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Sunday, November 02, 2003

Thinly sliced Brussels sprouts.   I gave up on the spiral slicer and used the 2mm disk from the Cuisinart. . 2:40:34 PM    comment []

Sunday dinner will be pheasant. I haven’t eaten pheasant since the days when hunters would give them to our family in exchange for letting them hunt on the farm. My only memory of that is picking buckshot out of my mouth. This one was “shot up” with olive oil/lemon juice (I wanted to do lime juice, but Liz prefers lemon) and had the cavity stuffed with sage and marjoram before I tied it up for the rotisserie.   A couple magazines had recipes for Brussels sprouts this month. The kicker on them was the prep – cut into thin slices rather than served whole. The one in Gourmet, which suggests Benriner spirals, won out for the maple syrup glazed pecan topping. I also can’t locate the other one, so it really won by default.   SHREDDED BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH MAPLE HTCKORY NUTS   SERVES 8 TO 10 Active Time: 30 min Start to Finish: 30 min   ¾ cup hickory nut halves or coarsely chopped pecans (3 oz) ½ stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter I tablespoon pure maple syrup I teaspoon salt 2 lb Brussels sprouts, any discolored leaves discarded and stem ends left intact ¼ teaspoon black pepper 1 tablespoon cider vinegar   Special equipment: a Japanese Benriner or other adjustable blade slicer   Ø       Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350ºF Ø       Toast nuts in a small I shallow baking pan until fragrant and a few shades darker, about 10 minutes. While nuts toast, melt I tablespoon butter and stir together with syrup and ½ teaspoon salt. Add maple glaze to hot nuts and toss to coat. Ø       Holding each Brussels sprout by stem end, cut into very thin slices with slicer. Toss slices in a bowl to separate layers. Ø       Heat remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a 12- to 13-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until I foam subsides, then sauté shredded sprouts with pepper and remaining ½ teaspoon salt, stirring, until sprouts are wilted but crisp-tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Add vinegar and sauté, stirring, I minute. Add hickory nuts and any glaze in baking pan and sauté, stirring, I minute.   Cooks' notes: Ø       Nuts can be glazed I day ahead and cooled, then kept, covered, at room temperature. Ø       Brussels sprouts can be sliced 1 day ahead and chilled in a sealed plastic bag lined with paper towels.   11:52:09 AM    comment []

Molcajete Cured!   First, listen to what Mark Preston said in comments. It’s always a good idea to listen to Mark, especially when he gives advice about chiles, since he is an expert and author of California Mission Cookery.   Dried beans can also be used to "cure" the molcajete. However, after using both beans and rice, I've decided it's better to season it with cilantro. I'm not kidding. Once the tejolote rubs in the bowl, enough, the stone that would easily wear away does. What remains may wear to a dust, but a little basalt isn't too harmful. The cilantro has the "just right" texture when ground in basalt. And I think a chemical reaction takes place, that improves salsas made in it. Grind the cilantro, then the onions, then the chiles, then the tomatoes, one item at a time. Yea, it's more work, but try it my way one time and let me know what YOU think. Enjoy and remember to say hello to the pig every time you grind in him. With a tool as primitive as a Molcajete (it may go back 6,000 years!), it’s always a good idea to listen to the voice of experience. The logic is impeccable as well. Notice the order of grinding Mark suggests – beginning with the seasoning base, which I suspect might also include any spices, then build up to the tomatoes or tomatillos, which are the “carrier.” The cilantro first: It’s nature’s breath sweetener, just like parsley, so it surely will sweeten the molcajete as well. It makes perfect sense to me. However, by the time I read Mark’s comment, I had already ground up three batches of rice. Sometimes grains of rice would fly right out and end up on the floor, no problem, Roomba picked ‘em up for me later. When the time came for the decision on whether to grind fresh garlic (and the seasoning packet) or cilantro, it turned out that I had no cilantro. That would mean another trip to the store. So I ignored the maestro and followed the included directions. Once the cumin, salt, and garlic mixture is ground to a paste, you’re supposed to let it in there overnight. I did, but I had trouble stopping myself from grinding the paste “just a little” more, to spread it more evenly. Finally I just spread it around evenly with my fingers. Overnight, the paste dries out, and there’s a touch of magic in even this simple process. The surface dries out first, sealing the paste over the pores and allowing the wonderful garlic/cumin aroma to permeate even deeper into the soul of the molcajete. I’ll redeem myself by grinding in cilantro after the paste (shown here after its overnight cure) is removed later. Liz does not like very much cilantro in salsa, so the flavor imparted by this last step of curing should be just perfect. My first batch will be this one, using roasted serranos, from GourmetSleuth, but I’ll add the cilantro at the beginning. 5:38:39 AM    comment []