prasantrin

Check the Rakuten link I included. You can see close-ups of their knives with the kanji. On their website, too, if you look closely at the large pictures, you can see that the labelling on the knives is different from the US knives. I couldn't make out the kanji from their site, though, just on the Rakuten site. This page gives a better picture of the kanji--you have to scroll down a bit, as the first knife has the English "Mac" insignia.

I think Minerva sardines from Portugal far outclass King Oscar, especially the oil packed ones with chile. When I was a child, I thought it was very spicy, but now that I'm old(er), it barely packs a punch! In elementary school I once brought sardines and crackers as my recess snack. Elementary school kids just don't know what they're missing! (I also brought roasted peanuts, unshelled once.)

Interesting. They're actually based in the Kansai area in Osaka (I can't read the name of the city, but it's not Osaka City). Did you notice the Japanese versions of the knives have the name in kanji? "Ma" (the same as "shin" in "shashin") and "ku" (the one often used in names, also read as "hisa"). They sell on Rakuten, too, but the prices aren't all that much cheaper here than in the US (Y5800 for SK-65, US$60 for the same knife). ← Just figured it out, it's Sakai City. I wonder if they sell out of their offices. I was just in Sakai last week, too!

Interesting. They're actually based in the Kansai area in Osaka (I can't read the name of the city, but it's not Osaka City). Did you notice the Japanese versions of the knives have the name in kanji? "Ma" (the same as "shin" in "shashin") and "ku" (the one often used in names, also read as "hisa"). They sell on Rakuten, too, but the prices aren't all that much cheaper here than in the US (Y5800 for SK-65, US$60 for the same knife).

Thanks. That's what I originally thought I had read, too, but hadn't yet experimented with it. I do really like the chew-quality of the crust that I've been getting with higher temps, but the slightly burnt flavour doesn't really appeal to me. I'll go 15 minutes on, 30 minutes off for the next loaf. This was the best loaf I had made yet, aside from the darkness of the crust. Great shape, good flavour (I made a parmesan rosemary loaf), and the holes in the loaf aren't as big as they have been in the past. I could actually use this loaf for sandwiches--I'm going to make grilled cheese out of it shortly! Strange. Try using a higher temp at first? I'm not a good baker, though, so I'm probably the wrong one to give advice!

Regarding baking at higher temperatures, I baked another loaf today, still at 270C, and this time 25 min with lid, 15 minutes without. It's still too dark, but the internal temperature is a perfect 93C (200F). I want a lighter-coloured loaf, though. What would be the best way to get one? a) longer lid-on time, shorter lid-off time b) longer lid-on time, then decrease the temperature to 250C for a 15 minute lid-off time c) bake at 250C, 25 min. lid on, 20 min lid off (this was what I used for my first few loaves, and the colour was nice, but I found the crust too thick) Any suggestions?

It really irritates me when people pull the "People who use rice cookers are wasteful (of space, money), and I'm superior because I can cook rice on the stove" attitude. It popped up at least once a year on the old rfc. People have different needs, as Kirstin says. Growing up, we ate rice at least twice a day during the week, three times a day on weekends. Even now, when at my mother's home, we eat rice pretty much every day. And she still doesn't feel a meal is complete without rice. Don't just assume people who own rice cookers can't cook rice "without spending money on something that takes up loads of space and can't do anything else." And I have to wonder, has anyone ever done a side-by-side comparison of rice cooked on the stovetop (not real steamed rice, but the bring-to-a-boil-in-a-pot kind) and rice cooked in a rice cooker? I would think there would be some differences, no matter how subtle. Back to rice cookers--I have an old-style cooker with no programs, just the on/off button. It has the "stay hot" feature, but that's about it. I'm thinking of springing for an IH model to use now, and bring back to Canada when I eventually move back. Any suggestions? The regular white rice function must be easy to use, since my mother can't read kanji, but I'd like to start playing around with brown rice and the other functions. I do like that Mitsubishi model that Hiroyuki linked to. I stare longingly at it every time I'm at Yodobashi Camera. Now *that* would be a waste of my money.

Thanks. I had already looked at their homepage, but it doesn't say anything about who the Japanese manufacturer is (at least not so that I could see). So MAC knives are sold as such both in the US and Japan? I've never seen a MAC knife here, and I thought I had read somewhere else that they were sold under a different name. Oh well, I'll just have to look more carefully!

About MAC knives, could someone tell me what their Japanese brand name is? I thought (I might be wrong) that they were marketed under a different name in Japan, and I wanted to check out the price difference between US and Japanese prices. (I think Global knives, for example, are not really so much more expensive in the US than in Japan--if you don't factor in the exchange rate.)

Thanks for the enchilada recipe. I think I have almost everything--I just have to defrost some corn tortillas (picked up during my last stop in the US), which are frozen in sets of 5, but I'm sure I'll manage! Pic is a sweetheart. He always looks like he's fishing for a tummy rub!

Lime honey....hmmmm....how would one make something like that? I shall search the internet. K8Memphis, that mini-muffin idea sounds too cute! About traditional vs. non-traditional, I think my image of afternoon tea is based on one of my first experiences with it. This was at the Raffles Hotel in Singapore, and they had many, many, many savoury items (some with very Asian flavours, like gyoza-type things). So perhaps we can call my tea a Southeast Asian tea in the afternoon???

In my house, while not the antichrist, she's pretty far down the list of talk show hosts/interviewers we respect. She does have some good guests on, but she's much too full of herself to carry-out a "real" interview. I can imagine, though, that Tony would have been as graceful as he always is when being interviewed, even if the host(ess) really only wants to talk about him(her)self.

We're not really after an "authentic" afternoon tea. I'm thinking of it more as an appetizer party that just happens to be during what could be afternoon tea time. More like a late lunch, but with foods that are not quite as substantial as a full lunch. I just want to eat a bunch of delicious foods without getting too full too fast!

If you have a computer with broadband or cable access, you can use Skype-Out to call if you figure out how to deal with the language issue. There must be someone around you who can speak French well enough to make reservations. (no affiliation with them, but I've used both their free and pay-for-use services, and my savings account thanks me for that)

Bacon!!!! I can get US-style bacon (it costs about $8 per slab, but at least it's available), so mini-blts are definitely do-able! Thanks!

I can't speak for LoS, and I never even got to eat there when I was in LV last summer, but your tom yum kai may not have been entirely pre-made. At my friend's place, although the soup (broth) part is premade, she does not add the other stuff (shrimp, straw mushrooms, chicken, etc. depending on which tom yum you order.) until it is ordered. If you order any of the tom yum's at her place, it will probably take 10-15 minutes, too. I wasn't impressed with the frites at Bouchon, either, and I really wished I had asked for a side of mayo (but the waitstaff was a bit scarce).

I was going to mention, but didn't, that I am in Japan! I can get ham that's a little similar to baked ham, but not country ham. If I use ham for the cornbread sandwiches, should I mix it with anything, or would it be better plain? Should I put mayonnaise or mustard or something, or have them on the side if people want to use them?

I'm revisiting this topic for a special occasion! Two of my friends will be leaving our place of work (and one is also leaving the country), so I'm going to have a tea party for them. There will be at least 4 of us, maybe 5, and I want to provide a variety of foods, but not so much that I'll have leftovers for a month. For the menu, I'm thinking of the following: Savoury items: sandwiches made from jalapeno cornbread (I'll use the cornbread recipe from Dorie Greenspan)--what kind of filling would be good with jalapeno cornbread? stuffed gougeres--maybe chicken salad as the filling. Would it be better to have more than one kind of filling? quiche--either the Bouchon recipe or the Fine Cooking recipe (which can be frozen and then baked) sausage rolls cream cheese, cocktail sauce, and crab meat served with crackers Sweet items: mixed berry scones with clotted cream (or Nestle's thick cream) and jam Small shortbread cookies with lemon curd (I might try to make the cookies into tart shells) Fruit (whatever is available--probably strawberries and blueberries) That's actually as far as I've gotten with the sweet items. My guests don't have any food-phobias, so I can serve anything I want. I've though of more savoury things than sweet things, because I usually prefer savoury, myself. But I need to add a few sweet things--maybe brownies or some kind of slice and/or poundcake. Even though I have many more savoury items than sweet, would that be OK for this kind of tea party? I suppose I don't have to be "authentic", but I would like the foods to complement each other. For tea, I only have one flavoured tea (Mariage Freres Bolero flavoured tea), and only one teapot (which is only used for flavoured teas). I think I might also have an English breakfast tea somewhere. I will also serve some coffee for the non-tea drinkers. Any suggestions or comments?

I made my usual loaf (about 1/3 whole wheat, 2/3 bread flour) but added rosemary. The flavour is nice, but I had a bit of a problem. I raised my heat to 270C. When I took off the lid after 25 minutes, it looked beautiful. It was without a doubt the most beautiful loaf I've made. But I baked it for another 25 mintues without the lid, and it was very very brown when I took it out. It tastes OK, but still has a slight burnt flavour. I hadn't noticed any burnt smell until just before I took it out. Oh well. If nothing else, I can eat a bit and use the rest for croutons. I think I prefer the higher heat, because the crust (though overly dark) seems thinner to me. My oven goes up to 300C, so I might try that. Has any one else tried temps around 300C? What kind of times did you use?

A table of six is more difficult to seat than a table of 2 or 4, for example. It could be that they just didn't have enough large tables (or smaller tables that could be moved together) for your group at that time. You didn't mention if either place was already full, or if you noticed an area which might have accomodated your group. I have been to restaurants with a group of 4, and been seated both ahead of groups there before me, or after groups who came after me. In either case, it was just a matter of the size of table available. But yes, it is quite possible that they didn't want to seat a group with 4 young children on a Sat. night. I might call the manager just to clarify, but not to complain since, as I said, you don't mention if you could actually see that there would have been space for your party there.

One thing I always get at supermarkets are cream croquette. I usually get crab or shrimp, sometimes both. I've never made my own, and though it would be nice to have a bit more crab or shrimp in the croquette, the convenience of the supermarket ready-made ones are hard to beat! I just had two yesterday, purchased at my local Coop. They weren't as fresh as they usually are when I buy them (they were already cold), but I ate them as is. I was starving after going to the gym (and I think the calories in the cream croquette wiped out any benefits of that gym session....).

I love kitchen remodels. My mother is redoing the kitchen cabinets this summer, butshe has such a small kitchen that it won't be as exciting. Maybe I can get her to redo the lights and get some LEDs in their, too! Now, about that chicken enchilada casserole recipe....

Kanom krok!?!??! Which market was this? I'm going there the next time I'm in MSP! I've never seen them outside of Thailand (though I've never been to other areas in Canada or the US with large Thai populations). Kanom krok is like ableskiever (SP??). I prefer kanom bah bin, though ( or is it bin bah?). did they have that?

I would guess that the small flecks might be undissolved powder from a mix. A lot of restaurants I know make their sauce from a powdered mix.

Pam--if you'd like to show us another frozen treat from Winnipeg, the gelati at that place next to your store is pretty damn good. I like it much more than the Italian places, and they have halvah-flavoured gelati!