Sentiamo

Even some Italians muck about with their parmesan...there was a scandal years ago when one Italian gentleman used grated umbrella handles in his. Must have been a glut of them at the time.

Hi dhut.... I have consulted some Italian websites re your problem and this is a typical answer. Particolare attenzione viene rivolta al colore della muffa che si forma all'esterno della pancetta. Essa deve essere leggera ed esclusivamente di colore bianco. Particular attention must be paid to the colour of the mould on the outside of the pancetta. It must be light ( meaning not much of it) and exclusively white in colour. I know that is not the answer you want. , but if there are only a few spots of the greenish fur, it may be just fine. I have eaten all kinds of Italian dried meat products that have had enough fur on them to braid!! We just cut suspicious bits off and eat..... My Italian family always used a dry cloth to wipe mould off, but I guess vinegar does no harm. And as far as it forming in folds, dont all funghi just LOVE folds.

My worst meal was lunch at an Aunts many years ago. We were served creamed leek sandwiches. 'Nuff said.

I was going to suggest some hearty soups then remembered that its summer where you are whilst we are in the depths of winter! Still...there are some gorgeous chilled soups that would be great. I take platters of sandwiches, coldcuts with accompanying salads and dressings, pastry savouries able to be frozen (I am a caterer and have them on hand always) and thawed/heated as required. Also consider a big bowl of ready to eat salads with protein like Thai Beef, Cobb Salad, Asian Chicken and Noodle salad etc. Have to say that my sandwiches/rolls have always been very well recieved in that they can be refrigerated, trays well wrapped, and are fine for at least 24 hours of people dropping by. Sweet things are welcomed for sure..that goes without saying. I think the key here is to have food ready to eat (almost) no cooking required. A family in crisis is not going to want to spend time BBQ'ing food, slicing or dicing. Good luck and I hope all turns out well for the family concerned.

Lorna, I do so enjoy your contributions to eGullet, and its great to see you here in your usual form! You sure are a gem! First thoughts were that you and Henry were visiting Australia. Walla Walla is such an Ozzie type name but I am now a little wiser and know just a wee bit more about a small corner of Washington State. Thanks for that. I am always interested in the variety of cured meats available and totally green with envy reading/seeing what was offered you. I remember ex hubster making bresaola 20+ years ago here in New Zealand and the reaction from the public to a non smoked cured meat. Nowadays, bresaola is everywhere but never as good as we made it! Vacuumed packed, a dab of preservative, ...you get the picture? And the photos are quite beautiful, enough for me to include Washington in our itinerary next year. Thanks for that too! More please!

I mostly drank Segafreddo but wouldn't say no to Illy either!

Wow! This is really interesting. I have been amazed over the few years I have wandered around ( and totally enjoyed) eGullet, about how many of you accept products such as Miracle Whip, Best Foods Mayo etc etc etc. But, here we have a discussion about a combination of Indian spices that you have NOT ground yourselves so this product just has to be inferior. And of course it is. Nothing will ever beat a homemade mayo or freshly whipped cream. But...... I use curry powder for my stuffed eggs, in an egg salad, for my egg and watercress sandwiches. Sorry, I just dont have time to roast off and grind my own wee stash for these particular dishes and I have to add...I prefer a commercial brand for the flavours imparted here. Now, Im making an Indian curry at home? Out come all the seeds to be roasted and ground. Every time. There is a time and place for everything but I wont settle for false whipped cream or mayo. I do agree about Garam Masala. It is to add at the end of a dish. Garam Masala is sexy, so is a perfect finish..

Poking my nose in here sans photo's Im afraid but I am a huge fan of Vietnamese food. Summer just passed I nearly lived on just two salads for those months. Thai Prawn salad and Vietnamese Chicken salad. The latter was so simple...just poached chicken with sliced fresh green beans, cress, cilantro, chilli, cucumber, carrot, V'mese mint, and then dressed with the ubiquitous palm sugar, lime, chilli, nam pla mix. Secret is to poach the chicken in a flavourful V'mese broth and cool in liquid. I devoured sandwiches with cold leftovers and a spread of a good sate sauce. I have the best recipe in the world for that!

If any of you get a hold of a good amount of fresh raspberries, do try this particular jam. It is uncooked and raspberries are the only berries that can be treated this way. The jam does not have a firm set, needs to be kept in the refrigerator but I swear you will never want any other raspberry preserve after eating this. Simply heat equal weights of sugar and raspberries ( in seperate ovenproof bowls) in a medium oven until the juice begins to flow from the berries and the sugar is very hot. Then tip sugar onto berries and beat well to dissolve sugar. Pour into sterile jars, cool, cover and refrigerate. The colour is superb!

igourmet.com sells avocado oil in the States, online. Cost is $12.99 for 250 mls. I recently sent an American friend this info so assume it is still same price! Also, it is Olivado brand made right here in New Zealand. Wonderful stuff.

Oh yowser!.... a foodblog from the Antipode's, and Melbourne to boot. All going well, me along with hubster and the menagerie, will be safely installed there within 2 years so I am surely going to love this whole thread. Dying to know your Lygon Street picks and favourite breakfast/brunch place. And the markets....swooooooon. You have my undivided attention here Shalmanese.

I gotta love you for that Melkor! Agree totally but...I cant BEAR someone using gloves to make my ( for eg) pita wrap then use those same gloved hands to take my money, scratch nose, pick a pimple, clear a table et al et bloody al. Then.....NEXT PLEASE! Gloves are the worst thing invented when it comes to foodhandling IMO. Just wash hands and/or sanitise between tasks. 'Nuff said. Anyone in the biz should have enough commonsense to assign certain work to certain people. You make the wraps, and you over there, collect the money. Sheesh. Rocket science it sure aint.

All of Rick Steins books for me! He is a Master when it comes to seafood.

Fresh berries set in Rose wine jelly ( I dont know how to put the ' flourish' over the e in Rose... ) and use an artificial sweetener. Set in a few fancy tins, looks fantastic and tastes even better. Garnish with mint leaves and fresh berries scattered over. I'd bet there are more people wanting a sweet taste somewhere in the wedding feast then those that dont. Surely!

Kerry, if you google 'Date Slice' you will get heaps of recipes. Antipodeans and the Brits use 'Slice' often where Nth Americans use Bar or Square. Many great recipes out there! My current favourite is a shortbread base and top with a filling of fresh dates and raspberry jam, with the top pastry studded with peanuts. PM me if you want the recipe, its copyrighted. We grew up with a date and sultana slice that is know to children as ' Fly Cemetery Slice'. Sure did look like a summers worth of flies in there. Tasted great though!! Edited to add: Ooops!! I missed the point entirely did I not. OK. I will search out my mums fly cemetery slice and add to recipegullet. Its totally worth it!

Im a toucher/feeler too! Good habits like choosing your own F&V are hard to break and whilst living in Italy I was always spotted by the fruit and vege people at the weekly market. Got smiles, but I always perceived a little nervousness as I strolled about the displays. A few of them actually allowed me, a straniera, to choose her own. Now thats trust!! Early on I did bugger it up a little though....thought the fresh ginger was L5.000 a kg but it turned out to be for 100 gms. I had fresh ginger for a year between putting under sherry and in the freezer!! I love handling fruit, and you must hold an avocado and roll it in your hand to judge whether it is ripe and not bruised. There is a way of doing it that will not not inflict a bruise to its tender flesh. I too smell melons and pineapples, caress peaches and nectarines, fondle a tomato and undress an ear of corn. Food porn. I love it! Now I am sorry to wander here, but having the waiter plate your buffet meal was something I could not change.

Thanks for your replies, the Turkish floss is not at all like the Iranian unfortunately. I have discovered that there is a little mutton fat in the latter variety and that it is handspun. Ahhhh, its a safe bet I WONT be experimenting further. The fat does explain that certain ' feel' in the mouth though, and if anyone has a chance to try pashmak I urge you to go for it. A real treat!

Rhubarb oven roasted is the way to go IMO. I normally do this if I want chunks of the fruit, not a puree. Just place your cut chunks onto an oiled ovenproof dish with low sides, sprinkle with a little caster sugar and put into oven on med heat. They will hold shape and the colour is better also.

I am bumping this entry of mine ( it sure aint a thread!!) as I am SO wanting more info on Pashmak if possible. Anyone?? At all?

Nina, I am a caterer and when I got rehitched a few years ago, went for passed nibbles with a static table also as guests will never feel they are not being fed enough ( or often enough!) if they can wander over and help themselves to something. The following is what we provided our guests. Passed: ( over 5 hours) Bacon wrapped Scallops with Hoisin Glaze Sushi Selection Stuffed Button Mushrooms Thai Chicken Salad in Wonton Cups Mini Mussel Fritters with Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce Lemon and Caper Chicken Peak Rolls Strawberry and Brie Picks Smoked Trout Rolls Goats Cheese and Thyme Tartlets Mandarin Duck and Rice Paper Rolls Mini Steak Sandwiches Baby Frittata's Moroccan Lamb in Phyllo Mini Arancini On the static table: Large Cheeseboard with Fruit Pastes, Crackers and Breads (also had bottles of Eiswein beside the cheeseboard! Im a freak for blue cheese and a good sticky!!) Fresh Fruit Basket ( whole fruit) Fresh Fruit Platter (sliced eg: melons, pineapple, kiwifruit, starfruit, 1/2'd passionfruit etc) Ham on the Bone with various Mustards, Chutneys and Relishes, served with fresh Ciabatta Rolls Sweet Platter ( all mini...meringues, lamingtons, lemon and lime curd tartlets, Florentines, stuffed Medjool Dates, Profiteroles, Chocolate Truffles, White Choc and Macadamia Brownie squares etc) At 11.30pm, we put out the ' heavy' food!! Everyone was pretty much in a party mood and Kiwi's are renowned for their, ummm, alcohol consumption. So, out went BBQ'd Chicken Wings, Chilli Sausage Rolls, Tempura Fish Bites with Lime Mayo, etc...... Coffee and Tea was available at a seperate station all evening/night long. As was a juice station. The only downer was that the next morning after I hauled my aging body outta bed and hightailed it back to the venue for a brunch with some of the guests, we realised that one flight trolley ( we used to do airline catering) was still 1/2 full of the scallop and bacon nibbles. Grrrrrrrrrr! Someone had kinda forgotten to look there after an initial round. A costly mistake that!! Oh, and all the 500 helium balloons had slowly drifted down and set off the alarms at 4 am. Oh well. A good time was had by all and Im sure you will sort your wonderful day to be just fantastic. PM me if you have questions. Lyn

Some raspberry jelly crystals added will help keep your rhubarb a better colour. Also aids setting if the rhubarb is in a pie or similar. Young forced rhubarb certainly has the best colour and some other varieties vary from red to an ugly brown. No amount of jello is gonna help the brown type but it sure tastes good.

Meyer Lemon Ice Cream Serves 4 as Dessert. This is an old recipe, well before we had even had icecream churns in New Zealand. Easy and delicious! For a touch of modern, drizzle with limoncello and garnish with some crystallised lemon slices. I love it with fresh raspberries. Meyer Lemon IceCream: 1 Cup Double Cream 3/8 Cup Caster Sugar Very finely grated zest and juice of 1 large/2 medium Meyer Lemons (unwaxed...I have two trees that dont quit!) (If possible, soak the sugar and lemon zest/juice for an hour or so before adding to cream and whisking.) Place all into a bowl. Mix well and taste. Add more sugar or lemon if needed. Whisk until softly whipped then place into 4 small bowls or one larger bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze. This ice cream does not need to be stirred at all. Probably need up to 4/6 hours to reach desired, conable ice cream consistency. Just leave at room temp 20 minutes or so to soften a little. Double/treble recipe as needed! Keywords: Dessert, Easy, Ice Cream ( RG1984 )

Last trip to Bali I enjoyed a Mozaic ' Caesar' salad at Mozaic in Ubud.It consisted of polenta crusted soft shelled crab, romaine lettuce, garlic croutons and a parmesan crisp. I am pleased I bought the menu home with me, I'm enjoying it all over again just thinking of that dish. Thanks for the thread!

Plum sauce is wonderful with meatballs. I add a touch of ginger and orange zest to a commercial one if I haven't any of my own.

I use mini lamingtons on my petite sweet tray, usually pink ones ( done with raspberry jelly) and chocolate done the usual way. They also freeze beautifully although I find the sponge easier to cut and dip whilst frozen. Also baby meringues are gorgeous! May not keep firm for a full two hours when sandwiched with cream, but I'd do them anyways. Try baby pink ones with rose flavoured cream, chocolate meringues sandwiched with ganache. White ones with whipped cream and a little citrus or passionfruit curd folded through. Caramel variety with crushed walnuts folded through meringue mix and later sandwiched with a golden mix of dulce de leche and whipped cream. Unfilled meringues keep for weeks in a very airtight container. Little Lava Rocks are balls of an easy to make recipe using best quality chocolate which are dropped into icing sugar then baked. They crack all over but icing sugar stays white. Look beautiful. Taste even better. PM me if you would like the recipe. Having some shortbread fingers is a good idea as the ends can be dipped in chocolate a short while before being devoured. Think about some mini profiteroles already filled with a patisserie cream, taken from freezer then topped with some chocolate. They thaw in no time. You have heaps of wonderful ideas on this thread, I will come up with some savoury ones when I can get more time away from the kitchen! Edited to add: I forgot to mention that I would not leave sandwiches out under glass for very long, they still dry out IMO. Best to put one smaller plate out at a time? I doubt that you could get away with an antipodean trick of leaving them covered with a suitably beautiful, damp cloth....lolol.