Sunday, September 25, 2011

The SV Times Presents - Cooking with Kacyn

Hi, I'm Kacyn McPherson-Hill and as one of the top chefs in the city, I've been asked to write a cooking column.

I've agreed to use my lovely home kitchen for the column. You need some free counter space and a stove to cook most meals. A variety of cooking utensils and pots will make it easier though you can improvise that sometimes.

Today's recipe is Ratatouille - a french classic

Now my first cooking tip is always buy in season produce and the best quality ingredients that you can afford.
Ratatouille requires tomato paste, onion, a small eggplant, small zucchini and 1 largish red bell pepper.

My second cooking tip is to buy kitchen appliances that will save you time and make cooking a more enjoyable experience. I know that some chefs insist that all you need is a sharp knife; that you should chop and mix all ingredients yourself. If that puts you off the idea of cooking, then use an appropriate gadget. Cooking at home is healthier and cheaper than your average restaurant.

Of course, The Bistro where I work is not an average restaurant. Our food is very healthy, but it's not at all cheap.

I place each of the vegetables into this food processor which I've set to fine slice. It's important to keep the vegetables separate at this stage.

Once the vegetables are sliced, I put the tomato paste into a dish and carefully consecutively lay each type the vegetables on top, making sure that they overlap. See how I've made a pretty pattern with the assembled layers.

I recommend starting in the center and working your way outwards. Drizzle with olive oil, add a dash of salt and pepper.

Place the dish in a hot oven and bake for about 40 minutes.

You want the vegetables are releasing their juices but not completely limp.


Remove from the oven and serve on a plate with some good crusty French bread. Suitable for lunch or a light dinner.

11 comments:

  1. This was great! :) Now I'm starving for ratatouille...

    LOL, I love how Kacyn defends the reputation of the restaurant she works in. Now that's loyalty. I will hand it to her though, I've never seen my sims come out of the Bistro with unhealthy foods, outside of the insanely decadent deserts. ;)

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  2. Thanks Cheezy - I actually looked up instructions on how to make ratatouille - just to keep it real. LOL

    Well, she loves cooking and she loves her job so she has to defend her restaurant some. And it is expensive.

    The Camdens are in town, if you feel like writing an article or three for Alex. I'm glad you stopped by.

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  3. I will definitely start thinking up some scenarios for the Dear Alex column, thanks for letting me know. :)

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  4. Alex and family did get a quick intro in the last edition of The SV Times
    http://nicarralovessims.blogspot.com/2011/08/sv-times-gnu-gnus-daily.html

    It is very easy to miss updates in this blog - very erratic in posts. :)

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  5. So, should I just go ahead and click "new post", or do you want me to email the post to you first for proofreading and the like? I think I have an idea, but I just wanted to know which way you wanted me to publish it. :)

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  6. Mmm, never has sim food looked so delicious. @_@

    She definitely makes making ratatouille sound easy, as well! I'm with Cheezy, she makes me wanna try making it myself.

    *snickers* 'The Bistro where I work is not an average restaurant'--hehehe... Of course you have to say that, dear. ;) Tee hee. She would know better than most, though!

    Cute little how-to! :D

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  7. Hey Cheezy, you can hit new post - just keep saving - don't hit publish. It will stay as draft until publish. Or email it to me if you prefer. :) But they can stay in draft ready for publish forever.

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  8. Hey Kaleeko,

    Yes, the food does sound like something to try. I was using the description from the top version of the recipe from punchfork.com. :)

    You have to give customers some reason to come or the boss might fire you. LOL

    Thanks !!

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  9. Oooh, from Punchfork eh? That's really cool!

    I've actually fallen SUPER in love with that site since you introduced me to it--there isn't a lot of stuff I can make from it usually because my husband's super finicky, but man, they have some really awesome recipes on there! Pulls from sites I'd never heard of before... I rummage around them constantly now, lol. ^-^

    You always do introduce me to the coolest things though, so it shouldn't surprise me too much! :D

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  10. Kaleeko - I'm glad you love punchfork too. It's definitely cool the way it calculates recipe ratings.

    Still reading PostSecrets?

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  11. Yeah! It really has an awesome selection of stuff--I've made a few recipes off there so far, and got a few lined up for this next week. I can't do it too often though because most of the recipes call for things I don't generally keep handy round the house. x_x

    And yep--read it every Sunday the moment I see it in my feedreader. :D

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