Leftovers' Leftovers

After so many lamb head dinners, there is now a need to make a lamb head breakfast.  This isn't a problem since last night's insanely rich risotto wasn't finished, as it only takes a few bites to enter a carbatose state of bliss.  It's no good to dwell on the amazing past; people are hungry now, and need to be fed more head.

The most popular dish made from leftover risotto is arancini, which is a fried, battered ball of risotto filled with mozzarella cheese.  Though it's very delicious, it's also a pain to make.  The easier, and still very delicious remaining option is to make risotto al salto, which is essentially a pan fried risotto pancake.

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Leftovers

After yesterday's post, I know there is one thing that everyone is wondering--what else can I do with a lamb's head?  The simple answer is to make stock.  This stock won't be similar to anything available in stores either.  Only homemade stocks can be this dark, rich, and gamey.

There's so much flavor in lamb head, that mise isn't really required for lamb stock.  Roast the head, cover with water, add salt, and cook at a lazy boil for six hours.  Any remaining flesh will fall off the bone during this time, and should be allowed to stay in the pool after the clean bones are extracted.  Don't worry about skimming fat off the top either, as that would be wasting flavor.  Once the stock is ready, call that special someone up for another round of tasty head.

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Earthquake Weather

Today I wake happy to be home.  It's the end of the week, and being in a familiar place is awesome.  Last three flights home I've been rain delayed, but last night I got home on time, and there was light when I landed, just not when I got home.

As I sit at my desk coding while under the influence of hunger, which isn't uncommon, I wonder what to make for dinner tonight.  During this process, I hear falling ice.  There is not a freezer for many feet from here-- what could it be?  I look to my window and spy a mass of frozen water particles on my window sill.  I roll my chair over the creaky hardwood floor for further inspection.  There appears to be many balls of ice, and they appear to be falling from the sky.  Someone has their solstices confused.

I thought braising season was over, but the weather says otherwise.  The downpour is the perfect ambiance for french onion soup, but I should probably attempt something more difficult.  Nobody seemed to approve of my trotters dish, so I'll stay away from that.  Maybe I should stay away from cooking altogether since the all time most viewed post covered something I didn't make.

Too bad for you guys that don't like my cooking-- I'm braising ox tails tonight.

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Test Run - Sweet Potato Risotto

Sweet potato risotto- the dish I can never seem to get perfect.  I feel like it has so much potential, and even done poorly has decent flavor.  Why can't I go any farther with it?  Despite my own mishaps with the dish, I've been able to successfully market it to my vegetarian friends.  Due to popular demand, and a spin that made me like the dish a lot more, here is [finally] my sweet potato risotto.

The first time I made the dish, I made a 'classic' preparation, starting with a shallot and butter, then using chicken stock as the liquid.  It didn't suck.  It is however, extremely difficult to pair with.  I continued to make this preparation, adding garlic or other seasonings, for some time.

Months later a tropical twist hit- coconut milk for the liquid.  Don't need butter anymore, but have to season much more aggressively to cut through the thick flavor of coconut milk.  To accomplish this I started the pan with garlic and an insane amount of ginger.  The dish would then be finished with lime juice and zest to cut through.  This was pretty good.  The lime was key to the dish because there was a dire need for acid.

More time passes and the time to think about Thanksgiving arrives.  The last Thursday in November isn't Thanksgiving without sweet potatoes.  To keep Thanksgiving regional, I again ponder how to modify the dish.  I see an episode of Simply Ming where the master ingredients are ginger and cranberries.  Brilliant.

I make the dish for the last time, using fresh cranberries, which also add to the Thanksgiving ambiance.  Here is how to do it:

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