The Bitten Word

Saffron Roasted Cauliflower

Food Nework Magazine (May 2014) 

Oh, saffron. 

As this month's Food Network Magazine says, you're "the diva of the spice cabinet." You're an absolute powerhouse, yet you're extremely delicate and must be handled with care. You're wildly expensive and extraordinarily memorable. 

And yet, like meeting a diva face to face, we never know quite what to do with you.

When we do cook with saffron, we really want it to be something special. Something to really show off the pricey spice.

This Saffron Roasted Cauliflower is a great way to do that.

Kitchen Fail: Gravlax

Food Network Magazine (April 2014)

 

Bittens, would you like a little foreign-language lesson? Let's learn a new word together, shall we?

The word is katastrof. It's Swedish for "disaster" or (obviously) "catastrophe." 

And it's important for this little story about making gravlax.

Because the first time we tried this, we ended up with a sizable katastrof on our hands.

Thanksgiving 2013: Whipped Sweet Potatoes and Bananas with Honey

Food Network Magazine (November 2013)

We have open minds when it comes to Thanksgiving.

We won't hesitate to use a new ingredient or technique, or choose something that sounds outright bizarre for the Thanksgiving table (we're looking at you, Tomato and Olive Stuffing). 

When we were selecting dishes for our Fakesgiving, our menu was shaping up to be somewhat traditional, so we purposefully zeroed in on a few things that were more unusual.

And Tyler Florence's Whipped Sweet Potato with Bananas and Honey from Food Network Magazine is nothing if not unusual.  

Thanksgiving 2013: The Pilgrimage Cocktail

Food Network Magazine (November 2013)

This cocktail doesn't make a lot of sense for a Thanksgiving crowd. But it might be good enough to serve anyway.

We had flagged this to make for our Fakesgiving dinner a couple weeks back. But on closer inspection, we realized you have to prepare each serving of this cocktail on its own, in a shaker. With 16 people coming over for dinner, we knew that was a nonstarter. We needed something we could make completely in advance and let guests serve themselves. (We wound up making a giant punchbowl of rum Manhattans, which is a cocktail we've been playing around with for a while; we'll write about it for you someday soon.)

Anyway, we knew we didn't want to tackle The Pilgrimage for a large group. But the idea of this cocktail kept tickling our brains, thanks to one very unconventional ingredient in it: pumpkin butter.

Sardine Salad Sandwich

Food Network Magazine (April 2013)

We've mentioned before how much we enjoy tuna salad, whether it's a Dijon-Cilantro version, a lighter Mediterranean salad, or our go-to recipe, which includes some combination of red onion, sweet relish mustard and a hefty dose of curry powder.

But it had never, ever dawned on us that you could make a similar salad using other seafood -- especially sardines. Food Network Magazine's recipe for Sardine Salad Sandwiches to send us scrambling to the canned seafood aisle. 

 

Stewed Scallions and Tomatoes

Food Network Magazine (March 2013)

We both grew up eating a lot of dishes described as "stewed."

Stewed greens, stewed tomatoes, stewed potatoes, stewed apples, stewed prunes -- one of those managed to show up at every family reunion, church potluck or big Sunday dinner.

It always meant the same thing: something cooked in a liquid, and often, cooked within an inch of its life. Don't misunderstand: Those stewed dishes were delicious. Soft and creamy, like a braise without the dry-heat cooking. (But they could also be mushy and bland. What is it about some strains of old-school Southern cooking that take wonderful ingredients and then proceed to cook all the flavor right out of them?) 

We chose this recipe  -- Stewed Scallions and Tomatoes -- because we applaud Food Network Magazine for using the word "stewed" to describe a dish. Let's face it: It's not the world's most appetizing word.

The other reason we wanted to try this? It's an unusual use of scallions, to cook them whole, as an actual vegetable. We were eager to try it.

By the way, before we get to the dish: Did you know that stewed also means drunk? We're tooooootally going to start using this. "I have to go home, I'm stewed!"

Let's get stewed and chat about these scallions and tomatoes. 

Cherry Brandy Old-Fashioned

Food Network Magazine (December 2012)

The first time Zach had an Old-Fashioned -- or at least the most memorable time -- was the first Thanksgiving he spent in D.C. A friend, Heather, invited Zach and several other folks to her family's huge Thanksgiving dinner in Northern Virginia. Awaiting the guests when they arrived was a 5-gallon glass jug full of Heather's dad's signature Old-Fashioned cocktail.

There was much ladling, and ladling, and more ladling. Suffice it to say, things got a little hazy. Zach's night ended quite eventfully, when he fell asleep on the Metro at midnight and rode the Orange Line straight through D.C. all the way to the end of the line in Maryland. A cab was called. An ATM was visited. Heather's dad's Old-Fashioneds were forsworned.

We're sure you can handle yourself better when it comes to these Cherry Brandy Old-Fashioneds. But be warned. They are strong. And they are amazing.

Thanksgiving 2012: Cherry-Lemon Relish

Food Network Magazine (November 2012)

When we started making Fakesgiving plans, in order to do a dry-run of Thanksgiving dishes, we had trouble getting excited about cranberry sauces. As our recap of favorite holiday dishes shows, we've made a bunch of cranberry sauces over the years. We like -- and sometimes even love -- cranberry sauce, but after a while, they all start to run together. 

This year, we got really excited about alternatives to cranberry sauce. We were so excited, in fact, that we served three of them. (Never fear: We also whipped up a fourth more traditional cranberry sauce for guests.)

This Cherry-Lemon Relish was one of our favorites -- and it definitely deserves a spot on your Thanksgiving table. 

Thanksgiving 2012: Mushroom & Leek Bread Pudding

Food Network Magazine (November 2012)

We love us some Barefoot Contessa.

We like the show, the books, the house, the friends who "drop by," the barn, the contrived plot points exciting adventures -- the whole thing. We are on board. 

And we've made many of Ina's dishes (yes, we're on a first-name basis, even if we've technically never met her). They're so dependable and, as her new book says, foolproof. As two fools in the kitchen, we are grateful. 

So it was without hesitation that we picked out The Barefoot Contessa's recipe for Mushrom & Leek Bread Pudding for our Thanksgiving/Fakesgiving. 

To our surprise, though, we're a bit split on this dish.

Thanksgiving 2012: Tortilla Chip Chorizo Stuffing

Food Network Magazine (November 2012)

When we had guests over for Fakesgiving, we began the meal by welcoming everyone and explaining the menu.

As we walked through all 20 of the dishes, there were many oohs and aahs, but only one dish received an enthusiastic round of applause: this Tortilla Chip Chorizo Stuffing.

You see, at Fakesgiving, we try to cook both what sounds amazing, but also dishes that seem a little out there. Dishes that firmly fall in the “out there” category from previous years? Tandoori Turkey (a hit!). Tomato and Olive Stuffing (also a hit!). Red Cabbage Gratin (a huge miss).

Food Network Magazine rose to the “out there” challenge with their feature about unusual side dishes, which includes this recipe.