Balifrog
Was a lazy week for me so it was every day dinner at my usual French place.
A few pics :
Salmon with a cream, white wine and dill sauce. The sauce was absolutely superb. Confirmed by other friends who had the same.
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3867-8fd0d5bdff8d30abbc6cd300474f3b68.jpg
Salad with warm goat cheese on toasted baguette. Very nice. A little bit honey on top of the warm goat cheese gives a really nice flavor.
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3868-994c35570c0cc9b6242bbf58920d0b76.jpg
One of my favorite desserts "baba au rhum". A spongy cake imbibed in rum and served "swimming" in rum. Delicious !
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3866-db42d086962dc473e9a0caf61acce1b3.jpg
The Missus is back home, so back to mainly "home cooking" starting today.
Foamcrest
I love stuffed cabbage leaves. I have a friend who’s married to a Russian, her family came to Australia after WW2, and they are brilliant. I’m not that talented as to able to make them.
Re:the air fryer we just missed the special at Aldi where they had a 5 litre one on special for $60.00 I think it was.
Balifrog you are to be congratulated on starting this blog. It’s been/is one of the most entertaining and interesting topics since I joined up. Well done that man.
Balifrog
Airfryer is a good invention, even if I use it only for French fries. Much easier than even a dedicated pot with oil and a strainer basket, that you use only once in a while. And it is odorless !
Sometimes we make fried fish with it as well.
All the other stuff goes in the oven, the traditionnal way..
Thanks very much [USER=19517]@Foamcrest[/USER] , just need a few more members to join in, as [USER=1532]@Markit[/USER] does !
Diversity is the essence of life ! (Goes for women as well BTW...)
gtrken
Balifrog wrote
Airfryer is a good invention, even if I use it only for French fries. Much easier than even a dedicated pot with oil and a strainer basket, that you use only once in a while. And it is odorless !
Sometimes we make fried fish with it as well.
All the other stuff goes in the oven, the traditionnal way..
Thanks very much [USER=19517]@Foamcrest[/USER] , just need a few more members to join in, as [USER=1532]@Markit[/USER] does !
Diversity is the essence of life ! (Goes for women as well BTW...)
Me. I'm just here for the comments :)
Speaking of diversity of women I have to say my friend got it right
He has a woman who is
A great worker in the kitchen
A great eye candy on his arm
A great performer in the bedroom
And he hopes like hell they never all meet...
Cheers
I wish
Ken
Markit
Foamcrest wrote
I love stuffed cabbage leaves. I have a friend who’s married to a Russian, her family came to Australia after WW2, and they are brilliant. I’m not that talented as to able to make them.
Re:the air fryer we just missed the special at Aldi where they had a 5 litre one on special for $60.00 I think it was.
Balifrog you are to be congratulated on starting this blog. It’s been/is one of the most entertaining and interesting topics since I joined up. Well done that man.
At one stage in my life I was the "houseman" looking after a young daughter as the wife shufted - yeay! But I was lucky enough to come from a family where both mum and dad cooked so grabbing a pan and setting to was not such a huge leap for me. Since then I've never stopped really so almost 40 years of practice means that it's more like therapy for me (which I do need) than sustenance although the waistline might argue that point.
Am happy to share the recipe for stuffed cabbage leaves - get a large raw cabbage and cut off 8 to 10 or the largest leaves. Remove the stem with a V cut and then dunk all the leaves in some boiling salted water - about 2 minutes. Remove and cool in water. Take about 500g mince or sausage or mixed add 2 raw eggs, whatever herbs and spices you like but onion, paprika, salt, pepper and garlic should be present. Mush together with your hands and then add a cup of cooked, old rice - keep mushing until well mixed. Take dried cabbage leaves (carefully) and lay 2 together then add about 2Tbl spoons of the mixture then fold all the leaves together and roll the whole think up and put in your pan - seam-side down.
Make whatever tomato mixture you like - soup or from fresh fried/boiled toms that were getting too ripe is best - blitze (mixing stick or blender) and then add to rolled leaves. Spray with some oil then 25 minutes at 160 in air fryer and Bob's your uncle. Add some mash and heaven beckons.
If you are not having all the rolls at one time they freeze really well after you've rolled them but before they're cooked. Enjoy.
Balifrog
OK, a little "weekly" update !
Something typical French at my favorite restaurant, "Cassoulet", see explanation on the menu.
Unfortunately, couldn't give it 5 stars as the beans were absolutely undercooked. Sitting at the "regulars" table, all pensioners in their early 70's, needless to say we gave the chef / owner a good grilling.... Specially as it was not the cheapest thing on the weekly menu ....
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3871-8fa7cdea57954afd3d3035993efc817e.jpg
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3878-88c417230f3515babb789fe604359cec.jpg
At home, chicken legs with a cream, white wine, garlic, shallot, mustard, mushroom sauce. Served with Tagliatelle. A classic but always nice. Of course, any pasta shall be the "All Uovo" type (with egg)
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3876-49c4dfafe3ab4a593dfce958ac4450e5.jpg
A typical breakfast
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3870-a82e0947622ec757fa44cfafad2df7a9.jpg
Made some pancakes yesterday, but with a little variation. We did put apple slices in it. Peal the apple, slice it thin, and caramelize it in a pan with butter and sugar. To make sure the apple slices are well integrated in the pancake batter, put them in the pan first and pour the batter on top, not too thick, 2 or 3 mm maximum. It was a "premiere" for the Miss, and she liked it !
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3872-ce338ced7aae879959b9651fa8690c83.jpg
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3873-cf6144e51447535ea9a63183b0657eba.jpg
So this morning was pancake breakfast, Without apples because I was lazy. Homemade marmelade and real orange juice with oranges from the Missus Java orangery.
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3874-69e73b6823ee248875dacc4b92ca4815.jpg
Next week we should get a bit more "creative" !
Markit
Looks absolutely excellent - love the idea of grating them for the bottom of the pie. Now add some vanilla icecream and a grand dinner.
Have you ever substituted lard or coconut oil for the butter?
Balifrog
Lasagna yesterday evening.
Nothing complicated but still quite a bit of work
The Lasagna sheets are easy to find here, we buy them at Grand Lucky (they have 3 or 4 different brands)
, tomato paste, 1/2 finely chopped onion. beef stock, paprika, Basil or Thyme, Parsley, Garlic, salt pepper.
, grated Emmental, salt, pepper, nutmeg.
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3880-54f2f35bd54b5fcdb107729d97bbea8a.jpg
Then comes the "assembling" stage :
Layer of bechamel,
Lasagna sheets (note that I precook them 3 minutes in boiling water)
Layer of Bolognese
Layer of bechamel
Layer of grated Emmental
and repeat for 3 or 4 layers.
Egg yolk 1
Water 30 to 50 ml
Salt 3 g
Prepare the dough, put it 1 h in the fridge to make it easier to work later.
Prepare some grated apple, cook it with some sugar, butter and a bit of water. This will form the bottom layer.
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3891-1d669bb70085bd95a31ed476766f620d.jpg
Oven at 180g for about 30 / 35 min. As you see we had some extra dough, so I made an additional 2 small tarts.
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3892-9a54ddbbd8348d0129e6102af4c3dc41.jpg
The final result.
![](https://balipod.com/uploads/attachments/3893-cd21e1d7cba86a883aa576ebd9643bcd.jpg
And tasty it was. We had a bit of a disagreement with the Miss while preparing this, bringing me to tell her "better you sit down and care about your F.B., so I can work relax". Happens now and then, I am not easy in the kitchen.....
But she was a sport a just told me "It taste very nice in fact !"
Just another pensioner's day.
Dinner will be escalope milanaise, with spaghetti Missus style.
Balifrog
Markit wrote
Looks absolutely excellent - love the idea of grating them for the bottom of the pie. Now add some vanilla icecream and a grand dinner.
Have you ever substituted lard or coconut oil for the butter?
Not a fan of ice cream on a pie.
Never used lard, usually it's butter, oilive oil (or a combination of both) or duck fat.
Markit
Balifrog wrote
Not a fan of ice cream on a pie.
Never used lard, usually it's butter, oilive oil (or a combination of both) or duck fat.
As bizarre as it may sound Americans add a slice of good cheddar instead of ice cream, which sounds awful but with a good sweet apple pie can be wonderful.
Dori
We had a couple of ribeye steaks done on the barbecue today. My homemade chips, and tempura veggies to start. we kept it simple because we leave for Bali tomorrow.
My Spanish children love the apple crumble and custard I make.
Balifrog
Markit wrote
As bizarre as it may sound Americans add a slice of good cheddar instead of ice cream, which sounds awful but with a good sweet apple pie can be wonderful.
Cheese on apple pie....
And cheddar....to add insult to injury !
Markit
looks fantastic - used to love food and sauces with a touch of creme to make them richer but since coming here and having to pay real money (120k/liter) for creme and then throwing more than half of it away as it goes off before I can get to it, I've given up that luxury. Same with butter and most cheeses - used have dollops (tech term) of both in most things I'd make.
Before anyone worries about me wasting away I've kept up my calories with daily Bintang hydration.
Balifrog
harryopal1 wrote
I hope Market doesn't mean that weird orange coloured, sliced American cheese.
That stuff is banned in my kitchen.
As is the local "margarine". Awfull stuff, the Miss bought it once 5 y ago. I smelled it, looked at the color, and it went straigth it the bin.
And now she is an afficionnado of proper butter and olive oil !
Balifrog
Today's lunch : Paesant omelette, at least that is what I call it.
3 eggs, thin sliced pre fried baby potatoes, mushroom, ham, chives, and some baby carrots from the above can .
Of course some cream in the egg mix !
Served with toast and salted butter. Should have been some mixed salad as well, but I had none in the home....
, stir a few minutes, add sliced mushrooms, salt, pepper, a bit of cornflour, cook a few minutes. Deglace with wine wine, add chicken stock, put back the chicken, add cream, half a teaspoon of (French) mustard and let simmer till the sauce has a nice consistency. Add a bit if chive on top.
 green peas and carrots and mashed potato. No gravy as it would overwelm the flavour of the sauce in the pie.
 for creme and then throwing more than half of it away as it goes off before I can get to it, I've given up that luxury. Same with butter and most cheeses - used have dollops (tech term) of both in most things I'd make.
Before anyone worries about me wasting away I've kept up my calories with daily Bintang hydration.
I am with you on the cream, we buy only the small 200 ml cans, doesn't make it cheaper at 50k per 200 ml, but I hate the feeling of throwing half of a 1L can in the bin....
Concerning the butter, depending on the brand (President, Paysan Breton or Elle & Vire) prices are between 65 and 85k for 200 gr.
But both are the base of my cooking (with olive oil, again not cheap) so there is no way around.
harryopal1
Balifrog wrote
I am with you on the cream, we buy only the small 200 ml cans, doesn't make it cheaper at 50k per 200 ml, but I hate the feeling of throwing half of a 1L can in the bin....
Concerning the butter, depending on the brand (President, Paysan Breton or Elle & Vire) prices are between 65 and 85k for 200 gr.
But both are the base of my cooking (with olive oil, again not cheap) so there is no way around.
I hope Market doesn't mean that weird orange coloured, sliced American cheese. There is a Green Valley New Zealand mozzarella cheese available here for about 120,000 Rph a kilo. As for Dori, leaving for Bali tomorrow. Good luck. Is this a holiday or long term visit?
