beXnlog

Oven Fest

1) Cornbread Update, Recipe #4: I tried the instructions on the back of the Aunt Jemima cornmeal package. This time i halved the recipe since i didn't want to have to eat 15 servings before mold set in. I forgot to spray the cornsticks pan with non-stick stuff but i could easily get the goods out with fork prying. I did remember to spray the stars pan and those practically fell out. The cornbread was light and fluffy with an ultra-crisp crust and slightly overcooked. I suspect our oven may run hot so next time i have to watch things more closely. be liked the recipe a lot since it was slightly sweet but i prefer a denser cornbread. Ranking recipes, so far i like #3 (Kavita's) best, #2 next (random one online), #4 (today's) and #1 (really bad recipe, super bland and everything stuck in the pans).

2) be roasted 3 russet potatoes cut into chunks with olive oil, garlic, dried herbs, salt and pepper. They came out perfect! The outsides were crisp and nicely browned, the insides were soft and mealy. Ranking today's batch, it's a close second to the best batch ever: Russian banana potatoes procured at the Union Square Farmers' Market, oven roasted with a similar mix of ingredients, made by yours truly. For some reason, those potatoes were the absolute perfect balance of roasty goodness.

3) be roasted a bunch of small turnips. He looked online for recipes but ended up doing something on his own. He peeled and cut up the turnips into cubes and roasted them with butter, paprika and salt. We were both skeptical of roasted turnips (or turnip anything!) but i must admit they were delicious. The turnips were very fresh tasting, slightly sweet and with a soft texture on the inside. They looked like the potato chunks but tasted very different.

4) Maybe because they had nothing to do with the oven, i did not make collard greens or beet salad. We were so full from #s 1-3 and i didn't feel like cooking any more. Additionally, the avocado we were looking forward to eating was already going bad when we cut it up. We're avocado wasters! :(

posted by beXn @ 12:21 AM