Cookbooks tell you a lot about the tastes of the cookbook author, and the standard go-tos in their kitchen that they build into every recipe. For example, the guy who runs cast iron keto is very fond of spicy. He likes to stick jalepenos in just about everything. He also likes cheesy foods, thing that are pretty dense and heavy on the stomach. Which makes great comfort food when it's cold outside, but I will definitely be cooking more of his recipes in the winter than in the summer.
For the summer, well, I'm working on learning to cook in the instant pot. It's a steep learning curve, and being at the bottom of the learning curve is frustrating when I'm used to being near the top. You're not going to be seeing "This awesome instant pot creation!" recipes here any time soon, unless I can figure out why my the recipe swears eggs cook in 4 minutes at high pressure, but after 14 minutes at high pressure, I finally just finished the eggs off in the microwave.
So far, the score when following directions is: 2 failures (how did that turn out both mush and charred?) and 2 mediocre meals. Fortunately, this is why G-d gave us a Mexican restaurant in town, and gave me a patient husband with a good sense of humour.
Meanwhile, I continue to work on tweaking things for improvement. When delving into "Why are the keto rolls slightly bitter, when the fathead dough pizza crust I make isn't?" The answer seems to be that the standard baking powder, when used in that quantity, is to blame, and I should switch to an aluminum-free baking powder.
So I headed to the pantry to very what baking powder I had, and that I could just mix up a stopgap batch from baking soda and cream of tartar. (I can.) But I also found a bag tucked away behind the baking soda, fresh from Bob's Red Mill, of double-acting aluminum-free baking powder. Peter strikes again! When reorganizing the pantry, he must have noted that I'm getting low, and gotten a replacement while ordering more (requested) almond flour. I love my husband, I do!
As for the way my spinach & artichoke-heart dip is rather... robust, it turns out I'm using frozen spinach, which I should have realized isn't a one-for-one replacement for fresh. So the dip as it's called for has a lot more water to make it gloopey, and I have a lot more veg to make it stand up.
Next variations to include in the experiment: close examination of the photo on site indicates that the recipe creator might have used red onion while merely calling for onion, and the local supermarket's awesome spinach dip also includes chopped water chestnut for crunch. Those might not stand up to the heat of cooking, but I bet a handful of pine nuts would...
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Wednesday, January 2, 2019
Scalloped turnips, iteration 1
This post is on an in-process dish, so I can find the notes the next time I'm making it. Usually, these are scribbled on a post-it stuck next to the recipe, and then once I've made a couple more iterations and firmed up the final recipe, written in the cookbook in pen. So, cook at your own risk. :-)
Scalloped Turnips
3 large turnips
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp butter for sauteeing
3 Tbsp butter, cut in 1/4 Tbsp blocks or smaller, as preferred
1 tbsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp mesquite smoked salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup heavy (whipping) cream
8 oz (1 block) cream cheese
First, peel & thinly slice the turnips. (I used the thinnest setting on the mandoline.) You may have to trim a little bit off the edge of the turnips so they fit in the mandoline for slicing. Next time, try rinsing the turnips & draining after slicing, to cut down on the heavily aromatic turnip smell. This is a great dish as is, but with the smell of turnips filling the kitchen, there's no way to fool yourself into thinking this is a scalloped potato replacement. When done, preheat oven to 350 F.
Second, dice onion. Heat 10 inch cast iron skillet on stove, add a little butter/grease/oil, and saute the onions, thyme, salt, and black pepper. When the onions are translucent and starting to brown, add garlic, stir for 30 seconds, then remove from heat and transfer onions & garlic to bowl.
Third, in the microwave, soften cream cheese & heat cream, then whisk together with smoked salt and cayenne pepper. Set aside.
Fourth, in the now-cooling cast iron, place turnip slices in a layer, careful not to burn your fingertips. Sprinkle a bit of the onions, add a couple dots of butter, then repeat until you're out of turnip slices, onions, and butter. Pour the cream sauce over the whole thing, cover with aluminum foil, and slide into the oven.
Bake for 30 minutes covered, then carefully pull the foil cover off (avoid steam burns!) and bake another 40 minutes uncovered, until golden brown on top.
Scalloped Turnips
3 large turnips
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp butter for sauteeing
3 Tbsp butter, cut in 1/4 Tbsp blocks or smaller, as preferred
1 tbsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp mesquite smoked salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup heavy (whipping) cream
8 oz (1 block) cream cheese
First, peel & thinly slice the turnips. (I used the thinnest setting on the mandoline.) You may have to trim a little bit off the edge of the turnips so they fit in the mandoline for slicing. Next time, try rinsing the turnips & draining after slicing, to cut down on the heavily aromatic turnip smell. This is a great dish as is, but with the smell of turnips filling the kitchen, there's no way to fool yourself into thinking this is a scalloped potato replacement. When done, preheat oven to 350 F.
Second, dice onion. Heat 10 inch cast iron skillet on stove, add a little butter/grease/oil, and saute the onions, thyme, salt, and black pepper. When the onions are translucent and starting to brown, add garlic, stir for 30 seconds, then remove from heat and transfer onions & garlic to bowl.
Third, in the microwave, soften cream cheese & heat cream, then whisk together with smoked salt and cayenne pepper. Set aside.
Fourth, in the now-cooling cast iron, place turnip slices in a layer, careful not to burn your fingertips. Sprinkle a bit of the onions, add a couple dots of butter, then repeat until you're out of turnip slices, onions, and butter. Pour the cream sauce over the whole thing, cover with aluminum foil, and slide into the oven.
Bake for 30 minutes covered, then carefully pull the foil cover off (avoid steam burns!) and bake another 40 minutes uncovered, until golden brown on top.
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