TerraPrime Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Continue the verbose food pr0n. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nas! Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 "Tepid normalcy" makes me itchy. But I'd bet Chef and I would make delightful dinner guests--he with his profound knowledge of cuisine, and me with my ineffable charm. I'm in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yagathai Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 I made a delicious borscht which I will be eating for dinner for the next week. Took about eleven hours, from roasting the bones for the stock to the final product. It was delicious. On top of stock made from ten pounds of roasted beef bones I layered beets, cabbage, carrots, celery, onion, parsnip, leek, and a couple of small but intense habaneros. I couldn't find any fresh dill, but with toasted sourdough and sour cream, with some pears and blue cheese for dessert, I made me very happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerraPrime Posted December 1, 2014 Author Share Posted December 1, 2014 Hmmm... borscht... Someone I associate borscht with hard crust rye, but sourdough sounds delicious too. Also, I made pies, for turkey day. I made 2 apple pies, one with half granny smith and half golden delicious, and the other with half granny smith and half mcintosh. My husband likes the apple pies on the tart side, hence the granny smith. I also made 2 pumpkin pies. All the pies were made from scratch, with the dough and all, except for the pumpkin puree. I used Libby's plain pumpkin puree. I know someone posted on here a couple years ago about making their own pumpkin to be used in a pie... is that person still posting here? I wonder if it will give a better pumpkin flavor? The pies turn out delicious, but I cannot really taste the pumpkin in it. This has bothered me since I started making pumpkin pies 10 years ago. Is the work involved in making your own pumpkin puree justified by a better tasting pie? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fragile Bird Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Terra, IMHO the answer is no. When I first learned to bake, our instructor wanted to try making a pumpkin pie from scratch. It was a lot of work, and while it tasted lovely, the canned filling was pretty well just as good, maybe better because I was raised on store bought pumpkin pie which I suspect used canned as well. I would suggest a couple of things. One time when you have a completely free weekend, make a pie from scratch just see what the difference is. Make a pie with canned filling, do a side-by-side taste test. Since pumpkins are available now and time at this point in the years is usually scarce, try freezing some pumpkin for a January trial. :) The main difference will be in the spicing, starting from scratch you can do what you want, and also the knowledge nothing weird has been added to the pie mix, although as far as I can recall from the cans nothing weird is added to the canned pumpkin anyway. You might also want to try different canned fillings. Up here there are two kinds widely available, and I much prefer one over the other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lily Valley Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Terra, It is easier for me to find pumpkins in the grocery than searching for an hour for the canned stuff. I usually have one from Halloween that didn't get carved and just use that. Roast the pumpkin in the oven like any other squash. Put the pulp in the blender to break down the fibers. Season to taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry of the Lawn Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 I did pie pumpkins in the garden this year and used them for pumpkin pie chocolate chip cookies. I'm not big on the whole "flavor everygoddammthing with pumpkin from Oct - Dec" approach to life, but I do like a good pumpkin pie or cookie. Cut them in half, scoop out the seedy stuff, then place face down on a baking sheet and roast them until they start to carmelize. You can cut bigger pumpkins into smaller chunks if necessary. If you try the recipe in the link add a little nutmeg and cloves too. I ended up with about 20 extra pounds of smashed pumpkin which is now in the freezer and gets thawed out in small batches and used as a dog food additive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerraPrime Posted December 1, 2014 Author Share Posted December 1, 2014 Terra, It is easier for me to find pumpkins in the grocery than searching for an hour for the canned stuff. I usually have one from Halloween that didn't get carved and just use that. Roast the pumpkin in the oven like any other squash. Put the pulp in the blender to break down the fibers. Season to taste. When you blend it, do you have to strain through sieve afterwards, or do the fiber get broken down well enough in the food processor? I did pie pumpkins in the garden this year and used them for pumpkin pie chocolate chip cookies. I'm not big on the whole "flavor everygoddammthing with pumpkin from Oct - Dec" approach to life, but I do like a good pumpkin pie or cookie. Cut them in half, scoop out the seedy stuff, then place face down on a baking sheet and roast them until they start to carmelize. You can cut bigger pumpkins into smaller chunks if necessary. If you try the recipe in the link add a little nutmeg and cloves too. I ended up with about 20 extra pounds of smashed pumpkin which is now in the freezer and gets thawed out in small batches and used as a dog food additive. I will probably roast the pumpkin plain since I will be flavoring the pie filling later on. I typically make 4 pumpkin pies between Thanksgiving and Christmas, so I expect to still have a good amount left over afterwards from a medium sized pumpkin. You mentioned pie pumpkins - are there different varieties out there that I should look for to make pies? The carving type is too big and too tough? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lily Valley Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 I never sieve with a food processor. I have also mashed them and if you do that you HAVE to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry of the Lawn Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 You mentioned pie pumpkins - are there different varieties out there that I should look for to make pies? The carving type is too big and too tough? Yeah, there are specific pie vs ornamental varieties, I imagine the difference is mostly taste/sugar content. The texture is different too, like you said they're tougher. Compared to a jack-o-lantern type, the pie ones don't smell as 'squashy' when you cut them open. There also seems to be significantly less 'guts' with the seeds and real stringy stuff in the pie types. The ones we grew were "new england pie". Also tried "baby pam" put those didn't do so well and I pulled them mid season to let the others stretch out. In the grocery store they usually just label them "Pie Pumpkins" without mentioning the specific variety. I know when I was a kid they were labeled "Sugar Pumpkins". I got about 2.5 to 3 cups of useable pumpkin out of each pumpkin; most were about 8 inches in diameter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xray the Enforcer Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 You mentioned pie pumpkins - are there different varieties out there that I should look for to make pies? The carving type is too big and too tough? Avoid cooking with pumpkins made for carving. Tough, watery, generally bullshit. Buy a sugar pumpkin if you must. But, frankly, I have made pies via both methods and there is very little difference. Maybe a bit more caramelization from the roasting, but that ain't worth the effort. If you want a pumpkin flavor, cut way back on the sugar. And maybe sub in butternut squash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercenaryChef Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Real pumpkin all the way.My awesome pastry chef made 80 pumpkin pies, 80 apple pies and 80 chocolate turtle tarts. Everything was scratch.Buy a nice pumpkin; a sugar or a pie pumpkin or die in a fire. Roast it, scoop the flesh, puree and use it to make the custard. You have control of sugar level and spices.Same method works for a sweet potato pie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Summah Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Or just forget about pumpkin pies and start making sweet potato pies instead, those are after all the best kind of sweet vegetable pie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kairparavel Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Popcorn and 3 gin and tonics because Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tears of Lys Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Popcorn and 3 gin and tonics because Monday. My kind of dinner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercenaryChef Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 As I had the same dinner as kairparavel I just wolfed down a bowl of collards and kale with bacon and jalapeños topped with a sunny egg. That will be my new pre-lunch service bacon and cheese sandwich. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lily Valley Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Veggie omelette, sausage and potatoes. Coffee and more coffee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inigima Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Anyone experienced at making multigrain bread? I'd like a recipe. A lot of the ones I'm seeing online call for stuff like multigrain cereal as an ingredient, and I don't know if that's a cheaty shortcut or what and I want to do it right.It's my preferred type of bread for sandwiches, and I'd like to get it right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiDisaster Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 I simmered some sausages in beer before grilling them as per a recipe idea I found online. Simmering in the beer with onions added nothing to the flavor though (no noticeable difference from the not-beer-simmered control sausage) and was largely a waste of time and beer. Oh well, grilled sausage is always tasty regardless. I want to make some fish sometime this weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wee baby Shamus Posted December 5, 2014 Share Posted December 5, 2014 Deer meat and Chicken noodle soup is my dinner tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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