This recipe can be found in Barefoot in Paris, page 54
This weekend, I decided to cook from one of the two remaining cookbooks that I had not yet cooked from: Barefoot in Paris and Cook Like a Pro. The first recipe I made this weekend was for dinner on Friday night and it was Eggplant Gratin, coming from Ina’s French cookbook.
This recipe is nothing more than a French take on the Italian Eggplant Parmesan. However, it was so much tastier! Who would have thought half and half would make such a difference! This recipe was pretty easy to make since I already had the eggplant fried. It was also a win for me since I only had to buy the half and half for this recipe. Everything else, including the ricotta and parmesan cheese was already in my fridge!
The thinning of the cheese mixture with half and half adds an unexpected richness that would probably be overwhelming if the recipe called for cream. It was a big hit with my family too! I think this will become the recipe I make in the future when I feel like making an eggplant parmesan.
Additionally, I also baked this weekend. It came from Cook Like a Pro and the recipe and review of that will be dropping later this week!
The week is flying. And now that I’ve finally finished the semester (yay!), I can devote more time and energy to cooking from Ina. I am really looking forward to making a couple of things this weekend. It also helps that Friday is payday!
I will be baking this Sunday and it will be an Ina recipe. However, I have not yet decided if I’ll make a dessert or something from the Breakfast chapters. Scones seem to be calling out to me and Ina has no shortage of scone recipes.
As for dinner, I have no idea what I feel like making. If my records are correct, I have one cookbook in which I haven’t make anything from yet. This is weird to me since I regard this book as my current favorite.Barefoot in Paris is Ina’s French-themed cookbook and I often find some of the recipes overwhelming. Elegant, but a little overwhelming. I will have more time this Friday, so it may be the perfect opportunity to make some fabulous French food!
What I wish my view was right now! *Sigh* Photo by Maria Orlova on Pexels.com
“A recipe has no soul. You as the cook must bring soul to the recipe.”
As I mentioned in my previous post, I did do some cooking this weekend, but I did not make Ina recipes.
Instead, I chose to make recipes that would give my family and me a little more plant protein versus meat protein. So, I crafted two dishes and my family liked them.
The first one was a take on Beef Wellington, but instead of meat, I used a delicious mushroom mixture to wrap in the puff pastry.
Mushroom Wellington
The other dish I made was kind of my own creation. I used quinoa and chickpeas (garbanzo beans) as the star players and make a dish that also featured kale, an orange pepper and cherry tomatoes. I added in some sherry wine and spices and it was so yummy! Though, I think I needed more salt and pepper. Oh well, you live and learn, right?
Quinoa & Kale Recipe
I’m not sure what I will make this week, but it will be an Ina recipe, that’s for sure!
Also, the cookbook reviews will return next week, but there will be more time between them. They will not be a weekly post, but I do still plan to review all twelve.
This year, Thanksgiving will be much smaller than usual. However, it will also give my family a chance to cook for a change. We usually visit our relatives on Thanksgiving and they handle the cooking.
To help my parents with the meal, I have offered to handle the sides. Over the weekend we agreed on carrots and green beans. I will be looking through Ina’s cookbooks tonight and tomorrow for a recipe that will work well for those choices.
I can’t NOT cook an Ina recipe on the largest food holiday of the year, right?
“The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking, you’ve got to have a what-the-hell attitude.” – Julia Child
While I used the recipe out of Make it Ahead, this recipe is included in ALL of Ina’s cookbooks. It is the same recipe, regardless of which cookbook you use. Also, since it is repeated in each book, it will only be counted as one recipe. For more information on how I determined the number of recipes I will be making for this project, please see my first couple of posts. These can be found using the Archive feature on the homepage.
I finally did it!
I made Ina’s Homemade Chicken Stock recipe! This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a few years and I finally had a chance to do it. I will say, that buying stock at the store is so much easier….and worth it! But, I’m still glad I had this experience. Now, I just need to use it all up within in the next six months!
I have a few photos that document the process that I will post below. But first, my review.
For the most part of making this recipe, things are easy. No peeling vegetables, no chopping or dicing. Just slice things in half and toss into the pot. Then bring it to a boil and simmer for four hours. However, it did take over over an hour to come to a boil even on high heat!
The real work starts AFTER the simmering. It’s when you have to strain everything. First I took a slotted remove to remove some of the larger pieces and that worked okay. I transferred everything into a stainless steel bowl and as it got full, I dumped it into a new garbage bag. That was tricky….and messy.
Once the larger pieces were removed, I poured the contents of the pot over a fine mesh sieve over another stainless steel bowl. More mess was met! Once it was cool, I took a one-cup measure glass and scooped up stock and poured it into the containers. That wasn’t very messy, but a little time-consuming.
After letting the stock cool completely, I put some in the freezer and left some in the fridge for now. I did taste the finished stock and, surprisingly, it was pretty bland. I know can see why Ina adds a lot of salt and pepper to her recipes that call for stock.
While it was fun and and interesting experience, I don’t think I’ll be doing it again. It’s very costly and time-consuming. Not to mention the mess it makes! Maybe, in the future, I’ll cut the recipe in half and make less….that may make things somewhat more manageable.
Here are the pictures with captions.
The pot I cooked it in! It’s 20 Quarts!The quartered onions that were used in the stock. I used three of the largest ones I could find.The two chickens I used (almost 15 lbs. of meat!) and some of the vegetables. Just missing the turnips in this picture.Added the 7 quarts of water, the herbs, and the whole head of garlic.The stock simmering away. Sorry this photo orientation is not like the others!Finally! The finished, strained, and packaged chicken stock!
I hope it turns out that this was worth the effort!
In addition to the Parmesan Chicken I made last Saturday, I made two side dishes. Both of which complemented the main course nicely.
The buttermilk mashed potatoes are amazing! As someone who doesn’t get to have mashed potatoes very often, these were a welcome addition the meal. The potatoes were so creamy and flavorful. The salt Ina calls for is a lot, but the potatoes do not taste overly salty. The addition of pepper merges all the flavors and makes for a very tasty side dish.
The Orange-Honey Glazed Carrots are hands down, the BEST carrot recipe I’ve come across!
Using ginger, honey, and orange juice to turn up the volume on these carrots was a great choice for the meal I made. But, it’s also a great recipe crafted by the great IG! In fact, my family loved these carrots so much that we will be making them for our small family gathering at Thanksgiving. I can see them making a regular appearance at the Thanksgiving table year after year.
They are also going to be the first side dish recipe added to my list of Favorites!
As I may have mentioned earlier, I will be taking this week off from cooking dinner. But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to make an IG recipe! I plan to bake this weekend, but not dessert! Probably muffins or scones. Both of those are types of food I haven’t attempted yet. Plus it’ll be a good excuse to tackle one of the Breakfast recipes!
Come back to the blog tomorrow to check out my review of Back to Basics!
One of the recipes I made for Saturday dinner was parmesan chicken. But, I have a confession to make. I bought the wrong cheese! Instead, I bought a combination of grated Pecorino Romano NOT Parmesan. So, since I kind of messed up the title ingredient, by review won’t be too long.
This recipe is very simple to make since it is essentially fried chicken cutlets. However, the addition of cheese to the bread crumbs is what really sets it apart. And if I’m being honest, I think the Pecorino Romano cheese added even better flavor than the parmesan would have.
I also decided not to serve this recipe with the recommended salads greens and lemon vinaigrette. But, it is still worth trying. It’s a simple meal than can be any night of the week and can easily accommodate and please a large group of friends.
Did I make sides for this? Yes, yes I did! I made two basic recipes: mashed potatoes and a separate carrot dish. Those reviews are coming tomorrow!
