Recipes to Trade by

[andrewf]

I'm curious how you learned Hindi, MG.

[MoneyGal]

I lived in India as a teen (and studied Hindi before and after living there) and have retained 1. a lifelong fascination with India, and 2. enough Hindi to sing along with Bollywood movies and order food in restaurants.

[daddybigbucks]

I have no idea what this huge thread is about....

but im guess cooking inexpensively?

My garden went crazy this year and i got tomatoes coming out of my ears.
good thing i love the little fruits.

My favorite right now is bruschetta on crackers

light blend garden tomatoes and onion
Add a crushed garlic clove and some olive oil.
Some malt vinegar (or stinky vinegar as my kid calls it).
add little salt, some pepper and basil/oregano to taste
Let sit for a hour, then strain thru some cheesecloth.

and serve.

not my pciture but looks the same

[jamesbe]

Friday is here, I can't wait to make these again.

Last weekend I wanted to have some crepes. So I could go to the restaurant and spend $15 for a couple of crepes ... or I could try making them. I never made crepes in my life. Made these and they were HANDS DOWN the best crepes I ever ate.

I filled them with various breakfast toppings (jam was a little rich, nutella way too strong and dulce de leche hands down the BEST food I have ever eaten.

Here is the recipe.
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract (optional)
1 teaspoon of sugar (optional)

Mix the wet incredients together, pour in the floor, whisk it together with a fork. Heat pan to medium spray with some cooking spray. Spread about a laddle (1 cup) of batter and spread it around to fill the pan.

Enjoy they are amazing!

[Causalien]

Just found this thread.

I am an avid amateur chef myself. Currently tackling the reproduction of McDonald's fries and my aim in cooking is to be able to cook and excel 10 dishes:

Duck (mastered)
Bread (Intermediate)
Spaghetti and sauce (mastered)
Chawan Mushi (Newbie)
Beef Wellington (Newbie)
Fries (Newbie)
Sous-Vide steak (Intermediate)
Sushi (Intermediate)
I am still picking the last 2 dishes on the menu.


But here's a Recipe that I have already fully tested. May not be the exact way they did it at "The Social" in Ottawa, but close enough in taste.

Name: Duck

-Put Duck leg in slow cooker half submerged with Coca Cola and cook at low for 2 hours, or until the skin begins to melt.

-Take out duck legs and put on individual ceramic bowls.
-Take some of the coca cola/fat soupe from the slow cooker and add it in the ceramic bowls until the duck legs are again half submerged.
-Spread some of the juice on the skin then sprinkle breadcrumbs and assorted ground spices to your taste on the skin.
-Put the duck and bowls into top shelf of the oven and broil until golden brown. Approx 10 minutes for me

Serve.

The thing that wowed me about Social's duck is that the skin is hard while the rest of the duck meat melts in your mouth. The contrast is exquisite. Might not be anything great in your eyes, but I had fond memories of this.

[humble_pie]

it's wild bitter greens pesto season & i have been gathering wild garlic-mustard, dandelion & nettle leaves along with the odd sprig of bergamot & lemon balm.

some olive oil, chopped garlic, ground seeds - walnut or sunflower are fine - doesn't have to be pine nuts - plus a splash of balsamic vinegar & what comes out of the food processor is a heavenly, bright green pesto fit for a king.

the other night i served a fine carbonara to the offspring. Liberally laced with pesto. The day's harvest from the backyard had been huge. It seems to me that all the plants are doing fabulously well this spring, after the mild winter.

they tucked in with gusto. I made the mistake of telling them what it was. Forks clattered down on plates. Two pairs of eyes, one blue-gray, one chocolate brown, regarded me with horror.

did this come from our backyard, said one. Eeeeuuuuuww.

[Rusty O'Toole]

I want to revive the pineapple upside down cake! This was a favorite of my childhood that I had not made in 20 years. So a few weeks ago I made some. When I mentioned it to my friends the older ones said " I haven't had pineapple upside down cake in years" the young ones said "what is pineapple upside down cake".

So here is an old favorite if you have heard of it or not.

Make a sauce of brown sugar and butter cooked together. Spread the sauce in a cake pan. Lay slices of pineapple in the sauce. Decorate each slice with a maraschino cherry in the middle. Mix up your cake batter and pour over the pineapple. White cake or yellow cake mix or your favorite cake recipe. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

Take it out of the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Then invert the pan onto a cookie sheet. Voila, pineapple upside down cake!

If you want a real recipe there are lots on the internet and Youtube. I'm not Julia Childs I just like cooking and eating.

[humble_pie]

yay ! pineapple upside-down cake, an oldie but goldie. Everyone should have one.

also date squares. Also from my childhood, a soufflé-lemon-cake with lots of eggs, butter & grated lemon rind that came out of the oven well-baked around the edges & mid-portion but divinely runny & extra bitter in the centre. Unfortunately we have lost the recipe.

[Plugging Along]

I just had to post bout the most wonderful find.

TRUFFLE SALT. I know it was not frugal, but not a bank breaker $20 for a small bottle but it is making everything taste like a million dollars.

A little goes such a long way, I have put it on steak, potatoes, spinach, and popcorn. It adds such a nice flavor. If I still ate French fries I would do that too. I am loving this stuff.

[MoneyGal]

I am WAY into salt and usually have about six varieties on the go! Right now I'm also using fennel pollen as a seasoning, which was $26 for a teeny, tiny bottle.