Sunday, April 25, 2010

Salt, the Verb

Megan and I have found a new favorite cooking show: Secrets of a Restaurant Chef with Anne Burrell. For those of you who are Iron Chef America fans, she was Mario Batali's sous chef with the crazy blonde hair.

Despite the online hate that Anne receives about her show, "Secrets" is a great show for those of you who are bored by the basic techniques provided by most home-cooking programs. As a former instructor at the Culinary Institute of America, she clearly has experience teaching chefs, which of course Megan and I are. Plus, she's entertaining, because she simply loves cooking, and it shows.

Watch her show, and watch her salt something...anything...especially her pasta water! You will be amazed by the quantity that goes into her cooking.

Actually, better yet, watch this impromptu lesson by Gregan:

-Greg

-Salting heavily, the Anne Burrell way

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Impromptu Strawberry Scones

At Gregan's Bistro, the Friday night special is...scones. After dinner and a movie (The Hurt Locker), we came home and weren't tired, so Megan baked. I'd say we baked, but I only "dictated" and watched Megan do her magic. Friday night baking is what all the cool kids are doing!

Seriously though, Megan and I have fun in the kitchen and enjoy looking through cookbooks, talking about food, and shopping for ingredients. I think that we're lucky to gain so much enjoyment from something you do every day: eat.

I highly suggest that you try something new in your own kitchen (instead of watching more Iron Chef America). Maybe you're not ready for baking impromptu scones on a Friday night, but how about roasting chicken Sunday evening?

This has been a public service announcement brought to you by Gregan's Bistro.

-Greg


Strawberry Scones
by Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
*We would suggest adding more sugar (doubling or tripling the amount) in the recipe and using larger sugar crystals to sprinkle on top. The scones were great, but not sweet at all. We understand that scones are not as sweet as other pastries, but these still needed more sugar. These scones tasted more like biscuits and less like the scones you would purchase at your local bakery.

-Prepping the scone batter
"Our whole health kick right now is going out the window."



-Finishing the scone batter with strawberries
"Beautiful girl, beautiful dough..."


-Cutting up the scones
"I have a boyfriend with no foot. He can't have a girlfriend with no hands."


-Applying the egg wash
"Everybody loves crystalized yumminess."



-Cream cheese scones take one
"My hair is just not as pretty..."


-Cream cheese scones take two
"This is real cooking, none of that Food Network bull$hit."



-Scones coming out of the oven. Golden brown and delicious...GBD. Mmmm.


-A look inside the cream cheese scones. Marvel at their deliciousness.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Epic Valentine's Day Dinner

Valentine's Day with Gregan became an affair to remember. Why?
  • Over five hours spent in the kitchen
  • Four complicated, gourmet recipes that would make most home cooks cringe
  • Homemade pasta dough mixed by hand, using the well-technique
  • Rolling out said dough with brand new Kitchenaid pasta roller attachment...multiple times
  • A bottle of wine for Megan, and a large saison and several Hefepoizens for Greg
  • Fleeces and sweatshirts worn at all times
  • Cream in every recipe
  • Oyster mushrooms, crab, shrimp shells, three varieties of fresh herbs
  • Straining sauces
  • Reducing more sauces
  • Recording the proceedings for posterity
  • Flambe...seriously....fire on purpose
  • and eating everything, of course!
Do not attempt these recipes unless you are willing to put away huge amounts of calories, and laugh and love the process. Megan and I were and did.

The menu:
  1. Pan-fried mushrooms in thyme butter
  2. Crispy roasted asparagus
  3. Seafood ravioli with shrimp cream
  4. Bananas Foster
This post is by far and away the largest collection of video clips posted so far on Is Deliciousness a Word?, but if you can make it through them all, you'll understand why this Valentine's day was the best ever.

It's great to love food, and it's great to love cooking. It's even better to love cooking the food you love, with the one you love. I couldn't ask for more.

Greg


-Ingredients (actually missing quite a few):



-Kneading pasta dough two ways:


-Pan fried mushrooms in a thyme butter sauce:

*Watch me do the weakest stirring ever. C'mon...stir it like you mean it!






-Crispy roasted asparagus

*We did not mean for the asparagus to get crispy. We just forgot about it, and it turned out perfect. A beautiful mistaken discovery, like penicillin.


-Shrimp and crab ravioli stuffing

*Megan enjoys pushing food around in the pan. Watch her go.


-Unsuccessful pasta rolling by Greg:

*Tried to remain positive for a while, until I could take it no longer. "Shit."


-Successful pasta rolling by Megan:

*So, we thought it should be rolled to setting 4, because we wanted thicker pasta. Nope. Too thick. Setting five. This is what happens on first attempts.


-Preparing raviolis:

*Totally proud of ourselves here. We really are "cooking nerds."




-Shrimp cream sauce:

*Turns out the recipe does call for us to strain the sauce. That's what happens to the shells. Apparently they don't disappear. Megan was curious about how that magic was going to happen.



-Seafood ravioli with shrimp cream sauce (not the best photo):

*After four hours, we didn't even take the time to properly coat the ravioli. Look at how big they are, too! Dayamn!


-Bananas foster:

*Yes, you're suspicions are correct. Megan has had a bottle of wine to herself by now.



What a night! :)


Recipes:

Pan-fried mushrooms with thyme butter:
*From Take Six Ingredients, by Conrad Gallagher

Cut 3 cups wild mushrooms into thin slices. Heat 2 tblsp. olive oil in a skillet; when hot, add the mushrooms and saute for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown and completely tender. Add one pad of butter and 1 tblsp. fresh thyme leaves and season to taste with salt and pepper. Once the butter starts to melt, stir in 1 cup heavy cream and 2 tblsp. minced chives. Cook for another 2-3 minutes until slightly reduced, stirring occasionally. Divide the mushroom mixture among warmed wide-rimmed bowls and scatter 1/3 cup parmesan shavings on top. Serve immediately with some crusty bread.

Note: the cook times seemed to be far too short, and both were doubled, with the time spent to reduce the sauce closer to 10 minutes. As the French say, "Cook it till it's done!"

Seafood ravioli:

Shrimp cream sauce:

Bananas Foster:

Friday, February 12, 2010

Swedish Meatballs

On Friday night of Valentine's Day weekend, Megan and I prepared to attend a Winter Olympics opening ceremony party. Each attendee was tasked to bring a food representing a different country, so we chose to bring Swedish meatballs. Mmmm. Who doesn't like a meatball? Seriously...

The preparation was fantastic, and they tasted terrific! However, we learned that Swedish meatballs do not travel well. The sauce thickened up tremendously during the drive, and the meatballs got a little cold. Also, when we arrived, we found out that the host didn't have a microwave. Really? Isn't this the 21st century?

Still, the flavors were out of sight, and as a testament to their glory, they were the first food finished that evening. I highly suggest this to anybody looking for a good time on their way to a heart attack. Here is the recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Swedish-Meatballs-II/Detail.aspx. Enjoy.

Greg

-Swedish Meatballs



Monday, January 18, 2010

Seafood Rirrotto

Like my father, I love risotto, so I was ecstatic when I learned that Megan loves cooking risotto. She has patience with stirring that I envy. This shrimp and scallop risotto was divine; she even made the scallops delicious (I'm not usually a huge fan). Just as impressive, Megan fried fresh sage to crumble on top, which is not something your average home cook would do. That's just how she rolls. She's way above average! She's an outlier.

The recipe used was an amalgam of many, but this one is very similar: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/sweet-pea-and-scallop-risotto-recipe/index.html. If you can stir for forty minutes, make it. Pure deliciousness. Plus the leftovers lasted almost all week.

Greg

-Shrimp and Scallop Risotto with Fried Sage:




-Final product:

Homemade Hash Browns

"If at first you don't succeed, try try again...then give up. No sense in being a damn fool about it." W.C. Fields

I was inspired leftover potatoes to make some fresh hash browns. This is probably the first and only time that potatoes will ever inspire me. After 2 unsuccessful attempts, I realized that I was putting too little oil in the pan, and the heat was too low.

I realize that besides wings, different versions of "Benedicts" rule the deliciousness blog, but unlike the wings, these entries will keep on coming. Enjoy.

Greg

-Homemade hash browns benedict.


*Note: for some reason this video is being stubborn and will not turn sideways. So, turn your head when you watch to see it as it was intended. :P

Buffalo Wings Redux

Originally, this was intended to be a pure video-blog, but the incompleteness of the clips has led to additional writing portions that are longer than the videos themselves. Therefore, using the last set of chicken wings from the Costco purchase described multiple times before, I set out to show how I make buffalo chicken wings from start to finish.

However, since I film these things myself, I could not film myself cutting the chicken wings into drummettes and wingettes. You can find how to prep the chicken itself in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnahgARLdsU

I'm out of wings, so there will be no more wings blog entries for a while. If you're not inspired to make your own buffalo wings, there's little else that I can do for you. Seek help. Try good ole Alton Brown: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HX6q61JWR4&feature=related. I will admit, that his wing preparation is much more involved than my own (he actually steams his wings before baking them), but as always, his advice makes good sense.

Greg

-Buffalo chicken wings, in action:


-Removing the wings from the oven:


-The proper technique for Buffalo-ing your wings:


-The result of all that not-so-hard work:


-Gone in seconds:



Sunday, January 17, 2010

Thai Style Chicken Wings

More wings! Mmmm....I'm starting to notice that I have a lot of wing posts...and meals.

Greg

-Thai-style Chicken Wings

Friday, January 1, 2010

My New Hand Mixer

For those of you who don't know, I used to be the Brownie King of Glendale. How I became the King is an epic story of glory that I won't bother you with. Just take my word for it...I used to be the King...used to be...

After years away from the throne, I am formally announcing a coup to regain sovereignty over the brownie kingdom.

With a new hand mixer and brownie cookbook in hand, I've begun my re-ascension to the crown. My Aunt Maggie bought me a great hand mixer for Christmas, so I'll be trying it out today with a new brownie recipe for marbled chocolate cheesecake brownies. Mmmmm...

Nobody said regaining the crown would be easy. Admittedly, these marbled chocolate cheesecake brownies came out a little dry. IMO, the most critical part of cooking brownies is removing them from the oven at the proper time. I believe that there is an optimal cooking time for making the brownies soft, chewy and delicious...I did not take these brownies out at that time. Also, I used glass pans, which held the heat too long as well (IMO). You live and learn, so heed my warnings in the recipe below.

Eventually, I, the king, will return triumphantly. The only real question is, what type of brownie will I try to conquer next?

Greg


The mixer is used for the first time:


Special surprise feature!


-Marbled chocolate cheesecake brownies














-Recipe/Instructions:

This is the exact recipe I used, courtesy of the Blissful Brownies cookbook (http://www.amazon.com/Blissful-Brownies/dp/1405491272) given to me for Christmas by my Aunt Maggie. *Note: I'm a teacher, and the republication of this recipe is intended for educational purposes only. :P

"Brownies: 6 oz butter, 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 1 cup flour
Topping: 1 cup ricotta cheese, 3 tbsp sugar, 1 egg

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease an 11 x 7 cake pan.

Melt the butter in a medium pan, remove from the heat, and stir in the unsweetened cocoa and sugar. Beat in the eggs, then add the flour, and stir to mix evenly. Pour into the prepared pan.

For the cheesecake mix, beat together the ricotta, sugar, and egg, then drop teaspoonfuls of the mixture over the chocolate mixture. use a metal spatula to swirl the two mixtures lightly together.

Bake for 40-45 minutes [Greg says 35-40] until just firm to the touch. Cool in the pan, then cut into squares or bars."

The amount of "cheesecake" topping made in the recipe is too much to allow "marbling." I suggest making half the amount described in the recipe. Do not use all of the topping, but use about six-8 tsp sized dollops. Otherwise, it will be more of a solid topping than a marbled one. It also makes it difficult to perform the toothpick test for moistness, so trust in your timer and intuition. Enjoy!