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Long time no...uh, blog I guess  Classes been keeping me busy but I've finally found time to make some more food, hope you will join me once again~ The past week I've selected 4 dishes to create and improve upon and here are the results.
Dish 1: Spaghetti Bolognaise
This is of course an Italian classic and so I definitely had to try making my own bolognaise sauce! Overall the difficulty was relatively low, and the result was a very tasty tomato-and-meatsauce combo with just a hint of red wine. Definitely something that can be made quickly, so I foresee it becoming a staple food for me as I'm pretty lazy XD For some reason it's really hard to find tomato puree and I had to search several markets until I could find it. Anyways, enjoy!
Pics:
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000059.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000060.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000062.jpg)
Dish 2: Spaghetti alla Carbonara (revisited)
Again, this dish is a very simple recipe that doesn't require too much time to make, so I fortunately had the time to improve on the taste of it often. Seems like last time I had the heat too high in the pan which resulted in a large part of the egg sauce scrambling. Luckily the result this time was a much more creamy mixture, and was delicious :D
Pics:
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000049.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000052.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000053.jpg)
Dish 3: Pan-fried chicken and Penne, on Cremini Mushroom sauce
Well, this actually took me twice to get it right. The first time I tried poaching the chicken before frying it, but that resulted in a very dry and "well-done" chicken breast. The second time I skipped out on poaching and it went straight to the pan, which actually was much better.
Sadly (or maybe happily for some of you) this was the last of my mushroom stock, but the pasta+sauce complimented the chicken nicely in my opinion. This dish definitely took more time to make than the previous recipes mentioned but I'm looking forward to improving on it when I have sufficient time. (Plating was kinda meh on this one because I was so HUNGRY while making this dish; it was the first meal of the day for me and it was all I could do to snap a few pictures before devouring it :D )
Pics:
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000054.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000055.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000057.jpg)
Dish 4: Gnocchi with Parmesan-Gorgonzola sauce
This was definitely a unique experience for me. It would've been easy to buy dried gnocchi and just cook with it, but I opted for the more traditional route of actually making the gnocchi pasta, which is a lot more difficult than it looks. I never even knew how it was actually made!
The process was actually really time consuming, as I had to mash potatoes, add flour, and knead the dough just right to cut the gnocchi out. After that I had to boil them before finally adding them to the sauce. For some reason, the gnocchi were quite soft, and I'm wondering if they are actually supposed to be like that (any gnocchi/pasta experts here?). They evened out after boiling, but I still think they should've been much firmer than the result I managed. Anyway, the sauce was a delicious blend of parmigiano-reggiano and gorgonzola cheese (try saying that 5 times fast) and I was happily well-fed and satisfied with my creation. It's going to be difficult to keep making this dish due to the enormous time required and the fact that it has so many freakin carbs and starch :< I need to find some more healthy recipes lol...
Right, pics:
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000064.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000065.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i861.photobucket.com/albums/ab171/_fOrQQ/P1000066.jpg)
 
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FREEAGLELAND26781 Posts
Damn, you make me so hungry >.<
I don't think I saw parts 4 and 5...
Must go back and revisit them now, then will go proceed to be fat.
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Son of a ... I was hungry and I opened this ... now I'm my mouth is watering up like crazy
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Very good presentation, color balance.
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how'd the gnocchi work out for you? the first time (and also last time) i had gnocchi ever, it tasted like bread soaked in water. it was disgusting. had it with carbonara at the recommendation of a waiter.
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Possibly boiled the gnocchi too long, that would be my guess if it was too soft.
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Gahhh, these look so good. I am jealous of what you are eating QQ. Nevertheless, following you're food endeavor continues to entertain me, so keep it up! I don't care if I'm starving after reading your OPs, it's worth it! ^_^
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Great presentation !
About the carbo' pastas : you said that last time the egg sauce scrambled. The usual way to prepare the carbonara, is once spaghetti are boiled and then mixed with the creamy sauce, you take the egg, throw the white and keep the yolk apart. You mix the yolk with the hot pasta just before eating them. It will not scramble, and give the sauce a delicious thicker consistency.
And great job for making the gnocchi yourself. The proportions I always use are 75% mashed potatoes, 25% wheat flour, and one egg yolk, salt, and an optional spoon of olive oil. You might need to add some extra flour if the mashed potatoes are too "wet". The right way to cook them is putting them in salty boiling water, and as soon as they come back at the surface take them out of the water.
5/5
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Looks so good :D
First pick is so blurry, made me dizzy >.<
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On July 19 2010 16:42 pangshai wrote:
how'd the gnocchi work out for you? the first time (and also last time) i had gnocchi ever, it tasted like bread soaked in water. it was disgusting. had it with carbonara at the recommendation of a waiter.
I've never actually had gnocchi, so this was a first :D Aside from it being too soft, I quite enjoy it. Sadly I don't want to eat too much of it since I don't work out as much as I'm supposed to :< Too much carbs...
On July 19 2010 16:43 Xeris wrote:
Possibly boiled the gnocchi too long, that would be my guess if it was too soft.
Ah, thanks. ok I'll try boiling less next time :D
On July 19 2010 17:05 endy wrote:
Great presentation !
About the carbo' pastas : you said that last time the egg sauce scrambled. The usual way to prepare the carbonara, is once spaghetti are boiled and then mixed with the creamy sauce, you take the egg, throw the white and keep the yolk apart. You mix the yolk with the hot pasta just before eating them. It will not scramble, and give the sauce a delicious thicker consistency.
And great job for making the gnocchi yourself. The proportions I always use are 75% mashed potatoes, 25% wheat flour, and one egg yolk, salt, and an optional spoon of olive oil. You might need to add some extra flour if the mashed potatoes are too "wet". The right way to cook them is putting them in salty boiling water, and as soon as they come back at the surface take them out of the water.
5/5
Thanks~
I've always used the whole egg for carbonara, that would explain the scrambling I guess :o Gotta separate it next time, thanks for the tip!
Also thanks for help on the gnocchi. They came out too soft and I was racking my brain trying to think of why
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For some reason, the gnocchi were quite soft
Overcooked probably?
That penne is making me drool!
Whenever I make pasta I just used canned alfredo sauce and whatever pasta is in the pantry....
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Gnocchi consistency is 50% about the amount of flour you put in, 49% about the potatos you're using and 1% about cooking, just do them 3 or 4 more times and you'll get the hang of it. Potatos are a lot like pumpkins when making gnocchi, sometimes they just won't come out right.
Oh and by the way in october try Pumpkin gnocchi, they are made just like the standard ones except you'll have to strain them about 10 at a time and add parmesan right after you put them in the bowl to prevent them from melting, serve either with gorgonzola cheese or with a light white onion-white truffle dressing.
And why do foreigners use spaghetti with bolognaise sauce, they are the least suitable kind of pasta for them. -.-
Spaghetti won't mix well with the sauce because of the very way they are shaped, modern chefs are using short pasta a lot so that the sauce can fit inside and penetrate the flavor, the traditional kind of pasta for ragù (bolognese sauce) are fresh tagliatelle made with either 2 or 3 egg yolks per each egg white.
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On July 19 2010 18:11 r33k wrote:
And why do foreigners use spaghetti with bolognaise sauce, they are the least suitable kind of pasta for them. -.-
Spaghetti won't mix well with the sauce because of the very way they are shaped, modern chefs are using short pasta a lot so that the sauce can fit inside and penetrate the flavor, the traditional kind of pasta for ragù (bolognese sauce) are fresh tagliatelle made with either 2 or 3 egg yolks per each egg white.
rigatoni / penne are my favs for that reason. pasta needs a hole/space for the sauce. like spaghetti only for stuff like aglio olio.
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yousure like pasta/spaghetti don't you? ^^
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On July 19 2010 19:02 Piste wrote:
yousure like pasta/spaghetti don't you? ^^
I'm Italian and part of my family is from the south, so other than cooking Italian for 12 years I've also handmade my share of pasta... ^^
And yes, spaghetti are most commonly made with oily tomato-based sauces, garlic-oil-red pepper is a tradition as old as the south, otherwise tomato+basil/tuna/anchovies/black and green olives are pretty much the most standard types of pasta.
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For example, when you buy pasta at the store, the box usually gives you a recommended cooking time, I usually find it's best to cook it for approximately 1 minute less than what's on the box.
Also another trick (if you didn't already know) ... is to put the pasta into the pot where you have your sauce, and cook it in that for another minute (makes up for the 1 minute less you boiled it) - that way the flavor gets absorbed into the pasta itself, and you don't have to drown it in sauce (authentic Italian pasta dishes are very very light on sauce) .
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On July 20 2010 03:34 r33k wrote:Show nested quote +On July 19 2010 19:02 Piste wrote:
yousure like pasta/spaghetti don't you? ^^ I'm Italian and part of my family is from the south, so other than cooking Italian for 12 years I've also handmade my share of pasta... ^^ And yes, spaghetti are most commonly made with oily tomato-based sauces, garlic-oil-red pepper is a tradition as old as the south, otherwise tomato+basil/tuna/anchovies/black and green olives are pretty much the most standard types of pasta.
Hmmm ok?
Anyways.. I love them too  Looks delicious btw!
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On July 20 2010 03:43 Xeris wrote:
For example, when you buy pasta at the store, the box usually gives you a recommended cooking time, I usually find it's best to cook it for approximately 1 minute less than what's on the box.
Also another trick (if you didn't already know) ... is to put the pasta into the pot where you have your sauce, and cook it in that for another minute (makes up for the 1 minute less you boiled it) - that way the flavor gets absorbed into the pasta itself, and you don't have to drown it in sauce (authentic Italian pasta dishes are very very light on sauce) .
American style meat-sauce is good stuff too. :D
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EPT
