McDonald's Monday

If you have been reading my blog, just want you to know that I have added my 1978 photo of Paul Bocuse and me to my profile. I’d like it to show up each day; working on that. Is anybody reading my blog? No one comments. Tonight is our equivalent of going to McDonald’s. We started the day taking Max to the Vet for his annual checkup. Our regular Vet is on maternity leave and the new Vet was astounded at not only my feeding regime, but how great his teeth look for an 8 year old dog. So he got an A- as he has gained 5 pounds since his last visit. However, we looked at his weight history and he consistently has weighed 5# more in the winter than in the summer. Also, I thought he was looking really thin around Christmas so I had increased his breakfast. I guess Max is going back to just 2 scoops in the AM and fewer treats. We are going to have one unhappy puppy.
Back to dinner, I started by getting out my bread machine. I have a very old cookbook called Electric Bread. I have the original bread machine that was only available at Sharper Image at the time. I put the ingredients in for light Rye, my favorite. I set it on dough only. The ingredients are

¾ c water

1 ½c white bread flour

½ c rye flour

1 ½ T sugar

¾ t salt

1T butter

2 t cornmeal

1 T Charnushka

1 ¼ t fast rise yeast

After the bread machine finished making my dough, I punched down the dough and divided into 4 pieces. I shaped them into rounds and set on a cookie sheet covered with non-stick aluminum foil. I think I let them rise for 2 hours, but since I was also paying bills and doing the wash, who knows.

You are probably asking what is Charnushka and where in the world do I get it. I actually call it black caraway seed and like it better than the regular caraway seed especially in bread. But if you are interested in it and want to order it from Penzeys, you have to know this name. When we lived in CA, there was an Indian grocery store on my way home that carried it. You can definitely get it in India food specialty shops.

So after they rose, I baked them at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.

Our burgers tonight were made out of two 6 oz. Buffalo steaks which I ground in the Cuisinart. Cut the meat in squares and pulse about 8 times. It is very lean and I like the taste grilled medium rare, about 8 minutes. I sprinkled it with Chicago steak seasoning also from Penzeys. I was excited to see that Wegman’s carries Buffalo meat. I used to have to order it. This makes 2 burgers.

Our fries were “fried” in the oven. For this I am using Rachael Ray’s Oven Fries with Herbes de Provence. Herbes de Provence is one of my favorite herbs. I just have 2 potatoes and adjusted accordingly. Here is her recipe exactly that serves 4. Don’t cut the potatoes too thin or they will burn.

3 all purpose potatoes, scrubbed and dried

2 T EVOO

1T +1t Herbes de Provence

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Cut potatoes into thin wedges and place on a cookie sheet. Coat potatoes with EVOO and sprinkle very liberally with the herbs. Toss to coat evenly. Roast for about 25 minutes but keep your eye on them, as it depends on the size you cut them as to when they will look crisp and golden at the edges. Remove and sprinkle with salt.

I also made a salad using small mixed greens, spinach, artichokes and tomatoes left over from yesterday and “horrors,” store bought light dressing.

Jim served a 1998 Chateau Labory de Tayac, a Grand Vin from Margaux.

Everything was delicious. It sure beats going to a restaurant for burgers and fries.