July | 2009 | Eric Rivera's Cooking Blog

IxaRiveraCooks: Feed Dad then Girls Night Out!

July 31, 2009 by ericriveracooks

This is where I get it from. Mom knows how to keep things simple but always knows how to add flair to her food. Good stuff happens after this sentence. “Here is what I fixed Dad before I went out. Keep him happy with food, of course. Menu Chick peas yellow rice with sofrito. Chicken breast with lots of garlic, onions, hot peppers, bell peppers and basil. (hot peppers from the garden and also the basil) Avocados bought from a […]

Categories: IxaRiveraCooks, Puerto Rican Style • Tags: Cooking, Dinner, Food, Puerto Rican Style, recipe, Yellow Rice

Taylor Shellfish in Shelton, WA

July 31, 2009 by ericriveracooks

Thinking about doing a dungeness crab boil? Where do you start first? Well the first place you should start is by finding a great supplier of dungeness crab. Yes, you can go to Pike Place Market, QFC, or any other grocery store or even Farmers Market (Taylor Shellfish is at a few of them) or you could go straight to the source! Why do I make things hard on myself? I don’t know! I talked to my friend Jimmie and […]

Categories: Random Rants, Recommended Places to Shop • Tags: Crab, Dungeness Crab, Oysters, Shelton, Taylor Shellfish

Soups Du Jour

July 31, 2009 by ericriveracooks

4 soups our team made in class yesterday Minestrone (Click here for recipe) Tomato Basil (Click here for recipe) Black Bean Soup (Click for recipe) Beef Consomme (Click for recipe) Soups on!

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Soup • Tags: Beef Consomme, Black Bean Soup, Cooking, Cooking Blog, Food, Minestrone, recipe, Soup, Tomato Basil

Anthony’s Fish Bar

July 31, 2009 by ericriveracooks

(Click each picture to make it larger) I’ll always have a special place in my stomach for walk up style food places. Seattle has a nice mix of these types of places but I always have to stop when it involves seafood. A few months ago I was walking around Federal Way and I happened to stop by the early opening of Salty’s Fish Bar (click here). Yesterday class let out a little early and I had a few hours […]

Categories: Random Rants, Recommended Places to Shop • Tags: Anthony's Fish Bar, Restaurant, Seafood, Seattle

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500th Post!

July 31, 2009 by ericriveracooks

When I started this site in January of 2009 (Click here for the first post) I figured I would only be posting two or three recipes per week but after a week of posting I realized that this site was going to turn into my new monster. Things always seem to happen backwards for me, I started a cooking blog with barely any refined skills, was hired by a sauce and spread company, wrote recipes for a few websites (Foodbuzz, […]

Categories: Random Rants • Tags: 500th Post, Cooking, Cooking Blog, Food, recipe

Top 9 Recipe on Foodbuzz today!

July 31, 2009 by ericriveracooks

Check it out: http://www.foodbuzz.com/top9

Categories: Random Rants • Tags: Foodbuzz

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Format change

July 31, 2009 by ericriveracooks

I will be changing the way I post recipes on this here crazy blog blog o’rama. I talked to Chef tonight and she told me that I need to make my format clearer to other Chefs and anyone reading my recipes at all times. The way I do things is comfortable to me but I realize that I need to standardize them in order for everyone else to understand them. Be patient with me as I tinker around with this. […]

Categories: Random Rants

Lots of recipes and lots of posts lately

July 30, 2009 by ericriveracooks

It’s only going to get more intense. In class we are starting to crank out so many recipes so sit back, relax, and get ready for a nice culinary ride. Cooking classic recipes is a little nerve wracking but at the end of the day it’s the same process, prep, cook, present, eat, and clean up. Realizing that keeps me calm and if I mess up on something it’s not the end of the world, it probably just needs more […]

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Random Rants

Black Bean Soup

July 29, 2009 by ericriveracooks

This recipe is from A Taste of Puerto Rico, Too! Everything You Need To Know About Puerto Rican Cooking By: Angela Spenceley Equipment Needed: Large Stock Pot Ladle Saute Pan Ingredients: 1 lb. dried black beans, soaked, rinsed and picked over for small stones and broken beans 1 1/2 quarts chicken stock 1 small ham bone, with meat on it 2 ounces diced salt pork 1/2 cup annatto oil 8 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed 3/4 cup minced onion 4 […]

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Soup • Tags: Black Bean Soup

Minestrone

July 29, 2009 by ericriveracooks

(Picture) Ok, I found the perfect recipe for this. I was at the Spanish Table in Seattle the other day and I purchased 2 Serrano Ham Hocks with the intention of making a soup. I didn’t know what kind of soup I would be making but I knew that delicious pig piece would be part of it. In class I’m going to present this recipe to our team, we have another teammate that is vegetarian so I need to do […]

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Soup • Tags: Cooking, Minestrone, recipe, Soup

Beef or Chicken Consomme

July 29, 2009 by ericriveracooks

I’ll be making this in class so I’ll post revisions soon Equipment Needed: High sided narrow pot Ladle Chinois Coffee Filter Paper Towel Ingredients: 1 gallon stock 1-2 lbs. beef shank or chicken 1 1/2 lbs. mirepoix with leek Sachet d’epices, naked….it doesn’t need to be wrapped Tomato product, paste or fresh tomatoes (1-2 tomatoes) 5-6 egg whites PROTECT THE RAFT!!! Procedure: Mix the egg whites until fluffy. Combine the egg whites, meat, and tomatoes in stock pot. Add the […]

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Soup • Tags: Beef, Chicken, Consomme, Dinner, Food, recipe

Remember that photoshoot I told you I was doing?

July 29, 2009 by ericriveracooks

PHOTO COURTESY OF SOUND BITES Here is the Hazelnut Pesto and Pasta I made for the shoot. I didn’t arrange it on the plate and I didn’t take the picture. I’m probably the worst person for photoshoots because I was worried about flavor the entire time. The pasta tasted amazing so I did my job! Anyway, I’ll post some more pictures in a separate post.

Categories: Random Rants • Tags: Pasta, Pesto, Photoshoot, Sound Bites

Ray’s Boathouse Inspired Crab and Corn Chowder

July 28, 2009 by ericriveracooks

(Click each picture to make it larger….yes, I know the presentation sucks) I was in Costco today getting a few things for class and I stumbled around the book section and found a good one! Ray’s Boathouse: Secret Recipes of The Northwest. They are a staple in Washington for great seafood and they have been around since 1939 when it was an actual boathouse but later moved into being what it is today, a great restaurant in Seattle. There are […]

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Seafood • Tags: Chowder, Cooking, Cooking Blog, Corn and Crab Chowder, Dinner, Ray's Boathouse, recipe, Seattle

Leftover crab night!

July 28, 2009 by ericriveracooks

Crab Fritters (Click here for recipe) served with Tabasco and fresh oregano Toasted Baguette with oregano, paprika, and crab with a little melted cheese (The cheese is awesome I’m keeping the variety as my secret). Ray’s Boathouse Inspired Corn and Crab Chowder (Click here for recipe)

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Seafood • Tags: Baguette, Chowder, Cooking Blog, Crab, Crab Recipe, Dinner, Food, Leftover, recipe

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Steps for making a soup:

July 28, 2009 by ericriveracooks

Always follow these and you’ll be in great shape! #1 Start with fat. Usually butter or olive oil #2 Add your mirepoix #3 Add your main ingredient, what is the theme for your soup? Tomato? Zucchini? #4 Season it! #5 Add liquid. Are you going to use a stock or just water? #6 Simmer, don’t boil! #7 Adjust, do you need more seasoning or more stock? #8 Puree or strain. If you puree then you must strain! #9 Determine consistency. […]

Categories: Becoming A Chef: Blogging about Culinary School, Soup • Tags: Cooking, Cooking Blog, Dinner, recipe, Soup, Steps for making a soup, Technique

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Eric Rivera's Cooking Blog

Food, because I just want an excuse to cook.

Monthly Archives: July 2009

IxaRiveraCooks: Feed Dad then Girls Night Out!

Taylor Shellfish in Shelton, WA

Soups Du Jour

Anthony’s Fish Bar

500th Post!

Top 9 Recipe on Foodbuzz today!

Format change

Lots of recipes and lots of posts lately

Black Bean Soup

Minestrone

Beef or Chicken Consomme

Remember that photoshoot I told you I was doing?

Ray’s Boathouse Inspired Crab and Corn Chowder

Leftover crab night!

Steps for making a soup:

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