andiesenji

I have ordered some unique specialty items from them, not available from other vendors. If you see something you want, buy it because it might not always be available. (One example was whole fruit mostarda di fruta in large jars that was available only for a few months a couple of years ago. They had a limited supply and I bought several jars and then it was gone and I have not been able to find another vendor in the U.S.) Their prices are competitive and their special sales, particularly just after the year end holidays, are exceptional.

Thanks, Andiesenji! I didn't realize there was another straight-gauge clad copper option (other than All Clad). Were they more responsive on induction than on gas or was the response time the same? I particularly noticed the excellent response time in the fry pan, especially when I was cooking scallops and in the covered saute pan some mussels. They were almost as good as in my SS lined copper on a gas burner but enough lighter that it made them easier to handle.

When I indicate reinforced sieves, I mean ones that are like this with the heavy wire cage and a steel base. The ones from Fantes are heavier. Bed, Bath and Beyond has some nice perforated metal ones at a pretty good price.

I recently was able to use several pieces of CIA Masters cookware at the home of a friend and we both found it to be easy to use on the induction burners as well as on gas burners. It goes through the dishwasher and cleans up beautifully. The welds are very strong and the balance makes these easier to handle than some cookware. I used the 12 inch fry pan which has a helper handle which is a huge plus. I also used the 3 qt saute pan also with a helper handle and one of the sauciers, not sure if it was the 2 or 3 qt. We also used a couple of sauce pans and these have a rolled edge that facilitates pouring. (My one complaint about my All Clad is the straight side. I'm going to be buying a set of this for a wedding gift in late September, as I think it is an excellent product.

Arthritis in my hands doesn't allow me to hold a pot with one hand and this type of sieve with the other. I have the pasta "dipper" type strainers which also work for blanching fruit, nuts and etc. I also have some of the conical sieves and strainers, various sizes. Some with handles, a couple with stands. Most of these purchased from Fantes I also have a couple of the collapsible silicone strainers that are very handy and take up little room because they fold flat.

I also have a lot of sieves, strainers, colanders, a couple of sets of drum type flour sieves and various other perforated things to hold fruits, vegetable, cheeses and so on. I buy the reinforced mesh sieves that hold up better than the lighter ones. I have a sets of coarse, medium and fine. Some are now in use but I've photographed several. I have a couple of the large oblong ones that hang over a sink. The tall one is very coarse mesh. There are also the perforated metal ones that hold up for a very long time. The smaller is a "fine" and the larger is a "medium." I also buy plastic ones that are primarily used in the garden and that I generally throw away after a season. They get stained and are impossible to clean adequately. I have several colanders - some old, some newer - there is an enameled one and a couple of SS ones in the fridge holding some cheese and yogurt. These are quite old and have seen a lot of use. The small one is a 4 quart. The big one is an 8 quart and I haven't seen one recently that large in SS, although I have seen plastic ones that size. It's very handy for washing fruit. I put the largest of the mesh ones inside it so you can see the difference in size.

And for the average home kitchen, with an "average" non-professional cook, they are esthetically pleasing to the eye. I bought one of the Sani-Tuff cutting boards a few years ago but couldn't stand it in my kitchen or pantry. It had a petroleum smell that really put me off. I use it in the garden shed and I guess the odor gradually diminished. That being said. I have a lot of butcher block counters and doing light cutting is fine. Occasionally I need to chop something with a bit more force so I have several cutting boards, some quite thick and heavy. Some are wood - one is end grain and is 4 inches thick. I paid considerably more for one similar to the one in my earlier post and I paid a significant amount for shipping. This thing weighs 28 pounds. Getting free shipping is a bonus.

OH MAN ALL THIS TIME I'VE BEEN BUYING MY VEG CHOPPED AND MY MEAT SLICED THIS WILL BE SUCH A MONEYSAVER These blurbs are written by marketers, not chefs. Well, DUH! Considering what it costs to ship one of these heavy items, this is a significant bargain, in spite of the inane statement.

In this morning's batch of emails, got this special, limited time offer from: Cutlery and More Offering this large bamboo cutting board with Free shipping at a very good price.

Hi Kim, You have pieces that are part of an extensive tea and coffee set. Some sets would have 10 to 12 pieces, including a large tray, coffee and tea pots, hot water pot with spirit lamp warmer, sugar bowls, cream pitcher, milk pitcher, cold water jug, waste or "slop" bowl, muffin or cake stand (3 tiered) and a spoon holder. The jug loos like it is for water. The footed "goblet" is for sugar - usually cubes and there should be a footed cream pitcher to match it. The "bowl" is a "waste bowl" to hold the spent tea leaves. Barbour Brothers in the late Victorian era specialized in ornate, rococo, repousse, renaissance revival and other "antique" patterns, usually with fruits, flowers, vines and etc. The tall stemmed sets are rarer than the shorter ones. Here's a couple. The company became part of the International Silver company after WWI. About the turn of the century they produced some Federal revival silver that was much plainer than the earlier stuff. The teapots usually had the leaf shape spout and because of the way it was constructed, this was easily damaged. It's rare to find one in good condition. Here's an example. and another here and even a cocktail shaker

Why yes, I use them and have for many, many years. Back in the '60s and '70s there was a manufacturer in Sun Valley (northeast section of San Fernando Valley) who had a retail "outlet" shop at the factory and one could buy a bag of 100 assorted sizes for $2.00. Now I order them from this eBay vendor. Inexpensive and reliably food grade. The shower caps in hotels often have a chemical odor that I don't like so I carry my own (hypoallergenic) shower cap with me.

I have a combination 20x & 40x illuminated loupe that I use for gem work. You can also get small, "pocket microscopes" that are also illuminated, and not very expensive. I have one of these that I have used to examine inclusions in amber.

Pour the oil into the blender and turn it on low speed Add the solids gradually until it has been completely blended. I have to do this routinely with home made macadamia butter which hardens like cement.

I'm sure there will eventually be one developed by a secondary manufacturer. It took several years for someone to develop a refillable cap for the Keurig. and it has only been a couple of years since the CoffeeDuck refillable pod for the Senseo appeared. (previous ones were awful). This may be a bit trickier because of the much higher pressure.

I have a shiny new toy! First a bit of background. A few weeks ago I lent my espresso machine (Saeco Royal Digital Plus - a "super automatic" that I bought in 2004) to a couple of friends who phoned me on the Saturday before Memorial Day, their machine had died that day and they had two parties planned for Sunday and Monday. One drove up, disconnected the machine and hauled it down to their home. They phoned last week to make arrangements to bring it back but I told them to keep it. I don't entertain as much as I did and only used it maybe twice a year. Today I took delivery of a surprise package, a gift from my friends. A thank you for giving them my old machine. They sent me a Nescafe Dolce Gusto Creativa, made by Krups. It's bright red, which I like and they also sent a generous supply of the capsules that this machine uses. It's a bit more complicated than the Senseo but it produces very nice drinks, develops 15 bars of pressure so the espresso is close to that produced by more expensive machines. The capsules are not cheap. The cost is significantly more than pods and these are not interchangeable with the Nespresso or other capsules. So far there are not many varieties available but apparently more are on the way. There are more available in the UK and Europe and will eventually get to the U.S. The platform that holds the cup can be set at one of three levels. Here it is in the top position. This is the cappuccino - requies two capsules, one milk, one coffee. This glass is on the platform set in the middle position.

Better video of the , with some explanation.The ultimate cookie maker's spatula? :wub: I was thinking of cake decorations with complex designs where one would not want to work on the cake itself. A baker friend has one of the lace-making gadgets but rarely uses it because it takes so much time because he has to be so careful to not damage the part of the cake that is already decorated. I think there might be any number of applications for it in candymaking and who knows what else. I've emailed both links (thanks Quiltguy) to a friend who does special effects makeup and has complained about constructing "appliances" scars and etc., and then having difficulty transferring them to a curing chamber without distorting. (I know absolutely nothing about this subject, other than what I have heard from her, so am probably getting this wrong.)

Okay, I have found the gadget that I really want. Unfortunately it is apparently not yet available. Watch the video and marvel!

In my experience the one constant mark of a bad cook is as much garbage thrown out as is being carried in from the market.

I am most impressed by beverages and other things in self-heating cans. Not that they have been 100% perfected yet, and there have been a few monumental failures (ask Wolfgang Puck about this, then duck!) However, things are trundling along and the products are becoming more stable and the expense is coming down. Now if they could just get the quality of the contents beyond blech, they might make a go of it. So far none of it is really worth drinking. A friend who recently traveled for a few weeks in Japan (reviewing hotels), came across sake in a self-heating can and thought it was hilarious. A young lady was demonstrating it in a tiny kiosk and appeared to be entranced with the process and surprised when it actually worked.

I know one young man, son of neighbors, who was beaned with a baseball (in the mid '90s), suffered a fairly severe concussion and subsequently became a compulsive watcher of the Food channel. He also changed his eating habits (he was mildly autistic) went to culinary school in L.A. after high school and is now a sous chef at a big hotel in San Francisco. When he comes to visit his parents, he talks about food all the time, eats anything and everything, and up to the time of the beaning, when I say his diet was restricted, I mean it. He wouldn't eat anything that was green, red, orange or any other vivid color and was bothered by anyone eating them at the same table. (Pale golden delicious apples were okay to eat out of hand, otherwise they had to be peeled and cored out of his sight.) The only exception was stuff that was wrapped in a neutral color - burritos, as long as he could eat them out of hand and didn't have to look at the filling. In the past few years he has been to France, Portugal and Spain, China and Southeast Asia and this fall is planning a trip to South America and is taking his mom on this trip. After fifteen years, she is still amazed at the profound change in him from this single incident.

I don't know if the single serve boxes for use as a cereal bowl are still around but they are now packaging this way. My neighbors, who have several children, have these delivered on a regular basis as they are not always available at Costco.

I have a Denby paring knife a friend sent me in a goody box after she visited with me for a couple of weeks while in SoCal while judging at some dog shows a few years ago. It holds an edge quite well but I have a plethora of knives and mostly forget it is there so don't use it much. It has the "easy grip" handle, which I like, especially when working with slippery stuff like mangoes, peaches &etc.

Ditto anchovy paste and wasabi paste. Keeps well, no waste.

Brava! Encore!!!

I second that motion. Your blog is inspiring.