The graham cracker talk reminds me of a martini I had at Martinis at the Fern Bank a few years ago. They had key lime pie martinis. It tasted exactly like key lime and the rim of the glass was coated in graham cracker crumbs. It was hands down one of the best drinks I've ever had.
I am a former well-doner that has been converted, thanks to my husband. I used to be turned off by the pink/red. However, it can't be too rare, because then it feels too rubbery to me. We were at Red Robin the other day and I, out of habit, ordered my burger well done. Fortunately, the old man trashed talked me into changing my order.
Question about cast iron: I just bought one, used it, and just ran it under water and washed it with a wet paper towel. It came with a piece of paper saying that after you wash it, put a few drops of oil in the pan and smear it around with a paper towel. Is there a point to that? Does anyone do that?
Yeah, if you must use water to wash it out with, you have to do this else it will rust. Cast Iron is porous and no matter how much you think you've dried it out water still gets in the pores. After cleaning it, rub it with a little canola or vegatable oil, heat it up again for a few minutes, let it cool down enough then wipe the excess oil out, if any. If you do this every time it will stay seasoned (non-stick), and never rust. The more you cook with it and more seasoned it gets, the easier it is to clean each time. Most of the time I just clean mine out while it is still hot with some oil and kosher salt. Use a heavy duty paper (or cloth kitchen) towel with tongs to scrape the stuck bits of food out with the salt and oil in the pan. That way you can just brush everything down the sink and not need to use water.
I have a really old cast iron pan that hasn't been seasoned well throughout its lifetime (my great-great grandmothers; according to my mom). I tried to season it and did so successfully I believe, but then I realized I didn't know how to clean it except for with soap and water. If anyone has any methods / there is a way I don't know of cleaning the pan, I would love to know.
I've used it a few times since getting it, just making eggs in the morning and then cooking up some chicken for dinner. It's already getting easier to clean and the food isn't sticking as much. Can I start to use it for stir fry dishes and throw in some sauces or will everything just stick since it's still new? I like to make stuff with trader joe's curry sauces and just fry everything up, but I don't know if the cast iron is ready for that since it's new.
The trick I've found is to bake the bacon in the oven until it is half way done. That way it is way easier to mold, some of the fat will already be rendered (hence limiting fire), and will cook more evenly.
Baking it will work the best. 350 for two hours. If you musrbuseba has grill put tin foil under it. Cook on low.
I am in the market for some new drinkware and I think back on the RMMB someone raved about and linked to a set of high quality plastic tumblers that were supposedly nothing but awesome (near shatterproof maybe?). Does anyone remember what brand they were? Or if I am just completely fucking crazy? I seriously could have just had a dream about mythical plastic cups and mistakenly attributed them to being something I saw during my trawling the abyss of the internet.
Correct. I have them (six 12oz, four 16oz, and five 24oz), and can vouch for them 100%. They can be a bit pricey, but are well worth it, in my opinion.
Artichoke Dip: 2 pkgs. cream cheese room temp 3/4 cup of mayo 2 of the small jars of marinated artichokes, drained and chopped (the ones with the red lid, this is important they don't all taste the same) 1TBSP garlic powder 1-1&1/2 cups grated parm. Save some to sprinkle on the top. 1 baguette Mix all in a bowl. Put into a 9x9 casserole dish. Bake at 400 degrees for about half an hour. Slice up the baguette and spread the dip on. BE CAREFUL. That shit is hot as a motherfucker and will burn the fuck out of the roof of your mouth. With all the bad shit in it, how could it not be good right?
Correction: My favorite beer for all-day drinking is Coors Light. While I do have a fine appreciation for many dark beers and ales and lagers and whatnot, for pure refreshment and drinking for the long-haul (as well as not filling you up NEARLY as much), the Silver Bullet is hard to beat. While they are pretty sturdy, I'm much more enamored by their lack of outside condensation, as well as their ice-melting longevity. Seriously, I've fallen asleep with full drinks before, and the ice will still be there in the morning. Whenever you pour yourself a drink- lets say bourbon and coke- the bourbon and the coke immediately start to melt the ice, which corrupts the integrity of the drink. Slow ice melting is key. But if you like scotch and waters or something like that, just know that your drink will stay colder, longer. This has been another fine addition of Blue Dog's Alcoholic Tips of the Week®! Focus: Now, with that out of the way- has anybody here ever cooked paella? I'm supposed to cook dinner for the little lady and some of her friends tomorrow night, and she is requesting this. Preggers gets what Preggers wants. I've never done it before, so any tips are welcome. She sent me a recipe for chicken paella (in Spanish, no less), but I'd want to do shrimp, if that helps.
Cheese Grits Make your grits according the the box. You'll need about 8 cups of cooked grits. While I ordinarily consider quick grits blasphemy, they will work fine. Salt and pepper to taste. Shred a one pound block of sharp cheddar. I generally use a good white cheddar, but any garden variety cheddar will do. Take out about 3 cups of the grits and set them aside to cool. Once they are room temperature add three eggs and mix well. (If you don't let the grits cool then you'll end up with scrambled eggs.) Mix the cheese in with the hot grits and then add the grits/eggs mixture. Pour it all into a souffle dish. Bake it at 350 for an hour or so or until the top is crispy and brown. If you have done it right the grits will souffle, as in they will puff up and rise a good inch or two over the top of the souffle dish, and will be creamy and light, despite the heart attack level of cheese in them. It takes some practice to get the grits to really souffle, but it's worth it. It's been the standard side dish with barbecued chicken and ribs at our house since I was a kid.