mukki

Interesting... I've noticed over the past 6 months or so that the canneles I've bought from La Brea Bakery have had a bad taste in the crust -- so much so that I've been unable to finish eating them. Maybe it's time for a good boiling. My favorite canneles so far have been from Bay Bread in SF (my first) and Lemoine in St. Emilion (Bordeaux). Boule Bakery in LA also makes a tasty version. Here is a picture of one of Lemoine's canneles; note that we took this picture after driving 3 hours to our Dordogne destination, which caused the crust to soften. Fresh from the store, it was crunchy-chewy and delicious. I actually found the cannele at Poujauran (as of last November) not worth eating. Pale, overly chewy, unappetizing flavor... very disappointing. I've made Gale Gand's recipe before in non-stick tin molds from France very successfully. I picked up 12 copper molds from Lemoine for approx $50, but haven't had a chance to try them out yet. Hilary

Caramel Cone Vanilla Bean (much tastier than plain vanilla) Chocolate Peanut Butter (though I end up fishing through for peanut butter parts) Black Walnut Will definitely try the Hazelnut Almond combo next time... HD is the best ice cream out there that I've tried. Better than Dr. Bob's, Connelley's. The Vanilla Bean hands down beat my homemade version. And I see that they've got brownie ice cream bars, too. Hilary

I, too, live in SoCal, and I buy my dairy exclusively from TJs. The organic milk has an excellent flavor and the heavy cream in the blue/white bottle is the thickest I've found. I can't go back to regular cream. I believe the milk products are regional, though, so choices vary widely around the country.

In the fall of 2004, we visited Italy for the first time and fell in love with Italian cappuccinos as well. There was a little bakery/bar downstairs from where we stayed in Venice; we would stop every morning and have a cappuccino and fresh crema filled doughnut. I loved the civility of it all -- the ceramic cups, the efficient bar system, the politeness of those around. Much different than the long line at your local Starbucks to get a grande latte in a paper cup with plastic top soon to be thrown in the garbage can with all the others. In the end, we did not find that all cappuccinos were great in Italy, but enough of them were to change our minds about coffee. Upon return to the US, I searched coffeegeek.com and found a beautiful machine called the Elektra Microcasa Semi-Automatica in a brass and copper finish(http://www.coffeegeek.com/proreviews/detailed/microcasaautomatica). I was sure that it would receive a poor review, but it received very high marks. I researched coffee beans and have since settled on Vivace's Vita blend. We use a Macap M5 grinder and whole organic milk from Trader Joe's. We use heavy cups from Pasquini that we preheat. After a year, we now make fairly consistent cappuccinos, the best of which rival or even surpass those we had in Venice. We have not had a cappuccino in the US outside our home as good as the best in Italy; my experience is somewhat limited, though, in that I've stopped ordering them due to consistent disappointment. Foaming, in my opinion, is a huge factor. Our machine microfoams very well. I'm sure I'm repeating others in this thread, but the foam really needs to be mixed throughout the milk after foaming. It may be a little heavier on the top, but there is no separate cap of foam sitting distinctly above the milk. There are no large bubbles; in fact, you can't even really see bubbles at all. It almost looks like snow with a beautiful subtle sheen on top. And when you drink the perfect cappuccino, you're drinking epresso, milk and foam as one in every sip. Hilary

I love Ferber's jam book. I've made the strawberry-mint jam, which was very good. The apricot-vanilla is wonderful. The LA Times printed a strawberry jam recipe I've been meaning to try, too. Here's an excerpt from the article: "The best strawberry cook I've ever met is Edon Waycott, former jam maker to Campanile restaurant. Waycott made other jams, but her genius was with strawberries. Typical jam recipes, especially fast ones, call for one part sugar to two parts fruit, with the sugar acting as the setting agent. The sweetness too often upstages the strawberry. By contrast, Waycott used one part sugar to six parts fruit. By macerating the fruit overnight, then cooking it for a long time, slowly and gently in a broad, shallow pan, the berries retained their form and flavor, and came out tasting more like themselves than themselves — like strawberries squared, rather than, as she called it, "merely red." Several years ago, she gave us her recipe, but somehow when it was published a four-hour jam became a one-hour jam." click for article We recently came back from Paris with a few jars of Ferber's jams: myrtille; rose-litchi-raspberry; strawberry-raspberry-cherry; banana-passion fruit; cassis-violet; and plum.

Stunning pictures, as usual, Lucy! May I ask where you got the bowl that your coffee is in? I noticed these bowls from your last blog ~ they're beautiful. Hilary

We've got one, too, for May! First time applying; we're very excited.

Like others, I'm really enjoying your blog. Just wanted to note that I made your chocolate chip cookie ice cream from your first blog and we thought it was absolutely delicious. As for red bean paste, we make a glutinous rice cake for Chinese New Year's. I got the recipe from a roommate in law school and it basically consists of a base made out of rice flour, sugar, oil, eggs and baking powder and then dollops of bean paste are plunked on top. After it's baked, it turns into a chewy "cake" with pockets of red bean paste. I believe there is a Hawaiian version made with butter called "mochi butter cake."

A friend brought some of dry ones back; I believe they were a green tea flavor, dipped in perhaps a white chocolate. Very, very good. I wish I could get them here.

David -- thank you so much for this rec. Out of all the chocolates we tried on our recent trip, Patrick Roger was by far and away my favorite. Unfortunately, I only bought a small bag since we had so many chocolates to bring home. Next time, I will have to buy a larger box, with the caramels, which they apparently don't sell individually.

I guess I'd have to say Italy, particulary Tuscany and Rome. We had wonderful pici pasta, truffle pasta, roasted pork, sausage and beans and more in Tuscany (in the Montalcino/San Quirico/Pienza region). I haven't been to Emilia-Romagna, so I'll have to do that next time. We just got back from a few days in SW France and I have to say that overall, I preferred what we ate in Italy. Though we did have some amazing duck confit...

Does anyone have any actual experience buying anything at Genin? I have been told that he provides professionals, will allow people off the street access to his atelier and even offer them samples, but will not sell to them. Was this an isolated case or is it his habit? ← We dropped by Jacques Genin today. Yes, you can buy directly from him, but the minimum is 1 kilo (50 euros for caramels). He was quite friendly and welcoming. I walked by the atelier since the address looks to be for an apartment building and there is no sign. He must have seen us looking confused outside because he opened the door and invited us in.

Thank you very much, Ptipois. Very interesting!

I'm in Paris right now and having a difficult time finding what I consider a great Vacherin. In the past, at home, I've ordered Vacherin from fromages.com and purchased it at the Cheese Store of Beverly Hills. All have been wonderful -- pungent, flavorful, superbly runny, slightly barn-yardy. It's one of my favorite cheeses. So, imagine my disappointment when I arrive in Paris and find myself buying mild Vacherins lacking what I love most about them. The first one I bought (because I couldn't help myself) was at the Grande Epicerie. Yes, perhaps not one of the top cheesestores, which is what I consoled myself with after we bit into a slightly rubbery, boring cheese. We ate it, but it wasn't what I consider Vacherin. It was labeled as Mont D'Or AOC au lait cru. Next stop was Marie-Anne Cantin. I asked if the Vacherin was strong. No, the salesgirl said, Vacherin is not strong and, yes, it's the season. We bought some; it was much better than the previous, but still lacking the "quintessential" Vacherin/Mont D'Or flavor I love. (As a side note, Cantin did not have any Camembert! At all!) So, am I wrong about Vacherin? Is there just a wide range for what real Vacherin tastes like? Can anyone recommend somewhere in Paris to buy what I'm looking for? I'm planning on buying cheese at Barthelemy to take home and am not sure whether I should consider purchasing any Vacherin.

I've found that using two wooden spoons to turn a roast chicken is quite useful. This works particularly well for an unstuffed chicken since I just stick one of the spoons into the chicken's cavity.

As part of our upcoming trip to Paris, I'd really like to try some kougelhopf. I've read about Patisserie Lerch in Linda Dannenberg's book and saw that David Lebovitz mentioned Vandermeersch (although I don't know if I'll get to this place since it's a little out of the way). Any other thoughts on good places to sample? I've only made kougelhopf at home and I thought it was ok. Wondering how much better it gets.

We'll be arriving in Paris on November 1 from the Dordogne. I'm in the process of lining up our restaurant tour and just read some information that leads me to believe that many restaurants will be closed on Nov. 1. Is this generally true? We are staying in an apt. in the 7th and I was thinking of Au Bon Acceuil our first night. Hilary

I also miss the unfilled pirouettes -- I remember the chocolate-flecked ones in particular. I don't think they're made anymore, as I haven't found them for years.

Please let us know the outcome. I just received my 1/2 lb. of Tahitian beans, but haven't used them yet. I noticed that in Pierre Herme's chocolate book, it says that he prefers Tahitian beans, which is interesting since I've had the impression that many appear to prefer the Bourbon.

I actually love oatmeal cookie dough; I usually don't end up baking the cookies b/c the dough tastes so much better. In fact, instead of eating oatmeal, I've started mixing a bit of walnut oil and honey with raw oats and sprinking it with mace. Tastes like oatmeal cookie dough, but a lot healthier. Chocolate chip cookie dough is another fave. I crave the dough more than the cookies. The older I get, though, the more my stomach aches from eating raw dough...

I've made Christine Ferber's banana-chocolate "jam" and, given my inclinations, it's ok as made per her directions. It kind of produces a chocolate "sauce" with chunks of banana in it. The sauce tastes wonderful -- a nice banana-chocolate flavor, but I don't care for the banana slices (I'm not a fan of banana in its natural state). I think next time I'd try to blend them in a little more. Plus, I usually just put jam on toast and the chocolate bread combo doesn't appeal to me. I imagine that if you like chocolate on yogurt, it would be really good that way. I enjoy Brown Cow's chocolate yogurt, so maybe I should try that. I've also made the apricot vanilla bean jam and we love that one. I use Blenheims and it's a favorite.

I just made cherry ice cream from Chez Panisse Desserts -- really, really wonderful. So good that the Haagen Dazs peach and chocolate/PB ice creams in the freezer are being completely ignored. The cherries are cooked, pureed, and then added to a custard base. I added some chopped Valhrona chocolate, as well.

Thanks -- I would appreciate it! I mentioned butter since many of the recipes I've seen do have a few tablespoons mixed in.

I really liked the oreo, as well. A little like La Brea Bakery's version. Wish I could get Bouchon's recipe!

A few years ago, my roommate's mom brought a large container of homemade murukku when she came to visit. I'd never had murukku before, but was instantly hooked: her version was crunchy, light and nicely spiced. I'd sneak into the kitchen at night just to dip into that container. I've tried since then to locate a similar version in local Indian snack shops, but they've all been hard without any spices. My roommate promised me her mom's recipe, but, alas, I never got hold of it. Since then, I've printed out many recipes off the internet, but I have no idea which will make a similar version. I'm thinking that perhaps it had butter in it, since it was light, not heavy. It also must have had red pepper in it, since it was spicy. Can anyone help with locating a delicious, spiced murukku recipe? I picked up a mix that just contains various flours/ground beans in it, so I could possibly add butter, water and various spices and try that. Hilary