Saurkraut - Day 0

The inaugural run of saurkraut has been started. Once we got through all the sanitizing procedures it was even kind of fun.

Because we can't do anything new at a reasonable scale we began with 4 heads of cabbage totaling 17.52 pounds, and after removing the outer leaves and core it was probably down 2 or 3 pounds. This was shredded (thank goodness for salad shooters) and liberally mixed with kosher salt, about 13-15 tablespoons we think.
We didn't think to photograph the cabbage heads at the beginning, but here's everything shredded and salted and packed into the crock. It takes up less space than we expected, but honestly it's still more than we know what to do with. Planning ahead ftw.
And here is Shade beside the 6 gallon-ish crock for scale. This was before he decided that cabbage was not made of pork or cheese and therefore beneath his notice.

The cabbage is now weighted down with a plate and a gallon ziplock containing salt water; by tomorrow night it should have released enough water to submerge itself in brine. The crock has been lidded and placed under Banik's desk where the AC register will keep it relatively cool during the pickling process.

My hands smell like cabbage and bleach, and I think it's time for bed.

SoNo Switch Tower Museum

After lunch we needed to kill a few hours, so instead of being boring and going home we wondered around downtown looking at stuff. The Switch Tower Museum is free and an interesting educational experience for anyone who likes history, trains, old buildings, or random knowledge.
I learned lots of stuff about Armstrong levers, mechanical switching, how tracks work, and in general how much stuff you don't see happening when a train moves between tracks. This placed is staffed by knowledgable volunteers, and they certainly earn their donations.

It's about time for an Adventure.

We've had a busy day. After living up here nearly eleven months we decided to actually go see some of SoNo (South Norwalk). Eight hours later we came home, fed the cats, and started downloading photos and videos. I'm way too tired to post everything tonight, but I will start.

We spent a few hours at the Maritime Aquarium, then had lunch at Chocopologie, then visited the SoNo Switch Tower Museum, then wandered around for a while, and finally had dinner at The Ginger Man with a couple friends. A good time was had by all.

the joy of coloured eggs

Colouring eggs is fun. Especially in the middle of May. We were a bit disappointed in the lack of vibrancy in the dry colours and the fact that the voilet eggs came out blue, but they were still pretty.

Even the egg shells were interesting to play with...

at least for the OCD among us.

Lupita's Mexican Restaurant

We made another random restaurant selection on the way home, and I'm pleased to say that it paid off. Lupita's Mexian Restaurant is in a little strip of stores between Fairfield proper and Blackrock. Banik had fajitas and a margarita, and I had enchiladas- one chicken, one veggie. Everything was good, and it's nice to finally have a mexican restaurant up here.

why we can't go into wholefoods to "just see what they have"

"oh look, they have sample sizes of cheese..."
and so we ended up having an improntu cheese tasting

The results:

**** We both ranked the Drunken Goat at the top; it was mild,

rather soft, and not overly salty.

**** Banik's other favourite was the Pyrennes, which I also liked.

**** My other favourite was the Hoch Ybrig, which smells

questionable but tastes good.

*** The Aussie Jack is a good, versatile Jack that we might use

in other things.

*** The Cotswold has chives in it, and might be good in something.

* The Habanero Cheddar was mostly just hot and didn't taste

particularly awesome.

* The Sottocenere has a nasty rind, and although Banik is fine

the cheese itself with it I think it just tastes like mold.

-

The sourdough is good. Maybe we'll have to try making a starter again...

putting CDs in the microwave is fun

Smoked Herring

So we were near the smoked salmon at the grocery store, and I saw smoked herring. I'd heard of it, I'd considered trying it, and even through the plastic it smelled like Dietrich's Country Market. Surely it would be awesome.
When we had smoked salmon on crackers with cream cheese that evening we each tried a little piece plain and then had some on crackers.

It's intense. It's salty. It's best consumed in small quantities.

The remainder will be thoughtfully deployed in dishes that will complement (and dilute) the taste.

Parmentier de Hareng Fumé aux Brocolis

This attempt to use some smoked herring is a derivation of a derivation of a parmentier:

Parmentier, or hachis parmentier, is a traditional French dish of ground meat (usually beef, sometimes a mix of beef and pork) topped with mashed potatoes and oven-baked.

Our version is based on this recipe but employs both broccoli and potatoes.

4 oz fillets of smoked herring
3/4 c. milk (optional, to de-salt the herring if needed)
2 medium potatoes + fixing for mashed potatoes (do not use salt)
1 medium head broccoli
1/3 plain yogurt
pepper
parmesian cheese, fresh
breadcrumbs

If using salted herring, spread out in the bottom of a dish and cover with milk. Let rest in the fridge for at least 3 hours or overnight. Drain, rinse, and pat dry; cut into 1/4"-1/2" chunks before use.

Make your mashed potatoes while preparing the brocculi mixture: Chop and steam the brocculi in the mircowave. Use a masher or food processor to make a paste of broccoli, plain yogurt, and pepper to taste.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the mashed potatoes, and layer the chunks of herring over them. Spread the broccoli mixture into the next layer and then sprinkle with the parmesian. Top with a layer of bread crumbs and bake for about 20 minutes. You need only warm everything through and brown the bread crumbs. Serve immediately.

I would recommend serving small potions with a salad or some such. The flavors are very intense, and you can always get seconds.

Chicken Mole Verde

In the beginning there were two people who watched FoodNetwork too much, and they started saying things like "Hey, we should try that!"...

And so we came home from the grocery store one day with two jars of mole sauce: red (traditional/origional) and verde (green). I like green so I decided to try that one first. Is It EDible? and Cyndi's Recipes provided fodder for that we would eventually make; the main difference is that ours is all from the pantry, fridge, and freezer. I meant to take pictures, but we ate it all. It was good.


CHICKEN MOLE VERDE

SOFTWARE:
1 T. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4" chunks
1- 8oz. can of mushrooms (2 if you like)
4 oz. mole verde sauce (we used Dona Maria)
2 c. liquid (water, juice from draining mushrooms + water, or broth)
2 t. chicken base
1/2 c. queso fresco, crumbled (or more to taste)

brown rice (1.5 c. + water per package instructions)

HARDWARE:
cutting board + knife
blender
large sauce pan + lid

You will want to prep everything ahead so you can just add ingredients in batches. When you drain the can of mushrooms, pour the liquid into a 2 cup measuring cup and make up the difference with water. Pour some of this into the blender and add the mole paste (yes, you're going to have to chip it out of the jar; no, it's not paste like you were expecting). Add more of the water/mushroom juice as needed, and blend until the chunks are broken up.

Heat your olive oil over medium heat. Saute your onion and garlic for a minute, then add the chicken and lightly brown it on all sides. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove lid and simmer an additional 20 minutes so that the sauce can thicken.

Plate over brown rice and sprinkle with some of the queso fresco. Serves 4. This would also be great with turkey.