FistFullaRoux

It's the humidity. Once the meringue is dried out, it will absorb moisture from the air or whatever it is in contact with. Consider storing them unil the last possible moment in an airtight container with a couple of the little packs that come with certain medicines or electronics. They will capture any moisture in the container. Then place the meringue at the last posssible moment. Alton Brown addressed this in the fudge show. If you take two pieces, and place one in a container by itself, and put the second one in a container with a bit of damp paper towel in it, even if they don't make contact, the one with the extra humidity will soak up the moisture and go gooey. If you are in a high humidity environment like Florida, consider putting them back in the oven for a bit just before serving to crisp them up again. If you are in Vegas, you should be OK.

Oh, yes, that's good stuff. I use it as a substitute for andouille when I make gumbo. You have to render out some of the fat first, though. There's a little too much in there. But a damn fine product. And no one has mentioned RC and/or Moon Pies yet...

If some versions of history are correct, Dean Martin reeked of apple juice...

Please elaborate... ← Place the pan over a charcoal or wood flame upside down for 15 minutes or longer. Not trying to put out the fire, but you are trying to heat the pan as high as possible to burn off any residue from the manufacturing process. Let it cool, then coat with a solid shortening (not butter) and put it over the flame, upside down, for 10-15 minutes. Let it cool, wash carefully, repeat the process a couple of times. Basically, the goal is to build up a little bit of carbon in the nooks and crannies. Yes, carbon is a poor conductor of heat, but it's also non stick. What you end up with is a better start for the patina which will eventually develop. This method works a lot faster and results in more buildup of the non stick surface than the oven method. Eventually, it will become slick and smooth (or at least smoother). You are essentially doing a sped up version of a couple of years of cooking in one shot.

Yeah, but semi-decent food with people you love is still pretty good.

Take your skillet to a metal shop and ask them to grind and polish the inside bottom (the sides do not matter so much). They can make it as smooth as you want and it doesn't cost all that much. ← Or, you can season the hell out of it, and it will fill in some of the gaps. I've always been a fan of the open fire version of seasoning, either in a hole in the ground or on the charcoal grill. Don't give up on that thing yet. You can always use it for panfrying or home security. There are no bad cast iron pans...

Update: http://www.theadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll.../512280306/1046 Diversified will keep it's headquarters in suburban New Orleans, according to Al Copeland. Turns out, they were looking for a western distribution point anyway, and the Oklahoma deal was already somewhat in the works. So they aren't moving away, they are keeping their core business and headquarters in the New Orleans area, and they will simply replace the damaged facility with the new one in Soonerland, which will allow them to expand the business. Kudos to Mr. Copeland for keeping those jobs local. I wonder if they would subsidise moving expenses for people who wanted to go west

After having gone through all of that, I'll agree with the above statement that you only really need water, sugar, and salt. None of the flavorings that I added to the brine showed up in the turkey. Besides, there are so many other flavors going on the holiday table that I am beginning to think that the turkey flavor simply needs to be pointed up, instead of modified. Most people want to taste the turkey, which the brine does improve. It does help with texture and moistness. WHich is all anyone really needs anyway.

Well, you could pretty much include the whole Zatarain's product line. Not mentioned so far is the root beer concentrate. -Around here (Birmingham) there is a thing for Dale's seasoning. I don't quite get it myself, it's a marinade kind of thing, somewhere between soy sauce and worcestershire. -Zapp's, Golden Flake, and Lance snacky things. -Evangeline Maid bread. It's white bread, but it is the stuff dreams are made of, and it's unavailable anywhere outside of south Louisiana. Some claim to be close, but a fresh loaf of Evangeline Maid is simply dreamy. -Blue Bell and Mayfield's ice cream -Jack Miller's BBQ sauce. It's not tomato based, but it's not Carolina style either. It's a category all it's own. -Domino sugar I'm sure more will come to me...

Hey, chefs can't have all the fun...

We now have decent kinves. My wife and I got money from a relative with strict instructions to spend it on something we've been wanting, but thought we could do without. Since the dear heart didn't send enough for a cruise, we splurged and each decided on one knife each. They aren't top of the line, but they are the first "real" knives we've ever owned, and we are thrilled to death with them. I picked a Whustof Classic 8" Chef's knife. Figured it's the utility player in the knife world, so it will be used well for many years. My wife has been lusting after Rachel Ray's Santoku (well, that sounds funny, but you know what I mean), so we found one by Calphalon that fits her hand well, it balances nicely, so there you go. Plus a few odds and ends that we could use, like a decent veg peeler and a new digital thermometer. Our old digital was dying slowly, and I didn't really trust it anymore. Plus I was getting tired of doublechecking it with the instant read. Just a pain. Edited to add - A decent microplane as well. I knew there was something else.

Using my wife's newfound marshmallow making powers, I suggested a smores kind of thing, with a graham cracker crust, then covered in chocolate. It sounded good in theory, and the end result tasted good, but they were damn near impossible to cut cleanly, and the crust fell apart when placed under that stress. Cest la vie. Next time we try this, I'm thinking just mixing chocolate chips into the marshmallow, then topping with graham cracker something kind of topping thing. The point of the crust was to make it a easier to get the tenacious little buggers out of the pan. They do not want to let go otherwise...

http://www.katc.com/Global/story.asp?S=4287605 Louisiana-based Diversified Foods and Seasonings makes products used by the restaurant industry, including Culinary Creations, New Orleans Chefs Creations, Culinary Collections and Casa San Louisa. The company's plant in Metairie was destroyed. The company still has plants in Texas, Alabama, and another Louisiana plant in Madisonville/ They will be moving to McAlester, Oklahoma

Those old Hitachis are hard to beat. My mom has one in avocado. Two settings, cook and warm. Off is when you unplug it. They are as simple as can be, and never fail once you get the proportions right.

Trying a different recipe than last year, when I followed Alton brown's faithfully. I made my own veg stock last night (lots of mirepoix and some bell pepper I had in the freezer that was serving no real purpose, also a couple of potatoes near the end and a handful of leftover corn left in a bag in the freezer). I have star anise, sage, rosemary, peppercorns, kosher salt, a bit of brown sugar, and a touch of apple cider vinegar in the works for tomorrow. The turkey hits the brine about noon, and will be in the oven at 5am Christmas Day. It will be "stuffed" with 2 apples, an orange, cinnamon stick, and some more fresh sage and rosemary inside the bird. The stuffing will be discarded before service. I think it will work out. I was truly impressed with the results last Thanksgiving when I tried the brining thing for the first time. I'm a believer now.

And that's the best Christmas present I could ever get. I'm thankful for everything else, but that's what I wanted the most...

I was referring only to clear up any potential misconceptions about the eggs in gumbo, and wanted to specify which one I prefer. My feelings on okra are known here. It's simply not my second or even third choice. Besides, you would probably agree than the consitency of an okra gumbo with an egg floating in it would be curious at best.

I've had them in stews and gumbos. It's a different thing than fresh shrimp, and if you go into it without that expectation of them being like fresh, you will find them good in their own right. You don't use nearly as many in a gumbo, however. I usually de-salt them a little (a quick rinse in cold water, or a quick blanching of 1 or 2 minutes in boiling water) before using them in gumbo. They are even better, as mentioned above, the next day when you drop a boiled egg or 6 into the gumbo when you reheat it. You can poach the eggs in the broth, but that's not what I grew up with. Never had the reason to try them poached. Just drop in the peeled hard boiled eggs to take the place of the now heavily depleted shrimp in the batch. Now when I'm talking gumbo, I'm talking roux, not okra. Eggs in okra would be something pretty far down on my list of things to eat if I were hungry, and had a choice in the matter.

I'm in charge of the turkey again this year. I'll be doing a combination of Emeril's and Alton's turkey brine recipe, but cooked according to Alton's procedure. I'm making the vegetable stock now that will be used for the brine. I'm also going to try my hand at a cranberry sauce (with fresh cranberries) with ginger ale and orange as flavors. It's remarkably like Alton's, but different. My wife has been keeping herself busy with cookies and homemade marshmallows that will accompany. Others are bringing sides and stuff. My only concern is that we will have to cook the turkey here, then bring it 2 hours north, reheat it, then serve. There are no other options. It has to be done this way. Last year the Thanksgiving turkey survived a 1hr trip quite well, I'm hoping it works out again this year. I'm doing turkey because we were in Louisiana for Thanksgiving, and it's a command performance. So I've become the go-to turkey guy. Not really a bad thing... edited for typoss

This news truly upsets me. You are someone who obviously loved what he was doing, who did it well, and did it for the right reasons. To find you in this situation is heartbreaking. Best wishes to you sir.

I think (personal theory, no real way to back it up) that the the fruit/custard fillings and the colored sugar on top eveolved in New Orleans as the carnival season became more "touristy". It evolved from a semi sweet brioche type of concoction to match New Orleans "over the top" attitude. As the years have gone by, and the tourist trade became more important in the economy, drinks became stronger, food became spicier and sweeter, and revelers got more extreme. I think they are too sweet these days, myself. I'll make my own with about 2/3 of the sugar that most NO bakeries use. I also think that the tradition of the baby (whoever finds the baby has to host the next party or buy the next cake of wins a door prize) is also attributable to the commercial bakeries. Any excuse to have people buy one more cake... In other words, the changes can be blamed on marketing. It's driven New Orleans for the last 50 years. There's nothing delicate about them now. It's become a caricature of itself. Not that they ain't good, mind you. Especially if you get one of the old line ones. Gambino's is probably the best in the city (although that argument alone could generate a vicious thread). They are slightly less sweet and a little more subtle than the glorified danish that will set your teeth on edge sold in most places. Edited to add: Not sure if this will really help you or not, but I felt I had to add my .02. Maybe it will give you a different avenue to look into.

Hey, you bring a big enough bag of stuff with you, you might make a few bucks. Now that I mention that, is that even allowed? Could you bring gourmet sandwich stuff on board with you and sell them for 10 bucks a pop? It's conceivable to break even or even make money with the right fare...

Pork roast also makes lovely sandwiches, in addition to the cuban mentioned above.

Edy's Whole Fruit bars - Tangerine flavor. So good. Strange that I'm craving frozen stuff when it's 30 degrees out, though.

Ah, but to throw a wrench into the works here... Are these guys licensed or inspected? http://www.team4news.com/Global/story.asp?S=4185923&nav=0w0v The above is not a New Orleans story, but maybe something to think about. I was under the impression that New Orleans was no longer issuing mobile food licenses after Lucky Dog. How did Lucky Dog come out in all of this by the way?