msmemory_archive: (Default)
msmemory_archive ([personal profile] msmemory_archive) wrote2006-03-13 09:35 am

Test feast

Test feast went well. Everything was edible -- though we identified a few tweaks to make. No psychodrama either, yay. I don't think [livejournal.com profile] learnedax really meant to have let himself get drafted into a full kitchen afternoon, but it was great to have his help.

Spot feedback:
Preset -- garlic needs to be kept more moist. Bake covered, probably, and likely more olive oil.

First course -- change the herbs on the carrots. Thyme and tarragon were not quite it. Oregano perhaps.
Chicken worked excellently well.
Ember day tart had too much onion, not unusual. I would put more egg/cheese and less onion, but [livejournal.com profile] tpau is in charge of those and I'll defer to her opinion.
Cook the frumenty just a tad longer, another 5-10 mins.

Second course -- the lamb was unevenly cooked, perhaps because I had to buy a shank roast with bone, instead of boneless, for the test feast. The people who like rare were happy, the people who like well done thought there should have been more well-done bits. Everybody liked the garlic-rosemary crust.
Mushroom tarts were just fine.
Sauces -- it would be hard to make too much garlic sauce. Eliminate the apple sauce, it's dull and modern.
Pea soup worked for those who like pea soup. Of course it would be better with a nice chunk of bacon, but we're trying for vegetarian.

Watch the timing. Because we were at home, with just one table, we got sloppy about the flow between courses.

[identity profile] goldsquare.livejournal.com 2006-03-13 03:37 pm (UTC)(link)
I do not know what [livejournal.com profile] madamebuttery did, but I make pea soup often. The flavor difference between raw onions boiled, and onions sauted until transluscent, and onions sauted until brown - is magnificent.

Go for the darker.

(When I am in "hurried father" mode, I will sometimes just throw soaked peas and chopped onions in the crock pot in the AM - and eat in the PM. When I have time, I saute the onions first.)

[identity profile] rickthefightguy.livejournal.com 2006-03-13 08:42 pm (UTC)(link)
There is a burger place in the Detroit area that has the best burgers I've ever had (and I have made an effort in that direction). One of the toppings they have of course are onions: raw, fried ... and burnt! The burnt are the best.