Make it Yourself: Fries!

September 28, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Make it Yourself at 5:28 pm | Comments »

french-fries

I was never exactly a fan of deep-frying at home, and it does seem easier to drive over to McDonald’s for some of their delicious fries, but once you try making your own, there’s a very good chance you’ll fall in love with the taste of homemade fries. I did.

There’s something about grabbing a bag of potatoes, a bottle of oil, and some kosher salt, and turning them into these that spells magic to me. Want to give it a go? Let’s make some fries!

Homemade French Fries

Ingredients
5 large potatoes
lotsa oil (of your choice- I like Sunflower oil, but feel free to use Canola or Peanut)
kosher salt

In a large pot or dutch oven, heat up about 5-6 inches of oil. Or more. Seriously, don’t skimp on the oil here. You can always cool it, run it through a coffee filter, and reuse it later on. You want your oil at around 320 degrees. While that’s heating, get your potatoes ready: wash, peel, and cut them into sticks. I like ‘em thick. As you slice them, put in a large bowl of very cold water. This will help make them crispy later on. On a hot day, I’ve been known to keep them in the freezer for a bit.

Drain the potato sticks (they’re not fries yet!) thoroughly. Once your oil is ready, carefully put your potatoes in. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove them from your pot, drain, and let cool. Do NOT turn down the heat yet… you want to get your oil back up… all the way up to 375 degrees. Re-fry your fries, around 2-3 minutes again.

Drain on some paper towels, sprinkle with kosher salt- and serve immediately. So, so delicious.

Make it Yourself: Eclairs

September 9, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Baking, Make it Yourself at 1:51 pm | (1) Comment »

I was down with a nasty cold last week, and on the day I felt better (when I was no longer feverish or dizzy), there was just one thing I wanted to do: make eclairs.

Eclairs are comfort food to me, you see. As a child, my mother regularly bought a box of profiteroles from the local bakery, and I always asked for my very own eclair. They were like big versions of profiteroles to me, and wasn’t bigger always better? (e.g. christmas presents in big boxes were always to be envied)

Anyway, two nights ago, feeling for the first time in days that I wasn’t on the brink of death, I turned to my husband and said, “I think I’m gonna make some eclairs!”

That was ten thirty in the evening.

Everyone says how easy eclairs are to make- and they are- but they also take a long time. Hours in the kitchen, many dirty bowls… and by 2 a.m., I had a tray of these beauties:

Eclairs

These eclairs were spectacular. Make your pastry cream in advance, and start earlier in the day, but please please make these. Get the recipe from Martha Stewart. Of course.

Make it Yourself: Green Tea Ice Cream

July 13, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Make it Yourself at 3:04 pm | (5) Comments »

Green tea is consistently named one of the best health foods of all time- it’s said to fight cancer and heart disease, lower cholesterol, burn fat, prevent diabetes and strokes… the list goes on and on. But while I do enjoy the occasional cup of green tea (with a fondness for nutty Japanese blends), one of my favorite ways to have green tea is in ice cream.

Green Tea Ice Cream

Okay, so maybe green tea ice cream isn’t the same as green tea. Maybe I’m cancelling out all the nutritional benefits by mixing it with a ton of heavy cream and sugar… but this is one of those times I like to fool myself. Haagen-Dazs makes a particularly delicious Green Tea ice cream, but why buy when you can make it yourself? It isn’t that hard, I promise you.

Homemade Green Tea Ice Cream
Based on a recipe by Gale Gand

Ingredients
3 cups heavy cream
1 cups whole milk
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
9 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons green tea powder (also known as “matcha”!)

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream, milk, and vanilla bean, stirring occasionally to make sure the mixture doesn’t scorch on the bottom. When the cream mixture reaches a fast simmer (do not let it boil), set aside to infuse for 10 to 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar. Whisking constantly, slowly pour the still-hot cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. At 160 degrees, the mixture will give off a puff of steam. When the mixture reaches 180 degrees it will be thickened and creamy, like eggnog. If you don’t have a thermometer, test it by dipping a wooden spoon into the mixture. Run your finger down the back of the spoon. If the stripe remains clear, the mixture is ready; if the edges blur, the mixture is not quite thick enough yet. When it is ready, quickly remove it from the heat and whisk in the green tea. Meanwhile, half-fill a large bowl with ice water. Strain the mixture into a smaller bowl to smooth it and remove the vanilla bean. Rest the smaller bowl in the ice water and let the mixture cool, stirring often, then continue according to the directions of your ice cream maker.

This makes really awesome green tea ice cream. Creamy and not too sweet.

Make it yourself: Fettucine

June 9, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Make it Yourself at 7:01 am | (1) Comment »

A new feature on this site: make-it-yourself recipes for things you ordinarily wouldn’t! And I’m starting things off with one of the most daunting make it yourself things of all: fettucine.

I realize it’s daunting because I resisted making pasta at home for a long, long time. Why bother, when there was so much good, dried pasta around? Pasta made by machine, so every strand was perfect? Pastas made by real Italians, who would certainly know more than I on the subject?

Here’s why to bother: because homemade pasta rocks. That’s not an overstatement- if you’ve never tried freshly made pasta, your head will explode from how deliciously different it is from the dried, packaged stuff.

And you know something else? I don’t even own a pasta machine. Just a good old rolling pin.

homemade-fettucine

Ingredients:
300g semolina flour
3 whole eggs
a pinch of salt
1000ml or one liter of water

Mound the flour on a flat, clean surface. I use a large wooden chopping board.

Make a well in the pile of flour with a spoon or your hand. Afterwards, pour the eggs into the well and use a fork to mix. Add the salt.

Knead the mixture to make the dough… until it is smooth and firm. When done, cover with cling wrap until you ready to work with it. At this point, I usually stick it in the fridge to give it some time to rest and chill.

When you’re ready, roll it out thinly, and slice into fettucine strips.

This pasta takes about two minutes to cook, and it is heavenly.