I've been happy with my culinary attempts lately... Part of the reason I am so happy about it is because the cooking adventures haven't always been as successful. I feel as if, finally, I am able to choose recipes that suit my skills and I'm able to execute them and/or have minor adjustments.
Christmas weekend I decided on the following menu:Cornish Hens (brined and roasted)
New Potatoes w/Dill Sauce
Procscuitto Wrapped Asparagus
I've never made a brine before and this one was easy enough to try. Water, honey, sea salt, pepper, and a bay leaf... bring to a boil and let cool. The hens soak in the brine for at least 8 hours or overnight. So, some planning but it worked out so nicely. The outside of the hens needed dried thyme, salt, and pepper. The inside was stuffed with cilantro. I like how simple this dish was and the brine, quite frankly, does all the work for you. It makes the dish what it is... everything else is garnish, for the most part. The hens roast for an hour and a turned halfway through... When in doubt, brine!
I faux pas'd the potatoes... I bought the right amount of new reds, I didn't, however, buy enough chive cream cheese. So, the good news is I made half the potatoes and used the cream cheese, half a green pepper and about the same amount of dill. The potatoes were perfect... just less and, for the amount of people eating them, it worked out for the best... I just have left over potatoes which will be a lovely lunch of dinner at a later time.
The procscuitto wrapped asparagus, for some reason, made me extremely happy. I think, it is because, I never really made asparagus before and I tend to over cook veggies (and pasta)... So, again, simple recipe, the asaparus just needed to be groomed. Taking 12 of them and making sure they are the same length. A vegetable peeler used on the ends of the asparagus making them asthetically pleasing and probably more palatable, I'm assuming. The salty water is brought to a boil and the asparagus is in it for about 3 minutes. The recipe required I tie the bunch together and lower them in the boiling water... this didn't happen. My asparagus weren't treated quite as gingerly... still, it worked out. I prepared an ice bath for them for the post-3 minute boiling process to stop the cooking. This is key. It keeps the veggie from getting limpy. Next, the asparagus are wrapped with procscuitto and salted. Something these three dishes had in common...salt. This was a salty dinner...however, delicious. There was a balsamic vinegar glaze that was to be drizzled on top along with olive oil. I don't reduce balsamic vinegar very often and, a lesson learned for me, is to do this ahead of time. I should've worked on this early on in the dinner process, rather than later as the recipe called for the vinegar to cool and thicken. Still, it was pourable and worked out just fine.
All the while I drank Frexienet, which is a bubbly from Spain...another nice compliment to cooking anything... It is relaxing and just a happy additive.
I'm just happy everything turned out so yummy... especially when you aren't exactly sure what is going to happen. I like taken the risk and finding out it was so worthwhile. The bad news is, I don't like making the same thing more than once or twice so...might not have it again in a while. Still, confidence raised and I feel I am able to continue trying to make fun, new things...
No comments:
Post a Comment