Dinner and Games

Every few months we invite our Niece Lissa over for dinner and a game night, which happened to be last Friday. I had purchased some Tilapia from Costco and planned to make the Baked Tilapia Rollups using the Paula Deen recipe from The Deen Family Cookbook. We were to make the dinner and our Lissa would bring dessert.

While I prepared the mayonnaise, garlic, and parsley filling, my wife made a very nice green salad. I used the steamer from our new Costco stainless steel cookware set to cook the asparagus. Once Lissa arrived, I baked the Tilapia as it only takes eleven minutes. After everything was done, I found the Tilapia was still a little on the raw side in the middle (maybe because it was almost frozen when I started) so I popped it in the microwave for two minutes to finish cooking.

We enjoyed a wonderful meal of Tilapia, brown rice, salad, asparagus, and rosemary bread. We decided to eat dessert before we started playing our game (no distractions when we play), so Lissa started to prepare our dessert.

This is a strawberry shortcake with homemade whipped cream and topped with fresh strawberries and blackberries. The berries made a delightful mixture that was sweet and flavorful. Our concern with strawberries this early in the year is that they are raised in a greenhouse and don’t have much flavor, but adding the blackberries really enhanced the taste.

It did not take us long to finish off our dessert and then we cleared the table to play Ticket To Ride Europe. This is a board game that our son and daughter-in-law gave us for Christmas and we had a great time playing two rounds of the game.

What a great way to spend a Friday night, good food, good company, and a great game.

Adventures In Food: Author: Kerry Howell

Steak and Potatoes, It’s What For Dinner

On Wednesday, I went shopping at Costco and looked to see what I thought would be good for our dinner.  I looked at the seafood and passed, and then I got to the meat area and saw the steak.  I remembered watching a steak cooking challenge on The Food Network and how one of the contestants used a cast iron frying pan to cook her steak in the BBQ.  I thought that was an interesting way of cooking steak.

While at Costco, I looked at the Kirkland set of stainless steel cookware for $169.  I thought it looks like a good possibility to purchase.  It has a 5-ply construction with a copper heat spreader on the bottom.  It’s something for us to consider because $169 is much better than $1599!

When I arrived home, I took a trip into our attic.  Even though our house is only 21 years old, it still has about 1000 square feet of walk-in attic space, so even after multiple trips to Goodwill; we still have quite a few “treasures” stored away in the attic.  In December on one of my trips to get some Christmas lights, I remembered seeing an old cast iron frying pan that my mom had given me 25 years ago or so.

In the attic, I quickly located the #8 cast iron frying pan and took it downstairs to take a look.  I had to wipe out chunks of wood and dirt that had fallen into the pan when we had the wood shake roof removed and a composition roof put on the house.  I thought I remembered that the pan might be cracked on the bottom, but so far it looks fine – no crack.

I used a wet paper towel and wiped out some of the grime and what I thought might be 25-year-old egg on the inside of the pan.  I put about two cups of water in the pan and put in on the range top on high heat to boil for a bit.  This was a good test to see if the water foamed which would be an indication that soap was used to clean the pan in the past (would not be good).  No foaming was present and the boiling water loosened the remaining food in the pan.

I dried the pan and then wiped the pan with a thin coating of canola oil and placed it back on the burner on medium high.  Once the oil started to smoke, then I wiped the inside of the pan with a good coat of Crisco.  I let the pan sit on the heat (with our vent fan on full) for several minutes, then turned off the burner and let the pan cool.  I repeated the process with the Crisco a second time after about an hour.  This provided the inside pan with a very nice protective non-stick coating.

While cleaning the pan, I took the top round steak from Costco and trimmed off the fat and filleted each steak in half to make them thinner.  I placed two of the steaks (now four pieces) into a zip lock bag with some salt and pepper seasoning and a little (1/4 cup) Paul Newman’s Caesar Salad dressing.  Closing the bag, I gave it a good shake and then massaged the contents to work the oil and seasoning into all the pieces, then tossed the bag in the refrigerator to marinate.

My wife and I went to exercise and when we returned home it was kind of late, so quickly decided to pass on lighting briquettes for our Weber BBQ as it takes a good 20 or more minutes to be ready to cook.  I thought why not use our Coleman stove, and cook outside without making a splatter mess on our range top.

Out came the Coleman stove and I placed the newly seasoned frying pan on the burner to heat.  I went inside and washed two potatoes and placed them in the microwave to cook for nine minutes while I cooked the steaks.  I also washed and trimmed some asparagus and placed it in a pan to steam on low heat.

I put the steak in the cast iron frying pan and let it cook (flipping once) until it they were cooked to medium.  I took my potatoes and sliced them crosswise into 3/8-inch slices.  Removing the steaks from the pan, I placed them in a glass Pyrex container to allow the steaks to rest.  Into the frying pan, I put some margarine then placed the sliced potato pieces to cook.  After a few minutes, I flipped the potato pieces and then cooked them until both sides were slightly crispy.

My wife peeled and sliced some raw carrots and we were ready to eat.

The steak was very moist and cooked to perfection.  Next time I might try adding a little butter on top of the steaks while they cook like I saw on TV, but the marinade seemed to do a great job of adding flavor and keeping the steak moist.  The potatoes were cooked all the way through because I had micro waved them before pan cooking.  They had a crisp exterior and tasted a little like French fries.  This time the asparagus was cooked to just the right texture, slightly crunchy.  It turns out that 30-year-old Revere Ware can cook on low heat and perform the same as the expensive waterless cookware!

Cleanup of the pan took two minutes with some hot water and some course steel wool.  A light coating of vegetable oil over the entire pan and it is ready for it’s next use.

I look forward to trying the frying pan in the BBQ and see if by adding the lid on the BBQ changes the cooking properties of the pan (bake and sear).

This also revives the way my mom used to cook when our family went camping.  The next time my wife and I go camping, the cast iron frying pan will go with us!

Adventures In Food: Author: Kerry Howell

Cookware

Wow, after our brush with the Professional Platinum cookware home demonstration (see My New Pan), we have done quite a bit of research on different cookware products.  We know that we want to replace several of our existing pots and pans with better products, but this has been very low on our priority list, as we first need to finish the kitchen remodel.

Even though the night of the demonstration we had the chance to purchase a $2400 set of cookware (that night only) specially priced for only $1599 (including a bonus grill pan), we passed on the opportunity and are really glad that we passed!

The 21-piece Professional Platinum Cookware is a very nice set of cookware.  It is a waterless cooking system that uses lower heat and typically longer cooking times when cooking.  The set has an outside coating of 18/0 steel so that it will work on any heat source including induction.  A quick review of eBay showed someone selling a new set for $699 (no bonus grill pan), but that set would not carry the factory warranty, so that was not the way we would go.  We were able to contact another distributor and find the cookware on sale for $999 (including the bonus grill pan).

In addition, we found that Lake Industries is the parent company of the Platinum cookware and also offers several other lines and price points of waterless cookware that look remarkably the same as the Platinum series.  An example is Nutri-Stahl (22-piece set for $699) that looks exactly like the more expensive Platinum series.  We did find out that the more expensive 21-piece Platinum set weighs 8 pounds more than the 22-piece Nutri-Stahl when shipped, so they do use thicker metal in the Platinum pan set.  They both have the same 24-ply construction designed for even heat distribution across the bottom of the pans.  It is interesting because both brands have a thermometer built into the lid handle for the pots, though the color-coded gauges on the less expensive (Nutri-Stahl) brand is easier to read then the display on the Platinum brand.

This weekend we visited a large Macy's store in our area and met with one of the major cookware manufacturers factory representative.  He was very informative on all brands of cookware and pointed out the strengths and weaknesses of each product line.  It was also helpful to review some of the FUD (Fear Uncertainty and Doubt) statements made by our Platinum salesperson during the home demonstration.  This is just a few of the statements:

• “By steaming your vegetables, you destroy all the nutrients and vitamins.  The Platinum series cooks rather than steams.”  It is true that excessive heat will reduce the nutrients and vitamins, though you can steam vegetables and retain their nutrients by using less water and cooking on a lower heat.  Also don’t over cook the vegetables.  Interestingly enough, the Platinum series is a waterless cooking system, but as verified by the manufacturer, they use the moisture in the vegetables (or added water) to cook with steam.
• “The coating inside enamel cookware (like our Le Creuset Dutch oven) is basically house paint.”  The helpful cookware representative informed us that the linings of these products use specially formulated enamel products, very similar to glass, and that it is inert and non-reactive to foods.
• “Cooking with glass cookware like Pyrex is bad because it contains lead.”  I found a nice web site (your cookware helper) that discussed this statement, the basic answer is that glass including Pyrex is totally inert and non-reactive and that is why it is used in cookware as well as in delicate chemistry applications (think back to your high school class).

The factory cookware representative at Macy’s provided some very good topics to consider when purchasing cookware:

1. How does the handle fit in your hand?  A good example is the All-Clad stainless steel pans that have a sturdy handle that was designed for professional chefs and meant to be grabbed with a toweled hand.  It is not very ergonomic to hold with a bare hand and it can get very hot.
2. Will you cook on an induction cook top?  Some stainless steel cookware is grade 18/10 that is non-magnetic and will not work on an induction range.  If the outer layer of steel is 18/0, it is magnetic and will work on induction cook tops.  For instance, we saw some beautiful Calphalon stainless cookware that is constructed using 18/10 stainless steel on the inside and outside and will not work on induction heat.  During our remodel, we changed from electric to a gas range, but in the future we are considering an induction range so any pans we purchase today, will need to work on induction in the future.  It’s too bad because I really enjoy using our Calphalon knife set!
3. How does the pan feel for weight and balance?  We looked at some pans with large copper heat spreaders on the bottom that made the pans quite heavy and could be difficult to lift with one hand.

We also had a nice discussion on non-stick and anodized pans.  I found this very interesting regarding the construction and composition of modern non-stick pans and coatings.

I have had other discussions with a professional chef that would like to use cookware like the Platinum series that contains titanium on the inside and how it makes the best non-stick coating, but the price of titanium cookware is excessive.  However, even this video demonstration of the Platinum cookware show the presenter using a thin coating of cooking lubrication when cooking eggs.

The professional chef also said that he prefers to use grape seed oil when cooking as it is flavorless and has a higher smoking point than olive oil.  As oils have a limited shelf life, he keeps a small amount in a spray bottle to sprits into pans when he is cooking, and keeps the rest of the bottle in the refrigerator where it will last longer.  Now we have to find a source for grape seed oil.

The chef also recommended a great internet site for additional information on all types of cooking issues (including oils): Cooking for Engineers.

He also suggested a cookbook for our library: How To Cook Everything.  I am going to get this cookbook as it provides multiple ways of cooking just about any type of food.

The bottom line when purchasing cookware is to educate yourself on what features and benefits are important to you.  Shop around, visit stores that carry quality products and perform field research by examining and holding different cookware pieces to see what feels good to you.  Don’t let yourself be pressured into a price that is “for tonight only”, if the company really wants to make a sale, the price will he honored for as long as necessary, or it will go on sale again.

Adventures In Food: Author: Kerry Howell

My New Pan

A few weeks ago, our neighbors invited my wife and I on an afternoon outing to a free “Boomer” exposition in Portland.  This is a show that is targeted to people of Boomer age (born between the years 1946 and 1964).  There were all kinds of companies demonstrating their products and services anywhere from retirement homes, funeral home (I’m not ready for either of those!), wineries, Monastery Mustard (more about this to come), roofing, siding, windows, and many others.

The show was lots of fun because there were many nice promotional give-away that we picked up along the way; post-it-note pads, a pedometer, book light and insulated water bottle holder.  As we are cutting down on “stuff’, we passed on picking up the pens and water bottles and the like.  Free candy and cookies were a nice draw to get us to look at the products.  Both my wife and I had a ten-minute massage from a health club that was advertising their spa capabilities – nice!

Most of the booths offer some sort of door prize, all you had to do was provide your contact information, so we signed up for all kinds of gift baskets and other prizes.  We just knew that we were going to win the cruise to Alaska.

Well, we didn’t win the cruise but I won a free 8-inch skillet.  I received a phone call from a local Platinum distributor, that they would send my skillet personally delivered by a “chef” that would show us how to use the skillet.  In addition, the chef would make dinner for as many couples as we wanted to invite.  Great, come on out!

As our neighbors invited us to the boomer expo, we invited them to the dinner demonstration (yes, we knew up front this was a sales presentation).  The dinner/demonstration went well.  We had a nice meal of chicken thighs, potato slices, corn, broccoli and sliced carrots, all cooked with the Platinum cookware.  Our “chef” said that it would take some practice to get used to cooking at a much lower heat than we normally would, and be prepared to burn some food along the way.  Ok, how hard can it be!

When the evening was over, we had had a nice meal, some dessert and I ended up with my new Platinum 8-inch skillet.  This is a surgical steel non-stick skillet that doesn’t use Teflon.  Our son has tried to get us to get rid of our Teflon frying pans due to the health dangers, so he will be happy that one of the frying pans is now on the way out.

On Sunday morning, I decided to use the provided recipe and make omelets.  I have made some omelets in our Teflon pan, but I usually get them a little brown on the bottom while trying to get the middle cooked (we don’t like omelets that are runny in the middle).

I mixed together two eggs and a little water and waited for the pan to heat.  It has a temperature gauge on the lid that when 40 degrees Celsius is reached, you turn the heat on the burner from medium to low.  I had sprayed the inside of the pan with PAM and once the temperature was reached, I turned down the burner and added the eggs.

After two and a half minutes I found out that I should have turned the burner heat way down, as the eggs were done, but brown on the bottom from overcooking.  The inside of the pan was also brown and stained, so we decided to wash it before trying again.  Soap and water were not removing the stain, so we tried a small packet of Bar Keepers Friend that came with the pan.  Wow, it took off all the stain and really shined the pan.

Back to the stove I went with the pan and some more eggs, this time I started with lower heat then before and used a little margarine in the pan,  Once the correct temperature was reached I turned the burner to it’s lowest setting and added the eggs to the pan.  My wife had prepared some cheddar cheese and ham pieces to put into the omelet before folding it over.

After two and a half minute, I took the lid of the pan and the omelet looked great!  I added the ham and cheese and folded the omelet and slid it right onto her waiting plate.  I cooked mine the same way and they were both wonderful.  The omelet was cooked to perfection and was very light and fluffy.  My wife then tried making scrambled eggs in the pan and they turned out perfectly.

We are very excited to try additional recipes in the new pan, we just wish it was a little larger in diameter so we could cook recipes with more volume than will fit in the 8-inch pan.

Adventures In Food: Author: Kerry Howell