pkee

Maggie, beautiful article! I use a lot of the instructional kiddie genre cookbooks as a starting point. Mostly on how to present our regular food to the kids in a fun way. Of the children's genre, the best for us has been Ponzek's "The Family Kitchen". She has very clear instructions on presenting new skills. Oddly enough, in the past year, the recipes that get the most use are from Phaedon's "The Silver Spoon". They currently like making risottos and gnocchi from scratch. The twins will be 5 in November. For the past two years, we've collected THEIR recipes that they've learned to cook. I've written them out on index cards and personalized it for each daughter (the way she likes her food) in an inexpensive photo album. The girls love it. My hope is that we will keep this up so that they will have a history of their cooking and their family. The recipes range from wontons (I need to include pictures of their first ones!) to overnight oatmeal (w/ preferred toppings) to carrot slaw, etc. So in addition to purchasing cookbooks, I vote for creating cookbooks with kids Pam

I can't believe that I'm jumping into the frying pan. RECIPES, as in a listing of ingredients, are not patentable. Patent law . . . that's my daytime job. Now, processes employing the listing are patentable. The claims should be drafted to show that the end-product can ONLY be made by that method, e.g. how to groove the pizza. Media instantiations of the recipe are copyrightable. But that's a whole different section of the law . . . Pam

This time it's Chiarello's turn at knives. I just swung by Costco and they had Napastyle santoku (a 5, 7, and 9") set for under $50. Sheaths are included. They are nice to hold. I like things a tad sharper yet. I haven't had a chance to sharpen them to see now well they hold an edge. They are made in China w/ German steel. There is reasonable heft. Full tang, ergonomic handle. Must have used a hydrophilic rubber, my hand was slightly wet when I grabbed the handle and I wasn't going to slip. Anyone else try them yet? Pam

What a timely challenge . . . I'm cooking parent at preschool tomorrow . . . I'm teaching them how to make guk char siu bao for New Year's. My 3 year-olds know how as they've been practicing quite some time but the others . . . This time I'm using Corinne Trang's recipe w/o food coloring. I thought about Eileen Lo's but I was concerned the 5 spice might have a bit of kick. I marinated the pork (strips to get the flavor more evenly distributed) last night and started roasting some before work. The kids have already attacked the char siu - apparently very tasty after Cheerios. In the past, I've also used Tropp ("Modern Art') for a more savory filling. Usually I use David Soohoo's bread recipe as outlined in Beth Hensperger's bread machine book and Eileen's filling (from the dumpling book - but that book was also written before certain ingredients became available in the States). The kids have an easier time helping. The one difference is that I go through a double rise. Rise 1, then shape, rise 2, then bake. The first rise definitely improves the shaping of the dough, particularly for the base of the palm flower. I find that the finished product has a softer interior. I plan to make brush the tops w/ sesame oil. It's supposed to keep the top moist. It's the only step that I haven't tried before. The shaped bao rise on a Silpat (no more torn bao for us!). In general, everything winds up hemispherical unless the kids are doing the shaping (then it's a bit more like a football). Oh yes, if you are in Bay Area, come on down. I'm making about 6 dozen of them so I won't notice if someone decides to sample :) Since I still have a pork butt (bought the double pack at Costco), I think that we're having red-cooked pork for the Super Bowl. So stay longer :) Pam

Can't go off and abuse them. I'm in sunny CA. I actually have citrus to worry about :) Seriously, you can go through them pretty quickly when you are brining. A tablespoon here and there. I was going to share w/ a friend down in Carmel. But, he already had a lb. His dad sent it from NYC. Of course, improperly labelled. If anyone's in the Bay Area, I'd be happy to share with them. Otherwise, I have enough that I might get to repel the local deer. I thought perhaps a combination of fresh cayenne and Sichuan peppercorn as an oil might give the local vermin a kick :) Pam

There is sichuan pepper to be found in the States. About a month ago, I sent a message to my family along w/ MT's brining recipe (fantastic for turkey, then prepared Peking duck style). Two weekends ago, 3 LBS showed up at my door! It was only $7 a lb, incredibly fragrant. St. Louis of all places. I can't wait to make suan la chao shao this weekend. Pam