Welcome to Epicure! This is a food blog that I'm putting together after watching too many friends' eyes glaze over when I excitedly explain how I got that meat to brown perfectly, those biscuits to finally double in size, or that I've learned the differences between mustard-hot and chili-hot. (Curious? Mustards, including wasabi and horseradish as members ofthe mustard family, are made spicy by isothiocyanates, which are released by enzymes in neighboring cells when damaged, and volatile at room temperature, and thus reach the nose before the mouth, causing what is described as "whole-head" heat; Capsacin is the chemical that causes chili-heat, and as it is not volatile at room temperatures, affects only the mouth.) Now if my friends and family get too much ranting from me on food, they have no one to blame but themselves. I'm also trying to get some practice doing food writing, and recipe development. Obviously, feedback is encouraged.

TURKEY
Last night I had some leftover turkey cutlets lying around. I pounded them to about 1/2" thickness, and stuffed them with a mixture of feta, dried rosemary, lemon juice and lemon zest. I sauteed them till brown, and finished them in the oven. I then made a pan sauce of chicken stock, lemon juice, and some of the feta that had leaked out and browned during cooking (I also added a bit more feta before sticking the pan in the oven). It was good.


What could have made it better?
Oregano, more lemon zest (I used to be very good at getting lemon zest with a cheese grater, but apparently no more), fresh rosemary, and calamata olives. I considered pine nuts, which are universally delicious, but that seems like a bit much. I could have used a little less lemon juice (thoroughly juice 1/2 lemon, as opposed to most of 1 lemon). Also, I should have used turkey breasts. Turkey cutlets are not a natural division of any part of the bird, but rather a pre-fab (somewhat) ready to use shortcut for the home cook; I know this because each piece in the package was wildly variant in size and shape, and generally not well suited to wrapping around a stuffing. Why poultry processors think that home cooks want pieces of meat that will take different amounts of time to cook, and not be suited as a group to the purpose at hand is beyond me. Finally, turkey breast cutlets are expensive. This is what I get for going to a bad Kroger.

What could have been done differently?
Most non-melting cheeses (melting cheeses are generally medium-moisture, medium-hard cheeses with a fat-to-protein ratio of or above 1) would work here, but when I think of variations, I go soft, such as goat cheese or possibly ricotta, or blue, because blue cheeses (except gorgonzola) crumble well, melt well, and are really tasty. Herbs like chives would work well with goat cheese, bacon would work well with blue cheeses, and ricotta could be used as a binder for a vegetable stuffing like spinach.

Pizza

I just got home, and a friend has gifted me with a perforated pizza pan. I don't bake much, having for years lacked a kitchen with a stable temperature, but if I recall(and intuit) correctly, this pan will produce high-quality thin crust pizza. There's also a Morrocan stuffed bread recipe that I wouldn't mind trying on it. Check back for updates.