homemade quick pickled jalapenos are great, but I would avoid the soy sauce if you are putting them in a margarita.

amoeba that all looks fantastic

just fired up some mac and cheese and a strip



bacon for the mac and cheese



bacon, onion, and parsley



shredded white cheddar and sharp cheddar




mac and cheese



mmmm dinner

Link doesn't work, and I can't find the recipe on that site. Would you mind posting another link, or the recipe itself?

Also, his cooking series seems to be region locked on youtube, must I use proxies to get around that?

devil, thats a fantastic dinner

devil, what are you using for the crumbly topping on top of the mac and cheese? is that just breadcrumbs?

breadcrumbs, chopped bacon, parsley, and parmesan cheese tossed in bacon grease

+1, have a soft spot in my heart for anything lettuce wraps.

Here's another link: http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/...-lettuce-wraps

I suppose that's one way to do it.

FTR this is now gone and I ate 100% of it.

Would those be good on an Italian beef type sandwich? I'm thinking those in lieu of giardinera(sp?). But I can't really wrap my head around what they taste like.

I think you'd want the vinegar flavor of normal pickles for something like that. Of course, you can do quick vinegar pickles too...

As far as how the jalepeno quick pickles taste, it's a cheap and easy experiment. Go buy a jalepeno and spend a minute cutting it up, add about 1 tsp salt 2 tsp sugar (roughly scaled from my original 3 jalepenos, 1 tbsp salt, 2 tbsp sugar), stir, wait 5-10 minutes, eat. They're much less hot than I expected, almost crisper than a fresh jalepeno, and pure goodness.

Sweet-hot is the best description I can come up with.

Wow, great stuff guys!

Wallace - I'm sure the shell dish is delicious, but it appears that you ran into the same problem I did: Pasta is really difficult to photograph, especially without red sauce. A handful of some green certainly helps, but what I've noticed is that a tiny bit in a large bowl looks best, particularly when accessorized with cups, pitchers, napkins, silverware, etc. In retrospect, my orecchiette shot is pretty crap (but I was blinded by deliciousness).

Amoeba - really nice looking stuff. I like that the carrots have a little glaze. I think the pic might look even better if you added some more of the pesto / or oil to the plate to give it some more color and contrast. The rack looks fantastic! Also, I'm a sucker for brussels. We typically char them cut face down to get some nice color, though if I'm feeling really ambitious, I'll pull the leaves apart and make chips in the oven.

Devilbiss - that mac looks fantastic!!! I have yet to come up with a mac recipe that I love. I need to work on that.



With regards to the pickled pepper talk, I actually made the spicy pickled peppers from the Mozza book the other day and they're pretty impressive. Basically a white wine brine base simmered with cloves, juniper, and honey. Throw some Fresnos in there to soften for a bit and jar. I was shocked at how spicy they turned out. I'll write them up later when I get home to take some pics.

I also made the Mozza Braised lamb shanks which are on their way to becoming a lamb ragout. Need to make basic tomato sauce and pasta still to complete the dish, but on my way.

Also on the back burner is a sous vide pork belly that's cooked and sitting, vacuum sealed in it's own fat waiting for this weekend, and some 48 hour sous vide short ribs that still need to be eaten.

The Mozza pickled peppers would be good here.

Those lettuce wraps look fantastic. Well done.

Also, good effort on the pro style m&c devil.

All,

When you quick pickle the peppers in sugar+salt for a little longer time, you are left w/ a very spicy sugary salty liquid. I do not recommend making a margarita using that liquid.

Grew some fresno chillies, looking for ideas as to how best use them.

For those of you in America looking for the link for Gordon Ramsay's Ultimate Cookery Course, here is a link to the playlist that works:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8Tte...X&feature=plcp

No idea if/what other countries in works in.

Edit: Chili beef wraps are in episode 2

Pickle them as per the Mozza cookbook. I'll post the recipe and pics tonight, but if memory serves, it was something like:

3/4 lb Fresno Chiles - rinsed, stems intact
2 cups white wine vinegar - I ran out so used ~3/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons of honey
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon juniper berries (you can find them at William Sonoma)

I *think* that was all there was to it. Toss everything in a medium saucepan (or a saucier if you took advantage of the All Clad sale like I did - BTW - Marshall's has All Clad AND Le Creuset models from last year for AMAZING prices - worth looking into). Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to make sure honey dissolves. Once it boils, turn down the heat and allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Add the chiles and again, bring liquid to a boil. Once it boils, reduce heat to a simmer, and allow the chiles to simmer until they soften slightly - about 5 - 10 minutes. The chiles should still hold their shape.

Arrange chiles in a mason jar, seal, and enjoy.

Thanks Snipe,

You are right - the dish doesn't get any love because of the photo. I showed some folks at work the same photo, but the only person that really got the dish was an Italian girl who has had the broccoli rabe version since she was a kid. I will work on plating and composition, 'cause even though this is not the "Cooking a Good Everything Else and Taking Great Photos of it" thread, if your photo is crap, you won't get any love.

A steak with mac'n'cheese is the best combo ever.

Found that Ramsay chili-beef lettuce wrap recipe somewhere else: http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/...-lettuce-wraps

Looking forward to trying that one...

wallace,
spinach with the sausage pasta works

had the lettuce wraps twice in the past couple of days, goood