![shrimp. orange zest. black pepper. mango. peach. papaya. scallion. jalapeño. cilantro. lime.
Never buying shrimp from WF again. Not very fresh (one of them was mushy). Plus, I got spoiled by fresh shrimp from the Carolinas when I was in Balti-less and WF seems to only ever have previously frozen and defrosted shrimp. Looks like I should just rely on CatalinaOP for my seafood now.
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The salsa was good. I just wish the jalapeño had more spice to it; they’re so inconsistent in their level of heat. I also wish I had a wok with a legit burner to properly stir-fry the shrimp, shells on, with coriander, dried chills and tons of black pepper.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7t2ct2X831qm1t5xo1_500.jpg)
shrimp. orange zest. black pepper. mango. peach. papaya. scallion. jalapeño. cilantro. lime.
Never buying shrimp from WF again. Not very fresh (one of them was mushy). Plus, I got spoiled by fresh shrimp from the Carolinas when I was in Balti-less and WF seems to only ever have previously frozen and defrosted shrimp. Looks like I should just rely on CatalinaOP for my seafood now.
![hamachi ceviche (avocado. cucumber. shallot. cilantro. lime. ginger)
I scored some $6.99 sushi grade hamachi at Catalina Offshore Products. Yes, that’s right. SIX DOLLARS AND NINETY-NINE CENTS! The walk-in prices are even lower than their online retail prices. Being able to buy amazingly fresh seafood at wholesale distributor prices is like a dream come true for me.
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Tossed the fish with lime juice and grated ginger, mixed the remaining ingredients with some lime juice, combined and allowed to sit for about 8 hours. The ginger was a real soigné touch; it added just enough je ne sais quoi to the ceviche. This would have been really good inside of taco shells.
Anyway, now that I have a wholesale source for fish and seafood, I need to find a wholesale source for meat. I’ve already found one for produce, but I haven’t visited it yet. Sorry Whole Foods, looks like I’m gonna have to cheat on you.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7h1lgVN4G1qm1t5xo1_500.jpg)
hamachi ceviche (avocado. cucumber. shallot. cilantro. lime. ginger)
I scored some $6.99 sushi grade hamachi at Catalina Offshore Products. Yes, that’s right. SIX DOLLARS AND NINETY-NINE CENTS! The walk-in prices are even lower than their online retail prices. Being able to buy amazingly fresh seafood at wholesale distributor prices is like a dream come true for me.
pâte sucrée. blueberries. streusel.
Leftover tart dough from my last tart. Blind baked at 375°F. Filled with blueberries and streusel and baked to warm, broiled to brown. The blueberries could have used a touch of sugar, but the flavor was still delicious because we ate them while they were still warm. Cinnamon, toasted almonds and some lemon zest would have made them uber, but hey, not bad for winging it.
![seared ahi tuna. haricots verts. tomato corn peach salsa.
I do have to thank the annoying bitches in front of me for complaining about the freshness of the fish (completely unwarranted, by the way) and making their order complicated, which resulted in the fish monger cutting their tuna steak (and mine) from a freshly butchered loin. But I really do wish he had just told them that they could have a Coke.
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Generous amount of salt and pepper on both sides of the steak. Seared in a ripping hot pan with grapeseed oil. Haricots verts steamed in the microwave with a wet paper towel and salted. Standard salsa (tomato, peach, microwave-steamed corn, lime, cilantro, shallot).
Delicious and healthy. God I love Californian produce.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7ebs5sY0e1qm1t5xo1_500.jpg)
seared ahi tuna. haricots verts. tomato corn peach salsa.
I do have to thank the annoying bitches in front of me for complaining about the freshness of the fish (completely unwarranted, by the way) and making their order complicated, which resulted in the fish monger cutting their tuna steak (and mine) from a freshly butchered loin. But I really do wish he had just told them that they could have a Coke.
![sous-vide duck breast. pecorino romano + japanese sweet potato. apricot-mustard savoy cabbage. roasted figs. cherry balsamic gastrique.
I randomly had everything except the duck and cherries in the fridge. And then I saw the duck breasts on sale at WF. To think that I narrowly went to In-N-Out to eat a 3x3 animal-protein style burger instead…
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Duck was cooked in Ziploc bags (I still don’t have my FoodSaver with me; I should probably get on that) 135°F for 1 hour. After sous-viding, I seared the skin in a pan. I was afraid to use too much heat and overcook the meat, but I think my heat was too low to render out enough of the fat.
Roasted the sweet potatoes and mashed them with some pecorino romano. Regular mashed potatoes would have been better (too much sweet going on), but the pecorino added a nice savory dimension to something that would have been just sweet.
The cabbage was sauteed and then cooked down with rice wine vinegar, mustard and a reduction of the apricot poaching liquid from my last tart. Good amount of vinegar to cut the sweetness.
Figs were roasted at 425°F until caramelized and the cherry balsamic gastrique was made by reducing a mixture of balsamic vinegar, honey, a splash of red wine, black pepper and pitted cherries and then blending the whole mixture once it was done. Thomas Keller has a gastrique recipe in the Ad Hoc at Home book and I should try that next time.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7d8ul4cTp1qm1t5xo1_500.jpg)
sous-vide duck breast. pecorino romano + japanese sweet potato. apricot-mustard savoy cabbage. roasted figs. cherry balsamic gastrique.
I randomly had everything except the duck and cherries in the fridge. And then I saw the duck breasts on sale at WF. To think that I narrowly went to In-N-Out to eat a 3x3 animal-protein style burger instead…
![pâte sucrée. basil-lemon mascarpone cream. vanilla bean and honey poached blenheim apricots. black mission figs. toasted almonds.
Is butter a carb? YES
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I still don’t have my food processor with me, which means I made the crust with a pastry blender. Sure is less convenient than the processor, but still manageable. I also used the tart shell recipe from Joe Pastry. It uses confectioners sugar instead of granulated sugar, which is what I normally use; I think the confectioners sugar gives a better texture to the crust.
For the pastry cream, I also used the recipe from Joe Pastry, but infused the milk with lemon and basil prior to making the cream. I LOVED the flavor of the cream, but I think this particular recipe uses too much cornstarch. I was worried that the pastry cream would be too thick, so I put it in a blender prior to pouring it into the shell. WORST IDEA EVARRRR. Blending it destroyed all the networked starch that gives the pastry cream any sort of holding power and consequently, the pastry cream didn’t set. The sad part is that I’ve made this exact mistake before (the first time I made something for Amanda’s birthday). Coincidentally, in both situations, it was the first time I was making a tart for the people I was feeding. Next time I should try the same recipe, but dial down the cornstarch a bit. And not add mascarpone. That probably added to the setting problem and didn’t contribute any flavor (completely overpowered by the aromatics).
I totally winged the poached apricots. I just added honey, lemon juice and a vanilla bean to water, added sugar until I thought it tasted sweet enough, and barely simmered them until they were tender. Good intuition on my part because they were just sweet enough and very delicious.
I’m still debating whether or not I should have roasted the figs. They tasted a little too raw for the dish and roasting them would have brought out a nice round flavor. But then they also wouldn’t have been so pretty.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7d7eoDnDJ1qm1t5xo1_500.jpg)
pâte sucrée. basil-lemon mascarpone cream. vanilla bean and honey poached blenheim apricots. black mission figs. toasted almonds.
Is butter a carb? YES
![NY strip. roquefort sauce. mizuna. radish. cucumber. balsamic. whole grain mustard.
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A little pedestrian, but it’s nice to know I can still cook a steak to perfect doneness only by touch and without a thermal immersion circulator. Old school.
Salad was overdressed and I used too much roux for how much liquid there was in the sauce. Even though I cooked the steak perfectly, I’m beginning to realize that I don’t really like the “common” cuts of steak. I’d take a hangar or skirt over a filet or NY strip any day of the week. Ok I also like ribeye, but that’s the one exception. But even better yet, give me some braised meat.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7d6el39u11qm1t5xo1_500.jpg)
NY strip. roquefort sauce. mizuna. radish. cucumber. balsamic. whole grain mustard.
(Source: ashortstorylong)
“Blenheim apricots.
Ripe next to mission figs.
I must make a tart.”
— Yes, I wrote a haiku describing my desire to make a tart. I like how “ripe” kind of plays a trick on the ear and my brain tries to hear “right.” I’m such a dork.
“So like, the other day I was at Whole Foods in the bakery section, staring longingly at some delicious looking apricot and almond rugelach. But then I was like No, I can’t. I live with skinny bitches.” — Regina, you’re wearing sweatpants. It’s Monday.
![Crepes w/ Brown Sugar and Calvados Bananas.
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The crepe batter recipe is from Cook’s Illustrated. The recipe calls for sprinkling granulated sugar on the crepes prior to folding them, but I was lazy and just put granulated vanilla sugar on top. The sugar was a nice textural contrast to the crepes. I like the Cook’s Illustrated batter because it’s thinner than Alton Brown’s batter, but it needs more sugar in the batter itself (which I added after tasting the first crepe), despite being showered with sugar after cooking. Shush. I’m probably going to end up as a diabetic; don’t judge me.
The “sauce” was brown sugar, a touch of vanilla extract, butter, salt, calvados and bananas. I accidentally added the calvados after the bananas, which was a bad move because I then tried to cook off the alcohol while the bananas were still in the pan. The bananas got mushy and the alcohol didn’t really cook off, so the sauce was super boozy. Next time I should mix the bananas with the sauce off the heat and just let them warm through gently. Oh and calvados is strong like woah, which I realized when I used it in ice cream a while ago. Yet, I still used a little too much this time around. Idiot.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lrsaunSqig1qm1t5xo1_r1_500.jpg)
Crepes w/ Brown Sugar and Calvados Bananas.
I should be writing down my mental notes about things I’ve made even when I didn’t take a picture.
I wish I had read this many years ago.
Banana Leaf Wrapped Sambal Skate Wing.
Lin’s ghetto setup. Love it. Spicy; paired really well with a gewürztraminer.
“Gay men don’t really eat. They only “eat” cosmos and isopure. And rainbows.” — Maybe I should eat rainbows. Then I might be cheery and vivacious and full of fucking bon mots like all gay men. Now wouldn’t that be fantastic.