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Food Thread: Thanksgiving After-Action Report

Butter is a marvelous ingredient, and I am hard-pressed to think of a dish that isn't improved by its liberal application. And don't say "bacon!" I have had bacon fried in butter, and it was delicious.

And cream? Specifically, heavy cream, is an incredible ingredient. It thickens wonderfully, adds a mouth-feel that is unique, and smooths out things like mashed potatoes so that it seems as if they are made of velvet.

On the other hand, my crise de foie can be laid squarely on the cook's head, and that would be me!

Damn...I didn't really think through the tiny little detail that every side was filled with tons of butter or cream, and sometimes both! There was absolutely nothing light on the table, so it turned out that I had cooked for 20 instead of 12, because people simply could not eat the volume of food I had planned for them.

[Well...once person did. It was impressive. He also had to get up from the table and walk around a bit before he had his third helping of everything]

I don't mind making tons of extra main course. In addition to a 15 pound turkey (boring!) we had a Sous Vide whole bone-in pork loin, finished on the grill with a Dijon-brown sugar glaze. That's fine!

But 17 pounds of spinach gratin? Where's Popeye when you need him?

Luckily I made a kick-ass pecan pie to cut the richness of the meal.

What? Fresh whipped cream for the pie? Of course! I am not a savage!

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From my friend and long-time commenter "Eromero" comes this photo. I am unsure whether to be mortally offended by the glaring and wanton disrespect for the traditional pie-cutting technique, or laugh hysterically!

But...pie for me is simply pudding if it doesn't include the crust, so I am puzzled too!

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I have touted the morning-after-Thanksgiving stuffing waffle for a long time. Unfortunately somebody took all of the stuffing! What the hell is this world coming to? Taking a man's stuffing? And not even a reach-around?

If you are lucky enough to have less theft-minded relatives, crack an egg or two into a bowl, pile on the stuffing, mix it up, and throw it into a waffle iron. Crispier is better!

Yeah...really complicated recipe.

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That's a very nice looking meal!

[Hat Tip: dhmosquito]

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The next holiday at Chez Dildo is Hanukkah, which has some traditional festive foods like latkes (fried potato patties). They're fun to eat, fun to make, but the clean up might require a multi-day degreasing of the kitchen, my clothes, and probably my hair. But it's worth it.

The main course? Who knows! I'm tending toward a NY Strip roast, because I seem to be the only one around here who likes lamb. I figure I'll put it on the rotisserie and get it nice and crusty. And then sell tickets to my family, because damn, I just priced them.

Maybe I'll go the hobo route, but Ace recommends just the tenderloin for fresh hobo, so I'll be cooking in uncharted territory!

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This is so sweet...

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The oyster imperative remains in effect, and send pork rib roasts with the pork belly attached, carrots that don't taste like stalky chalk (and speaking of vegetables; were all of our snap peas stolen by space aliens?), garlic...lots of garlic! (and basil! My basil did not do well this year!), well-marbled hanger steaks and elk chops to: cbd dot aoshq at gmail dot com.

And don't think that the rest of you are off the hook with maple syrup and French Toast: so why don't you put maple syrup on your steaks and chops and chicken?

And yes, I used to demand fancy bourbon, but let's face it, $1,200 for a bottle of bourbon is just stupid, insulting, and a ghastly affront to most people's palates and wallets. I think the sweet spot is $40-$60 for excellent and interesting bottles, and bumping that to $100 gets you an incremental improvement in quality, but nothing mind-blowing. More than that and I think you are paying for hype and rarity, which may look good in your liquor cabinet, but doesn't translate to more quality in the bottle.