Not at all. Put about 1 quart of water in a bowl. Add in a couple tablespoons of salt or adobo seasoning (I used the latter). Peel the plantains and cut into segments about 1" long. Place in the seasoned water and let sit 10-15 min. Remove and pat dry. Deep fry the plantain chunks in oil at 350-360 F until lightly browned. Remove from oil, let cool enough to handle. Use a tostone press, a glass, or tortilla press to press into rounds about 1/4" thick (if you use a tortilla press, which is what I do, you have to be careful not to press them too thin). Place the tostones back in the water for just a minute, then remove and pat dry. Fry again, same temperature, until golden and crisp. Remove to a rack and sprinkle with salt. Serve immediately.
My folks were urban gardeners, also, and corn was a passion of my father’s. Small patch, same as ours, and ever since I can remember there would be an annual event when the corn was ripe. Pick the ears, toss them in a waiting pot of boiling water, and eat them straight away.
There’s nothing like the taste and texture of corn that fresh, and the tradition is something my husband and I continue to enjoy. The key is not to over-cook it.
I could say the same for asparagus (although roasted, not boiled).
That’s exactly what I do, except for the double soaking. That part is new to me (and my BF who is Puerto Rican). I wonder if that’s what makes the difference? I can’t taste your picture but they just look so much better than the ones we’ve made.
Yes, that what makes the difference. I’ve made tostones for years, using the standard fry-press-fry again method, but they never had this nice a texture before. Just a warning… the tostones, having more moisture in them, will splatter more when fried. So have a splatter screen at the ready, and do try to get them pretty dry before putting them in the oil. Before the second fry, I let them sit on a cooling rack for a few minutes to get some air circulating around them. They don’t have to be perfectly dry, but you don’t want them visibly wet. Let me know how this works for you if you try it!
Last night was pizza. Homemade gluten-free crust. One was spinach and grilled artichoke hearts with a red sauce, the other was squash, sweet onion, and basil with a truffle “cream” sauce. Put Miyoko’s liquid mozzarella on both, my first time experimenting with it. It browns very easily. I had to pull the first pizza out a bit early because I thought the cheese was browning too much. For the second, I reduced the heat a bit, but then didn’t get the browning I wanted on the crust. More experimentation ahead, since I now have an open bottle of the stuff.
Monkfish wrapped in chard; sauteed snap peas, radishes, basil and mint.
Scrambled eggs with tomato, cubed pork belly, ground elk, julienned cucumbers, all over a bed of noodles.
A post was merged into an existing topic: What’s for Dinner #84 - he National Food-A-Day Month Edition - August 2022
Schade!
Sorry I’m late, folks! Here’s the August edition for WFD:
Ja, sehr. I do feel we made the most of it, tho.
Thanks! It’s my favorite gazpacho for sure. Every time I make it I vow to skip the sieving, but always break down. It’s a chore but worth it.
I agree. Straining makes all the difference here. It’s a chore. I broke my cheap-o strainer a couple of summers ago making a lot of gazpacho. I found a replacement set from All Clad (on the ding-and-dent site), and so far, it’s holding up to the task. The handles are riveted on, not welded.
A post was merged into an existing topic: What’s for Dinner #84 - the National Food-A-Day Month Edition - August 2022
With my salmorejo everything goes into the Vitamix for 1 minute. Sieving unnecessary.
5 posts were merged into an existing topic: What’s for Dinner #84 - the National Food-A-Day Month Edition - August 2022
A post was merged into an existing topic: What’s for Dinner #84 - the National Food-A-Day Month Edition - August 2022
Same. Midwest here, too. Same about the glop/burp deli salads. I’ve been steaming instead of boiling the eggs of late, and they are much easier to peel streamed. Haven’t tried the water glass trick yet, though.
I used to pick sweet corn for money. Great corn doesn’t need to be cooked, IMHO. Still, it’s one of my favorite seasonal indulgences. Like asparagus, though, I almost eat myself sick of the stuff when in season.
