Hamantashen and Peas
This year, I resolve to write notes to myself freely in my cookbooks. In pen, even.
For instance, I LOVE the orange/chocolate hamantashen in Jewish Holiday Style. However, I do NOT love trying to roll them out and make them. They are luscious with 2 sticks of butter (I know, but come on, it's once a year), which means they are sticky. Really, really sticky.
It took me several tries before I remembered that the trick is to roll and cut them on silpat or waxed paper, then stick the whole thing in the fridge for 20 minutes before attempting to remove them and put them on the cookie sheet, add filling, and bake.
Otherwise you don't get circles, you get mush. Tasty, tasty mush. (And yes, we do eat all the ugly ones. So take this advice with a grain of salt. Or chocolate, as you will.)
Another example:
Last night, I tried to make super-slow-roasted rosemary chuck steak from The Grassfed Gourmet. I think I misread it. Or that last time, I just winged the herb rub, but it did NOT come out the same luscious, lamby-tasting rosemary roast I remember - way too salty. So instead, I wrote down what I remembered doing last time, right there in the cookbook!
However, I will not be following this advice in regards to the garden. We've got gorgeous warm weather in the Pacific Northwest this month, and I'm heading out this afternoon to turn over the raised beds and plant some snap peas and early carrots. Charts and planting schedules be damned! We'll just wait and see what comes up.
A girl's got to leave room for a few surprises, right?
For instance, I LOVE the orange/chocolate hamantashen in Jewish Holiday Style. However, I do NOT love trying to roll them out and make them. They are luscious with 2 sticks of butter (I know, but come on, it's once a year), which means they are sticky. Really, really sticky.
It took me several tries before I remembered that the trick is to roll and cut them on silpat or waxed paper, then stick the whole thing in the fridge for 20 minutes before attempting to remove them and put them on the cookie sheet, add filling, and bake.
Otherwise you don't get circles, you get mush. Tasty, tasty mush. (And yes, we do eat all the ugly ones. So take this advice with a grain of salt. Or chocolate, as you will.)
Another example:
Last night, I tried to make super-slow-roasted rosemary chuck steak from The Grassfed Gourmet. I think I misread it. Or that last time, I just winged the herb rub, but it did NOT come out the same luscious, lamby-tasting rosemary roast I remember - way too salty. So instead, I wrote down what I remembered doing last time, right there in the cookbook!
However, I will not be following this advice in regards to the garden. We've got gorgeous warm weather in the Pacific Northwest this month, and I'm heading out this afternoon to turn over the raised beds and plant some snap peas and early carrots. Charts and planting schedules be damned! We'll just wait and see what comes up.
A girl's got to leave room for a few surprises, right?
posted by Tzipporah at 1:32 PM
2 Comments:
i remember the mom of the kids i babysat for teaching me this! she gave me a cookbook when i went off to college and wrote some notes in there and as i flipped through and found them she schooled me on what a great technique this is. not only does it help with my cooking, i love passing on "real handwriting" dor l'dor. imagine our kids finding our notes about butter and salt, etc. years to come. LOVE it! my husband just found a note from me from before we had kids, written on a recipe, "how about this for dinner tonight?" aww-- :)
I LOVED the orange/chocolate hamantashen. Thanks for the tips!
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