recipesworn

You might have noticed that I have changed plans from butternut to carnival squash and from cod to shrimp. I went grocery shopping at night after I was done with the gym and found out the cod was behind the butcher's case. I thought about going back another day, but then I saw 16/20 argentine red shrimp on sale for $6.99/lb. Seems like a reasonable substitute in exchange for not making another trip. Will have to go back during the day for the prime steak that's also in the case though. I was distracted by gorgeous arrangement of the squashes I've never worked with (or even heard of): blue hubbard, carnival, sweet dumpling, red kuri, buttercup, delicate, turban. Carnival squash seems just about the right size for this recipe, so I grabbed it instead of butternut. Anyhow, here's my thought process while putting everything together: Risotto usually involves around 1:3 rice-to-stock ratio. Aromatics in oil/butter, toast the rice, add the wine, then stock a bit at a time. St...

One of the ingredients for the upcoming carnival squash risotto with Argentinian pink shrimp (I have a reason for changing plans, promise!) is stock which I don't have any at hand. Fortunately, I still have more celery in the fridge, and organic carrots were surprisingly cheap at Fresh Thyme. Moreover, Costco rotisserie chicken still stands the test of time against inflation at $4.99 each. Store-bought stock (with no salt) is fine, but homemade stock is easy and amazing and makes my dog look at me with unmet expectations. Here's my general understanding of bone stock. The larger the bones, the longer it takes to simmer. Chicken stock is probably 3-12 hours. Roast the bones and vegetables if you're looking for brown stock. If you do roast, deglaze the fond (brown sticky bits) in your roasting pan with boiling water and add that too. Onion, carrot, celery in 2-1-1 ratio. Maybe some thyme, bay leaf, garlic. Simmer and skim the scum if you want a clear broth. Vigorous boil if y...

A colleague introduced me to Fresh Thyme Market a few years ago, and it's been one of my favorite grocery stores in the Twin Cities ever since. A lot to love with local produce, friendly staffs, and good deals. Also quite close to my gym, which is a big plus. Earlier this year, I started playing Ironsworn, a tabletop role-playing game where players and/or gamemasters get to write their own stories and quests. If they run into writer's block, the game has "the Oracle" to randomize some key words for inspiration. So what ties grocery deals and Ironsworn together? I usually have a pretty good idea of what I want to make when I spot something I like on a grocery flyer in combination with what I already have in the fridge. However, if I need extra help for this experimental blog, this chart from  Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat will be my oracle. For this week, I'm eyeing the following items from Fresh Thyme ads  (your location might have slightly different price) $5.99/lb Ice...