Boris_A

Sage leaves make for a funny, surprisingly tasty aperitif snack when deep fried: Prepare a batter with 4 onz. flour, 4 onz. beer or water, 1 egg yolk, 1 tablespoon oil and salt. Then add the stiff egg white. Deep fry 24 sage leaves coated with this batter and serve warm or cold with some drops of lemon poured over. The deep frying will soften the intense, somewhat bitter flavour. For kids, you can try a bit sugar and cinnamon instead of lemon. It's a recipe from my youth made when sage had been abundant sometimes. We called them "sage mice". An alternative to industrial made apetizers.

I spent my youth in a family where - like in many at that time - soups had been a daily dish. So 365 days/365 soups. In these days of obesity, nutritional experts recommend soups again at the beginning of a meal, because soups are energetically low densitiy food and have a stomach filling effect which reduces intake capacitiy and appetite after some minutes. Soups had an important role for centuries - when oversupply was not at all the problem - and I suspect partly because they gave the feeling of having enough eaten. Let me add a recipe of an classic Swiss soup here: Bündner Gerstensuppe (barley soup)

Point's concept and success was maybe more a reaction on the cuisine of Escoffier, which is connotated with Belle Epoque, railways and Grandhotels. As Carlsbad noted, Point's cuisine is embedded in the automobile aera and the provincial restaurants along the country roads. At that time (in '33, he got his 3rd Michelin star), travelling from Paris to the Côte d'Azur took many, many hours and both, Point and Dumaine, offered great culinary pit stops. I learned that the smart Point offered a free lunch for the drivers of his high society clients and that oftenly the drivers were responsible for selecting the place for the stop ... I hardly can imagine Point - who obviously hated travelling - taking a ship to Japan and sacrifying so much time in the 30ies. The ideas and health considerations of the Nouvelle Cuisine came up when the stomacs were filled after the post WW2 decades. Bocuses (rather a great communicator of the NC than being on of it's inventors) second trip - he took an airplane for the first time in his life at the age of 40 when he travelled to the US - led him to Japan. Could be a confusion at work here?

Actually, too much hygiene (constant chemical disinfection) weakens the immune system. Medical studies showed that kids playing in "dirty" surroundings (farms with animals, for example) have a siginifictantly stronger immune system and are less prone to allergies than others. The immune system needs sufficient exchange with unfriendly microrganims to become adapted. A question of balance, it seems.

On the homepage of the Locanda, there's a mention of a cooking school. "Not being sure if this is OK with the new policy" , I'm ventilating the idea of a day with an "eG class" there. I know it's completely unrealistic or downright impossible, but OTOH the wholism presented here is something that touches my soul, hence I couldn't resist. Gals and guys, just to think about it is a pleasure. Dear Pia and Ingles: If passionate, professional chefs say something like this, a taoist would know that they are already pretty close ...

Somtimes, I make a light gratin with thinly sliced zucchinis, a tiny bit of very finely chopped garlic and a handful of basil leafs (and salt and pepper or nutmeg). I only add cream or creme fraiche for the gratin. It makes for a spoon of colour and flavour intensive vegetable on the plate.

Interestingly, I learned that non-cooled raw milk (only over a short period of time, a few hours maybe) has a kind of self-protection mechanism which works better than cooling. Obvioulsy, there's a kind of microrganic balance at work there which tends to get destroyed with cooling. That's why Alpage cheese production ( the cheese which is daily made on spot up in the mountains on the summer meadows) has lesser sanitary problems to solve than with other raw milk cheese, even if these non-industrial production locatiions have no cooling at all (no electric power up there).

According to Wikipedia, both roots are members of same mustard/cabbage family.

There are many different types of boudain, but as Mathew wrote correctly, you always need fresh pig blood. Here in Switzerland, bloodsausage is produced immediately after slaughtering. Even many experienced chefs make their sausages with the help of a "Störmetzger", a guy who is called to do just this job. The Swiss version consists of blood, milk and spices. Do you really want to get into this business?. Usually, they are made by butchers. You'll find a recipe here. Technically, it looks simple, but as always with such traditional stuff, there are secrets. There are bitter battles between aficionados which restaurants offers the best boudin. A firmer, German variant: Blood sausage; Added: 1 kg belly meat 1 kg bacon 1 kg of schwarte bruehe 3/4 l pig blood salt pepper majoran thymian fat Preparation: 1 kg belly meat, 1 kg bacon, 1 kg of schwarte is cooked for 3/4 hours. The schwarten drives one two until three times by the meat machine. One cuts belly meat and bacon into fine cubes, which one gives and with cooking bruehe does not pour over on a filter (with it the sausage when cutting does not lubricate). Then one gives the meat and Speckwuerfelchen to the gemahlenen schwarten, mixes the whole with 3/4 litre to fresh pig blood, peppers it with salt, pepper, majoran and thymian, works everything well among themselves, fills the mass into greased fall glasses and sterilizes 2 hours with 100 degrees. Note: "Schwarte" is pig skin, "Speckwuerfelchen" are timy bacon cubes and "bruehe" is broth.

It looks like there are a lot of different types in different shapes, sizes and colours, but basically it's all the same. Radish is a summer classic in German or Austrian "beer gardens" as a snack with beer and bread, usually called "Radi". Horseradish or Meerrettich (Kren in Austria) is a different thing and consumed with smoked fish or with boiled beef or Frankfurter/Wiener sausages, to give an idea. It's related with the Japanese Wasabi and it's also a base ingredient for some mustard-like condiments.

Lucy, years ago I lived in house whee I had old fahioned dairy service: the guy from the local shop visiting every household early in the morning. At that time, I had a liter raw milk every morning. I drank almost daily for several years and I never experienced the slightest problem. Raw milk is not homogenized as well, thus part the fat globules are relatively large and tend to float at the top (cream). But the large globules create a creamy mouth feeling and raw milk seems to be fatter than processed ones (which is rarely true). Today, I can buy it in organic shops. To be allowed to sell it, Swiss law requires a lot more monitoring than with processed milk (regular testing for microorganisms and sanitary conditions of the licendsed farmers) and mechanical filtering is also mandatory. In all the years, I never heard of any problem with raw milk. From time to time, I buy it, mainly because I think homogenization is the process which damages the natural structure of milk. FWIW, I have also access to organic yoghurt made from unhomogenized milk. After eating that kind (with a fatty skin a the top and producing a lot of "milky water") I coudnl't go back the regular stuff, lacking all the finesse of a true yoghurt. Think of a piece artisanal cheese compared with industrial stuff. The producer, a very small dairy, sais that food engineers usually call his anti-interventionistic yoghurt "defective". Oh well.

First of all, a huge "Thank you" for the incredible amount of time Pia and you are sacrifying here. What a fascinating thread! And thank you for remembering Mirella and Peppino, those gentiluomini della Bassa (people of the plain of Po) and their excercise in "calligraphy" of the cucina Emiliana.

BTW, a country with a very GMO-patent favorable law is meantime ... Iraq. http://www.grain.org/articles_files/atg-3-en.pdf

Dear Igles! Could you agree with my opinion, that northern Italian cuisine is maybe the "softest" (morbida) cuisine one can find. Almost never really spicey, realtively low in salt, for me many dishes of the Piemonte/Lombardia/Emilia have a hard to describe, mellowing character. In this regard, I'd call it an almost feminine, maternal cuisine (no wonder, in general kids do like it so much). It's somehow also a wonderful paradox that there are many Italian male home cooks and vice versa a high percentage of female chefs at the professional top level. So I could think that Italian way of life (rarely being inflexible or hard pressing) or Italian language (a notoriously melodic, soft, rounded language) is perfectly reflected in their dishes. Is this too far fetched? Futher, I'm convinced that Italian "arte di mangiar bene" (pleasure) has a as much to do with ingredients as with the conviviality of it's consumers and their relaxed attitude towards food. I have all the memories of sunday lunches, when wonderful food was served. The food was very important and was always discussed, but it never outshined the "being together" experience. There was always a playful implicitness that - in my eyes - demonstrates that Italy is maybe the oldest aristocracy in matters of fine eating (opposed to fine dining) in western world. I think that Italian, rural restaurants (see Francescos remarks) offer not only truly great food, but also an un-solicitous atmosphere which I think is essential for Italian restaurants clients (an I must confess, for me as well). Remarkably, on can find a similar atmosphere from the simple family trattoria up to highly rated restaurant. This is one reason why I believe Italians are somewhat reluctant to interest in a cuisine which stresses cuisine too much. Is there something with my rationale?

I assume that car owners (GMO producers?) in the US are forced to have an insurance to cover liabilites. I agree anytime that subsidies are not an ideal solution. OTOH, where's the specific risk (covered or uncovered) to environment or individuals?

The crucial point with GMOs spread in the environment is not risk taking. It's risk imposing.

Just wonder: how is liability regulated? If there is an extended, environmental GM-food contamination, is sufficient insurance coverage warranted? Or more precisely: are the risks privately or publicly financed?

As a general remark: I remember Italian gelato recipes (in a book aimed at professionals) using multiple kind of sugars (some less sweet than saccharose). Sugar content is essential to attain consistency in a gelato, and mutliple sweeteeners can give the freedom degrees (sp?) to get the right mix of sweetness/consitency.

In know lovers of young, almost firm V. Mont d'Or ( ) and lovers of very mature one: ammoniac-ic, almost liquid and with a warped crust. There are families, where the damarcation line is running across the home. The good cheese shops (the numbers are heavily in decline due to supermarkets here) offer- just like with Emmental or Gruyère - young and mature ones, so divided household do buy both versions according to indivdual taste.

In German, a "Torte" is invariably a cake of cylindric shape (see: tortilla) and mostly, dough is the minor part compared to a (often layered) filling (but alas, a filling is not mandatory: "carrot torte"). Usually, a torte has a coating and some decoration. In German, a torte is always a finer piece of pastry than a simple kuchen (cake), which can also be a general expression for many variants (torte, stollen, gugelhupf, cake (sic!), roulade, ...) All questions answered?

In my opinion, Ikea (and I bought my first item there 30 years ago) is a mixed bag. A lot of good design. I've seen great, massive SS reelings just side by side with incredibly thinly gauged SS worktops, which I would ruin within two years. Provided you examine quality, you can make great deals. But just be careful with every single item. Having that said, I've no doubt that Ikea USA has some very attractive offers.

Congrats on your Blum hinges. Hettich comes near, but Blum is top. Nice to know that the my brand of hinges will be used in one of the worlds most famous kitchens. You might check Haefele's online catalogue to get (another?) idea about handles. Haefele is a worldwide supplier of pretty good furniture hardware. Go: Product range > Furniture fittings > Wardrobe/cabinet fittings > Wardrobe front Furniture handles > Zinc diecast "Zinc diecast" variant offers some beautiful, durable and truly ergonomic handles in the $20 range.

@cinghiale Of course your'e right. I shouldn't have made that recommendation without a cautionary statement. That "urige" (quaint ~ old and original) raclette machine is meant for 4 people max. The type you showed is the standard one, widespread in all households here. For me, the whole raclette thing is (not unlike fondue) more than a meal, it's a bit an event, a game, a meal that stresses community much more than others. In it's most lovely way (the outdoor version, with a fire and a group of eight or ten people), it will take the half of an afternoon. It's pretty inpractical of course, and usually you'll reach your quantum of wine long before your quantum of cheese. A PITA, but rather a sweet than a major pain.

Ouch! Yes, "Läckerbisse" (tasty bite) does exist. But somehow the adjective "läcker" as a single word never made it to Swiss German. "Mehlsuppe" (flour soup) is a Swiss icon dish, BTW. # 4 in this list of 20 Swiss classic dishes or desserts. Another interesting gift might be "Salsiz" (pronounced "salsits"), small, very dry salamis prodcued in the canton of Graubünden (Davos, St. Moritz, etc). They are small and easy to transport and the best are a really delicious snack.

I'm born here about half a century ago and I never heard it . My Austrian girlfriend says the expression "lecker" for tasty doesnt' even exist in Austria. It's a purely "German" German expression, it seems. BTW, there arent any rules to write Swiss German, it's a spoken only language/idiom, so your spelling is perfect Wrt. raclette machine: this one comes very near to the traditional way to prepare a raclette: with a fire and two or three flat stones, which makes raclette for a great outdoor food event. I remember very well carrying a case of white wine uphill