Good morning all!
That banner image caught your attention didn’t it?
I hoped it would.
After writing, cooking, researching and documenting these here posts for over ten years now it was inevitable that some of the components would evolve by sheer repetition alone.
In some cases the improvements were definitely intentional. The lighting, staging and sheer volume of pictures per episode for example.
Others are less obvious, like the use of new spices and preparation techniques.
This season had a very specific focus.
Slowly and steadily my food photography is improving.
Check this shit out.
That’s cool as fuck.
Now compare that to my very first food photo for this Sunday Gravy thing. This is from the Mother Sauce episode – June 4th 2015 – my second post ever. The very first episode of Sunday Gravy didn’t even have a photo that I took.
Not terrible but yeah I can do better than that.
Also compare that with my first effort at plating.
The goulash episode from June 28 2015.
Yeah. Boy howdy. There’s a lot of shit going down in that photo. Don’t get me wrong that is still a dynamite recipe but DAMN.
Now I think you see the point I’m trying to make over here.
Sunday Gravy isn’t just research, and cooking and writing, the photos have become a big part of this motherfucker and the very least I could do is get better at them.
I think I’m making progress in that regard.
Now I bet your next question is going to be about those potatoes.
Call it a hunch.
Yes, those are fondant or “melting” potatoes and not scallops. I just discovered them myself and felt like giving it the old test kitchen try.
That’s yet another element. The food artistry itself. It’s one thing to make the pictures pretty, it’s a whole nother damn thing making the subject of the photo worth taking a picture of in the first fucking place.
The potatoes looked photo worthy and the description sounded incredible so I was all in.
All we needed was a tasty protein selection and we were all set.
Let’s start with the chicken first.
Garlic and balsamic glaze chicken!
recipe inspiration from themediterraneandish.com again.
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoon balsamic glaze, store-bought is fine
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon honey
1 lemon, juice of – or do what I did and add 1/4 cup of orange juice having forgot the lemon at the store
4 to 5 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon sweet paprika
For The Chicken
5-8 boneless and skinless chicken thighs, (about 1 ½ pounds)
Kosher salt and black pepper
Go ahead and grab hold of your chicken.
Thighs of course.
Let’s get that marinade going. Oh yeah. This rested overnight in the fridge. Should probably mention that.
Ever mess around with this stuff? Balsamic glaze? Me neither. First time.
Guess that’s why I used store bought. Shame on my ass for that since it turns out making balsamic glaze is as easy as adding some brown sugar to balsamic vinegar, bring to a boil and cook down for 20 minutes.
You can probably guess that you’ll see that shit done in the future.
A little honey and tomato paste then mince up the garlic.
Do the same with the thyme.
Don’t forget to salt and pepper up that chicken.
Then bag that shit up with the marinade for an overnight nap.
The next day, remove the bag from the fridge and let rest at room temperature for an hour or two.
Preheat the oven to 385-390 degrees.
Dump that chicken into a disposable roasting pan.
And bake for 30-35 minutes.
First attempt at cooking this dish and my brain calculated “honey, glaze, citrus etc” and the choice for disposable pan became obvious.
If it’s the first try, don’t fuck with your long time kitchen gear. Ain’t worth it.
Thought we could get the chicken out of the way before we start talking about those potatoes.
They may look like a lot of work but they’re really not. It’s basically an extra step or two.
Ready for this shit?
Fondant potatoes!
recipe courtesy of RecipeTinEats.com
2-4 large floury potatoes, peeled. Russet potatoes are perfect for this
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil – divided
3 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 1/2″ cubes
6 thyme sprigs (sub 1/2 tsp dried thyme)
1 cup chicken stock / broth, low sodium (or vegetable)
We begin by cutting out the potatoes.
That’s a small gauge biscuit cutter there in the upper right.
You know, you don’t even have to do the shaping thing. You could just cut these into inch and a half thick wedges and they would still taste incredible. For me though? The visual was what I was after.
Toss the potatoes with one half of the olive oil and the salt and pepper.
For cooking you will need butter and stock. I used homemade veggie stock but chicken stock would rock the shit too.
Add the remaining olive oil to your cast iron skillet and heat that fucker up.
The potatoes will sear in the olive oil for 5-6 minutes per side.
You want to use some care here. The trick is to keep that golden brown crust right there because that’s the deliciousness, so if you have to use a non-stick pan I totally understand. I just like the fact that my skillet can go directly from the top burner to inside the oven. It sure doesn’t hurt that this skillet is in its goddamn prime and seasoned perfectly. No sticking issues for me.
After searing the second side toss in the butter and thyme.
Then we add the stock.
The general concept here is the potatoes will absorb the stock as they cook and will continue to cook in the butter.
At this point you just want to bring this to a steady simmer before putting the skillet in the oven for 30 minutes. Hey! It cooks at the same temp as the chicken!
How very fucking handy!
How about one more close up before dropping this in the oven?
Oh shit yeah.
After the 30 minutes have elapsed we are ready for dinner dammit!
To the plate!
One final close up of the entire dish.
You really want this. Really, really!
Absolutely excellent. That chicken has the sweet balsamic glaze going but those notes of citrus are right there and we have enough garlic to punch right through to your goddamn taste buds. This is easy as shit to make and can easily become part of your regular rotation. It’s damn good.
Now.
Those potatoes?
That might be the best potato I’ve ever fucking eaten. That shit really does melt. They’re fucking AMAZING. That outside crunch from the fond also brings a lot of flavor but good lord these are killer.
Think about it. There’s another way to make potatoes! And it’s pretty simple to do!
You know what would be fucking insane? Serve these potatoes with a steak or pork chops then drizzle a pan sauce from the meat juices on top.
Holy shit I just blew my own fucking mind!
The recipes that I read frequently mentioned these as “Special Occasion” potatoes and I can understand why but you can make them any time. One of the food writers cracked me when she said she just makes a big batch of potatoes and the whole family makes a goddamn meal out of nothing but these potatoes.
Yes. They really are all of fucking that.
Once again this is one of the perks I’ve discovered in my 10 seasons of writing Sunday Gravy. Once in awhile you’ll find something brand new that just twists your brain and makes you say “Glory fucking Hallelujah!”
Another way to prepare a potato?
Get the fuck out of here.
Glad you all stopped by today and I sincerely hope you give this shit a try. I can officially put my gold fucking stamp of approval on this motherfucker right here.
Be well everyone and enjoy the Euros and Copa action today.
See you again next Sunday.
PEACE!
aliyah boston/caitlin clark gonna be this generation’s karl malone/john stockton
willing this into existence simply to erase those two assholes
(that and im pretty sure malone and stockton will be miffed at the comparison. fuck em.)
Clark continuing the Pacers’ and Stockton’s proud traditions of never winning a championship?
unlike the pacers, fever have actually proven they can win a title, tho
I just bit my tongue really badly, the side of my tongue with my molars. It’s quite incredibly painful. This sucks.
I’ve been there, it’s awful.
I hate knowing that I managed to hurt myself doing nothing more than merely existing. It’s like waking up in the morning with a sore shoulder or whatever because you “slept wrong.”
The worst part is now your tongue will be swollen and it just increases the likelihood of doing it all over again.
I bite the inside of my lower lip way too often.
“Late Fullkrug Header” sounds like some kind of congenital defect
Better get your fill of soccer teams by nationality playing each other in a convoluted tournament setup, won’t see anything until 2 months from now at the Olympics.
Holy shit, Hungary!
Just put some laundry in, and that’s enough work for now. Time for a cocktail!
I’ve liked using rosemary simple syrup as an ingredient, and they had fresh lavender at the market this morning, so time for a new experiment!
Lavender Collins seems like a good start:
“Lavender Collins” is also my drag name.
It’s an excellent one.
You gotta admit, Germany coming from behind is very on brand.
Really? I thought they usually got off to a fast start, then get bogged down in the midgame before collapsing at the end
Your experiences with them is far more specific than mine, WW2 references aside. Also, I’m sorry things turned out that way.
Sehr gut, ja?
Winner winner, almost Fondue dinner.
You cursed it.
Unusual for a Swiss fan to have bad timing.
Die Meinshaft, Die!
No, Helmut, if your erection has lasted more than four hours, you should seek medical attention, don’t just yell at it.
Found a funny:
Age 10: I want to be a baseball player
Age 20: I want to be a writer
Age 30: I want to be happy
Today: I want to vanish in a corn maze
preparing to watch WNBA Toxic Discourse Bowl III (fever vs sky, clark vs reese)
Will it be an elbow to the head or an obvious trip?
Hahaha
The British guy just said they couldn’t find any highlights from the Scotland vs Hungary game
What the what???
My word! This match between the Prussians and the Helveticans has been about as enjoyable as watching elephants defecate in the Serengeti. The Three Lions will surely produce more palatable entertainment!
Germany should score before halftime to make this game interesting…
That would be Rocking!
Is Germany’s kit always mostly white?
That’s a coincidence most of the time and you should feel bad for pointing it out.
Nope.
Would you prefer a uniform that was mostly black? That might bring back some painful memories for the Bernsteins and Gerschwitzes of the world.
I just do not remember them wearing dark kit ever, I probably not seen enough matches.
THIS SCOTLAND-HUNGARY GAME I CALL IT OVALTINE BECAUSE CONSUMING IT IS CAUSING ME TO WANT TO GO TO SLEEP.
Rich chocolate Ovaltine?
I am also watching from bed, which ain’t helping matters none.
Shame bed?
Which of the two Euro games should I watch?
Scotland has MOAR stakes. Germany and the Swiss might be a snoozefest.
That’s what I was thinking too.
Better commentators too, though the match is pretty meh so far
BOTH
Actually…I have an old TV that is just sitting in a closet, it would be a simple matter to bring it down and plug it in.
I don’t know if there was some kind of crazy surplus or something but potatoes have been on sale for $0.99 for a ten pound bag lately. Which is why I had potatoes for breakfast yesterday and then again today.
Sounds like someone needs to start making vodka.
Breakfast is one of my favorite times to eat a potato.
But I never have a traditional breakfast unless I’m posting it here.
I wonder what it’d be like having interesting and engaging in-laws. Is anyone in this position?
Nope.
Today in “Dunstan Learns Shit About Soccer From ‘Welcome to Wrexham'”: until now, I totally thought that a “derby” was specifically a cross-town rivalry like Man C/ Man U or Liverpool/Everton. But apparently it’s just any rivalry, and teams can have multiple “derbies”?
This concept is a good way to start a bar fight amongst the harder core footy enthusiasts.
I mean, it doesn’t take much, does it?
TRUE DAT
In the future, does Pretend Everton have a fierce derby with Mars United?
Pretend Everton are down in League 1 now, there could be interplanetary sides there.
[pulls knife]
YES IT DOES!
Found a funny:
indie rock guy releasing an album called “Allegations” to muddy the waters a bit on wikipedia
Pitchfork gives it #Texas/20 things you’ve never heard of.
Time to get some stretching in then it’s off for the morning walk.
Fucking gorgeous outside.
Wearing green today, let’s git r DUN, Bo Livia!!
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/cafe/how-americas-rich-legacy-of-fear-and-hatred-fuels-the-conspiracy-theories-of-today
Why talk about it? Capitalize on these freaks.
I’d never con my mother out of money. But her idiot FoxNews friends…..oh hell yes. They are BEGGING to be the victims of a huge scam then die.
I haven’t made fondant potatoes in forever. Maybe it’s because I made them for a family get-together once and my hill people in-laws whined about there being no mashed potatoes. Grown adults, whining about the lack of mashed potatoes. Goddamn it.
That shit infuriates me, or would if anyone tried to pull that with me.
If you believe that “it’s not Thanksgiving without [your beloved dish, which is probably some gross green bean casserole or marshmallow-festooned monstrosity that nobody who wasn’t conditioned from birth to like it would enjoy], then either volunteer to make/bring the damn thing, or stay the fuck home.”
I’m a terrible food snob, but if someone’s hosting me, I would never bitch and moan about it, even if they served the aforementioned shitty dishes.
My father doesn’t eat orange vegetables because of traumatic casseroles as a kid. He actually uses it as a test for restaurants now, if they cook a carrot or similar well enough that he doesn’t hate it then it’s a good place
Years ago my friend had a dog that had to be put on a diet. The vet said that he could eat all the carrots he wanted. Turns out the number of carrots he wanted was zero.
I mean, if you were in the kitchen cutting some carrots, he would do his usual begging, but when you tossed him a carrot, he would remember that he didn’t like them and let it fall out of his mouth.
One time wifey made deviled eggs with duck eggs and one of my SIL’s would not shut up about how terrible it was. I finally said, “They’re not terrible, YOU don’t like it. There’s a difference and I can’t believe I have to explain this to an adult!”
/I’m so far out in front as the leading causer of awkward silences, no one is ever going to catch me
You. I like you!
They’re at fault for the awkward silence. They need to volley back with something that makes YOU shut up.
You sound like an open carry American.
At thanksgiving or Christmas other than the turkey, everything else is optional. Hell, if you tell me that you’re doing whatever instead of turkey , I’m still good with that. My BIL does prime rib instead of a bird and it’s just as delicious
Fancy dinners that I didn’t need to make myself are the bestest
Also when making Mashed Potatoes, I now leave the skin on, as it saves an hour of peeling for something that will be inhaled in about 0.003 seconds once done with no mention of the skins
If you use a food mill instead of a masher, the skins basically get taken out anyway.
Yeah, that’s my reaction to the annual Hot Takes that “turkey is terrible and I don’t know why we have it for [insert holiday]” — it’s not a fucking law, make whatever you like! Oh, you’re not the one who hosts and cooks the meal? Well how about you serve yourself up a giant plate of shut the fuck up, then?
(Also, these Hot Takes are usually backed up with “if roast turkey is so great, then how come we only have it once or twice a year?” Well, smart guy, how many times a year do you gather enough people together with enough advance notice to buy and defrost a 10+ pound bird, especially since whole turkey is a pain in the ass to find the rest of the year?)
This is how I feel but it always seems to come out as, “and it’s not fuckoffington without your opinion.”
Send them to Boston Market and enjoy your potatoes in peace!
oh, my ex-wife (and her family) bitched to no end about no mashed potatoes*. Future Thanksgivings, they insisted on making enough to feed a goddamned army, 90% of which went down the disposal.
*perhaps because of our delicate constitutions, we typically made rice instead (along with yams), who doesn’t like fresh turkey and gravy over rice? Is delicious!
“There. Now they’re mashed. Bone appetite.”
Name checks out…
I am Scotchnaut. Of the Hill People!
Much has he seen and much has he done.
None of which the authorities can know about.
Jeez Dude you dun outdid yourself. Now I gotta try these fondant tatters.
I regularly see culinary writers advise that most balsamic vinegar that’s sold isn’t “real” balsamic vinegar, you have to get the authentic stuff that was aged for blah blah blah in wood from trees that were exactly 53 and a half years old for five months beginning and ending on the night of a full moon, etc. etc., which of course costs a gajillion dollars for a tiny bottle, at which point I shrug and say “nope, for something I hardly ever use, I’m going with the cheap stuff.”
The best stuff is only slightly better than decent name brands. You want to avoid the cheap stuff but here good is fine, the finest is over priced.
I have a similar thing with olive oil — for 95% of the things I use olive oil for, I’m never going to notice the difference of a top-notch brand, and since it’s perishable it isn’t worth keeping a separate bottle around of “the good stuff.”
If you are ever concerned about keeping a good olive oil for too long let me know and I will bring a nice loaf of crusty bread and finish the bottle for you
Wifey, a life long Italian lady and professional home cook, cannot tolerate olive oil that is too strong. This is our go to, if they sell it by you I’d recommend it. Fairly priced, good stuff. This is the mild option I like thier regular strength stuff too if you want more flavor.
That’s good to know-I keep reading articles about several brands of olive oil over here being a sham.
I know it, buy it and use it all of the time.
I get some of the good stuff, but it’s for stuff like drizzling over mozzerella along with a good olive oil, where you can really taste it.
Vinaigrette is my reason for needing the good stuff.
I hate hotel furniture, looks great but completely uncomfortable. Leather couch is horrifically slick. Even just sitting naturally, you slide off. I want a hotel where the chairs are lazy boy recliners.
I genuinely thought Courtyard’s furniture is great. The Dr. Evil-style chairs look weird, but it’s far too easy to fall asleep in one.
https://youtu.be/LVQzp9tSdA8?si=zTBKOXvrk16_sW1o
Bail… ASAP
Wish I could, wish I could.
Now Yeah Right is back!