LTH Picnic recipes (2006)

At I think it was Josephine's request, here is my mother's recipe for chimichurri:

Makes 1 1/2 cups

1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onions
1 tsp finely chopped garlic
1/4 cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley (though my mother always used curly)
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper or a few shots of tabasco
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground pepper

Put ingredients in a bottle and shake to mix. To develop flavor, keep in a warm place for an hour or so (traditionally in the sun)

I cheat - I coarsley chop everything but the garlic (which I microplaned) and whizzed it all in the blender.

I wait for all your recipes with baited (garlicky)breath.

I can't help but think that a LOT of people asked you for the recipe. It was simply sensational, and I'm delighted to have the recipe. (And I enjoyed meeting you, as well.)

Thanks.

I'm making it as we speak.

(well actually I stopped on the way back from the deck where I cut some parsley, but you get the idea)

ok...this is just too weird:

I'm making chimichurri this afternoon inspired by a wedding feast in South Haven, MI a couple of weeks ago. Just this morning I searched LTHforum and the recipe index coming up with nada.

I get back from the store with my ingredients(post a google escapade) and what's the first new topic on this board?

yikes

Thanks I really enjoyed the sauce, especially on the Masi Superior bread.

JoelF, maybe you can add your salsa recipe. It was a very good day for green sauces!

As long as people are taking requests

Steve Z--how about the black bean salad?

Amata--and that coconut pie?

Thanks, Ann. The coconut pie was essentially Bayless's recipe in Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen, except I left out the nuts. His crust recipe there also incorporates nuts, so I googled some Spanish language Mexican recipes and made the crust according to them. The crust was 40 Marias cookies crushed, mixed with one stick melted butter, then pressed into the pie pan. (Essentially a graham cracker crust, but with Marias cookies.)

The pie crust filling was 2 1/2 c grated fresh coconut, combined with a reduction of cream, coconut water, and sugar, plus 3 egg yolks and a teaspoon of vanilla. pdaane was kind enough to give me a bottle of Mexican vanilla when he came back from his vacation last winter, so I happily used that. Thanks pdaane!

Oh, and more fresh grated coconut gets toasted as a garnish.

Looking forward to other recipes in this thread, too!

Amata

Vital Information wrote:JoelF, maybe you can add your salsa recipe. It was a very good day for green sauces!

Mine's been
here for two years now. Glad I finally got a chance to for the LTHers to enjoy it.

At the request of a few, here are the recipes for the sorbets I brought. I must admit that they've been stolen from Cooks Illustrated or Alton Brown, but it also helps to start with quality fruit (or herbs or extracts).

Peach Sorbet
- 6 or 7 medium sized peaches, peeled and pitted
- 1 cup minus a tablespoon of granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon of rum, vodka, or peach-flavoured brandy

Puree the peaches with the lemon juice (inhibits browning!), strain through a mesh strainer, and add the sugar and alcohol. You can mix it by hand until the sugar dissolves, but I like to cheat and do it all in the blender.

Blueberry Sorbet
- 2 and 1/2 cups blueberries
- 1 cup of granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon of vodka or rum

Puree the blueberries, strain through a mesh strainer, and mix in the remaining ingredients, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.

With either of the above, you can add half a cup of water to the fruit puree, if you prefer a less aggressive fruit flavour.

Watermelon Sorbet
- 1lb and 5 ounces diced watermelon (or any other melon)
- 9 ounces or 1 and 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons vodka/rum

Puree the watermelon and add the remaining ingredients.

Chill any of these bases to about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Pour them into your ice cream machine and freeze "according to manufacturer's directions." They can be placed in the freezer for a few hours to harden and have been known to last three to four days, possibly longer if given the opportunity.

Thanks for asking. I really don't have a set recipe, but this should get you close.

Spicy Southwest Black Bean Salad

2 cups dried black beans
1/2 celery stalk
1/2 carrot
A few sprigs fresh thyme
A few sprigs fresh parsley
1 bay leaf
1/2 yellow onion
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/3 cup good quality extra-virgin olive oil
1 red onion finely minced
1 ear corn (trimmed from cob)
1 handful cilantro (chopped)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 - 2 teaspoons ground chiles (I used a mix of 4 different kinds)
1 - 2 jalapeños, diced (note, you can amp up the heat by using other types of chiles in place of one or more of the jalapeños)

Tie the celery, carrot, thyme, parsley and bay leaf into a bundle using butcher's twine. Place the beans, bundle and yellow onion into a pot. Add water to cover. Bring to a simmer and partially cover. Cook for 1 - 2 hours until beans are barely tender, adding additional water as needed. After the beans have been cooking for 30 minutes, add salt.

When the beans are "al dente", drain them and remove the veggie bundle and onion. Toss the beans while hot with the olive oil, lime juice, diced onion, corn, jalapeño, cilantro, cumin and ground chiles. Chill thoroughly and season with salt & pepper to taste.

I'd like to request the recipe for the Vietnamese Chicken Salad. OMG so good!

And I'd love to see the recipe for that jalapeño cole slaw. Was that from Gary? Yum. I'm still enjoying the leftovers.

And we also need this [url=http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=9713[url]link[/url] to add to this thread.

What a great selection of coconut desserts, hey? Thanks, datchineseguy!

Anybody know what the bacon-wrapped habanero was stuffed with? I'm normally a little reticent about picante foods, but that was really good...

Mhays wrote:Anybody know what the bacon-wrapped habanero was stuffed with? I'm normally a little reticent about picante foods, but that was really good...

You speak of the internationally famous GWiv Dragon Turds?

I don't really have a recipe for mine-- in that all pie recipes are the same (1. make a pie crust, 2. toss in-season fruit with 1/2 cup of sugar and 2 tbsp. corn starch; if you don't have really great in-season fruit, make something besides pie dammit)-- but it occurs to me that it might be useful for newer folks to link to the old threads that inspired what I and others brought:

Leaf lard pie crust.

Peach ice cream from Cunis Candies.

Baylor watermelons.

Raccoon adventures: 1 2 3

Bolshevik lunchmeat.

What other dishes had an LTHForum story behind them?

Ann Fisher wrote:You speak of the internationally famous GWiv Dragon Turds?

Ann,

Mike Sula made the DT's, and they were quite good. He used my* recipe as a starting point, but may have freelanced a bit on details.

Enjoy,
Gary

*The basic recipe has been kicking around the BBQ circuit for years. When I first saw the recipe it was called Smoked Popper and the hot pepper filling was soy marinated pork tenderloin, not sausage. Yes, it was wrapped in bacon, everything tastes better wrapped in bacon. Adding a bit of dried fig or date to the sausage is a recent addition of mine

Cynthia wrote:And I'd love to see the recipe for that jalapeño cole slaw. Was that from Gary? Yum. I'm still enjoying the leftovers.

Cynthia,

The slaw is my adaptation of Danny G's Garlic Slaw. Danny is a well known BBQ man in Carlsbad, NM.

Enjoy,
Gary
==-==

G Wiv's version of Danny G's Coleslaw With Garlic

Dressing
1 quart mayonnaise
1 1/4 cups white sugar
1/4 cup French's yellow mustard
2/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne*
8 cloves garlic -- medium size**
Juice of 1 fresh lemon

Dry Ingredients
2 small heads knife cut green cabbage
3 large carrots, grated
1 small head knife cut red cabbage
1 bunch green onions
5 jalapenos, grated***
1 red bell pepper, diced****

Prepare dressing in separate bowl, whisk to combine.

Add dry ingredients to large working bowl or 2-gal ziploc bag

Add dressing to dry ingredients

Mix well, refrigerate.

Gary's Notes:
* Original recipe did not call for cayenne
** Original recipe was 3-cloves.
*** Original recipe did not call for jalapeno
**** Original recipe did not call for red bell pepper

- I refrigerate at least an hour to blend flavors, but do not recommend longer than 3-4 hours or the cabbage will wilt and dressing will get runny.

- When serving do not just 'dump' in a bowl, take slaw out of ziploc/container with tongs or gloved hands or there will be (way) too much dressing in the serving bowl.

Saint Pizza:

(nice meeting you Sunday!)

Goi Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Salad – as interpreted by Ramon)

I make no claim to particular knowledge or authenticity. This is merely me trying to make something I had in Little Vietnam from a post here. I cook defensively, warding off cravings for foods that are too far away at the moment, or sometimes no longer available.

Now, I only make this for a large crowd since you can’t usually buy just a quarter wedge of cabbage (though I did see that in a Dominik’s recently). Everything is in my head and adjusted to the moment but this is a rough outline of my thought process. This recipe will make enough to fill about a 12”x18”x3” foil pan.

Dressing:
(3) parts fresh lime juice
(3) parts fish sauce (best quality)
(2) parts rice vinegar
to taste:
sugar (usually more than you think)
finely chopped garlic
finely chopped red onion
finely chopped hot peppers of choice

I always make this in a standard sized Ball jar, measuring by the markings – there’s enough in it when it’s full while leaving a bit of room for shaking. This dressing is best made several days ahead and allowed to “marry,” shaking when convenient. I tend to dress just before service but it usually tastes better after being soaked and tossed a little while. Even dressed, the next day, its tasty, so do what’s convenient.

Slaw:
(1 ½) cooked, cleaned, shredded chickens
(1) head Napa cabbage, ribboned
(1 ½) red onion, ribboned
(lots) bean sprouts
(lots) carrots, ribboned
(lots) cilantro (or mint or basil or a combination) leaves, torn
(lots) unsalted peanuts (crush some of them, if you like)

Toss it all together with a little love and you have a dandy dish for picnics and such. Little worry about keeping it hot or cold. I find even fish sauce impaired people like it, especially when I don’t make them smell the fish sauce by itself. I often can’t help myself, though.

Here, smell this …

-ramon

OK, next time we should have a "here, smell this" contest - I'll bring a Durian if I can find one...

Mhays wrote:OK, next time we should have a "here, smell this" contest - I'll bring a Durian if I can find one...

The almost always have them at the big grocery stores in the Argyle district in late summer. And they have canned and frozen durian pretty much all year.

G Wiv wrote:
- I refrigerate at least an hour to blend flavors, but do not recommend longer than 3-4 hours or the cabbage will wilt and dressing will get runny.

Well, two days later, with cabbage a bit wilted and dressing a bit runny, it was still so good I could hardly stand it.

Thanks.

Cynthia

G Wiv wrote:

Ann Fisher wrote:You speak of the internationally famous GWiv Dragon Turds?

Ann,

Mike Sula made the DT's, and they were quite good. He used my* recipe as a starting point, but may have freelanced a bit on details.

Yep. Each turd contained a piece of date, but I mixed things up with the sausauge--each was stuffed with Italian, chorizo, or longaniza from Cermak on Kedzie.

Maybe we should include a list of sources as well? I think a lot of the fabulous bread was brought from Fox and Obel's by Trixie-Pea.

Anybody know where the BBQ specialties that weren't cooked in-house came from?

And the sausages/dogs/hot links?

I had felt certain that the recipe for the coconut jello was burned in my mind, but my memory just ain't what it used to be.

I remember coconut milk, sugar, and gelatin, but was there cream, too? And what are the amounts/ratios for the ingredients (so I don't have to spend weeks experimenting). It was a fabulous, exotic treat, and I'd love to be able to reproduce it.

After many requests, I am posting my recipe for the butter bucket:

1 pound butter
1 Gallon water

Melt butter and add water. Allow butter to float on top of water.

pd

The corn, which accompanied the butter bucket, came from:

Von Bergen's Country Market
9805 Route 173 Hebron, IL 60034
Tel: 815/648-2332
(Between Richmond and Hebron, just along the Illinois-Wisconsin border)

Regards,

That was the best corn I've ever had to my memory - it was so deliciously sweet. Was it prepared w/that butter or was the butter just available on the side?

I'm still patiently awaiting Hammond's recipe for the World's Greatest Cookie.

Actually, even the butter was brought by Cathy2. Having been pre-occupied of late, I was not sure if Cathy was joking or not about my bringing the corn bucket. I thought I could run to get butter if I was wrong. Cathy actually had a pound to spare. Although if there is any more praise of Cathy (even though it is deserved), somebody will have to write a ballad.

It is a bit of an inside joke among Cathy2, Gwiv and I. As a veteran of many corn roasts as a young boy, we always had a dip bucket and I just assumed everyone knew this technical marvel.

When I prepared the same for a backyard BBQ, both Gary and Cathy were amazed that I would have a two gallon bucket of butter melted for my 10 or so guests. I could not believe neither of them had seen this set up and I was sure they were pulling my leg.

However, mystery revealed. You simply float a small amount of melted butter over warm water. As you pull the corn out the butter on top sticks to the corn.

pd

HI,

Last week when I drove out to Hebron to get the corn, I picked up a friend for company, which caused me to use route 12. I saw a meat market I hadn't notice before, which advertized some Eastern European sausages in the window. On my way home, I stopped by to pick up some fresh Polish sausage from Quality Meat Market, which was cooked at the picnic. Unfortunately the sausage looked similar to another fresh Polish bought at Koenemann in Volo, so I have no idea which was which or how they might have differed.

I usually pick up the business card of restaurants or shops. However, Quality Meat Market's unique card with a reverse side of meat cuts caused me to pick up an array of cards:



When I was at Koenemann, the butcher was manning the cash register with a large bandage on his finger with a metal shield. I recognized the setup having once closed a bathroom door on my finger. I asked him what happened to him: he lost the last joint of his index finger in the sausage filling machine. While he did bring it to the hospital, they were unable to reattach it. He seemed in good humors claiming it was his own fault. I asked the delicate question I'm sure almost nobody would ask: Did he keep the finger tip? He didn't ... though I would have had I met the same fate.

Koenemann Sausage Co.,
Volo IL 60073,
Toll-free 800-662-5584
www.koenemannsausage.com

Quality Meat Market
70 North US Highway 12
Fox Lake, IL 60020
www.qualitymeatmarket.com

Mhays wrote:OK, next time we should have a "here, smell this" contest - I'll bring a Durian if I can find one...

I was just at Super H today (WOW), and they had loads of durian -- whole, not frozen pulp.