead of deep-frying them, I steamed them for 10 minutes and then roasted them in a 400F oven for about 25 minutes (a la Alton Brown, http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/alton-browns-buffalo-wings-recipe/index.html). They turned out decently. I liked how the wings cooked. The sauce was really really good, but it just wasn't buffalo style. I'm not sure what was wrong with it, maybe the chipotle peppers in adobo made it too sour. All I can say is that something wasn't quite right. Also, I couldn't get the chipotles to grind up (even in a food processor), so there were big chunks that didn't stick to the wings. Plus, even the parts that were liquid didn't stick very well.
Take #2, I tried a recipe my sister had recommended (http://steamykitchen.com/7217-bbq-central-smokey-sweet-chicken-wings.html). This time, I skipped the steaming process and just cooked them at 400F for 35 minutes. Instead of making a sauce, it uses a rub, that seems like a pretty standard BBQ rub. They tasted good again, they had a really crispy skin, and on the inside they just tasted like chicken. But in the end, they weren't even close to buffalo wings, so I decided to abandon it.
Take #3 was tonight. This time, I used basically my own recipe. I used the 400F oven for 35 minutes again. For the sauce, I took some dried red chiles, and attempted to reconstitute them in boiling water. Once they had softened up, and I had cooked most of the water out, I added garlic powder, salt, pepper, vinegar, and dry mustard (so it would act as an emulsifier when I added the butter). I ran it though a food processor to the best of my ability, although there were still plenty of skin flakes that didn't grind. I then melted butter in. This time, when I took the chicken out of the oven, I wiped them off with a towel before tossing them in the sauce.
The taste turned out just right on the sauce, but I had a few problems. First, the wings were really greasy (and slightly slimy) when you bit into them. I think I might switch back to the Alton Brown method of steaming first, or maybe even deep frying them. Second, there wasn't much sauce that stuck. I think of really good wing places where I grew up, and they practically had a layer of sauce covering them. These, well, it was a very thin coating. In part this is because of how much chile skin did not grind up, but I think it goes beyond that. I'm not sure what to do here. Maybe a flour coating before the oven.
Thanks for listening. I wanted to say, if anyone out there in internet-land has any ideas, I'd love to hear them. And I have seen lots of recipes that are just hot sauce+butter, I feel like I want to do better than that (even if that sounds kind of snobby).
Also, I promise that when I get the recipes more solid, I will start posting measurements. This time, however, nothing was measured (just a pinch of this and a dash of that, and I think 1 T of butter for 4 wings).
Take #2, I tried a recipe my sister had recommended (http://steamykitchen.com/7217-bbq-central-smokey-sweet-chicken-wings.html). This time, I skipped the steaming process and just cooked them at 400F for 35 minutes. Instead of making a sauce, it uses a rub, that seems like a pretty standard BBQ rub. They tasted good again, they had a really crispy skin, and on the inside they just tasted like chicken. But in the end, they weren't even close to buffalo wings, so I decided to abandon it.
Take #3 was tonight. This time, I used basically my own recipe. I used the 400F oven for 35 minutes again. For the sauce, I took some dried red chiles, and attempted to reconstitute them in boiling water. Once they had softened up, and I had cooked most of the water out, I added garlic powder, salt, pepper, vinegar, and dry mustard (so it would act as an emulsifier when I added the butter). I ran it though a food processor to the best of my ability, although there were still plenty of skin flakes that didn't grind. I then melted butter in. This time, when I took the chicken out of the oven, I wiped them off with a towel before tossing them in the sauce.
The taste turned out just right on the sauce, but I had a few problems. First, the wings were really greasy (and slightly slimy) when you bit into them. I think I might switch back to the Alton Brown method of steaming first, or maybe even deep frying them. Second, there wasn't much sauce that stuck. I think of really good wing places where I grew up, and they practically had a layer of sauce covering them. These, well, it was a very thin coating. In part this is because of how much chile skin did not grind up, but I think it goes beyond that. I'm not sure what to do here. Maybe a flour coating before the oven.
Thanks for listening. I wanted to say, if anyone out there in internet-land has any ideas, I'd love to hear them. And I have seen lots of recipes that are just hot sauce+butter, I feel like I want to do better than that (even if that sounds kind of snobby).
Also, I promise that when I get the recipes more solid, I will start posting measurements. This time, however, nothing was measured (just a pinch of this and a dash of that, and I think 1 T of butter for 4 wings).
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
First Post
I have been an avid cook since about high school. I went from simple Home Ec.-type recipes, to complex cookbook recipes, to "just wing it," recipes, and lately I have been working on developing my own. A year ago I really started fusing recipes together, taking them from different sources and trying to create my own. A good friend tried to talk me into starting a cooking blog, so that others could read my recipes, and very recently he's managed to succeed.
I guess the purpose of this blog is two-fold. First, (the selfish reason) it is to force me to organize my thoughts as I try to develop my recipes, and record what went right or wrong. Second, (the magnanimous reason) it is to share successful recipes with the world. I figure I use the internet enough to find recipes, why not provide recipes for others to use?
So, this summer I set as my goal to master the following recipes:
Buffalo Wings
Stuffing
Frybread
Cobbler
Buttermilk Biscuits
Pot pie (Pennsylvania Dutch style)
When I say, "master," I don't mean learn how to make. I mean tinker and toy with the recipes until I don't think there is any way of improving them. I mean get better and better until I can make them blindfolded. I had a very similar task last summer (recipes different of course), and succeeded with some. I figured out the tricks to making risotto, and got decent at omelets and tamales (though am not quite to the "blindfold" stage). Others, such as fry-bread and tortilla soup, I didn't figure out by the end of the summer. I'm kind of curious how many of these I'll be able to do.
I guess the purpose of this blog is two-fold. First, (the selfish reason) it is to force me to organize my thoughts as I try to develop my recipes, and record what went right or wrong. Second, (the magnanimous reason) it is to share successful recipes with the world. I figure I use the internet enough to find recipes, why not provide recipes for others to use?
So, this summer I set as my goal to master the following recipes:
Buffalo Wings
Stuffing
Frybread
Cobbler
Buttermilk Biscuits
Pot pie (Pennsylvania Dutch style)
When I say, "master," I don't mean learn how to make. I mean tinker and toy with the recipes until I don't think there is any way of improving them. I mean get better and better until I can make them blindfolded. I had a very similar task last summer (recipes different of course), and succeeded with some. I figured out the tricks to making risotto, and got decent at omelets and tamales (though am not quite to the "blindfold" stage). Others, such as fry-bread and tortilla soup, I didn't figure out by the end of the summer. I'm kind of curious how many of these I'll be able to do.
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