balmagowry

You mean you can turn yours off? Nah, I was kidding myself there - but the smothering thing seems to work pretty well. I drown it in gravy or whipped cream, or I choke it with potato chips or pistachios. By the time it recovers enough to be audible, I've already gotten my fix - and at that point it's so exhausted that it figures it might as well take a nap anyway, since by then the damage is done. It also knows that if it tries to make me feel guilty after the fact I will just start all over again. Yeah, it knows when to shut up, that little voice of mine. Learned it the hard way, like me with the rare hamburgers.

Well, to start with, a little candied ginger.... Sorry! Bad joke! Though actually I'm not convinced the ginger is a mistake - my gut tells me that while it may not work in the dish, it might be good as an accompaniment to the dish. Though I think I agree with Pan that it would pair better with pork. I can see where a bit of ginger - or ginger marmalade - alongside a heavy-flavored pork or lamb dish, might serve the same palate-balancing purpose as the cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving. Or chutney with curry. And speaking of curry... that's the song that leftover lamb usually sings for me. Not necessarily a terrifically authentic curry, which is not my area of expertise, but a more frenchified one, built around a veloute-type sauce flavored with some medium-ish curry blend. I typically serve such a thing with peas and over rice, perhaps with something cranberry-ish or beach-plum-ish or chutney-ish on the side. So your peas fit right in, and the carrots would go beautifully too. And I'd cook the wheat sort of risotto/pilaf style, and make it a base on which to serve the pseudo-curry. Ginger on the side, in place of the cranberry/chutney/etc. element, and you can nibble at it between bites so that it isn't so overwhelming. Damn, now I'm drooling again. And those strawberries are breathtaking. If you don't taste the creme fraiche in them, then be naughty and serve some more of it with them. (BTW I planted French Breakfast radishes over the weekend... Mmmmmm....)

True - but the choice cuts are quite good, for what they are. Sure, I've had better - but not at the price, not since our nearby musta-fallen-off-the-back-of-a-truck steak joint closed. And there's something to be said for knowing that if you order rare, by hell rare is what you'll get. A frequent frustration for me is going out jonesing for rare meat - a serious dripping hamburger or a mooing steak - carefully asking the server whether the place is allowed to make it the way I want it (because otherwise I'll order something else), being blithely assured oh yes, of course, and then being served cardboard. Send it back, you say? I've done that. They come back with a replacement which is cooked identically. I once went through that cycle three times at a sitting before blowing it off in disgust. And then they think they can mitigate it by explaining the regulations - dammit, isn't that why I asked the question in the first place? Oof, sorry - /rant. Needless to say, those are places where I don't go any more if meat is what I want - learned that lesson the hard way. So yeah, if I want to go out for steak and I don't want a two-hour round trip and I'm worried about breaking the bank... I'm very glad to sit down at Outback and tear into a good choice cut that is cooked exactly the way I like it. (It suddenly comes back to me that the place here in the village that serves first-class breathtaking prime cuts should be worth another visit, now that they've been non-smoking-ed. Not to ignite that debate - oy, please not! - I'd be more than happy to live and let live in that department but for the perpetual irony, more extreme in that place than in most, that the non-smoker must always run the gauntlet of the bar/smoking section in order to get to the non-smoking section, not to mention the bathroom, and therefore might as well have taken a dip in Eau de Stale Cigarette before even walking in....) Mmmmmm... cheese fries. Cheese fries with GRAVY at R&O's in New Orleans! Though they don't put bacon with theirs. now you mention it. Bet they would on request, though. As for the fat and calories - well, what the hell. If you go to Outback to watch your calories it might be wisest not to go there at all; or more rationally, not to order the cheese fries. Me, I'm damned if I'll try to have it both ways. Either I have the cheese fries and enjoy the hell out of them without thought for consequence or calorie, or I don't have 'em at all. What's the point of having them if you're going to ruin the pleasure by keeping the calculator going in your head? Sometimes I need a real blowout, a major bacon cheeseburger or a mess of cheese fries or whatever I know is bad for me - and at those times I switch off that still small voice, just smother it in gravy, because I know that counting the cost will simply defeat the purpose. EDIT to add: OK, that does it. Guess where we're going for dinner tonight? Guess what we're having...?

What - do we look like a walking death wish? Of course not! As for the music - hey, I may as well admit I wouldn't know one group from the other if it bit me on the ass (as no doubt it has already done at some point). I tune it out like the pseudo-Aussie schtick and the TV over the bar and the bar's reactions to the TV over the bar... and I concentrate on the meat and the Salade a l'ail... and I'm pretty happy. For the buck, it's a very fair amount of bang.

New batch: excellent. Delicious. Smooth, creamy. Eating it plain. It passes the cat test, too. I think another hour's incubation wouldn't have hurt it - the flavor is quite mild. But very yogurty. If I hadn't been spoiled by the extraordinary flavor of the Erivan-based batch, I'd be tempted to say this is the best yet. But... That reminds me of something I've been wondering about: how does the flavor of the starter translate to that of the finished yogurt? With the freeze-dried stuff it's a moot point, of course. But with the others I've used, there's a notable difference between the flavor of the starter and the flavor of the yogurt. In each case, I'm happy to say, in favor of the latter. Even the Erivan, cream-top and all, was extremely sour and had kind of a thin sharp taste - whereas the yogurt I made with it tasted rich and mellow and full. And how many times have I said delicate? Never mind. Same thing with the Dannon starter, though the contrast was less dramatic. Now I'm dying to try Brown Cow. Ultimately, though, I will of course be starting one batch from a bit of the previous one (I'm sure not going to keep using the freeze-dried stuff - just not cost-effective), which sets me wondering: will the flavor be consistent from batch to batch? or will it go through some comparable mutation? Sheesh, if it continues in the same pattern I've noted thus far, it won't take long to reach yogurt nirvana - the ultimate diet food in that it has passed from this plane altogether by the time you eat it.

Yes, but... yes, but... remember that a tiny pamphlet like the Angustura Bitters Recipes ones also counts as one book. In the long run, they balance each other out. (OTOH, I counted both volumes of the Food Encyclopedia,and all 12 of the Mary Margaret McBride series - because a tome is a tome is a tome.) Sometimes restraint is not a virtue! How could you possibly resist that? Now I'll have to go out and buy it. Someone has to.

I've been to the Outback quite a few times, and never had a piece of meat that was inferior or poorly cooked. I'm trying to remember whether I've been to more than one branch - no, I guess not, so I can't speak for the run of them, but based on my experience at my local one (Lindenhurst, LI) I'm surprised at what you say about the fries. Granted that skin-on may not be to everyone's taste (it is to mine), at this branch at least they have never been soggy, limp, or oil-logged - in fact, they'd have to be pretty damn good to keep me ordering them instead of the baked potato; and they are. (And BTW they also do a good baked potato, with a nice chompably robust skin, and they'll give you just about anything you want to put on it.) Salads - not stellar but not bad at all. The so-called Caesar would be just fine under another name, like "Glory of Garlic," perhaps. Doesn't much resemble any Caesar I've ever had, but it's a great way to get a garlic "fix" if you're in need of such. The service, as you say, is excellent, at a level befitting far swankier places - and it's uniform, too: they must have a serious and well-organized staff training program. My only complaint there is ambient noise - music a bit too loud, and acoustics that somehow manage to magnify the rowdiness of the bar. EDIT: Yeah, the Aussie schtick is silly, but once you've registered it the first time it's pretty easy to tune it out, sort of a white noise. Also, I think they toned it down after the first year in business; someone must have figured out that the customers weren't enthralled by it, so they had the servers (if not the menu) implement a more mellow version of it - now it feels more like "Aussie-Optional." Yup... I really like that rib-eye. There, I've admitted it, and I'm not sorry.

Always darkest before dawn. An hour later, it's nicely set. I shoved it into the fridge and will now shovel myself into the sack. Tomorrow is another day... only it's already today. Damn. Good night.

Yeah, you're pretty hard core. Oh gee, that makes me feel much better. Thanks a bunch - you're a big help. Well, now is when it was supposed to be done (package said 4 to 4-1/2 hours, and it's been 4-1/2). And so far - zip. Zilch. Nada. As liquid as ever, and not soured at all yet, or barely. Of course, I always think those 4-hour estimates have got to be nonsense, and so it has generally proved. So what possessed me to start this batch so late in the evening, I don't know. Shall have to check it at 3 or 4 AM. Oy. Know what? I actually might not post at that point. Then again... I might. Hard core is right, I guess. I just tasted my half and half batch. When I put it in the fridge, it was the consistency of European yogurt so ... a fair bit runnier than American style. I've just now tasted it and it has the consistency of mascarpone cheese. Not only does it have the consistency of mascarpone, it has the taste of mascarpone but just a little bit lighter. Which, if you think about it, is a good thing because eating mascarpone by the spoonful can get to be a little rich. I am in heaven. And I am drooling. Give you joy of it (the creamy stuff, I mean, not the drooling). I'm starting to think that the creme bulgare, if I ever get it right, will be an awful lot like unrelieved mascarpone. And as someone who occasionally succumbs to the temptation of slurping heavy cream - straight - by the spoonful, I'm afraid I could down one hell of a lot of mascarpone before finding it cloying. But it's all in a good cause, I figure, so I'm prepared to make that sacrifice. Noble, huh.

Actually, putting it into historical perspective, the authors of published recipes are lucky to have as much copyright protection as they do. I'll never forget the day I discovered, while researching some 18th-c recipes, that two similar versions of something were indeed not just similar but identical in every respect. Looking into it more closely I found as many as three well-known and popular cookbooks with large chunks of identical text, including carefully-reproduced errors. And well before that (15th/16th c), Platina built his reputation on De Honesta Voluptate et Valetudine, most of which was flagrantly lifted from Maestro Martino. Yet I don't know of any instances in which the original authors fought for their copyrights (admittedly I haven't studied that question in depth, but not to have run across any anecdotal evidence at all is surprising enough) - at least, not beyond occasionally hinting that so-and-so is a charlatan and a disgrace to good cookery. Apparently intellectual property ain't what it used to be; it's a hell of a lot more.

Should know in a couple of hours, and I'll post when it comes out. Won't taste it till morning, of course. But you can be sure I'll be posting then too (as when am I not? OMG I'm over 700 posts - for a relative newbie this is almost embarrassing). Your 1/2-1/2 sounds great - I can hardly wait to try another creme bulgare. BTW re adding stuff - yes, I quite often do that too with the strained stuff. But with that last batch, the Erivan-started one, I swear I couldn't stand to adulterate it even with a little fresh fruit, that's how good it was. Part of me almost hates to be continuing to experiment (and you notice I'm doing so in smaller batches) because I just want more of that taste and that texture. But I also feel smug because I can make more whenever I... uh-oh - don't want to jinx it.

Guess what? We didn't make cheese! We made pizza. "We" being kind of a misnomer, because mostly it was slkinsey who made the pizza with able assistance and marvelous toppings courtesy of josephb. The rest of us (jogoode, bergerka, donna AKA Mrs. josephb, and Eubie the terrier) sat around and gossiped and drank and stole ingredients out from under their noses and snarfed down one pizza after another, and generally had rather a lovely time. I'll be posting photos, but have to wait until some time tomorrow because I'm having monitor calibration problems and it's hard to tell at the moment where tomato ends and crust begins. But I did preview them last night and the occasion is not going to be insufficiently documented - of that I am sure. There would have been cheese, but... well, I have a picture of the culprit.

No, we're in luck there - the cheese is a Reblochon, and there are wonderful ones available here. Not exactly the same one, perhaps, and also not the same because you're not in France while buying and preparing and eatiing it... but at least you can get it! It's one of my all-time favorite cheeses, actually, but I would never have dared to dream of cooking a whole one up into a souper a deux. The luxury! Now that is the kind of "conspicuous consumption" that appeals to me.

Oh gosh, yes. Twenty years ago it was just the same. Of course, the circumstances were different - I was working a traveling show that came in as entertainment for the guests, so at the time I sort of assumed they were feeding us dregs because we were a notch or so below the status of hired help; based on your description, however, I begin to think rather sadly that they must have treated us to their best. Still, what a great old place it is.... EDIT: Oops, posted that before I saw the reference to the other thread.

That tartiflette is positively the last straw. I have just chosen it for my last meal, knowing that with that inside me, and its aromas still delighting my senses, I can die happy. I may die now anyway. OMG, no I can't, because tomorrow is l'Aillee!!!! We'd better brace ourselves.

I thought I read somewhere that, in order to be labelled as "yogurt", the product had to have L. Bulgaris and S. whatever-is in it and that L. acidophilus was an "added bonus". You know, I thought that too - and I'm sure it's true... yet all I can tell you is what I read on the Erivan label. It certainly is labeled "Yogurt" - actually it is labeled "Acidophilus Yogurt," which may legit because it specifies. And it certainly also says that its ingredients are "unhomogenized whole milk, active acidophilus culture." And that's ALL. Anyway, it made an absolutely delicious, delicate yogurt - so good that I gave up mixing things into it because I didn't like to have anything interfering with the taste. And yes, I did use some of the cream top.... I also tried it on a half-pint of CREAM (Mmmmm...), and what it produced was a deliciously soured cream, slightly thickened (hmmmm, maybe this is what O'Brian really meant wehen he described "balmagowry"?????), but not as thick as I presumed creme bulgare should be. So I am continuing to experiment. I bought a package of the freeze-dried culture, and will use it today to make a small (1 quart) batch of whole-milk yogurt, to see how it compares for flavor and texture. I will also try a small batch of cream, on the assumption that that will at least give me a standard for texture. Then I also want to try Brown Cow. And at some point I do want to experiment with adding dried millk, again at least for comparison's sake, now that fifi has reassured me as to using the instant kind. I wonder how much of it to use - spose it's been indicated up-thread, and I know I've seen suggestions on the web. I am also toying with the idea of making a quart with soy milk, for a vegan friend (trust that the freeze-dried culture won't violate any of her tenets). BTW, this absolutely transcendent yogurt using Erivan as the starter was made with the usual homogenized supermarket milk. Part of the point of the exercise, after all, is to save money. OTOH, I can barely begin to imagine how yummy it could be with raw milk. Kind of afraid to try, though, for fear of becoming addicted. Who knew that yogurt-making could get so exciting?

How very odd. I can very well understand the nomenclature of mytilus edulis, in fact it's one of the most supremely edulis items I've ever been privileged to encounter. But why on earth would a mussel native to Australia be galloprovincialis? I wasn't aware of any French colonizing in those parts - does that just go to prove how ignorant I am? I'm pretty sure the mussels in Brussels (WHY hasn't anyone written a song about this yet?) are the same variety we get here, though bigger and presumably farmed. But the fact that they look and taste similar (if a bit less sweet and delicate) proves nothing, I suppose....

Prolly 'cos they don't taste very good. They're slimy in a different way and... well, I dunno, I don't care for them. Tried it on principle, is all; don't make a practice of it - not worth it. Actually, BTW, a soft-shelled clam is the easiesy bivalve of all to open, as its shells are separated by membrane and are not shaped to fit snugly together IAC; OTOH it's a little more unnerving than opening hardshells or oysters, because a softshell has more moving parts - and it does move them. Oh - to clarify - the above all refers to mya arenaria - it's so long since I tried a musssel raw that I can't claim to remember much about it, except that it was a pain in the ass to open, and... as I remember it wasn't bad, it just wasn't anywhere near as good as moules mariniere, which I love so much that I can hardly stand to sacrifice a mussel for any other presentation.

Looks as though what we get here is the Common Mussel, Mytilus edulis. Googled around for a picture and didn't find one that pleased me - they all look rather the worse for wear, whereas those I get here are glossy and black and beautiful. I did, however. find this page that includes a picture comparing my mussel shell with yours as to size. And actually the uncaptioned picture at the bottom of the page does look something more like our mussels, though the surface to which they cling is FAR too smooth.... Still looking for decently representative photo of their habitat - so far, no dice. Shall take some myself, if need be.

OMG, that is where Gryphon used to be! When I lived at 90th & Columbus I used to wallow in that place at least once a week. It's not the same owners now, is it? Last I heard Gryphon had moved around the corner, and then I think eventually they folded, more's the pity. Didn't know there was a bookstore in the space again - oh dear, now it's your turn to be a bad influence, I may just have to make a pilgrimage back to that old haunt. Do they still have two levels?

Nope. My matzoh balls are plenty light, a lot of people would say too light, and I can't even imagine how you'd use the soda water - unless to drink it while making them, as it can sometimes be thirsty work....

Well, mine are fluffy and flavorful - and they'd be big if I made 'em big. Basically, I use the recipe from the back of the box of matzoh meal, except if it says something I disagree with. :pause to search for matzoh meal: Well, I couldn't find it. Might be out. Or maybe it's just hiding because it knew I was looking for it. So I ain't got proportions handy, but apart from that what I said up-thread was actually pretty accurate. Matzoh meal, a goodish dollop of schmaltz, an egg, some chopped parsley, S&P. Mix it up and chill the hell out of it. Then shape it. Then cook - or re-chill until ready to cook. Now I know there's them here what don't like the clouding of the broth, but I feel very strongly that cooking the matzoh balls in chicken stock is one of the most important things you can do to make them really flavorful. I have to say I have never had the clouding problem - my matzoh balls always preserve their integrity and allow the broth to preserve its own. If that's unusual I can only assume that I use a different mix of ingredients from those who worry about this - or, quite likely, that the critical thing is to have the balls very cold and the stock boiling very hard when you put them in. But if you're really concerned about this you can always draw off some broth into a separate pot and use that for cooking the balls. If I find the damn matzoh meal I'll report....

You got that right!! Shall I hie myself hence to ye olde "Blockbuster film and comestibles" and check out an often viewed copy?? If you like silliness, yeah. It's early Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan; a bit sappy in places, but with enough charm to carry it over. She plays two (or is it three?) parts and has a ball doing it. Abe Vigoda would be worth the price of admission even if the rest of the movie were a lot worse than it is. It's not a Great Classic or nothin' - but it's not a waste of time either. Go with it. Go for it.

That lot would last me about 10 minutes. Just eat it! bleu, this really is torture! (And don't trust those French spell-checks farther than you can throw them... )

Sounds wonderful, I must admit. I don't know off-hand, but can probably learn. Shall try to find out. Also, when the season starts, shall hope to find (last year was a poor one for mussels, alas, but I'm hoping we're due for a good one now) and photograph. I'm sure the commercially farmed ones are - but these are wild, and their habitat is protected wetland. I do know some people who drop a rope or chain in their boat-slips - I also sometimes harvest them off the undersides of docks. But usually they are much more plentiful and accessible at the edges of the marsh.