Comments on: The Diamond Jim Dinner http://www.saltshaker.net/20060813/the-diamond-jim-dinner Casting a little flavor (and a few aspersions) on the world of food, drink, and life Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:08:39 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Louise http://www.saltshaker.net/20060813/the-diamond-jim-dinner/comment-page-1#comment-158195 Louise Mon, 11 Aug 2008 15:24:12 +0000 http://www.saltshaker.net/20060813/the-diamond-jim-dinner#comment-158195 I'm delighted to have "stumbled" upon your blog in search of recipes to celebrate Diamond Jim's birthday, August 12. I hope you don't mind if I link to your dinner when I post on Tuesday. What a wealth of information. I will return for more grains of trivia again. Thank you... I’m delighted to have “stumbled” upon your blog in search of recipes to celebrate Diamond Jim’s birthday, August 12. I hope you don’t mind if I link to your dinner when I post on Tuesday.

What a wealth of information. I will return for more grains of trivia again. Thank you…

]]> By: SaltShaker » Blog Archive » The Grapes of (No) Wrath http://www.saltshaker.net/20060813/the-diamond-jim-dinner/comment-page-1#comment-10645 SaltShaker » Blog Archive » The Grapes of (No) Wrath Sun, 21 Jan 2007 18:42:11 +0000 http://www.saltshaker.net/20060813/the-diamond-jim-dinner#comment-10645 [...] While in some ways the most grapey of the dishes on the menu, except perhaps dessert, the Sole Veronique was the least interesting to me. I think I’d almost rather have repeated the Marguery dish we offered back in August - more complex, more flavorful, more interesting. I suppose there’s something to be said for a delicately flavored dish like this, but perhaps not as part of a dinner with all the other intense flavors going on. Simply, this is sole, or flounder, steamed in packets with a little dry vermouth and grapes. I added a touch of marjoram to the mix. I served it with the sauce from steaming and garnished with a little chive oil. On the other hand, the Marguery has almonds, butter, marsala, and lemon zest… for me, no contest if I was to repeat a similar dish on a menu. [...] [...] While in some ways the most grapey of the dishes on the menu, except perhaps dessert, the Sole Veronique was the least interesting to me. I think I’d almost rather have repeated the Marguery dish we offered back in August – more complex, more flavorful, more interesting. I suppose there’s something to be said for a delicately flavored dish like this, but perhaps not as part of a dinner with all the other intense flavors going on. Simply, this is sole, or flounder, steamed in packets with a little dry vermouth and grapes. I added a touch of marjoram to the mix. I served it with the sauce from steaming and garnished with a little chive oil. On the other hand, the Marguery has almonds, butter, marsala, and lemon zest… for me, no contest if I was to repeat a similar dish on a menu. [...]

]]> By: SaltShaker » Blog Archive » Intelligent Design http://www.saltshaker.net/20060813/the-diamond-jim-dinner/comment-page-1#comment-1231 SaltShaker » Blog Archive » Intelligent Design Sat, 19 Aug 2006 14:45:56 +0000 http://www.saltshaker.net/20060813/the-diamond-jim-dinner#comment-1231 [...] I recently ran across my copy of The Nero Wolfe Cookbook by Rex Stout. If you don’t know Nero Wolfe, he was a fictional detective in a series of several dozen books written between the 1930s and 1950s. He was a committed gourmet, quite something of a cook (though he employed a highly skilled chef to prepare most of his meals), and orchid aficionado. The author, along with Chef Michael Romano, and several food writers, created and tested recipes for most of the dishes that get mentioned in the various novels. It’s a fascinating read, especially if you’re a bit of a mystery buff (the books, by the way, are well worth reading if you are), and I’ve tried out many of the recipes over time and always found them interesting. One is the Salad with Devil’s Rain Dressing, which appeared in a grand dinner prepared by Wolfe’s chef, Fritz Brenner, for a local dining society. I’ve tried it out before, and while there’s no question the original was excellent, I’ve made some steady modifications, and now just call it a Devil’s Rain Salad. The latest evolutionary step came after the beet terrine I prepared for last week’s menu. I thought that way of roasting the beets would fit in quite well with the salad, and they did! The original recipe calls for various lettuces, carrot curls, and celery bits; and raw garlic in the dressing. Perhaps the raw garlic along with the other spices is part of what gives the dressing it’s name, but since I still have quite a bit of that lovely roast garlic puree I made last week, I incorporated that into the dressing (vinaigrette of tarragon vinegar, red wine, hot English mustard, salt, cayenne, roasted garlic pureee, and olive oil). I also limited the salad components to watercress and a julienne of the roasted beets. The garnish is some chives (which originally were in the dressing), and a bit of chopped, toasted walnuts with salt and cayenne - shades of the pecan salt I also made last week. [...] [...] I recently ran across my copy of The Nero Wolfe Cookbook by Rex Stout. If you don’t know Nero Wolfe, he was a fictional detective in a series of several dozen books written between the 1930s and 1950s. He was a committed gourmet, quite something of a cook (though he employed a highly skilled chef to prepare most of his meals), and orchid aficionado. The author, along with Chef Michael Romano, and several food writers, created and tested recipes for most of the dishes that get mentioned in the various novels. It’s a fascinating read, especially if you’re a bit of a mystery buff (the books, by the way, are well worth reading if you are), and I’ve tried out many of the recipes over time and always found them interesting. One is the Salad with Devil’s Rain Dressing, which appeared in a grand dinner prepared by Wolfe’s chef, Fritz Brenner, for a local dining society. I’ve tried it out before, and while there’s no question the original was excellent, I’ve made some steady modifications, and now just call it a Devil’s Rain Salad. The latest evolutionary step came after the beet terrine I prepared for last week’s menu. I thought that way of roasting the beets would fit in quite well with the salad, and they did! The original recipe calls for various lettuces, carrot curls, and celery bits; and raw garlic in the dressing. Perhaps the raw garlic along with the other spices is part of what gives the dressing it’s name, but since I still have quite a bit of that lovely roast garlic puree I made last week, I incorporated that into the dressing (vinaigrette of tarragon vinegar, red wine, hot English mustard, salt, cayenne, roasted garlic pureee, and olive oil). I also limited the salad components to watercress and a julienne of the roasted beets. The garnish is some chives (which originally were in the dressing), and a bit of chopped, toasted walnuts with salt and cayenne – shades of the pecan salt I also made last week. [...]

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