Ross!! I Am Calling You Out!!!! Cook-off!!!!

[Ross]

Measuring by hand instead of by cup. In my last post I added a handful of pecans to a relish. How much would that be? Whatever I can hold in my hand, if you hand bigger or smaller it will be more or less. In cooking pasta I find that a handful of dry is a good serving for me. If you have a large hand and are a large person then a handful will be a good serving for you. Kids have small hands and small stomachs so a handful for and by them is about right. Making biscuits by hand is more a matter of feel. It can't be told but it can be learned by starting out measuring by cup and getting a hand on the feel of the mix.
Sometimes for breakfast I mix a tight handful of oatmeal with a tight handful of flour, a small spoon of baking powder and a little pile of salt in my hand. I add an egg and enough milk to mix it and pour it into a hot skillet. It makes a very portable breakfast. Fried egg and bowl of oatmeal that I can put in my pocket if I need both hands. Diced ham and cheese are good additions.

 

[Winkfish]

Hi, Guys. Haven't forgotten about you all, just been out of town for the weekend. Will dig out those recipes tonight and start posting tomorrow, starting with "Momma's Seafood Gumbo." (And yes, I put okra in mine.)

Peggy, don't lump all "fried" fish together. Think more "pan sauteed with a light coating of flour."

As Ross alluded to, if you cook and eat anything with bones or shells, boil them afterwords - makes for great stock for later creations. And you can mix and match - chicken stock in seafood gumbo, fish stock in a meat marinade or soup, beef stock in jambalaya, or combine them all.

Man, I'm hungry!!

 

[Ross]

In case fish stock for a beef marinade sounds a bit strange read a worchestershire sauce label, it has anchovies in it.

 

[Cpt. Jon]

This time of year when I start doing more indoor cooking, I tend to start going to slow and low and filling the house with great aromas all day. One of my faves for that is a red wine braised beef short rib (bone in of course). Also like to make steak au poivre (with that $3.99/lb beef tenderloin when I get it). Recently I've started making a little more pork tenderloin, cut into medallions, seared in half olive oil half butter, throw some fine chopped onions, garlic, and sliced mushrooms in and saute then remove from pan, deglaze pan with 1/3 cup cognac, replace veggies and reduce by at least 1/2... replace meat in suace, continue to cook for close to five minutes... sauce should be thin, parsley at the end is good too... delicious! Can serve with potatoes, noodles, spaetzle, whatever, it all works!

 

[Ross]

With regard to cognac and brandy, Nancy can quickly tell the difference between brands and has decided the Paul Mason is within a few points of Remy Martin vsop,, at one third the cost.

 

[Cpt. Jon]

With regard to cognac and brandy, Nancy can quickly tell the difference between brands and has decided the Paul Mason is within a few points of Remy Martin vsop,, at one third the cost.

Interesting, I'll keep my eyes peeled to see if the ABC store carries it here, I like Remy Martin vsop for sipping, but it's not cheap to cook with, however to this point it is what I normally use.

 

[Ross]

I have a bottle of Christian Brothers brandy that I bought in one of my less lucid moments. Maybe my brother in law would drink it in eggnog.

 

[Winkfish]

As an old Cajun chef said once, re cooking with wines and liquors, "If it ain't good enough to drink, it ain't good enough to cook with!!" ;-)

 

[Ross]

I am an old Maryland cook and I can echo that sentiment.

 

[jimmcgee]

Ross, by any chance do you have a really good cream of crab recipe?

Jim

 

[Ross]

Ross, by any chance do you have a really good cream of crab recipe?

Jim

I have cookbooks with cream of crab recipes but I can't vouch for them

 

[Ross]

I found a James Beard recipe that looks promicing. If you would like I will type it in.

 

[Ross]

Margaret Jenning's Crab Soup.
This is one of those soups that, seasoned by mistake, become a notable gastronomic discovery.
1 pound of crab meat
1/2 cup of milk
2 tablespoons of butter
2 cups bechamel sauce
1 cup of cream
1/3 cup of scotch whisky

Heat the crabmeatin the milk and butter.Prepare a light bechamel and add the creamto it after it comes to a boiling point. Add the crabmeatand heat again until it reaches the boiling point. Season to taste, and add more cream if it needs thinning. Just before serving stir in the scotch. Serve in heated cupswith a sprinkling of fine parsley.

Bechamel sauce:
4 tablesoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup fish broth
1 cup of milk
salt
black pepper
nutmeg

melt the butter and stir in the flour cook intil slightly colored. Add the fish broth and stir until smooth gradually add the milk and contiue stirring until nicely thickened. cook for five more minutes and season to taste.

copied from: New Fish Cookery by James Beard copy right 1954 and 1976

edit to add link: http://www.amazon.com/James-Beards-New-Fish-Cookery/dp/0316085650/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0

 

[jimmcgee]

Mmm, looks interesting thanks. I have a couple in cookbooks but when I made them they always seemed to be missing something.

Jim

 

[Ross]

Personally I thought that a little minced onion and celery would improve it. But with the price of crab meat it is very expensive to experiment.

 

[Winkfish]

MOMMA'S SEAFOOD GUMBO
First you make a roux:
Heat 1 cup oil over med to med-high heat. Add 1 cup flour. Stir it often - the higher the heat, the more frequently you need to stir it to keep the flour from burning. (I prefer to keep it at medium, per Ross' later post.) Cook it until it's the color of dark caramel. It can take as long as 30 to 45 minutes when you're first starting out.

When brown enough, add 1 large onion, chopped, 2 cloves of garlic, chopped, and 2 tablespoons of parsley.
When those are tender, add 4 cups liquid (crayfish stock, fish stock, shrimp stock, chicken stock, or just water)
Add 1 8oz can tomato sauce
Add 1 or 2 gumbo crabs (I don't like to have the crabs in my gumbo, so sometimes I leave those out.) Cook until it gets thick and smooth.

Add 3 cans cut or chopped okra.
Peel 2 – 2.5 lbs shrimp, 1 lb crabmeat, and add.
Let it cook as long as you want.

That's the pure recipe. I'll usually add bell pepper and celery with the onion*. As for seasonings, you'll see there are none in the recipe. We add salt and pepper to taste, and a mixed seasoning. My favorite mix for gumbo is Tony Chachere's (pronounced SA-shur-ee) Cajun and Creole Seasoning. (If you can't get it where you are, let me know and I'll send you some.)

Sometimes I'll add smoked sausage sliced, and/or fresh fish flaked/chopped, especially if shrimp or crabmeat is not available/too expensive. Do whatever floats your boat - that's the beauty of Cajun-Creole cooking!

* Known down here as the "Holy Trinity." That's what goes in almost all cajun-creole dishes.

 

[Ross]

That hot roux is sometimes called cajun napalm. If you splash it on your skin it sticks.

 

[Ross]

figured this is a good way to mebbe continue a food section, mods willing-- mebbe they can sticky both for a gourmet/gourmands delight subforum....

So far we have had nine members respond to this thread. There have been many interested observers
I know that many people would rather eat out than make the effort to do their own cooking but on a boat often times that isn't an option.
A long day and finally a secure anchorage and a good home cooked meal. I don't know how that can be improved.
There is a wonderful recipe called comfort food and everybody has their special version. You can't buy it in a restaurant and it may be very basic and inexpensive. Many people I know keep the makings for comfort food on hand.
What do you call comfort food?
Some people say mashed potatoes and gravy and others go in the direction of apple pie.

 

[jimmcgee]

Ross, comfort food covers a lot of ground for me. It could be anything from a good stew to franks and beans depending on my mood.

For me the common thread is cooking real meals vs. sandwiches or re-heating pizza.

Jim

 

[Winkfish]

Can an administrator maybe start another sub-forum? That way, we could have different threads for different types of recipes (soups, roasts, etc.)