andiesenji

The Philippine market in my town sells a banana vinegar but it is not exactly like this product. The one I have purchased is more like regular vinegar, just a bit sweeter and quite dark in color. In my bookmarks file I have this link for how to make banana vinegar. I've never tried it, although I do make the banana ketchup that is another Philippine product. I don't know how many varieties of vinegar I have on had presently. I have used the coconut, honey, fig and balsamic recently, and cane vinegar. I'm going to order this one though. I like all of RGs product.

I use the carrot pulp in carrot cake, muffins, etc. I use fruit pulp, cooked down a bit, as a fat substitute in quick breads, muffins, etc. I add it to smoothies for fiber. I cook it with a sweetener (I use the Splenda/sugar "baking" mix, Agave syrup, etc. because I'm diabetic) until it is like a "butter" for a spread and even pastes. I make some "jellies" with it using plain gelatin or even Jello - the next time I will take photos. Can't use fresh pineapple, papaya or mango - they have to be cooked first or the gelatin won't set. It still has a lot of the original flavor and nutrition, it just isn't as wet. If you think about it, it is a way of removing most of the liquid in the fruit that would have to be cooked away in the regular preserving process. Just consider it as a component and not something to be discarded. I core apples and pears and remove the pits from cherries, plums, peaches and so on because they would damage the machine. There is really no waste product in the pulp. The skins contain a lot of nutrients and lots of fiber. My philosophy is not to waste anything edible and nourishing.

I suggest that folks also might look at Lehman's web site and possibly order their catalog. I gut got the Spring catalog in the mail. They sell to the Amish, etc., and their prices are fair. I know people who live "off the grid" quite happily with composting toilets, their own wells and catch rain water for washing &etc. They have those large water "butts" for storing the rain water and snow melt from the roof. There are a couple of magazines devoted to this concept. Yankee is one The one that has really gone into it fully is Mother Earth News I subscribed to it for years and got a lot of good ideas from it. You can buy one at a newsstand and check the numerous small ads in it, it's worth the price just for them as there are a lot of small manufacturers that you won't find any other way. Some offer plans for building things that would be necessary in the event of a situation where there was no power, etc. Even if you have no need of them now it is good to have a paper printout of something like this because your computer won't be available. I have a detailed plan of how to repair my well pump and/or construct a new one, because I'm sure I wouldn't be able to call a repair technician if we had a significant event here.

Oliver, I juice "paste" tomatoes, the Roma or similar varieties and I make my sauce by sauteeing the "pulp" in oil after I have sweated onions and garlic and after this has been cooked over low heat until it is caramelized, I add the tomato juice and cook that down. This process produces a much more complex sauce than just cooking the whole tomatoes. I can't explain why, but someone showed me this way a few years ago and it worked so well I have continued to use it.

Bakersfield has a small Basque community and a couple of the Basque restaurants still serve family style with communal tables. To the unitiated, it's a strange experience. We usually go with a group so you already know the people you're dining with. edited to add: If you do go to a Basque restaurant, try the picon (sounds like "pee-con") punch. It's a potent Basque liquor/drink. When I was showing my dogs, a group of us always had a meal at one of the Basque restaurants that was close to the fairgrounds as they were always equipped to handle a large group without a lot of fuss of shifting tables around. It was also very reasonably priced. And the bread was always terrific - if you were inclined, you could make a meal on just that!

These are old cookbooks that I have owned for a long time, certainly before Rick Bayless and prior to most of Diana Kennedy's cookbooks - her first was published in 1972 and I got The Mexican Stove– prior to The Cuisines of Mexico. Good Food From Mexico was first published in 1958 and I got the paperback version in the early '60s and it has seen a lot of hard use. Here's a sample of the index The Mexican names are in the body of the book, English in the index. The Mexican Stove - What to Put On It and In It was written by Richard Condon and his daughter Wendy Bennett who lived in Mexico for several years. (He is also the author of The Manchurian Candidate, if the name seems familiar) In both of these cookbooks, the recipes are simple enough that just about anyone can prepare them. When my kids were in their teens, they made recipes from both books (and left notes in the book about any substitutions they made). I do have a lot of cookbooks with Mexican cuisine but I keep going back to these two because they are not huge tomes that take a lot of time to thumb through and there are no really difficult-to-find ingredients.

I love communal tables at ethnic restaurants because I often dine out alone and it gives me a chance to learn about dishes with which I am unfamiliar. When I first moved up here in '88 I loved driving the few miles to Rosamond where the Villa Basque restaurant is located. While the Ansolabehere family owned it, dinners were served "family style" and if there were from one to three diners, you could join one of the big tables and it was a lot of fun and I always felt very welcome. The family sold it in '95 and it is not the same. The foods served are still "Basque" but the last time I was there there was no "family style" service and the portions were rather small and the server I had was positively frosty - probably thinking that a single, elderly woman wouldn't tip much. Several years ago some friends took me to an Ethiopian restaurant in L.A., somewhere near Hollywood, and they had communal tables (the three of us joined a party of eight) and I loved it. Can't recall the name of the place but the food was exceptional, as was the atmosphere.

I had a phone chat with a friend a bit ago and she sent me a pdf document with a couple of illustrations of machinery for processing candied fruits. It apparently includes a vacuum chamber and I was thinking that it might be interesting to see if using a vacuum sealer would make the candying process easier and faster. I think I will try some experiments. If anyone wants me to send the pdf document along, PM me.

I did get one of these but it was not adequate for my needs and for some reason I had problems cleaning it. I returned it and got the Breville Juice fountain elite because Amazon had a special on it at the time. I had put it in my shopping cart and one day a notice popped up when I signed on to Amazon, that the price was significantly reduced for three days. (I've gotten several items at very special prices that way.) It's much easier to clean and has certainly handled everything I put thru it. It is much easier to have the pulp in the EXTERNAL container because I save and freeze most of it for later use. My problem with the one in your post was in getting the pulp out of the inner container. The actual footprint of the elite is not much bigger than the compact, without the two containers, but it is much easier to use and especially to clean.

I came across this site about preserving star fruit some time ago but haven't tried it. One of my friends candies starfruit but first infuses the slices in liquor - I think it is vodka - for 4-5 days before candying. Can't ask him now because he is off on a trip to South America for a month. He uses them in drinks and for decorations on pastries and cakes. I have some non-technical books Helen Witty's Fancy Pantry - unfortunately published too late to help me when I was first experimenting with candying ginger - has several recipes for candying fruit. I have Sugar Plums and Sherbet by Laura Mason but can't find it at the moment. (I have been sorting some of my cookbooks and have stacks all over the house. I've got an old beat up copy of the Culinary Arts Institute encyclopedic cookbook by Ruth Berolzheimer (1962) that got me started candying citrus peel for fruit cakes forty-some years ago. The 1988 reprint in paperback is cheap enough. However it is a general cookbook and only has a small section on candy.

I have a couple of those - one is battery operated. That's true they won't open big cans. But I have a commercial can opener for those (left over from my catering days.

I've pulled out my copy Darina Allen's Irish Traditional Cooking to see what I can prepare that is special and unusual. I've also got Simply Delicious but can't put my hands on it right now. I also have the more recently published Forgotten Skills of Cooking

Bumping this up as today's email from Gear Patrol included this Titanium Folding Spork Remembering some discussion about sporks and the like some time ago, I thought there might be some interest! Not exactly kitchen "gear" but the same email included a blurb about Zingerman’s Bacon of the Month Club for the bacon fanatics among us. Now I am a huge fan of bacon but not quite to that degree.

I agree with Florida and MaxH This isn't aimed at any particular ethnic group. It is aimed at stopping a truly obnoxious and WASTEFUL practice. Note that the fishermen are not all Chinese - some are Hispanic, some are Anglos and some are who knows what. The thing I don't like is that the shark meat is certainly marketable and edible but it costs more to clean, gut and ice down big fish, while they can shear off fins and toss the rest back with less effort and it doesn't spoil as rapidly and doesn't require cleaning. I have no objection to harvesting the entire shark - shark meat is good. It is true that California has been at the forefront of banning foods that are harmful to an animal population. God knows that if there were not enormous fines, there would not be any more California brown bears because of the idiots who think that eating bear paws confers some additional masculinity. When it can cost $50,000. in fines, poachers think twice before "harvesting" a bear. When the fines were less, poaching was rampant. I don't like that some ethnic groups in their own countries eat dogs, but that is their country, their dogs and their laws, so in my opinion they can do what they like. When a practice happens in international waters or in US waters and affects the population of animals and fish that migrate through these waters, it should be everyone's concern. Once they are gone, there is no going back. We have only to look at the history of the Passenger Pigeon to see what can happen - from billions to zero in just a few decades.

Have you looked at Nigella Lawson's cookbooks? I have two or three of the books published a few years ago and found some excellent and certainly not difficult recipes. Yes Chef! includes recipes from several chefs and might work for you as a reference to see whose recipes and methods make the most sense for you. The National Trust produced a cookbook of traditional British recipes this past December. I bought it for my collection and have spent a lot of time reading through it but have not yet prepared any of the recipes. (I have a huge backlog of "to-do" recipes that I must do first.) It is beautifully written and as one reviewer wrote (before the U.S. publication and what prompted me to purchase it) it has some old recipes that you would have difficulty finding anywhere else and they have been brought up to date for today's kitchens.

I just noticed this topic this morning. You are doing it correctly and it is true that some collapse often occurs in one or more fruits. The only thing different that I do is remove the stem "button" and pierce the center with a skewer, almost all the way through, leaving the blossom end intact. I also generally take one apart and taste the peel as some are more bitter than others and if these are, I parboil them in two changes of water, draining immediately after removing from the heat and rinsing well with cold water then draining - stem side down - for about an hour before starting with the syrup. I've candied the little "sour" oranges that have been produced on trees where the grafted parts have been killed in a frost. These are similar to Seville oranges, only about 2 inches in diameter. It took four or five parboiling sessions to get the excessive bitterness reduced enough but the end result was well worth it, although the candying process took longer because the fruit is denser than clementines or mandarins. The only citrus that doesn't candy well is the Turkish lime, They turn a sort of ugly gray. The little Mexican limes can be candied, although this also varies, you have to test one or two to begin with because some of these also can turn gray - it depends on the variety and how long since they were picked - if held in cold storage for very long, they also turn gray. They do contain a LOT of seeds.

There is one offending store where I seldom shop but do occasionally because they carry some items I can't get elsewhere. I have a cell phone that takes photos so I take photos and make a note of the "specials" that are so often mis-charged at the register and I keep a close watch on what I am charged and check the price against the notes on my shopping list. When I catch an error, I show the dated photo to the checker. This usually will allow the problem to be fixed but sometimes they do go back to the aisle, sometimes with a snide remark that is aimed to make me unpopular with the folks in line behind me. What usually happens is that those people began to check their charges too.

I am also so glad to hear you and yours are physically okay, Helen. I have been thinking about you and others who live in Japan, ever since I heard about the quake. Having stuff accessible is important. Some of my emergency supplies are stored in a back corner of the garage with a walk-through door that opens outward - I learned after the 1971 quake that doors opening inward often become stuck and sliding glass doors won't move at all (but can be broken). I have a crowbar hidden outside (up under the eaves of the garage) to "assist" in opening doors. Gloves are indeed important. I have extra gardening gloves with the rubber coating on the fingers and palms. They make it easier to hold onto glass and other slippery stuff and are somewhat cut resistant, as well as being fairly inexpensive. The wrench to shut off the gas at the meter is hanging in a plastic zip bag on the pipe next to the meter.(new bag every three months or so).

Some fish heads do have plenty of tasty meat. Back in the '70s, when I could still have ocean fish, my husband was a sport fisherman and often came home with sheepshead (similar to the hogfish in the Gulf) and one of the Portugese owners of the fishing boat gave me a recipe for a stew made from the heads. They are rarely seen in fish markets because they hang out in kelp beds and aren't that easy to catch commercially. The meat is very delicate and tasty. It has been three decades since i visited Galveston (a side trip while in Houston for a series of dog shows over two weekends with 4 "free" days between) and I really appreciate seeing your photos. We also drove down to Corpus Christi another day and after all this time I have probably mixed the memories of the two places in my head. I remember in one place we could wade out in the very clear water a very long distance and saw a lot of fish feeding with their heads on the bottom and their tails flashing at the surface. Thanks for sparking some pleasant memories.

You should be able to find a Smart & Final around San Diego. They have the heat lamps made for food service

Flat pancakes can happen because the batter rests too long or part of the baking powder is not doing a proper job. The mechanism is that there is some production of CO2 when liquid is added to the baking powder and some production (and rise) when it is heated. These are quite fluffy: Grammaw's Clabber flapjacks 2 eggs - large 2 cups "clabber" I use 1 1/2 cups buttermilk with 1/2 cup sour cream 1/4 cup melted butter 2 1/4 cups plain flour a.k.a. all-purpose 1 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder "double acting" because two kinds were available back then. 1 teaspoon "saleratus" a.k.a. baking soda (bicarb) Beat the eggs with the clabbered milk and melted butter. (The butter should show clumping after mixing with the buttermilk, that is what you want to see.) Stir in the flour, salt, baking powder and soda. Fold and mix till "few" lumps are seen. (Do NOT overmix!) Set aside for 10 minutes, the batter will become bubbly and thicken a bit. If too thick to pour evenly, stir in a little ice water. Ladle portions onto a medium hot griddle - you should know the routine from this point on. Makes enough flapjacks for 6 generous servings, 8 if you have eggs, sausage, bacon &etc. P.S. You can substitute whole grain flour for up to 1/3 of the flour or you can sub fine corn meal, buckwheat flour or ??? Coconut flour in this proportion produces a nice result.

I agree with Darienne. I have a couple of the extra large Salton Hot Trays that I have had for many years. I used them with just waxed paper before the advent of Silpat and with some I just poured the candy right onto the warmed glass. Some have a sort of pebbly surface to which the candy really doesn't stick easily. I used to use them when I was catering, when making pulled sugar decorations. Some have a "hot spot" that is warmer than the rest of the surface but many have even heat across the entire expanse. As long as you don't drop a heavy fondue pot on it , they don't easily break.

I make my own yogurt 99% of the time. I pour the whey into plastic ice cube trays and when frozen solid into freezer zip bags. I use the whey in yeast breads (especially sourdoughs), quick breads and scones, waffles and etc. I like the flavor and in my opinion it gives a nice "boost" to yeast breads. I don't like to waste anything that has nutritive value.

I have 8 of the NATO metal jerry cans for generator fuel - mine are diesel and always keep my van filled with gasoline and have a couple of jerry cans of gasoline. I also have 4 propane tanks which get rotated. The jerry cans are suitable for long term storage. This is the emergency water I have. I bought mine locally at a store that sells camping gear and also emergency kits and supplies but it is widely available, according to other people with whom I have discussed it. I have a friend who lives on her boat in a marina and she has several cases that are stored as ballast in the boat. I bought several "church key" can openers and put one in each case. I just remembered that I do have six cans in the van, in one of the bins under the floor.

I have so enjoyed your recipes and photos. I wish we had CSAs in my area but sadly there are none, although I get a weekly bulletin from Local Harvest, there has been no new listings in my area so I have to depend on a small produce market and the Vallarta Supermarkets. Incidentally, a new Vallarta will soon be opening in Anaheim (2360 W. Lincoln Avenue) not too far from your area. I am very partial to their meat section as the butchers are always willing to cut whatever you want. Of course, the prepared food part is also a big attraction. I like your tortilla routine, it is very similar to mine, although I long ago learned to pre-shape them between my palms so I do that prior to putting them in the press. The fish looked lovely - I wish I could eat ocean fish, the texture is so much better for this type of food than fresh water fish. Congratulations on a terrific Foodblog.