(I only use the vodka for cooking and I have only used it for strawberry ice cream so far - really!)
I pulled out one of my favorite cookbooks for breakfast on Monday. I found a great recipe for yeast doughnuts that didn't require any rise time. However, between arbitrating a couple arguments and changing diapers, the dough got plenty of rest. I found that if I kept the leftover doughnuts (yes, we had leftovers) on the rack over the baking sheet in the cold oven, the doughnuts maintained a great texture - even hours later. I have usually transferred them to a container or put them in a bag and they get soggy and rubbery. The oven kept them dry, but not so exposed that they dried out.
I didn't get to taste the chicken spiedies from our impromptu party (see post below), so I made more tonight. I also wanted to make potatoes, but it was too hot to slave over a stove for our usual home fries Ala' Grandpa Gray. So, I thought I'd try gilling them. They turned out really good. I sliced a russet potato thick (with the skin on). I boiled them in very salty water just until they were barely tender. Then, I drained them and spread them out on a baking sheet. Cooks Illustrated recommends that you apply seasoning to the warm potatoes for their potato salad recipe, so I thought I would try seasoning my potatoes while they were still warm. I made a seasoned oil with olive oil, seasoned salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Then, I brushed all the potato slices on both sides. They sat with these seasonings for about half an hour before I put them on the grill. By the time I did put them on the grill, a lot of the oil had been soaked up. The dry heat of the grill resulted in a nice crispy potato with a light crust from the seasonings - yum. I did apply some butter to remoisten the slices when I ate them, but you don't really have to do this. The chicken was delicious (thank you, Allison!).
