Welcome to Parmesan & Cilantro!

So this posting will be my official foodie-blog launch. I've spent the past few days customizing the background and text. (Let me know what you think, I couldnt find a template I liked and then the design I came up with wasnt working with blogger. This was my compromise.) I've also decided to (try and) organize my postings by following a schedule.

Sunday Dinners: These will be your meals that take half an afternoon to make.

Manic Mondays: My equivalent to 30-minute meals (or less!)

Tips and Tools Tuesdays: I'll offer any little tricks that I pick up on my own, read about or stole from Food Network! Please share all of your tips too!!

and

Fresh Fridays or Fridge Fridays: This will be either new recipes I've tried or want to try or a recipe for dinner from what ever is in my fridge right now.

On other days, I may just post what I made for dinner tonight. If there's no posting then chances are good I'm in class and Dave served the boys (and himself) chicken nuggets (or ordered pizza.)

So, as to the title of this blog, Parmesan and Cilantro. Basically, right now those are my two favorite ingredients to use in the cooking.
Garam masala or garlic are a close third, but we'll get into those in another blog.

I've always heard that it is better to grate or shred you own parmesan cheese rather than using the pre-grated stuff we all love to sprinkle on our spaghetti and meatballs. I've just always been put off by the price of a block of parmigiano reggiano...and the more expensive the better tasting (supposedly!)

After we returned from Florida in January, I had to go grocery shopping, of course. Wegman's had a display of parmigiano reggianoin the middle of the aisle. I gave in and bought a small block of cheese. I wanted to taste the difference for myself.

My taste-test was going to be parmesan cheese rounds, Cesare salad and parmesan-encrusted chicken or tilapia. (I cant remember if I made chicken or fish at the time, but I've done both since.) It was the parmesan cheese rounds that offered the greatest authentic flavors for sampling. For those who do not know, parmesan cheese rounds are basically baked parmesan cheese. They ridiculously easy to make and yummy, yummy, yummy!!

Shred about 1 cup to 1 1/2 cups of parmigiano reggiano. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet and then spread the shredded cheese on the parchment paper into little piles. I usually make piles about the size of my palm and pile the cheese evenly about 1/4 of an inch high. You can either put them under the broiler for 3-4 minutes (watch carefully) or pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees and bake for 10-12 minutes. I've learned that the cooking time varies by the quality of the cheese. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before devouring.
Broiling gives the edges a nice crunch while the middle remains mailable and chewy. Whereas baking gives an even texture throughout.