I don't know how many people around here are into food, or if a topic like this has been created before and utterly failed, but what the hell.

 

This thread is for all things food and wine related.

 

http://i1030.photobucket.com/albums/y370/domeluce/IMG_0715-Copy_zps2cc23b50.jpg

 

Pork belly sandwich, green onion relish, carrot sambal, avocado and cilantro, from a small restaurant in Paso Robles California.

 

Seriously...mind blowing.

Dayum. That looks awesome!

 

Not quite in the same league but I was challenged by my friends [while drinking around a camp fire - a place many great ideas are born] to come up with a homemade pop tart.

 

Behold the fruits [or cinnamon and brown sugar] of my labor!

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img30/4620/vcve.JPG

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img837/719/7zoq.jpg

 

8 out of 8 taste testers agreed that the homemade was leaps and bounds better than the control group pop tart.

Haha nicely done! Can't go wrong with cinnamon.

 

You seem well stocked in Olive oil!

You seem well stocked in Olive oil!

Ha! I am! However, most of those smaller bottles are different types of balsamic.

 

http://www.saratogaoliveoil.com/balsamic-vinegar

 

I've got Fig Balsamic [one of my all time favorites], Chocolate Balsamic [awesome on strawberries and french bread], Tangarine Balsamic [stupid good on fish or in salad dressings], and the 18 Year Old Traditional.

 

Our olive oils include a butter flavored olive oil that is great on roasted veggies and this wild mushroom and sage olive oil that I use in my eggs or on my steaks that's just ridiculous.

I have never tried any of those types of Balsamic, and I'm of Italian origin. I shall look into it!

Needs more posts, me thinks ... I'll make an effort to post too

food thread \0/

 

now if DDL mentions sausages and me in the same sentence he dies....

Needs more posts, me thinks ... I'll make an effort to post too

 

Please do!

Homemade spaghetti sauce

 

2 small cans tomato paste

1 large can tomato sauce

1 can mushrooms

1 pound ground beef

Half large onion

Oregano

Italian seasoning

 

Chop onion fine and throw in skillet with ground beef, brown ground beef and drain of greese, add tomato paste and tomato sauce, fill both cans of tomato paste with water and add, add mushrooms, little oregano, Italian seasoning, cook on low for around three hours.

 

Fuck that Rago shit lol.

My Italian grandmother would be rolling in her grave seeing a "spaghetti sauce" made out of CANNED tomato product.  That would be if I had an Italian grandmother.  And she was dead.

 

Red sauce is one of the basic sauces you need to know how to make, man.  And the best time to make it is right after picking your tomatoes - that have been touched by nothing but sunshine and rain - ripe off the vine in your back yard.  It's no coincidence that onion harvest season is also right around this time and that you have access to fresh oregano, parsley, garlic, and basil as well.  I make a couple of huge batches each year using stuff from my "tomato sauce garden" and jar about 4 gallons of it.  My family and friends go NUTS when they find out Yates is making sauce.

 

I throw my tomatoes in my chest freezer overnight.  Pull them out the next morning and let them thaw.  The skins fall right off.  From there the ratios go like this:

 

4T Olive Oil

2 Cloves Garlic

1/4 C Onion

[hot pepper of your choosing diced - if you like a little kick]

4T chopped parsley

2T chopped basil

2T chopped oregano

2T sugar

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

2lbs Tomato [peeled and chopped]

 

Saute your garlic and onion [and pepper if desired] until the onion is translucent. [low heat]

Add your spices [everything but the tomato] and stir until combined.

Add your tomatoes, cover pot with lid, raise the heat to medium, and bring to a strong simmer.

Lower the heat again and let simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

Bring the heat back up to medium-low and let simmer another 10 minutes uncovered [to thicken].

Mash with a potato masher or pulse with a blender in small batches.

 

*If your sauce is too watery after blending, you can simmer longer [uncovered] until it thickens to the right consistency.  It can take up to 6 hours.  Seriously!

*Add seasoning and other diced and fried veggies to taste [bell pepper, sun dried tomato, chunks of tomato, zucchini, carrots, mushrooms...]

*Consider adding 1/2 C of quality red wine [something you would drink] for some extra depth of flavor.

Homemade potato croquettes. Battered in breadcrumbs and spices and then fried in in a pot. Best served with complimentary spices and sauces.http://puu.sh/5Ozto.jpg

I'm pretty jealous you have access to your own tomatoes. No such luck over here in the concrete jungle I live in. You Mr Yates, seem to have your sauce technique pretty much sorted out!

 

In Southern Italy they throw finely chopped celery and carrots into the process slightly after the onions go into the pot. They'll also add some type of meat to cook with the sauce half way through the cooking process. Adds a richness to the taste.

 

Nice looking croquettes, Simternity. I'm hungry now.

Edited December 16, 201312 yr by TheWanderer

In Southern Italy they throw finely chopped celery and carrots into the process slightly after the onions go into the pot. They'll also add some type of meat to cook with the sauce half way through the cooking process. Adds a richness to the taste.

I'm really using this as a base sauce. If I want a meat sauce I can always add some browned meat and maybe a little tomato paste. If I want a fra diavolo I just add some crushed red pepper. If I want to turn this into a vodka sauce I add some Sobieski and a dash of crushed red pepper. You can even add heavy cream if you want something zippy for your gnocchi. OR, the other sauce I make is a really excellent alfredo using a high quality parmigiano. My wife loves to mix my vodka sauce and alfredo sauce 50/50 for a spicy vodka alfredo. It's REALLY nice on linguini or larger rope pastas - especially with a bit of ground sausage and maybe a splash of sambuca.

 

Also I agree. Those croquettes look fantastic!

I'm pretty jealous you have access to your own tomatoes. No such luck over here in the concrete jungle I live in.

Roma tomatoes actually do extremely well in large [like 5 gallon?] pots. Basil, Oregano, Parsley, Thyme, Sage, and Rosemary all do very well as window box herbs.

 

Just saying...  

Trying to grow your own stuff here is somewhat of an art. Bad soil, little space, humidity...though it can be done, I may have something to show in a couple more weeks

 

Yates, reading your posts before going to bed is the worst idea ever. Ask my rumbling stomach.

Yates, reading your posts before going to bed is the worst idea ever. Ask my rumbling stomach.

Ha! Where do you live? On a volcanic island somewhere?

Haha yes, minus the volcano. Singapore.