Smithy

"Eeyore's Requiem" - what a great name for a drink! Sounds like it could be a good fiddle tune, also.

Those are handsome bowls in the iMusa set. However, the largest of the bowls is only 24 cm in diameter - 9.4 inches. Taking a wild guess by the picture because they don't list the height or the capacity, I come out at a rough capacity of 1.8 liters, or less than 2 quarts. Maybe that's the 2L bowl to which Panaderia Canadiensa refers, but you should check. Is that big enough for your purposes? Panaderia Candiensa, is the 2L bowl to which you refer also your largest bowl of that type, or do you have bowls larger than listed in that link?

Not a typo! It's Shakespeare. Macbeth. Oh, good! I didn't recognize the Elizabethan spelling. I'm relieved to know that such a simple error was, in fact, mine.

Y'all are really funny! I've refrained from replying to this topic so far because of its stated purpose; I've never learned to like okra: not as okra in the USA, nor as "bamya" (just as slimy) in Egypt. There are some treatments uptopic that I'm willing to try. Maybe I too can become a convert. But here's the challenge: what does okra taste like, to those of you who like it? Does it taste like a pepper, a mushroom, broccoli, celery? "Tastes like chicken" doesn't count.

Ah, so it seems to live up to its promise! The Amazon preview feature is a lovely and enticing element of their web site, isn't it?

Dry fried green beans? They look really good! How do you cook them? Please give more detail than "dry fried" :-)

That does look like a swell book! I've just been admiring the lively writing style and the well-turned phrases in the Kindle preview on Amazon. (Alas, a typo jumped out at me in the second paragraph: "ravelled sleave of care" in an otherwise lovely sentence.) I can see this cookbook in my future, despite the fact that I'm currently weeding my collection because I Have Too Many Cookbooks. It promises to be a treat to read and an education in the kitchen. Nelson87, your copy should have arrived by now. Do let us know what you cook from it, and how you like it!

Clearly, you're in good company! I have to ask why the yard sales are coming to an end soon. Please tell me that it's because you're in a northern clime, instead of some impending zoning restriction...?

I'm glad someone is finally volunteering again!

I just tried making kale chips for the first time last weekend. The recipe called for deveining the leaves, cutting the flat greenery into smaller pieces (roughly 2"), tossing with olive oil and salt, and roasting at 275 until crisp, turning once. The results of that operation were so crisp as to be brittle; I'd be more concerned that the kale would fragment into tiny shards during the tossing-and-dressing stage than with their getting soggy. But yes, I think your idea of dressing the salad at the last minute is a good precaution. Maybe if the leaves are left larger - apparently what you are planning to do - you'd end up with a balance between crisp enough for good texture and flexible enough to allow tossing. Hmm. Maybe if you did have brittle leaves you could fracture them as a top layer over the rest of the salad. Kale croutons, anyone? Please understand I'm just brainstorming here, based on my miniscule experience of last weekend. By the way, I think the roasting time was about 20 minutes for my chips at 275.

How do you plan to roast the kale at the outset, without losing its crunch?

Thanks, RobertCollins! I think I'll be able to round that gear up without too much trouble.

So far I'm reading about using glass, crockery or plastic jars for the kraut. Would a stainless steel stock pot work, using the plate-and-weights-and-bags noted above with open-top pails? If not, why not? On the other hand: if I were to acquire a glass or crockery jar for the purpose of making kraut, how would I go about acquiring an airlock-type lid? I understand the checkvalve principal but can't think of where I've seen something like it. A beer brewer's store, perhaps? ...and RobertCollins, I'm really glad you resurrected this thread. Even if it does mean I've yet another book winging its way toward me...

At the risk of highjacking this thread, I too would like to know more about dcarch's success with dwarf citrus. My dwarf satsuma produced fruit that never had any flavor. My Meyer lemon, admittedly not a dwarf but grown from a seed from my parents' ranch, never produced fruit at all. It became rootbound despite repeated repotting and root trimming, but that may have been this amateur's mishandling. One or both suffered from whiteflies and I never could get them eradicated. Having said all that, I'll also say that the blossoms from both were heavenly. Back to the indoor herb gardening: Andie, thanks for that indoor hanging herb garden link - you're right, it IS brilliant. I'll have to give that a go next spring. My rosemary survives the low-light winter, but the annuals - basil, oregano, parley - take waaaay too long to get going around here. This is what I get for growing up in a Mediterranean climate and moving to the frozen north.

I like the idea of using a colored salt to affect the color of the pickle. That could be fun! Pink and white kraut, anyone? RobertCollins, did you ever try cooking or pickling with the saltwater from the spring near Boonville? It sounds like it could be a local's Secret Weapon. I can't help with any of your questions, but I too would like to hear others' experiences.

Wow! Thanks for that information; I'm signed up!

Those are charming cookie cutters! I think I like the safari set best, but they're all fun. MJX: do you mean, for instance, that I could make crisp chocolate chip cookies by leaving out the baking soda? Not sure I'd want to, especially in the case of chocolate chip cookies, but it would be a handy thing to know.

I'm sorry nobody has addressed this so far, because I'm curious to know the answer and don't have any idea. Meanwhile, I'm also curious about why you'd want to do this. What am I missing?

Yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! And a whole lot more common than you think! Ha! The reverse can also be true, and just as frustrating. I have a cookbook by a well-respected author with a recipe for carrot cake. The ingredient list specifies the grated carrots, but the instructions never get around to stating where or when those carrots should be added! II've looked and cooked my way through that recipe many times. I have not overlooked the darned carrots in the instructions; that addition step is simply overlooked.. ...and yes...for those of you who are experienced bakers, this may seem like a no-brainer. But to this writer, it seems that "carrot cake" should explain exactly when the carrot should be added to the mixture.

I feel your pain. Since I read your post this morning I've gone looking online for electrostatic air filters and cleaners, and made the following discoveries: 1. Consumer Reports did a survey on them that's available online. As usual, they give a decent background on terminology, styles (floor-mounted, in-duct, etc) and the pros and cons of each. I didn't go into enough detail to see which they recommend, and why, but there's the usual table. That article should give you some background to start your search. 2. Home Depot and similar household-supply places offer a broad selection of filters that may do the trick. A Google search brought them right up. 3. These things range from large floor models on rollers to smallish models that might sit on the counter and collect the smoke from next to the stove. Some are listed as being good for an entire house; of course that will depend on how well air circulates through the house, but you may be able to find something that sits innocuously in the open living space and does the trick. I won't be Investigating With Intent To Buy for myself any time soon, I fear, due to other demands on time and money, but I'll probably be looking into it at some point. I'll be looking at these parameters: high air volume, easy cleaning, portability, quietness, efficiency of removal, cost, and satisfaction guarantee in case I have to try more than one. (No doubt I'll be wanting what my father would have called a champagne model on a beer budget. ) I'll probably look for a smallish filter that I can hoist onto the counter and set next to the cooking space, to maximize capture efficiency, instead of a larger model that has to collect air after it's dispersed through our entire open area. The farther from the stove your collection system is, the more chance the smoke and grease has to disperse. I may even look to see whether an in-duct filter can be put into my microwave-range hood system, but I doubt that will be possible. The in-duct systems I saw were designed for restaurants and they vented outside. Very impressive, but not in my budget or space! Good luck. I hope someone else has more specific information for you. Please let us - me, at least - know what you find and how it works out.

...and, if you have an inland basin (called a "sink") with water flowing in occasionally but never flowing out, you'll end up with either a very saline body of water (the Salton Sea in California, the Great Salt Lake of Utah) or an alkali flat (Bonneville Salt Flats and the landing area for Edwards Air Base being 2 examples in the western US). Water comes in, much of it evaporates and leaves the concentrated salts behind. I don't think I'd care for Salton Sea salt now - too much contaminated runoff to provide impurities - but at the turn of the last century salt mining was a going concern there. We should be glad that most of our inland water bodies eventually drain to the oceans.

*bump* Shel_B, have there been any new bits of information or insight into this issue? I'm guessing that the originally-posted "in a few weeks" time hasn't elapsed quite yet....but I, for one, am still eager to read what you learn. I'm also guessing that your lessons will include Basic Care and Feeding of Kitchen Utensils...like not leaving an empty pan on high heat. ;-)

Heh. That's a great advertisement! Thanks for the link.

As long as the pan in question is deep enough to allow cover (if you need it) there's not a thing wrong with using your skillet(s) instead of a roasting pan. As for whether to use nonstick vs. er, non-nonstick, I'd say it depends on 2 things: 1. Will the oven temperature be high enough to threaten the nonstick coating and, by extension, your air quality? If so, use the stainless or cast iron. 2. Will the materials in question let off juices that would lend themselves to deglazing and making a sauce or gravy, and would you take that extra step? Stainless or cast iron will give you a better fond and a deeper flavor. Otherwise, I agree with you that nonstick will be a better choice due to its easy clean up. My husband (King of the One-Step Meals) has been using a nonstick baking pan as a roaster for years. We've observed dark stains developing on the interior, but it doesn't seem to matter for his purposes; the pan continues to be nonstick for the meat and occasional veggies he roasts in it. I cover my bets and keep another nonstick pan reserved for baking. Just in case.

Amen, Andie. Thanks for that link.