Walked over to the farmers market on a fresh overnight dusting of snow, a reminder that winter isn’t finished and that local produce would be scarce. I carried home crusty bread straight from the baker, along with bacon sausages and lamb from a local farm for “Sausage Saturday” and a Sunday root vegetable braise.
Category: Cook
One in, one out
This beauty arrived from Williams-Sonoma today: a Le Creuset cast iron gratin dish, my online Black Friday purchase. I generally do the bakes, so I’ll be making good use of this. The dish is made in France, so I will have missed the more extreme tariff placed on China. Our household rules dictate that an old kitchen item must now go to Goodwill.
Deconstructed turkey served with gratitude
We’re quietly celebrating this Thanksgiving, and the centerpiece of our meal is Dwight’s stuffed turkey thigh (minus the bone), finished with a rich gravy. The stuffing is equally rich, with about a dozen ingredients, including meaty porcini mushrooms. And we have plenty left over for another meal.
I love cooking with wine…
…sometimes I even put it in the food. (I think I’ve used that line before.) Forgot to take a photo as I went about my day, so here’s me cooking dinner.
Unconventional eggplant
Dwight brought these home from the farmers market yesterday: African eggplants, grown by farmers originally from West Africa. While cubing them, skin on, I noticed their internal structure was a little different from a conventional eggplant, but decided to go with my original plan: microwave for six minutes at 60% (as I usually do with eggplant), then saute in a pan before adding them to a slow braise. Dwight gave the final result a thumbs up.
AI-assisted braise: smoky Chinese eggplant with fennel and tomatoes
Chatted with AI about the Chinese eggplant I’d picked up at the farmers market. Arrived at a recipe for which I had all the ingredients. AI called it Smoky Braised Chinese Eggplant with Fennel and Tomatoes, and provided an ingredient list and a self-evident recipe for a braise. The dish did not catch fire: the smoky flavor comes from smoked paprika.
Homemade biscotti: just what the doctor ordered
We both now have colds, so it was an at-home day, except I dragged myself five blocks to Trader’s. Dwight had promised to make his world-famous biscotti, but we were running low on staples.
A soaking day
It’s a grey damp day, best for hunkering down. After rinsing, I’ll hot-soak these dried beans, then freeze half. I’m poking around the freezer for ideas for a bean dish for dinner tonight using the other half of the beans. So far, a ham shank and mirepoix are lined up. Fresh garlic, bay leaves, and cumin should punch up the flavor. Brown rice and stir-fried Swiss chard will balance the meal.
Early season finds at the Mill City Farmers Market
Our local farmers market was busy this morning. I walked away with asparagus, baby kale, bread, and honey. It’s too early in Minnesota’s growing season for anything cruciferous, except a few types of leafy greens.
Rainy day comfort food
Rained all day, inducing a mild case of cabin fever. Made a mushroom sauce for leftover polenta, heavy on the mushrooms: finally, a task with a beginning, middle, and end that I accomplished today. Finished the sauce with heavy cream, shoyu, and Dijon. An immersion blender and some water revived the polenta.