Here at Top Comments we round up some of the site's best, funniest, most mojo'd and most informative commentary. We depend on your help with talent spotting. If you see a comment that deserves recognition, please send it to topcomments at gmail by 6:30 pm Pacific/9:30pm Eastern. Please please please include a few words about why you sent it in as well as your user name) (even if you think we know it already :-)), so we can credit you with the find!
It's Sunday, so I must be cooking something. And I am. A lot of somethings. As I sit down to write this - a mere 2 hours before my publishing deadline, I have no idea which of the three things I've spent the day making will be the subject of the diary. I've had one vote, but unfortunately that dish is still in progress.
Anyway, your choices today were: French Onion Tart (like a quiche, but OMG, so much better!), Chocolate Raspberry Torte, and Shrimp Bisque. The bisque is what's on the stove right now. I've got about half an hour to the straining stage.
Thankfully, the comment hopper was relatively full.
The timing gods (karma? whatever) were on my side, so join me as my impulse purchase at Costco's seafood roadshow (plus some other ingredients, shown here):
Becomes this:
So the first thing to do is get the garnish ready, mainly because you need to get busy with the remaining 1.5 lbs of shrimp pronto. So take 1/2 pound of shrimp (the recipe calls for 21-25, which means 21 to 25 shrimp per pound, and I used 1 lb of that and 1 lb of U15) and remove shells. Reserve these shells. Cut the de-shelled shrimp into thirds. Reserve.
Then heat up some olive oil over high heat in a 12" skillet. Add 1/2 of the remaining shell-on shrimp and 1/2 of the reserved shrimp shells. (Shrimp shells retain an amazing amount of flavor, thus the inclusion here.) Saute until shrimp are a bold pink and the shells are brown. Remove these shrimp to a bowl and repeat with more olive oil and the remainder of shell on shrimp and shells.
So this next step is supposed to be more flamboyant. (Literally)
Return all shrimp to the pan and pour 1/3 cup warm brandy over shrimp. Wave lighted match over pan. When (or, in my case, IF) flame subsides, wait 10 seconds.
Then transfer shrimp and shells into food processor. Process for 10 seconds, until mix is finely ground.
In a dutch oven, melt 2 tbsp butter and add a diced carrot, celery rib, small onion and garlic clove, as well as the shrimp mix. Cook for about 5 minutes.
Now, add 1/2 cup of unbleached flour and cook for about a minute. THEN, add 4 cups of clam juice, 1 1/2 cups dry white wine, and a drained 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes.
(And a side note here - this is NOT the time to determine that you probably should have gone with a larger pot. Fortunately, it worked. BARELY.)
Bring to a boil over medium high heat, and then cover and simmer on low for 20 minutes. Now for the fun part - straining! To do this correctly, you should have a chinois. However, $100 for a conical strainer is SO not in my budget. I had one once, but the ex got it in the divorce. (Given that he was a chef and actually cooking a lot more than I was, and that it had been a gift from me, I can't begrudge him this. Much.) Instead, I used a fine mesh strainer and it worked fine. (And at $16, a freaking bargain compared to the "proper" tool!) Anyway, here I ladled the soup into the strainer and used a spatula to press down on the solids to extract the liquid. I used a bowl to remove the excess solids and I did this straining exercise a few times. While the soup is straining, clean the dutch oven.
Pour the strained liquid into the now-clean dutch oven and add 1 tbsp lemon juice, a pinch of cayenne pepper and 1 cup of heavy cream. Bring to a simmer over medium high heat. Add the reserved shrimp and cook for about 90 seconds. Add 2 tbsp dry sherry, with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve. Yum!
Without further ado, here are tonight's Top Comment nominees!
From dorkenergy:
Bradley Purcell notes "the administration has put together a group of top brass on record that it's time to get rid of DADT, again, much more than the Reps would ever have done. ... [I]t should be enough to put people to work for the solid yes votes who've carried water for this issue thus far." here, in MikeRayinBerkeley's diary
From ridemybike:
willrob shares a story about hate... and a friend.
breathtaking. It's from this diary.
From RiaD
Who liked this comment by ontheleftcoast in Brainwrap's diary.
From ScottyUrb:
Campaign ads from two neighboring states are making itzik shpitzik feel a tad bit nostalgic!
From carolita:
In brainwrap's diary Karma Happens, commenter means are the end provides an excellent answer to something I have always wondered: why are CEOs who destroy lives, the environment, and eventually their own companies, paid millions for their "services"?
Top Mojo excluding search-identifiable tip jars, first diary comments, Cheers and Jeers, and Mojo Friday:
1) You beat me to the punch by pollwatcher — 160
2) Well, in all fairness to the diarist... by Trix — 84
3) I still write hand written by gchaucer2 — 73
4) Well the polls and the media is beguiling! they by jovie131 — 71
5) Standard practice for the RNC is caging by zett — 69
6) Barack is looking INTENSE! by irishamerican — 67
7) Yahoo went to TOWN today on us by GoogleBonhoeffer — 65
8) I forget to mention that... by KingOneEye — 65
9) Yeah by Ottoe — 64
10) Thanks BWD by henlesloop — 64
11) I have a landline, by lilyvaldem — 63
12) sekritarmy getting sekrit recruits for the battle by kerflooey — 63
13) One of the Enduring Images from 2008 by JekyllnHyde — 62
14) What is it, CT night? by mem from somerville — 60
15) Fantastic! (Some photos for your great memories) by dmhlt 66 — 60
16) As Much As I Can, A "Virtual" Hand-written by webranding — 60
17) Alexi, do yourself a favor and put lawyers by jovie131 — 60
18) I've been hammering this on my blog by anastasia p — 60
19) I saw the story a day or so ago by Otteray Scribe — 59
20) Rolling Stone by FiredUpInCA — 58
21) Here you go - it's good - The Case for Obama: by Pirate Smile — 58
22) it was my daughter and me that spoke to him by aaraujo — 57
23) Wow, that's pretty blatant propaganda, by Jennifer Clare — 56
24) I still wonder by Diogenes2008 — 55
25) Does anyone edit anymore? by pollwatcher — 54
26) Oh Hai Whoknu! Pleez, Fur The Babies NO More War: by leonard145b — 54
27) Yes, have a look at this story - by Creosote — 53
28) wtf by Pizzapotamus — 53
29) Never forget.... by punditician — 52
30) saw this on the evening news by mdmslle — 51
31) sekrtiarmy excels in sports too by kerflooey — 51
Top Mojo with No Exclusions:
1) Tip Jar by Dog Chains — 396
2) They enthusiasm gap stole the tip jar! :) by blackwaterdog — 238
3) Tip Jar by jovie131 — 238
4) Tip Jar by Brainwrap — 228
5) If you haven't joined already... by KingOneEye — 197
6) Tip Jar by Alexi Giannoulias — 196
7) I never saw the gap . by indycam — 188
8) Tip Jar by webranding — 187
9) Tip Jar by turkmen — 180
10) Here's to those who do what has to be done by Seneca Doane — 173
11) You beat me to the punch by pollwatcher — 160
12) Tip Jar by teacherken — 139
13) Tip Jar by Jerome a Paris — 139
14) And don't get me started on water privatization, by Patric Juillet — 135
15) Tip Jar by LaFeminista — 125
16) BWD's Tip Jar (stolen by enthusiasm gap) here: by earicicle — 116
17) Tips for carrying on... by trs — 103
18) Rest in Peace, Barabara Billingsley by JekyllnHyde — 102
19) tips by whoknu — 98
20) TIPS by Trix — 97
21) Tip Jar by Cenk Uygur — 97
22) Well, in all fairness to the diarist... by Trix — 84
23) Tip Jar by joeotter — 83
24) Tip Jar by annieli — 82
25) Sincere condolences by Sandy on Signal — 79
26) Tips? Flames? by Something the Dog Said — 77
27) Tip Jar by Ojibwa — 77
28) There's a marching band playing now and they by marabout40 — 76
29) I still write hand written by gchaucer2 — 73
30) Well the polls and the media is beguiling! they by jovie131 — 71