skrattypants

i make the best cocoa brownies to illustrate the difference between dutched and regular cocoa powders for classes and demos. i think they're a nicely balanced brownie that really showcases the cocoa you use (i usually use valrhona and dagoba). i'll have students (or friends!) taste them blind and then we'll discuss what we liked and didn't like. folks in my neck of the woods have overwhelming prefered the natural cocoa. i've also made many of the nibby recipes--the almond sticks, espresso cookies, and ice cream are all good. the savory recipes are interesting to try. the nibby asparagus is a natural, and the sweet and savory meat sauce is a great way to learn more about the italian agro dolce style of cooking. for my money, dagoba's cocoa nibs beat scharffen berger's hands-down.

a person may be a wealth of information, but that doesn't mean they can teach AND do it on-camera. i don't doubt that sara moulton has talent, but her habit of interrupting or finishing her guests' sentences is more than annoying. don't even get me started on rachel ray. these days, i just watch for entertainment, but the great chefs series really started things off for me many moons ago.

well, i'm in wisconsin, too, so cusina, if you see a great big trick or treater dressed as a deviled egg, throw one of those popcorn balls in *its* bag, too, will ya? for years, we've never had trick or treaters, so last year i didn't buy candy. wouldn't you know? we got SLAMMED. some lucky kids got very creative treats, anything from my stash to dagboa bars to some demi glace. i'd better be ready this year...

huzzah for la cucina italiana. usable recipes for both everyday meals and fine dining, focus on an ingredient and/or technique very month, information about my favorite italian varietals and spirits. i try to read them all, but that is the only one i don't miss. all, that is, except cook's illustrated. far too subjective to be taken seriously in my mind. they lost me when the first line of a red wine evaluation began, "now, none of us even like red wine, but..." that's like asking peta to judge a bbq. food arts is another i enjoy.

rustichella d'abruzzo, hands down. the cavalieri cooks up too "starchy" for my taste.

if you cook the chicken on the bone, you provide some source of collagen and connective tissue--the slow 200 degree heat of braising will break that down into oozy goodness. but if you use boned-out breasts, you're down to muscle fiber. there's nothing to break down, nothing to provide moisture after the proteins have denatured.

vegetable oil for deep frying. i don't like canola, though. tastes off. grapeseed or tea oil for hot/fast searing or stirfrying luscious oils in vinaigrettes--nut oils, evoo's i cook in the oil best suited to the technique and ingredient, and then finish with an oil for its taste and texture when applicable--ie, my il merlano evoo is used to drizzle that bistecca after i've seared it in grapeseed.

asl can be written as signed (sentence structure strikes me as being very similar to german), but many words are eliminated. "i'm going to the store now" might be signed "i-store-go-now". more often, deaf read plain old written english if they mainstream. a deaf friend once worked in food prep and was oblivious to everything going on around him, until the day the joint blew up. he couldn't hear the alarms and sirens, but figured something was up when he smelled 100# of butter becoming uber-ghee.

if you like the doon framboise, keep your eyes open for their "bouteille call", a syrah port fortified with framboise. it cries out for a chocolate raspberry tart.

i will ordinarily tip 20% for fine service (20?! it's easier to figure the math than 18...). i understand that servers depend on tips to make a living; i've been there. but if i get crappy service--problems that were avoidable on the part of the server--the tip goes down (way down) accordingly. to tip poor service and exceptional service at the same level degrades those that do their jobs well. i'm ambivalent about gratuities included with the bill. the absolute worst service i ever had was at a top-name northern california restaurant that had that set-up. i've never seen such a lack of enthusiasm--very unprofessional. i know trotter's just went with the gratuity-added concept. a friend dined there recently and didn't go over her bill too closely, adding 20% to the total. they actually called her at home the week after and brought it to her attention that she may have missed that the tip had already been included and that they would be happy to credit her card for the overage. she was so impressed, she just said, "let 'em keep it".

say, i'm looking for a wholesale source for amedei and having no luck.. any suggestions?

my two favorites are pear trifle with late-harvest riesling sabayon and an olive oil cake made with poached, pureed quince and topped with sweetened creme fraiche.

ooo, those quiznos rats that looked like hairy toes. that was so nauseating i wrote the company.

i don't drink whilst prepping any more since i had the great idea to defrost something in the dishwasher...

grapeseed oil for its high smokepoint and lack of discernable flavor, and when price isn't a factor, tea oil. i like light-viscosity oil for stir-frying. for that reason, i don't like olive oils or even avocado oil, which has a high smokepoint, but too much weight for asian dishes, i feel.

beef carbonnade--beef, beer, bacon and onions--how can this be bad??? duck bolognese pastitsio made with braised lamb and getting back to my saturday afternoons of trying new cookie recipes

ginger can help. if you can find the ginger people's "gin gins" (a hard ginger-flavored candy), it could be a lifesaver.

okay, here in wisconsin the apples and pears haven't announced their arrival yet (but given our strange cool, damp weather i'm sure they'll show up earlier than usual). but at the farmers' market today--tiny baby fennel. just perfect for a super-quick blanch and grilling. i can smell them now...

i'm glad to see someone haul this topic back up as i have only recently discoverd moonstruck chocolates from oregon. o my. http://moonstruckchocolate.com/ and if anyone finds themselves in southern wi, they owe it themselves to try candinas--their raspberry earl grey truffle is incredible. http://www.candinas.com/

schokinag works well in things that take advantage of its earthiness (like stscam says, it isn't particularly fruity, but that isn't always a demerit). i like it dishes with caramel. and i've also had trouble working with callebaut--glad it isn't just me, as friends always refer to it as an industry standard. as for white, i prefer el rey, but it isn't always easy to come by in food service or even home baking sizes.

i do not think lindt has an unsweetened product at retail (or food service, for that matter, but i might be wrong). if you're in a small town, you may need to stick to baker's unsweetened chocolate if you have no other choices. scharffen berger unsweetened is a good, readily available choice. dagoba prima materia is the best if you have access to it. if you can find NO unsweetened chocolate, depending on your recipe you can substitute cocoa powder with a certain amount of fat, but this isn't ideal.

i like the penzey's blends. perhaps not as authentic, but extremely fresh. if i'm not going to toast, roast, and grind my own, they'd better be fresh.

eclipse, i like the way you think. ain't nothing wrong with the universe that sparkling wine can't fix. speaking of which, i'm catering a cocktail wedding reception. the bride LOVES gin, so i need something elegant yet festive, yet not punch. any ideas? she's korean and loves the cuisine of such, so i may run with that eclipse cocktail...

bah to ancora. talk about no ambience... probably closer to you, try mother fool's, again, on willy street for free or nearly wireless internet, decent coffee, late (and early) hours, and if you're there at the right time, some live music. http://www.motherfools.com/

i can't believe no one has mentioned jack and ollie's. their gongonzola and red onion is pretty fine, but i love their thai 5 spice.