Knife Skills

Family Values

Wife: "I think it's time to pull up the cherry tomato plant, the tomatoes are very small and I think it's done."

Me: "Well it has been putting out like a Hollywood girlfriend.

Wife: "WOW" "WOW" WOW".

Me: Been working on the men's cookbook a lot have I?

Kale Chips

Cut Kale leaves off stems, drizzle w olive oil, add seasoned salt. Bake at 350 till crispy chips.

Pickle

Tonights veggie is a pickle. Take THAT food pyramid! - Jessica Benzakein

Master Class - LA Times articles by great chefs like Thomas Keller

The Los Angeles Time has a great series of articles called "Master Class" which includes writing by such great chef's as Thomas Keller on seasoning and brining, Nancy Silverton on focaccia, Tom Colicchio on using vinaigrette as a braising liquid, and Sang Yoon on how to kick catsup into an experience. 

Thomas Keller on Seasoning

Nancy Silverton on Focacia

Tom Colicchio on Vinaigrette

Sang Yoon on Catsup



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Military Recipe April 1957 - Shit on a Shingle (SOS)

Repost of a classic Man Meets Stove recipe:

Be sure and get your carcass ready.....

TM 10-412-1
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY TECHNICAL MANUAL
ARMY RECIPES

(MEAT, POULTRY,
FISH, GRAVIES, SAUCES,
AND DRESSING)
 

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY  -  APRIL 1957

NO. A-34 CREAMED GROUND BEEF ON TOAST

            100 Servings
            1 cup each
            Preparation and cooking time: about 11/4 hours

BEEF, CARCASS...................35 POUNDS
Cut in pieces and grind (FINE).

OR
BEEF, BONELESS,
      GROUND (FINE).............24 POUNDS
Brown beef in its own fat in roasting pans on top of range.
Remove excess fat during cooking period.

ONIONS, DRY,
      CHOPPED (FINE).............1 POUND……....…3/4 QUART
SALT………………..………..5 OUNCES…….......1/2 CUP
PEPPER, BLACK……...……1/4 OUNCE….......….1 TABLESPOON
BAY LEAF…………………………………….........1 LEAF
Add onions and seasoning and mix thoroughly.

MILK, EVAPORATED………………………..........2 GALLONS
(WATER FOR MILK)………........…………………2 GALLONS
Add 3 gallons of milk to beef mixture and heat to simmering, stir-
      ring frequently

FLOUR, WHEAT, HARD.…...2 POUNDS……........1 ¾ QUARTS
Mix flour with the remaining gallon of milk and stir into hot mix-
      ture.
Bring to a boil, stirring steadily, reduce heat and simmer until
      thickened.

TOAST…………………………………………........100 SLICES
Serve on toast.


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Modernist Cooking - Centrifuges

So we here at Man Meets Stove have been admiring the modernist chefs use of centrifuges to make interesting things, like Pea Butter (blended frozen peas spun in a centrifuge for 3 hours to make a puck of pea starch, pea oil, and a little "pea butter".  Apparently it is absolutely the sex of peas.  

We have started looking for an inexpensive lab centrifuge to try this miracle substance, and ran across this advice: 

Rule #1 - Never buy a centrifuge when the eBay address is Yucca Mountain, Nevada or Hanford, Washington nuclear facilities.

Rule #2 - See rule #1 

- JBailey

Thanks, JBailey.  Duly noted.


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Image: Marco Torresin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Sushi Cupcakes!

A Facebook friend of Jim's, Jen Kimura, posted that she was preparing for her mom's "Cupcake Wars Party" and then shortly thereafter started posting these terrific pictures of cupcakes made to look like sushi in a bento box! 

Jim asked her about them and she was gracious enough to tell us:

"I saw some posts about rice crispy sushi, but that was gross to me. And using coconut shavings was just too much coconut, so these are white jimmies/sprinkles- and much more rice-like. The decorations are shaped "Now and Later" candies, cut up gummy worms, and "Swedish Fish" candies. Some people use green "Fruit by the Foot" for the nori [sushi seaweed wrapper]. But its hard to find THAT MUCH solid green Fruit by the Foot. So I use black/ dark brown wrappers- which are not gross and sticky when you handle them - unlike Fruit by the Foot.

When I'm lazy I use remade pillsbury classic white mix and pillsbury whipped white frosting. When I'm not lazy I use Magnolia Bakery's Vanilla Cupcake and Buttercream recipe.

They are packed in sushi bento boxes because it's easier to transport and cuter. Because they are in the boxes, I make the mini cupcakes. Also, regular sized cupcakes are not properly proportioned. The Ginger is Now and Laters, the wasabi is green frosting, the soy
sauce is chocolate syrup.  Hope that helps!"

It sure does Jen.  Thanks so much for sharing your skillz with us!

Jen got her decorations at Classic Cake Decorations in Garden Grove, California.

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Cookies! Nutter Betters

Soundtrack:  Anything by Sir Mix-a-Lot

You know how this goes, it is after work and you are craving Peanut Butter Cookies and a little nookie. Or is that just us?  Well we can help you with the former and you can use these cookies to get the latter.  So get on it.  The cookies that is. 

Tom searched around and found a few hundred peanut butter cookie recipes. Since he's actually good for a few hundred cookies, that coincidence worked out well.  Your gonna need a tool. No not that tool, a stand mixer.  Otherwise you'll have to stir until your arm falls off and you might need that arm later. 

Engage your inner Nutter and get your supplies ready. These are from scratch, so you kitchen lightweights are going to have to sit this one out.

Supplies:

Unsalted butter – 5 sticks

Creamy peanut butter – Big Tub

Quick oatmeal oats.

White Flour – 2 cups

Baking powder 2 teaspoons

Baking soda – 4 teaspoons

Sugar: white, light brown, and/or dark brown - 2 1/4 cups

Eggs - 2

Cinnamon

Vanilla

Powdered sugar

Set the pound (or so) of unsalted butter out to warm up to room temperature. In a medium sized bowl mix the flour, two teaspoons (that’s the little spoon) of baking powder and four teaspoons of baking soda. If you had to drag the baking soda out of the bottom of the fridge then you should probably consider buying a new box. Whisk (stir briskly) that mixture to thoroughly mix together the magic powders and set it aside.
Set your hotbox to heat up to 350.

Drop the pound of butter into the bowl of your mixer, and add in a cup of creamy peanut butter. Add more (up to say a half cup) if you want it more peanuttie.  Yes "peanuttie" is a word. This is the big flavor deal with these cookies. A glob of peanut butter one way or the other won't hurt anything, so feel free to experiment.  We know she will. 

Since this only has a pound of butter so far, we need to get the calorie count up, so add in 2¼ cups of sugar.  White, light brown, or dark brown in any combination is fine.   Yes, we are still talking about sugar.  Use what you gots, sugar-wise.  All it will change is the flavor, and it will still be a killer cookie, so knock yourself out. Drop the sugar into the mixer.  Turn the stand mixer on.  As it mixes, if the sides of the bowl in your mixer are getting all gloppy, then scrape it down from the sides.  Only use your finger to scrape the bowl if 1.) no one is watching and 2.) the machine is off and unplugged.  Your probably gonna need that finger later too.  Safety first.  Better yet, use a rubber spatula, machine OFF. 

Toss in two eggs (no shells please) and mix again. Yeah, next time you will want to start those on low speed. WAY less mess that way.  

So mix in the eggs and add a few good shakes of cinnamon and then a nice splash of vanilla. Add in the flour mixture by thirds until it is all in there. You may have to scrape the sides again, machine OFF. Now if you went crazy with the peanut butter, here is where you would add an extra quarter cup of flour and mix it in.

The dough will be really light at this point, so we add two healthy cups of oats, use the “quick oats” or the slow ones, but if you are going to use the slow ones whip out the chefs knife and give the oats a few rounds of chopping, or run them in the food processor for a few short quick bursts.  You might be used to a few quick short bursts, it’s okay.  Mix those oats in and you are ready to bake.

Now scoop the dough out onto greased or buttered cookie sheets lined up like soldiers  ready to load.  If you care at all what these look like or how easily they will be to assemble, then use an ice-cream scoop or big spoon to keep the cookie size more or less consistent. Bake at 350 for about 10 to 12 minutes. If they start to burn, then that was too long, duh.  Set ‘em out on racks to cool.

To make the filling, clean your mixer bowl and toss another stick of butter in your mixer (awesome, right?).  You can use either melted butter or room temperature butter. Mix with an equal amount of creamy peanut butter and then add powdered sugar until you think it is good. Start with a cup and a half of powdered sugar and then taste and add, taste and add, until you like the taste. 

Now this is complicated. To build the Nutter Betters, take a cookie and put some peanut butter sugar goo creme on it.  Put another cookie on-a-topa the first cookie to make a goo sandwich. Repeat till all the cookies are cookie sandwiches.  Try not to eat them all standing there in the kitchen, it is embarrassing.  

Now about that nookie...

Go find your Significant Other.  Have them close their eyes and stick out their tongue. Open a cookie sandwich and slide the cookie creme down their tongue.  We hope you can take it from there.  We know we can. 

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Tapas

"I love the samples at Costco. It's like having Tapas" - E.P.

Pickling Pro-Tips

Saw a post by a friend of ours, Donnie Dillon. He was making these Sun Pickles.  We asked him for his pro-tips on pickling and here was his response:

"Pro Tip #1. Just do it. Making pickles is literally as easy as boiling water. It requires no special equipment or exotic supplies. A few fresh herbs, a pinch of salt, an maybe a splash of vinegar is all it takes.

Pro Tip #2. Start with small batches. It is as easy to make 1 quart of pickles as it is to make 5 gallons and small batches let you play with herbs and flavors until you find a profile that you like.

Pro Tip #3. Don't stop at cucumbers. Try fresh okra, or cauliflower, beans, onions, etc. Mix and match! One of the best batches I have ever made was pickles eggs and onions. So far the only thing that turned out really badly was carrots."

We would add that if you use up a jar of pickles that you like, you can reuse the pickling juices to make another batch.  Just re-load with cucumbers, or whatever!

Enjoy!

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In Progress...

Holy crap. Editing our cookbook takes a Loooong time. :-)