Home Cooking 2023

[Z3Dreamer]

Zucchini Fritters - Sprinkle the grated zucchini (1.5 pounds before grating) with salt to draw out water. 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup parmesan, 2 eggs, chopped spring onion, and pepper to taste. 5 minutes per side on the griddle. Makes 8 fritters.

Smother in my homemade tzatziki sauce. Or the condiment of your choosing.

Probably have over 100 in the freezer. Will be enjoying them this winter.

 

[ERD50]

Kenji Lopez-Alt’s video taught me how to grill pizza, and we’re hooked (we love crispy thin pizza). We buy the pizza dough at Trader Joe’s, roll it out thin, make the ‘sauce’ from cherry tomatoes, garlic, and oregano, and put on crumbled cooked sausage and steamed broccoli. Yum!

Hmmm. Pizza in the grill might just work. I seem to have misplaced my pizza stone, although I do have a cast iron griddle which fits the grill. I've made the sauce from scratch before, but I've found I really can't do better than my favorite brand of canned sauce (Dom Pepino's.) I still make the dough myself though.

I can get the grill up to 500F pretty quickly, and cooking the pizza at that temp would be even quicker than cooking steak tips, burgers or chicken thighs. Pizza in the summer without heating up the kitchen would be nice.

I used to fail at pizza on the grill - he makes it look (fairly) easy, but I'd end up not getting it flat on the grill, or sticking when I lifted it. I finally solved all that:

I start an hour or two ahead and use an old baking sheet (like a cookie sheet), line it with parchment paper, oil it and press the dough (I buy TJ or Aldi dough, just quick/easy/cheap) out a bit. I lay another oiled sheet of parchment paper on top, and when I walk buy, I press it out a bit more - this gives it time to relax. You could probably just roll it out, I find this easier.

Then on med-hot grill, take off the top paper, and give it about 10 minutes, checking for it to brown a bit on the bottom, and for the top to dry up an cook a bit to get a bit of a crust.

Here's the real tip: At this point, take it off the heat, oil the 'top' and flip it over - the browned 'bottom' is now the 'top'. Oil the top, put on all the stuff you want (since this is our summer pizza, I keep it light - a thin spread of shredded moz, some fresh moz, arugula, spinach, fresh basil, cooked shrimp, fresh rosemary - whatever.

Since it is browned, it is stiff enough to easily get it on/off the grill, and the 'bottom' (was the top), is crusty and oiled enough to not stick. So now, just slide it back on the grill. Get the 'bottom' browned up and let the arugula and basil wilt and the cheeses melt a little.

No more stressing over getting that dough on/off the grill! No skill required.

-ERD50

 

[Surewhitey]

We make a big pot o rice and do different varieties of fried rice. DW recently had some "Cajun" fried rice with sausage and shrimp. I added our favorite sausage (Conecuh's spicy) and a little Tony C. to the shrimp and veggies and fried egg. Hot pan with a little oil, add rice and drizzle with soy sauce... Yum!

The versatility & variety makes it different every time & finished with habanero sauce and drizzle honey... Awesome.

 

[Badger]

Hmmm. Pizza in the grill might just work. I seem to have misplaced my pizza stone, although I do have a cast iron griddle which fits the grill. I've made the sauce from scratch before, but I've found I really can't do better than my favorite brand of canned sauce (Dom Pepino's.) I still make the dough myself though.

I can get the grill up to 500F pretty quickly, and cooking the pizza at that temp would be even quicker than cooking steak tips, burgers or chicken thighs. Pizza in the summer without heating up the kitchen would be nice.

After I broke my first pizza stone I decided to buy a half dozen 6"x6" quarry tiles (the unglazed red ones) at HD or L for about 50cents each. They remain in my oven all the time for pizza and bread baking (a poor man's brick oven). They also help stabilize the heat to keep the temperature from dropping when opening the oven. I have been using the same tiles for years now. They may be stained but they are cleaned and sterilized every time I pre-heat the oven.

Cheers!

 

[ncbill]

Haha, I was one of those "gifted" with a giant zucchini by a friend who cannot bear to throw anything away. I would have thrown it away myself after I saw the four-pounder, but I know she'll ask, and I had said something about zucchini soup, so I was on the hook.

Of course it was full of seeds and fiber; I felt no compunction about discarding those. I have a very simple curried zucchini soup recipe, so I knew I could drown any spongy zucchini flavor in curry and onion, and a half a jalapeno pepper for good measure, and it gets pureed anyway. Then I decided this was a freebie for experimentation. The recipe calls for adding milk at the end; I saw some others that used coconut milk. I didn't want a total coconut flavor, but subsituted about 1/4 for regular milk.

Another recipe called for adding toasted walnuts before pureeing, so I did that - with an addition. While the toasted walnuts were still hot, I added some of "Nonna Pia's Balsamic Glaze" to the nuts and let them sit for a few minutes. Added them. That was my biggest takeaway! Warm toasted walnuts with the balsamic glaze are DELICIOUS! I am wondering where else I can use them. I pureed with a hand blender.

Anyway, the soup is successful, although I cannot taste the coconut milk at all. The curry is somewhat overwhelming, but I didn't really want to taste the old zucchini anyway. I may even save the other two pounds for another soup!

*Oh, and I made it in the Instant Pot, which makes for the absolute easiest cleanup.

Shredded zucchini in our favorite chocolate cake recipe helps keep the result nice & moist.

 

[pacergal]

Shredded zucchini in our favorite chocolate cake recipe helps keep the result nice & moist.

I was just going to post chocolate zucchini cake-lol.

Tonights menu is lemon grilled salmon with roasted beets. Too hot to cook inside, so DH is in charge of the grill.

 

[Jeffman52]

Last year we were given 3 GIANT zucchini's. Rather than tossing them we made sweet relish and dill relish and canned it. It did make quite a lot so we have given away a few quarts.

 

[CincyDave]

Zucchini Fritters - Sprinkle the grated zucchini (1.5 pounds before grating) with salt to draw out water. 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup parmesan, 2 eggs, chopped spring onion, and pepper to taste. 5 minutes per side on the griddle. Makes 8 fritters.

Smother in my homemade tzatziki sauce. Or the condiment of your choosing.

Probably have over 100 in the freezer. Will be enjoying them this winter.

I make these too, but spray with a little cooking spray like Pam or Olive oil spray and cook in the air fryer.

 

[CincyDave]

I was just going to post chocolate zucchini cake-lol.

Tonights menu is lemon grilled salmon with roasted beets. Too hot to cook inside, so DH is in charge of the grill.

So many zucchini this year. I've made chocolate zucchini bread and lemon zucchini bread. Both excellent and really like cake, not bread.

 

[CincyDave]

Haha, I was one of those "gifted" with a giant zucchini by a friend who cannot bear to throw anything away. I would have thrown it away myself after I saw the four-pounder, but I know she'll ask, and I had said something about zucchini soup, so I was on the hook.

Of course it was full of seeds and fiber; I felt no compunction about discarding those. I have a very simple curried zucchini soup recipe, so I knew I could drown any spongy zucchini flavor in curry and onion, and a half a jalapeno pepper for good measure, and it gets pureed anyway. Then I decided this was a freebie for experimentation. The recipe calls for adding milk at the end; I saw some others that used coconut milk. I didn't want a total coconut flavor, but subsituted about 1/4 for regular milk.

Another recipe called for adding toasted walnuts before pureeing, so I did that - with an addition. While the toasted walnuts were still hot, I added some of "Nonna Pia's Balsamic Glaze" to the nuts and let them sit for a few minutes. Added them. That was my biggest takeaway! Warm toasted walnuts with the balsamic glaze are DELICIOUS! I am wondering where else I can use them. I pureed with a hand blender.

Anyway, the soup is successful, although I cannot taste the coconut milk at all. The curry is somewhat overwhelming, but I didn't really want to taste the old zucchini anyway. I may even save the other two pounds for another soup!

*Oh, and I made it in the Instant Pot, which makes for the absolute easiest cleanup.

Good on you for finding a use for the giant zucchini.

 

[EastWest Gal]

Thirty years ago Weight Watchers had a soup recipe they called “Favorite Vegetable Soup.” It’s been my go to recipe for excess zucchini. 3 cups zucchini, 1/4-1/2 cup cut carrots onions each, and 1/4-1/2 chopped or canned tomato or a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste. A packet of boullion. Cook the onion in a saucepan, add the carrot, zucchini, tomato and boullion, then a cup or two of water and simmer. I always add other herbs and especially dill, about a tsp. Purée the whole thing when the veggies are cooked, about 20-30 minutes.

I like everything a little spicy, so adding a shake or two of Louisiana hot sauce in the bowl is great. If I want it to remind me of borscht, add a tbsp of Greek yogurt or sour cream. It’s low calorie (sans sour cream) and a great way to get rid of excess zucchini. It freezes well and can easily be doubled.

 

[Pellice]

I saw an old saved newspaper recipe for "potato pancakes with chive sauce." It's not really potato pancake weather, but I had LOTS of chives, so I decided to try it. Even though I used russet potatoes and tried to drain them after shredding using the food processor, they still seemed quite wet. Is there some customary trick to get rid of excess water in potatoes?

Also, the recipe called for dropping tablespoons of the mixture for browning. That seemed to me to just be prolonging the cooking, so I made hamburger sized patties instead. But then it occurred to me that maybe the crispy browning was dependent on a smaller size.

I've never made potato pancakes before from shredded potatoes (I have from leftovers), is the small size really key?

 

[audreyh1]

Chives freeze very well from what I’ve read. Then you can pop the frozen ones into dishes like eggs, etc. should work for your pancake batter too. I use freeze-dried chives in our scrambled eggs and omelettes.

 

[Pellice]

I thought that chives lost flavor after freezing, but you are right, it's widely recommended. I froze more than a cup of chopped chives today.

 

[pacergal]

After shredding, place potatoes between layers of paper towel and dishtowels, press or weight down with plates to get excess moisture out. I also shred the old fashioned way, with a hand grater (being careful not to grate my fingers!) Takes longer, but I think makes better shreds.
I mix a bit of seasoned flour in with the potatoes shreds, make into thin patties to fry.

Love them fried in bacon fat in a cast iron skillet!

 

[pacergal]

Making a new recipe for Orzo salad--has spinach, bacon, lemon, peaches and feta.
Sounded interesting!

 

[Toast]

Making a new recipe for Orzo salad--has spinach, bacon, lemon, peaches and feta.

Please let us know how it turned out. It sounds delicious!

 

[EastWest Gal]

Besides poaching or roasting whole chickens, another method you might consider is sous vide a whole chicken. The prep is simple: fill the cavity with sliced onions and lemon slices, rub the poultry skin with your own or store-bought dry rub. Either place in a large zip-lock bag with most air evacuated or use a vacuum seal bag. It would take about 6 hours at 150 F in a large pot of water with a foil covering to reduce evaporation. It’s idle time, somewhat like a slow cooker.

i second sous vide and I could eat poultry every day.

Consider Cornish game hens. I sous vide them for 3 hours, straight from frozen, still in their sealed the plastic wrap in which they were purchased. 145 degrees for 3-4 hours. Open up the plastic, discard the juice, or put it in a pot and convert them for gravy or sauce of some kind.

Pat the hen dry, then season as you wish, some oil and seasonings (the oil keeps the seasonings in place and prevents burning) 350-400 degrees for 20-30 minutes on a broiler pan, turning once if you wish. Pull it out, then cut in quarters with kitchen shears.

Sous vide is amazing. I use and Anova, a polycarbamate box and a rack.

My Anova is older, but, whatever.

My box:

https://www.amazon.com/Container-Ci...469&sprefix=sous+vide+box,aps,176&sr=8-8&th=1

My rack:

https://www.amazon.com/LIPAVI-L10-M...9&sprefix=sous+vide+rack,aps,113&sr=8-20&th=1


Apparently they sell hinged lids now. Why?

I also sous vide pasteurize organic eggs and make my own mayonnaise with a stick blender. Making the mayonnaise takes <5 minutes from start to finish, excluding the sous vide time.

There is no better method than sous vide for a tender steak. Finish it off in the broiler, a pan, or the grill.

And the mayo is fantastic and without all the weird ingredients in commercial foods.

 

[MRG]

i second sous vide and I could eat poultry every day.



Consider Cornish game hens. I sous vide them for 3 hours, straight from frozen, still in their sealed the plastic wrap in which they were purchased. 145 degrees for 3-4 hours. Open up the plastic, discard the juice, or put it in a pot and convert them for gravy or sauce of some kind.



Pat the hen dry, then season as you wish, some oil and seasonings (the oil keeps the seasonings in place and prevents burning) 350-400 degrees for 20-30 minutes on a broiler pan, turning once if you wish. Pull it out, then cut in quarters with kitchen shears.



Sous vide is amazing. I use and Anova, a polycarbamate box and a rack.



My Anova is older, but, whatever.



My box:



https://www.amazon.com/Container-Ci...469&sprefix=sous+vide+box,aps,176&sr=8-8&th=1



My rack:



https://www.amazon.com/LIPAVI-L10-M...9&sprefix=sous+vide+rack,aps,113&sr=8-20&th=1





Apparently they sell hinged lids now. Why?



I also sous vide pasteurize organic eggs and make my own mayonnaise with a stick blender. Making the mayonnaise takes <5 minutes from start to finish, excluding the sous vide time.



There is no better method than sous vide for a tender steak. Finish it off in the broiler, a pan, or the grill.



And the mayo is fantastic and without all the weird ingredients in commercial foods.

Third +1 on sous vide.

 

[TheWizard]

... I can get the grill up to 500F pretty quickly, and cooking the pizza at that temp would be even quicker than cooking steak tips, burgers or chicken thighs. Pizza in the summer without heating up the kitchen would be nice.

I bought a nice Weber propane grill for the girlfriend's place a year ago. It has three regular burners plus a fourth "sear burner" for people who want grill marks

When I did the initial full power burn-in on the grill, the temperature gauge got up to 750° after a few minutes. That might be good for crispy pizza so long as you get the timing right...

 

[Winemaker]

My family always used shredded potatoes for potato pancakes, DW's family just fried mashed potatoes for pancakes. I prefer shredded....

 

[Pellice]

Creole roux

I made shrimp creole last night using a somewhat authentic recipe, but I was surprised at the thickness of the roux. I guess I'm vaguely aware that Creole cooking makes heavy use of browned roux, but this ended up being quite thick, almost an oatmeal or cream of wheat texture. Is that what one is aiming for? I've made leftovers labeled "Creole" before, but it's usually much soupier.

Still tasted wonderful (you can't go wrong with lots of butter and shrimp!), but I'm just curious as to whether it came out "right."

 

[old medic]

We have always canned and jarred stuff, both came from family's that done the same. The other day My sister sent out a family group text asking if anyone wanted some tomatoes. We already had put up 9 Qts of spaghetti sauce from our garden, but the DW said to drop some off....
We come home to find 9.... yes 9.... 25 Lb boxes of tomatoes!
Some were starting to get soft and bruising, but gave away 4 and ended up with another 34 Qts... any one hungry?

 

[Cat-parents]

It's chili season, so yesterday I made one of my old standbys and one new recipe.

Old standby: veganized version of a Cajun chili recipe from Hay Day Market Cookbook. The original version called for pork tenderloin (combined with Granny Smith apples). For the vegan version I substitute Field Roast's smoked apple/sage sausages, and I also add mushrooms (to improve nutrition and reduce the calories per serving).

New recipe: I made cornbread based on the vegan recipe from the Nora Cooks website. Reduced the sugar by 50% and used Macadamia nut milk and olive oil (since that's what I had on hand). Baked for 28 minutes in our slightly slow oven. Toasted the cornbread this morning and slathered it with red pepper jelly.
https://www.noracooks.com/the-best-vegan-cornbread/

 

[audreyh1]

I made shrimp creole last night using a somewhat authentic recipe, but I was surprised at the thickness of the roux. I guess I'm vaguely aware that Creole cooking makes heavy use of browned roux, but this ended up being quite thick, almost an oatmeal or cream of wheat texture. Is that what one is aiming for? I've made leftovers labeled "Creole" before, but it's usually much soupier.

Still tasted wonderful (you can't go wrong with lots of butter and shrimp!), but I'm just curious as to whether it came out "right."

The amount of flour determines the thickness. The recipe must have intended to be that thick.

You can easily control the thickness of the finished product by adding more stock/broth.

Things like gumbo will have a lot more broth to roux.