andiesenji

I love pistachios in desserts, confections and baked goods. I have found that the best way to bring out the most flavor is to do as schneich advises and roast half. However I steam the unroasted ones for ten minutes and then continue with the process. In my opinion, the steaming brings out some of the flavor compounds that don't develop without heating. I began doing this after getting a tour of a facility that makes nut flours - (they gave me little bags of products to sample) - and noted that some of the nuts, notably pistachios, almonds and filberts, were roasted briefly then blanched (to remove skins), then steamed and dried with hot air prior to being ground into flour. As the flavor of their products was better than I had achieved on my own at home, I began the steaming and drying step prior to grinding and I think the results justify the extra step. Try it with a small amount, see what you think.

Case in point: The Veg-o-Matic. If you do a search for one on eBay today it can cost up to about forty bucks. Or you can buy the new Williams-Sonoma version for about the same price. Everything old is new again... An excellent example. However, I was thinking of the old-fashioned eggbeater - recently one (with its own container, a McCoy glass measurer) sold on ebay for $179.00. I have a catalog from 1934 which shows the identical item selling for .59cents! Amazing. I do happen to have a couple, one inherited, one picked up at a yard sale for a dollar. I also have several other eggbeaters, of various vintages, none made since 1950 and some with quite different designs but all engineered beautifully. You can tell the ones that came with a container, they include a disc spatter shield, incorporated into the design.

Hang in there, gadget addict. You are not alone and not all of us have regrets. You could never get to the point that I reached some years ago. I have gadgets that some people have never seen because they were marketed for such a brief time. I have many antique ones that look like instruments of torture (and were torture to use but heck, people had servants then to do the tough jobs - and there was no such thing as OSHA). But then something weird happens. After a few years (or decades) other people read something in a story about a particular gadget, or see one in a movie, and decide they "can't live without it" and spend major bucks purchasing things that originally cost pennies. These sometimes useless things are like money in the bank for us packrats that never (or almost never) throw things away. And sometimes you might get a call from someone in the movie business who is looking for a particular gadget that can't be found in any of the prop warehouses and WOW! they are willing to pay to rent it and will send a car (or a truck) for it. So, junior "collector of kitchenalia," take heart that not only are there a great many unrepentant gadgeteers roaming the countryside, they will never say to you that you have a problem. And now I am off to yet again count my collection of whisks. I think they are multiplying on their own.

Yep - just like mine - I only have the "yellow" one though. Those have very good ratings and look like they will seal much better than the one I have. Very nice.

Long grain white rice, (Basmati, Jasmine, and the various types grown in the U.S., including Carolina Gold, can be kept for years. In fact, many Indian rices of this type are deliberately aged. I have some pink Madagascar rice from the same vendor I mentioned above, that is said to be better with some aging. I buy a "pearl rice" from a local store that sells it in bulk and it keeps very well because I had a gallon jar half full that had been "hiding" in back of some other containers in my pantry for maybe two years. I cooked some and it was fine. There are colored rices that have the husk removed and they keep well but I keep them in the freezer just to be on the safe side - they are expensive and I don't want to waste my money. Whole brown rices do not keep well at all - keep them in the freezer, they will keep many times longer this way - in plastic Ziplock bags, double-bagged. I have had no problems keeping Calrose short grain rice, sushi rice and arborio for fairly long periods but I cook a lot of rice. My rice cooker gets a regular workout several times a week. I haven't kept the carnaroli rice long enough to know if it keeps well. I am making risotto this evening. I like to buy the specialty rices online. Their turnover is much higher than many stores and I like the various types, I blend them too. Another favorite vendor is Barry Farm and I also buy a lot of unusual grains from them. I've never gotten a batch that had any "hitch-hikers" from them, something that I cannot say about local stores. http://www.barryfarm.com/rice.htm

I would suggest that you try a different rice - either type or brand. I've always used arborio rice but a few months ago bought some carnaroli rice and have found it much more to my liking. My most recent purchases have been from this vendor: http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prmenbr=127574&prrfnbr=146807 And I have found this to be the best yet and after using up the first bag I reordered three bags as this is exactly to my liking.

I've written before in other topics about my experiences with the Cadco 1/2 sheet oven. I wouldn't be without it. Click here: and scroll down to post # 149 - near the bottom of the page - where you can see a photo of the oven with the largest Staub 12 quart oval French oven inside.

Regarding how and why I began putting the recipes for prospective meals in with stuff in the freezer (and the pantry), it all started when I was doing some catering and also some contract baking for caterers and a couple of local cafés. My kitchen was certified for commercial cooking and to keep things organized, I had to use this method to be sure I had the necessary ingredients for my business. I had a "regular" job and did most of my extra baking and cooking at night, when Smart & Final or Costco were closed - there were 24 hour markets but the ingredients there were either too expensive or not what I wanted to use. Rather than do one recipe at a time, I would gather all the dry ingredients I needed for several different baked items. Measure or weigh the stuff for each recipe into Ziplock bags and put those items with the recipe in a bus tub, a big mixing bowl or on a tray and bag the stuff together and shove them onto shelves in the pantry that I reserved for them. Big label with the name of the recipe and the date required visible on the front (also with the time needed to complete it and a list of perishable ingredients needed to complete it). I gave up the kitchen certification a few years ago but I still do this for my holiday baking, spending almost an entire day doing nothing but gathering and measuring dry ingredients, either by volume or weight. Once you get into this kind of routine, it is amazing how fast it goes when you are ready to proceed. You are also assured of not discovering that you are out of some critical ingredient at an inconvenient time. It is similar to a production line but operated by only one person. If I do have help, it is very simple for someone else to complete a recipe when it is organized in this manner.

OUCH! I love my onion-shaped onion keeper. Sorry.. It may not be the same as the one I have (a gift) which falls open whenever it is picked up. It's supposed to snap to the base, but doesn't and it is not sealed because the onion aroma leaks out. I tried it once. It is this one: http://www.amazon.com/MSC-International-Jo-Onion-Keeper/dp/B001VE4K8M/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1264986172&sr=8-14 One of my friends has a Tupperware onion keeper that works just fine for her. I just use the heavyweight plastic wrap - I have the commercial roll of Reynolds plastic wrap, which I may use up in my lifetime or maybe not...

Oooh, oooh, oooh. I have to have one! To add to my collection of really stupid kitchen gadgets. It will take its place with the avocado scoop'n slicer, the melon scooper (all three sizes) and the onion-shaped onion keeper. I will bet that I can crack and separate six eggs in the time it takes to position an egg in the "instrument" and trigger the action.

Just don't try this with red onions! You will end up with blue-black onions that look quite disgusting. They taste just fine though! I should have known this but it was early, early in the morning. On the advice of a friend, I tried using the longish "Italian torpedo" red onions and used coconut oil in which to cook them. Like these: http://www.humeseeds.com/onion_ir.htm They retained their color nicely - they were just a bit darker, rather purplish but not at all an unpleasant color. I also included some preserved lemon but don't know if that had any effect on the color. The flavor was excellent.

I rarely consume anything resembling a hot dog. However, I have been known to chow down on a Dodger Dog, suitably anointed with the yellow mustard, sweet pickle relish and chopped onions. After various trials, I have to admit that the ones actually sold at Dodger Stadium taste better than those sold at other sites. On the other hand, I like bratwurst, preferably charred on the outside, nestled in a toasted bun, with nothing but German-style mustard with the crunchy seeds. Now I'm hungry for bratwurst - have to dig in the freezer to see if there are some left from my last shipment.... You guys are a baaaaaad influence.

My grandmother, mother and I all used Sunbeam mixmasters for beating cake batter, eggs and egg whites, the looser types of cookie doughs, and etc., etc., etc., For many, many years. The beaters do a fine job with certain restrictions. They work just fine as long as you don't overload them with dough that is too stiff or dense. If you have the dough hooks, you have a later model in which the motor was beefed up a bit to handle heavier jobs than the earlier models. Some of the units sold in the late 1940s and through the '50s are still in use.

I also now have a Bosch and it cleans very well and it does not take long for dishes to dry after the end of the cycle - I open the door and the residual heat is enough to dry most things. Sometimes there is residual water in depressions on top of upside-down bowls, etc., but a swipe with a dish towel is enough to take care of this. The quick cycle (40 minutes) is excellent for cleaning lightly soiled dishes. I have had no problems with plastics deforming but I think all of my plastic containers are microwave safe so the dishwasher should present no problems. This is the first consumer dishwasher I have owned since '94 as for 15 years I had a commercial undercounter Hobart. The Bosch is very quiet, I can barely hear it when I am standing near it in the kitchen. I didn't want a dishwasher with a dry heating element because in my opinion it uses too much energy for the results obtained.

Anna, I also buy lots of "exotic" ingredients especially for a particular recipe - I usually take the recipe with me to the store - particularly the middle eastern store and the "Oriental Market" that recently opened in Lancaster. When I get home, I place those ingredients, with the recipe, in yet another Ziplock bag and place them in the pantry. I have a couple of large bus tubs on one of the shelves that holds these grouped items. My "To-Do" recipe bin. I had to do this because I often found myself with two or three jars (or more) of some ingredient because I had forgotten I had it on hand and bought more. It's a little embarrassing to discover, on cleaning the spice cupboard, that one has six (6) jars of Chinese 5-spice, plus a large container purchased at Smart & Final. One can only use so much of the stuff so I give it away before it loses its strength. Incidentally, I buy my Ziplock bags - actually generic - also at Smart & Final in the industrial-sized packages. The jumbo size is made by Hefty - I think the only one that comes in the 2 1/2 gallon size and I buy a lot of those.

Regarding ideas for using the various foods discovered in the freezer: Whenever I come across a recipe online (often in this forum) for a recipe that includes an item that I know I have in the freezer, I immediately print it out and place it in a Ziplock bag with that item and leave in the freezer. The bag with the big bag of chicken thighs currently contains six pages of recipes - one recipe to a page. Two pork tenderloins and one pork loin are each bagged with at least one recipe - the tenderloins have to compete for 3 recipes. When I am stumped about what to fix for a future meal (next day or so) I check the freezers and the bags with recipes and ??? and pull out one that sounds appropriate or at least, interesting and perhaps, if I am feeling lazy, the one that will require the least effort. Sometimes I am efficient enough to do this when I bring something home from the market, particularly if I package it with the vac-sealer. The greatest number of printed recipes reside in the jumbo Ziplock bag that contains several bags of cranberries, purchased in a moment of madness at Trader Joe's as they were so pretty - much darker and nicer-looking than those at the regular market.

I just spoon it onto Holland Rusk (which I order by the case so as to always have a "sufficient" supply. Although, I must say that your solution sounds good, however I am a diabetic and have to use discretion in the consumption of sugars. Addendum: I have been using ghee for years, whenever I handle phyllo dough and have found it to be easier to get an even coating on the sheets.

There is some chemical reaction that acts similar to curd formation in milk and I don't have a clue as to the technical aspects but have some experience with the seemingly odd characteristics of dairy products. I use a buttermilk/melted butter(cooled) mixture in some quick breads and it is amazing how quickly the buttermilk thickens as soon as the melted and cooled but still liquid butter is stirred into it. I used to recommend the procedure in an online cookbook to people who wanted to try it but came across this site several months ago and think that the instructions and photos here are much clearer. http://blog.asmartmouth.com/2008/10/10/homemade-indian-ghee-if-you-dare/ You might post a question in the blog and ask the same question.

They are available through Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Home-Cooking-Kitchen-Laurie-Colwin/dp/0060955309 or here: http://www.alibris.com/booksearch?S=R&wauth=Laurie+Colwin&siteID=1JSk6CbYEf0-Twurg2F4zxwmzMqB65ixvg or ABE bookshttp://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?an=Laurie+Colwin&bi=0&bx=off&ds=30&recentlyadded=all&sortby=17&sts=t&tn=Home+cooking&x=0&y=0

My mom used to serve this as a side dish. In a bowl lined with iceberg lettuce. With a dollop of mayo on top. Sometimes I eat it for breakfast, although I like a lighter syrup now (I've canned my own peach halves in a 10% syrup that is perfect), and leave off the mayo if it's early in the AM. I never add mayo, but have discovered that a light dusting of freshly ground black pepper does wonders for the combination of flavors. Some people think I am nuts for applying pepper to sweet fruits but some years ago a friend convinced me to try it on fresh, extra-ripe strawberries and I was hooked.

I remember it well. Tasty stuff, especially on pumpernickel sliced very thin. Others have mentioned canned peaches - yes, I like them with cottage cheese, with enough syrup that the cottage cheese curds are swimming. Not so much a fan of Spam. Although there was an event, many years ago, when I was a new bride and proudly made up a recipe from The Farm Bureau Cookbook, for "Spiced Ham Loaf." My ex Navy husband took one taste and told me that I had reinvented Spam. Following the tears, he manfully consumed the portion on his plate and I think fed the rest to the dogs. I never saw it again.

I do have one of the Crown Berkey units in my pantry, for the "just in case" earthquake event that might disrupt the water lines in my house and possibly allow contamination into my well water. I live within sight of the San Andreas fault zone (23 miles away at its nearest point to me) and ground motion here would probably be enough to cause severe problems. I have the standard filters and a full set of extras because, as we have seen in Haiti, a big problem following such an event is good water. I also have the "travel" unit and posted a photo in another thread as I take it with me when I travel and am going to be in a particular site for more than a day or so. As I mentioned in earlier posts, I have friends who have the big units, which are still not sold in California. I'm not that far from Nevada and have a friend that lives near the state line so I buy them, have them shipped to her and drive over to pick them up for other people who want them and can pick them up at my home or meet me somewhere convenient for both of us. I still have not received a satisfactory answer from my state senator as to why this is. Other people have told me that the bottled water industry has socked a lot of money into keeping their monopoly. Anyway, I recommend the Berkey unconditionally for people who have water that has a high mineral content or bad taste/smell. I also recommend this vendor: http://www.pleasanthillgrain.com/berkey_light_big_berkey_water_filter_british_berkefeld_portable_purifier.aspx I have purchased many appliances and other bits and pieces from them and have found they are more accessible and more helpful than most.

I've certainly taken part in a tamalada and it is a lot of fun. I speak very little Spanish but know enough to laugh at the jokes - and there are many - and contribute a bit myself. Empanadas are another possibility and I have also joined in a party in which these are made in huge quantities - sweet dessert types and savory snack types - various sizes and shapes, although the half-moon is the most popular, a triangular one works nicely for fillings that are chunky. I've hosted blintz parties - hosting as many as twelve cooks - many with non-cooking mates so there would be perhaps twenty people total. As there can be many fillings, both savory and sweet and the blintzes can be frozen for future use, it's fun to decided on a "menu" and see what the guests bring to contribute. I have a collection of crepe pans and as they are very quick to make, it doesn't take long to have several stacks ready for the next step. I have three of the portable induction burners and the steel pans are perfect for use on these so it isn't difficult to arrange "stations" for the people who are making the crepes.

I found the following http://hunch.com/cheap-beers/mickey-s-big-mouth/1618284/ which may explain the "grenade" concept. It states the original label included an arm holding a mace, which may explain it. As a malt liquor it is certainly much stronger than beer.

Me too! I had to pull out the ThinSkin keyboard cover and apply it because of the danger of serious drool... The casserole which is calling me is the one with Fritos (original) layered with canned chili chopped onions, grated cheddar alternating - two layers of each. I shudder to think of the number of calories, the total fat and know that I will need industrial strength antiacids later. Something similar was in the original I Hate To Cook Book. I'm also a fan of the Underwood spreads but my favorite is the roast beef mashed with the creamy horseradish sauce from the dairy case.