Recipes

I've been collecting recipes since about forever and I have lots of different ways that they are stored and I change those ways every few years. Right now, I have a folder on my computer where everything is saved and I print all my recipes and put them in plastic sleeves and into a binder - yes, it's geeky beyond repair. That said, I've noticed that when I go to make my paper copy of a recipe to print out, I do a lot of editing to them getting rid of extraneous words that just really don't seems necessary for anyone with any level of common sense and who has spent at least, I don't know, a couple of hours around the kitchen making dinner. And no, that does not include nuking something or as the MotH* thinks, reheating pizza.
What do I do my biggest hatchet job on? Descriptions of things that are on the recipe. Do I really need a header for "Ingredients?" I don't think so, I'm pretty aware that a list of things at the beginning of a recipe is the ingredients. Do I really need a header for "Directions" or for that matter, do said directions need to be numbered? Um, No.
I do usually add one thing to the recipe - the website that it came from. I think giving credit is a good thing, sometimes that's not possible, especially if it's a recipe that I've been making so long that I don't use a recipe anymore I just know how to do it - like my pasta sauce, but they all start somewhere. My new favorite recipe is from Mario Batali, but I'm already made
several changes and it will be up here soon. Alterations included.


*Man of the House

Carrots

Looking back at my recipe journal, it seems that on 28 August 2009, while in the midst of pickling more cukes than truly necessary and okra, and tomatoes, etc.  I considered pickling carrots... so maybe I did think about it a bit. Memory loss of most things pre new kitchen... as if.
Flavor Bible recommended some ideas for things that play well with carrots (I keep trying to add an extra t to carrotts  - a little more balanced it kinda works for me). Okay, flavors are: chili, coriander, cumin, dill, GINGER, LEMON, thyme.


Here's what I came up with: white wine vinegar, hot pepper (serrano), blk pepper, salt, garlic, mustard seed, lemon zest.
Perhaps we'll try a little bit of my ideas and the recipe I picked and see what we come up with...


What I really wish is I had some heirloom carrots -- burgundy, black, red... THAT would be cool.


photo: Americanfest.com

More thoughts to manage

Okay, I've been thinking of using the recipe diary (still need a less gay name) to help me sort out what is happening in my kitchen brain while I can't be in the kitchen. Perhaps it will help me get started again, but also help me sort out what to make each weekend so we can have good things to eat while living in a space that seems so. very. small.
So this weekend I made tortellini, mac n cheese (don't even ask the question, because I won't dignify it with an answer), sloppy joes, lasagna, and just to have on hand, hummus and mushroom onion pate* plus grilling out - hopefully it will be a tolerable week.


We had the skillet lasagna last night -- another good call from America's Test Kitchen -- so good and easy I may never bake lasagna again - who knew? 


Missed the greek fest - damn it, but will try for greek food later this week. 


*resisting urge to say yummy.

The Recipe Diary

I keep a recipe diary - initially I did it to help with pickle/preserves recipes because I never, well almost never, follow a recipe exactly except when baking and sometimes not even then. But now I'm using the recipe diary to follow almost everything I make, especially if it is new to me. I have not done a great job of keeping up with what I'm essentially stealing from other people, but I will try to get better at that -- credit and criticism should be given where due.


Recipe diaries help with pickles because often times it's weeks before you can should taste what you've made. So it can be a reminder or help decide what changes to make the next time, if there is a next time, you make a recipe. I make notes, changes, thoughts about changes, my valuable rating system all on the page for that recipe - it's also necessarily in date order which provides an idea of when seasons start and end for certain local foods -- which is becoming increasing important to me.  (Recipe diary needs a better name, but I'm too tired to be creative or cutesy*)


I expect editorial recipe diary comments will likely make it here too. We'll see.


* I'm rarely cutesy.