REVIEW: Root Vegetable Gratin Starter by Williams-Sonoma
When we saw the root vegetable gratin starter from Williams-Sonoma we decided to give it a try.
When we saw the root vegetable gratin starter from Williams-Sonoma we decided to give it a try.
Parallel 38’s Hot Buttered Rum Is Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice
The fall weather is rolling in, which means it’s time to swap out those refreshingly fruity cocktails for something warm and comforting! For the second season in a row, Charlottesville, VA restaurant Parallel 38 is serving up an extra decadent Hot Buttered Rum that guests have been dreaming about ever since they first sampled their first sip last year.
Created by chef/owner Justin Ross, the creamy concoction is bursting with the flavors of fall including notes of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and allspice. With ingredients like vanilla ice cream, brown sugar and butter, this is the perfect finish to a savory meal at the small plates eatery (many guests opt for the Hot Buttered Rum in lieu of a dessert course.)
Hot Buttered Rum
Ingredients:
1 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
1 Teaspoon Ground Cayenne
2 Tablespoons Allspice Berries
1 Quart Vanilla Ice Cream (Softened)
3⁄4 Cup Confectioner’s Sugar
3⁄4 Cup Brown Sugar (firmly packed)
1 Pound Unsalted Butter (cut into small pieces; 8 – 10)
Dark Rum
Boiling Water
Directions for Butter Batter:
Crush nutmeg pods with a towel and mallet. Place crushed nutmeg, allspice and cinnamon into a spice grinder and grind into a coarse powder. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and evenly distribute the coarse spice mixture, tossing for 20 seconds or until smoke appears. Remove from heat and continue to toss to cool. Repeat this process 3 times. Add heavy cream, ice cream, ginger and cayenne to the toasted spice pan. Bring the mixture to a boil then stir in the sugar and salt. Reduce heat to medium-low and immediately stir in the butter cubes 2 to 3 at a time. Wait to add next round of butter until previous batch has dissolved. When the butter has all dissolved remove the mixture from the heat. If you are going to use all the batter now; the batter is ready to use. If you want to save some of the batter for later use, place the batter in a bowl and set over a larger bowl of ice and stir occasionally until the batter reaches room temperature. Place in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Directions for the Cocktail:
In a mug combine 2 oz. of dark rum, the Butter Batter and boiling water. Stir and serve immediately with a spoon.
NOTE: P38’s Hot Buttered Rum can be frozen and served at a later date.
Once the batter reaches room temperature, pour the batter into silicone ice cube trays or measure out 3-ounce quantities & store in individual freezer bags. To serve, place 3 batter cubes or 3 ounces of batter with an equal amount of water in a saucepan over medium high heat. When the mixture boils, pour in into a coffee mug, add the rum and stir.
About Parallel 38: Located at 2055 Bond St. in Charlottesville, VA Parallel 38 (P38) is a Mediterranean style restaurant whose menu is inspired by the world’s most iconic food and wine regions (Alicante in Spain, Italy’s Calabria, the Greek Ionian Islands, Napa Valley and Charlottesville) – all of which sit along the 38th parallel. The eatery offers a contemporary and casual environment that encourages guests to explore the unique flavors found within these temperate regions. The restaurant’s interior features a large soapstone bar, a sweeping chalkboard mural and artist-design light scheme. A cozy lounge area with reclaimed factory cart seating is ideal for enjoying a cocktail with friends while a custom 12-food walnut table is perfect for dining with a large group. The menu, which changes seasonally, consists of small plates that are ideal for sharing, www.p38cville.com
One day you may be like us, and just wake up and decide you’re going to pickle something.
You’ve never done it before, but you have seen enough cookbooks in the stores on the topic, and have heard enough experts on food radio to inspire you.
On the other hand, you don’t have weeks to get the project done, and you certainly don’t want food poisoning.
Fortunately, there are quick pickle recipes which bring satisfaction within a few hours. These are what we tried, much to our glee.
Since we didn’t want to invest too much money in this possibly failing endeavor, we used what was already available and in stock. This means essentially some cucumbers, some carrots, and some green peppers. Plus, some ginger and some onions.
The biggest choices we had to make came down to what to store the pickles in, and which flavor of vinegar to use.
For containers we had choices between small mason jars and Tupperware. Being fairly ambivalent, and not knowing which would be better, we used both.
For vinegar we had a choice between regular and apple. Again, we chose both.
We can say immediately that there is a difference between apple and regular vinegar when it comes to pickles. From this experience it appears that the apple vinegar is much more subtle and slightly sweeter. That may sound appealing to some, but if you want that really sour or tart pickle experience then you should probably go with the regular vinegar.
Some recipes also say you should blanche or pre-cook the carrots. We did not. They are as crunchy and hard as regular carrots. Except these are full of pickle flavor.
Some recipes also may try to get you to remove the seeds from the cucumbers for pickling. Not us! That soft interior in the pickle is fantastic and full of flavor.
Some morsels of ginger in the mix do add a little spicy kick — which is fun — and it is not a bad idea to go overboard with this ingredient.
QUICK PICKLE RECIPE
Please keep in mind, this is a recommended recipe, but you can change it based on your own taste preferences
2/3 Cup of Vinegar (white, apple or rice wine)
1/3 cup of water
1 Tbs of Sugar
1 Tbs of Sea Salt or Kosher Salt
Optional spices (literally, a dash): Mint, mustard seed, peppercorn, dill
How many vegetables (carrots, cucumbers, onions, green peppers, etc.)? It’s up to you, but to start you should keep it small, like around 5-8, basically whatever is going to fit in your jar. Slice them or dice them.
For the Mustard lovers in the world, of which there are many, it’s good to know that there is an actual National Mustard Day.
With that in mind, here are two great mustard-based recipes for you to try out, from Colman’s Mustard. Colman’s has been around for over 200 years and is “Queen Approved.”
Tangy Mustard-Crusted Steak Fries
Serves: 4
Ingredients
• 4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, about 1 ½ pounds
• 6 shallots, peeled and left whole
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 tbsp. Colman’s Original Prepared Mustard
• 1 tsp. whole cumin seeds
• 1 tsp. salt
Preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Halve the potatoes and cut each half lengthwise into 4 wedges. Spray a roasting pan with nonstick spray.
2. Toss together the potatoes, shallots, oil, Colman’s Original Prepared Mustard, cumin, and salt in a large bowl. Spread the potato mixture in a single layer into the roasting pan, placing potatoes cut side down. Roast until the bottoms of the potatoes are crisp and golden, 15 – 20 minutes. Turn the potatoes with a metal spatula and roast until tender and crisp on the other side, 10 – 15 minutes longer.
BBQ Dry rub – perfect for seasoning meats and veggies!
1/3 cup Garlic Powder
1 1/2 tbsp Cumin, ground
2 1/3 cup Brown Sugar
1 tbsp Cayenne
¼ cup Colman’s mustard powder
1/4 cup Cinnamon or canella, ground
2 cup La Colombe Decaf. Espresso, ground
1 1/2 cup Salt, kosher
1/2 cup Black Pepper, ground
Mix all together in a bowl and store in a sealed jar in a cool, dry place.
To use, rub on meat, fish or vegetable and let sit for at least 3 hours for meat, or 30 minutes for fish or vegetables.
Paragon Software Group has created a new dictionary app that would helps non-native readers and food enthusiasts to follow more easily a recipe or an article posted on a site.
Comprehensive Slovoed dictionary apps contain translations for food and cooking terminology, and help gourmands from all over the world to follow instructions more precisely.
Per Paragon, “No doubts that many readers are deeply fond of culinary but due to lack of the language are limited. It takes too long for them to google for every new ingredient while preparing a dish. Slovoed dictionary apps (available for 35 languages, with premium content from the world’s leading publishers and lexicographers, such as Berlitz, Duden, PONS, Oxford UP, Cambridge UP, Le Robert, etc) make any translation task easy!”
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Oh yes, that is a great looking burger!
Guess where it comes from? Guinness Storehouse, Ireland’s no. 1 tourist attraction. That’s right — Ireland — and you can have one just like it with these great recipes for the summer and special occasions.
Guinness® Beef Burger with Guinness®
Beef Burger Ingredients:
2 lb mince beef
50 ml Guinness® Foreign Extra Stout
1 oz bread crumbs
Splash of Tabasco sauce
Sprig of fresh thyme chopped
Splash Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper
Method
Haven’t had enough? Try this one:
BOOKMAKER SANDWICH WITH GUINNESS® ONION MARMALADE
Ingredients
Optional
Sauce Choron (Hollandaise with tomato puree)
METHOD
Quickly fry the sirloin steaks on each side and season.
Assemble by placing on warm toasted soda bread, place tomato on, followed by red onion and baby gem.
Place some of the onion marmalade on the other soda bread slice and top off the sandwich.
Serve with GUINNESS® onion marmalade and potato wedges.
GUINNESS® ONION MARMALADE
Ingredients
METHOD
In a saucepan sweat of the garlic, onion, chilli flakes and thyme slowly, add the sugar, vinegar and GUINNESS® beer. Slow cook for 1 ½ hours.