The Cellar » Cooking from cookbooks

bbro · 11/20/2021 3:09 pm

I ran across a spreadsheet with a list of all my cookbooks. It looks like I was trying to cook something from all of them in 2020. I think it got abandoned due to obvious reasons. I'd like to try again. I'm not sure if I should time box it to 12 months. Or just cook. Count the previous recipes? Or start new? The current count is 81. I think I'm missing one in the list, so possibly 82, I need to check.

I figured I'd start a thread for accountability since I tend to lose focus on projects like this (pic below as a reminder of the cookbooks I have)

griff · 11/20/2021 4:19 pm

Your mission should you accept it...

monster · 11/20/2021 5:56 pm

...is to sort the damn things and donate most of them? I mean, how many cookbooks does a person need? ;)

monster · 11/20/2021 5:57 pm

It might be fun to post a recipe from a different one each week and challenge dwellars to make ittoo.... (but I'm unlikely to be one ;)

bbro · 11/20/2021 7:08 pm

@griff -

@monster - you speak craziness. I love my cookbooks. There are some weird church ones I may dump, though. And I have more on my to buy list. I don't have a strategy for sorting them that I like. So, haphazard they stay - lol

BigV · 11/20/2021 10:37 pm

I have a few... I'll post some.

monster · 11/20/2021 10:48 pm

My Favoritest cookbook is "The Hebe" (Hebe is pologirl's name). I found it on a "vanity" ebay search. It was produced in the 70s by the wives of the employees of the Hercules Tire company. It's basically a load of bored housewife cheats adding a special ingredient -usually booze- to a packet mix Freaking hilarious. Almost nothing from scratch and the closest things to "scratch" recipes mostly involve a can of mushroom soup. and a shit-ton of recipes involving jello and described as salad.

Last edited by monster (11/20/2021 10:55 pm)

griff · 11/21/2021 8:31 am

monster wrote:
... and a shit-ton of recipes involving jello and described as salad.

I grew up in the 70's and still don't understand Jello as salad.

Clodfobble · 11/21/2021 8:36 am

When Mr. Clod was born, the hospital did this weird thing where they gave each new mother a booklet of recipes gathered from hospital staff. Kind of cute, I guess, but each recipe lists who contributed it and what their job was at the hospital--and the discrepancies are wildly obvious, practically to the point of satire. A nurse recipe will be like processed cheese and potatoes, then a doctor recipe will be for pheasant, then a nurse recipe for meatless spaghetti, then a doctor recipe for coq au vin with a side of caviar...

bbro · 11/21/2021 12:16 pm

@BigV - Yay!

@monster - I've got some like that! There's a campbell's soup cookbook. And one from when refrigerators became popular (1930s ish)

@clod - that sucks. I wonder if any of the ones I have are like that.

Today, I made deviled eggs for the first time, but ran out of mayo. I only had greek yogurt, so it's a bit tangy. I'm pretty sure I'll make them again because the filling seemed really dry and I'm sure it's because of the yogurt. Also, I need a star piping tip, cause, well, looks like piles of something.....

Cookbook:

Recipe (kind of out of focus):

Finished (missing a few off to the side:

fargon · 11/21/2021 2:40 pm

monster wrote:
...is to sort the damn things and donate most of them? I mean, how many cookbooks does a person need? ;)

Sacriledge.
As many as I can store properly.

fargon · 11/21/2021 2:43 pm

@Bbro Nobody makes deviled eggs for them self. Do they? I have fantasized about it but have never done it. Do you have freinds we don't know about?

Clodfobble · 11/21/2021 3:09 pm

I make deviled eggs for just me and Mr. Clod. I love them. Could eat them every day forever.

bbro · 11/21/2021 6:28 pm

@fargon - nope, no friends. Just for me! Breakfast for the week!! If they're really bad when I eat them, I'mma just mush them up and make egg salad.

bbro · 11/21/2021 11:50 pm

Undertoad wrote:
don't forget this one

No men here

BigV · 11/22/2021 9:09 pm

Undertoad wrote:
They've all been cooked already?? Twilight Zone episode

#itsashametohavetoexplain

and I got it. well played

BigV · 11/22/2021 11:19 pm

@bbro:
Here ya go.

I picked just the first three that caught my attention. I've made dishes from all of these cookbooks, some more than others.

Here we go!

First up, a cocktail, shall we?

I've been making mead for many years, and if you like honey, it's *delicious*. And as you'll see in a minute, there are other things you can feed my friend and yours, yeast, like fruit juices, #methegelin.

Let's take a look at the table of contents.

The book is good, pedantic, authoritative, detailed, worthwhile. And I have a local honey producer/retailer, Stedmans. And I have some that's been aging for about ten years. I wish could share it with you. It's DELICIOUS!

Ok, now for some more, ole timey cookbooks. Please, don't laugh.

Here's the introduction, it's like this all the way through, very, very homey.

Which recipes have I made?

Pot
Starter
Hotcakes
Bread.

As I've said elsewhere, Yeast is my friend.

What about food that isn't alcohol or bread?

Ok, what about fermented food?

Not sure if I mentioned this earlier, but yeast is my friend and yours, I heart yeast (poop). DON'T JUDGE ME!
Here's the table of contents. Which have I made?

A few, here's the one I liked the most. Seriously, it's by god the simplest recipe EVER, cabbage, water, salt and time. wtf ppl? I used red cabbage and it's PEPTO BISMOL PINK but still de freakin licious.

Ok, that's it for now.

Back to the kitchen/library!

bbro · 11/23/2021 3:18 pm

@UT - Sorry I missed the reference. I'll have to catch up on Twilight Zone.

@BigV - Awesome! There's a local meadery here that I always mean to try. I would never laugh at cookbooks!! Ok, yea I would, but not that one! I like the scripty font.

Next recipe is going to be scalloped potatoes from How To Cook Everything. Except, I'm going to try to make it in a muffin pan. Because I had some frozen ones from Wegmans recently and they were small like that and I loved it. I might throw the stove top in a muffin pan on Thursday, too.

Happy Monkey · 11/24/2021 2:15 am

It's a Simpsons reference now, as well.

Last edited by Happy Monkey (11/24/2021 2:17 am)

bbro · 11/24/2021 6:35 pm

I've seen the Simpsons one.

I had a thought to actually make a cocktail tomorrow instead of just drinking wine all day or whiskey straight. I have 2 cocktail books.

The Dead Rabbit Drinks Manual has lots of very complicated recipes with ingredients that I don't even know what are. I'll try that again when I have more time to plan and find everything.

My brother got me Mr Boston when I turned 21, but I haven't used it before. I was able to find some decent sounding drinks with limited ingredients using Irish whiskey (my fav)

I also realized that I don't have rolls tomorrow (or Friday - whenever I decide to cook the turkey) and I am NOT going to the store again. I am now looking for a recipe I can prep tonight or doesn't need much time

ETA - and I just realized I don't have eggs either (facepalm).
ETA2 - I don't have any fucking flour - looks like I'm either going to the store or my apartment tomorrow. Fuck.

Last edited by bbro (11/24/2021 8:09 pm)

BigV · 11/24/2021 9:00 pm

bbro wrote:
I've seen the Simpsons one.

I had a thought to actually make a cocktail tomorrow instead of just drinking wine all day or whiskey straight. I have 2 cocktail books.

The Dead Rabbit Drinks Manual has lots of very complicated recipes with ingredients that I don't even know what are. I'll try that again when I have more time to plan and find everything.

My brother got me Mr Boston when I turned 21, but I haven't used it before. I was able to find some decent sounding drinks with limited ingredients using Irish whiskey (my fav)

I also realized that I don't have rolls tomorrow (or Friday - whenever I decide to cook the turkey) and I am NOT going to the store again. I am now looking for a recipe I can prep tonight or doesn't need much time

ETA - and I just realized I don't have eggs either (facepalm).
ETA2 - I don't have any fucking flour - looks like I'm either going to the store or my apartment tomorrow. Fuck.

Oh bbro.

I also have a copy of Mr Boston. It's in the rules somewhere, but that's about the extent of the usefulness of that book. I MIGHT be able to find it... but there's have to be a big pile of money in front of me or a big fire behind me for me to try to find it.

Meanwhile....

Cocktails, they're great, I love 'em.

But now rolls... on thanksgiving?

Oh.

No eggs?

uh oh.. no flour?

NO PROBLEM.

Turns out, you can substitute whiskey for all that shit.

See you Monday!!!!@!!!

bbro · 11/25/2021 5:26 pm

@BigV - that, I did know. He also bought one for my other brother. I'm enjoying the cocktails. As someone whose only cocktail recipe is whiskey and ice, it's a good book.

Interesting wrinkle in the roll fiasco. I went to the apartment to get the flour.....it wasn't fucking there. I HAD the flour, but didn't know where the fuck I put it!! I got back to the house and opened all the cabinets and couldn't find it. I went through them all 2-3 times. Finally found it....in the second cabinet I originally looked in. I don't know HOW I missed it. I only looked at the top shelf some how.

Anyways, I almost said fuck it all when I took a nap this afternoon, but I drug myself up and started work. I am happy I did. I will post pictures of the whole thing later :D I'm making 4 new recipes (2 are cocktails), so I'll post those here and the rest of it in the dinner thread.

bbro · 11/25/2021 7:32 pm

Ok, so the scalloped/gratin potatoes turned out AWESOME
Cookbook

Recipe: I made the scalloped, but topped it with cheese (definitely not needed)

I made them in a muffin tin! Used a lot less half and half than it normally would have which was good for the mashed potatoes I made - lol

Next up is the cocktails!
We all know the book

The first one (The Dubliner)

I didn't have the proper glass, but to get the middle size of Grand Marnier, I had to buy the package with glasses. I just used those

Next one (Rory O'More)

And last, but not least, the rolls. I was at a disadvantage because I don't know what a "third of a golf ball" is. Like, fuck actual measurements like weight. I think I made them TOO small. I would definitely try this again, but maybe only make 12

(sorry about the feet)

Finished

Anon · 11/26/2021 6:50 pm

fargon wrote:
monster wrote:
...is to sort the damn things and donate most of them? I mean, how many cookbooks does a person need? ;)
Sacriledge.
As many as I can store properly.

I know a guy who knows a guy who's very happy to see this post

wink wink

Happy Monkey · 11/27/2021 10:58 am

I assume forty humans are covered in Mr. Bittman's book.