Mozzarella at Home

The choice milk for this assignment is Way Back When Dairy. It’s non-hydrogenated and lightly pasteurized. You need a milk that isn’t beat up by the man to make good cheese at home. It’s the silver bullet for making Mozzarella. Believe me, I suffered for this victory. Forget a pony. I want their cow for Christmas. To make the curds, I was trudging my way through a complicated cheese recipe off the internet. Torture. Austin Home Brew made life easy. They sell a Mozz kit that is bullet proof. And, it was only $15. That’s like a miracle! I’m not into violence, but to make good Mozzarella, I’d punch a hobo. Does that make me a bad man? Probably. A cheese lover? Absolutely.

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Grilled Steak a la Irish

Grilled Strip Stake with Fingerling Potatoes, Peas and Blue Cheese dressing. Simple and hearty. The potatoes and the sauce can be made ahead of time. After bringing the steak up to room temperature, I seasoned it with salt and pepper, then seared in a cast iron skillet over high heat for around five minutes per side. Letting it rest for a few minutes and slice against the grain. Crumble blue cheese into a bowl and add enough heavy cream until the mixture is has a pleasing sauce consistency.

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Number One Tool in the Box

1996 was a good year. Licking my wounds from a shattered relationship, I flew to the Southern California desert for a little R&R. Little did I know, I would meet my cooking mentor, Tom Romig. A week of dry desert air, close friends and homemade food ensued. From that point on, cooking would have a […]

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Kitchen Staple: Garlic Confit

It’s crazy not to have a constant supply of garlic confit on hand. Poach whole cloves slowly in hot olive oil for 10 – 15 minutes. Only small bubbles should be seen in the oil and the garlic should not take on any color. Store, covered in the cooking oil, in the refrigerator. It keeps forever. The hardest part is peeling the garlic. If only there was some sort of tutorial with images to explain that part. Only if…

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