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Moopheus

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Posts posted by Moopheus

  1. I like the SKOR more, but can you really do a throwdown without including See's (admittedly next-to-impossible to find in New York)?

    I think FG's original question was valid--two very similar products, made by the same company in likely the same facility. How much of a difference is there? Now I am intrigued to go out and try some. I'm pretty sure I can easily get both here, and it's been a while since I've had a Heath bar that didn't come in a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream (I wonder if the relative softness makes it better for freezing?).

  2. Also, curry leaves. I dream of a day when they will be as common place in the grocers as fresh coriander.

    A few weeks ago I was able to get some fresh curry leaves for the first time, which I was able to use in a few recipes. I have to say, it was a really noticeable difference over dried ones. The only problem was the place were I can get them packs them into 4 oz bags, which is rather a lot, more than I can use in a short time.

  3. I do resent the omission of weights, and have not yet located in the book where he states how much his cups weigh, that sort of thing, which is quite unexpected in one of his books.

    That is disappointing. Peterson is one of the best cookbook writers around, but I have enough baking books that I can skip it on principle if it doesn't include weight measures. Not only that, but feel inspired to send a note to the publisher to tell them they lost a sale because of it.

  4. If you own it, is the binding on the new edition any better than the old? My copy of the first edition started falling apart almost as soon as I opened it.

    That happened to me, too. The first printing must have been seriously defective, like they just forgot to put any binding in the binding. When I was living alone and getting back into cooking, this was really useful for me, now only occasionally so. Hopefully the new edition has glue.

  5. I can find Skors and Heath bars at pretty much every grocery store in my area. The difference I've noticed between the two is that the toffee in the Heath Bars is much softer, almost mushy, in comparison to Skor bars.

    A good reason to prefer eating Heath bars only when they are enrobed in ice cream. They're quite crunchy when frozen.

  6. 2. Oreos. I really enjoy Oreos. I think they used to be a little better -- maybe they used to have animal fat?

    Yes--up until about 10 years ago they were made with lard. Then they switched to vegetable shortening. This was done, in part, to get kosher certification.

    My favorite mass-produced cookie used to be Freihofer's chocolate chip, when they were still made in Troy, but they're gone now. The Entenmann's cookie is a pale, tasteless imitation. Nothing else in the cookie aisle comes close. They're all crap.

    I like some of the UK products--Smarties and Hobnobs.

    Jelly Belly jelly beans are good, and I never say no to M&M's.

  7. I just called both Aj's & Whole Food stores and I have the choice of Scharffen Berger, Hershey's, & Ghirardelli. They're all naturally processed.

    That's funny--around here Whole Foods usually has Valrhona and Droste. In fact, I recently got some Valrhona cocoa powder on sale for like $10/lb. I would say that Ghirardelli is definitely preferable to the Hershey's. I've never used the SB cocoa powder, so I can't say how it compares.

  8. I'm just glad to see I'm not the only one with this problem. The last time I tried, I managed to get it on the peel okay, but then getting it off was a problem. Cheese went onto the stone and the oven bottom. Instant charcoal. Sounds like I may have been not generous enough with the cornmeal. I'm curious about the parchment method too. It does seem like the stone would be too hot for the parchment, but if it works, then maybe not. Do you notice any difference in the way the stone cooks the underside of the pizza?

  9. To me, a truly deconstructed restaurant experience would be one where you, the customer, go into the kitchen and cook, and the chef sits out in the dining room and eats. Who pays?

    Unfortunately, I've had more than my fill of deconstructionist stuff in the literary world. I give Derrida credit for being on to something; I would not say the same for many who followed in his footsteps.

  10. Another major disappointment was Lord Krishna's Cuisine by Yamuna Devi. ...I looked at the introduction for the first time, in which she noted that garlic and onions were considered unhealthful in the tradition from which she drew the recipes. D'Oh!

    That's funny, I just made a big Indian dinner using that book--a friend's husband is allergic to onions, and I knew there were none in the book. I thought the dishes I made came out rather well, and everyone enjoyed the food.

    Peter Berley's books on the other hand, have sat largely unused on my shelves.

  11. If you created the recipes while at work, the owner of the business owns the recipes. This is the same for any company (creating a product, process, etc.), unless you have a signed agreement that states otherwise.

    Actually, the default is the other way around in the US. Unless you sign a specific work-for-hire contract, any copyrighted works are owned by you by default.

    cite

    "Works Made for Hire. -- (1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment"

    No, if you're an employee of a business, it's assumed work-for-hire. Where it gets tricky is with freelance and contract workers. In which case it is best for all concerned to have agreements explicit on paper.

  12. I think to say that the publishing industry should stop using volume measurements is impractical. And I don't think that every cookbook-user would agree.

    I don't think anybody is saying they should stop giving volume measures (not going to happen anyway, I agree), but that it's not impractical for publishers to provide weight measures for those who want it.

  13. I've made the version given in Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, which involves broiling the eggplant slices before layering with the sauce and cheese. In fact, I made this for Thanksgiving dinner one year, and it went pretty fast. In fact, I think my aunt's in-laws hold a grudge, because they brought a more traditional version, and everyone liked mine better.

  14. I've recently started using my old pasta maker again (a Marcato) after several years of dormancy. So far I've had the best results starting with the procedure in Bugialli's Fine Art of Italian Cooking. I only mix the ingredients just enough to make a ball, then let it rest for a while, then run it through the machine. A few passes at the #1 setting is usually enough kneading. I cheat and use the outboard motor, which leaves the hands free for guiding the dough.

  15. 2. Waste. If you pick your own, and decide, after taking a bite, you don't like the apple, it's on the ground which is a huge problem at the end of apple season.

    Or you take and bite and you do like it. So you eat it. It's not paid for. And it's gone. Now, I suppose there's a limit to how many you can eat. I think the last time I did this, it was around seven or eight apples.

    On the other hand, we once did pick-your-own strawberries, and came away with 35 pounds (yes!) of berries at what seemed like a reasonable price at the time.

  16. My first couple of tries at pizza were very mixed results. The first time I used the procedure outlined in Silver Spoon, managed to actually make a pizza, but it was very difficult to form the crust. The second time, I used a different recipe, and had results like KennethT's--I made goop, not dough. Also, like KennethT, I was using Italian tipo 00 pizza flour, not a high-gluten bread or AP flour. Now I'm not sure what to do with this. Less hydration? Longer fermenting? I've done a lot of dessert baking, but not so much bread baking, so I could use some advice.

  17. Actually I cannot remember the last time I saw a Russet apple and as for corn; we can't buy any kind other than peaches and cream. :sad:

    Oh, yeah, I remember corn-flavored corn--where did it go? It seems to be almost completely replaced by sweet and mixed yellow-and-white corn. Who asked for that? Not me.

    Yes--good (i.e., not ultra-pasteurized, not adulterated) cream is hard to find. Or actually not that hard to find, in the sense that I know, at least around here, where I can find it (Whole Foods and Russo's). But I have to have it to make ice cream.

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