Bicycle Lee

Are you kidding me? That IS of great help...This agar is tricky stuff and you were putting your walnuts on the line trying it out. Like I said in my PM, I am having trouble with agar across the board...NO ONE seems to know how much to use because every recipe I've tried needed more. I dunno... I'll try the gelatin sheets....boo...

eh...you could do it...and it wouldn't be too bad, I don't think. And forget a wedding cake...tradition is for suckers. I saw an idea for having individual wedding cupcakes arranged like a tiered wedding cake. Much easier, beautiful, unpretentious and economically feasible. Stuff like barbecue is easy to prepare and reserve, too. It does not need to be cooked a la minute, and you can transfer if not serve it all in disposable tin foil trays which are inexpensive. It's up to you...where do you live? I'll cater it for you...hehe 25-30 people would be cake...no pun intended...

good deal. I bet that if you found a decent recipe online that it is pretty close to a traditional mole. We happen to have a great authentic Oaxacan Mexican restaurant here in SLC and the recipe I use is theirs...and boy, is it good...

I don't think I would go to just one area for a food trip...I would go to a lot of places...but I think that a good, one city trip would be NYC...cuz you can get a nice blend of cuisines all in walking distance of each other. BUT, I REALLY want to go to Chicago and eat at Trio...several people have said it was one of the best experiences of their lives...not just a meal, an experience.

If canned or jarred mole is like homemade but with more preservatives then I would assume that you can store it. I made a big batch of mole about 2 months ago and have let one plastic container of it sit in my fridge for about half of that time and it doesn't even smell funny. I would transfer it to some tupperware, keep it covered and refrigerated, but I think you should be fine... by the way, how is that stuff? Any good?

the best egg rolls I have ever had are at this Vietnamese restaurant here in SLC called Mi La Cai Noodle House...man are they good... But I agree...egg rolls at chinese joints are typically pretty wack....make that egg rolls in general. At least you can find better ones than the Costco type... to clarify: the rolls at the Vietnamese place are fried, not the fresh wrap ones.

yes...alcoholic drinks are good... so is dried mint...for mint powder... infusing it in a neutral substance to use as flavoring would be nice too...I really like minted green pea puree for lamb...or minted fava bean hummus...that one is a kicker, because you say hummus and people have a certain thing in mind...and then you bring out this bright, alien green substance and they are instantly intrigued....

I have found that when more of the chlorophyll is released and comes in contact with air, it turns "greener" but in a bad way...also, the chlorophyll has a distinct, metallic smell and taste which I find unpleasant. edit: by "greener" in a bad way, I mean the color of salad greens that have sat in the bag too long and look like pond scum.

I get to cook french bistro food because my boss is a goddam caplitalist and will not close. Even though we only have 2 on the books, he insists that we be open, since on a beautiful, sunny, memorial day EVERYone wants to have escargot, right? BOO!

Of course they are never going to have the passion that you do...you OWN the place, they just work there...while that should not be an excuse for shoddy work, it often times is. And I am not suggesting that you treat them like shit, but I know from experience that when you are more like a BOSS than a human being then their interest in delivering consistent product diminishes. Sad but true...I know a lot of people say "Well, you should work hard no matter what." But that, my dear, is idealism at its worst. But, all that being said...sometimes the gears have grinded down too far to be reworked...ya know? You just have to overhaul the whole system...I say one more chance....let her know exactly what is wrong and why you are concerned, and try not to make it sound like a lecture, and if it happens again: boot....

thanks...that site is cool...do they sell all of that stuff? I would really like to get my hands on some cellulose gel, and some sodium alginate.

In making a savory bread pudding, I think it is most important to reflect what it is the starch for...I would not serve savory bread pudding all by its lonesome...it would have to accompany something that it complimented...and in that case, the sauce for the protein should be equally as beneficial to the pudding...like a demi... I am more familiar with making sweet bread puddings...and my call is to sauce...but not too much. Bread puddings have a tendency to be very filling so you do not want to drown it in sauce, just enough to add a touch of flavor and to help coat the mouth.

I love all my wusthoff classics... but to get one that you are going to use on a regular basis, like a chef's, you'll spend a lot more than 40 bucks...I agree with going with a cleaver....very versatile.

Adria demonstrated this technique when he was in London. Here's my understanding of it: Sodium alginate (a carbohydrate found in seaweed) is added to the liquid solution. Then spoonsful of liquid are dropped into a solution of calcium chloride. This sets off an ion exchange reaction, and causes the polymers in the alginate to link and thicken, creating the "skin" of the ravioli. Adria uses the same technique to create "caviar" out of apple juice, essence of ceps and other liquids. Waldman, Amy Sue; Schechinger, Linda; Govindarajoo, Geeta; Nowick, James S.; Pignolet, Louis H. The Alginate Demonstration: Polymers, Food Science, and Ion Exchange J. Chem. Educ. 1998 75 1430. (November 1998) For a student lab demonstration in which this technique is used to make "snakes" out of Gaviscon, click. I was under the assumption that things like green peas already contained sodium alginate, and that you only had to add this substance to food items that did not inherently contain them. I, too, cannot wait to see the finished product...looks interesting.

I have just been introduced to SHAFT'S blue cheese...I HIGHLY recommend it...

I wouldn't freeze it...the flavors that are extracted from the basil, as well as the chlorophyll, would probably not react well to freezing (what happens to basil leaves when you freeze them?). Refrigerating infused oils helps keep them bright and flavorful... HTH edit: I suggest just giving some out to friends, or something of the like....

it is personal preference, but when doing berries, I always strain out the seeds...I do not like the little fuckers getting in my teeth when I am enjoying my sorbet, and they really do nothing for it. Oh yeah...and another couple sorbets that I really enjoy: lemon mint lemon mint and rosemary red grape strawberry and balsamic pear lavender quince orange blossom (if you can find them) all of these have nice clean flavors and can be used as an intermezzo.

I second (or third) the use of paper towels...line a six pan's bottom with paper towels, put in the washed and dried mint (well dried) and cover with a paper towel too... Another way is to just float them in cold water...the dessert guy at one of my jobs does that and it seems to keep pretty well...

this one is easy: got to the store, buy some ground turkey, some chicken broth, some ziti pasta, some mustard greens, and some decent parmigiano cheese. Make meatballs with the ground turkey, brown them in a pan deep enough to cook pasta in (this may require some additional fat, as turkey is very lean). Set the cooked meatballs aside. Add the chicken stock to the pan and bring to a boil. Toss in the ziti. cook until almost done and then add chopped mustard greens. Once the greens begin to cook, add the meatballs and finish cooking the pasta and greens... serve and shave some parmigiano over the dish... You get protein without a lot of fat, good carbs from the pasta, and lots of vitamins and minerals from the greens...

I had a bunch of citrus fruit sitting around and I made grapefruit, orange, lemon and green tea sorbet and it is fargin awesome. I also really like fresh berry sorbets... Liquor sorbets are nice too, but they take a little longer to get to the right consistency....ya know, like citrus vodka, or gin and tonic sorbet...

I like a savory corn pudding that has a tinge of sweetness...it is a great accompaniment to roasted chicken. I usually make it by blending corn kernels with cream, creme fraiche, a little sugar (to taste; if your corn is really sweet, you may not need any), some finely diced red onion, and a little egg for stablization...fold in some whole kernels and cover with a topping of your choice...you can be ghetto and run some potato chips, or you can just sprinkle it with a mild romano and bake until the top turns golden... but damn is it good...

corn pudding, yo....can't be beat

I have found that agar can replace gelatin in virtually every recipe that calls for gelatin....the conversions are a little sketchy because everyone seems to have an opinion on how much agar to how much gelatin, but the results are basically the same...plus the agar sets at low temps and will hold up to something like 120 degrees whereas beef gelatin will liquify at room temp. hope this helps.

Tunisian fish stew.... hmmmm

I usually do both....start it covered to cook everything through, and then uncover to start the evaporation of liquid and the crisping of the top layer....but that is just me