which is why i had to make them today. i used my new mushroom brush-what a great little device! i sauteed brussels sprouts, one onion, shitake & crimini mushrooms in butter & topped with smoked gouda cheese. i whipped the eggs up with some light cream, salted it & gave it a shot. i expected it to turn into a scramble-the way it usually goes for me when i attempt to prepare an omelet. they were SO good the colonel actually ate 2! that’s 6 eggs! i guess i AM good at making omelets

i chose 3 fun cookie recipes to bake today for the hosts of the 2 thanksgiving parties i am attending. of course i had to change them up a bit because i had some nice little goodies on hand.

-scharffen berger fine artisan dark chocolate
-candied lemons
-candied oranges
-caramel apple preserves
-dried cranberries

i started early with my usual rugelach recipe. the filling can be anything you want, so i made it out of the caramel apple preserves & dried cranberries, half of them with walnuts. this recipe takes awhile to make because of the dough & the chilling & building process.

then i turned my attention to orange shortbread cookies with chocolate chips. i have never made shortbread before. instead of the chips, i melted the chocolate i had & dipped one candied orange peel in it for each cookie & chilled it to firm the chocolate on top. they look really pretty.

the last one, lemon thins
was a chilled log type. it’s rolled into a tube with parchment & foil a couple hours, sliced thin & baked. i topped these off with candied lemons dipped in chocolate, dusted in powdered sugar & chilled.

i can see a theme here. fruit & chocolate with butter & sugar is good.

i have been making matzo ball soup for years. it’s really fun & very delicious. yesterday’s broasted chicken stock turned out so savory & dark from the herbed chickens i was very excited to make the balls today. it’s pretty simple, but takes patience cause it can take awhile.

i love herbs in the balls, so i went with the miniature leek & chive matzo balls. except i used green onions instead of leeks. one key ingredient is ginger ale. always in the recipe for some reason-i think it acts like sodium bicarbonate. i wondered if baking soda could be used. and i use real european butter instead of margerine because i’m not a kosher jew. well, i’m actually not jewish at all but i worked for 7 years in jewish delis & came to adore the food. i’m damn good at making authentic rugulah as well. it’s been tested on actual jews & they told me they would be proud to serve them to their mothers.

that’s a HUGE compliment.

after you make the matzo batter, it has to sit in the fridge for a few hours. then formed into balls & set for another 30 minutes, boiled for 40 more, & then finally added & cooked into the broth.

i bought this bag of $9 italian egg noodles to put in as well. i was SO proud of the stock i felt it deserved a nice noodle. this comfort food is never over filling. it’s all about the stock. and a good herbed matzo ball never hurt. nor bronze-drawn & slow dried egg pasta from tuscany.

this turned out to be the very finest batch & best matzos i’ve made to date. i guess i’m on a roll

that’s my gourmet broasted chicken stock made from scraps from my other creations. a simple broth that makes me very happy is chicken stock. all i have to do is add a few egg noodles or make some very simple matzo balls with ginger & green onions. that will definitely be the next blog post. can’t tell you exactly what’s in it, but here’s what i can remember-

handfull of parsley stems
roasted garlic scraps
onion & shallot scraps
ribs & seeds from 2 green chilis
1.5 broasted chicken bones & skin
3 bunches green onions no whites
some sea salt to taste
2 large dried bay leaves
handfull lemongrass
2 lime/lemon skin
2 inches of fresh ginger root
fresh ground pepper
2 T. lemon juice

cook for lots of hours. strain, store, reduce.

the meat went into a dish i have been making since i was a child. chili. but the kind i mostly make these days is a white bean chicken chili. it varies often.

today’s chili

1.5 broasted chicken meat pulled
2 cans white beans
1 bulb garlic roasted 350 for 45 minutes
2 small yellow onions
1 large shallot
bacon fat
1 can huntz pasta sauce any flavor
vegetable juice to taste
chicken stock to taste
oregano
adobo
salt
garlic powder
chili powder
juice of 2 limes
1 bunch cilantro chopped fine
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream

fry onions chopped in bacon fat. add sauces, spices, beans & pulled chicken. cook an hour. add cilantro and lime juice. pour in milk & sour cream. cook 15 more minutes. serve with sharp white cheddar.

i had 3 bananas that were black and needed to use up a bag of chopped pecans. how easy to just make mini loaf banana breads with toasted pecans? i added 1/2 cup giradelli cocoa powder to make it choco banana & omitted the chocolate chips.

another “clean up the fridge” day. i have to do this a lot because i only have 2 dorm size fridges & no freezer. so in order to get another round of food in them, they have to be emptied. i had 4 avocados & 4 tomatoes, and leftover home made blue cheese vinaigrette. i simply tossed it all together-one with field greens, one with baby spinach. the dressing is my all time favorite.

i woke to some drama on saturday that upset me all weekend. i cooked all day to get my mind off of it. i did not think anything turned out because i was not a happy cook. and sad cooks = sad food. first i made the green beans from the previous post. they turned out too spicy & there was too much liquid in the french beans. next time i need to use chinese long beans which are thinner & have less water content.

the next thing i made was shepherd’s pie. i bought a pound of ground lamb from paulina meat market even though i don’t like lamb. i made the mashed potatoes from scratch -yukon gold potatoes peeled & boiled till soft-mash with sour cream, butter & some milk. add salt & pepper. i put them into my new pastry bag so i could squeeze it out like frosting on top of the pie. then i spent about an hour preparing the filling. carrots, onions, peas, gourmet tomato paste in a tube, a little bacon drippings. the lamb was cooking & soon my entire house smelled like lamb. it was SO strong. and it made me feel ill. after it was cooked & waiting for the colonel, i did not even taste it. because i don’t like lamb. but why did i use it? because every single recipe i researched used lamb. it makes sense because it’s called SHEEP-HERDER PIE. i worked up an appetite from the drama & the hours in the kitchen and wouldn’t eat what i cooked. so i boiled some pasta & used my new mario battali cheese grater which was still hard to use & made a mess of my kitchen anyhow. things i was hoping to avoid. picking out a cheese grater was a big decision for me & i have to say i am disappointed with this contraption. so if you’re in the market for a grater, stick with that straight one you see chefs use on tv. this does not destroy my love & respect for mario. he is the only american who deserves to be an iron chef. . the colonel ate half of the batch & loved it. 4 days later he heated the rest & asked me to try it. enough time had passed so i took a spoon & dipped in. and guess what? it was the lovliest shepherd’s pie i have ever tasted!

i couldn’t wait to get up this morning so i could soften the butter for another round of vanilla wafers. this time i doubled the batch, used a butter spray on the pan instead of real butter (butter overkill in the latter if there is such a thing) & rolled them around a wooden spoon to curl them (turning them into piroulines). then i dusted them with sifted powdered sugar when they were hot. i wanted to stuff them like cannoli, but because they were so fragile, i’m sure they would have broken. so i went to another recipe on epicurious caramelized bananas & vanilla cream in phyllo cups. i made the egg custard (a first for me-SO easy ) and used up the 4 egg yolks left over from making the cookies, which i used 4 whites. i let it chill for a few hours, put it in a heat resistent bowl, topped with sliced bananas & some sugar & carmelized about 5 minutes on broil. then i put the vanilla wafer in it to scoop. it tastes like hot banana pudding! SO sweet & lovely! highly recommended!

i bought a jar of madagascar vanilla paste for my birthday. i was thrilled to see they were making this because the bean is difficult to manage. the flavor is the same & it’s easy to make a vanilla sugar with for easy vanilla wafers. anyone can make this if you have good butter & vanilla because that’s what it is for the most part. when these baked, the cookies all turned into one, but after a few minutes, they seperated again. i am going to make them again and turn them into pieroettes-they are very pliable and crisp up as they sit out. mmmm

instead of following a recipe completely, lately i’ve been taking 3-5 recipes, studying the necessary ingredients & pick & choose the rest. i guess that’s what turns it into MY recipe. is that ok i wonder? i also will add something i have on hand that is not mentioned. today its fresh cilantro. it’s flavor is fully compatible i think, although i must confess to knowing nothing about chinese cooking-especially szechuan-other than watching chen kenichi-iron chef szechuan chinese- cook on “iron chef”. he is my second fave behind hiroyuki sakai, iron chef french
here’s the recipe i created

1 lb. french beans trimmed, washed & dried off
vegetable oil
6 cloves garlic
2 inch piece fresh garlic
1 giant shallot
2 T. sambal chili paste
1/3 cup hoisen sauce
dash black rice vinegar
2 T. dark soy sauce
1 T. white sugar
1 T. dark sesame oil
a few shakes of dried red pepper flakes-optional for a hotter batch
i bunch fresh cilantro fine chopped-optional

in small food processor, mince the garlic, shallot & ginger.
heat 2 T. veg. oil in cast iron skillet or wok. put above mixture into pan with beans (do not cut in half-causes moisture)-cover to soften the beans, remove lid & cook over high turning often. when the beans soften, add the remaining ingredients whisked in a bowl first. optional cilantro after the heat is turned off. top it on steamed jasmine, basmati or sticky rice. i used the hybrid jasmati rice.

because i finally own a cast iron skillet, i had to put it to proper use. onions will never be the same. or bacon. or burgers.

fry some bacon. i purchased it recently in a slab that i can slice any thickness or use for flavoring. much better than already sliced. after it’s crisp, set on a paper towel. in the grease fry thin sliced onions. set aside. form your burgers into half pound patties (i weigh them).

burger mix for 6 patties
3 lbs ground sirloin
2 eggs
salt & pepper to taste
garlic powder

now fry them over high in the same pan turning once. top with bacon slice & cheddar (or cheese of your choice). put the onions on the bottom of the bun with a dollop of sriracha mayo. add burger & other bread slice.