I've got the dehydrator full. I got a box of very ripe cull peaches for free so I did a few shelves of peaches along with various tomatoes, some okra, and some bananas. Between the dehydrator, my kid, and a huge peach crisp, I still have half the box left. I'll probably do more dehydrator peaches and a batch big enough for another crisp to throw in the freezer for another time. I also have received squash, zucchini, and tons of plums from everyone. I love this time of year!
I finally figured out my method for getting restaurant quality pesto with a mortar and pestle. I've always had issues with their being stringy bits in it. This is what I did and it turned out awesome. Pull the leafy parts off the stem from the center of larger leaves. Make sure you trim off any pieces of the stem from smaller leaves. Hammer the basil. Don't grind it. VOILENCE!! Just really pound the shit out of the basil. Once your 90% done then add the salt. Keep pounding. If you see pieces of basil larger than ground pepper keep going. Use good olive oil, and you don't need that much. Just use enough to make it into a paste.
Yeah, I used to buy those big jars of pesto from costco but always found them mealy and bitter. First year I grew my own basil I plucked ever individual leaf from the stem. Didn't have any of that mealy feeling and sweet and smooth flavor. Totally worth the extra time picking off the stems. One of these things doing it home will always beat commercially produced by a country mile.
The food processor cuts the basil, while using the mortar & pestle properly pulverizes it into a paste. It results in a thicker and smoother pesto. The images below are from a Serious Eats article on it. The food processor method is fine, but I've been chasing restaurant quality pesto. For that you need to go with the mortar & pestle route.
Absolutely. This hammers the fuck out of it and releases the oils. As a result you get a much deeper flavour profile, assuming you're using fresh herbs. I also use a bit of coarse kosher salt early on in the process as it can help act as an abrasive to help rip up the herbs. I love M&P's... toast up some spices, hammer the fuck out of them in the M&P... fantastic.
In case you didn't know, the same concept can be used with garlic prep. Not the M&P route, but just smashing it and crushing it releases more of the oil and flavour than just chopping it. I generally rub garlic across the end of a fork, so the tines shred and rip apart the garlic, and then finish it off by chopping it up with a knife. It really intensifies the garlic flavour. Different recipes call for different garlic prep... it really is surprising how much of a flavour difference there is as a result.
I do a similar thing when I make my cucumber sandwich dip with borage. I coarsely chop it, make a tall pile, and the use my rolling pin to release all the juices, as a kind of modified muddle. It's way mo bettah.
We had some pickled fennel on a charcuterie board and it was effing delicious. I've never done any pickling and I am not planning on making enough of this that we need to worry about sterile canning or anything. For those who have done any pickling, any reason I shouldn't just use a basic recipe like this one and go for it, but skip the process of boiling the jars and just let it sit in the brine for a couple days? I was thinking about swapping out the white wine vinegar for apple cider vinegar because my partner likes apple cider vinegar but not having done this before, I don't know how much it affects the flavor profile.
Unless you're planning on keeping it in a non-refrigerated area, then yeah, you're fine skipping the boiling process. That being said, I would still go thoroughly wash everything to ensure there's as little possibility of a bacterial spread as possible, but again, that's just basic sanitary preparation.
Need some help from the bread bakers here. I made this recipe but didn't get a great rise out of it. It raised a bit when I baked it but not in the fridge. I think there may be two issues at play. I didn't use warm water, just whatever "cold" temp that come out of the tap and I used instant yeast "Rapid Rise" because I couldn't find the called for Instant that wasn't "Rapid Rise" or "Fast Acting" Someone mentioned their lack of rise also and a commenter said it was due to the Rapid Rise type of instant yeast. https://alexandracooks.com/2018/03/02/overnight-refrigerator-focaccia-best-focaccia/ I have both Fleischmann's active dry yeast and Fleischmann's Instant Rapid Rise dry yeast to choose from for this next go-round. Should I proof the active dry or use warm water and Instant yeast?
Regardless of the yeast, it needs warmth to activate properly. Usually I let my bread dough rise in a low temp oven with a damp tea-towel over it. That warmth is critical. Cold or non-warm water could inhibit the yeast from acting. Also, age of your yeast... quick rise or fast acting yeasts tend to die faster than traditional yeasts, so be sure the yeast itself isn't dead.
@GTE always proof your yeast in warm water. Get it hot enough to notice but not be uncomfortable from the sink on your hand. I always use bread machine yeast. Some of the other yeasts have very short or unpredictable lifespans.
I think the cold water is a large culprit even if the recipe is designed for a long, cool rise. The Rapid Rise packets are new so hopefully they weren't sitting on the grocery store shelf for too long
Just checked the cold water temp and it's 67*. Definitely could have impacted the yeast. Used warm water (107*) this time and I'll update tomorrow
Does the recipe call for the rapid rise specifically? It might be that the long cool rise works for normal yeast, but the rapid yeast won't kick off at such a low temperature. EVERY recipe that I've ever seen that uses rapid/bread machine yeast calls for warm water and a warm area to do the rise in. It'll be interesting to see how it goes for you... keep us posted.
@Nettdata It specifically calls for instant yeast and a long rise in the fridge. https://alexandracooks.com/2018/03/02/overnight-refrigerator-focaccia-best-focaccia/ It has over 1100 5 Star reviews and I made it a couple weeks ago. Came out tasting very good but just didn't get a good initial rise. I think the mid 60's water was the culprit.