Egg nog and other food thoughts

[magid]

I've been thinking about alternate uses for egg nog, and so far have come up with egg nog truffles, egg nog with berries (specifically, cranberries, given that they're in season when the nog is generally around, so likely whole berries lightly cooked with some sweetener, such as in Coraline's cranberry crack), some kind of trifle-inspired dessert, and egg nog bread pudding. Any other ideas?

The other food that's caught my attention is Persian rice, either with or without potatoes on the bottom (mmm... starch + starch). It sounds a bit finicky, but an interesting experiment, especially if I add some caramelized onions, dried fruit, nuts, saffron, etc. Possibly some form of meat, or a stew to serve with it (assuming I can substitute oil for the butter all the recipes call for (margarine being an unpleasantness I'd rather avoid).

A perennial should-try-it is bitter melon, which Russo's generally carries, so I should be able to make it whenever. Except that I keep on chickening out, having never even tasted it, so I have no clue just how bitter it should be, nor how to play with its flavor to make a coherent dish. It's not enough related to anything else I've cooked, so I feel like I'm flying wholly blind, despite the assistance available from Chef Google (and from Tigers & Strawberries).

I should get more cranberries while I can, and start canning again. Not only are they wonderfully tart, locally harvested, and have lots of micronutrients of great goodness, but they're also high in pectin.

I didn't put by nearly as much food as I would have liked this year, so perhaps an ongoing list of what I've canned/frozen and how it's been used (gift, eaten straight, put into other things, etc.) for 2009 would help. It should keep me from too much jam compared to anything else; there's only so much jam that's useful. I'd like to make more pickles, and fermented things (depending on how much fridge space they require later on; I really need to read Wild Fermentation), and freeze more (though there I run into cubic constraints, with the subsequent perennial question of where to shoehorn a chest freezer into my apartment. (Putting it in the basement is not an option, partly because I don't think there's an outlet, and partly because I will never end up using stuff from there)).

From this season's bounty, I still have strawberries and some edamame frozen, plus carrot-parsnip soup and vegetable-barley soup. The greens I'd sauteed with onions got used up already (it's barely winter; obviously, more could have been done here, especially since I lamed out on using the carrot greens). I also have half a big jar of the rather mild sauerkraut made a while back. In cans, I've got two quarts of beet pickles, two quarts of red onion pickles, at least one pint of apricot chutney, and likely a few other cans of jam or chutney (plus stuff from previous years, mostly jam, some of it applesauce), also apricot liqueurs and some of the boozy fruit from their making. Obviously, this is not at all close to putting enough food by for the winter months. Note to self: get more half-pints and smaller jars for jam and chutney, and larger wide-mouth jars for pickles.

Comments

[bitty.livejournal.com]

eggnog waffles

[magid.livejournal.com]

Ooh! Or pancakes, given a cast-iron griddle and a lack of waffle iron.

[fetteredwolf.livejournal.com]

I just put eggnog in my coffee.

Persian rice- I've always made it with oil.

[magid.livejournal.com]

How does the coffee taste, comparatively? (I'm not a coffee drinker, so I have no frame of reference.)

And good to know, thank you.
Any particular hints for having it crust without serious burning?

[osewalrus.livejournal.com]

Cranberries also freeze very well. We keep them in the freezer and ha cranberry sauce all year round.

[fetteredwolf.livejournal.com]

Hmm. I can't remember- I haven't made it in years. I do remember that occasionally it crusted beautifully, and occasionally it burned on the bottom. My girlfriend at the time (half Persian, half Syrian) liked it burned.

[magid.livejournal.com]

I know cranberries freeze well: I must have cranberries in my freezer at all times. However, now that they're in season, it's the chance not only to put a bag or 10 in the freezer, but do all those other interesting things, which won't take up freezer space.

[magid.livejournal.com]

I'm so not surprised that there are people who prefer the burned bits. I'm unfortunately not one of them. Plus it would be nice to feel I'd managed a new technique properly.

[fetteredwolf.livejournal.com]

So I was curious and looked at a few recipes online and they all say to cook the rice partly first. I didn't do that- I just fried it first, then layered it over the potatoes (oiling the bottom of the pot as well) and then added water. But it cooked over low heat for a few hours, then we transferred it to the shabbat plata and covered it with a towel, and ate it shabbat morning, so who knows. Very imprecise science. I should experiment again.

[tapuz.livejournal.com]

if it wasn't for the temperature issues, I'd say go with a nut oil for the flavor, but canola is, alas, a safer bet...

[(Anonymous)]

Egg nog French toast is enjoyable, and easy too. Most of what comes to my mind are the yummy custard-type things, like for your trifle, or as your bread pudding. Ice cream!

The Persian rice sounds interesting. Could it be a Purim dish? It reminds me of the saffron rice I make, which is not as fancy but is not finicky and is simple to prepare without intermediate steps.

I have a purple cabbage. Can I make sauerkraut in a glass bowl? Do I just layer shredded cabbage and salt? How much salt? For how long must I leave it?

The perennial freezer shoehorn question! Do I recall correctly that you do not use your dishwasher? Perhaps it is possible to fit one in that space.

I had stocked up on cranberries. Now there are only a couple of cups of them left in my freezer.

[magid.livejournal.com]

The recipes I saw all soaked the rice before parboiling, too. Did you do that?

[magid.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'd be nervous the oil would get hot enough to burn the whole thing more easily. I might mix canola with olive oil, though. Or if olive oil does work, then I could try flavoring it.

[magid.livejournal.com]

Ice cream! I suspect it would need a kick of nutmeg or something, but that could be a fun experiment (were I an ice-cream-making person; I have not yet achieved this state).

I don't see why it couldn't be a Purim dish. If I'm thinking of foods from that region to celebrate the holiday, my first thought is king's rice, which layers carrots, meat, onions, lots of garlic, raisins, and pistachios under rice.

For actual sauerkraut, rather than a slaw that might age for hours rather than days, it's better to have a container you can (a) pack the cabbage into tightly, and (b) mostly cover. I don't remember the amounts of salt (I look it up every time), but if you Google "wild fermentation sauerkraut" you'll get useful suggestions. Ideally, however much salt is required to draw out enough liquid to cover the cabbage... I generally shred it into a large bowl, salting it there (which not only starts the liquid, but makes the cabbage a bit more flexible), then once that's done, pack it into the containers I use. It's amazing how much cabbage you can fit in if you really push. Generally, I leave it for about a week, pushing down on whatever weight I have on top (mostly covering the opening) whenever I think of it. After that, if it's fermented enough, I put it into the fridge, which slows down/stops the fermentation process. It depends on what flavor you prefer.

I don't want to take the dishwasher out: not only is it a useful place to store wine on its side (more than a case), but also in case I do want to sell this place someday, having a dishwasher makes a big difference, while a deep freeze does not. Plus, the space is an odd one, half under the sink: the dishwasher is configured oddly inside (and I suspect would be pricey to replace because of that). I appreciate your thinking outside the box (er, as it were :-).

Time to get more cranberries before they vanish for the year!

[hrafn.livejournal.com]

Egg nog cheesecake! (Probably wouldn't actually need to use real egg nog, though, just the appropriate flavorings instead.)

Bread pudding sounds like an excellent use of it.

[magid.livejournal.com]

If I could convince myself to make cheesecake at all, that would be lovely. (Making it myself means acknowledging just how bad it is for me, especially if I have one making eyes at me from my refrigerator...).

[(Anonymous)]

Yes, definitely nutmeg.

I dream of some day having a Purim seudah. Thanks for introducing me first to Persian rice and now to king's rice. Pistachios!

Thank you so much for the excellent sauerkraut directions! The detailed description is so helpful, and you even anticipated some of my follow-up questions. The idea of starting in a bowl and the transferring to jars is especially helpful. The only part about which I still feel completely unsure is actually getting enough liquid. Also, do you mean that it is the weight you use that mostly covers the opening?

You are welcome for thinking outside the box. (That was cute.) Thanks for the appreciation! Under normal circumstances, I'd just suggest pulling out the dishwasher and storing it in the basement until such time that you might want to sell, but it doesn't sound like that will work given the complicated setup.

If I have extra cash next time I shop, perhaps I will get some more cranberries. The problem is that when I purchase in bulk with the intent of stocking up, which typically uses future weeks' grocery money, I often end up using up right away as additional food what I purchased rather than allowing it to fulfill the intended purpose over time. Berries especially are difficult to resist!

[magid.livejournal.com]

You should host a Purim seudah if you want to! Heck, mention it to friends now preemptively :-).

The liquid comes from the cabbage itself. That's part of why a weight on top is useful: pressing down every so often encourages more liquid out. That said, I have had more of an issue of overflow than not enough liquid to cover the cabbage. And yes, the weight I use (a pint jar filled with water) is almost (but not quite) the same diameter as the opening of the big rectangular prism of a glass jar I use for sauerkraut. So some air gets in (allowing fermentation), but not a lot.

Storing the dishwasher in the basement might work, if one did not have my complete and utter laziness to deal with. If I have the energy to deal with this, for instance, it would be better channeled to other house things that are more urgent (alas).

I hear you about storing for later; that's why I have so little farm stuff this winter. I'm hoping to start on better habits with this in the coming year!

[(Anonymous)]

I wish I were in the position to host a Purim seudah, and to invite you!

I apologize for not being clear. I am aware the liquid comes from the cabbage, thanks to descriptions you've written in the past (Everything I know about how to make sauerkraut I learned from Magid), but I am unsure about drawing out enough liquid to cover the cabbage. You once mentioned having more than enough even when first packing the cabbage into the jar, but that hasn't been my experience with salting cabbage.

Thanks for the clarifications and further details regarding the weight and the opening. Now I get it.

Rectangular prism!

I'm sorry you have urgent house things to do and hope you get the energy you need to tackle them. It sounds like you've done a lot of decluttering and rearranging lately. I guess it all must be related to whatever the $HomeChange is. May it all go smoothly and easily.

Better storing habits needed all around, I guess. More cash wouldn't hurt either.