Pan Fried Gnocchi

Bought some fresh gnocchi from the farmer's market last saturday. I've been eating it in thirds. Last night I just boiled it, tossing it in butter and garlic afterwards.

Tonight, I tried letting it pan fry in that butter and garlic until brown on both sides. It was quite tasty.

Pickled Long Beans

We found long beans at the farmers' market yesterday, so I bought some with the intent to pickle them. I called my mom and got her recipe, which she estimated for the 2 quart container that I was using as follows:

• 4 tbs salt
• Small amount of sugar (I used 1/2 tbs)
• 1 quart water
• Hot pepper, preferably fresh (I used what the Whole Foods' checkout guy thought were Serrano's. The item was unlabeled in the produce aisle)
• Szechuan peppercorns (mine are really old, so I used what probably looks like an excessive amount)
• Enough vodka to fill the gap after long beans are added
  

My mom warned me that the first batch was not likely to be that good, since it'll take time for the sourness to develop. (The sugar is mostly there to speed fermentation, supposedly.) This batch should be "ready" in 2-3 days, at which point I should taste for saltiness. (The amount of salt should be enough that it's adequately salty in 2-3 days, but also not too salty after that same amount of time.)

It could take 2-3 batches before the correct sourness develops. Additional vodka, water, garlic, and peppers can be added as the liquid is depleted over time. The container should hopefully have a 1-way valve property of letting air escape while prevent air from entering. Chinese pickle jars have a "moat" of water around circumference of the opening that one puts an overturned bowl into, which creates a 1-way air seal. I used a glass Bodum jar I saw in BBB that has an angled silicone seal that may have a similar property. If it doesn't, I may experience a lid rocket.

More to come in a few days...

Spicy Chicken Sous Vide

I made some Szechuan dry fried beef for Rourke and Jen on Saturday, but it turned out that I made it way too spicy. We kind of stared at it all night, occasionally daring to take a piece and then being punished for it.

Pondering what to do with it, I made a chicken thigh sous vide, with a marinade/sauce of just the leftover beef, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and sugar. Sous vide is really quite miraculous; 1 hour at 165-170, and it's like the chicken has been marinated and poached. (It's the first time I made use of the Ziploc vacuum sealer for this purpose. It worked quite well, no issues with have to squeeze air out of the bag after submerging it. The bag just sunk.)

I took the meat out, seared it, mixed the marinade with some corn starch, and then poured it back into the pan.

Heathen that I am, I have no rice in the house, so I ate it over egg noodles. It was pretty spicy, but quite edible and tasty. I love sous vide, it's so foolproof (well, with an alarmed thermometer in the water). Dunk it, and walk away. I got one heli flight in while waiting.

The Best Wedding Cake Ever

I've had to pass the crown of Best Wedding Cake Ever to Dave and Cynthia.

2 different layers: one layer of chocolate cake with a coffee liqueur creme for a tiramisu-like experience, one layer of the BEST CARROT CAKE EVER with bits of pear, spices, and some kind of liqueur that I couldn't recognize but amplified the whole taste. And, of course, no fondant. Another amazing thing about this cake is that it was somehow rich, but not heavy. I easily went back for seconds (and would've gone for more, but the carrot layer was smaller and they ran out). Those, who know me, know that I generally hate cake.

One commonality between this cake and Rourke and Jen's cake(the previous title holder) is that there will be no future cakes from the same source. Yes, sad news for all of those with future wedding cake needs.

Funny how the best cakes ever will never return; their secrets, forever lost.