lovebenton0

Thanks, Peter. It is hard to find a good rye bread. And I do prefer baking my own (for pleasure and flavor/texture) over what I can usually get in this area. I planned to start a sourdough rye, but will go with a straight yeast for the purpose of following your suggestions. I have a basic bread book by Dolores Casella, A World of Breads , published in 1966 that I use as a basic formula reference, tweaking as I go along. (Just can't resist that.) But I will cut the tweaks this time and let you know how that works out. If it's beautiful I'll post a pic, otherwise we'll just eat it.

Too true! The Chicago squares are it! They allow for a super thin and crispy crust without losing the goodies on top when you pick it up. I still cut my Chicago style pizza in squares! Was taught by one who knows the crust -- he worked in small family pizza joint in Mundelein for three years, learning at the elbow of the master.

Thanks, Chef, for extending your time and knowledge to us. I've been baking bread fairly regularly for about 35 years for family and friends -- so I'm just a piker. No commercial baking experience; basically self-taught through (mostly) fun and (occasional) flop trial and error. Embarrassed to say that no I haven't read any of your books. But do plan to remedy that in the future. Rye breads. Dark, light, seeded or not, soft rye loaves, hard, dense German breads, sourdough, or yeast. I love them. Sometimes I get that "perfect" loaf. But not always with the same method. Rye is a heavy flour and sometimes it just does not want to proof out nicely for me after a good first rise. I do turn the dough. What do you recommend for rise and proof? How many times do you allow the dough to rise? Am I being too impatient with the proof? Am I allowing the dough to become too dry? Am I just not getting it somehow?

Unless the odd (though oh so pleasant!) cooler weather cycle we are on continues to deepen into an early freeze, I'll still have some goodies coming out of gardens through December. Then shortly after that it will be time to start anew. So keep checkin' in with us, snowangel. We'll keep you fortified during the long drear.

Thank you, Peter, for that explicit explanation on the gluten reaction. One practical advantage to turning the dough for home bread bakers that are mixing and kneading by hand is that due to the gluten reaction the dough is easier to handle when it rests between your manipulations. This might not be a big issue for many of you, but for people with less than steel grip hands for dough hooks it can make the difference between baking bread a joy, or not at all.

The flaking process does leave a relatively large surface area that reacts like a sponge. The same is true, for me, with rolled oats. I allow the troublesome ingredients to sit for five to ten seconds (keep in mind that the environmental humidity effect on the ingredients will determine how fast the liquid will be absorbed) in a small amount of the liquid for the recipe. Then strain the liquid out to add to flour mixture and reserve the hydrated ingredients to add at the proper time.

To those categories I would add that Chicago style pizza is not all deep dish. Since the early 60s -- at least that is the earliest of my personal experience -- some Chicago area pizza makers have made a fabulous very thin and crispy crust pie. Definitely my preference and the style I make at home. Looking forward to your discourse on this subject, Peter.

OK. I plead guilty of being a pain in the ass sometimes. However, as has been pointed out here, one can cultivate restaurant(s) you choose to make some allowances for dietary restrictions. I have actually had good results with making very specific requests of the kitchen. Right, don't order a meal you can't eat then ask the chef to change it into something you can eat. But ordering with your own diet in mind -- and not all diet has to do with calorie/fat intake based on one's desire to lose/maintain weight -- and requesting that additional salt, etc., not be added, or to have a sauce or dressing served on the side has not been a problem for me. Maybe I'm just lucky, maybe they like my smile. Believe me, I would know if someone doused my veggies with lard!

For a little different twist on the meat and rice stuffing . . . Ground lamb and rice in roasted/peeled red bell peppers with sweet onions, garlic, and basil. I like to use either lemon basil or cinnamon basil with this, depending on what I want to serve as sides. Bake 'til done then top with crushed croutes and drizzle with a bit of fragrant olive oil (garlic and crushed red pepper).

My internal timer is pretty good. But when food needs strict, specific timing I have to watch the clock, or my watch. Can't hear a timer going off. Or food boiling, sizzling, etc., so if I'm going to be involved in something else and can't watch the food I make a note of time and always check earlier than I expect it to be done. (Of course this means I have to remember to do that when I start it. ) I go by smell, feel, and taste to back me up. And I always feel like I have accomplished something when the garlic toast is perfect. Horrible waste to burn toast of your homemade bread!

Pork larb (and coconut green curry with lots of baby Asian eggplants and a bit of chicky thigh) for dinner on Wednesday night for guests. One guest has spent considerable amount of time in Thailand and looked at me sideways when I said I was making larb. But I must be doing something right because it passed his palette and they were all very happy. Friday night, more pork larb for myself made of the same pork loin we had smoked a few days earlier. Kept the pinkest part for the larb. Was out of lime leaves so I upped the lime juice and fish sauce (still 1:1) and managed to get a bit of lime zest in there. Not the same as the kaffir lime leaves but still very good.

I make a jalapeno pimiento cheese dip -- good with tortilla chips or thin crispy crackers. Also wonderful spread on cornbread. Sharpest cheddar, lighten it with mayo and sourcream. Then, of course, for those who indulge, there's always a jalapeno margarita.

I had no idea when I contacted THSD in Austin about a Hearing Dog that they could also balance-train a dog for me. In the process of introducing myself and my medical situation I told my contact about deafness (with a cochlear implant/ "CI") as well as the vertigo and permanent vestibular damage. She snapped on that immediately and was the one to suggest to me that I was a perfect candidate for a Balance/Hearing Dog. I'm unable to hear certain ranges of sounds even with the CI and a bit of distance or almost any background noise can mask sounds. I'm looking forward to being able to set the kitchen timer when I cook. Not to mention knowing when there's water running. Having the dog to support me when I'm in the kitchen will also allow me to do some tasks with two hands again.

This makes those "fish previously frozen" signs a welcome sight!

Fireballs! several finely minced jalapenos 1 finely minced medium onion 1/2 pound each ground beef and pork 1 pound grated baked potatoes 1 egg salt to taste mix together and form as for meatballs deep fry in hot oil until nicely browned serve with dijon mustard as dip have plenty of beer on hand

Not counting the veg and herb gardens, including two cart-sized rosemary bushes, and a six foot fennel that tend themselves . . . we pick pounds of grapes for backfence grape jelly every summer, the wild persimmon is continuing to ripen to its greenish blackness -- makes ugly but very tasty jam (also plan to try a wild persimmon fudge recipe I found because I can't resist the experiment ). Dandelion leaves for salad, wild onions, and garlic. Fragrant and beautiful lemon horsemint, a lemony herb that is heaven in the mouth with chicken, lamb stew, and many other soups and butter sauces.

The strangest Pecan Pie I have ever eaten was served to me on a cruise to the Bahamas. The pie was solid pecan chips, with very little gooey sweetness. There had to be over a half cup of pecan chips in the piece I was served. Although I was interested to see what the difference might be (Island Pecan Pie ), being addicted to the glorious Southern Pecan Pie I was used to eating, and baking, in Texas I was beyond disappointed. I could only conclude that they just didn't get it.

Did they look anything like this, jess? One of the wild persimmon trees from my yard, popping with fruit.

Yum! Beautiful. Too bad we're so far apart -- I'd make you a larb for a flat iron steak meal -- you cooked it just the way I like it!

You can check out the EGCI Cooking with Disabilities course for more links to equipment for deaf and HOH people and other resources. In particular: Assistance devices are available for the hard of hearing (HOH) and deaf, i.e., light flash response for timers and alarms, similar to the phone or doorbell alerts. There are also vibration alerts; I have even used my pager and my cell phone set on vibrate as timers. Waiting for my Hearing/Balance Dog to arrive within several months. A furry kitchen timer for me too!

As a general rule working dogs are allowed anywhere their people can go. However, this is also dependent on the good behavior of the working dog -- and its person!

I have to admit that corndogs are a nostalgia thing for me. Not the same anywhere else as at their point of origin, the TX State Fair. (The first time I ever ate wiener schnitzel was at the TX State Fair as a kid --a long time ago.) Love to visit the exhibits -- food (the canning exhibits are my favorite) and art. Have exhibited in the art show many years ago and it was a great experience. And we always used to go to the annual play production during the fair. The Chinese acrobats sound interesting -- have not been to the fair in . . . mmmmmmmmm . . . several years.

There are too many ways to allow good food to taste good -- whether from your own kitchen or a restaurant kitchen. Although the occassional do-it-all meal out is not going to cancel out all the other healthy food choices one has made lately, if one wishes to toe the diet line while eating out you can request a variety of simple changes without sacrificing the dish or completely destroying your diet concept. No added salt, or butter/lards/oils (whatever is your particular concern), please serve sauces/dressings on the side (so you can dip and regulate the amount you consume while still enjoying the flavor). All fat is not bad -- we need some fats in our diet. If one is that phobic stick to salads and dip into the dressing or request lemon wedges or vinegar to flavor the salad. "The Fat Police" describes her approach in this article all too well, FoodMan.

Many of us have what are considered to be Invisible Disabilities. You didn't feel able to cook today? Or you have to bail out on those plans everyone was looking forward to because you just can't do it right now? We've heard it all, the doubt in people's voices, the scepticism in their eyes, as they say "You look good." Or maybe you're having a good day and people assume you've "got it licked" as though your disability just suddenly disappeared (or never really existed!) because they can't see it or you are functioning on a higher level that day. That can change in a moment for many of us. This web site is interesting, informative, and may help you to deal with those in your life who just don't get it to understand your life a bit better. Invisible Disabilities Advocate

Was there life before larb? Didn't even need to sear beef before dropping chunks of it into food processor and pulsing to a medium grind. Delish! I really don't think I will ever buy pre-ground meats again! No lemon grass in this larb. Plenty of lime juice, fish sauce (1:1), lime leaves and all the other goodies. (I like the galanga powder in the larb.) Good measure of basil and cilantro in the warming and extra cilantro as a garnish. I was even more aware of the good crunchy/nutty taste and texture of the toasted rice in this larb than in the chicken or the lamb. The hot Thai chilis (both the dried/crushed and the fresh) from the garden are kick ass good! I could definitely tell the the difference starting with raw meat -- the cooked meat absorbed more of the humidity of the sauce than this. It was a bit wetter and I liked it like that. Beef larb for dinner tonight.