Smithy

You may find this eGCI course useful: Knife Maintenance and Sharpening. There is also an associated Q&A session; the course contains a link to it at the end.

I wonder what would happen if Kerry freeze-dried some of that jam?

Mmm. Does 'Pâté' need a diacritical over the center vowel in the word? The last editing must be crazy-making, both from the standpoint of having seen it (one thinks) dozens of times already but trying to see it afresh, and from having it seen so many times already that you want to replace the recipe. Crazy-making or not, it's exciting!

Before you die, please post a report. With pictures.

I think a lot of folks who enjoy events like the Renaissance Faire have no idea what it takes to keep the staff fed. You've done yeoman's work for them, for many a year. I hope they find a worthy team leader to take the load off you. It's good that you'll be able to keep cooking.

That larb looks luscious. I like the comment on the heat scale at the bottom of the menu. Thanks for reviving this topic!

Oh, I'm so pleased to see the stone fruits coming in!

I probably would do it (in fact, I have) if I trusted the maker of the preserves to follow directions. Sugar is supposed to be a good preservative, so the mold should not extend far beyond whatever surface contamination caused the mold. I say "supposed to be" because if the directions weren't followed - say, the temperature didn't go as high as it was supposed to during the preservation process - then the sugar concentration isn't as high as recommended. On the other hand, I'm not a microbiologist and don't know what sort of mold might be growing there...

Thanks for that response! I won't record my attempts to pronounce your screen name, though the .wav file might be good for a laugh. From what I've read, New Orleans folk are pretty resilient, so going with the punches makes sense. Please tell more about the 'slow fish expose'. Am I correct in assuming it was a slow-food take on fish cookery?

Welcome, Ryan - er, Ji pushii tmge! It sounds like you bring a lot of spirit to your cooking. It should be interesting to see you around here! I have to ask about your screen name...is this some obscure-to-me Cajun or otherwise southern term? How would one pronounce it? It's been rather wet there this winter...to the point that my DH and I blasted through last fall without stopping to enjoy the seafood. Has the wet winter affected the NOLA food scene? C'mon in and check the place out! Ask questions, join in the conversations. If you have any questions about where to find or post something, or need technical help, don't hesitate to PM a host or ask in the Moderation and Policy Discussion forum.

Cheeseweed mallow was as common as, well, weeds where I grew up, but I had no idea it was edible! Thanks for that information on the edibility and the pickling idea, @heidih.

I'm sorry to hear that. I'll bet your staff are even sorrier. At any rate, congratulations!

I haven't been back through the entire topic yet, but I think by "they won't keep" she was referring to disintegration, not the growth of nasty bugs. She noted in this post that Moroccans don't refrigerate their preserved lemons and her first book doesn't mention it either (this for the traditional recipe) but that people started coming to her cooking classes with strange-smelling samples and decided after that to recommend refrigeration in order to keep lawsuits at bay. Have you found anything to suggest that vile things could grow in your 7-days lemons without their being noticeably 'off' in flavor or odor? Put another way: are there bacteria that could grow in that environment without being noticeable? It's too acidic and salty for botulism.

We've seen them loose in bins at all or most of our grocery stops in the past months, along the southwestern tier of states. I have been surprised, however, at the increasing prevalence of packaged "fresh" green beans - sometimes trimmed, sometimes not. If they haven't been trimmed I wonder why they're packaged at all, but IMO the trimmed packaged beans often look a bit slimy. The packages aren't much use to us either way.

Nice recipe, Jason. I'm still hunting for good ways to treat cauliflower, and this looks promising. Can you clarify the microwave goal for the cauliflower? At what point does it go past 'tender' into 'too soft' territory, and how do you gauge it?

It does look delicious! Do you have a name for that pepper salad?

This topic on Preserved Lemons has extensive discussion on how to preserve lemons and what to do with them. Paula participated in it, along with Suvir Saran. For what it's worth, I ignore the advice not to use the pulp. I find that in small amounts it adds a pleaantly salty/lemony note to the sauce. It can be overdone, though: like anchovy paste, a little makes a pleasant mystery enhancement, but enough to identify the flavor is probably too much.

How hot does an air popper (for air popped popcorn) get? If it gets hot enough to pop popcorn, would it get hot enough to toast seeds and nuts - and would it also provide the agitation needed to get even toasting? In case the air popper is an American thing, here are a couple of examples (chosen at random because I've no experience with them): Presto 04821 Orville Reddenbacher's Hot Air Popper Cuisinart CPM-100 EasyPop Hot Air Popcorn Maker Incidentally, here's a popcorn popper with a stirring mechanism that might inspire you, if air agitation isn't practical: West Bend Stir Crazy Electric Popcorn Popper You've selected an interesting project. I probably wouldn't buy a dedicated toaster/grinder for reasons others have mentioned already, but that says more about my demographic than about its potential market niche: if it were inexpensive enough I'd buy it as a toy, but probably give it away after the novelty wore off. As I think about a hot air popper, I confess I'm tempted to scour the thrift stores for one to test the nut-toasting idea!

Welcome, Galamba! That's a pretty good introduction. I see you've already started a topic discussing your main purpose for being here If you need any help with the forums, feel free to PM a host, or go ask in the Moderation and Policy Discussion forum. Your location makes me think of one of life's fine beverages. Do you enjoy the occasional glass of port wine? What sorts of food do you enjoy preparing for yourself?

Welcome, stonypaul! Come on in and start learning and sharing your experiences. If you need help finding something or understanding how the forums work, feel free to ask a host by PM (Personal Messenger), or publicly in the Moderation and Policy Discussion forum. I see you've already started a topic (or two) asking for advice, and people are answering. That's great. You may also find this topic useful:

Your jail slaw really is excellent. I had never heard of turmeric in a slaw dressing before you mentioned it, but it's a very nice touch.

Thank you for taking us along on this trip; it's been a joy for many of us. You said the Pork Cecina had a flavored paste on it. Do you remember anything about the flavor? Was it hot? That red color looks like it could be paprika, for instance - but it might also be some much hotter peppery concoction. It looks tasty.

@kayb, are you putting the disks onto something like a baking stone or griddle? I find that I need the heat retention of something solid like that to get my pitas to puff.

That hard boiled duck egg has an interesting contrast in texture. Did you do something to accentuate the differences between the yolk and the white? It looks as though the white was soft enough to carve smoothly but the yolk was set enough to be craggy and jagged. I'm admiring your toast, by the way. I do love a good olive bread.

I'm plenty able to get around at present, but can see the value for people who can't. What's bothered me most has been the waste inherent in the packaging. I'm glad to read that some of the companies are working on that aspect.