New Englandish Food

Thai Kitchen's Creen Curry Paste

noah@commonkitchen.com — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 10:13:00 -0500

I love green curry when I eat out, so a few months ago I decided to try Thai Kitchen's "Green Curry Paste" as a base for home-cooked curries. It comes in a small 4 oz jar, and takes about only 1 Tbsp per batch, so it lasts for quite a while. I wholeheartedly reccomend this to anyone who wants to try Thai Curry at home, and I bought a jar of "Red Curry Paste" to try next!

The Easiest Guacamole Ever

noah@commonkitchen.com — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:18:00 -0500

This is a tomato-less guac, and is so easy that it is almost foolproof.

Ingredients

2 Haas Avacados
1 Lemon
1 Tablespoon minced Garlic, or Garlic paste
Salt to taste

Mash the avacados well, stopping just before all the lumps are removed. Squeeze in the whole lemon, add the garlic, mix, and add salt to taste.

There -- wasn't that easy! Serve with tortilla chips, or with burritos or chili.

A Ramen Upgrade

noah@commonkitchen.com — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 14:49:00 -0500

As a reformed grad student, it probably won't surprise you to hear that I was in the Ramen noodles section of my local grocery store replenishing the top shelf of our pantry. Nearby there were some fancier add-water-to-noodles packages, and I decided to try a few. So far the best has been "Nissin Original Chow Mein, Teriyaki Beef Flavor" -- and while out-pricing your standard Ramen by 500% it is still wicked cheap.

Peppermint Stick Ice Cream, Take 2

noah@commonkitchen.com — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 08:45:00 -0500

After trying several different variations on this excellent recipe, we have settled on this egg-less recipe for peppermint stick ice cream:

1 lb finely crushed peppermint stick candy
4 cups whole milk
1 3/4 cups sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
4 tsp. vanilla extract
4 cups whipping cream

Start the night before, soaking the crushed candy in 2 cups of the milk. Refrigerate overnight.

2-3 hours before you are ready to start cranking: heat milk to lukewarm, add sugar and salt, stir til dissolved. Add milk and candy mixture, pour into freezer canister, and chill in your freezer.

Just before cranking, remove chilled mixture and blend to smooth (if necessary). Add vanilla and whipping cream. It should take between 20-30 minutes of cranking to complete.

Trinity Red Ale

noah@commonkitchen.com — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 11:34:00 -0500

Another Trader Joes beer purchase, this was $5.50 for a six-pack. I was impressed, actually, although I'm not a huge red ale fan. This was much better than Killian's, IMHO.

Latkes

noah@commonkitchen.com — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 11:02:00 -0500

We made some latkes last night from a recipe I found on RecipeZaar. Pretty good, when not cooked too thick.

We put lemon and sour cream on them, with applesauce on the side. What do you eat with your latkes?

Trader Joe's Bohemian Lager

noah@commonkitchen.com — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 13:22:00 -0500

Even at $5.50 a six-pack this beer does not beg to be bought again. There was nothing particularly objectionable about it, but nothing endearing either...