Monthly Cooking Thread - February 2020

[Jamestown1630]

That looks a lot like it. Thank You!

[Liz]

A great recipe-—you’ll love it.

[Jamestown1630]

I think this has been posted before; but someone posted it again today: The Secret to Great Biscuits:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3816307/posts

[Liz]

Sans the luxury of White lily flour..........watching mom make flaky tender biscuits for breakfast.

Handle the dough gently.....as little as possible.

[Jamestown1630]

I never try to roll it and cut it out. I just spoon globs onto the silpat.

[Liz]

Good ...... b/c the more imperfect they look......the better they taste.

[Jamestown1630]

They are more ‘crumbly’, too...bigger little pockets of ‘Buttah’ :-)

[Liz]

Crumbly.........a good sign.

[Jamestown1630]

Sort of ‘natural’, and how someone would do it with few fancy resources, but with Good Sense.

[Liz]

This recipe is pure magic. Roasted at a high temp to caramelize.
The intensely sweet nutty morsels are highly addictive, and incredibly versatile.

BLISTERED CAULIFLOWER

Ing----lge head of cauliflower;3 generous tb evo; ks/p;a handful of fresh thyme sprigs;½ cup grated Parm;3 tb panko crumbs

Toss florets, ol/oil on rimmed sheetpan---the largest you have to spread out the cauliflower to roast - not steams. Add ks/p. Sprinkle w 1/2 fresh thyme sprigs. Roast, tossing occasionally, until almost tender 425F 35-45 min. Sprinkle with Parm, panko crumbs. Roast about 10 min longer---cauliflower is tender and cheese melts. Sprinkle with fresh thyme sprigs and serve.

VARY Blistered cauliflower as a side dish shines. Add it to a salad – bravo! Toss w/ pasta – bellissimo!

[Jamestown1630]

That looks very good. Probably would still be good without the Panko - I would want it, but low-carb husband would say ‘not diet friendly’. I just don’t think a little bit of ‘sprinkle’ makes such a difference carb-wise, but can make a lot of difference in satisfying texture and taste.

[Liz]

Panko has a nice subtle crunch.

[txnativegop]

The Jurassic Park Theme is a really good piece all by itself. The Weissenborn guitar was outstanding. Thanks for the link.

[Jamestown1630]

Hearing it on that one instrument, so well played, made me really ‘hear’ it for the first time.

[txnativegop]

Likewise for me.

[Jamestown1630]

I made this ‘Blistered Cauliflower’ tonight. Mine got burnt, not ‘blistered’; and set off the smoke alarm - but they were Delicious! (I like burnt popcorn, too.)

Some thoughts:

1. I need a tutorial on cutting cauliflower into florets; they don’t have long stalks like broccoli, and mine were sort of butchered.

2. I think it would be better, after the first roasting, to toss the florets in the Panko/Cheese mixture, instead of sprinkling over. Just scoop them into a big bowl, toss, and then arrange on the baking sheet again.

3. I didn’t have fresh thyme, and forgot to buy real Parm. cheese; so I sprinkled with dried thyme and used ‘The Green Can’. Still turned out great.

4. I’ve long suspected that my oven isn’t accurate. I’ll cut it down to 400 degrees, next time.

Your idea of putting it on a salad is a very good one.

[Liz]

I like some things burnt, too.....like toast....will try your way next time i make these.

[Liz]

......its tedious cutting cauliflower into florets.......but i dont know any short cuts.

[Jamestown1630]

I guess like everything, it’s just practice.

The only thing I make from butchered cauliflower is a casserole where it gets mashed, mixed with butter and cream cheese, and topped with bacon and cheddar.

If I want ‘florets’, I buy frozen :-)

[Liz]

Dinner in minutes. Using tubular pasta is recommended. Delicious sauce envelops the cooked pasta.
Technique for rich instant Cream Sauce is amazing:

PESTO SAUCE Take a carton of luscious ricotta, thin it out with hot pasta water, then add pesto (homemade or bought). Et voila:

Creamy Pasta in Pesto Sauce

THIS PISTACHIO PESTO IS OOTW. Just blender finely unsalted shelled pistachios, then blender in ol/oil and Parm.