andiesenji

I haven't read through this entire thread because some seem repetitive. I have an electric pasteurizer that I used for batches of 3 to 5 dozen eggs when I was catering because of requests for salad dressings made with raw eggs, French style (soft) omelets, etc. And for requests for eggnog for holiday parties. Now I do smaller batches, usually a dozen at a time, Large, for mayonnaise, other sauces, salad dressings, etc. Large eggs at room temperature are placed in room temp water and bring it to at least 140°F and no more than 143°F and once it reaches this temp (i use a high-low alarm thermometer for small batches the pasteurized is automatic) set the timer for 4 minutes which gives you a full minute to remove the eggs from the water. I "sacrifice" one egg with a probe thermometer inserted into the yolk to make sure it reaches the CRITICAL TEMPERATURE of 138° F. Any temp below this will not only not kill the salmonella but will promote growth. According to the California Egg Board. Immediately rinse the eggs in cool water, dry the surface thoroughly and refrigerate. They should be used within 10 days. Holding them at 130°F for long periods - if the YOLKS NEVER REACH 138° is potentially promoting growth of salmonella. I bought the pasteurizer in 1979 when I began my adventure into cheesemaking. I could buy "certified" raw milk at the local dairy outlet, and would pasteurize it myself before making my cheeses. When I began the catering, the Health Department gave me stacks of bulletins, one of which involved EGGS. And the LIABILITY of using raw eggs. I spoke to one of the inspectors who checked my kitchen and showed him the pasteurizer and he said that would be perfectly adequate for pasteurizing eggs as the settings for liquid dairy products and for eggs were virtually identical. I have been pasteurizing eggs on a regular basis since 1982 and I have never had a problem.

I bought an extra blade a couple of years after I bought my DLC-7 and several years ago the original blade bent at the tip, but did not break, when it encountered a nectarine pit. I carefully discarded that one and replaced it with the "new" one.

I had a Cuisinart 11 cup from the mid-1980s until three years ago when I gave it to a neighbor who desperately needed one. I also "had" a 14 cup Cuisinart that I bought in 1998 as a backup for my 20 cup and it was still working nicely until a month ago when it suffered a fatal accident. I had used it, rinsed the parts and put them in the dishwasher, grabbed a dishtowel from the counter, which was unfortunately hiding the cord and I yanked it off the counter and it did not survived the impact with the floor. In fact, I just listed all the perfectly fine parts, all Made in Japan, not China! on ebay yesterday. There are several on ebay, for very reasonable prices. This is a workhorse of the line - as long as you get the "vintage" ones made before 2002. I highly recommend it. Look for a listing: DLC-7 Cuisinart or DLC SERIES 7 CUISINART. 14 cup. Mine has an extra lid - the flat lid used for dough, or anything that did not need feeding, although it does have center access for adding liquids or whatever to doughs, I used it a lot for making crumb pie crusts. I still have my big 20 cup and will be more careful with it, but it is much too heavy to move the way it's little brother did. Here's one with a lot of extras: eBay item number:152949213228 And one with some extras: eBay item number:253762141945 Here's the lineup of my three machines around 2005.

This happened a couple of years ago. Back in the late 1970s a man who had purchased a rare book of Audubon Birds, was run off the road, beaten and the book stolen. It never surfaced again, At the time it was surmised that the hit on the man had been ordered by a collector who wanted it for his private collection. The 1980s were notable for the sheer volume of book thefts, like the Stephen Blumberg affair and that of James Richard Shinn, both of whom stole hundreds of thousands of rare books from libraries. I worked part time for a specialty book dealer in rare books from the mid 1970s to 1992 when she sold the business. She gave me her copies of Antiquarian Booksellers Association bulletins, which had fascinating reading about book thieves and also very comprehensive lists of book auctions and sales.

You have no idea how fanatic book collectors can be. Years ago when I was actively collecting, I went to many auctions held by antiquarian booksellers. I have seen seemingly normal people practically come to blows. I saw one very elegantly dressed and very wealthy woman scream at another woman who upped a bid by a considerable amount - she really wanted that book. This book was an amazing find because it was already much more expensive than I paid. But just as the "buyer beware" adage is important, so is the "dealer, know the worth of your stock!"

It is ALL about the dust jacket. A signed first edition of The Sun Also Rises, no dust jacket sells for about $350.00 in very fine condition. A signed first edition of The Sun Also Rises with original dust jacket, $5,500.00 A copy of Early California Hospitality with a partial dust jacket, not near as complete as mine, sold for 695.95 and the boards were stained, some creasing of pages.

The link is only to my page with the book.

I posted about this rare cookbook some time ago. Now I have listed it on Ebay so if anyone knows a collector, please pass the information along. I considered listing it on Amazon but found there were too many hoops to jump through, so am sticking with Ebay. Only 1019 of these were printed in 1938. There are a few offered by booksellers but none have the very fragile dust jacket. This does and the antiquarian book people I contacted told me that in many cases a dust jacket, even damaged, can be worth 10 or 15 times the worth of the book itself. Early California Hospitality

I make it, have done so for decades. For my latest batches of mayonnaise and salad dressing, I have been using avocado oil and it is fantastic. I use whole eggs in both and I save the liquid from my bread and butter pickles and use that in the salad dressing, aka MW. And I use Beaver Brand sweet-hot mustard instead of dijon in the salad dressing. Produces a wonderful "tang" perfect for sandwiches, salads when you want more "bite" than with mayonnaise.

Back in the '70s my kids like to make a similar cake. They would ask me to buy a jar because they didn't think my homemade mayo or salad dressing would work correctly. I kept one of the pint jars after one such effort, hidden way at the back of my fridge (had a lock on it) and when I made a batch of one of my homemade stuff, I made extra and filled the jar and shifted it to the fridge that held their stuff. Liz made the cake a week or so later and no one commented that it was any different. So I continued doing it. After a few months I had to buy a new jar because the label was beginning to look iffy. Incidentally, two morning ago I made a pint of mayonnaise and I wanted a bit more "tang" than usual so I added 2 rounded tablespoons of CAPERS to the ingredients in the mini food processor. Wonderful flavor. Was perfect in my "rustic" potato salad. (skins left on).

I like Visions. I use it mostly in the microwave but I have the large oval covered roaster and it is great for braising, long, low oven.

Yes. I buy the MAAS in large tubes because I use a lot of it on my vintage chrome toasters and other appliances.

I posted a response to this night before last and I saw it then but today it is gone. There is a metal polish called PEEK, available in the UK, that is used a lot by the Pyrex folk to clean utensil marks and dishwasher damage from the colored bowls and etc. it also works on enameled cast iron or steel. I fully restored a Descoware Dutch oven using MAAS, an almost identical product, to give to my daughter a couple of years ago, removing all the burn marks on the bottom, utensil marks inside. You could barely tell it has been used, except for some staining inside from cooking chili in it. Here are some photos. I bought this in 1971 to complement the Descoware Red flame I purchase in 1968. I didn't really "need" it but it was so pretty I couldn't resist. I didn't use it quite as much as the solid color ones. In my opinion, Descoware is superior to Le Creuset. I certainly like the handles much better, no problems with them in an oven.

I have the Cuisinart DLC-XP 20 CUP (5-Quart) and the actual capacity for very liquid stuff is actually 2 quarts as it will leak around the center shaft, semi-liquid 3-4 quarts, dry no liquid 5 quarts. Slicing vegetables with slicing, julienne discs, nearly full capacity to the disc level. These are photos of my chile verde sauce, I start out with the bowl completely full of the whole/chopped ingredients - this photo is after a few pulses so the level has dropped by a third. and it reduces to what you see in the second photo. There is a small amount of leakage at the center shaft but not as much as with very liquid mixtures.

I learned how to cook a prepare tongue when I was a child. It involved cooking the tongues (there were usually several in a huge pot) also cooking calves feet (for the gelatin). The strips of cooked tongue were put through a meat grinder with the coarse die, seasoned with whole peppercorns and spices, the still hot gelatin stirred in and the mixture packed firmly into large casings that were tied off. The "loaves" were put into large rectangular baking pans, two to a pan, and another pan with bricks for weight was placed on top and they were cooked in a low oven (275 was the temp I used) for 3 hours. Cooled and then into a fridge. No problems with texture or chewiness. A great "luncheon meat" that sliced thin was in tea sandwiches and sliced thick, went into the hearty sandwiches for those family members who were out working in the fields, barns, at the sawmill or the grist mill. I made this the same way when my kids were still at home and they loved it. We did not buy commercial lunch meat. I made several types.

Beautiful loaf, Raamo. After I saw this yesterday, I consulted with my friend, Ben-the-Baker, who spent a couple of years in Japan, studying their baking techniques in the early 2000s. I asked about the savory chocolate bread. He said that part of the flour, about 1/4 is the same roasted or toasted barley they use for mugicha, the roasted barley tea. He said there are lots of sites online that explain how to roast the barley and it should be roasted and ground shortly before using it in baked goods because it doesn't hold that rather elusive bitter/sweet flavor for long. He also said that besides cocoa, dark, they use espresso powder. A small amount of rice vinegar is added to the liquid to "encourage" the yeast in heavy doughs. This was off the top of his head - he doesn't know exactly where his notebooks are but these are the essentials.

I make my own buttermilk. I do keep it in a GLASS half-gallon milk bottle. When it gets down to the 1/4 or less mark, I will leave it and an unopened quart of whole milk (or half and half sometimes, for a richer "cultured" result) out on the counter for about 12 hours or so. Mix the two together and leave it out for an additional 8 to 12 hours. Refrigerate and use as needed. You can do this with commercial buttermilk but you do have to keep it in a glass container with a cap that seals tightly. Since both Trader Joes and Whole Foods sells milk in half-gallon glass jugs, it is not difficult to obtain these.

Sorry. I have been using the Moosewood peanut sauce for decades it is a bit more complicated than some. I omit the tamarind and I use very little brown sugar I add it to taste after the rest is cooked. And I use Mae Ploy sweet chile sauce instead of the peppers, which is also sweet so there is less need for the brown sugar. For vegans, the Mae Ploy sauce is a wonderful addition to many foods. My vegan friends fry or barbecue extra firm tofu and use the Mae Ploy as a dipping sauce. They dress bean and rice dishes with it. Like me, they buy it from Asian grocers in the large "industrial" size. I highly recommend it. I even have one friend who puts it on ice cream, which sounds weird but I have tried it and it's not bad at all. You might want to Google Gado Gado Peanut sauce before you decide on a particular recipe. I meant this as more of a suggestion of where to start. There are numerous Gado Gado recipes and various peanut sauces for it on the 'net.

My favorite vegan dish is the very substantial Indonesian Gado Gado with peanut sauce. There are numerous variations - It contains both raw and cooked vegetables and a peanut sauce that can vary from very mild to very spicy, depending on how you like it. I like not too spicy. I used to go to an Indonesian restaurant with friends who were vegan and this was always their basic dish with a few other side dishes. The restaurant had some additions, fried tofu or tempeh, some "rice sticks" that were like croutons. The nice thing about this, when cooking for guests, is that just about everything can be prepped a day ahead so all you have to do is either steam or stir-fry the things that need cooking, toss with the raw stuff and serve the peanut sauce, which you have made a day or so before, on the side. It is almost a meal in itself and indeed I have often had it alone, as a meal.

Not a cookie. just a flatter muffin with more crust. I have both the Chicago Metallic muffin top pans (2) and the Norpro (1). The only reason I have both is because I misplaced the 2 CM pans and was planning to make some muffin tops in a few days. Amazon for some reason, could not ship a CM pan in 2 day so I ordered the Norpro. Of course, the day the latter was going to be delivered, I found the CM pans, sandwiched between two sheet pans in the rack where I store sheet pans and similar. They are configured just a bit different. The CM "cups" have sides that slope more, the Norpro are more straight up and down. They do have other uses. I use them for hamburger buns, and I use BOTH to bake English muffins in the oven. One with the cups filled with the dough, the other inverted (greased) and the two clamped together with jumbo binder clips. They come out thicker than commercial muffins but split and toasted they are perfect. I use the King Arthur flour recipe.

I posted this on Facebook today. I have been working on perfecting this recipe for months. Today I achieved perfection. I have tried any number of similar recipes, not just for cherries and almonds and they all ARE MUCH TOO SWEET! I don't know when someone decided that a lot of sugar was the way to make baked goods toothsome (I love that word) - because some of the very old recipes I have, from the 19th century and earlier, used much less sugar, which was very expensive and often scarce. This recipe is somewhat similar to others that use a whole cup of sugar for A SINGLE LOAF and in my opinion that is way too much. 1/4 cup is plenty, especially with sweet fruit. I have included a shot of the cherries I used. These are better than any I have ever used. Amarena cherries, a product of Italy. Cherry-Almond Quick Bread Prep Time: 15 minutes Original Recipe by Andie Paysinger Bake Time: 1 hour Ingredients: 2 cups self-rising flour 1/4 cup sugar if you like it sweeter you can use 1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar without changing anything else. 1 Teaspoon baking powder 1 Teaspoon baking SODA 1/2 cup chopped dried and plumped cherries the Amarena cherries I show in my post do not need plumping. 1/2 cup slivered or sliced almonds 3/4 cup buttermilk 2 eggs 1/3 cup vegetable oil - a neutral oil (grapeseed, avocado, I use rice bran oil, you don’t want a strongly flavored oil) 2 Teaspoons almond extract Measure the dried cherries and chop them add 1/4 cup hot water and allow to plump for at least 30 minutes. Do not drain, add the cherries and the liquid. Directions: Preheat an oven to 350°F. Grease and line a loaf pan size 9” x 5” 3” line with parchment leaving at least 2 inch “wings” above each side. (I use non-stick spray) You can use two smaller loaf pans if you don't have a large one. Measure the dry ingredients into a bowl, use a whisk to blend well. Add the cherries and almonds and use a fork to distribute evenly. In a large bowl, beat the eggs until they are light yellow in color. Add the oil, and blend into the eggs. Add the almond extract and the buttermilk and blend well. Add half the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and stir till blended. Add the remaining flour mixture and stir till completely mixed. The mixture will begin to have a “spongy” texture, the effect of the buttermilk and baking soda - this is normal. Spoon the batter into the lined loaf pan filling each end first and then the center. Even the top and wet the spoon and with the back, push the batter toward the ends of the pan so the middle is slightly hollow looking. This will produce an even top without a dome in the middle. Place the pan in the center of the oven and bake for ONE HOUR. Remove from oven and place on a wire cooling rack. Wait 5 minutes and using the paper “wings” on each side, lift the loaf out of the pan and place on the rack. Allow to cool for 45 minutes to an hour before cutting.

I have a "muffin top" baking pan and for an oatmeal/bran/maple muffin, I bake them to within 8 minutes of the end of baking time, pull the pan out, flip them over and back into the oven for the remaining 7 minutes or so, PLUS I leave them in the oven for another 10 minutes after it shuts off. Both the tops and the bottoms are crisp.

FIRST you should convince the restaurants, hotels, resorts, bars and etc., TO PAY REGULAR WAGES TO SERVERS. What?? Don't you know that servers are PAID BY THE RESTAURANTS A FRACTION OF THE MINIMUM WAGE in most states? California mandates that servers are paid minimum wage $9.00 per hour (would you do that kind of work for that amount???) Other states use the absurdly low federal minimum of $2.13 for tipped employees. If you don't want to tip - DON'T GO TO A RESTAURANT because if you refuse to tip, that employee will suffer. He or she has to pay rent and you try paying rent or buying food or PAYING FOR CHILD CARE at $2.13 AN HOUR! BABY SITTERS GET MORE THAN THAT! In OTHER COUNTRIES restaurants, hotels, etc., PAY A REGULAR WAGE TO SERVERS! Servers in the EU can depend on earning respectable wages. I've talked to foreign visitors who are "professional" servers and THEY CAN AFFORD TO TAKE VACATIONS HERE IN THE U.S. There is no way a server earning minimum wage in California could EVER take a vacation in Europe. They are lucky to get a couple of days off because many have to work two or three jobs BECAUSE EMPLOYERS DON'T LIKE TO HIRE FULL TIME BECAUSE THEN THEY HAVE TO PROVIDE "BENEFITS" and the cheap assholes won't do that. Here, servers have to depend on HONORABLE PEOPLE who understand they are DEPENDENT ON TIPS FOR A LIVING WAGE. I don't go out much now, because of illness but when I did, I always tipped at least 15% and often 20% because I was dining alone but the server had to visit my table just as often if I had been a larger party.

I use one of these "chain mail" scrubbers. I bought a couple on ebay several years ago. They were much cheaper than this. They are terrific at knocking the bits and bumps off seasoned cast iron. I use it in skillets to smooth out the sides, I don't need to use it so much on the cooking surface itself. It also cleans up the outside, where stuff seems to become fused onto the surface. I wear gloves, doubled, when I use this, easier to grip. I also use it to knock the burnt-on spots on the outside of unglazed ceramic cooking vessels - tagines and cazuelas.

I have my great grandmother's ERIE griddle (purchased in 1890 before Griswold put their name on them) has only been greased with bacon rind. About every 15 years I buy a slab of bacon about 4-5 inches wide, cut the bacon off, cut the rind into 2 squares - approximately - heat the griddle and rub the fat side on the griddle until it is well coated then allow it to "cook" a bit longer then turn the burner off and let it cool slowly. I have heavy cast iron grates so it takes a while. The last time I stripped it and started over was in the early '70s when my stepdaughter put it in the dishwasher! It is non-stick. Eggs, flapjacks, crumpets, Eng. muffins, meats, etc., slide right off. I have used various oils on other cast iron and carbon steel pans. Forty years ago I used lard or crisco. Lard was preferred in my grandparent's kitchen. We used lard to grease steel baking sheets, steel bread pans, muffin tins, etc., in my mom's bakery in the '50s.