cooking

Dec 22 2013

Cooking my first Turkey

I have never cooked a full turkey on my own. Today will be my first time cooking a this glorious bird, in a new oven at that. I’m hosting a misfits Christmas dinner this even. If you know where I live, you could probably come and get some food as well.

First off I needed to figured out how long to cook it. I consulted my dad, who said 30 mins for every pound. Another article online said 16 mins per pound, while a friend said 20 mins per pound. I’m going to go with 20 mins per pound as the average and closely watch the meat thermometer.

I’ll update this post as I go along.

Update #1

I think the biggest thing people screw up when cooking a turkey is removing all the “goodies” inside. Sure, I knew they were there, but when I pulled out the neck and stuck my hand inside the bird, I didn’t think there was anything else. I was wrong. About an hour into the cooking, I reread the directions and noticed the park about fulling out the giblets from the neck area. So that happened.

I don’t know how long the turkey will actually take, so I’m closely watching the thermometer. Before putting the bird in the oven, I lathered it in butter, a lot of butter. I then put a small layering of bacon, because I like bacon.

We are coming on an hour and a half in the over and the bird is almost starting to read a number on the thermometer. I read somewhere to baste the bird every 30 mins. I attempted this but there was very little drippings in the bottom to work with. I’m hoping as the time goes by that more shows up so I can keep this turkey moist.

Also at this point the Turkey is uncovered in the hopes that a nice brown skin is created.

Aug 14 2012

Julia Child Remixes Cooking

I have never really followed any of Julia Child’s recipes but she is an inspiration. She beat the odds and made good food. I feel I can relate. No one suspects a 22 year old male to be as domesticated as I am.

The movie Julie and Julia was the one that really did it in for me though. Combining good food and blogging. That is me all over.

Now there is this awesome remix of Julia cooking, thanks to PBS in honour of her 100th b-day.

Aug 13 2012

Adventures in Bread

My time in the kitchen can really not be defined by one type of cooking or baking. I’m sporadic and unsettling. You never know what I’m going to come up with or get into next.

Over the past couple days it has been baking bread. I got the breadmaker a couple weeks ago and made dinner rolls and pizza dough but never actual bread.

However I really wanted to make my own loaves of bread so I could stop having to by them from the stor… and give them away.

So the first thing I did was try and make the bread completely by breadmaker. I realize to an actual baker this would be considered cheating, heck any use of a breadmaker might be cheating, but I wanted to try it. It didn’t work.

The bread that came from the breadmaker was tough and compact. It was as if it didn’t rise properly. So I wasn’t doing that again.

I then settled with making the dough in the breadmaker and then letting the bread rise for an hour or so under some low heat, in the sun, under a lamp or on a warm stove. When the bread had risen enough I through the loaf in the over for 19mins at 375°

Needless to say I was onto something. So far I have made two loaves of herb bread using my fresh basil, oregano and thyme and a loaf of white bread.

So the question now is, who wants a loaf?

Apr 07 2012

How to grow herbs like a boss

Guys, it is getting scary. I’m becoming more and more domesticated by the day. This time I’m growing herbs. I have basil, parsley, oregano and chives growing.

It all started back in February after I moved back to Yellowknife and couldn’t find any Tarragon in the grocery store. Actually I couldn’t find much, the section for fresh herds and spice was minimal at best. Just the basic herbs could be found, for a cost.

I was kind of annoyed about the stock each store had. Yes, I realize where we live but I don’t see fresh herbs any different from many fruits or vegetables. I suppose the demand just isn’t there for the herbs so they are not brought it regularly.

My conclusion to this predicament was to grow my own. I went to the local Canadian Tire found a planter tray and seeds of various herbs. I actually couldn’t find the some of the seeds I really wanted – tarragon – but got the common ones.

That afternoon in February I planted those seeds into the tray, watered them and let them sit in a warm place.

Watering the Herbs

planting the herb seeds

Over time I would check on them, water them and move them around the house into the warm places. Sometimes they would be in the basement of the house by the woodstove or during the day on a window with sunlight beating down.

herbs labeled

Eventually they needed to be moved in to proper planters so they could continue grow and flourish. The extend hours of light a day also seemed to help.

basil plant

This is the first time I have ever done something like this so I wasn’t without help from an experienced green thumb. I started to notice certain aspects of the process. As the herbs grow they take in more and more water, obviously. As well they need more room to grow so transplanting them was a must.

As for as I’m aware all of my herbs are growing normally and successfully so I’m not sure what I could do differently. I planted more seeds this and will see how the addition of more sunlight affects them. Wish me luck.

Jan 09 2012

What I just ate: Butterflied Steak and Potatoes

I’ll make this quick because I’m tired and I want to write this while it is fresh in my mind. This is what I cooked for supper tonight. It is in fact I teased everyone with on Facebook. I cooked it for myself and friend and former co-worker Megan.

The Meat from top to bottom:

A Portobello Mushroom, swiped clean and grilled will the grill was heating up on high. Put aside was charred on both sides.
Butterflied an average steak, rubbed in chopped fresh rosemary, salt and pepper. Added a bit of Olive Oil. Grilled for 4 mins on the grill, flipping every minute for medium.
French loaf cut on an angle and then in half. Place on grilled to heat up and flatten.

I really enjoyed this, it was amazing. It had taste and flavour. It wasn’t not dried out. What I did find was that the french loaf was a little too charred and that taste overwhelmed the steak. The mushroom as got cold quickly, too quickly for my eating speed. I would probably reheat before serving.

The Potatoes and all that jazz:

Boil baby potatoes for 15 mins or until soft.
Mix together cottage cheese and lemon juice for dressing. Put in bowl will still warm potatoes and mix around.
Add in BACON bits and chives to add even more amazing flavour.

These potatoes blew my mind, they were great and not just because of the bacon. I recipe called for yogurt, but I used cottage cheese instead and I think it was for the best. Will definitely do again.

Both recipes are from Jamie’s Food Revolution. I would do again with minor adjustments. Thoughts?