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| Making Beef Stew |
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| Chicken Noodle Soup |
So far I have made beef stew (which didn't turn out great, although it was definitely my fault and not the fault of the french oven), homemade chicken noodle soup (using an old family recipe), and french onion soup (using my dad's recipe). After cooking these three items I have decided that I don't know how I have lived without my french oven thus far! It is glorious to cook with! I now find myself picking out recipes based on what they are cooked in. Anything that needs to be cooked on a barbecue? No thanks! How about some sort of shrimp pasta dish? (which Sean requested today) That's ok. Let's try Beef Bourguignon! I must admit that since I have been sick for the past three weeks and I am still unemployed (Someone PLEASE hire me!) I have been watching movies on netflix more than I usually do and I may or may not have watched Julie and Julia several times recently and now have a new found fascination with cooking, blogging, and beef bourguignon. So here goes nothing!
I decided to use Ina Garten's recipe that I found on the food network website. I may or may not also have a new found love for the Barefoot Contessa as well. Here is a link to the recipe http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/beef-bourguignon-recipe/index.html . As I made it I realized that I probably should have had all of my vegetables chopped ahead of time and my meat prepared as well. I found myself taking the bacon fat off and on and off and on the stove several times to keep it from burning while I chopped veggies and dried the beef. Other than that everything was moving along great until I came to the part where I had to add the cognac and then light the entire pot on fire. Now mind you the pot is currently full of bacon grease, carrots, onions, and garlic. These all sound VERY flammable to me so I was pretty hesitant to add the cognac and THEN light it on fire. I nervously cleared the dogs out of the kitchen, wiped up ANY bacon grease that may have splattered anywhere NEAR the pot and light the pot on fire. I was debating tracking down the fire extinguisher first but that could have taken all evening. The entire pot went up in flames and it took what felt like forever for the alcohol to burn off. To my amazement the alcohol burned off and the fire went out on it's own. I did cover it with a lid for several minutes after just to be safe. After that it was smooth sailing. Everything turned out great! I had my family over for dinner minus my mom who is out of town for work and Dan who is at the UW.
I decided to use Ina Garten's recipe that I found on the food network website. I may or may not also have a new found love for the Barefoot Contessa as well. Here is a link to the recipe http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/beef-bourguignon-recipe/index.html . As I made it I realized that I probably should have had all of my vegetables chopped ahead of time and my meat prepared as well. I found myself taking the bacon fat off and on and off and on the stove several times to keep it from burning while I chopped veggies and dried the beef. Other than that everything was moving along great until I came to the part where I had to add the cognac and then light the entire pot on fire. Now mind you the pot is currently full of bacon grease, carrots, onions, and garlic. These all sound VERY flammable to me so I was pretty hesitant to add the cognac and THEN light it on fire. I nervously cleared the dogs out of the kitchen, wiped up ANY bacon grease that may have splattered anywhere NEAR the pot and light the pot on fire. I was debating tracking down the fire extinguisher first but that could have taken all evening. The entire pot went up in flames and it took what felt like forever for the alcohol to burn off. To my amazement the alcohol burned off and the fire went out on it's own. I did cover it with a lid for several minutes after just to be safe. After that it was smooth sailing. Everything turned out great! I had my family over for dinner minus my mom who is out of town for work and Dan who is at the UW.
The creme brulee also turned out great! I made them earlier in the day and kept them in the refrigerator until right before we were ready to eat them. Then I loaded my torch up with butane and caramelized the sugar on top. It was surprisingly easy and I look forward to making it more often!
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