A.D.Letson
TVWBB Fan
Another question. I wanted to make those brandied mushrooms but I don't have access to brandy. (none on hand and budget doesn't cover it) Could they be made without it or is there something else that could be substituted?
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Grilling for Anniversary Party
- Thread starter A.D.Letson
- Start date
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
A small bottle (like a half-pint) of cheap E&J is less than $3 usually and a little airplane bottle (most liquor stores carry them) are often $1-2.
Wipe the mushrooms with a damp (well rung-out) paper or kitchen towel to clean them. Trim the bottoms of the stems if dry then cut the mushrooms in half or, if large, thirds. (Keeping the mushrooms large will allow them to stay large and juicy.)
If you heat 3 T or so of olive oil in a pan on med-high you can add 3-4 T of unsalted butter to that and let it melt in. When the foam subsides a little add the mushrooms. (Mixing olive oil and the butter raises the smoke-point of the mix and allows you to cook at a higher temp without having to attend the pan too much and gives you flavors from both.) Toss the mushrooms well with the oil-butter mix, add a good pinch of salt and a grind of the peppermill (I like green pepper here) and cook, stirring occasionally till the mushrooms begin to release their juices and are very moist. I like to add about 1 t dry thyme (or 1 T fresh) to the pan at the beginning because thyme goes so well with mushrooms.
(Note: When you first toss the mushrooms into the pan and mix them with the fats they will likely absorb all the fat and the pan will look dry. No worries. As the mushrooms start to cook they will release the fat, then their juices.)
When the mushrooms have released some juices and are the pan contents are very moist you can either a) raise the heat to high, cook off the moisture till the mushrooms brown then add the brandy and/or other liquid or b) add the brandy or other liquid at this point and reduce the liquids till the whole pan is saucy; I often do the latter for use as a steak topping. For that, add the liquid(s), allow the alcohol to burn off (if using brandy or cognac I ignite it once in the pan) reduce to 50% of its original volume, adjust salt--done. A mince of fresh parsley can be added just before serving.
Brandy (even just a small airplane bottle), white wine (about 1/2 c), red or white balsamic vinegar (about 1/4 c), chicken stock (about 1/4 c), Worcestershire (1-2 T), Dijon (1 T) are a few of the liquid you can use--alone or in combination. (If using a combo don't go too much more than a T or 2 over a half-cup total.) To add lots of richness you can cut up about a half-stick of cold unsalted butter into 1/2" cubes. When you pull the pan from the heat stab one cube with a fork and swirl it vigorously in the pan. As soon as it melts off the fork stab another and repeat. If you mix vigorously the butter with the pan's liquids the butter will emulsify them as it slowly melts (if at any time the butter the contents gets too cool, return the pan to the heat for a minute, stirring constantly, then remove and continue with the butter additions). The sauce can be kept in a pre-heated coffee Thermos or can be cooled, fridged, then reheated gently for use--use low heat and whisk frequently with a fork so as not to allow the emulsion to break: do not boil.
Wipe the mushrooms with a damp (well rung-out) paper or kitchen towel to clean them. Trim the bottoms of the stems if dry then cut the mushrooms in half or, if large, thirds. (Keeping the mushrooms large will allow them to stay large and juicy.)
If you heat 3 T or so of olive oil in a pan on med-high you can add 3-4 T of unsalted butter to that and let it melt in. When the foam subsides a little add the mushrooms. (Mixing olive oil and the butter raises the smoke-point of the mix and allows you to cook at a higher temp without having to attend the pan too much and gives you flavors from both.) Toss the mushrooms well with the oil-butter mix, add a good pinch of salt and a grind of the peppermill (I like green pepper here) and cook, stirring occasionally till the mushrooms begin to release their juices and are very moist. I like to add about 1 t dry thyme (or 1 T fresh) to the pan at the beginning because thyme goes so well with mushrooms.
(Note: When you first toss the mushrooms into the pan and mix them with the fats they will likely absorb all the fat and the pan will look dry. No worries. As the mushrooms start to cook they will release the fat, then their juices.)
When the mushrooms have released some juices and are the pan contents are very moist you can either a) raise the heat to high, cook off the moisture till the mushrooms brown then add the brandy and/or other liquid or b) add the brandy or other liquid at this point and reduce the liquids till the whole pan is saucy; I often do the latter for use as a steak topping. For that, add the liquid(s), allow the alcohol to burn off (if using brandy or cognac I ignite it once in the pan) reduce to 50% of its original volume, adjust salt--done. A mince of fresh parsley can be added just before serving.
Brandy (even just a small airplane bottle), white wine (about 1/2 c), red or white balsamic vinegar (about 1/4 c), chicken stock (about 1/4 c), Worcestershire (1-2 T), Dijon (1 T) are a few of the liquid you can use--alone or in combination. (If using a combo don't go too much more than a T or 2 over a half-cup total.) To add lots of richness you can cut up about a half-stick of cold unsalted butter into 1/2" cubes. When you pull the pan from the heat stab one cube with a fork and swirl it vigorously in the pan. As soon as it melts off the fork stab another and repeat. If you mix vigorously the butter with the pan's liquids the butter will emulsify them as it slowly melts (if at any time the butter the contents gets too cool, return the pan to the heat for a minute, stirring constantly, then remove and continue with the butter additions). The sauce can be kept in a pre-heated coffee Thermos or can be cooled, fridged, then reheated gently for use--use low heat and whisk frequently with a fork so as not to allow the emulsion to break: do not boil.
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Ok quick question. The only left up in the air is the salad. I have some great tomatoes I got from my boss out of his garden and I was requested to grill some peppers and onions so I was hoping to make that all into a salad. What dressing, what else to put in? When you say a light vinegar and oil dressing, what exactly do you mean? I'm a salad novice. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Probably that it is very lightly applied.
Grill the onions till they are tender. The peppers can be grilled till just tender, or you can grill till the skins are charred, then put them in a bowl tightly covered with plastic to steam in residual heat for 30 min, then remove the skins. Either way, you can leave the peppers halved or you can slice into strips. Imo, grilled vegs are best served either hot or, in the case of a salad or antipasto, at room temp. (You can do them ahead of time but allow to come to room temp for serving.)
You can make a couscous salad like Adam and Mark have mentioned with the grilled vegs plus the tomatoes or you can simply arrange the onions and peppers and chunked tomatoes on a platter and drizzle with evoo and balsamic. A delicious dressing for any or all of these vegs is basil oil (made with fresh basil and good evoo).
Alternatively, on a large platter you can arrange the tomatoes, grilled onions and grilled peppers on 1/2 to 3/4 of the platter. Allow them to come to room temp (the tomatoes should already be roome temp--never store tomatoes in a fridge); in a large bowl dump pre-washed baby greens and romaine leaves, breaking up the romaine into bite-size pieces as you go. Toss to mix, sprinkle with salt and pepper, toss, then toss with a simple vinaigrette (see below). Don't overdress. Mound the dressed greens on the empty portion of the platter, drizzle the tomatoes and grilled vegs with basil oil, scatter lemon wedges here and there for garnish; serve immediately. Or, if plating in the kitchen and serving individual plates as I usually do, pile the dressed greens on half the plate and the basil oil-drizzled vegs cascading off the greens toward the other side. A couple lemon wedges and a small pile of shaved parmesan could be a garnish that guests could move to top their greens or vegs or the whole plate's ingredients can be tossed together by each diner.
For a simple vinaigrette: In a small bowl put 1 T of minced shallot or Vidalia onion, 1/2 small clove minced or pressed garlic, a pinch of salt, 2 t Dijon, a pinch of sugar or two, and a turn of the peppermill. Mix very well with a fork then mix in about 1/4 c balsamic. Whisking constantly with the fork add a few drops of evoo, slowly, then a few drops more. Continue to add evoo, constantly whisking so that it emulsifies, till you've added about 1/2 c, taste, then whisk in up to 1/4 c more oil if desired. Dress the greens lightly with this dressing and do so immediately before serving. Guests can take a pile of greens then to them with the basil-oiled tomatoes and grilled vegs.
For basil oil: Blanch a handful of basil in boiling water for 10 seconds. Remove the basil and immediately plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain very well then roll the leaves in paper towels and press lightly to extract water. Puree with about 3/4 c evoo in a blender. Pour into a jar, cover, and fridge for a day. The oil can be used as is (bring to room temp first) or can be strained though a fine sieve or through cheesecloth. After drizzling on vegs, lightly salt them as the oil does not contain salt. Store excess in the fridge.
Grill the onions till they are tender. The peppers can be grilled till just tender, or you can grill till the skins are charred, then put them in a bowl tightly covered with plastic to steam in residual heat for 30 min, then remove the skins. Either way, you can leave the peppers halved or you can slice into strips. Imo, grilled vegs are best served either hot or, in the case of a salad or antipasto, at room temp. (You can do them ahead of time but allow to come to room temp for serving.)
You can make a couscous salad like Adam and Mark have mentioned with the grilled vegs plus the tomatoes or you can simply arrange the onions and peppers and chunked tomatoes on a platter and drizzle with evoo and balsamic. A delicious dressing for any or all of these vegs is basil oil (made with fresh basil and good evoo).
Alternatively, on a large platter you can arrange the tomatoes, grilled onions and grilled peppers on 1/2 to 3/4 of the platter. Allow them to come to room temp (the tomatoes should already be roome temp--never store tomatoes in a fridge); in a large bowl dump pre-washed baby greens and romaine leaves, breaking up the romaine into bite-size pieces as you go. Toss to mix, sprinkle with salt and pepper, toss, then toss with a simple vinaigrette (see below). Don't overdress. Mound the dressed greens on the empty portion of the platter, drizzle the tomatoes and grilled vegs with basil oil, scatter lemon wedges here and there for garnish; serve immediately. Or, if plating in the kitchen and serving individual plates as I usually do, pile the dressed greens on half the plate and the basil oil-drizzled vegs cascading off the greens toward the other side. A couple lemon wedges and a small pile of shaved parmesan could be a garnish that guests could move to top their greens or vegs or the whole plate's ingredients can be tossed together by each diner.
For a simple vinaigrette: In a small bowl put 1 T of minced shallot or Vidalia onion, 1/2 small clove minced or pressed garlic, a pinch of salt, 2 t Dijon, a pinch of sugar or two, and a turn of the peppermill. Mix very well with a fork then mix in about 1/4 c balsamic. Whisking constantly with the fork add a few drops of evoo, slowly, then a few drops more. Continue to add evoo, constantly whisking so that it emulsifies, till you've added about 1/2 c, taste, then whisk in up to 1/4 c more oil if desired. Dress the greens lightly with this dressing and do so immediately before serving. Guests can take a pile of greens then to them with the basil-oiled tomatoes and grilled vegs.
For basil oil: Blanch a handful of basil in boiling water for 10 seconds. Remove the basil and immediately plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain very well then roll the leaves in paper towels and press lightly to extract water. Puree with about 3/4 c evoo in a blender. Pour into a jar, cover, and fridge for a day. The oil can be used as is (bring to room temp first) or can be strained though a fine sieve or through cheesecloth. After drizzling on vegs, lightly salt them as the oil does not contain salt. Store excess in the fridge.
A.D.Letson
TVWBB Fan
Well, the party is over, I am stuffed and everybody seemed to like it. I wanted to give an update since so many of you did a lot to help me out.
In an honest and critical review, I would give the whole thing a 4.5/10. The shrimp appetizers went over very well. Didn't get people to the table like I had hoped but it did give them something to munch on while I tried to get everything done. I brined them, marinated them in Kevin's recipe, and then skewered them on half bamboo skewers. Grilled them over high and finished with the sauce made from the marinade.
The salad got tossed on a back burner as I had not anticipated the amount of time other things would take. Turned into lettuce, tomatos, cucumbers, grilled onions and whatever dressing you could dig out of the fridge. Not the highlight of the meal, but the tomatoes were awesome.
The roasted red pepper potatoes were very good, although I did not "color" them well as they turned out to look like sweet potatoes and so I had to answer that question at least 20 times. This is a recipe I will make again, although I would like to try doing the peppers on the grill. I roasted these in the oven and while they had a good sweet taste, very little char or "roasted" taste came through. Don't know though. Maybe that's how they're supposed to be.
I ended up buying a whole ribeye from Sam's and slicing the steaks myself. It was worth all the trouble of this party just to get to buy and play with that huge hunk of meat. I sliced each steak 1 1/2 inches thick, grilled, and sliced to serve. This is a place where I really disappointed myself because they were underseasoned. However, the mustard cream that Kevin recommended was wonderful and paired well with the steak. I would recommend anybody try it with a heavy meat.
The grilled asparagus came out well. Marinated it in dijon and evoo. First time to have grilled asparagus and I've got to say I really liked it. A lot of times I have a tough time getting green veggies down, but this was great. Good grill flavor, the dijon shined through, and everybody really liked it.
I also baked some bought yeast rolls and topped them with a maple cinnamon butter (I could bathe in this stuff).
Looking back, I really wish I could have tried the mushrooms on the steak and could have given more attention to the salad. But you live and you learn. This night really made me appreciate those on here who really do cater. It is hard work and takes a lot of skill to try to coordinate. I really enjoyed it though and think that if God ever opens the door, I would like to do some catering, when I get some more experience that is. Thanks everybody, especially you K Kruger.
In an honest and critical review, I would give the whole thing a 4.5/10. The shrimp appetizers went over very well. Didn't get people to the table like I had hoped but it did give them something to munch on while I tried to get everything done. I brined them, marinated them in Kevin's recipe, and then skewered them on half bamboo skewers. Grilled them over high and finished with the sauce made from the marinade.
The salad got tossed on a back burner as I had not anticipated the amount of time other things would take. Turned into lettuce, tomatos, cucumbers, grilled onions and whatever dressing you could dig out of the fridge. Not the highlight of the meal, but the tomatoes were awesome.
The roasted red pepper potatoes were very good, although I did not "color" them well as they turned out to look like sweet potatoes and so I had to answer that question at least 20 times. This is a recipe I will make again, although I would like to try doing the peppers on the grill. I roasted these in the oven and while they had a good sweet taste, very little char or "roasted" taste came through. Don't know though. Maybe that's how they're supposed to be.
I ended up buying a whole ribeye from Sam's and slicing the steaks myself. It was worth all the trouble of this party just to get to buy and play with that huge hunk of meat. I sliced each steak 1 1/2 inches thick, grilled, and sliced to serve. This is a place where I really disappointed myself because they were underseasoned. However, the mustard cream that Kevin recommended was wonderful and paired well with the steak. I would recommend anybody try it with a heavy meat.
The grilled asparagus came out well. Marinated it in dijon and evoo. First time to have grilled asparagus and I've got to say I really liked it. A lot of times I have a tough time getting green veggies down, but this was great. Good grill flavor, the dijon shined through, and everybody really liked it.
I also baked some bought yeast rolls and topped them with a maple cinnamon butter (I could bathe in this stuff).
Looking back, I really wish I could have tried the mushrooms on the steak and could have given more attention to the salad. But you live and you learn. This night really made me appreciate those on here who really do cater. It is hard work and takes a lot of skill to try to coordinate. I really enjoyed it though and think that if God ever opens the door, I would like to do some catering, when I get some more experience that is. Thanks everybody, especially you K Kruger.
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
A.D.--
My apologies for not being more timely with my responses above. I failed to re-read your first post and thought the party was in another week or two. It sounds like it went very well, regardless. I imagine your guests would give it a higher score than you did.
When you do these sorts of things often you build a repertoire of ideas and, as important, a repertoire of back-up plans. Awesome tomatoes can alone make a salad very good even if time runs out and one has to resort to a bottled dressing or simply a drizzle of good oil and vinegar. I keep a supply of high quality oils and vinegars on hand for just these occasions. If time runs out, simply plattering the salad ingredients in piles or rows or tossing them together in a bowl, then drizzling with really good oil and vin might be all I have time for but might be all that is needed. Shreds of fresh basil leaves or a mince of parsley tossed in can be that extra touch that makes it special as can filling little bowls with specialty salts and placing them on the table for guests to sprinkle on their salads as desired. Maldon, sel de Guerande, Hawaiian red, and a little bowl of homemade lemon-pepper can make the salad presentation seem planned and not a last-minute ran-out-of-time thing and the salts and lemon-pepper can be left out for seasoning the main meat course as well, if desired.
I'm glad you liked the shrimp and the mustard sauce for the beef. That aspargus treatment is a favorite.
Roasted reds are great grilled and do try that. If you take them to the very charred stage (which you can also do by roasting in an oven then running the skin side under the broiler, or do start-to-finish in a direct flame from a gas burner) you will get charred flavor notes. The grill adds a smoke dimension that works very well with potatoes. If the color was too on the pale side you can raise the quantity of peppers.
It does sound like you really enjoyed it. When you cook day-to-day think of what you are doing in terms of a party (whether for 4 people or 44); add little touches (or at least think of them)--little touches that might elevate the dish to another level--either in content or by presentation. You might surprise yourself with how many things you're able to come up with and those ideas will stay with you when you are planning another party.
Since this thread has been on my mind here and there since its inception I did a few of the things discussed for a party of 10 last evening. I made three of the chilled soups (total time to make all three, about 45 minutes) the previous day: the ajo blanco, the tomato-watermelon, and the cuke-mint (to which I added a little dried dill to the fresh mint, some lime juice, a hunk of Vidalia, and a whole ripe avocado). I made smaller quantities of each and served them in little styro espresso cups while everyone was milling around in the house and out on the porch. First, though, I put them in different glasses so I could show those following this thread what they looked like plated thus.
Ajo blanco in a martini glass garnished with diced peeled Grann Smith apple and a quartered peeled green grape: here.
Tomato-watermelon with a basil chiffonade garnish in a wine glass: here.
Cucumber with mint, dill and avocado in a rocks glass with diced cuke and red bell pepper shreds garnish: here.
A pic of the little cups as I was garnishing them on the counter: here.
I got those cups at the local supermarket. They hold 1.25 oz. For something better nice shot glasses are a better choice but for informal/casual/who-cares-as-long-as-it's-good these little styro cups work great.
For Adam:
I also made couscous salad and also served it informally, as a first course, and as people were milling around. Some ate at the table on the porch, some at the kitchen island while chatting with me, a few carted their plates back and forth as they maintained conversations in both places.
For the salad I cooked the couscous in salted chicken stock hit with a dose of Aleppo pepper and then spread it on a sheet pan to cool; then I covered it lightly with plastic and fridged it.
Jane Cherry called mid-afternoon and mentioned she like cumin vinaigrette with couscous salad. Seemed like a good idea to me. I cut up several ripe red tomatoes in large chunks, peeled and seeded a few cukes, minced some parsley, then made a toasted cumin-coriander vinaigrette out of toasted and ground cumin and coriander seeds, Aleppo, a little granulated garlic, white pepper, salt, Dijon, fresh o.j., pineapple vinegar and evoo. I broke up the couscous well with my fingers, tossed it with the tom and cuke chunks, tossed that with the parsley and the dressing, then plated it on a few baby lettuce leaves (green and purple). I garnished with slices of ripe avocado, a dice of ripe yellow tomato and batons of fried queso de freir, a Mexican cheese made for frying (no breading needed, it can be fried directly in hot oil, browns nicely and gets light in texture, and tastes not unlike typical queso fresco). I have one not-so-great pic here. You can see the yellow tomato dice. Just above it is the slices of avocado (somewhat hard to see as they cascade away from the camera). To the right of the yellow tom, in the center of the plate topping the salad, you can see the brown of the fried cheese (if not the distinct pieces). I used 5-6 on a plate, the cheese being originally cut into 1"x1/4"x1/4" before frying. I will do it precisely this way again; very tasty and very well-received.
Dinner was a speed-cooked brisket (12-lb packer lightly trimmed to ~11 lbs, cooked ~330, give or take 15 degrees here and there; about 4.5 hours cook time) sliced and served over smoky mashed potatoes (Yukon Golds cooked in salted water with bay leaves and a couple whole anchos, finely diced onion cooked in a generous quantity of olive oil in a saute pan on the side, minced garlic and pimenton (smoked Spanish paprika) added to the onions for the least minute, potatoes pressed through a ricer then the onion mix stirred in with some potato cooking water, some evoo, and several turns of the white peppermill--based on a recipe from Anya von Bremzen). I opted not to do a side veg as the salad was substantial but served a sauce for the brisket made from caramelized onion, roasted pineapple, ancho and guajillo chilies, a little tomato, garlic, o.j., thyme, honey, and lots of the meat juices. The brisket I'd rubbed in ground coffee beans, NM chile, garlic, onion, thyme, marjoram, sage, celery seed, clove, nutmeg and white pepper.
I slice upside-down, the fatcap up. The brisket was very moist, with very good flavor from the rub and smoke (hickory), and worked very well with the potatoes, here.
My apologies for not being more timely with my responses above. I failed to re-read your first post and thought the party was in another week or two. It sounds like it went very well, regardless. I imagine your guests would give it a higher score than you did.
When you do these sorts of things often you build a repertoire of ideas and, as important, a repertoire of back-up plans. Awesome tomatoes can alone make a salad very good even if time runs out and one has to resort to a bottled dressing or simply a drizzle of good oil and vinegar. I keep a supply of high quality oils and vinegars on hand for just these occasions. If time runs out, simply plattering the salad ingredients in piles or rows or tossing them together in a bowl, then drizzling with really good oil and vin might be all I have time for but might be all that is needed. Shreds of fresh basil leaves or a mince of parsley tossed in can be that extra touch that makes it special as can filling little bowls with specialty salts and placing them on the table for guests to sprinkle on their salads as desired. Maldon, sel de Guerande, Hawaiian red, and a little bowl of homemade lemon-pepper can make the salad presentation seem planned and not a last-minute ran-out-of-time thing and the salts and lemon-pepper can be left out for seasoning the main meat course as well, if desired.
I'm glad you liked the shrimp and the mustard sauce for the beef. That aspargus treatment is a favorite.
Roasted reds are great grilled and do try that. If you take them to the very charred stage (which you can also do by roasting in an oven then running the skin side under the broiler, or do start-to-finish in a direct flame from a gas burner) you will get charred flavor notes. The grill adds a smoke dimension that works very well with potatoes. If the color was too on the pale side you can raise the quantity of peppers.
It does sound like you really enjoyed it. When you cook day-to-day think of what you are doing in terms of a party (whether for 4 people or 44); add little touches (or at least think of them)--little touches that might elevate the dish to another level--either in content or by presentation. You might surprise yourself with how many things you're able to come up with and those ideas will stay with you when you are planning another party.
Since this thread has been on my mind here and there since its inception I did a few of the things discussed for a party of 10 last evening. I made three of the chilled soups (total time to make all three, about 45 minutes) the previous day: the ajo blanco, the tomato-watermelon, and the cuke-mint (to which I added a little dried dill to the fresh mint, some lime juice, a hunk of Vidalia, and a whole ripe avocado). I made smaller quantities of each and served them in little styro espresso cups while everyone was milling around in the house and out on the porch. First, though, I put them in different glasses so I could show those following this thread what they looked like plated thus.
Ajo blanco in a martini glass garnished with diced peeled Grann Smith apple and a quartered peeled green grape: here.
Tomato-watermelon with a basil chiffonade garnish in a wine glass: here.
Cucumber with mint, dill and avocado in a rocks glass with diced cuke and red bell pepper shreds garnish: here.
A pic of the little cups as I was garnishing them on the counter: here.
I got those cups at the local supermarket. They hold 1.25 oz. For something better nice shot glasses are a better choice but for informal/casual/who-cares-as-long-as-it's-good these little styro cups work great.
For Adam:
I also made couscous salad and also served it informally, as a first course, and as people were milling around. Some ate at the table on the porch, some at the kitchen island while chatting with me, a few carted their plates back and forth as they maintained conversations in both places.
For the salad I cooked the couscous in salted chicken stock hit with a dose of Aleppo pepper and then spread it on a sheet pan to cool; then I covered it lightly with plastic and fridged it.
Jane Cherry called mid-afternoon and mentioned she like cumin vinaigrette with couscous salad. Seemed like a good idea to me. I cut up several ripe red tomatoes in large chunks, peeled and seeded a few cukes, minced some parsley, then made a toasted cumin-coriander vinaigrette out of toasted and ground cumin and coriander seeds, Aleppo, a little granulated garlic, white pepper, salt, Dijon, fresh o.j., pineapple vinegar and evoo. I broke up the couscous well with my fingers, tossed it with the tom and cuke chunks, tossed that with the parsley and the dressing, then plated it on a few baby lettuce leaves (green and purple). I garnished with slices of ripe avocado, a dice of ripe yellow tomato and batons of fried queso de freir, a Mexican cheese made for frying (no breading needed, it can be fried directly in hot oil, browns nicely and gets light in texture, and tastes not unlike typical queso fresco). I have one not-so-great pic here. You can see the yellow tomato dice. Just above it is the slices of avocado (somewhat hard to see as they cascade away from the camera). To the right of the yellow tom, in the center of the plate topping the salad, you can see the brown of the fried cheese (if not the distinct pieces). I used 5-6 on a plate, the cheese being originally cut into 1"x1/4"x1/4" before frying. I will do it precisely this way again; very tasty and very well-received.
Dinner was a speed-cooked brisket (12-lb packer lightly trimmed to ~11 lbs, cooked ~330, give or take 15 degrees here and there; about 4.5 hours cook time) sliced and served over smoky mashed potatoes (Yukon Golds cooked in salted water with bay leaves and a couple whole anchos, finely diced onion cooked in a generous quantity of olive oil in a saute pan on the side, minced garlic and pimenton (smoked Spanish paprika) added to the onions for the least minute, potatoes pressed through a ricer then the onion mix stirred in with some potato cooking water, some evoo, and several turns of the white peppermill--based on a recipe from Anya von Bremzen). I opted not to do a side veg as the salad was substantial but served a sauce for the brisket made from caramelized onion, roasted pineapple, ancho and guajillo chilies, a little tomato, garlic, o.j., thyme, honey, and lots of the meat juices. The brisket I'd rubbed in ground coffee beans, NM chile, garlic, onion, thyme, marjoram, sage, celery seed, clove, nutmeg and white pepper.
I slice upside-down, the fatcap up. The brisket was very moist, with very good flavor from the rub and smoke (hickory), and worked very well with the potatoes, here.
A.D.Letson
TVWBB Fan
Thanks for all the tips. I gotta try that tomato watermelon soup before those two go out of season. That meal looks awesome and also thanks for your kind words. I am still in amazement that you can cook a brisket in 4.5 hours and it come out good. Innovative as well as convenient.
Kevin:
I tried the marinated shrimp as you have described - EXCELLENT!! This was an appetizer with some simple grilled halibut - EVOO, S&P, and a some garlic. Halibut was fresh this morning. Grilled asparagus and plain rice with a white sauce rounded out the meal. Washed it down with a little Chardonnay... Heard a rumour of some coconut cream pie too!
I tried the marinated shrimp as you have described - EXCELLENT!! This was an appetizer with some simple grilled halibut - EVOO, S&P, and a some garlic. Halibut was fresh this morning. Grilled asparagus and plain rice with a white sauce rounded out the meal. Washed it down with a little Chardonnay... Heard a rumour of some coconut cream pie too!