The Cooking Thread
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@Benjamin-Hall said in The Cooking Thread:
Did you do it in the cultural hall of the local ward building
?No, we rented out a nice place on the BYU campus that no one was using at the moment. (MIL worked for the university, so that was easier than you might expect.)
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@Benjamin-Hall said in The Cooking Thread:
@Gąska sounds like a good reason not to get married in Poland. If I ever get married, I'd prefer to elope if possible, and have a small wedding and reception if necessary.
Polish wedding often costs as much as a small car. And that's in a country where everything is 3x cheaper than in USA except for cars. That's the main reason why wedding receptions are increasingly less common nowadays. Although to be honest, the most common wedding gift is an envelope with cash that covers at least most of the cost for that guest, so it not really such big money sink - but you still need to pay the whole sum up front. Saving for wedding is as common in Poland as saving for college is in USA (colleges in Poland are free for most citizens).
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@Gąska Yeah, weddings in the USA also tend to be big, elaborate, crazy-expensive productions, right at the point in most people's lives where they can afford all that added expense the least. Being able to sidestep all the mess and hassle was a very pleasant side-benefit to my church membership.
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@Mason_Wheeler said in The Cooking Thread:
Being able to sidestep all the mess and hassle was a very pleasant side-benefit to my church membership.
When my (ex-)wife and I got married, our (United Methodist) church membership got us free use of the church itself for the ceremony and the church hall for the reception. We still had to pay for the food, flowers, musicians, etc., but the food prep and service was done by church members for free, and the pastor waived his fee for officiating the service (as he sometimes did for members, at least ones he knew individually) as his wedding gift to us. We were able to split the rental fee for a portable dance floor with the church singles' group; they had a Valentine's Day dance the night before, and then we used the floor for the wedding reception the next afternoon. Not church related, but the dance music was provided free by the DJ/dance instructor at the place we had met and went dancing every week.
Since this is the cooking thread, not the wedding thread, the food was "tea party" — hors d'ourves, finger sandwiches, sweets — no sit-down meal. Since the church didn't allow alcohol (which was fine with us — I don't drink, and my (ex-)wife drank only a very occasional glass of champagne — but not so much with some of the guests), we toasted with Martinelli's sparkling apple juice, which saved us a bunch of money.
Still thousands of dollars. I think the flowers were the single biggest expense. Valentine's Day is absolutely the worst day of the year to buy large quantities of flowers, especially roses and greenhouse-grown, out-of-season flowers flown in from who knows where, because they're the bride's favorites. At least I got the orchids free, due to my active involvement with the local orchid society; my own orchids were almost but not quite in bloom in time for the wedding.
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@HardwareGeek Yeah, similar experience here. We got the wedding ceremony free, and our official guidelines are that marriage's nature as a sacred ceremony and covenant should not be overshadowed by extravagant celebrations afterwards. The food, venue, and decorations still cost a few thousand dollars, but it was an affordable few thousand rather than a "take out a loan and pledge your firstborn as collateral" few thousand.
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@Mason_Wheeler said in The Cooking Thread:
it was an affordable few thousand rather than a "take out a loan and pledge your firstborn as collateral" few thousand.
Yeah, we paid cash for everything, too. Unfortunately, our honeymoon was overseas, and we weren't watching the bank balance while we were out of the country, and something bounced and started racking up NSF charges. That didn't start us on a good financial footing.
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@HardwareGeek
Wow, that sucks!
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@Gąska said in The Cooking Thread:
Eastern Europe still has huge weddings with huge meals.
It does sound a bit different from both what was the norm (50+ years ago) and what is the norm (now) in France.
The main difference (apart from the vodka...) is that there are usually 2 receptions: you have a "small" one (traditionally called "vin d'honneur" i.e. "wine to honour [the newlywed]") that is always a buffet, and that is usually open to everyone (or very close to everyone) invited to the official wedding ceremonies (in the town hall and optionally church -- in France you can only be officially wedded in the city hall, the ceremony in church doesn't have any legal weight and cannot happen before the official wedding (that part is probably more a church rule then an official one, since the state doesn't recognise the church wedding...)).
Then after the "vin d'honneur" there is the "full" reception which sounds more similar to what you describe, except with probably less dishes etc. (and this is what I was talking about before, it used to be a huge meal but it tends to be 3 courses nowadays). It segues into the ball, party games and what-not. Sometimes it takes the form of a buffet and gets merged into the "vin d'honneur" (in which case everyone is invited to both, of course).
So when you get invited to a wedding, you might get invited to the ceremony only (that's not very common), to the ceremony and "vin d'honneur" (that's somewhat common for not-very-close friends in very large weddings), or to ceremony, "vin d'honneur" and reception (typically for close friends or family).
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@Gąska said in The Cooking Thread:
but ours is better because then the groom throws his bowtie too
There's an American tradition where the bride wears a garter. She sits down and the groom reaches under her dress to retrieve it and then he throws it to the unmarried men.
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@Luhmann kinda. When a Polish man says "I owe you one", he means a bottle.
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@Gąska
Thanks! I'll be sure to collect it some day!
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BuuuuurnChaaaaaaarrrrr!
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One step closer to Demolition Man?
Taco Bell Has A Wine Called Jalepeño Noir That They Want You To Pair With A Chalupa
The wine will officially drop for the Canadian market beginning tomorrow.
I do like Pinot Noir, though.
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@boomzilla years ago I made a batch of jalapeno wine. I used some manner of white wine for a base and fermented it with a shit ton of jalapenos sliced thin. It's not the kind of stuff that you would really drink, although it tastes pretty good, if a bit spicy. But it is amazing to cook with. I put a bottle in chili and other stuff via using it to deglaze pans and such.
I really wish that I had kept better notes on that. I did it on a park and it turned out better than I could have expected. Now I'm down to just a few bottles.
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@Polygeekery I would try that. Note that the Taco Bell wine just has jalapeño in the name, not in the wine.
Last...winter?...our liquor stores were putting various things on sale on Thursdays and my wife, being a woman, can't resist a sale. One of the things she found was this:
This stuff:
Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile Liqueur
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This sweet-and-spicy elixir was inspired by a Mexican recipe from the 1920s.
Nasty. That's not going away for a while.
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@Polygeekery said in The Cooking Thread:
@boomzilla years ago I made a batch of jalapeno wine. I used some manner of white wine for a base and fermented it with a shit ton of jalapenos sliced thin. It's not the kind of stuff that you would really drink, although it tastes pretty good, if a bit spicy. But it is amazing to cook with. I put a bottle in chili and other stuff via using it to deglaze pans and such.
Polish version: put spicy peppers into 95% alcohol for 2 months. Dilute (a little) before serving.
A lot of fun at parties.
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A (proper) reply to that was "Anyone who cooks"
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@boomzilla I have a recipe that legitimately calls for 40 cloves of garlic. It's a vegetable stock for soups/sauces/whatever, and (allegedly; I haven't actually made it), it's not nearly as potent as you'd think.
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@HardwareGeek I think that @Polygeekery has reported making a soup with similar levels of garlic.
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@boomzilla Never mind; I mis-remembered. It only uses "1 head garlic, broken into cloves and peeled (about 16 cloves)". Also, the cloves themselves are discarded after the broth is done simmering.
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Was about to pick up my usual plastic pot of hummus at the supermarket today when I remembered I now own a blender. So I bought a tin of chickpeas and a jar of tahini.
The recipe I found called for 4 tablespoons of tahini to one tin of chickpeas, which I find a little strong (or maybe supermarket hummus just skimps on it and I'm used to it), so I may cut that down next time, and possibly increase the garlic, but it's so creamy and smooth. Definitely a win.
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@HardwareGeek said in The Cooking Thread:
@boomzilla Never mind; I mis-remembered. It only uses "1 head garlic, broken into cloves and peeled (about 16 cloves)". Also, the cloves themselves are discarded after the broth is done simmering.
I'd expect by the time you fish out the cloves most of the taste has gone into the broth regardless. If it hasn't, I'd suggest cutting them in half to expose more of the interior.
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@PleegWat Exactly.
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@dcon said in The Cooking Thread:
A (proper) reply to that was "Anyone who cooks"
It's not completely horrible, IF you take it out, dry it, and oil it immediately. Don't expect the dishwasher's dry cycle to dry it quickly enough or thoroughly enough to prevent rusting; do that yourself.
The Truth About Cast Iron Pans: 7 Myths That Need To Go Away
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Are cast iron skillets nonstick? Can you wash cast iron with soap? Should you use metal utensils on cast iron? And more quandaries, explained.
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@PleegWat said in The Cooking Thread:
@HardwareGeek said in The Cooking Thread:
@boomzilla Never mind; I mis-remembered. It only uses "1 head garlic, broken into cloves and peeled (about 16 cloves)". Also, the cloves themselves are discarded after the broth is done simmering.
I'd expect by the time you fish out the cloves most of the taste has gone into the broth regardless. If it hasn't, I'd suggest cutting them in half to expose more of the interior.
It depends. It depends especially on how well the garlic is cooked. If you cook it especially well and for long enough the taste profile changes entirely.
For reference the recipe I think @boomzilla was referencing is:
I especially like the taming of the name for modern times. I've seen reference that the name used to be "40 cloves and a rooster". Depending on translation.
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@boomzilla said in The Cooking Thread:
I think I learned from an episode of Good Eats that you can put garlic cloves in a container with plenty of space and shake them and it will remove the papery peels. It works really well.
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@HardwareGeek said in The Cooking Thread:
I have a recipe that legitimately calls for 40 cloves of garlic.
So do I. Roast chicken stuffed with garlic.
it's not nearly as potent as you'd think
Once they're cooked, all that garlic is just very tasty, and so is the chicken around it. Garlic also works well when just straight roasted with other vegetables, and that's one where you don't even need to peel the cloves before use. It gets really caramelised and sweet; you just squeeze the garlic clove out of its skin once it is cooked (easy!) and have it. Delicious.
Beware of anything with lots of raw garlic in. Even more so, beware of people who ate a dish with lots of raw garlic in a few hours before. You'll know…
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@dkf said in The Cooking Thread:
It gets really caramelised and sweet; you just squeeze the garlic clove out of its skin once it is cooked (easy!) and have it. Delicious.
Had roasted garlic as an appetizer at a restaurant once (with a good bread). Ok, this is the one time I'll say it: Better Than Butter.
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Dead bird
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@boomzilla said in The Cooking Thread:
Dead birdDefinition of meatbird
1 : canada jay
2 : clark nutcrackerHmm. Unless one of those is a whole lot bigger than I thought they were...
oh, and
:vegan:: That's foul!
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@dcon well...it does say "Chicken" right under the inspection label.
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@boomzilla I have an anecdote about how unconventional use of a toaster can go horribly awry.
Back in the day we were at the pub and there was an acquaintance there and somehow we ended up having one of those conversations that you have NFC how you ended up on the subject.
The conversation was that he became convinced that if you turned a conventional pop-up toaster on its side it would be perfect for making a grilled cheese. But what he knew as "grilled cheese" is not what most people would call grilled cheese. He was from Baltimore or Philly or somewhere that a grilled cheese is a single slice of toasted bread with Cheez-Whiz spread on it and then broiled until the cheese was hot. NFC why that is a thing. It is as though someone looked at the Depression Era peasant food that is the American grilled cheese and thought, "That's fine and all, but could we make it more white trash?"
So his theory was that he normally toasted the bread, put the Cheez-Whiz on it and then in to the oven under the broiler. If he toasted the bread, turned the toaster on its side and then hit the bagel button he could do it all in one machine and not have to wait on the oven to heat up. I never wait on the oven to heat when using the broiler, but whatever.
I suggested to use a toaster oven. He said that he didn't have a toaster oven. I told him to get one. He said he already had a toaster. I mentioned that toaster ovens are cheap. This went on and on the way conversations do when inebriated. It ended roughly after I dismissively mentioned that it seemed like a good way to make a big mess.
Now this was one of the times that cemented in my mind why I should be precise in what I say and how I say it. He thought I meant that having the toaster on its side would cause cheese to run on inside of the toaster and be hard to clean. That wasn't what I meant.
The next day after the bar we all got back together as we usually did to hang out and grill out and have bloody marys to subdue the pounding of our alcohol addled brains. He had a pretty conspicuous burn on his arm. He had discovered what I meant when I said that it was a good way to make a big mess. He had walked home from the pub and decided to try his idea. Toasted the bread, applied Cheez-Whiz, turned the toaster on its side, etc. He was standing in front of the toaster, leaning on the counter in front of it, admiring his amazingly intelligent theory becoming reality and right when his "regular toaster, bagel button broiler" toasted cheese concoction was perfect and bubbly the toaster popped and launched a slice of toasted bread with molten jarred cheese out of the slot and stuck it right to his arm like some sort of white trash culinary napalm.
Shit like that is why products come with labels stating that they are only to be used as instructed.
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@Polygeekery said in The Cooking Thread:
toaster popped and launched
The caffeine has definitely not kicked in. I didn't see that coming...
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@dcon no one expects the
Spanish Inquisitionflying white trash culinary napalm
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@Polygeekery said in The Cooking Thread:
a single slice of toasted bread with Cheez-Whiz spread on it and then broiled until the cheese was hot.
Mistake #1, of course, was thinking that the letter sequence "Cheez" in the name means that it is in any way related to cheese.
However, the open-face broiled cheese sandwich is not, itself, a bad thing (assuming it's made with actual cheese, not orange-colored slime). My dad called them toasted cheese sandwiches, not grilled, but that's what I grew up with. Toast the bread. Butter one side of the toast as you would normally, as if you were going to have it with jam or something, then add slices of cheddar or Muenster. Broil until the cheese starts to melt.
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@HardwareGeek said in The Cooking Thread:
My dad called them toasted cheese sandwiches, not grilled, but that's what I grew up with.
We call it cheese on toast in England. It is very nice. It is made under the grill, not in the toaster, if the cook is sane. That said, if you were going to turn the toaster on its side, aside from all the other dangers like the likelihood of melted cheese dripping into the workings, you could just hold onto the slider to stop it springing back when the timer is up.
We also have toasted sandwiches, which are not open-faced, technically needn't include cheese as a filling but always do because you gotta have something to stick it together with, may have any other fillings as well, and are either made in a special press that toasts from top and bottom at once, or in a normal toaster with the aid of a special non-stick bag. It would be unwise to try it without the bag.
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@CarrieVS said in The Cooking Thread:
if the cook is sane
Ah, but that would eliminate the humorous incident that @Polygeekery posted about.
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@HardwareGeek I did not say all cooks are sane.
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@CarrieVS
we know that because @Polygeekery
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@boomzilla that'd be a lot of weiner to stuff in your mouth at once.
That's absolutely QOOC bait.
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40 Cloves and a Chicken
