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andiesenji

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Posts posted by andiesenji

  1. Grits ARE good. There is not just one "grit" they are a collective, so to speak.

    Unless one is referring to A "GRITS". :laugh:

    (GRITS = Girl Raised In The South)

  2. This:

    My link

    Why would I want to bake a full size version of a cupcake that was was intended to be a single serving size of cake?

    Me no understand.

    Really there's a motherload of stupid gadgets here:

    My link

    These are all about silliness and fun. I have one of these pans and the huge cupcakes are regularly requested by folks at work and by kids. There is something smile producing and ridiculous about anything absurdly large or small. It's a cake embellishment the same way that fancy piping or tilted layers are. Really, there is no need to bake anything but a sheet cake - it is much easier to frost, transports easily and tastes the same as a tall lovely layer cake. But everyone loves that tall, beautiful cake. Aesthetics count a LOT in cooking, I think.

    My thoughts exactly! Well said, Kim.

    I know a woman who bakes special cakes for kids who are being treated for cancer and other serious illnesses.

    She uses this pan set to make a cake decorated like a circus tent and they are very popular.

  3. I'm bumping up this topic and posting this excellent idea before I forget it.

    A friend came for lunch today and we were discussing yogurt as I have a batch incubating in the YoLife appliance.

    She said she makes yogurt once a week and doesn't have a yogurt maker, per se.

    She uses an insulated ice bucket that had not seen any use for years, since she got a fridge with an icemaker.

    The bucket is stainless steel, inside and out and after pre-heating with hot water will hold the yogurt at the desired incubating temp for 8-10 hours.

    Isn't this a good idea. I know I have two or three ice buckets languishing somewhere in my junk but never thought of using them for this.

    (I have one of the semi-spherical ones that has penguins marching around the perimeter.)

  4. Peeling hard boiled eggs.. you know the batch that it seems almost impossible to separate the shell from the cooked white? They look like the surface of the moon or worse, when finished.

    This is going to happen if your eggs are too fresh.

    For Easter, I get eggs at least three weeks in advance and have them at room temp for 24 hours before cooking and I turn the cartons on first one side for a few hours and then on the other side, to center the yolk.

    My hard-boiled eggs turn out perfect "almost" every time, unless I fail to follow this routine.

  5. A few of the chicken breeds that have been bred for heavy laying and for tolerating cages, lay only white eggs.

    There are a few breeds that lay brown eggs and are caged but they don't live as long or produce as well (the reason brown eggs are often priced higher).

    The breeds that do well cage-free or free-range, are hardier and don't require as regulated temperature control and those breeds tend to lay brown eggs.

    In the late '60s I got to tour Egg City, just outside Moorpark, CA., and was given a long lecture about chickens, eggs and etc.

    At the time they had over a million chickens (and it smelled like it), but while they were in cages, they weren't stacked on top of each other and the cages were larger than pictures I have seen of other facilities.

    They had some problems over the years and closed in the mid '90s.

    I've toured the processing facilities of an Eggland place that was in Riverside until a few years ago, but didn't get to go through the buildings where the chickens were housed because of time constraints.

    The plant was extremely clean and there was no unpleasant odor at all anywhere I went.

  6. Andiesenji,

    I have never heard of Thermamix..

    Thanks for the tip.. looks interesting.

    Paul

    There have been a couple of topics on this forum for some time.

    Here is one.

    And another.

    Kerry Beal has one, as does Anna N - the latter has the TM 21.

    I'm a member of a forum that started in the UK but most members are in Australia but there are a few in Canada, several in the UK, some in Spain, Italy, at least two in South Africa and a few in European countries.

    Lots of activity and sharing of recipes on

    ForumThermomix

    Very helpful and friendly folks, just like here on eG.

    I should add that Vorwerk does not actively market the appliance in the U.S.

    I bought mine from Canada - they sell via "Consultant demonstrators" at home-based parties and this kind of system has gone out of favor in the U.S. in recent years.

    It is expensive but can certainly pay for itself when you figure how much you save in both food cost and time spent preparing it when you stop using so many prepared foods.

    As noted in one of the links I posted, I have found it very useful for a few specific tasks that used to take too much of my time and had become difficult because of my arthritic hands.

    To me it is worth it just for the marzipan and the risotto.

  7. I love eggs and while I usually get my eggs from a local person, I also buy supermarket eggs.

    Recently Walmart has begun carrying the Land O'Lakes eggs that are packaged in clear cartons with a double top that makes them less likely to be cracked.

    I'm a subscriber to the email newsletter and tried the Organic eggs when I got a coupon in an email. They were very good.

    Walmart also carries Eggland's various types, eggs from a "local" (Bakersfield, I was told) egg producer and others, from Free-Range Organic Brown eggs to the ubiquitous white eggs in "flats" for those who need them in quantity.

    I've tried them all and while there is sometimes a bit more flavor, basically, eggs are eggs. :biggrin:

    Some do have more color in the yolk and that can be a result of diet or some breeds just produce a more orange-colored yolk.

    When I want jumbo eggs, I usually go to Smart & Final because they have a huge turnover, the eggs are very fresh and are really "jumbo" and often double yolked.

    If properly refrigerated, eggs can keep a very long time if they are kept in a closed carton and not exposed to the drying effect of the modern "frost-free" refrigerators.

    In the old days (not that old - back when I was a child) we had chickens that laid more eggs seasonally and when the egg production was highest, some were chilled, dipped quickly in melted beeswax and quickly chilled again. These were stored in wooden egg crates in the dairy spring house, which was always around 40 degrees, winter and summer. They would keep well for three or four months, with the yolks still full and round and if hard boiled, no big space at the round end.

    I hate to see food wasted and when I see someone toss out a carton of eggs because of an arbitrary "sell-by" date, without even checking them, it angers me.

    It's easy enough to test them, simply break one into a saucer to see if the yolk "stands up" - if the yolk breaks easily or flattens out level with the white, it is time to toss, but you have to check more than one, not all eggs are equal and some older eggs may be mixed in with newer.

    Of course that's just my opinion, but it has worked well for me.

  8. I'm not sure anyone has mentioned , in this thread, the Robo-Stir. Perfect for Ris :wacko: :wacko: tt :wink:

    Paul

    That gadget looks a bit flimsy to me.

    I have had and used a Stir-Chef for several years. In fact I bought a second one to keep in reserve because I feared they might fade away and I'm very happy that I did. They no longer seem to be readily available.

    I use it for fruit curds and cooked custards that require constant stirring over very low heat and some sauces that also require prolonged stirring over low heat.

    I never used it for risotto.

    I seldom made risotto before I got my Thermomix in Nov. '09 but since then prepare it several times a month because it is so easy and effortless. I have discovered that there are many "flavors" to enhance this rice dish.

  9. I like the Kampot peppercorns and I have found that they have a slight "piney" flavor that is very pronounced when they are combined with sweet stuff.

    I have used them in my chai spice mix with excellent results.

    I do wish I could eat regular chocolate but the reaction I have forbids it. No problems with cocoa but chocolate and even "white chocolate" affect me adversely.

  10. I've been re-reading Dorothy L. Sayres' "Lord Peter Wimsey" mysteries, which contain a lot of descriptions of interesting meals.

    So I pulled out my copy of The Lord Peter Wimsey Cookbook to refresh my memory of how some of these were prepared. . . .

    I had no idea one existed! Is is any good? I was just re-reading Sayers's The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club which has this comment of Lord Peter's, which I've always found rather balanced, with regard to the appreciation of food:

    I'm sorry that I missed this post last week. I hope this helps.

    It's out of print but you can find several listed at ABE Books at reasonable prices.

    I've had mine since 1984 and it is signed by both authors. It is the first edition published by Ticknor and Fields which was a division of Houghton Mifflin.

    As far as I know, there was only one edition.

    The wine recommendations are of course dates to 1980 when the book was being written so are well out of date now.

    It is fun to read them and imagine........

    I've purchased a lot of books from Castle Rock in Las Vegas and they give accurate descriptions.

    If all you want is a reading copy, there is no need to spend a lot.

  11. I make regular forays to office supply stores to look for things I can use in the kitchen.

    In other threads I have written about the handy mesh containers intended for various things from pencils to file folders that are handy in the kitchen.

    I keep all the little jars and bottles in my fridge in these as it makes it much easier to find them and much easier and far faster to clean the fridge shelves as I only have to pull out these instead of all those individual little jars and bottles.

    The round ones intended for pencils and etc., come in different sizes. The small ones are good for those little items that tend to get lost in drawers. Little cheese spreaders, canape forks, and demitasse spoons.

    I use the big ones for larger utensils. They need to be weighted so I go to pet stores to buy the glass marbles that are used in fish tanks.

    To clean the marbles, I put them in a mesh bag and it goes into the dishwasher on the top rack.

    I use binder clips from the tiny to the largest for many tasks in the kitchen.

    From the garden shop I buy the long, double ended hooks made for hanging pots but they are also handy for hanging kitchen stuff within reach when you have a high ceiling. They are available in various lengths and in various colors: black, white, bronze and green. If you have a wire-bending gig you can make your own but they are inexpensive so I don't bother.

    Look at this page and see how many things might have a use in your kitchen.

  12. I "cheat" in that I cook meats first, often braising them until nearly falling apart, and then I transfer them to the stove top smoker and "finish" them with smoking.

    As my exhaust system is pretty powerful, I just slide the cover part way off and taste a bit to see if it has the desired degree of "smoke" flavor.

    Yesterday I smoked a thick slice of ham topped with pineapple slices and then sprinkled the top with a little granulated maple sugar and slid it under the grill to finish.

  13. They only speak to restaurant use, and suggest a machine with a three liter capacity that can spin at 30,000 RPM. One gets the sense that they are well aware that centrifuges will likely remain unobtainable resources for nearly everyone, but that they had fun with theirs and wanted to talk about it.

    Any large city should have at least one place that sells used medical and laboratory equipment.

    Call and ask if they have one or more in stock.

    These folks do have prices but they are open to negotiation. Bargain, it usually works.

    We bought a used centrifuge - I think it held ten 20 milliliter vials - from such a place in L.A. for $125.00 which was considerably less than their original asking price.

    When they buy these things from doctors offices and from labs, they pay ten cents on the dollar or less.

    You do not want a "Micro" centrifuge.

    Here's a sample of listings from one place.

  14. Do try some soups, especially cream soups that can be so easily ruined by scorching when cooked in a saucepan.

    I oven-roast vegetables in big batches and freeze them in packets so I can produce an "instant" soup by the addition of liquids.

    Use the basic instructions that are in the Vitamix book and go from there.

    Try making your own mustard. Soak mustard seed overnight in a mixture of 3 parts wine to 1 part vinegar, just enough to cover.

    Then blend them in the Vitamix with a little sweetener (honey or a jelly), add herbs and spices that you like to taste. Don't forget a little salt.

  15. That's such an eGullet answer!Someone will be along with a thermal coefficient vs yolk viscosity graph soon!

    I'm pretty sure Alton Brown did that a few years ago in tandem with Shirley Corriher.

  16. Thanks for all the suggestions for Mexican cookbooks. Now I REALLY have a problem. :raz:

    Find a good used-book source. At a couple bucks a copy, you can have them all!

    Thanks for the thought Jaymes, but I live in the far frozen north, and we don't really 'do' much Mexican here, thus no second hand cookbooks.

    DH and I visited the latest Mexican restaurant to open in our nearby city and talked to the owner. He's quite discouraged. Business is nowhere and he can't use pork at all. Only beef and chicken. And not much more sells than burritos. I wonder who told him Peterborough was a good place to open a Mexican spot. One closed only last year or so.

    Try ABE Books

    Use this advanced search page and select the country, title or author

    and put amounts in the min to max windows so you won't have to look at those out of your price range.

    Don't select any of the "refinements" .

    I have been buying via ABE since the service came on line and have yet to be disappointed.

    This service allows small local book shops to sell everywhere (and to stay in business)!

    I like supporting the smaller book shops, some are thrift shops, Goodwill and Salvation Army.

  17. In recent years I have had the advantage of a neighbor from Mexico who is a marvelous cook - and her sister, who visits two or three times a year, is a molera from San Juan del Rio.

    She has invited me to visit during the Mole & Tortilla Fiesta but I don't like to fly and it is a very long drive.

    I assume that 'molera' is someone who makes mole?

    It is a woman who makes moles, a man would be a molero.

    She makes many types, I forget how many but more than two dozen varieties. She has a little shop in the city and also one in a suburb of Mexico City that is managed by one of her daughters.

  18. I too love Frida's Fiestas. I also like A Cook's Tour of Mexico. I don't know how much is repeated in The Art of Mexican Cooking, but I find Diana Kennedy's original The Cuisines of Mexico and Mexican Regional Cooking indispensable.

    These are two of my favorites also, especially the Diana Kennedy book.

    However, I think my most favorite is a little paperback that is almost forty years old: Good Food from Mexico by Ruth Watt Mulvey and Luisa Maria Alvarez.

    My copy is tattered and stained with the covers taped and some of the loose pages taped into place.

    In recent years I have had the advantage of a neighbor from Mexico who is a marvelous cook - and her sister, who visits two or three times a year, is a molera from San Juan del Rio.

    She has invited me to visit during the Mole & Tortilla Fiesta but I don't like to fly and it is a very long drive.

    This involves watching and taking notes and a certain amount of sign language because my Spanish is rudimentary and while the ladies speak excellent English, there are some terms that are difficult to translate.

    (I purchased the Spanish Rosetta Stone program and have been using it from time to time and a few things are beginning to stick.)

  19. These are the two seasoning that are readily available and are also seen on tables in local Hispanic restaurants.

    A small Honduran restaurant offers a mango and green coconut salad and suggests the use of the Chile Con Limon but offers both. The Pico De Gallo is hotter.

    HPIM3900.JPG

    You can order direct from Via Nueva

    Jaymes is so sharp and knows so much about these.

    I make fresh pico de gallo and all the local Mexican markets offer it in several "grades" mild, medium, hot and very hot, in the deli/prepared foods section.

    If I'm in a lazy mood I buy a large container of the mild and small containers of each of the hotter ones so folks can blend them to get the degree of heat they want.

    If I start from scratch, I make a bowl of mild and chop hotter peppers so my guests can add the heat they want.

    I like the Pico de Gallo seasoning on cottage cheese - for breakfast.

    I sprinkle it on jicama "sticks" for snacks.

  20. If you require larger liquid measures, the Cambro products are superior to others I have used.

    I have a couple of the 4-quart size that I used when I was catering but now have been relegated to the gardening shed.

    I've used them in the microwave but they do tend to become opaque in spots when I have melted fats in them and left them a bit too long.

    The loop handles allow them to be hung up.

  21. I have some very old mixers that are still going strong.

    I don't expect to see any of today's mixers still operating 70 years from now.

    I have a thirty-year-old VitaMix that works almost as well as my newer one.

    I agree about the toasters, waffle bakers and so on.

    Electric motors of today may be smaller, lighter and more efficient but they are not built to last.

    I agree about refrigerators and freezers and ice makers.

    Rice makers, check! Induction burners, check! Knives, check!

    Stove tops (gas) for home use, tremendously improved.

    40 years ago I got a Garland range because no consumer gas stove could satisfy my requirements for BTU output. Easy to find powerful burners now.

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