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Coconut macaroons with dark chocolate ganache
Macaroons have always been one of my favorite cookies, although choosing a macaroon recipe can be difficult. It seems that almost every version offers a different approach. Simply compare any two macaroon recipes, and you’re likely to discover two different methods, as well as two noticeably different sets of ingredients. Many recipes require working with meringue — which doesn’t bother me — but I’ve discovered that maybe it’s not entirely necessary. When I was working the pastry station at the Martini House, our macaroon recipe was surprisingly simple, yet the results were [... read more ...]
Making guacamole has always struck me as an introspective exercise. In essence, it’s just a matter of combining some simple ingredients, yet the process itself is a series of rudimentary cooking chores — nothing all that difficult — but something that always invokes memories of my early days in the kitchen. To wit, my recipe for guacamole was adapted from my first real cooking job, which was a short order position in Los Angeles. That job was the source of lots of memories in its own right.
Whenever I prepare guacamole, I’ll instinctively start with the onion, since [... read more ...]
I bought five pounds of strawberries last week because they were on sale and they looked terrific. As is typical for me, I didn’t really have much of a plan for them — I figured that I would possibly make strawberry shortcake or something along those lines. Long story short, I got busy with work and the strawberry shortcake idea never really materialized. Ah well, there will be plenty more opportunities this summer.
In the meantime, I had five pounds of strawberries in the fridge that were threatening to turn. My recourse in this situation is always very [... read more ...]
My remoulade epiphany occurred when I was living in New Orleans, studying Creole cooking and doing my best to eat five square meals per day. My journey as a cook had brought me to K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen in the French Quarter, where I ate more deep fried oysters and shrimp than most people will ever see in their lifetime. Sounds pretty dreamy, right? Snacking on an endless supply of oysters and shrimp during the lulls in the kitchen. But these were the spoils of the fry station, which was otherwise the worst job in the house.
Let’s journey back to 1968 with a look at “Gourmet Wine Cooking: the Easy Way,” which was published by the Wine Advisory Board. First off, very nice use of the Peignot font, which I have always called “Mary Tyler Moore,” for those who remember the television series. Upon closer inspection, notice the bottle of non-vintage California Vin Rosé, a “Pink Dinner Wine,” in the background. And wait, is that chicken? No, it’s duck, but are those canned peaches and pears? Why, yes they are!
I’m going to be quite honest: making ice cream at home, even with a machine, is really kind of a pain. While the ingredients and the techniques themselves are relatively simple, the planning itself is the real nuisance. The fact that you have to cook it, chill it, spin it, and then freeze it all seems rather daunting for those of us who prefer instant gratification. The fact is, all of this chilling and freezing can require several hours, and so even though the process itself becomes rather passive, it always seems to drag out, literally, for two days.
[... read more ...]
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