Balls and Walnuts
more than you ever wanted to know
Wow. Major hit counter suckage.
Don’t tell me you’re all celebrating Easter weekend with your families.
To reward my faithful readers, I’m going to make the following one-time offer (which will expire at this time tomorrow — that’s 8PM PST):
I will honor any requests for recipes or blog topics in general. If I don’t have a good recipe for you, I promise to find one, test it, and report back. Caveat: ask for something impossible or extraordinarily expensive, and I’m going to make sh!t up.
Play nice.
D.
Got any recipes for lamb? Heading to Mom’s for the standard ham dinner tomorrow, but will be doing a belated dinner next weekend at my house. Lamb was requested, but I’ve never cooked it before. Must go to the butcher and order the meat, as well. Suggestions?
Will you blog about my labs results?
What they mean, really?
Tell me if I need to go to the…*gasp* *gulp* “doctor”?!
heeheeheeeheeee
Sorry, hon, I’m fresh out of topics myself. You have anything you’d like me to blog about? lol
I’m roasting a leg of lamb today, as it happens. New season grass-fed English lamb, so I am keeping it simple – coating it with a bit of melted butter with chopped rosemary then sticking it in a very hot (450 degrees) oven for 20 minutes, and then 350 degrees until cooked. I’ll serve with roast roots (potatoes, parsnips, swede (rutabaga to some of you)) and steamed purple-sprouting broccoli.
Now Doug, would you please post an expalantion of how I get the pedals off the cranks on my bicycle – they’re locked on very tightly and I need to replace the cranks.
I usually stick slivers of garlic into the lamb and rub olive oil, sea-salt, and rosemary onto it before roasting it. And it’s better when it’s not too cooked, believe me, lol. Ask the butcher how long it should cook for its weight to stay pink.
In France it’s traditionally served with white beans – but I usually just make potatoes with it and a green salad.
Sorry you’ve hit a slow patch. I’m actually spending my first Easter away from my family with friends in Austin, Texas. As for my dream recipe, it’s be an oriental ginger beef that is peppery, not sweet. Or anything greek.
How about something fairly simple using the grill? A major problem is the husband’s lack of imagination and willingness to try new things. Meats he will eat are: boneless/skinless chicken breast, steak strips, occasional boneless pork chops (usually loin) and ground beef. You can see what I’m up against. He hates veggies so I grow lots of tomatoes and leaf lettuce in season (it’s too early to start them here in No Central MA)
You wanted a challenge – give me a recipe or two that’s more than just marinate it for 4 or or hours and put it on the grill.
Hmmm. I don’t know how challenging it is, but I really, really need some chocolate, and candy, even the lovely dark chocolate bunny from my basket this morning, isn’t doing the trick.
Something very chocolatey that’s not also sickeningly sweet and/or creamy.
mike’s birthday is on Tuesday. I need a chocolate cake recipe that’s not a box or the same one I use EVERY DANG TIME. But the kids have to eat it too and they don’t go for anything funky like fruit.
Oh holy crap! Not even 8AM here, and I already have nine comments.
jmc, well, at least you’ve given me time for research. I’m going to echo Sam and Stephen on leg o’ lamb: olive oil, garlic, and rosemary are key (along with a heavy sprinkling of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper). I wouldn’t trust any of our butchers to tell me how long to cook it. If you’re going to pop the $ for a leg of lamb, pick up a meat thermometer, too. According to this recipe, cook to an internal temp of 130F for medium rare — and I agree with the author: the worst thing you can do to lamb is overcook it.
When I’m back with my cookbooks, I’ll post what I do to leftover lamb. Hint: you need a potent sauce to stand up to lamb’s strong flavor.
Amanda, I’m not an internal medicine doc, but I know a few things 😉 Something like this, I’d rather you email me your question — azureus at harborside dot com. I’ll be back Monday night, but I probably won’t answer my emails until Tuesday evening.
Tam, I’m curious about your writing habits. Are you able to write full time at this point, or are you still working a day job? I’m always wondering about other folks who work day jobs and write. I’ve gotten into a slump. The only time I work on my manuscript is on the weekend. (Forgive me if you’ve already written about this!) Oh, and take it from me, dishing up salacious stories from one’s youth is always popular.
Sorry, Stephen, I don’t know crap about bike pedals. As for cranks, I usually discharge these from my office. I hate cranks.
Renee, something Greek it is. I’ll have to look into a peppery ginger beef. Check out the Kra Dook recipe, though. Yes, it’s sweet, but it’s also very peppery and salty. I see no reason why you couldn’t add freshly grated ginger to the Kra Dook sauce, but I’ll have to try that one myself.
Leslie, I’ll blog my burger recipe for you, that and my grilled vegetable salad (it’s great — tough for your hubs if he won’t try it).
Darla, Kate, did you see the chocolate cake I made for my wife’s birthday? It’s here. I’ll try my best to post the recipe Monday night, but I have a late flight, and if my plane’s delayed, I won’t make Kate’s Tuesday deadline.
But that is a toughie, Darla. Chocolatey, but not too creamy or sweet? Would a good dark chocolate dipping sauce for strawberries be acceptable? I’ll have to do a bit of research for that one.
I’m beginning to empathize with Miss Snark right about now 😉
No recipe requests, Doug, but I’m saving that bread pudding one for when I’m not dieting. I’ll let you know how it came out sometime in 2007.
I enjopy your blog for many reasons and I also realized today that you’re the only doctor I can regularly visit without suffering white coat syndrome. *g*
Never happy, are you, Doug? 🙂
Chocolate dipping sauce for strawberries would be great. The fruit will make me feel better than caving in and eating the Lindt Oster-Pastetchen from my basket: “filled milk chocolate with almond mousse and amaretto-truffel.” I now feel slightly queasy instead of cramp-y. Not sure it was a good tradeoff, considering there’s also the guilt to deal with.
Even my patients don’t get white coat syndrome, Mary Stella. Usually.
Dipping sauce it is, Darla. I’ll play with it this week and report back to you.
I made saltwater chicken yesterday and BOTH of my children ate it! My recipe request is your choice. Just make it one of Jake’s favorites. He seems to have similar tastes to my little monkeys. oh, and no shrimp recipes please. My Jacob won’t eat “skrimps.”
A good recipe for lamb. No mint sauce, hate that.
KariBelle, you got it. (Did you ever read the post I wrote on pesto? That’s a Jake fave, too.)
Charlene, we already have a vote for lamb, so I’ve got you covered, too. Don’t worry — no mint will cross my home’s threshold.
Doug, oddly enough, I already own a meat thermometer, so I’m set for making the lamb. Despite the fact that I don’t cook a great deal, I own a meat thermometer, a candy thermometer, and a variety of gadgets. The result of too many Pampered Chef parties thrown by friends.
Kate, I have a homemade chocolate cake recipe that belonged to a great aunt that is a standard at family parties. The cake isn’t too chocolatey and has cinnamon flavor, too; the heavy chcolate part comes in with the fudgy icing that you cook and pour on while the cake is still warm. If you’re interested, I can post it or send it directly.
jmc
yum.
post here at my blog or in your blog and I’ll come running.
Hi. I was searching for ear information and came across your sites. Thank you! for the links and all. Just as I was about to write you about a strained voice, I found some answers from the laryngologist link. Hmmm… recipes. What I need is something for my husband. He dislikes meat. He loves pasta and anything ‘red’, chilis… Something simple? Thanks again.
I’ve got a recipe request for big juicy meatballs. I made some the other day from a recipe I found on-line. It sounded good, but yuck, tasteless. The husband was gracious enough to eat them without complaint, but now I have a whole batch to eat by myself. I’d appreciate your help.
Hope you are having a great time in the city of lost wages. Loved your post about big butts and big hair.
How about a good recipe for Turkish Delight? My kids were asking about it, after watching the Chronicles of Narnia, the other day…
My secret weapon to getting the timid to try lamb: Grill thin, bone-in chops with a light sprinkle of Everglades seasoning and nothing else until just pale pink in the middle. I usually serve the chops with fresh baguette bread, apple butter, a big spinach salad and raspberry- or orange-spiked iced tea.
Got any neat tricks with fresh strawberries? We’re heading over to the local strawberry farm tomorrow to pick our own.
I have no salacious stories from my youth.
But I’ll see what I can do.
Meatballs, I can do. It’s a direct rip-off from Marcella Hazan’s cookbook, but that recipe can’t be beat. This will also give me an opportunity to try one of those tomato sauce recipes you folks were kicking around the other day (and if I repost the tomato sauce recipe, that will satisfy Elle’s request, too).
That leaves Turkish delight (interesting request!) and strawberries. I do indeed have a nice recipe involving strawberries and mascarpone cheese. Turkish delight, I’ll need to research.
Please, could PBW expand upon “everglades seasoning?” Thanks 🙂
Did someone, somewhere, say chocolate panties?
http://www.chocolatefantasies.com/herthong.jpg
It’s slow everywhere this weekend, honey. Even panties are not enough to keep people from huntin those eggs.
You can find a bunch of recipes onloine for “Turkish delight”, but they’re mostly based on a lemon rind plus orange rind jelly.
Traditional “Turkish Delight” is called Lokum in Armenia and Turkey–it is not citrus but rose flavored. And it’s not particularly sweet. Sort of a chewy rose jelly with a cornstarch and powdered sugar finish.
(Liberty Orchards, started by an Armenian, sells these as Applets and Cotlets).
Personally, I’m more of a fan of the “American” Cotlet version which includes nuts.
Kate, the chocolate cake recipe is up.
http://jmcarr2001.livejournal.com/49827.html
For Leslie — Everglades seasoning is a regional mixed spice that is just wonderful. Their home page is here and the specific product I’m referring to is the white bottle with the green detailing on the bottle. It’s mostly sold in grocery stores in the southern US.
You used to be able to get a free sample of ES by sending Everglades Foods a self-addressed stamped envelope. I’m not sure if they still do that, so best to check with them first.
[…] Boys and grills By Walnut About a month ago, I foolishly offered to give recipes on demand (but only for that day!) I’ve satisfied most requests, but not all of them. This one is for Leslie, who asked me for simple grill recipes. […]