Let's Cooking: TNL!

[animegirl]

So I'm going to make a big pan of Lasagna for dinner tomorrow or the day after. I was able to get everything I wanted but the store didn't have any ground italian sausage. Is there a suitable substitute for this or should I just ground up some italian sausage links to get the meat ratio I want (1:1 sausage to ground beef)

I usually just get the italian sausage links, cut them out of the casing and break it up while frying it. In fact, I have never even seen italian sausage not in casing.

[Advocate]

I usually just get the italian sausage links, cut them out of the casing and break it up while frying it. In fact, I have never even seen italian sausage not in casing.

Nor should you. Unless its in a sauce or what have you. If its sold at a reputable market ... the casing should still be on it.

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Also: I made an excellent dinner tonight.

Pork chops with a Parmesan, Garlic, and Rosemary sauce.
The sides are Creamed corn and Garlic Olive oil pasta.

[sleeve]

Agreed. There's only so much that one can do with boiled meat.

Boiling is okay, as long as we're talking about braising. It's just not something you want to do if you have a whole chicken. If you want that delicious, crispy skin and juicy meat, roasting is the only way to go.

[animegirl]

I love creamed corn. I usually add a bit more cream and some sharp cheddar to mine. God it is so fattening but so delicious.

[icarusfall]

The cooking career adventures of icarusfall:

Since I never got a call-back from American Grocery - it was really a long shot anyway.
They're opening a Ruth's Chris in town and are hiring for all positions. I talked with my Chef about it and he says it's a good opportunity that I should definitely pursue. So I should be going in in the next couple days to drop off a resume.

[icarusfall]

In between my previous post and now I seared off a flank steak seasoned with salt, ground thyme and mustard powder and made a sauce. Cut a tomato in half and deglazed the pan with the juice, added cream and salt.

Side/dessert - chilled pears with a blackberry and wine syrup. Cook down the Riesling while the steak cooks. Add crushed fresh blackberries and sugar. Reduce until syrupy.

[icarusfall]

I just decided to make dessert again.

Blackberries and cream:
Use a small sauce pan over medium medium/high heat and heat a few ounces of cream. Add a capful of vanilla extract and 2 tbls sugar. Reduce a little. Make a cornstarch slurry by combining a pinch of cornstarch with a tablespoon of cold water. Add to the cream sauce and stir until thickened.

Spoon a bit of plain yogurt into a bowl and drizzle orange blossom honey over it. Add 10-12 fresh blackberries. Drizzle the cream sauce over the berries and garnish with a mint sprig (yes, actually do this. The aroma makes a huge difference in the taste).

I swear to god people, this was one of my best dishes and I created it at 3AM on a monday night.

[Tones]

I'm cooking dinner for a lady next week and I may have to use that. It sounds delicious. Blackberries are definitely my favorite among the berries. I think a tea would go really well with this. I know nothing about teas; what variety would go best with this? The blackberries would overpower any types I think.

[animegirl]

Haha, I garnish my food even when it's only me eating as well. I thought I was the only one. Gotta practice, right?

Edit: Also, all this time off from work is so boring. Why am I posting about garnish at 3AM? That's it, fuck it I am going to look at Tastespotting now.

[Josh]

So we need a pot for cooking pasta in. No more of this tiny pot, single serving bullshit.

Can anyone recommend a good large pot? Are brands in any way important for this kind f thing?