Batali’s Pizza Dough

By A.J. Coltrane

Mario Batali’s pizza dough recipe here. I used sugar instead of honey, and only 2 tsp of instant yeast, which was plenty. It made a *very* extensible dough that cooked up in 16 minutes at 500F, with a puffy cornicione and a crackerlike interior.

The “light wine” used was Facelli’s Red Table Wine, a blend of Pinot Noir, Merlot, Lemberger, Syrah, Sangiovese, and Cab Franc. I think it added a nice dimension to the crust. Topped with red onion, sopressata, and..a little bit of cream cheese.
A tasty pie! I may never go back to “regular” pepperoni.

Katsu Burger

by A.J. Coltrane

Hajime Sato’s restaurant Katsu Burger got a nice writeup on Serious Eats yesterday.

Iron Chef Leftovers and I took a sushi class from Sato a while back — you may recognize Sato from his sustainable sushi restaurant Mashiko.

Hajime is featured on a Cooking Channel re-run episode of Hook, Line, and Dinner on Friday, April 27 at 2:30pm. (Originally aired April 19. I missed it. It’s now in the Tivo que.)

I wonder if it helps more to get a writeup on Serious Eats, or somewhere like the Seattle Times?

Check, Please! Northwest

by A.J. Coltrane

Check, Please! Northwest features three “local diners” visiting three restaurants, then comparing their experiences on the air with host Amy Pennington.

As might be expected from a show with non-professional reviews, the quality and usefulness of the commentary can vary wildly. One episode featured a guy who clearly wasn’t comfortable anywhere besides TGIMcFunsters. Another featured a guy who went to the restaraunt, but then couldn’t remember the names of the dishes — and he knew he was going to have to talk about it on television! Take notes! There are also exchanges such as — Host: “What is your summation of the restaurant?” Guest: “Mmm Mmm Good!”. Really?

In the espisode that included Island Soul they somehow managed to talk about the drinks, but never once mention the rum flights, which to my mind is the high point of the restaurant.

I haven’t written anything “nice” yet, but it’s still on the Tivo “record” list. Pennington does a good job as the host. The local restaurant reviews can be useful. Hopefully the quality of the guests will improve going forward.

Happy 4/20!

By Iron Chef Leftovers

In honor of today being 4/20, I am going to give you a simple recipe to grow some product in you own home with a minimum of effort.

First, get a couple of seeds of the product, 3 or 4 will do. Take a juice glass, pack in a couple of damp paper towels and space the seeds evenly about 3/4 of the way down in the glass around the edge. Place the glass on a windowsill. Add water as necessary when the paper towel begins to dry out. When the seeds have sprouted and the plants have reached the top of the glass, transfer to a flowerpot and let grow until ready to harvest.

Wait; did you think that I was referring to growing pot in honor of 4:20? You are sadly mistaken – today is also National Respect for Lima Beans say and this is a recipe for growing lima beans in your home. Get your mind out of the gutter.

To serve your lima beans, I like to just blanch them and toss them with a bit of salt and olive oil.

Did you know that lima beans are incredibly good for you? They are filled with nutritious fiber, potassium, iron, copper, and manganese. Lima beans are also low in fat and contain protease inhibitors that stall the development of cancerous cells.

Joy Of Cooking’s Fast White Bread

by A.J. Coltrane

I wanted to make a white sandwich bread, so I thought to myself: “Where would I find a totally universal white bread recipe?”

In the Joy Of Cooking of course!

Ingredient	Volume
Bread Flour	3 cups
Water	1 cup, warm (115-125F)
Salt	1.5 tsp
Yeast	2.25 tsp
Sugar	1 TBP
Butter	2 TBP, softened

The recipe calls for mixing most of the flour with the other ingredients, then the remaining flour. I skipped that. Otherwise, this is the basic recipe:

1. Knead all ingredients on low speed for 10 minutes.

2. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and let rise 20-45 minutes until doubled in size.

3. Shape, grease a 9 x 5 loaf pan, place the dough into it and let rise another 20-45 minutes, until doubled again.

4. Bake at 450F for 10 minutes, then turn down the oven to 350F and bake about 30 minutes more.

5. Remove the loaf to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

Notes:

1. I think 10 minutes is a loooong time to knead anything. I’d cut it back to about 6 minutes next time and see how that works out.

2. It came out maybe a little too salty. I think I’ll weigh the salt in the future and shoot for 2% of the flour weight (about 8 grams).

3. Substituting olive oil for the butter would make a pretty generic pizza dough recipe. (It’s a ~60% hydration dough.)

4. All in all, a very easy loaf that’s better than store bought. Cheaper too.

Unfamilar Terms on Restaurant Menus

By Iron Chef Leftovers

There was a post recently on the Seattle Weekly blog about the use of unfamiliar terms on restaurant menus. I really don’t have an issue with this, my feeling is that if you are not familiar with something on a menu, ask your server, or better yet, just order it and be pleasantly surprised when you try it and like it. While it would be nice for a restaurant to include a more detailed description of a menu item, I also don’t want to read War and Peace just to order dinner.

In the article, the author included a list of 10 words on the menu for Restaurant Zoe, inviting readers to match the term to the definition. I only got 7 out of 10. Here is the list (no cheating):

Menu term

1. Amaranth
2. Pappardelle
3. Emmer farro
4. Abalone
5. Cornichon
6. Pimenton
7. Gnudi
8. Pistou
9. Panisse
10. Remoulade

Definition

A. ricotta dumplings
B. the mother grain of modern wheat
C. Once considered a simple weed, this nutritious annual has a slightly sweet flavor
D. fried chickpea flour cake
E. crisp, tart pickle made from a tiny gherkin cucumber
F. flat, long wide noodle with rippled edges
G. classic French sauce made by combining mayonnaise with mustard, capers, chopped gherkins, herbs and anchovies
H. univalve mollusk
I. mixture of crushed basil, garlic and olive oil
J. Spanish smoked paprika

The answers are after the break

Continue reading “Unfamilar Terms on Restaurant Menus” →

Under-represented Beer Styles in Seattle

By Iron Chef Leftovers

The blog, Seattle Beer News, recently posted a poll on “What type of beer would you like to see more of in Seattle?”
Here is what he said:

I recently had a conversation with someone looking to open up a brewery in Seattle who asked me what I think the Seattle beer scene could use more of. I know my answer, but what do you all think?

I don’t have any issue with asking the question. It is a valid one. There are a ton of breweries opening up and many of them are producing some very good and different beers, but they don’t cover everything that is out there.

Where I have an issue is with someone who is looking to open up a brewery asking that question. First, if you are planning on the capital outlay for a brewery, wouldn’t you think you would have already done enough market research on your own to answer the question already? Heck, all they need to do is go to a beer festival and ask the 400 or so hard core beer drinkers what they would like to see. Second, just because a people say they want more barrel aged beers or Belgian style beers, doesn’t mean that they will actually buy them. Third, shouldn’t you produce beers that are to the brewer’s strength rather than trying to fill a market niche? There is a ton of competition out there and if your brewer makes a stellar stout, wouldn’t you want to put that out on the market to get people familiar with your beer instead of making something that may or may not be any good and ruining your reputation? Plenty of breweries have proven that you can make a name with a style that is already “over-represented” in the market (Fremont Brewing and Black Raven come to mind).

So to all you aspiring brewers, brew what you love and what you are good at and then brew the unusual or under-represented styles. People around here are going to try a new beer regardless, you might as well make it your best one and get people hooked.

Dulce de Leche Pie

by A.J. Coltrane

By request. Annie S’s Dulce De Leche Banana Cream Pie.

Recipe here. [Food Network, Marcella Valladolid: Dulce de Leche Banana Cream Pie Recipe] Annie substitutes a pre-made graham cracker crust. The Nestle La Lechera Dulce de Leche should be available in the Mexican section of any large supermarket.

Unorthodox Egg Rolls

by A.J. Coltrane

These were inspired by this Simply Ming recipe: Spring rolls filled with turkey, carrots, and carmelized onions. The carmelized onions in an egg roll sounded really good to me.

I began by shredding one red pepper, 1/2 a red onion, and three large button mushrooms. These went into a skillet with two cloves of minced garlic, two tablespoons of hoisin sauce, and a splash of soy. Everything was sauteed over medium heat until it was all a big, sticky, red mess. When cool it was combined a bowl with minced cooked chicken (about one large breast), and the green parts of a bunch of scallions.

The egg rolls were sealed with an egg wash.

And deep fried in canola oil until golden brown.

I used this recipe for sweet and sour sauce, minus the cornstarch and the boiling. (1/3 cup rice vinegar, 4 TBP brown sugar, 1 TBP ketchup, 1 tsp soy.) It came out vaguely too sour, though that could have been because I ran out of ketchup. A little fiddling and it was fine… if anyone has an easy sweet and sour recipe they like I’d be happy to try it.

Don’t worry, no beer was wasted on the cat.

A Low Hassle Pizza

by A.J. Coltrane

The dough:

Ingredient	Baker’s Percentage	Weight	Approx Volume
Bread Flour	75	300g	2-1/4 cups
Wheat Flour	25	100g	3/4 cup
Water	70	280g	1 cup + 3 TBP
Sea Salt	2	8g	2 tsp
Yeast	2 tsp	2 tsp	2 tsp
Honey	1.5 TBP	1.5 TBP	1.5 TBP

The other stuff: 14oz can of tomatoes (I use Muir Glen, in this case Diced Fire Roasted), dried oregano, garlic, red onion, balsamic, cheese (I used havarti and parmesan).

1. Combine the dough ingredients and knead at low speed for 6 minutes. Lightly oil the dough and the bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a towel, and let rise about two hours (about double in size).

2. Lightly oil a pizza pan. (I use a 13″x18″ sheet tray.) Press the dough out to the edges of the pan (or close). Cover with a towel and let rise one hour.

3. Get the toppings ready. Here’s what I did: While the dough is resting, thinly slice 1/2 an onion and cook with a splash of balsamic over low heat until soft. Puree one 14oz can of tomatoes together with 1 tsp dried oregano and two cloves of garlic. Remove the onions from the pan, turn off the heat, add the tomato mixture and let it reduce slightly in the still warm pan.

4. To top the pizza: Start by topping with shredded or sliced cheese, then the tomato mixture, the onion, and finally a generous amount of grated parmesan. Bake at 450 degrees for about 20 minutes. I didn’t have pizza-appropriate meat in the house, but that would be good too.