Wrapping Up 365: No Repeats, and Up Next

My days of mediocre meals are over. Of the dishes from 365: No Repeats that I made, the only stand-outs were Everything-Crusted Chicken Rolls Stuffed with Scallion Cream Cheese and Turkey Cutlet Parmigiano with Warm, Fresh Grape Tomato Topping, Pesto, and Mozzarella. I've been trying to pick meals that sound interesting and flavorful (and that don't include mushrooms, because Matt hates them. There are a shocking number of mushroom-related recipes in this book), and still, most of what I made is unmemorable and easily shrugged off.

Piling layers of food on top of each other does not make the meal taste better, nor does using every ingredient you can grab in thirty minutes.

I'm feeling some sentimental attachment to this book. I think because it's been part of my kitchen's landscape for ten years. Still, the fact that I'm not interested in making any other recipes is a louder argument for tossing it than sentimentality is an argument for keeping it. (Technically, I wanted to make some Aussie Meat Pies, but I'll be damned if I can find the recipe again. My memory knows it's in there, but I can't find it in the index or in scanning the book. Too much work.)

 Sorry, Rachael, but I'm going to have to toss this.

Moving on...

To calm my inner-Bourdain, my next book will be the newly released The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adria. This is a book of recipes that the chefs at elBulli restaurant in Spain (largely regarded as one of the world's great restaurants) would prepare for the staff (aka, family) meal before their shift. It makes me very sad that elBulli recently shut down. Interwoven into my daydreams of moving to Europe was the idea that I'd find a way to have a meal at elBulli while I was there. Oh well.

The Family Meal is a gorgeous book. Every recipe has step-by-step photos. Each recipe provides ingredient quantities to make enough for 2, 6, 20, or 75 people. While I doubt I'll ever cook for 75, I very much appreciate that it's broken down for two people. These are meant to be recipes that can be easily made at home. It makes me giggle that, to Adria, "home recipes" include foams. As I do not have a foamer, I will not be making those. ha! Some of the recipes include meat parts (lamb neck? Really?) or fish that I don't have easy access to. Still, most of the dishes do look accessible and fairly uncomplicated.

I'm excited about this one.

Oh, and I've decided that Baking, by Dorie Greenspan, is officially one of my long-term projects.

365: No Repeats: Grilled Turkey Cutlets with Warm Cranberry Salsa and Sauteed Sweet Potatoes

Grilled Turkey Cutlets with Warm Cranberry Salsa and Sauteed Sweet Potatoes (pg 81) appealed to me, in that it brings the flavors of Thanksgiving together in a manageable timeframe. Once again, the results are underwhelming. Oh, Rachael, you've made such a fool of me all these years.

The sweet potatoes were the only element of this dish that I would make again. Slice 'em thin and cook them in oil until they're browned and cooked through, then stir a bit of butter and parsley in. Delightful.

The turkey cutlets are seasoned with salt and pepper, and a splash of lime juice at the end. Snoozefest.

The "salsa" was weird and unpleasant. In case you ever wondered, cilantro and dried cranberries are not complementary flavors.

To make matters even worse, when eaten all together, this was too salty. That's my fault (or hers, for not providing measurements. Yeah, lets blame her. Mwa ha haa!).

At least the salsa looks pretty.

Conclusion: Just okay. I'm quickly losing interest in this book (much to Matt's eternal relief). The recipes seem to be reliably unimpressive.

I'm also considering adding Dorie Greenspan's book, Baking, to my long-term projects. I find myself flipping through it at least once a week, and then shelving it again out of loyalty to cooking through Ready for Dessert, which I am still very much interested in. As it is a dessert book, Ready for Dessert does not include breakfast-type recipes, which leaves a big gap in my baking needs--a gap that Dorie can easily fill. I'm a little worried that my sidebar will begin to look unwieldy if I add another title to the long-term projects, but I'm guessing no one is studying my conclusion tally with any real gusto, so it probably won't bother anyone but me. Thoughts?

365: No Repeats: Lime-and-Honey Glazed Salmon with Warm Black Bean and Corn Salad

We've returned from our Hill Country adventure. Sadly, Nature foiled our pumpkin patch plan. It poured all night on Saturday, so for some reason that I don't understand, the patch was closed "due to weather" on Sunday. Guess pumpkins don't like mud. We had fun in the mud, though, which is something we couldn't have done in dry old Corpus Christi. Pumpkins or not, we managed to find Fall.

Mud!

I'm trying to scour this cookbook for veggie-laden meals. This is no easy task. Lime-and-Honey Glazed Salmon with Warm Black Bean and Corn Salad (pg. 253) was healthy (spinach, red onion, and red bell pepper are in there too), but it lacked oomph. The subtle flavor of the salmon, marinated for a bit in honey, lime juice, and chili powder, was quite nice. The salad was under-seasoned, though.

Conclusion: Just okay. This wasn't bad, but there was nothing interesting about it.

365: No Repeats: Lamb Patties with Garlic and Mint Over Mediterranean Chopped Salad

The salad portion of Lamb Patties with Garlic and Mint Over Mediterranean Chopped Salad (pg 80) is like any other Greek salad. I assumed that there was lettuce involved, but it turns out there wasn't. I added it anyway, because I'd already bought it.

The patties were ground lamb, parsley, too much cumin and too much steak seasoning. This is a lamb dish for people who don't like lamb. It could have been burger meat, and I'd never know the difference. I like lamb to taste like lamb. This tasted like cumin. Granted, I did forget to buy the mint that was supposed to be mixed in with the meat, and that may have cut the cumin a little, but I doubt it would be enough.

I could only eat one of those patties. Heavy stuff.

Conclusion: Just okay. Not bad, but I don't think that lamb needs a lot of seasoning.

The closest pumpkin patch is 4 hours away, so we're heading out of town for the long weekend, in search of Fall. Be back on Tuesday!

365: No Repeats: Everything-Crusted Chicken Rolls Stuffed with Scallion Cream Cheese

Everything-Crusted Chicken Rolls Stuffed with Scallion Cream Cheese (pg 245) is a take-off on an everything bagel. The idea appealed to my obsession with all things bagel, and it seemed kind of whimsical, so I gave it a go. Chicken coated in poppy, sesame, onion flakes, and kosher salt? How could it be bad? (Actually, the recipe didn't call for the kosher salt. I added it anyway. Anyone who knows anything about an everything bagel knows that big flakes of salt are key. Consider yourself schooled, Rachael.)

The bagel accoutrements are mixed with breadcrumbs (I used panko). Smear scallion cream cheese on the chicken, roll it up, flour it, egg it, breadcrumb it, fry it.

I worried that this wouldn't cook through, since they were thick when rolled up. I filled the pan halfway with oil, and they cooked nicely on the inside by the time they were golden and crispy on the outside.

Conclusion: Matt and I both liked this a lot. It's a tasty, fun take on breadcrumb chicken. Yum.

I think I'm trying to conjure Fall by baking. Weather-wise, it's not working, but it sure is making my mouth happy. I'd bought fresh pecans at the farmer's market a few weeks back, and have been daydreaming about Lebovitz's Brown Sugar-Pecan Shortbread cookies (pg 198 of Ready for Dessert) ever since.

Cookies in photo are smaller than they appear.

Matt thinks they taste like Christmas cookies (as if that's a reason to dismiss them), but that's only because both our mothers make pecan sandies/snowballs for the holidays. My mom calls hers "slugs" and gives them antennae. Ha! These shortbread cookies do not have antennae, but I have to say I like them better than either of our mother's cookies (don't tell!). The texture is more of a solid biscuit than a crumbly cookie. Toasting the pecans amp up their flavor, and the whole thing is buttery and rich. It's a good thing I froze half of the batter, because I could single-handedly eat the whole batch.

Lebovitz suggests dipping the cookies in bittersweet chocolate. You won't hear me say this about many desserts, but I don't think chocolate has any place on these cookies. They're perfect, just as they are.

Conclusion: Love. True love.

Unrest in the Realm of Ray

Things are not going well at all. If these end-results continue in this vein, it will be proof-positive that tastes change over the years. Remember when I commended RR for not being afraid of spice? Nix that. It's hard to muster the interest to blog about lousy recipes, much as I'm sure it's hard to muster the interest to read about them, so I won't linger long on any one disaster.

Oh, and this book's format is driving me INSANE. I jot down the page # of the recipes I plan to cook on my grocery list so I can go back and find them when I'm ready to cook, but the list inevitably finds its way into the trash after the first or second meal, and then I have to scan the index to find the recipe I planned to make. Super annoying. Moving on...

The least offensive dish of the lot, Ricotta Pasta with Zucchini, Garlic, and Mint (pg 171 of 365: No Repeats) tasted even blander than you would expect from the title. I picked this because I had half a container of ricotta that needed a meal to call home. I used the whole pack of mint, but the flavor was still very light. I barely tasted garlic, even though I used extra. Snooze-fest.

Conclusion: Just okay. I'd only make this again if I had all of the ingredients wasting away in my fridge.

Now, welcome to the danger zone.

Creamy Broccoli Soup with Cheddar and Chive Toast (pg 149) was inedible. I think the liquid-to-solid ratio was off, because blend as I might, this never coalesced into a lovely, soupy puree. It was a solid pile of mush with some puddles. This was frozen chopped broccoli. It shouldn't be hard to puree. Ignoring the texture, it didn't even taste good. To finish the soup, you're instructed to add lemon zest and juice to the creamed soup. This gave it an unpleasant sour flavor. Bad. Just bad. All I ate was the toast, which had chives, bacon, and cheddar melted on top.

Conclusion: Yuck. Hated it.

Dinner last night was no better. Involtini all'Enotec'Antica with Gnocchi (pg 166) sounded interesting. Meatball-stuffed radicchio leaves simmer in a thick tomato/wine/beef stock sauce until the meat is cooked through. Polish stuffed cabbage is delicious, so I thought this would be similar, and worth trying. Wrong.

The meatballs tasted like any other meatball you've ever had. Cooking them this way didn't impact the flavor.

Radicchio, in my opinion, needs to be used in small doses, and balanced with a sweeter flavor to counter its bitterness. It's too harsh to be eaten in big chunks at a time.

Matt asked what in the world I'd done to the sauce, because it tasted like Chef Boyardee. He was 100% right.

Conclusion: Hated it. I'm also giving up on gnocchi until I find myself in a restaurant that specializes in it. I've never liked it. Every time I've ordered it, or, in this case, boiled up the store-bought version, I get dense dough-bombs. On Top Chef and assorted other food-related programming, I've heard gnocchi described as light and pillowy. I'll give it the benefit of the doubt that it CAN be good, but I'm not wasting my time on it until I find a version with a reputation of excellence.

To pull myself out of my food doldrums last night, I threw together Very Spicy Baked Pears with Caramel (pg 107) from Ready for Dessert. It was exactly what I needed: easy to make, complex flavors, and all the ingredients were things I had on-hand. All you do is mix melted butter, brown sugar, rum, and a smashed medley of cloves, cinnamon, star anise, and black peppercorns, and bake. This smelled sooooo good when it was baking. Once the pears are cooked, remove them. Pour the spices and drippings into a skillet, add cream, and cook until you have caramel. I've never made caramel before, and I think I could have left it on to thicken up a little more, but I was afraid I'd ruin it. Next time, I'll wait longer.

 I have no problem with the standard Fall spice mix of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, but I was pleased that the omission of nutmeg and the addition of star anise, pepper, and rum changed the flavor enough to make it both familiar and surprising at the same time.

Conclusion: Liked it. It cries out for a scoop of vanilla ice cream, though.

365: No Repeats: Beef Fajita Burgers with Seared Peppers and Onions

Yay! I finally found a recipe that Matt--dare I say it?--liked! Beef Fajita Burgers with Seared Peppers and Onions (pg 25) was a nice twist on a standard burger. The burgers are seasoned with Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, cumin, thyme, hot sauce, and grill seasoning, then topped with a sauteed mixture of red and green bell peppers, onions, jalapeno, and tomatillo salsa.

A tasty mess.

Matt's only complaint was that the burgers were somewhat overcooked. That was my bad. I cooked them as long as RR instructed, then decided to add cheddar. I cut it too thick to melt quickly. Oh well. My only complaint is that the pepper glop absolutely would not stay on the burger. Oh well again.

Conclusion: Liked it. Spicy, with lots of flavor and lots of veg. And it was easy, so I'm sure I'll be making it again and again. It's nice to have something to contribute, burger-wise. Matt is usually the burger-meister of the house.

365: No Repeats: Oregon-Style Pork Chops, etc.

I have absolutely no interest in Twitter, and the extent of my knowledge of it is that each tweet can only be 140 characters. I would be unable to tweet the full name of the recipe I cooked for tonight's dinner. It's 16 characters too long. (Do spaces count? If space count, this comes to 181 characters). It is--ahem-- Oregon-Style Pork Chops with Pinot Noir and Cranberries; Oregon Hash with Wild Mushrooms, Greens, Beets, Hazelnuts, and Blue Cheese; Charred Whole-Grain Bread with Butter and Chives (pg 14). Good lord. Is it really necessary to list every ingredient in the title??

There was way too much going on here. All the flavors zeroed each other out. This really didn't taste like much. Odd. 

Conclusion: Just okay. I wouldn't bother making this one again, especially since I used every pan we own. Though it is an antioxidant powerhouse, between the beets and the kale.

Dessert was Creamy Rice Pudding (pg 138 of Ready for Dessert). You know how people had to stop throwing rice at weddings because pigeons would overeat the dry rice and then die when it expanded in their stomachs? I feel like one of those pigeons. It huuuuuuurts. 

Rum raisins, why have you betrayed me?

Hot out of the pan, this pudding was perfect. Hours later, it had hardened into a concrete block. It's made with arborio rice and slow cooked in milk, sugar, and a vanilla pod and bean. They always say you need to eat risotto as soon as it's done. Lebovitz should have said the same for this. Granted, he does advise to add more milk and warm it up again if it gets too thick. I didn't realize how dense it would be until after I was finished.

Conclusion: The vanilla flavor was lovely, and I liked how each piece of rice retained its own chewy identity. Compiled with the density, though, it was way too heavy. Matt said, "This is the best rice pudding gum I ever had." Sounds just about right. I'm going to have to give this a Just Okay.

365: No Repeats: Mac-n-Cheddar with Broccoli, and Turkey Cutlet Parmigiano, etc.

I cooked Mac-n-Cheddar with Broccoli (pg 4) for dinner last night because I was certain that Charlie would eat it. I was wrong, but it seemed like a sure thing. He likes cheese. He likes pasta. He likes broccoli. He approached this meal with the same sneer that Matt did. It was odd to see on a 1.5 year old. With each lick of the pasta, Charlie looked a little happier, until finally, he seemed to actually be enjoying it. He only ate four pieces of pasta, though, so I don't think that counts.

I asked Matt how he liked it. He shrugged and said "It's mac and cheese." I said, "Yeah, but it's pretty good, right?" He said, "It's not like it's exactly hard to make mac and cheese taste good." Then he asked where the meat was. (He was teasing).

I'd like to note that he went back for seconds. For my part, I thought this was a fine version of mac and cheese. It was more of a cheesy sauce poured onto pasta than a baked type of dish, but it was good. Creamy, some mustard, chili powder, and paprika for kick. Tasted good to me.

This took 38 minutes to cook. Not too far off.

Conclusion: Liked it, even if no one else did. Best mac and cheese ever? No, but it's a perfectly respectable version.

Tonight, I made Turkey Cutlet Parmigiano with Warm, Fresh Grape Tomato Topping, Pesto, and Mozzarella (pg 51). The cutlet preparation was pretty standard: coat in flour, dip in egg, coat in a mixture of breadcrumbs, a load of parmigiano-reggiano (that's another thing I hate to hear her say on tv), and chopped parsley, then cook until it's all golden and crunchy in olive oil.

The thing that I thought made this better--a lot better--than my normal chicken parmesan is the tomato topping. Instead of just using sauce, like I usually do, this has you cook an onion, then add grape tomatoes and white wine and cook it down until the wine has reduced and the tomatoes pop.

There was a smear of pesto on there, too. She says to use store-bought, but I made some myself before I started the clock.

I didn't really notice the pesto, so I wouldn't go out of my way to include it in the future. I lo-o-oved that tomato topping, and using all that cheese in the breading, though. It beats a jar of sauce any day.

Matt thought the breading was missing something. Couldn't say what. I think he's full of it, because apart from adding more cheese than I usually do, and using turkey instead of chicken, this was exactly how I always make breadbrumbed chicken. This is going to be a tough month, in that I expect Matt to be unpleasable. Sigh.

This took me 48 minutes to cook.

Conclusion: I loved it. Again, I note that Matt ate seconds, despite dismissing it. Charlie wanted nothing to do with it. Nothing can compare with the new super-nutritious love of his life: Ritz crackers.