The Thread About Food for Eating Returns (Again)

[GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES]

Who likes penne alla vodka? I know I do. It's a winner. The first time I made it for Mr. Multiples he took a bite and said "yours is better" before I even tried his. Secretly I'll agree. His used just Italian sausage and didn't have much sauce on it so it had a different flavor. Different, but not bad. The secret to this is getting the can of whole peeled tomatoes. It might be my imagination but it just tastes a lot better.

• 1/8 pound thick cut bacon, diced (can also use pancetta or prosciutto)

• No more than 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil (sort of optional—cut back if there's a lot of fat)
  
  
• 6 cloves garlic, diced (or less, depending on how much you like)
  
  
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
  
  
• 1/4 cup vodka
  
  
• 1 28 oz can whole tomatoes, with their juice, pureed in a blender
  
  
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or more depending on your taste
  
  
• Salt, to taste
  
  
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
  
  
• 1 box penne pasta
  
  
• 12 fresh basil leaves, chopped (the single herb pack works fine)
  
  
• 1 1/4 cups freshly grated Romano cheese (I like the Romano/Pecorino/Parm blend; you can always add more later)
  

Start by getting your salted water to a boil. Cook the bacon until it's crispy, either in a pan or on a baking sheet in the oven. Baking sheet in the oven works the best for me (optimal doneness!) but whatever you do, reserve the grease. Add a little of your olive oil to the pan. If you didn't cook the bacon in the pan, now is the time to add the fat. When it's hot add your garlic and cook til brown, then throw in your diced onions and cook until those are translucent. Dice your bacon and add that in. Afterwards, add the pureed tomatoes and red pepper and simmer uncovered for about half an hour. Once that's simmered add heavy cream and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Once the cream is in the sauce it's time to cook your pasta. Cook according to the directions and your taste and make sure to shock it with cold water once it's drained. Remove sauce from heat, add basil and cheese (or add the cheese later as it does have a tendency to stick together in the sauce), mix in your pasta, and serve.

 

[Marvin]

Friday, I went downtown to hit up one of my favorite food trucks.

Spoiler: porky fries

I got porky fries, which are fucking delicious. It's fries, covered with pulled pork, cheese, onions and BBQ sauce. Badass.

I prepped my crockpot for tomorrow.
Beef in Stout with Herb Dumplings.
I use this recipe:
http://www.justapinch.com/recipes/main-course/beef/beef-and-stout-stew-with-herb-dumplings.html
But I like to use corn oil instead of sunflower (no real reason, that's just what my mom used), and I like to toss in some chopped celery and potatoes.
Serve it with thick, hearty bread and a pint (or four) of Guinness.
Best meal you'll ever have.

I like this. I don't eat enough chilis/stews. I made a chili once that was pretty much entirely meat. I should make that again...

Who likes penne alla vodka? I know I do. It's a winner. The first time I made it for Mr. Multiples he took a bite and said "yours is better" before I even tried his. Secretly I'll agree. His used just Italian sausage and didn't have much sauce on it so it had a different flavor. Different, but not bad. The secret to this is getting the can of whole peeled tomatoes. It might be my imagination but it just tastes a lot better.

• 1/8 pound thick cut bacon, diced (can also use pancetta or prosciutto)

• No more than 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil (sort of optional—cut back if there's a lot of fat)
  
  
• 6 cloves garlic, diced (or less, depending on how much you like)
  
  
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
  
  
• 1/4 cup vodka
  
  
• 1 28 oz can whole tomatoes, with their juice, pureed in a blender
  
  
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or more depending on your taste
  
  
• Salt, to taste
  
  
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
  
  
• 1 box penne pasta
  
  
• 12 fresh basil leaves, chopped (the single herb pack works fine)
  
  
• 1 1/4 cups freshly grated Romano cheese (I like the Romano/Pecorino/Parm blend; you can always add more later)

Start by getting your salted water to a boil. Cook the bacon until it's crispy, either in a pan or on a baking sheet in the oven. Baking sheet in the oven works the best for me (optimal doneness!) but whatever you do, reserve the grease. Add a little of your olive oil to the pan. If you didn't cook the bacon in the pan, now is the time to add the fat. When it's hot add your garlic and cook til brown, then throw in your diced onions and cook until those are translucent. Dice your bacon and add that in. Afterwards, add the pureed tomatoes and red pepper and simmer uncovered for about half an hour. Once that's simmered add heavy cream and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Once the cream is in the sauce it's time to cook your pasta. Cook according to the directions and your taste and make sure to shock it with cold water once it's drained. Remove sauce from heat, add basil and cheese (or add the cheese later as it does have a tendency to stick together in the sauce), mix in your pasta, and serve.

This sounds bangin. I'm going to try it sometime.

For dinner tonight, I cooked myself a steak.

Spoiler: steak

Spoiler: love that color

I cooked it in butter. I eased up a bit on the butter this time and cooked it at a lower heat than usual, because I cook in cast iron, and I usually worry about food burning/sticking, so I overcompensate with oil/fat and it just results in my food tasting oily. But this time, this steak came out pretty good. I deglazed the pan with a beer.

 

[OtterParty]

Can we talk about drinks too? I just made a latte by heating milk in the microwave and putting three teaspoons of honey into it, then adding that to half a cup of black coffee. It turned out really great, way better than regular coffee with cold milk and white sugar, and I wish I'd thought of it before.

 

[sparklemilhouse]

The secret to this is getting the can of whole peeled tomatoes. It might be my imagination but it just tastes a lot better.

San Marzano's are my favorite canned tomato.

 

[melty]

I made ramen burgers last night. The buns themselves were pretty simple, the ramen, some of its seasoning and an egg. The burgers were ground beef mixed with mushrooms and salt and pepper (simple recipe I always use) and the toppings were Sriracha mayo and lettuce as well as gruyere cheese.
BF, who had been skeptical, LOVED it. He stood at the counter and pretty much just wolfed them down. However I kinda thought something was missing? Some recipes use green onions but I don't think that's it. Others just use standard burger toppings which I guess I could try. I thought the Sriracha mayo was going to give it that extra kick but it needs something else. Any ideas?
Thinking about making ramen tacos next.

 

[Jackie Chin]

I made this for my breakfast this morning :3

It has sliced ham in it, cheddar cheese inside
and pepperjack cheese on top

 

[Cheeseburger Picnic]

Would there be any interest in a legit cooking thread? I mean we can post recipes and cooking tips here but it seems like they're getting lost in the "I heated up 50 pizza bagels and drink a lot of diet coke" clutter.

 

[AnimuGinger]

Would there be any interest in a legit cooking thread? I mean we can post recipes and cooking tips here but it seems like they're getting lost in the "I heated up 50 pizza bagels and drink a lot of diet coke" clutter.

Call it the "Recipe and Cooking Thread." For recipes and cooking only.

 

[Strelok]

So at the farmer's market thats down the street for me (My village is a farming community after all, so the non farming residential buildings are all near the town center) is open every week on Friday. And I found a place there that sells the most amazing beef jerkey I've ever had. The one's I've tried do far are a garlic one, and another that's done in the Jamacian Jerk Spice style, which if you aren't familiar with it involves habaneroes/scotch bonnets, allspice, and a few other ingredients for a rather unique flavor.

 

[Enjoy your spaghetti]

You know how you can make a good mix cake with a can of pop instead of oil and eggs? It's true. But I never thought to try it with brownies until tonight when I had a craving. So I mixed in some Diet Dr. Pepper because I had that and wanted to ration the eggs until I go to the store again.

This batch wasn't Instagram worthy, but it was tasty and that's all I cared about atm. The top was crisp, almost crunchy, but the bottom was gooey and fudgy. Looking back, I probably could have kept it in the oven for another few minutes to cook the bottom a little more. As it was, I had them in the oven for about 50 minutes. Then I slapped some Nutella on top after it cooled down for a half hour. The Nutella probably cancelled out the calorie/sugar savings, but yolo.

I probably wouldn't make this if I was trying to impress someone, but it scratched my brownie itch and Mr. Ja'mie even had seconds. Like I said, even though the pop brownies were eh, the pop cake (especially cream soda!) is a win.

 

[GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES]

You know how you can make a good mix cake with a can of pop instead of oil and eggs? It's true. But I never thought to try it with brownies until tonight when I had a craving. So I mixed in some Diet Dr. Pepper because I had that and wanted to ration the eggs until I go to the store again.

This batch wasn't Instagram worthy, but it was tasty and that's all I cared about atm. The top was crisp, almost crunchy, but the bottom was gooey and fudgy. Looking back, I probably could have kept it in the oven for another few minutes to cook the bottom a little more. As it was, I had them in the oven for about 50 minutes. Then I slapped some Nutella on top after it cooled down for a half hour. The Nutella probably cancelled out the calorie/sugar savings, but yolo.

I probably wouldn't make this if I was trying to impress someone, but it scratched my brownie itch and Mr. Ja'mie even had seconds. Like I said, even though the pop brownies were eh, the pop cake (especially cream soda!) is a win.

Some of my grandmas' old 50s cookbooks (sponsored by good ol' Big Soda) often had recipes for adding just that. Pancakes or cakes with Sprite or 7 Up seemed to take dominance. Normally I would be very hesitant to try some of the recipes in those (but I'll admit that Cola-glazed ham was surprisingly good!) but the soda made it fluffy. Most people give you a WTF look when you mention stuff like that though.

I once ended up subbing sunflower seed oil in my instant brownies because I was out of veg oil. They turned out really good and had a nice nutty flavor. But for the love of god never use olive oil. My buddy did that once and they were some of the most disgusting brownies I've ever had.

 

[Evilboshe]

I'm so excited! I'm going to my favorite vegan pop-up in Oakland tonight, and they're serving seitan burgers and vegan poutine with cashew cheese. I love poutine, but not only is it not too common around here, the gravy is usually made with meat, and I don't eat meat (I do eat fish, though.) I'll report back on how amazing it will probably be later tonight. Their food is always great.

 

[GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES]

I'm so excited! I'm going to my favorite vegan pop-up in Oakland tonight, and they're serving seitan burgers and vegan poutine with cashew cheese. I love poutine, but not only is it not too common around here, the gravy is usually made with meat, and I don't eat meat (I do eat fish, though.) I'll report back on how amazing it will probably be later tonight. Their food is always great.

Mind sharing the name? You can message me directly if you want. I have lots of vegan friends in the area and as a former vegan/vegetarian some consider me the authority on taste.

I love poutine. I want to try Smoke's Poutinerie in Berkeley. They have a vegetarian gravy but I'm not sure if you partake in cheese. I've heard a lot of good stuff about it but I always reserve judgment until I taste.

When I was in Disneyland my mom and I were trying to decide where we wanted to do our birthday dinner. Blue Bayou had a special prix fixe Halloween menu but the menu was so shellfish-heavy that it would have been a bad idea. We decided on Carthay Circle and had some excellent roast chicken and a beautiful grilled steak.

Even in the parks I thought the food was a reasonable price. I mean, you don't go to any theme park and expect cheap eats but for what I paid I was always satisfied. The variety in Disneyland is much better than any other theme park I've been in. I understand if you're toting a large family around or have super picky eaters who only want chicken nuggets and fries or whatever. A hot link corn dog was around $9 with either chips or apples and it was a ridiculous size, not some little breakfast link sized bullshit. Cars Land had some of the best bang for the buck with pulled pork and slaw served up in a pretzel bread cone, Chili Cone Carne which was either steak and ground beef chili or veg chili layered with fritos and cheese also served in the same cone, all for around $8. If you didn't get it already, the little food stands are themed as traffic cones and you're staying at the Cozy Cone Motel.

In Frontier Land we had some wet burritos (mom's was ground beef and steak with traditional fillings, mine was carnitas with the same) served with refried beans, lettuce, pico de gallo, and rice for around $12 a plate, which is about the same at home in the SF Bay Area. Hers had red sauce, mine tomatillo sauce. Serving size was also very much like what we get at home and the taste was just excellent. The family sitting next to us loved the carne asada platter and it smelled taqueria-worthy. Not the kind of food you eat just before you get on the spinning teacups but something really nice to sit down and eat in the middle of the day after you've been tromping through Disneyland since it opened.

 

[Evilboshe]

My vegan burger, poutine, and pumpkin cupcake were pretty great! My only complaint about the poutine is that the cashew cheese curds were a bit creamier than I would have preferred. I only got a small side portion since the burger was pretty big. I really liked the sauce on the burger. Not sure what it was. Took a picture of the poutine with my shitty cell phone (a bit of the burger is peeking in on the left side):

 

[GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES]

Tonight Mr. Multiples cooked up some of the Trade Joe's frozen tomato penne in the freezer and added some chopped garlic, diced bell peppers, and red pepper flakes. Nothing fancy and he denies "cooking" but I tell him it's all about adding something extra to a frozen dinner and also making sure it doesn't burn down or some shit. Really makes a difference with the flavor with some extra veg and seasoning.

Anyone have some favorite additives for premade meals? I'm known for adding dijon mustard, diced jalapenos, bacon, extra shredded cheese, and bread crumbs to stovetop macaroni and cheese. Sometimes I toss it in the oven for a bit to brown up the top. I love cooking from scratch but when I was working super late hours back in the day I could at least get the pasta cooking while I readied my add-ins.

 

[AnOminous]

Anyone have some favorite additives for premade meals? I'm known for adding dijon mustard, diced jalapenos, bacon, extra shredded cheese, and bread crumbs to stovetop macaroni and cheese. Sometimes I toss it in the oven for a bit to brown up the top. I love cooking from scratch but when I was working super late hours back in the day I could at least get the pasta cooking while I readied my add-ins.

Not premade meals as such, but I like starting with some normal store bought spaghetti sauce (like one of the Paul Newman sauces) and add to it.

I like either fresh tomatoes or canned fresh tomatoes, chopped garlic, and maybe some other marginal vegetables like diced peppers.

Then I'll slice a one pound beef kielbasa very thin, brown it to a crisp and add it.

And just a dash of sugar and simmer it for an hour or so.

Toss over pasta and grate some parmesan.

 

[Evilboshe]

@GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES
I went to Smoke's Poutinerie today, and it was pretty great. It was a really chill atmosphere, and I got some Jones soda along with my veggie traditional poutine. I have to say I think I liked the gravy from the vegan pop-up a bit better, but it was great having real cheese curds. The cheese curds were fabulous, and I wish there were more in there. It was pretty filling: I got a meal size, which was the medium size. I'll attach another shitty picture in case someone wants to see:

 

[GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES]

@GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES
I went to Smoke's Poutinerie today, and it was pretty great. It was a really chill atmosphere, and I got some Jones soda along with my veggie traditional poutine. I have to say I think I liked the gravy from the vegan pop-up a bit better, but it was great having real cheese curds. The cheese curds were fabulous, and I wish there were more in there. It was pretty filling: I got a meal size, which was the medium size. I'll attach another shitty picture in case someone wants to see:
View attachment 54963

That looks really fucking rad! I'm glad you checked it out. I gotta make my way over and give it a shot. That even looks good. I haven't had poutine since I was at my friend's place a few years back. She brought back gravy and curds from her hometown in Quebec.

When I briefly went vegan I had dreams about goddamn cheese. I wasn't even doing it for the animals... I just wondered if I could do it. Answer is no. Cheese is probably more addicting than heroin.

 

[Malleus Narcissus]

"Cheese is probably more addicting than heroin."

Ain't that the truth! When I was running out of money last year and could not justify spending on much of anything beyond a bag of potatoes and whatever canned veg was on sale, I started craving cheese. For months I was thinking, "if I found 20 dollars on the sidewalk, what would I buy?". A bar of cheese, and save the rest of that money for other food. And keep that cheese for as long as possible, just taking a tiny nibble here and there...

We don't have poutinne here, I am jealous a bit. I've attempted it using fast food fries, brown gravy mix, and mozzarella. Closest I could get with local resources.

@Evilboshe, thanks for the pic! Makes me hungry....

 

[GRANDnumberofMULTIPLES]

After a drunk work session (always the best) I grabbed dinner at one of the long-standing SF institutions last night. Tommy's Joynt. Fixture in the city since 1947. One of the places you can get a cheap, filling, and delicious meal for under $12, as seen in my spread from last night. That's roast beef, au jus, mashed potatoes, gravy for the potatoes, baked beans, pickled bean salad (that tastes exactly like my late grandmother's), and a nice tasty sourdough roll. I fucking inhaled everything.

Do you want a turkey leg? OF COURSE you can get a goddamn turkey leg! Other offerings on the menu include brisket (a favorite of my mom's), buffalo stew over rice, pastrami, lamb shanks, and then their daily specials. It's not going to win awards for blowing your mind or anything but it's a damn good place to stuff your face whether you're drunk, sober, if the sun's still out or it's 1 AM. It's a place that's remained remarkably unchanged even after buildings rose and fell and rose again next door. Some of the staff have been there for 30something years.

It's all served up hofbrau style and they work fast because no one wants to be stuck behind the drunk dude who can't remember what a fucking baked bean is. After seeing other long-standing places in the Bay Area close down (and some where three generations of my family ate) it's nice to be able to come somewhere and eat a good, hot, consistent meal just as I did 10 years ago and my parents did 30 years ago.