Braisin' Hussy

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Eggnog
Alton Brown

4 eggs, separated
1/3 cup sugar plus another 1 Tbsp
2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
3 oz bourbon
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color (using a stand mixer, hand mixer, or whisk). Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Add the milk, cream, bourbon and nutmeg and stir to combine.

Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks. With the mixer still running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve. (Will probably need to be stirred a bit before pouring.)

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Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Twice-Baked Potato
Cook's Illustrated, modified by Sarah

1 russet potato (about 8 oz.), scrubbed, dried, poked a few times with a fork, and rubbed lightly with vegetable oil
1 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 1/4 cup)
2 Tbsp sour cream
2 Tbsp buttermilk
1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
1 medium scallion, sliced thin
Salt and pepper, to taste

Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Bake potato for 1 hour. Cool potato for 10 minutes on a wire rack.

Cut potato in half and scoop out the innards into a bowl. Put the potato skins back in the oven. Meanwhile, mash potato flesh with fork until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients, until well combined.

Remove shells from oven. Spoon mixture into crisped shells, mounding slightly at the center, and return to oven. Bake until spotty brown and crisp on top, 10 to 15 minutes. (If you're impatient, you can broil them instead.)

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Macerated Oranges
The Art of Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan

6 oranges (4 to slice, 2 to juice)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Zest of 1 lemon, grated
4 Tbsp sugar

Peel 4 of the oranges with a very sharp knife. Remove all the white spongy pulp and the thin skin beneath. Cut the oranges horizontally into thin slices about 1/4-inch thick, removing any seeds. Put slices in shallow serving bowl. Add lemon rind, sugar, and lemon and orange juices. Carefully turn over the orange slices a few times.

Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or even overnight. Serve chilled, turning the slices just before serving.

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Roasted Cauliflower

1 head of cauliflower (about 1.5 pounds), separated into florets, rinsed and dried
Olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat oven to 475. Toss the cauliflower with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place in a baking dish or roasting pan. Roast for 30-40 minutes, stirring every ten minutes, until dark and crispy.

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Basic Vanilla Ice Cream

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Place all ingredients in a large bowl. Stir well, until sugar is dissolved. Turn on the ice cream maker and pour in the mixture. Freeze according to machine directions. Move to container and place in freezer for at least 3 hours.

(You can substitute half and half, whole milk or reduced-fat milk for some or all of the cream. It just won't be as creamy.)

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Friday, December 08, 2006

Has anyone seen Ronzoni Oven Ready Lasagna no-boil noodles lately? I'm trying to find them before Sunday. I've been to Albertson's, Safeway, PW Market, and Whole Foods and NO PLACE HAS THEM. It's super-frustrating. I really like the taste and texture of those noodles! I'll try Nob Hill tomorrow, and if they don't have them, I give up. I'll use... I don't know, some other brand.

So my lasagna on Sunday may have a subpar texture. But it will have awesome ricotta. I went to Whole Foods and got some of their fresh stuff- it is incredibly tasty. I had no idea that simple ricotta could taste so good!

I'm high-temp roasting some cauliflower right now. I was at Kumud Grocery yesterday and the heads were selling for 99 cents apiece. I couldn't resist. Instead of separating it into florets, I cut it into wedges. We'll see if that's better or worse.

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Monday, December 04, 2006

Rob and I made ice cream Saturday night. Just plain vanilla. It's pretty decent. I think it's too fatty, personally- it made my teeth squeak against each other, plus I found the occasional small globule of fat. My roommates think I'm crazy, of course. I am interested in trying it with half-and-half instead of heavy cream.

Behold, the Master List! This is what I spent the rest of Saturday doing. Ryan, would it be possible to put that link in the sidebar? I think we can delete About Me/Links... if I haven't done anything with those in three years, I probably won't ever.

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