Justin & Meredith Winokur's Kitchen Cooking Notebook
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posts/2020/09
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I made BBQ Beef Jerky. I followed the same recipe as 2016-04-02 (which is now its own recipe page). I forgot the use water and just sprinkled everything over the beef and mixed well.
I let it dry while I was at work and had Meredith turn it off after about 6+ hours to cool.
It worked well! Even Caroline likes it.
Meredith made a Chia Berry Jam using The Kitchn (LOCAL). Used blueberries, raspberries, and figs. Meredith liked it but Caroline, for some reason, was not a fan (but we may try again)
Pistachio Arugula Patties -- back to top
We made our pistachio arugula patties with the normal changes and baked. Nothing particularly special about them this time but they were good as usual
Crab Dip. Meredith went a little heavy on green onion
Fresh Dill Salmon Salad -- back to top
Meredith's notes: Went a little light on the salt and (accidentally) went very heavy on the mustard. Also, as now noted, you really have to watch the salmon since it cooks so fast at this temp.
Chai Spice Cakes -- back to top
Meredith (and Caroline) made Chai Spiced Cakes
Grilled Shrimp and Grilled Broccoli -- back to top
I made my standard grilled shrimp using Montreal Chicken Seasoning. I also did broccoli in the grill basket with Penzeys ranch powder
Baked oatmeal except didn’t do the cream cheese thing
Butternut Squash and Black Bean Enchiladas -- back to top
Meredith made her (now) normal butternut squash and black bean enchiladas. Very tasty!
Mustard Brussel Sprouts -- back to top
We made Mustard Brussel Sprout Hash. The recipe has evolved quite a bit so I am not sure that is even the right link. Anyway, we threw this together. We also made hash browns. These were the patty kind. We just toasted them which worked well enough. I think I prefer tater tots but these were easier.
Sous Vide Filet -- back to top
I made sous vide filet mignon for all of us. I did the normal ~137°F for about 2.5 hours. All that was in the bag was some rosemary along with salt and pepper. It is worth noting too that these were huge steaks! They were USDA "Choice" since Costco had better sized of them.
The biggest thing I tried was to use the baking steel for searing. I wanted more space and I also wanted to not fill the house with smoke. Also, the baking steel doesn't have a grease channel so I did it on the grill where I don't have to worry. So I let the steel heat up on the grill for about 20 minutes. It worked well and was way easier! Also seemed to be a nicer sear.
Meredith also made Warm Mustard Herb Fingerling Potatoes from What's Gabby Cooking (LOCAL). We used the Vitamix to blend it. We added everything but the oil and blended it. Then we slowly added the oil at speed 5. We actually poured it with the cap on and let it drizzle in around it.
And we had Meredith's favorite green beans
Nothing particularly special. I just kind of threw together half-and-half with eggs plus some maple syrup and almond extract. The big note is that I used the Baking Steel as a griddle. It was really nice having so much space! I am still learning how to use it best but I think it worked well!
I ran out of liquid so I also made a few "toasted" bread with just mayo! They were also really good.
Turkey Arugula Patties and Roasted Broccoli Soup -- back to top
Turkey Arugula Patties, which I actually made during lunch (made it easier) and Roasted Broccoli Soup
I made the same basic type of mistake with both recipes. In the turkey, I completely forgot about the garlic but I later thought garlic powder sounded good so I added some. Similarly, on the soup, I completely forgot about sautéing some onion but later added onion powder. For both of these, it was not my intention to replace the ingredients I forgot but it worked out that way.
Chicken Tawook and Baba Ganoush -- back to top
We made [Chicken Tawook][ct] and Baba Ganoush. For the Baba Ganoush, we roasted the eggplant on the grill. I didn't realize you were supposed to prick them so one exploded...oops. While we did 45 minutes, I think it needs longer next time. They didn't have the char I would have liked.
The chicken was tasty as always. Meredith also cut up her home-grown cucumber.
Caroline and I made challah for Rosh Hashanah. We decided to try yet another different recipe, this time from The Perfect Egg.
I didn't make any real changes, though Caroline spilled the proofing yeast so I had to start that again and wait.
I kneaded it by hand in the bowl a lot until it was together enough to move to the food processor to let it really knead.
I also did two full rises before shaping and then another 20 minute rise once shaped. It came out pretty big! I could smell the yeast after the second rise but it tasted fine.
I feel like it is still missing some of the yellow I associate with challah (and brioche) but I liked the flavor enough.
Roasted Gnocchi and Veggies -- back to top
Regular roasted gnocchi except maybe doubled.
Brisket, Green Beans, and Potatoes -- back to top
We had friends over for a socially distant dinner and made sous vide brisket, green beans, and potatoes.
The brisket was the normal Serious Eats method. I bought "Choice" instead of "Prime". Even though prime is supposed to be better, the choice was a nicer cut, with less fat, and a better size (though more expensive so about the same cost). I still trimmed away a good amount of fat (estimated 1 lbs, 7 oz). I did add about 1/2 tsp of liquid smoke in each of the two bags (cut as best as could with the grain to make it easier to cut against it later). I cooked it for about 30 hours and then finished it on the grill for about 3.
| When | Weight | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| In package | 11.38 lbs | Package label |
| Bagged | 9.96 lbs | Before sous vide. Includes bags |
| After draining | 7.16 lbs | based on 2.77lbs of liquid but also missed a lot |
| Cooked | 5.31 lbs | Likely started out with less than above |
I also tried to make a gravy with the sous vide juice. I reduced it to about 2 cups (way too much) while skimming. I then made a slurry of 3 tbsp cornstarch and 1/4 cup water. It worked but was so salty that you could really barely eat it.
Meredith made her regular green beans. She let the marinate for about 2 hours. The thing is, the longer they marinate, the better they taste and the worse they look!
Also, we had leftover vinaigrette from last week so Meredith made potatoes again. They were really good!
Challah French Toast and Apples and Honey -- back to top
Nothing particularly special except I wanted to note that I made french toast with the challah and also served it with apples and honey. I tried to use honey in the french toast liquid but it didn't mix well. I think I need to heat it first next time
I've been wanting to make smash burgers for some time. I followed the Serious Eats recipe (LOCAL, including the video and PDF of The Food Lab).
I used the bottom of a small frying pan with non-stick aluminum foil to smash. I did them on the Baking Steel outside on the grill. I also broke the one rule Kenji said not to break and used a different cheese. I didn't expect to need as much pressure as I did! But I think it worked well enough. The later ones were done better (as you can see in the photo).
I used 85-88% lean beef since that is the fattiest that Keller's sells but I think it worked okay.
Meredith made salmon salad. Very good as usual!
BBQ Wings and Shrimp -- back to top
I made (and burned) oven-fried wings. I followed the general wing recipe except I made sauce with Sweet Baby Rays, some butter, and some sriracha. While cooking the wings, I tried broiling them for a bit but eventually went back to the heat. However, I thought it may work well for the sauce.
Nope! It burned! Not too bad. You could still easily eat them unlike the ribs but there was still some burn. I think next time, no broiler. Just let the sauce cook on in regular heat!
I also made grilled shrimp with my regular Montreal Chicken Seasoning.
Banana Chocolate Chip Sheet Pancakes -- back to top
Meredith made a different Sheet Pan Pancakes. No photo. But well received
Pumpkin Collagen Bites -- back to top
Meredith made Pumpkin Collagen bites from Eating Bird Food (LOCAL)
Zucchini Strata -- back to top
Meredith made zucchini breakfast strata with bread from Burque Bakehouse. She prepped it earlier in the day and then cooked it from the fridge. Likely because it started cooler, it didn't cook enough. When we cut into it there was still a ton of egg!
So we covered it (the top was cooked enough), upped the heat, and cooked it for another 20 minutes. That worked well.
Meredith's recipe notes:
We liked it! Nice and healthy dinner
Meredith made the regular Hot Dish. It was very, very good as usual!
She noted that she did it was two layers (one of beef and one of soup) instead of four. That worked fine enough!
She also added cauliflower rice to the beef mixture. Maybe 1/2 a Costco pack.
Potsticker Stir-fry -- back to top
Regular stir fry but with snow peas instead of sugar snap peas. We liked the change and would consider it again!
Fall Themed Sugar Cookies -- back to top
Meredith made more decorated sugar cookies. She used the sugar cookies from Jenny's Cookies (LOCAL). The biggest note over the last few sugar cookies (2020-08-23 and 2020-08-27) is that she rolled them thicker this time!
She used the frosting from Sally's Baking Addiction (LOCAL). She was not very happy with it. It came out kind of sticky even when dried. Upon doing more reading, this is likely from too much water which was because the recipe says to only beat it for two minutes where others say 7-10. Maybe this frosting is fine but it needs to be beaten for much longer
She liked the cookie recipe a lot but wonder if she would have liked the other ones more had she not rolled them so thin!
Decorating also took a lot of effort!
It made about 42 cookies plus lots of little scrap bits
Easy Tofu Tikka Masala -- back to top
Same idea as 2020-03-26 with the sauce from 2019-07-24. Also used butternut squash which worked really well to add bulk, veggies, and flavor.
Tomato, Beans, and Orzo -- back to top
Meredith made the One Pot Tomatoes, Beans, and Orzo dish we've had a few times. Instead of spinach, she put some cauliflower rice directly into it. That worked well to add bulk and veggies though I also liked the spinach in there.
Served with some mozzarella balls and pesto.
-- back to top