Reggie III Mushroom Stroganoff

Music: Big Wave – Jenny and Johnny

You know what I did this week?  I catered my first movie! It was lots of work in our tiny kitchen and I felt like a train conductor on the cooking line (that was terrible) but I think I liked it! I didn’t take lots of pictures because, as I mentioned, I was on a tight schedule. It was pretty satisfying knowing that 10 people somewhere in Queens were eating Plated food…and hopefully enjoying it. Did I mention they were all vegetarians?  Have you seen my posting on Duck Confit where we actually cook meat in duck fat? Needless to say, vegetarian cooking is a challenge. I made a lot of standards but a few new things…here was one:

1 tablespoon butter

2 large garlic cloves, chopped

1 large onion, thinly sliced

1 shallot

2 pounds mushrooms, sliced (I used a combo of portabello, button and shitake)

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 cup brandy

2 tsp. of thyme

1 cup nonfat sour cream

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

12 ounces egg noodles

• Melt butter in heavy large Dutch oven over medium-high-heat.
• Add onion and shallot and sauté for 10 minutes until soft.

• Add garlic and sauté 30 seconds.
• Wash the mushrooms with water. I know you aren’t really supposed to do this but the liquid that cooks off will help with this recipe.
• Add mushrooms and sauté until tender and most liquid in pot evaporates, about 10 minutes.

 

These pictures are terrible...

 

• Reduce heat to medium. Add flour and stir 1 minute.
• Add brandy and cook until mixture thickens, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. You’ll smell when the alcohol cooks off.
• Add thyme
• Mix in sour cream, then nutmeg. Season mushroom mixture to taste with salt and pepper. Add egg noodles to pot; toss to blend well and serve.

 

I mean, wow.

 

If you want to know more about the movie, visit Lambsgrove Productions and see their upcoming projects page.  There you can find a link for their trailer on Kickstarter.

Also, I know we’ve been posting slowly lately but as the holiday season nears I know we’ll be entertaining more and more so look out for new recipes soon!

San Francisco – Day 5

What a beautiful day!

First Stop

Judy’s Cafe

2268 Chestnut Street
San Francisco, CA 94123-2638
(415) 922-4588

This place is a perfect stop if you are looking for on overwhelming amount of food.  It’s another Marina brunch spot so come early.  We ordered omelets (bacon, avocado, sour cream and cheddar omelet and mushroom, spinach, onion and cheddar omelet) and homefries. The omelet was outstanding but there was no way possible one could finish it.

Second Stop:

La Taqueria

2889 Mission St
(between 24th St & 25th St)
San Francisco, CA 94110

We couldn’t come to California and not eat Mexican food.  Deeply nestled well into the Mission is this well known little burrito spot.  It definitely gets hyped up – but it’s well-deserved.  The counter staff speaks to you in Spanish so either speak it back or order confidently.  We had the pork burrito with cheese and avocado and chicken tacos.  This place has a great atmosphere and I suggest lunch with a beer here.

Third Stop

Andalu

3198 16th Street
San Francisco, CA 94103-3363
(415) 621-2211

Happy Birthday Ashley! We celebrated for a second night in a row with some old (and new!) friends. This place has wonderful cocktails and very good small plates.  I was so distracted by the company and celebration that I barely ate (and also forgot to take pictures). What I did eat was great and the short ribs really stood out.  We shared the following between 9 people and we were fully content:

• Ahi Tartar Tacos with Chili and Lime, Mango Salsa

• Trio of Tartares: Ahi Tuna Taco, Wasabi Hamachi, Salmon Poke
• Curly Polenta Fries, Spicy Tomato Vinaigrette

• Halibut Paillard with Cilantro, Ginger, Soy, and Hot Grapeseed Oil
• Coca-Cola Braised Short-ribs with White Bean Salad

• Duck Dumplings with Sweet and Sour Dipping Sauce
• Butternut Squash Raviolis with Sage and Butter Sauce

Duck Rillette

Music: C’est Si Bon – Preservation Hall Jazz Band and Anita Briem

To continue our study with duckish things, I bring you duck rillette.  We practiced with the duck confit about a week before we served it for a Sunday Dinner and we went one step further and made duck rillette.  It was a perfect start to a Valentine’s Day meal.  This fed 4 people as an appetizer. We served it with a homemade baguette, cornichons and some whole grain mustard (sad, no pictures…and it looked so cute!).

I read a bunch of recipes for this and came up with the following.

How to make Duck Confit

Music : Florence and the Machine – My Boy Builds Coffins

Hello and hope you had a happy weekend.  I didn’t post on Friday because I have been making duck confit for about a week – but we finally got to eat it last night and it was unbelievable.  Rosa, Matt and Scott partook in the Sunday Dinner event.  We paired it with a lovely sweet and tart blueberry sauce that matched perfectly. Seasonality, be damned!

Goat Cheese, Butternut Squash, Melted Onion and Duck Bacon Crostini

There’s got to be a better name for this…anyone? anyone?

In honor of Cathy Erway’s book The Art of Eating In, The Bell House is hosting a launch party complete with a crostini cook-off.  We really wanted to be a part of this but had a conflict.  BOOO! If you can make it you should…there will be lots of good food, music and beer.  A portion of the ticket sales will benefit Just Food & Oxfam relief efforts in Haiti.

Duck Bacon – Sweet Thursday!

For your viewing pleasure, I bring you Duck Bacon on this Sweet Thursday.  Toodles!