Sensory Evaluation

 

            Sensory evaluation begins with the senses.  It takes practice to bring your sensory perceptions to mind, so much of it automatic and unconscious.  Begin training yourself to think about what you are thinking, feeling and sensing about the dish being evaluated.  It is helpful to write down your thoughts and impressions.  Look for what is good, as well as what is wrong.  It is not evaluation, but criticism, if all you can say is negative.  It is not helpful to you or the cook.  I like to start with what is right about the dish, and then look at what is wrong.  Remember to be aware of your own strong preferences and aversions, because these can flavor your evaluation.

 

Appearance

This can be very important.  Is the plating appealing?  It is neat?  Do the dishes on the plate go together?  Do the colors pop?  Does it look like fresh ingredients were used?

 

Aroma

            Aroma can be the first sensory perception of the meal.  Is your mouth watering?  Are you filled with anticipation?  Often aroma is release with oils or fats.  Have you ever enjoyed the aroma of sautéed onions or bacon?  We can recognize ingredients or dish by the aroma.

 

Taste – sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umani

            With each bite, take time to savor the food.  Can you recognize any of the five flavors?  Does if meet your standards, how?  Does it need a little acid, like lemon juice, vinegar to bring out or compliment the dish?  We will explore taste more thorough in the next posting.

 

Sound

            Some dishes do have sound like a sizzling steak or fajitas.  Does the sound have a pleasant affect?  Often sound comes more into play during the cooking process.

 

Texture

            Some ingredients are recognizable by the feel in your mouth or the feel as you chew. Often your personal aversions are tied to this sensory perception.  Texture is determined by dryness, liquidity, juiciness, softness, firmness, crunchiness, chewiness, chalkiness and creaminess.  Texture can help to determine if the dish is over or under cooked.  Is the texture appealing?  Does it feel like it should?  Is the moisture at the correct level?  We also feel temperature of the food.  Is the food hot, warm or cold?  Is the food at the proper temperature?   If is to be serve hot, is hot or just warm?  Some foods are affected by temperature.  For instance temperature affects the texture of potatoes.

 

This Week’s Challenge

 

            Take a dish that you would like to learn.  Research it and try cooking the recipe.  Evaluate the result and record your findings.  Try making this recipe at least three times, evaluating and recording your results.  Evaluate your findings by comparing your evaluations for all three attempts.  Were you pleased with the results?  Did you improve the recipe with each try?  Did you have a hard time duplicating a good result?  Did you change and perfect the recipe or technique with each attempt?

 

Tip for this Week – Evaluate all that you cook

 

            You will find that you will be the hardest evaluator of your own work.  But this is a good thing.  You will notice the imperfections and mentally make notes on how you can improve with the next attempt.  Each time you taste for seasoning, you are making evaluations.  The more you think about what you are doing, the easier it will become.

 

This Week in Punkin’s Kitchen

 

            Blackened Baked Hake

 

2-4      Hake filets (Or other firm white fish like Cod or Turbot)

            Blackening powder to taste

The ingredients

 

1.    Turn on the oven to 350 degrees.

2.    Pray a baking dish with Pam and place the hake fillets in the dish so that they do not overlap.

 

3.    Sprinkle with the blackening powder.

4.    Bake for about 30 minutes.  Check for doneness, but remember the fish will continue to cook.

 

Blackening Powder

from Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Louisiana Kitchen, p. 50

 

1 T       Sweet paprika

2 ½ t    Salt

1 t        Onion powder

1 t        Garlic powder

1 t        Cayenne or red pepper

¾ t       White pepper

¾ t       Black pepper

½ t       Thyme, dried leaves

½ t       Oregano, dried leaves

 

 

1.    Place all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix.

2.    Store in an air tight container

 

When I make this I put all the ingredients in the spice grinder.  Proceeding just as the recipe for Berbere posted on January 31, 2016.

 

 

            Olive Ricotta Tart

 



 

One package            Puff paste dough

8 oz.                         Ricota or other cheese like cream cheese

 

¼ C                          Basil leaves, shredded

One can or jar           Olives of choice.

                                    Thin slices of tomatoes (optional)

                                    Grated parmesan or romano cheese (optional)

                    

 

 

 

The ingredients

 

1.     Preheat the oven according to the directions on the puff paste.

2.    Prepare a baking sheet by spraying with PAM or line it with parchment paper.

 

 

 

Puff paste layed out and spread with
 the cheese basil mixture

 

3.    Open the puff paste and place both sheets side by side.  Press the seam together.  Fold over the edges to form and rim around the edge.

4.    Chiffonade the basil and mix with the cheese.

 

Chifonaade of basil

The basil mixed with the ricotta.

 

 

5. Spread the cheese over the center and to the inside edge of the paste rim.

6.    Sprinkle with sliced olives, or your choice of topping. 

 

The ricotta mixture topped with sliced olives.

 

 

 

7.    Bake the tart according to the puff paste package.

8.    Top with thinly sliced tomatoes and grated parmesan

9.    Cut into serving sizes and serve warm.  Smaller pieces can be served at party appetizers.

 

 

Vegetable of the Week

 

            Stewed Squash with Tomatoes

 

Stewed squash pictured with baked chicken on the left.

1-2 T               Olive or vegetable oil

¼ - ½ med.     Onion, sliced or diced

2-4                  Summer squash, like zucchini, yellow or patty pan

1 Can             Tomatoes, use diced or crushed.

                        Broth or bouillon

                        Garlic Powder

                        Salt and pepper to taste

                        Fresh chopped herbs (optional) like parsley, basil, or cilantro

The ingredients
I used Mexican squash, but any
summer squash is very good.

 

1.    In a large skillet heat the oil.

2.    Add the onion and sauté until soft.

 

3.    Wash and slice the squash.  I usually slice it in half lengthwise and then slice it horizontally on a diagonal.  This leaves the squash in half moon shapes.

 

4.    When the onion is soft and transparent, add the squash and stir as it sautés.

5.    Cook the squash for a few minutes.

6.    Add the tomatoes and seasoning.  I usually vary the seasonings.  I used loose bouillon that is a powder in a jar.  I add about a table spoon, but a bouillon cube can also be used.

 

Add the seasoning and bouillon
and simmer to blend the flavors. 
I used Italian herbs.

Diced tomatoes are added. 
Water can be add for more
cooking liquid.







 

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7.    Cook about 10 more minutes, less if you like firmer squash.

 

Serve as a side dish or add meatballs or leftover meat and make it a meal.  Other vegetables can be added.  Mushrooms work well with this recipe

 

 

Happy Cooking!

 

           

           

Socializing with Other Cooks

            Socializing with other cooks is fun and a great way to learn.  The following are a few ways to start socializing with other cooks, but by no means are they only options available to you.  Most cooks are very willing to share what they know, so be confident and ask around.   At this point, I’d like to distinguish between foodies and gourmets.  Foodies like all aspects of food, trying new things, cooking, sharing what they learn and going to restaurants.  Gourmets are more interested in the very best, the unique and the expensive.  Where all gourmets are foodies, not all foodies are gourmets.  I consider myself a foodie.

Cooking Friends

            If you have a love of cooking, you most likely have friends that like to cook as well.  If you are just beginning to cook, search out a friend that is interested in cooking.  These cooking friendships should be reciprocal, each learns from the other.  Even if you don’t cook, you may have a different way of seeing things that will open the eyes of the other.  Each of us picks up family secrets and short cuts.  It is always amazing to me to discover some easy trick, even after cooking for over 50 years.

Social Media

            If this is your thing, go for it.  To be honest, I have little experience with social media.  I’m just beginning to use Pinterest.  It seems like each month there is a new trend in social media and I don’t have the time to explore and learn all that is out there.  My niece uses it for everything and she is the one who told me about Pinterest.  If you do use social media and have a favorite site, explore it and follow some of the cooking profiles.   If you don’t use social media, you may want to explore one or two sites to establish some cooking contacts.

Cooking Groups

            There are many types of groups interested in cooking and the culinary experience.  It is important to decide what you want out of the cooking group and look for a group that will best suit you.  Be prepared to have a trial and error time, before you find that perfect group.

Supper clubs meet to enjoy a meal together.   They can meet at restaurants or cook together.  These groups tend to be more for socializing and not so much about cooking and learning about food.  There can be a wide range of cooking abilities in the group, from no cooking at all to the experienced cooks.

Cooking groups are more interesting in the cooking.  The group may cook the meal together or they may bring part of the meal to the meeting.  Sometimes they can meet at restaurants or take a cooking class together.  Again there can be a wide range of cooking abilities and interests, but all members should be able to cook. 

Gourmet clubs are more interested in the unique dining experience.  Some cook, others meet at restaurants.  Depending on the group, members can focus more on culinary knowledge to advanced cooking.

This Week’s Challenge

            This is a simple challenge this week.  Choose one of the socializing techniques above and add it your learning experience.  If you are already doing one of these, choose something you haven’t tried.  

Tip for this Week – Baking with eggs

            Eggs do better in baking if they are allow to come to room temperature.  This is the case with the previous dishes oven pancake and the cheesecake.  This is also true of other baking like popovers, Yorkshire pudding, and soufflés.  In the recipe below, place the whole eggs in a bowl on the counter 30 minutes to an hour before using them.

            Choux paste or pate de choux has been around for centuries and has evolved into what we know today. Choux is cabbage in French, because the finish puff looks like a cabbage.  It is an unsweetened pastry shell that lends itself well to both savory and sweet dishes.  In order for the paste to puff, the directions in making the dough are essential.  The paste can be piped into a variety of shapes.  Most common are profiteroles, croquembouches and eclairs, but other shapes may be made like hearts or swans.

Profiteroles

 

            Profiteroles are round shapes.  They may be larger for the base of cake, medium for individual cream puffs or small (petites choux) for appetizers or bite sized sweet treats. Technically, the savory profiteroles are called gougere originating from Burgundy and filled usual with cheese but sometimes with mushrooms or meat salads.

            Croquembouches are a tower of small profiteroles that are filled and held in place by syrup or lacquer.  Sometimes they are enveloped in spun sugar. They are impressive and usually served at weddings or buffets.

            Eclairs are a long shape of paste.  They may be individual sized or bite-sized. Eclairs are usually filled with Zabaglione or Bavarian Cream and topped with Grenache.  They may be decorated or plain.

            Here are some tips for making these delicious puffs.  Bake them on parchment paper and mark the desired size shapes on the paper.  Turn the paper over and pipe the paste.  The puffs will puff up rather than out, so they should be roughly the size of your marked shapes.  In order for the puffs to be crisp, remove as much water as possible by removing the steam.  Step three is essential to remove as much water through the steam as possible.  Step seven is also essential.  By stabbing the bottom, steam is allowed to escape.  Allowing the puff to cool slowly with the oven allows more steam to escape.  No matter what filling is used, the puff will become soft and/or soggy if they set too long before serving.  Try to fill them as close to the serving time as possible. 

Mark the parchment paper with pencil
and turn the paper over.  The pencil marks
will transfer to the puffs.

Pipe the paste over the marked parchment
paper.  This is a large profiterole and a regular
éclair and some bit size eclairs

          







  Filling ideas are only limited by your imagination. 

            For more information, check out http://www.craftybaking.com/learn/baked-goods/pastry/types/choux-pastry or do more research online. I came across some delectable ideas for raspberry cream, strawberry eclairs.  So by all means check this out online.

This Week in Punkin’s Kitchen

Choux Paste

This makes about 18-20 petites choux or six individual profiteroles or eclairs.

½ C     Water

½ C     Whole milk

8 T       Unsalted butter

½ t       Salt

1 C      Flour

4          Eggs

The ingredients

1.    Bring the water, milk and butter to a boil over medium heat. 

Milk, water and butter

Add the flour when the milk mixture boils

2.    Add the flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan.  Continue to cook and stir the mixture for one minute, to eliminate excess moisture. 


All of a sudden it will come together and ball up.
Continue beating to release steam

Stir vigorously.  At first it will be lumpy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.    Transfer to a bowl and let cool for five minutes, stirring constantly. 

It is essential that as much steam is release as possible.
Constant stirring releases the steam and helps cool
the dough.

 

4.    Beat in the eggs one at time making sure the paste is smooth before adding the next egg.  Beat the dough until is smooth and shiny. 

                 

It will become lumpy.  Keep stirring
until the dough becomes smooth. 

 

Once the dough becomes smooth and
the egg is completely bended
in, add the next egg and repeat

After each egg, the dough will be come lumpy.
Stir until smooth and repeat these steps
until all the eggs are used up.

5.    Using a pastry bag with a round tip, pipe the paste on to an ungreased baking sheet. 

Put the dough in a pastry bag with a large
round tip and shape your choux paste.



Pipe the dough into the desired shapes.
Allow room for the puffs to expand.  The
puff with remain in the piped shape.



I pushed the points down to round out the
puffs.  The puffs will expand up rather than out,
but the puffs will be slightly larger than
the marks on the parchment paper.

 






My finished profiteroles

 

6.    Bake at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

7.    Turn the oven off and remove the puffs from the oven and stab the bottom of each puff and turn them on their side of top.  Return them to the warm oven and allow them to cool in the oven.

            Puff Appetizers

I usually make appetizers from small bite sized puffs filled with meat salad, or a mixture of equal parts liverwurst and cream cheese.  The Pistachio Chive Dip works well with this.  The filling can be added with a pastry bag, but be sure the tip size will accommodate the lumps in the filling, i.e. chopped nuts or vegetables.  The filling can also be spooned in.

Liver cheese

The ingredients

This is made by mixing equal parts liverwurst and cream cheese.  I usually add a little more cream cheese.  I’m not really a fan of liver, but I will eat it.  What I like about this recipe is that it disguises the liver.  There is a familiar flavor that is hard to place. Do not use Braunschweiger, unless you want a stronger liver flavor.  The stronger liver flavor in Braunschweiger is not disguised by the cream cheese.

Continue mixing until well blended

Liverwurst and cream cheese

 


Cooled profiteroles

Cut the profiterole open. Depending on how
they will be filled, make the slit large
or small.
 

 



After filling replace the top

The filling is spooned into the puff.  This is a thick
filling and is a little easier to spoon fill.  If
a light filling is used the filling can be
piped into the puff through the small slit
in the bottom of the puff.

Place on a serving platter.  These are great appetizers or a side dish with soup or salad




Punkin’s Smoky Salmon Mousse

Salmon Mousse can be used a spread, dip or filling.

 

8 oz.                Smoked salmon

6 oz.                Cream cheese

2 T                   Sour cream

                        Pepper, freshly ground to taste

            Dill for garnish

The ingredients

 

1.    Place the salmon in a food processor and process until smooth. 

Smoked salmon in my mini
food processor



Process until smooth

 

2.    Add the cream cheese and continue to process. 

Cream cheese added

Sour cream and seasonings added

 

3.    Add the sour cream to get the desired consistency. 

4.    Season and taste.  

5.    Refrigerate until time to serve.

6.    Serve as a dip with crackers, crostini, toast triangles, or pita bread.  This is also good as a filling for canapes and puffs.

Perfectly blended and ready to use.

Fill the puffs as directed above



Puff filled with smoky Salmon Mousse

 

            Cream puffs

For desserts fill the puff with whipped cream, Bavarian cream, Zabaglione, or chocolate mouse and garnished with chocolate, caramel or powder sugar or drizzled with Grenache.

 

            Flavored whipped cream

            Traditionally, cream puffs are filled with whipped cream.  Today just about anything goes.  You may try flavoring the whipped cream with pureed fruit, chocolate, caramel, liqueurs, or whiskeys.       

            This was made with banana and chopped cashews.

 

 

          




Cream Puff Swans

            These are usually served at weddings or bridal showers or other special occasions.  I last may them for my great niece’s 8^th birthday.  We had an afternoon tea for some of her friends.  The whipped cream was tinted pink.  They were a huge hit.

            Shape the choux paste in an oval with a point on the narrow end (the tail of the swan) also shape some hook shapes that will be the head and neck of the swan. It is a good ideal to bake the bodies on one sheet and the heads and necks on a different sheet because of the different cooking times.

The cooled puffs

 

            To assemble the swans:

1)    Once the puffs have cooled and the filling is whipped, slice the top off the puff.

Puff with the tops removed

 

2)    Cut the top in half lengthwise.  These will be the wings of the swan.

The wings cut

 

3)    Fill the puff with your filling.

Filled with plain whipped cream

 

4)    Place the wings on top of the puff.

Dust with powder sugar

 

5)    Place the hook shaped head and neck in the wide end of the puff.

 

Also this week: a blast from the past:  1950s

            Salmon Croquets

The complete 10950s dinner

 

            These are fish patties that probably originated during the Depression.  It is a good way to stretch one can of salmon to feed a large family.  My family only makes these with canned salmon, but I have heard of them made with canned tuna or mackerel.  Growing up we made them with saltine cracker crumbs, but I use any crackers I have on hand.  It always amazed me how many cracker crumbs my mother could mix in.  I’m sure they just used as many cracker crumbs as would stretch the one can of salmon to feed everyone.  Also in the ‘50s we fried them in bacon drippings.  Today I usually use vegetable or canola oil.  It was a big treat to get to eat the bones from the canned salmon. The bones are soft and edible due to the canning process and a great source of calcium.  Mashed potatoes and canned peas completed the meal.  The leftover patties are good in a sandwich, too.

                        Bacon drippings or oil

1 can              Salmon

¼ C                 Onion, chopped

¼ C                 Bell pepper, chopped

1                      Egg

1-2 C               Cracker crumbs

1 T                   Prepared mustard (yellow)

                        Salt and pepper

The ingredients

 

                   

1)    Heat the bacon drippings in a heavy skillet. 

2)    Empty the can of salmon in to a mixing bowl, juice and all.  Take out the bones.

Dump the can of salmon in a mixing bowl.

Break the salmon apart  removing
the bones and skin.  My mother always left
the skin in as it blends into the patties.



Remove the bones and break up the salmon.

The special treat - calcium rich bones.

 

3)    Add all the other ingredients.  Mix well with your hands and form into patties.

Vegetables, mustard and salt and pepper added.



Crush the crackers into crumbs.  I used the flat side
of an meat pounder.  This can be done in a
food processor.




The cracker crumbs do not have to be
even or fine.

Add the crumbs and egg,  Mix thoroughly. 
I like to let it set a few minutes so that the crumbs
soak up the liquids.









 

4)    Fry in a heavy skillet in the bacon drippings until golden brown on one side.

Shape into patties.

      

Fry until golden on one side.

 





5)    Turn and cook on the other side.



Drain on paper towels




 

 

Happy Cooking!