What's cooking? part 4

kinder, I have two beets sitting here on my counter (uncooked). And tahini, and sesame seeds. Need more details!

I'm afraid it was bought from the supermarket and I'd have no idea how to make my own! It said 'no mayo' on the packet so.. That's a start? :)

google turns up a couple nice looking recipes. I might try this one:
http://www.thecookingcardiologist.com/recipes/beetroot-sunflower-sesame-hummus-dip

Here's the ingredients of the Sainsburys one:
Beetroot (33%); Borlotti Beans; Water; Greek Style Yogurt*; Soured Cream*; Tahini (from Sesame) (5%); Rapeseed Oil; Concentrated Lemon Juice; Cornflour; Sugar; Salt; White Wine Vinegar; Garlic Purée;
Colour: Beetroot; Stabilisers: Guar Gum, Xanthan Gum.Beetroot contains: Beetroot, Spirit Vinegar, Water, Sugar.*(from Cows' Milk);

Hmm OK, I'm sure I can sub chickpeas for whatever the fuck borlotti beans are; I can score some yogurt (tho not greek style) and sour cream, got tahini, maybe olive instead of rapeseed oil, got lemon juice and the seasonings. Gonna do this, will report back! Thanks for info (to outdoor miner as well)

another warm'n'lovely day here so not gonna really cook. got scallops from Japantown just now to make spicy scallop rolls (small amount of habanero will be involved, along with chile sesame oil) - one of my favorite things in the world. also picked up pickled eggplant and some wakame salad

What are some good cookbooks I should put on my xmas list that are v HQ but not insaaaanely overcomplicated (like I'm fine w/ a little work in the kitch but nothing too crazy convoluted)

I'm thinking Smitten Kitchen, Ottolenghi's Plenty and/or Jerusalem, maybe David Thompson's Thai Food... what else?

The Ottolenghi books are great. Nigel Slater's Kitchen Diaries II is worth a look. Fuschia Dunlop's Every Grain Of Rice, Russell Norman's Polpo...

Are there any specific cuisines you are interested in?

David thompsons book has some pretty complicated recipes in it btw

That's true but it's more usable than his Thai Street Food, I think.

people like the momofuku book, I think?

Ya DT's book is supposed to be complex (fuck making yr own curry paste imo) but from what I've heard it does a lot to teach you abt how Thai food works and how flavors balance and how to understand all of that shit

660 curries but it has some complicated stuff and some simple
claudia roden new book of middle eastern food is awesome

They are not new, but the Moro books.

http://i.imgur.com/9AB5krP.gif

me irl What's cooking? part 4 edition

seconding the Slater recommendation, some of the flat-out most enjoyable books I've read in years. And everything I've made from this has been a winner too.

I bought the complete Nose to Tail cook books a couple days ago. Meaty heaven is on the horizon :')

fyi, you can get 30 days access to rouxbe's cooking videos today only: http://www.foodday.org/rouxbe

i've seen one and it's very good. stoked

whoa nice! thanks for the tip.

np!

http://circle-b-kitchen.squarespace.com/food-and-recipes/2010/7/1/avocado-fries.html

this sounds incredible and will probably make me die.

i make this today http://www.patismexicantable.com/2011/10/pumpkin_and_ancho_chile_mole/

That looks FANTASTIC!

that does look good!
i've got some good old fashioned tortilla soup in the crock pot

Sausages with some kind of fruit in them, I can't remember what. It might be blueberries.

omg where!!??

At home, from the local butcher! It is a superb butcher and the sausages had maple in them as well, I remembered once they were cooked. They were bloody fantastic. Had them with spinach and mustard.

oh man

I cannot figure out how to make the best garlic mashed potatoes. There are too many recipes! This is what they're going to have in them:

2 lbs of russets
a variable amount of butter
a variable amount of light cream
a variable amount of garlic
a variable amount of rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

Anyone have any suggestions or favorite bomb-as-fuck recipes or even just like tips on the best way to cook the garlic (cook in butter first? add raw? roasting always makes it taste too mild and not v WOW GARLIC-y)

If I don't have roasted garlic on hand, I just boil the garlic cloves along with the taters. They get done in about the same amount of time, and the garlic flavor is strong enough for me. Especially if you're hand-mashing and come across a bite that has a chunky bit of garlic -- you'll definitely get the WOW then.

I just boil the garlic cloves along with the taters.

yup, this is how you do it.

put in way more butter than you think is possible

julia child has a cray garlic mashed potatoes recipe in mastering the art of french cooking, where you make a cream sauce with boiled garlic & then you stir that into the taters, it's sooo insanely good.
kind of involved, tho so not rlly an everyday recipe

Well this is not an everyday dinner iykwim

tend to use milk rather than cream but first i've been known to heat it up with a crushed clove of garlic (or two) and a bay leaf til simmering then take off heat to infuse for a while (i've heard you can put some of the potato peel in there too, presumably for more potato vibes or whatever). when it comes to mashing time get the milk/cream hot again and use with the butter to mash

tbh if ur really insistent on garlic (and bay) power you can also chuck one in the boiling potato water

re butter, yeah loads is good but there is a limit; some haute french types' idea of mash is like a near-pourable butter/potato puree

(i could probably stand to pare down that methodology tbh but then i'd have to make separate mashes and see which works best)

could also just mince in some raw garlic at the end, don't really see why not

like for certain pasta dishes i'll do a raw garlic gremolata at the end and that's never been too overpowering (iron constitution when it comes to garlic personally tho)

but then otoh always experiment in your own time and not for guests

i think my best attempts have involved thinly slicing a couple cloves to add to the boil. that way you get a lot of garlic flavor infused but you won't lose the cloves when you strain out the potatoes. then add cream, butter, salt, pepper, and mash roughly with the object of your choice.

Ya I don't want to experiment, I just want someone to hold my hand and tell me how much cream and how many garlic clovies to put in :(

I like slicing!

adding to the water gives the subtlest result i'd say. depends how sensitive your palate is

making sure your milk/cream is hot when it goes in is a mash must imo

i have never really measured when making mashed potatoes but i'd say like three cloves per pound of potatoes. cream i just eyeball, start with a healthy splash and then mix and taste.

I think I am going to try melting 4 tbsp of butter (half a stick) and sauteeing like 6 cloves of minced garlic for mayber 1-2 minutes and then mashing that in? And then doing maybe some splashes of cream until it looks right and also lots of salt and pepper

Why does cream have to be hot?

I mean I trust u bro/girl i just wanna know

Because chemistry.

k

maybe I will just throw 6-8 cloves in w/ the potaters and boil it all up for like 15 min. 2tsp-1tbsp of fresh rosemary for 2lbs spudz seems reasonable right?

Stevie do we need to talk about potato ricers; I have strong opinions on this subject.

- test the tater doneness with a paring knife rather than rely on a clock
- don't cut 'em too small
- plenty of butter is a good idea, but since it provides lots of fat, lowfat milk is fine in place of cream
- I never heat up the milk, not sure what that's about