Welcome to the Game-Night Kitchen!

Episode 15: Pickled Eggs

Not everybody likes them, but for those who do, pickled eggs make a fine snack. Because not everyone will like them, this is a good snack to make to supplement another. Furthermore, they keep for a while in the fridge, so you can bring a few out each session.

One thing to be aware of, however, is that it will take a few days before this snack is actually ready to eat!

Here's what you'll need:

• One jar of your favorite pickles.
• Eggs
• Salt
• Water

Eat the pickles.

Save the jar with the liquid in it.

Hard-boiled eggs are not hard.

Place your eggs into a pot and cover with water. Add some salt (this will make peeling them much easier!). Bring the water to a boil and then cook for a further 12 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and run cool water over the eggs.

Peel the eggs and then drain them very well. Any excess water will dilute the vinegar-based solution that the pickles came in--and that will also dilute the flavor. If you are worried that you might have diluted it some, or if you just want to give it a little kick, you can always add a bit more vinegar, as well.

Put the eggs in the jar, seal it, and put it in the fridge for a few days.

That's it for this week! Good gaming, y'all!

This one I gotta try-- I love pickles. I was taught that you put the eggs in the cold water in a good heavy pot that retains heat well, bring the heat up until it boils, then shut the heat off and let it sit for ten minutes. You get nice firm eggs with no green ring around the yolks.

But I've never tried them pickled before.

Episode 16: Broccoli, Cheese & Rice.

This one is easy, but takes a little time. Fortunately, it'll feed a few hungry gamers!

Here's what you'll need:

• Rice
• Water
• Salt
• Broccoli
• Butter or margarine
• Shredded Cheese

First, make rice.

Lots of a cooks have their own methods of cooking rice that they swear by. If this is you, go with what you know. If you don't know, go with what I know. First, rinse your rice. Very, very well. Measure some rice into a pot and add in 1 1/2 times this amount of water. The actual proportions may vary with the type of rice used, but the instructions on the bag or box of rice (if you've got one) ought to tell you, specifically.

Add some salt and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot and do not remove the lid for 20 minutes! If you remove the lid early, steam will escape and your rice will be crunchy!

Next, choppa broccoli

If you have frozen broccoli, follow the instructions on the bag. If you have fresh broccoli, wash it and cut the florets off. If you have the means (that is, a colander, a pot, and a lid) steam the broccoli, by boiling a small amount of water in the pot, with the broccoli above in a colander, covered with the lid. If you cannot do this, you can just boil the broccoli. When the broccoli is cooked through, but still a bit firm, it is done. You can shock it to stop the cooking process if you want (by dunking it in ice-water), but if you plan on eating soon, it probably isn't necessary.

Mix it together. With Cheese!

Once your rice and broccoli are done throw the broccoli into the rice, add a little butter (or margarine), a splash of milk and some shredded cheese. Mix and serve.

Until next week, good gaming, y'all!

Looks good!

Chocolate Pudding

Put a little milk in a heavy bottomed pot (say 1/2 cup). Stir in a few tables spoons of flour. Stir like mad until all smooth and gooey. Add another cup of milk and stir that in, no lumps. Then one more cup of milk. And a tablespoon or so of sugar, and a pinch of salt. Then turn on the heat about medium hot. Stir for about 6 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot frequently so it doesn't stick and burn. When it starts to bubble and get thick, turn the heat down very low. Add your favorite chocolate in small pieces--a cup of chocolate chips works great, but a broken up 1 pound hershey's special dark will do fine. Or, you know, valrohna or lindt or ghiradelli or guittard or callebaut . . . when it's all melted smooth, lick the spoon and decide if it's sweet enough. If it's not, add a little more sugar, and (using a clean spoon) stir again over very low heat until smooth again. Repeat as needed until the pudding is perfect or all gone. Take it off the heat and add 1/2 tsp vanilla. Stir and pour what's left into bowls, cover with plastic wrap, and chill until firm or you just can't wait any longer. Serve with whipped cream if desired.

(best way to break up a big bar of dark chocolate: put it in two sealed zip top bags (in case one bursts), and then hit it with a mallet until hit points are reduced to 0. Delicious and satisfying.)

Also I made the pickled eggs tonight and am impatiently waiting to taste them tomorrow.

Not so much a recipe as a time saving hint- tonight, among several other things, I made a tomato sauce full of all kinds of gooood stuff: fresh sliced mushrooms, 2 kinds of onions, white wine, lemon juice, home-made vegetable stock, a splash of red wine vinegar, etc...

But there was no pasta in sight. Because the sauce wasn't for tonight.*

The plan is that my sauce is made and ready to use whenever I care to, and since I was already cooking, why the hell not make sauce? It will keep in the freezer for months, and thawing it takes minutes.

When cooking, I often take extra time to chop extra veggies. IOW, once I start cooking and my kitchen is dirty, I just keep going. When you're chopping 1 onion, why not chop the other 6? They'll freeze just fine. Ditto other veggies.

This means that you can actually serve fairly complex dishes if you're so inclined, with only a modicum of effort, if yu'rewikling to time shift your prep/cooking time.








* This particular same will be used later this week, served over some pan sautéed chicken thighs & breasts.

Sialia said:

Put a little milk in a heavy bottomed pot (say 1/2 cup). Stir in a few tables spoons of flour. Stir like mad until all smooth and gooey. Add another cup of milk and stir that in, no lumps. Then one more cup of milk. And a tablespoon or so of sugar, and a pinch of salt. Then turn on the heat about medium hot. Stir for about 6 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot frequently so it doesn't stick and burn. When it starts to bubble and get thick, turn the heat down very low. Add your favorite chocolate in small pieces--a cup of chocolate chips works great, but a broken up 1 pound hershey's special dark will do fine. Or, you know, valrohna or lindt or ghiradelli or guittard or callebaut . . . when it's all melted smooth, lick the spoon and decide if it's sweet enough. If it's not, add a little more sugar, and (using a clean spoon) stir again over very low heat until smooth again. Repeat as needed until the pudding is perfect or all gone. Take it off the heat and add 1/2 tsp vanilla. Stir and pour what's left into bowls, cover with plastic wrap, and chill until firm or you just can't wait any longer. Serve with whipped cream if desired.

(best way to break up a big bar of dark chocolate: put it in two sealed zip top bags (in case one bursts), and then hit it with a mallet until hit points are reduced to 0. Delicious and satisfying.)

Click to expand...

Tonight.

I'm making this tonight.

Sialia said:

Also I made the pickled eggs tonight and am impatiently waiting to taste them tomorrow.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately, they probably won't have much flavor yet after only one day. I'd try one tomorrow and then let it go a couple of days longer (at least).

The Red King said:

Tonight.

I'm making this tonight.

Click to expand...

So am I! In fact, I'm starting as soon as I post this (it's actually why I was looking into this thread just now!)

Yay! Let me know how it goes. I'm sorry I couldnt be more precise about the measurements--I think it's about 1TBS flour to each cup of milk. And, um, as much chocolate as I happen to think works. You know, until it's chocolate colored and flavored. The better the quality of the chocolate, the better the pudding. If you use too little flour and it doesn't come out thick enough, gently fold in some whipped cream, cool whip, or beaten pasteurized egg whites and make a mousse out of it.

The pickled eggs were only flawed in that I didn't make enough and I couldn't wait to eat them very long and, also, they are all gone. Another batch is on the boil as we speak. Tasted like devilled eggs without the mayo.

Adding a little liquid smoke and some tabasco this time.

Also, I accidentally discovered that if you put them in a baggie with some black olives to carry in your lunch box, the olives make strange and wonderful patterns all over the egg. And it tastes good. I think olive brine might work just as well as pickle juice. SO I'm going to try that, too. I expect they will be a sort of strange color, but . . . well, we'll see.