- 2 days ago
- #realityrealmus
#RealityRealmUS
Reality Realm US
🎞 Please subscribe to our official channel to watch the full movie for free, as soon as possible. ❤️Reality Insight Hub❤️
👉 Official Channel: />👉 THANK YOU ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00Cook's Country is about more than just getting dinner on the table.
00:04We're also fascinated by the people and stories behind the dishes.
00:09We go inside kitchens in every corner of the country to learn how real people cook.
00:15And we look back through time to see how history influences the way we eat today.
00:21We bring that inspiration back to our test kitchen so we can share it with you.
00:26This is Cook's Country.
00:30Today on Cook's Country, Christy makes Bridget a fresh and bright pesto lasagna.
00:39And I talk about the history of lasagna.
00:42Hannah reviews electric wine openers.
00:44And Morgan makes the ultimate Caesar salad.
00:47That's all right here on Cook's Country.
00:49You don't have to put tomatoes in a lasagna.
01:03Just ask the Italians.
01:04In the northern city of Genoa where basil pesto is king, that's what they use to flavor a beautiful light version.
01:12Now Christy's here and she's going to show us how to make this new-to-me version of lasagna at home.
01:18Well, Bridget, lasagna is delicious, but it's often really heavy.
01:22Right.
01:23But when you start with a bright, flavorful pesto, then it really lightens everything up and it can almost feel like a summery version of your hearty, hearty lasagna.
01:34Okay, I'm intrigued.
01:37Some lasagna start with ricotta, some start with cottage cheese.
01:40For this one, we're going to start with a bechamel.
01:43All right.
01:43I've melted seven tablespoons of unsalted butter over medium heat.
01:49And then we know that to thicken, we need to start with a roux.
01:53So we have our fat and we need an equal amount of flour.
01:56So I have seven tablespoons of all-purpose flour.
02:00We're just going to whisk this in to make sure that the flour and the butter have combined and we have a chance to cook out any of that raw flavor.
02:10We only want this to go for about a minute.
02:12Okay.
02:13So that's come together.
02:15Now I'm going to slowly add some milk.
02:19So I have five and a half cups of whole milk.
02:21We just want to go slowly at the beginning so that we can make sure that the milk gets worked in and we don't have any big clumps.
02:30So I'm going to turn my heat up to medium-high and just bring this to a boil.
02:34Okay.
02:35You can see that we're just about at a boil.
02:38So I'm going to add my last two ingredients to the bechamel.
02:41I have a teaspoon of ground black pepper.
02:44Okay.
02:45And an eighth of a teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
02:47Now I'm going to whisk this constantly until it gets nice and thick.
02:52And you'll definitely be able to tell as soon as that happens.
02:55It should only take about a minute.
02:58All right.
02:58We have thickened.
02:59And now we're going to transfer to a big bowl so it'll cool down a little bit while we make our pesto.
03:04Okay, great.
03:05So we'll let it sit here for about 20 minutes.
03:07Great.
03:08The bechamel's done.
03:09Now it's time to talk about pesto.
03:11Yes.
03:11When you're prepping basil, you know, as soon as you start to cut into it or tear it, it starts to bruise and starts to get brown.
03:20Right.
03:20It's the oxidation.
03:21Exactly.
03:22And pesto does the same thing.
03:23As soon as it's all mixed up, it's great for two seconds and then it's brown.
03:26So we found that if we blanch the basil before we make the pesto, it's going to hold that nice green color a little longer.
03:33Okay.
03:34Now, I happen to have my water for my pasta already boiling.
03:38Okay.
03:38There's four quarts of water here.
03:40So I'm going to add a tablespoon of salt to the water.
03:44And obviously we're going to use that to season the pasta eventually.
03:48It's also going to help to set the color in the basil.
03:51I have four beautiful ounces of basil leaves here.
03:55I'm going to pop the whole thing in.
03:57And I'm just going to give it a quick dunk.
04:02And we're talking like five to ten seconds.
04:05It really doesn't need a lot of time.
04:08So we want it while it's emerald and really not much longer than that.
04:12So I'm going to use my spider.
04:14You could use a slotted spoon if you don't have one of these.
04:16I have a salad spinner here.
04:19Now we spin.
04:24Applying the brakes.
04:25Yep.
04:25All right.
04:27So now we're going to pop this in our blender.
04:29Now we can add the rest of our pesto ingredients.
04:32So to the basil, I'm going to add half a cup of extra virgin olive oil.
04:37Here's one of my favorite ingredients for this.
04:40It's a quarter cup of toasted pine nuts.
04:42And not every version of pesto uses pine nuts.
04:45And they don't all toast them.
04:47But boy, do you get a great flavor when you do.
04:49Definitely.
04:50And I have two garlic cloves.
04:52And you can just leave them whole because the blender will do the job.
04:54All right.
04:55And then another tablespoon of salt.
04:59We'll blend until everything's nice and smooth.
05:01About a minute.
05:02Okay.
05:06Look at that.
05:07Gorgeous.
05:08Nice and smooth.
05:09Our bechamel has cooled.
05:11And so now we're actually going to combine these two sauces.
05:15Instead of separate layers?
05:16Right.
05:17It's one super sauce.
05:18Which also makes building the lasagna a lot easier.
05:21Okay.
05:22Look at that color.
05:23This is emerald.
05:24Mmm.
05:27All right.
05:28So we'll mix these together.
05:29Oh.
05:29And as I'm mixing this in, I'm going to add my last two ingredients.
05:33I have two ounces of grated Parmesan cheese.
05:36Okay.
05:36It's about a cup.
05:37And then two teaspoons of grated lemon zest, which kind of leans into that whole idea of
05:43just lightening everything up, keeping the flavor really fresh.
05:47And we'll just fold in the cheese.
05:49So now the final thing we have to do is cook our pasta.
05:53Now we're using curly lasagna noodles.
05:55I have 17 noodles here.
05:58So we'll add these and we're going to cook these until they're fully tender.
06:03Right.
06:03I'll go in and give them a stir every now and then just to make sure they're not sticking together.
06:07Okay.
06:09Well, let's check one of these noodles.
06:12Wow.
06:12See how floppy it is?
06:14Floppy bendy.
06:16Yes.
06:16Absolutely tender.
06:17So we're going to take it off the heat and I'm going to go drain the noodles.
06:20Okay.
06:22Now we don't want the noodles to stick.
06:24So I'm going to spray my sheet pan a little bit with some vegetable oil spray.
06:29And then we're going to turn out the noodles onto the pan.
06:34And I'm going to give it another spray.
06:38And I'll just toss them a little bit to make sure that they're separated.
06:44So noodles are sprayed.
06:45I think we're ready to start assembling.
06:48Fantastic.
06:49We're building this in a 13 by 9 inch baking dish.
06:52We made a few extra noodles in case your dish is a little bit bigger than the length of the noodles.
06:57Okay.
06:57So first thing we're going to do is load up some sauce in a one cup measuring cup.
07:03We want a good heaping cup.
07:08So this is the base.
07:10So make sure you get in there and kind of smush it all the way into the corners.
07:15All right.
07:17So now we'll take three of our noodles.
07:21So we're going to repeat this three more times with the sauce and the noodles.
07:26Okay.
07:26Three noodles each layer.
07:27Yes.
07:28All right.
07:28All right.
07:30So this would be our last layer of noodles.
07:34So now we should have about a cup of sauce left.
07:38So I think we're good here.
07:40Now the last thing, I have another ounce of grated Parmesan here, which is about half a cup.
07:46And we'll sprinkle that over the top.
07:51And then we want to call back to that yummy toasted pine nut flavor that was in the pesto by topping the lasagna with another quarter cup of toasted pine nuts.
08:02I have my oven rack set at the middle position.
08:05It's heated to 375 degrees.
08:08We're going to bake this until we start to see some bubbling around the edge.
08:12We're going to look for some spotty browning on the top.
08:14And that's going to take somewhere between 40 and 50 minutes.
08:28Lasagna is an ancient Roman dish.
08:30Its wide, flat noodles are likely the earliest version of pasta, appearing in texts as early as the 15th century.
08:38The dish was originally prepared with rich ingredients and warm spices like cinnamon,
08:43making it popular among the wealthy.
08:46Centuries later, when Italians migrated to the United States,
08:50they formed new communities and shared their unique regional cooking styles with one another.
08:55Greater access to cheese and meat enabled them to make the dish more often.
09:00Cooking lasagna became a way to honor Italian heritage while also celebrating newfound wealth in America.
09:07As they blended American ingredients and methods with their ancestral ways, lasagna began to evolve.
09:14Today, an American lasagna often contains ground beef, ricotta cheese, and tomato sauce.
09:20It's become such a weeknight standard that it's even sold in the freezer aisle.
09:25Here at Cook's Country, we embrace the spirit of culinary adaptation with our version, pesto lasagna.
09:32Let me get that rack for you.
09:42Oh my goodness.
09:43Let me get this for you.
09:46Whoa.
09:50Whoa, baby.
09:52See how it's bubbling around the sides?
09:54You've got some nice body browning all over it.
09:56But you know that, A, we have a molten center in there, which if we cut into this now, the sauce will go all over the place.
10:05So we really do need to give it time to set up, which is about 45 minutes.
10:11I will wait for this.
10:12It's worth waiting for it, definitely.
10:16We've been so patient.
10:1845 minutes patient.
10:20That is cool enough, I'd say, to eat.
10:22Okay.
10:22I think we're good.
10:23I think we're great.
10:24All right, so I'm going to cut this, baby.
10:30Little crispy edges.
10:35Moment of truth.
10:42Now the thing about Christy is she's known for her stingy slices.
10:47Hubba, hubba.
10:52Cuts beautifully.
10:54Look at those layers.
11:04I was not expecting that.
11:06The texture inside with the bechamel and the pesto, it's ethereal.
11:11It's almost puffed a little bit.
11:13It's rich, but not heavy.
11:16No.
11:17It's silky on the inside.
11:20The flavor is out of this world.
11:22It's still vibrant.
11:24Still basil pesto.
11:26No doubt about it.
11:27And aren't the pine nuts really nice?
11:31They're lovely.
11:31I love the juxtaposition of the softness of the pesto inside with the bechamel, that luxury inside, little pops of toasted nuts on the outside.
11:40And the pasta itself is cooked beautifully.
11:42It's cohesive.
11:43It's fresh.
11:44It's inviting.
11:45It's everything I want.
11:47It's pesto perfection.
11:49Wow.
11:50I'm done.
11:51I'm done.
11:52I think I need to retire.
11:54There you go.
11:55I'm not quite done.
11:56I've got to eat this.
11:57But thank you so much.
11:58You're welcome.
11:58Now, if you want to make this beautiful lasagna, it starts by blanching basil to ensure bright green color.
12:04Stir the pesto into a thick bechamel and then layer between sheets of curly lasagna noodles.
12:10And don't forget to top it with those pine nuts and bake until brown and bubbly.
12:14So from Cook's Country, the big, the bold, the beautiful pesto lasagna.
12:19The first recorded use of a bottle opener dates back to the ancient Egyptians.
12:31They sharpened a reed, stabbed it into the cork, and pulled it out with their hands.
12:35And boy, have we come a long way.
12:37Now we have something as easy as an electric opener.
12:40And Hannah's here to tell us more.
12:41Yeah, I think I can do a little better than the reed for you.
12:43I'm hoping.
12:44Yes.
12:45So we tested electric wine openers, which are very popular now.
12:47Very gifty, too.
12:48I see these everywhere.
12:49And there are a ton on the market.
12:51We tested eight priced from $20 to $110.
12:55Ooh.
12:56Yeah, big range there.
12:57And guess what?
12:58What?
12:59Our favorite was the cheapest.
13:00Oh, I love it when that happens.
13:01Me too.
13:02Me too.
13:03So here's how we tested.
13:04We opened hundreds of bottles of wine with these because durability has been an issue historically.
13:10And we looked at natural corks and synthetic corks because synthetic are very hard and slippery
13:15and they can be very challenging for these openers.
13:17There are two different styles.
13:18The first is automatic.
13:19Here.
13:20Here's the rabbit.
13:21This is an automatic bottle.
13:22Okay.
13:23Go ahead and open this bottle of wine for me.
13:24All right.
13:25No buttons.
13:26No nothing.
13:27All right.
13:32Wow.
13:33It's coming back at me.
13:35Yep.
13:36You didn't tell it to, right?
13:37No.
13:38Just coming back out.
13:39I kind of like that.
13:40It's like a little robot.
13:41Oh.
13:42Yeah.
13:43Not bad.
13:44That was really easy.
13:45The second style is manual.
13:46So let me have you open a bottle of wine with this model right here.
13:48Okay.
13:49I like that you can see where you're putting the end of the corkscrew.
13:53All right.
13:54Two buttons.
13:55Down.
14:01So do you notice a difference there in the manual versus automatic as far as what you're required to do?
14:06Well, I was able to center this and I'm, you know, I was able to also start it when I wanted to start it.
14:13And that just gave me a little more feeling of control.
14:16This one started going before I was ready, but it worked out just fine anyway.
14:19We had a strong preference for the manual style because we just wanted to know that we were perfectly positioned before we started.
14:25So we preferred manual because we were able to align it and then shoot off the cork at the end right into the trash when we were ready versus it just like coming out when it's ready.
14:34That makes sense.
14:35Come over here.
14:36I want to talk about worms.
14:38This kind.
14:39Yep.
14:40This part is actually the worm.
14:41Mm-hmm.
14:42And there was a big range in sharpness and sharper worms were able to dig in faster and more effectively.
14:48Shape was also a huge factor here.
14:50We preferred models that were slim and straight up and down like this one.
14:53Mm-hmm.
14:54No fancy ergonomic bumps like this one has.
14:56Try that one out.
14:59See these ridges right here?
15:00You're supposed to put your fingers on there as you hold it.
15:02Yeah.
15:03Well, that's a little limiting.
15:05That doesn't work for me, actually.
15:06That's very awkward.
15:07I'd actually want to move my hand around and those would get in the way.
15:10Exactly.
15:11Weight was also a factor.
15:12Pick up that Peugeot right there.
15:13Tell me what you think about it.
15:14Ooh.
15:15Yeah.
15:16This is a weapon.
15:17You could hurt an intruder with that if you needed to.
15:19Yes, you could.
15:20Yeah, this is a lot heavier than these other two.
15:22Right.
15:23And you're holding them for, you know, 20, 30 seconds, a minute.
15:26So weight really matters.
15:27We preferred those that weighed under a pound.
15:30That was about the sweet spot where they weren't taxing our wrists.
15:33And remember, some folks are buying these for diminished hand strength reasons.
15:36Right.
15:37So it's really helpful to have a lighter model there.
15:39Height was also important.
15:40We preferred those that were under 12 inches.
15:42You want to have these things out.
15:43They need to charge.
15:44It needs a little space in your home.
15:46So we wanted that space to be as small and contained as possible.
15:49Speed was a huge factor with these.
15:51So it takes an experienced person about 20 seconds to open a bottle of wine.
15:55And some of these matched that.
15:57Some of them.
15:58Uh-oh.
15:59Others took 40 seconds.
16:01Peugeot over here took a minute 30.
16:03Wow.
16:04With a synthetic cork.
16:05But still, that's a long time to wait.
16:07And speed was something that our winner had in its favor.
16:10The Secura right here opened bottles of wine in 20 seconds.
16:13So the same as a pro.
16:15Here, let me have you hold this.
16:17Okay.
16:18It's a really sharp worm that pierced corks synthetic, natural, anything with ease.
16:23We really liked being able to align it perfectly and then throw the cork out right in the trash when we were ready.
16:28Okay.
16:29You're noticing something else?
16:30What are you noticing?
16:31Yeah, well, it's not too heavy.
16:32Nice and light.
16:33Yeah.
16:34Taxed our hands less.
16:35And it also has this stand right here.
16:36Mm-hmm.
16:37Stored nicely on the countertop.
16:38It comes with a foil cutter to open the top.
16:40That has its own little spot right there so you don't lose it.
16:42Very compact.
16:43Fit in our counters nicely.
16:44And this was our overall pick.
16:45Okay.
16:46Thanks, Hannah.
16:47There you have it.
16:48If you're in the market for a new electric wine opener, check out our winner.
16:51The Secura electric wine opener at just $21.
17:02Caesar salad has been popular on restaurant menus for decades and for good reason.
17:07The creamy, punchy dressing.
17:09The crisp romaine.
17:10The crunchy croutons.
17:11It's a winning combination.
17:13And today, Morgan has promised to show us how to make the ultimate Caesar salad, which is a high bar.
17:18It is a high bar, but I'm here for it.
17:20I'm a big Caesar salad fan.
17:21You are.
17:22Yeah.
17:23And I do feel like you have to give every ingredient some love.
17:25Okay.
17:26So, I'm starting with the croutons.
17:27Here, I'm taking four ounces of ciabatta.
17:29This is a little bigger than that, but I'm just going to use four ounces of it.
17:31I'm going to cut it into half-inch pieces.
17:34So, I really like using ciabatta just because of the texture of it.
17:37Like, it's really nice and airy.
17:39It's a little more tender than something like baguette when you can get that, like, sort of tough piece in there.
17:43And no tough croutons in here.
17:45All right.
17:46So, I've got about four ounces over here.
17:48Now, I want to toss them in something flavorful.
17:51So, here I've got a quarter of a cup of oil.
17:53Mmm.
17:54And then I've got a garlic clove.
17:56And then I've got a quarter teaspoon of salt and a quarter teaspoon of pepper.
18:00Oh, so you're just making a flavored garlic oil.
18:03Yeah, exactly.
18:04That's it.
18:05I'm just going to give this a nice little whisk.
18:07And actually, do you mind grabbing that bread and dumping it in here for me?
18:09You bet.
18:11Mmm-hmm.
18:12And just get this nice and tossed together.
18:15All right.
18:16And I'm just going to dump this out onto a rimmed baking sheet.
18:20So, I'm going to bake these in a 350 degree oven.
18:23I'm just going to look for them to get nice and golden brown.
18:25It'll take about 18 minutes.
18:26I'm going to get in there and stir halfway through.
18:28Oh, those look good.
18:29I know.
18:30And they smell nice and garlicky.
18:31They really do.
18:32All right.
18:33They definitely firmed up.
18:34You can hear them.
18:35It's a good sign.
18:36They sound crunchy.
18:37Exactly.
18:38Now, let's talk Parmesan.
18:39So, here I'm actually going to grate it two different ways.
18:40Huh.
18:41I'm going to try to get about a half cup on the large holes of the box grater.
18:43And this I'm actually going to mix into the salad.
18:44So, I get these nice, bigger hunks of Parmesan in the salad.
18:48All right.
18:49So, that's a quarter and a half.
18:51And then, I'm going to use this fine grater for the Parmesan for just a little bit more.
18:54This is actually going to go into the dressing to flavor the dressing to flavor the dressing.
18:59So, that's a quarter and a half.
19:04And then, I'm going to use this fine grater for the Parmesan for just a little bit more.
19:10This is actually going to go into the dressing to flavor the dressing.
19:13Aha.
19:14It almost dissolves in there.
19:16So, you get this really nice Parmesan flavor in your punchy dressing.
19:19And one more piece I want to do over here.
19:22Anchovies.
19:23So, I'm just taking them.
19:24I'm doing like some really nice long cuts and then turning them the other way just to get a really nice mince on here.
19:29Mm-hmm.
19:30Okay.
19:31So, now, time to get into our dressing.
19:34So, this is just the same bowl from earlier.
19:36I just wiped it out.
19:37What I'm doing is I'm taking this damp towel and I'm going to give it a nice little twist.
19:41And then, I'm going to place this under the bowl.
19:44It's going to give me a lot of nice traction and it's going to hold this in place.
19:47It gives you kind of a surface once we're whisking.
19:49Mm-hmm.
19:50So, I am doing a classic Caesar, which starts with a raw egg yolk.
19:53It'll help emulsify everything.
19:55And if you want, you can use a pasteurized egg yolk here.
19:57To that, I'm going to add a tablespoon of lemon juice.
20:00I'm going to add two teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce.
20:04Two teaspoons of Dijon, which add a nice little kick in here.
20:08I've got my anchovies.
20:10I have a garlic clove that I'm also adding in.
20:13That looks like it was really minced to a paste, too.
20:15It was.
20:16It was really nice and fine.
20:17Quarter teaspoon of pepper.
20:18On our team, we talk a lot about the flavor cliff.
20:21Like you want to take food to the cliff of flavor and like as punchy as you can get it
20:25without going over where it's like too salty or too spicy.
20:28And like this is hanging on to the cliff.
20:30Is it?
20:31Yeah, so it's like got a lot of punch going on.
20:33And a quarter teaspoon of table salt.
20:36Okay, so I'm going to whisk this up.
20:37Make sure everything's really nice and combined.
20:39And then actually, since I have you here, can I have you start drizzling?
20:42I was just going to offer.
20:43Yeah, so it's a half cup of olive oil.
20:45Again, using the best quality oil you can.
20:47And if you could, just drip real slowly.
20:49It's really important to drizzle it in really slowly like this because it does emulsify it.
20:52Like the egg yolk is doing the work here.
20:54It'll keep it nice and even, but you do want to drizzle slowly so that the egg yolk has the
20:59time to catch all the oil and contain it.
21:02All right.
21:03All right.
21:04There you go.
21:05Okay.
21:06And then will you do me one more favor and grab the fine parm?
21:08Oh, yeah.
21:09May I?
21:10You may.
21:11Let's see.
21:12Let's whisk that on in there.
21:14All right.
21:16And our dressing is complete.
21:18So, one more piece.
21:19Mm-hmm.
21:20And a lettuce.
21:21And a lettuce.
21:22Here I've got romaine.
21:23I have two hearts.
21:24It's about 12 ounces total.
21:25I'm just going to cut this into one inch pieces.
21:27So, sometimes I always am a little off on how exactly much an inch is.
21:30I'm going to cut it down lengthwise.
21:32I'm going to use the guide for my one inch.
21:36And then I can fit another here.
21:38I'm going to turn it.
21:39And this way is a little thinner.
21:40So, I'm just going to do one cut down the center.
21:45And then again, I actually don't feel like I need this anymore.
21:48I've got my measurement down.
21:49I'm just going to go through now and do my one cut and it's kind of going to fall apart itself.
21:54So, you get these like nice one inch chunks.
21:56Perfectly sized.
21:57Okay.
21:58Time to assemble.
21:59Just adding in the lettuce, the cheese, and now I'm adding these croutons right in here.
22:04Now you can hear the crunch.
22:05Yeah.
22:06Good sign.
22:07Yeah.
22:08So, I always kind of just like to go in and actually do a little turn with my tongs.
22:12Nice and coated.
22:13All right.
22:14You see any dry leaves in here?
22:16I don't.
22:17That looks perfection.
22:19Then let's serve.
22:20Okay.
22:21Let me get you some.
22:22I got to make sure I get you a lot of croutons up in here.
22:25You do want a crouton with every bite.
22:27Yeah, exactly.
22:28You can smell the garlic from here.
22:31Yeah.
22:32This is definitely punchy food.
22:34Like you can't be afraid of garlic.
22:35You can't be afraid of anchovies.
22:37Can't be afraid of flavor.
22:39That's delicious.
22:41Does take you right to the edge, but it's not sharp.
22:45It's really round on the backside.
22:46And I think that's because you use the right amount of olive oil and you started with the
22:50yolk.
22:51Yeah, it's all about balance.
22:52It's like you want to have those punchy ingredients, but you also want to balance them out.
22:55And so we played a lot with ratios in the salad just to get it exactly, you know, hanging
22:59on the cliff.
23:00And the Parmesan flavor is so present.
23:05It doesn't overtake everything, but you get Parmesan with every flavor.
23:08And again, it kind of softens the sharp edges of the dressing.
23:11Mm-hmm.
23:12You set the bar high, but you exceeded it.
23:15This is a fantastic Caesar.
23:18Thanks, Julia.
23:19There you have it.
23:20If you want to make the ultimate Caesar salad.
23:23Season and toast cubes of ciabatta to make your own croutons.
23:26Make a punchy, emulsified dressing with egg yolk, anchovy, and garlic.
23:31And use Parmesan in two different ways.
23:33Finely grated in the dressing and shredded in the salad.
23:36From Cook's Country, a recipe for the ultimate Caesar salad.
23:41You can find this recipe and all the recipes from this season, along with select episodes
23:46and our product reviews at our website, cookscountry.com slash tv.
23:51And then, if you want to make a recipe for the Diane of the
Be the first to comment