Journal

2020 - Week 42 Cooking Results

Chilli Bean Sliders

I ended up using store bought salsa, I didn’t chill the beans so the min-burgers were a little fragile. I suspect the reason why they are mini, is because if you did full size they would completely crumble apart. A nice flavor, a good healthy meal. I had leftovers the next couple of days.

Lamb Ragu with Pappardelle

I only had fennel seed, so I ground it up in the spice grinder and I think I may have added too much, because it was distinctly flavored with fennel. Even though I went to a larger grocery store this time, in search of sparkling water (specifically the unflavored store brand), but their selection of pasta was lackluster, so I ended up with fettuccine. Made for a good meal and good leftovers and a good use of lamb.

Soft Corn Tacos with Sweet Potato, Poblanos, and Corn

This seems like a good way to make roasted vegetables for tacos or fajitas. It was a nice combination of flavors and textures. Topped with a bit of sour cream and salsa, it was good.

Beef and Broccoli With Oyster Sauce

We had a “Happy Hour” for the last time with our co-worker who is leaving our team. I have those mixed feelings where I understand why he is going, and support that choice, but will still miss him. After that I didn’t feel up to cooking, so we ordered delivery.

Sous Vide Carnitas for Tacos (Start Saturday, Finish Sunday)

I cut thick slices of pork off of a larger hunk, chopped up the onion and orange, salted and then when to package things. I ended up using my last “bag” and two section of the cut to fit rolls (meaning I got through the initial package of things for the sealer. As it stands right now, it has about 3 hours left before it’s ready for the next stage. I’ll pull the pork and put it away for tacos this evening.

The Start of the Sous Vide process

Additionally we, well I, joined remotely a class at The Cheese Shop of Des Moines, to celebrate the start of the Rush Creek Reserve season. It was joined by the wine maker (Iconic Wines), the cheese maker (Andy Hatch). Mr. Hatch was the reason I was excited to join. I setup a cheese plate for dinner and listened to the discussion as it ended up in a very geeky discussion of ph balance in cheese and wine. It was enjoyable.

Cheese Plate for Saturday’s remote cheese class