Whisk Wednesdays
I had never made mayonnaise before, so I was eager to make this and learn something new. It was so easy...I just followed the recipe from the book exactly and it came together just as promised, tasting very fresh with a little kick to it that jarred mayonnaise does not have going for it. Very fresh tasting and nice...definitely a keeper. I may never buy mayonnaise in a jar again. Very simple to make: I still cannot believe how simple this was to make. Who knew?
More artichokes...okay, now we are talking, as I am developing a new taste for artichokes. I cannot explain the difficulties that the others are finding with these artichokes (you won't be able to stop laughing at Shelley's take on the whole week's assignment on her blog today), as I am sailing through this artichoke business and loving it. All I can think is this: artichokes are a big thistle...you don't eat much of it at all...most of it is "waste," but what is edible, and what you do eat, is heavenly when cooked correctly...a melt-in-your-mouth goodness that is addicting.
This recipe also consisted of several other vegetables, i.e. green beans, cauliflower, celery, and tomatoes, in a mayonnaise sauce and served in a prepared artichoke bottom (like a little cup). A few chives from my herb pots sprinkled on the top, and we had one very excellent little summer salad, really, it was very good. I would do this recipe again in a heartbeat. (Thanks, Mary Ann for the lovely tea towel with the rooster and my initial "K" on it...it goes really great with this dish, don'tchathink? So difficult to find tea towels, etc. in the wine color palate!)
As there was no photo of the Salade Messidor recipe in the book, I did a web search to try to locate one and stumbled upon an excellent blog called Will's Eats by a Canadian gentleman who is cooking his way through the same cookbook we are using, albeit that it is only a sort of review for him as he has actually attended the Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris. Hop on over and check it out sometime. (He gave me permission to link his site for your convenience.) And to Grant, thank you for the lovely email and thank you very much indeed for allowing me to skulk about both your site and your flickr photos...I learned so much!
Because this recipe made a lot (a whole lot) of mayonnaise, and I decided to be judicious in the amount I actually used in the salad, I decided to give it a go in some of the ways we use mayonnaise (from the jar) around here, i.e. a light spread of it on a sandwich, in deviled eggs,
in American potato salad, and since we had a roasted turkey breast for dinner last night with leftovers, turkey salad for sandwiches, all on small plates and in small bowls if you are trying to gauge sizes...you have probably all figured that out by now, right? The sandwich bread would be baguette slices.
Have to say, yes, I do, that it was all absolutely delightful. May have to switch back and forth between the homemade mayonnaise and the big H with the blue lid, which you just can't beat for quick convenience. Give it a go, see what you think.
You can check out the other Whisk Wednesdays' blogs if you would like to do that by clicking Shari, Shelley, Sara, Becke, Glennis, and Teanna.
Next week's recipes are:
Class 13, Part 1 • Billy Bi aux Paillettes (Mussel Soup with Cheese Straws) on page 311-313 (Puff Pastry directions on pages 209-210 and technique photos and instructions on pages 542-543)
The Cheese Straws are actually optional as Shari has done them already in another part of the class that we missed, so while those aren't required for next week, I am planning on having a go at them as I have never made puff pastry from scratch before, and this is, after all, why I am doing this: to learn these things just for fun! Come and join us...who doesn't love a good soup?