From the Harvest Table

Being taught

Published by admin on Wed, 02/13/2019 - 12:40pm
 Well, just when you thought spring was on the way. It was a good weekend, even with a little snow on the ground. Just like everyone else I was glad to break out the snowblower at least once this year. 
 After snowmaggedon a couple of years ago, we just sat back last year and wondered when we could use it again.  

Fatal error

Published by admin on Wed, 02/06/2019 - 12:25pm
 I realized I haven’t shared with you my disappointment in the recent attempt at dry aging prime rib. We were about 15 days into the process and everything was looking good.  
 I was having a hard time keeping the humidity where it needs to be, but that would just cause more moisture loss in the meat and not really affect the taste. I was at work when I got a call the fridge we were using bit the dust.  

On to our next recipe

Published by admin on Wed, 01/30/2019 - 5:15pm
My granddaughter and I finished our first challenge last week and we are on to our second challenge for the month. I thought for our second project I would make a plain old chocolate cake. 
 Boy was I wrong. Learning the complexities of chocolate and cocoa itself was an all-day study session.
 Cocoa powder was first produced in 1828 by the Dutch chocolatier Van Houten, who used a hydraulic press to remove 90 percent of the cocoa butter from the chocolate nibs or beans. This was then ground and introduced as cocoa powder.  

Substitutions

Published by admin on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 12:04pm
 In cooking we use things we have on hand and don’t want to go to the store for one more thing.  
 I know more often than not I used butter in a recipe instead of margarine, just because I don’t keep margarine in the house very often. When making something to eat we substitute items all the time.  I can’t be the only one to eat a hot dog on whole wheat sliced bread instead of a bun.  
 As far as that goes you get 10 hot dogs in a pack and only eight buns in a pack.  I think the universe is trying to tell us something.

What I Learned

Published by admin on Wed, 01/16/2019 - 2:27pm
A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to learn a little Basque cooking when I was helping out with a meal at the Vendome.  
 Megan Overgaard is a great teacher with lots of patience and understanding on how to approach new subjects, even with an old seasoned cook such as myself.   
 If there is one dish you should learn this would be it. 
 In Spain, it’s the go-to dish for a snack, a meal for an unexpected guest, or a late-night tapas snack. 

Teaching with technology

Published by admin on Wed, 01/09/2019 - 12:11pm
With the advent of online teaching and all the things we can do now with technology, this Christmas the gift I gave my granddaughters was the gift of experience and knowledge.   
 My daughter had two daughters of her own and they live in Ohio. One of them is really into a cooking and baking stage and the other one had burned through a few sd cards on her phone taking pictures. Having a little knowledge in both presented the opportunity to teach them.   

Christmas gifts

Published by admin on Thu, 01/03/2019 - 4:04pm
Well, life has slowed down for a little bit. Sharon and I had a nice Christmas day and invited over a couple of friends for a good meal. 
 As you can imagine, when I receive gifts a lot of them are food related.  My sister-in-law sent me a variety of spices, someone at the candy shop we do business with brought me a box of vinegars and dip-making dry ingredients, and Sharon bought me the attachment for the mixer to make pasta again (I lost my old one in the fire a few years ago). 

The perfect rib roast

Published by admin on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 11:13am
Prime rib roast 
A couple of weeks ago I mentioned in my column  about beef going on sale at Ridley’s.  I picked one up for myself and then Sharon stopped at Albertsons because they had it on sale as well.  
 I have cooked many a prime rib in the past. Working on the boats I cooked 14 a week, but we had this great piece of equipment called an alto sham that would cook and hold the meat at the perfect temperature. 
 While prime rib can be sold bone-in or boneless, a bone-in roast is the best bet for guaranteed juicy succulence. 

Work and sleep

Published by admin on Thu, 12/20/2018 - 12:41pm
As we close in on the final days of the holiday season, I find myself at the point where it is work, sleep and nourish. Sharon often laughs at me or takes pictures of me when I fall asleep in my recliner at 7:30 p.m.  Then I am awake at 4 a.m ready to go again.  
 I enjoy my mornings at the candy shop, with a little music and lots of space to get things done.  By 8:30 a.m. the shop is bustling with people working and I must really be conscious of everyone around me not to burn anybody.

Achieving that goal

Published by admin on Wed, 12/12/2018 - 10:59am
I have been working on my culinary goal now for a few weeks. The objective has been to build a beef aging box to be able to age some ribeye and brisket this coming year. Well, it is almost complete. With the help of my friend Lisa we should be able to start our first one in a couple of weeks. 
 I belong to a group on Facebook called Crazy Dave’s Kitchen – Dry Aging Meat University.  This place is dedicated to learning the proper way to age beef.

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18 E. Idaho St.
Weiser, ID 83672
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