MichaelB

I am just moving this to the front page now that Michael, Steve, et al are home from New York. Any suggestions guys?

"Recent" -- as in published the day you made the dish?

Of course, I know that. I was just looking for an excuse to mention that the duck confit is Mrs.B's favorite food. Never thought of that technique. Most often, I use what is in the fridge regularly. So, spoilage isn't a problem for me.

I agree that one duck's fat isn't quite enough to cover -- at least in the posts I have. For the 12 legs and thighs I did this week, I needed the fat from the six ducks plus another cup or so from my already rendered stock. Rendered fat will kepp a long time in the fridge if it is very clean. If you have any bits of meat, skin, trash, etc on the top, it will eventually get moldy. I try to keep a quart or so refrigerated and the remainder frozen. I always run the fat through a fine chinois before storing it.

Are you married? Yes I am -- 21 plus years now. The duck confit may be my wife's favorite food of all. And, the freezer cleaning was at her orders to make room for her annual Holiday cookie extravaganza. Over five days of Thanksgiving weekend, she bakes approximately 500 dozen Christmas cookies, 18 or so varieties. They get frozen and then used as gifts, etc over the holidays. Any meal with guests ends after pastry with a platter of several examples of each variety -- each more beautiful than the next. The cookie baking is one of her family traditions -- she baked with both her maternal grandmother and mother growing up.

My favorite!

People are stupid -- or inconsiderate -- or selfish -- or something. One point of the story is that kid shold not have been within 400 miles of Napa Valley. How can you possibly entertain a child that age visiting wineries? God made warm places with pools and beaches for people with children.

Good advice from Katie. Why on earth would you want to spend a day or days infusing the fish with the cure and herbs and then rinse it all out? I have never seen a recipe that call for a post-cure soak. Here's my recipe. It's one I do so often that I don't have it written down anywhere. 2 sides salmon, skin on. 2/3 cup kosher salt 1/2 cup sugar pepper 1/2 pound (approx) fresh dill cognac Spread salt, sugar, pepper mixture on flesh side of fish. Splash with cognac. Place flesh sides together with dill between. Weight, refrigerate for 48 to 72 hours (depending on how firm you want the flesh). Turn daily. Wipe off cure. Slice; enjoy.

Fifi, You are better off if you make the stock and render the fat separately. Remove the breasts and legs and trim off excess fat. Trim as much fat as you can from the carcass. If you run a knife along the backbone, you will get most of the fat and skin. Stock: I always roast the carcasses first. Sometimes, the hearts and gizzards go into the stock; sometimes, I confit the gizzards with the legs. I also always remove the kidneys from the carcass -- I think they can make the stock "slippery." Fat: Place in a sauce pot and heat over very low heat for around 2 hours to render all fat. Strain; chill. I often save the "duck jello" that will congeal under the chilled fat. It can add body to sauces. Confit: Rub the legs with a mixture of juniper berries, allspice berries, thyme, marjoram, pepper and salt. I tend to use less salt than most recipes call for. I don't want the fat to get too salty over time. Refrigerate overnight. Wash rub from legs. Dry legs. Confit in barely simmer fat until tender -- 1 1/2 to 2 hours. I always buy whole ducks even if I want only the breast. Carcasses and fat get frozen separately. Legs too, if necessary. Sunday, I cleaned out the freezer's duck department. Ten carcasses became stock; 4 packages of fat, plus the fat of 2 ducks from this weekend got rendered. Tuesday night I confited a dozen legs. Let's see. I have 1 quart of frozen duck fat at home plus the half gallon that I made and used to confit this week. There are 3 gallons of rendered fat in storage in my meat vendor's freezer. Oh, and, one of the local restaurants borrowed a gallon a year or so ago for which I have not requested repayment. I love duck -- and use every part save the quack. Edited for clarity and substandard typing skills.

I have to have one of the worse stories on this subject of all eGulleteers. Time, Halloween night, several (OK, at least 10) years ago. Place, Terra, Napa Valley, CA. Kathy had not been feeling well, so we took an early reservation, 7:00, to make an early night of it. The staff was very into the Halloween thing and so service suffered a bit . . . but the bad kids, ACK! We are seated in the room to the left of the door next to a table of three -- a slightly older man, his wife and their 3 year old daughter in a high chair. When we arrived, parents are just getting food; there is none for the child -- she ate at McDonald's earlier. The family is obviously on vacation. So, we have a child who has been dragged from smelly cellar to smelly cellar all day, gets an early dinner and is expected to watch her parents eat! If someone set out to make a child cranky, he or she could not surpass this couple's effort. She cries, she fusses, she whines. Just after my wine gets decanted (a Phelps Insignia, vintage either 1974 or 1978), the parents let the child out of jail. She flies around the dining room. As she heads back to her table, she grabs our table cloth and pulls. I dive across the table and catch the decanter just as it crosses over the table edge. I give the parents a laser stare; they just smile and nod. The kid gets worse -- cry, fuss, run, fuss, run cry. Finally their check arrives; the kid is pitching a fit; and daddy takes the time to check the addition on the computer generate bill! Meanwhile, some people get seated on the other side of us. A couple in their 30s from New York -- he's an investment banker, she's probably a lawyer -- and thier six month old daughter, Alexis. How do I know the baby's name you ask? Well, all through the remainder of my meal, Mommy kept bending over the pumpkin seat, ever closer to my right ear and cooed -- over and over and over -- Mommy LOVES Alexis. If upon my death, I see that dining room, I will know that I did something terribly wrong during my time on earth.

Great review of Maisonette, baphie. When I saw that you went there on the Saturday before Christmas, second seating, I *really* held my breath. I am convinced that night has a higher occurrence of service disasters than any night of the year. The staff is worn out and are ready for the holiday season to be over . The diners are in a festive mood, many are with friends or family that they see only at the holidays, and quite a few don't know when to leave a restaurant. From my exposure, that night is the most hectic at the Maisonette. I really should have mentioned Nicola's. I really enjoy dining there. It is in a "transitional" neighborhood. So, even though it is only 10 or so blocks from the core of downtown, take the five minute cab ride. It is the best Italian in or neat downtown. Precinct has a sister downtown -- Jeff Ruby's. If you are looking for "big steak," you may want to go there.

OK, here's the run down on Downtown: The current hot spot and darling of the city -- Jean-Robert at Pigall's. Contemporary French in the renovated space that was the renowned Pigall's restaurant for nearly 30 years. Been open a bit more than a year. The chef/owner is the former chef of the perennially 5 star Maisonette (see below). Three and five course prix fixe menus. The three course is $75 including all tax and gratuity. Cheaper option, apps in the bar. Hot? -- Esquire's best new restaurants for 2003 last month; Conde Nast's 75 hottest new restaurants in the world 2003; Big spread in the Wine Spectator in October; Wine Spectator "Best of" award. Jean-Robert The grand dame -- The Maisonette. Received its 40th consecutive Mobil 5 star award for 2004. Enough said. Just converted to a prix fixe menu. I have not been there since the menu change. Chef came from Daniel via Club XIX in Carmel. Maisonette The third Musketeer -- The Palace at the Cincinnatian Hotel. Written up with Pigall's and Maisonette in the October Wine Spectator piece. Chef is a well traveled Frenchman. Very inventive, rather complex presentations. I happened into a private dining function there last night. The flavors were really, really good. Other fine -- or nearly so -- dining options in or around downtown. Daveeds at 934. This is a very small place in Mount Adams a short (5 minutes) cab ride away. Very inventive, small plate kind of global cuisine. French underpinnings with some Asian flavors. Probably the most fun of the bunch -- you can go in jeans and be comfortable. Chef/owner and wife are almost always both on site. Chef was a long time sous at Maisonette for the Pigall's chef (notice a pattern here?). Aioli Bistro. More casual than the others. Chef/owner spent a bunch of her career in New Mexico, so there are some southwestern and mediterranean things going on in the food. Great views. Celestial to the east (Mount Adams again) and Primavista to the west. Contemporary French/Continental and Italian, respectively. Lots of chain options downtown, too, if that is what you are into. Newport on the Levee has a whole bunch of them and is also a 5 minute cab ride. As for the Cincinnati chili, you will have lots of people fight over which they prefer. If you've never tried it, you can assume that all of them are pretty much the same. I promise there is a Skyline or Gold Star within 4 blocks of your hotel. Where are you staying and when are you visiting?

I can give you Cincinnati from soup to nuts. What are you looking for? Tell us a bit about your interests, budget, etc. Oh, and . . . . Welcome to eGullet!

I'll try to remember that.

OK. OK, but serve the food appropriate to the music. For the 1812, maybe caviar, blinis and borscht. Get it?

What Jinmyo and Fresco say. Pumpkin is cheap. Who cares if you throw a bit of flesh away. Think of all the jack-o-lanterns you have discarded over a lifetime!

There is just something wrong about serving a quintessentially French dish accompanied by music celebrating the Russian army's beating the snot out of the French.

Thanks! I'll find a bag somewhere and test them.

Thanks for the suggestion JFL. The size is about right (300 per pound) according to this: There may be two issues with this product. First, I cannot tell from the picture on the California Candy site what the shape of that chip is exactly. We need a traditional chocolate chip/Hershey Kiss shape for the application, a cookie garnish. The picture does not give the impression that the chips are of that shape. What can you tell me about the shape? Second, the Guittard site says this about the product: The application is a garnish. The chips are placed onto an almost baked cookie and returned to the oven just to "set" the chip into the cookie. I would worry about the "meltier" texture in this application. Please keep the options coming everyone.

Update: I spoke with a customer service rep from Peter's this morning. They do not make this chip any longer. The largest chip they produce is 900 per pound -- much too small for what Mrs.B requires. The person I spoke to mentioned the 2002 sale of the company to Cargill. I think Nestle owned it before Cargill. He volunteered that he did not know whether Nestle retained the rights to this product in the transaction, etc. 43 views and no suggestions . . . yet.

I have had my 84" (I think) Vent-a-Hood for amost 14 years. I have been quite happy with it. I had one fan motor die, and replaced, a while back. My happiness is somewhat less when I have to give the thing a good cleaning. The amount of grease that builds up is simply amazing. My only real complaint is that the shields and fan housings have some really sharp edges. Most often I get a wonderful grease/blood combination going.

Tan: The Magic Toaster Bag Thread

For several years, my wife has bought a particular over sized chocolate chip from the Baker's Secret (King Arthur Flour) catalog. They no longer carry the product and I am having trouble finding a replacement. KA sold the product as a "Semisweet Maxi Chip." I have looked in several chocolate product listings and see nothing like it. I checked with KA; they advised me today that they sourced the cips from Peter's Chocolate. Peter's web site does not list the product. I will call them on Monday. The product is a semisweet chocolate chip. I weighed some of last year's crop -- there are 350 chips to a pound. Kathy uses the chip as a cookie garnish and the size is perfect for her application. Anyone have a source for a 300-400 count per pound semisweet chocolate chip? Edit, I probably need only 2 pounds or so; but would buy at least 5 pounds if necessary.

Two reactions to the rabbit dishes. First, playing with rabbit carcasses is a great way to hone your meat fabrication skills. Four legged mammals are all pretty much the same. If you learn how to take a rabbit to primal cuts and then primal cuts to what you intend to eat, you can do the same with everything up to an elephant -- the equipment required, however, may be a bit different. Second, I don't like the idea of braising a cut as tender as rabbit loin. So, I braise or confit the hind legs and bone out the loins and tenderloins. I often also remove the excess meat from the front legs and neck. The rest goes into rabbit stock. A main course of braised or confited leg and pan roasted loin is terrific. You can also stuff (as suggested above) the loin with a farce of the front leg and neck meat. Just leave the flap on the loins -- if you have never boned a rabbit you'll see what I mean when you try. Coat the flap with the farce and roll it up. Tie with string or wrap the package in caul fat.

In the classic preparations, all but the Curry are "gratins." I wasn't willing to type all this in the earlier post but I will now. Gratin. Blanch, slice, braise in white wine and mushrooms cooking liquor, place in the shells and coat with gratin sauce, sprinkle with bread crumbs and set in oven to gratin. Mornay. Same as above with Mornay sauce, glaze Nantaise. Same as above, surround the scallops with bearded and poached oysters and mussels, coat with glazing white wine sauce, glaze. Ostendaise. Same treatment, garnish with shrimps, dice of mushrooms, oysters, coat with Nantua sauce, decorate with slices of truffles. Parisienne. Same treatment, border shell with Duchese potato, coat with white wine sauce and chopped truffles, glaze. The detailed recipe from Jaz is a good jumping off point for any of these.