This is my blogchalk:
United States, North Carolina, Carrboro, English, Paul, Male, 56-60, All Music, All Food.

Subscribe to this blog in Radio:

Monday, December 27, 2004

Stupid Bread Tricks   Nothing that new but, since I’m getting better crust now , I decided to decorate the loaves – with some unexpected results.   After shaping the loaves, I wetted them with a sprayer and rolled them in corn meal. That gives a nice yellow dusting. I used to put corn meal on the bottom only, but this looks nicer. I slit them right after that and let them rise. The sprayer comes out again just before they go into the oven, spraying in the opened vent only at close range, then sprinkling the vent with pretzel salt. The vent has no corn meal in it, so it makes a nice contrast even without the salt, but the big surprise was the transition area from the vent to the sides of the loaf which apparently picked up some of the water and became darker than the rest of the sides with corn meal. Almost looks good enough to eat.     8:12:25 PM    comment []

Since Gourmet didn’t provide a game plan, I’ve made my own. It does not include shopping times. I’ll make the list and start on that tomorrow…   Tuesday   Ambrosia layer cake           Bake (but do not slice) layers   Pineapple anise sherbet           Make it and freeze (will be softened slightly before serving)   Wednesday   Shrimp Courtbouillon with rice           Cook the rice           Make white fish stock   Thursday   Spanish Olive and cream cheese canapés           Make toasts (cut from bread with round cookie cutter)           Also, a cream cheese mixture with paprika and sherry   Spicy toasted pecans   Oyster Rockefeller           Make watercress mixture   Shrimp Courtbouillon with rice           Peel, devein, and halve shrimp           Make Courtbouillon   Beef tenderloin with mushrooms and Espagnole sauce           Make Espagnole sauce (I’ve already made the beef stock)   Creamed spinach           Make entire recipe, chill   Mache salad with Creole viaifrette           Make dressing                       4 hours ahead   Ambrosia layer cake           Make 7-minute frosting   3 hours ahead   Radish flowers           Cut and ice   Spanish Olive and cream cheese canapés           Assemble   Mache salad with Creole vinaigrette           Make the salad     2 hours ahead   Ambrosia layer cake           Assemble and frost   Oyster Rockefeller           Shuck oysters             The final hour   (Probably with be extended. Three dishes have to go into the oven at different temperatures. The first course can be finished and we’ll take a break as the main course goes into high gear)   Creamed spinach           Reheat over low heat   Beef tenderloin with mushrooms and Espagnole sauce           Sear and roast tenderloin           Cook mushrooms           Finish sauce with pan drippings   Deviled roast potatoes           Roast, toast in dressing just before serving   Shrimp Courtbouillon with rice           Cook the shrimp in the Courtbouillon (takes only a couple minutes)   Oyster Rockefeller           Into the oven when the tenderloin comes out   Mache salad with Creole vinaigrette           Toss salad with dressing   7:43:58 PM    comment []

This feast from December Gourmet was one of five Christmas magazine meals tested by Sara Dickerman at Slate magazine. Since she prepared them over the course of 5 consecutive days, she cut out the spicy toasted pecans, radish flowers, oysters Rockefeller, shrimp court bouillon with rice, deviled roasted potatoes, mâche salad with Creole vinaigrette, pineapple anise sorbet – which is 7 of the 11 courses. She was especially impressed with the ambrosia layer cake.   There is no timeline with this menu, but each recipe does state what can be made ahead. I have the week off from work so I can figure it out and make the whole shebang for New Year’s Eve. Liz & her boys are coming over and they haven’t even seen the menu. The boys said at Christmas (Liz did the cooking, another perfect turkey that still didn’t quite meet her high standards) “anything Paul fixes will be okay.”   There’s nothing like others’ confidence to make you worry and plan and I’m doing plenty of both. The pineapple anise sherbet can be made tomorrow. I had to make that, even though none of us are that crazy about frozen desserts, because the pineapple-anise dipole is the same one that graced the Cuban sausage I made last week. That has finally dried enough to seal in bags and the flavor is unlike any sausage I’ve ever had before. I see that stuff eaten in small slices, like summer sausage, or used to spice up a batch of beans.   What I fear most about this project is shucking the oysters. I’ve never been very good at that so I’ll have to buy a few extra and count the first ones as practice. Next on the trepidation list is the layer cake. I ordered a cake slicer from King Arthur Flour for a friend of mine a month or so ago and I probably should have ordered another for myself. Oh well, the layers are made a couple days ahead and maybe A Southern Season has the slicer.   There is a Creole undercurrent to this feast that ought to be interesting. It’s not nearly as complicated as the one for Thanksgiving, but I’ll post updates here as each step is completed. I haven’t been posting much lately because I’ve been sidetracked by music software I’ve installed on my computer recently, but when you don’t have to work there’s time for everything.     6:30:52 PM    comment []