(no subject)

[coraa]

Cook's Illustrated taught me that if you can't get good fresh tomatoes, canned tomatoes are better for most (not all) applications than mediocre fresh tomatoes. This is doubly true if you have time to roast the canned tomatoes, to concentrate and slightly caramelize the flavors. I used this lesson tonight in making World's Easiest Bruschetta (canned crushed tomatoes, roasted at 350 for an hour or so [long enough to largely dry them out, but -- this is important -- not entirely] and then broiled for 5 minutes, mixed with an equal quantity of decent-quality olive tapenade [you can make your own, but then it's not World's Easiest anymore], and spread on well-toasted rounds of bread). It was also pretty darn healthy, especially since the tapenade I used didn't have too much salt or oil.

Unfortunately, all the cooking I do, combined with my general clumsiness, means I burn myself a lot. At least I don't cut myself, I guess. Ow.

Comments

[coraxery.livejournal.com]

Peeled tomatoes are always superior to non-peeled for tomato sauce, and for the blended part of Gazpacho (IMO). So if you have a hard time peeling them (cut an x in the fresh tomato, boil and then peel after an ice bath) you are better off using canned tomatoes.

And for the bison steak, bison is incredibly lean meat, so always cook to a degree less than what you normally prefer. (well-done cook medium, medium cook just the other side of rare)

Nice blog by the way! :)

[coraa.livejournal.com]

I usually don't mind the work of peeling tomatoes as such, but canned are a lot more convenient if I want to get dinner on the table quickly, like after work.

I'll definitely be cooking my meat rarer next time I try bison!

Thank you!