andiesenji

I agree that Anson Mills is the best. They grind just prior to packaging and shipping. The flavor is superior to any other commercial product I have tried.

I agree, I have both the 1-cup and 2-cup and they work nicely for measuring sticky stuff and they are accurate! I also have a set of the non-stick measuring spoons that I think are Calphalon - made of nylon. I also have the Danesco silicone measuring spoons and cups but I haven't found them to be particularly non-stick.

gfron1, What festival is it. My dad lives in Deming and might have time to drive up to SC.

For someone who has been wanting to try an induction burner but was reluctant to part with the $$$, I came across this one at Overstock.com for $99.00 this morning while searching for another appliance. I am not personally familiar with this brand, however I have a friend in the UK who has this model and likes it very much. She has a tiny "efficiency" kitchen with a two burner electric cooker which has an ok oven but the burners heat unevenly so she uses this. She said she paid 97 pounds for it.

A short time ago I received a package from FedEx, from Italy. An 11.14 pound wheel of Piave with a note stating this was a "young" Piave, age 6 months. I am unfamiliar with this cheese and have looked it up on the internet and there isn't a lot of information except to say that it resembles another cheese when young and when fully mature it is hard and can be grated like other hard cheeses. Anyone have any experience with this cheese? I have not yet cut into it.

Please tell me more about the cheese box in the pantry. I'd like to get somethig like that together. Thanks! ← Sorry I didn't see this post until today. This is what I have in my pantry. I received it as a gift a couple of years ago. I also have one of the glass cheese keepers with the ridges in the bottom. It isn't very old, it is one of the reproductions made in China.

I agree, it is an excellent site. I also want to second the recommendation of The Recipe Link noted by SuzySushi. I was exchanging recipes with Betsy way back when we were still on Prodigy in the mid-90s. Her site has grown from just a couple of pages to a very comprehensive site with a huge database of recipes and information. Several of my recipes are still up on the site, posted in '97 or thereabouts. Another site with a huge list of cooking/recipe sites is the Virtual Quincy Directory. If I am trying to find an obscure recipe or cooking reference, I start there. A few of the links are no longer active, such as SOAR, now RecipeSource - also in SuzySushi's list. I mean, where else have you seen a site for Maltese Traditional Recipes?

Not "exactly" a stew, but here is my recipe for pumpkin chili, a big hit at our fall block parties in past years when the temps dipped into the 40s. Often served at Halloween and also cooked by me and sent along with friends to a ski party at June Mountain last year. I originally posted it in a thread on pumpkins on 10/23/04. I bought a bunch of the inexpensive "latte" cups at Star Restaurant supply. Linens 'N Things also has them, however you can also get the disposable deep hot-food servers at Smart & Final or other similar stores. This is my pumpkin chili, I serve it in those large "latte" cups so folks can eat it while wearing gloves, when out in the cold. This is another original recipe developed over several years of "tinkering".... Pumpkin Chili Mexicana Serves 20 3 1/2 to 4 pound Mexican pumpkin, cheese pumpkin, Kabocha or similar squash. 2 pounds chopped beef or turkey (not finely ground) 1 1/2 cups chopped onion 3 - 4 large garlic cloves, minced 1 cup diced mild sweet red pepper (Bell is OK, Pimento or ripe mild Anaheim are better) 1 cup diced mild green chiles, Anaheim, Big Jim or New Mexico 1/2 cup Jalapeños, diced 1 cup beef or chicken broth. 1 teaspoon freshly ground dried red chiles, Colorado, New Mexico, Ancho or your preference. 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground cumin (first toast the seeds in a dry iron skillet till they start to pop) 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Optional - - 1 or 2 Habanero or other very hot peppers, very finely minced. (you can omit these if you do not want a searingly hot chili) 2 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes, including liquid 2 large cans tomato paste (used to be 8 oz., however they keep changing the amounts) 2 14.5 ounce cans black beans or dark red kidney beans, drained (or equivalent) 1 cup frozen or fresh corn kernels Directions First, pierce the pumpkin or squash in several places with an ice pick or chef's fork and place it on a pan in a 350 degree oven for 50 minutes, or until a bamboo skewer will penetrate easily through the flesh. Meanwhile, while the pumpkin is baking, Sauté the beef or turkey in a large saucier As it is fairly well browned and is still giving off juices, add the onion and garlic and cook for about 4-5 minutes or so. Add the peppers (except for the Habanero) and continue cooking until they are tender. Add the beef or chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Add the spices and continue simmering for 8 -10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. When cool enough to handle, split the pumpkin, remove the seeds and skin and chop into fairly small chunks and add to the meat mixture. Return to heat and bring to a simmer. Add the remaining ingredients, including the Habanero, and cook over medium low heat for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring often to keep from burning. Serve, topped with a generous dollop of sour cream and finely chopped scallions or green onions and freshly baked cornbread, or tortillas if you have them available. Also have finely shredded mild cheddar cheese, toasted pepitas, croutons and various crackers on side dishes for your guests to add as they wish

2486 in alphabetized folders a-z (no Q or X) plus a "Cookbooks & publications" folder.

Andie's Original Pumpkin Chili Serves 20 as Main Dish. This is my pumpkin chili, I serve it in those large "latte" cups so folks can eat it while wearing gloves, when out in the cold. This is another original recipe developed over several years of "tinkering".... Pumpkin Chili Mexicana Serves 20 3 1/2 to 4 pound Mexican pumpkin, cheese pumpkin, Kabocha or similar squash. 2 pounds chopped beef or turkey (not finely ground) 1 1/2 cups chopped onion 3 - 4 large garlic cloves, minced 1 cup diced mild sweet red pepper (Bell is OK, Pimento or ripe mild Anaheim are better) 1 cup diced mild green chiles, Anaheim, Big Jim or New Mexico 1/2 cup Jalapeños, diced 1 cup beef or chicken broth. 1 teaspoon freshly ground dried red chiles, Colorado, New Mexico, Ancho or your preference. 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground cumin (first toast the seeds in a dry iron skillet till they start to pop) 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Optional - - 1 or 2 Habanero or other very hot peppers, very finely minced. (you can omit these if you do not want a searingly hot chili) 2 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes, including liquid 2 large cans tomato paste (used to be 8 oz., however they keep changing the amounts) 2 14.5 ounce cans black beans or dark red kidney beans, drained (or equivalent) 1 cup frozen or fresh corn kernels Directions First, pierce the pumpkin or squash in several places with an ice pick or chef's fork and place it on a pan in a 350 degree oven for 50 minutes, or until a bamboo skewer will penetrate easily through the flesh. Meanwhile, while the pumpkin is baking, Sauté the beef or turkey in a large saucier As it is fairly well browned and is still giving off juices, add the onion and garlic and cook for about 4-5 minutes or so. Add the peppers (except for the Habanero) and continue cooking until they are tender. Add the beef or chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Add the spices and continue simmering for 8 -10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. When cool enough to handle, split the pumpkin, remove the seeds and skin and chop into fairly small chunks and add to the meat mixture. Return to heat and bring to a simmer. Add the remaining ingredients, including the Habanero, and cook over medium low heat for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring often to keep from burning. Serve, topped with a generous dollop of sour cream and finely chopped scallions or green onions and freshly baked cornbread, or tortillas if you have them available. Also have finely shredded mild cheddar cheese, toasted pepitas, croutons and various crackers on side dishes for your guests to add as they wish ( RG1799 )

I just corrected the link to this letter opener at Office Depot The blade is a lot longer than most paring knives and I have found all kinds of kitchen uses for these gadgets.

Here's a tip for that problem. Get one of these This "letter opener" has a blade that is very thin and smooth on both edges and is perfect for inserting along the inner and outer edges of a sponge cake without scratching the cake pan sides. Go to Staples or Office Depot and check them out in person. I have several that I use in the kitchen for several jobs of this type. It also goes around tight corners nicely.

Also, you do have to consider the properties of cornstarch. It will thicken when heated to a certain point. However, if you continue heating it, hold it at simmer for too long, it will thin out again. That is why it is used for quick cooking dishes that are served immediately and also for puddings that are cooked, then cooled. Acid also affects cornstarch, will keep it from thickening or will thin it out if an acid is added to a cornstarch mix. (Note, this is the reason it isn't used for lemon curd.) I would not use cornstarch in a soup. I use only flour in a roux, for stew, etc., The best thickener for soup is some kind of cereal or potato starch - (the only reason I buy the small packets of potato flakes is to thicken soups, works nicely without adding any noticeable flavor.) Another excellent thickener is couscous - whirl it in the blender to grind it to a fine powder - a little goes a long way. To thicken a fine cream soup, use egg yolks,(one yolk for each 8 oz of soup) well beaten and whisk constantly until the soup has reached the desired consistency then immediately remove from heat and strain through a wire mesh strainer to remove any lumps. The best thickener for chili is masa, AKA corn flour. Arrowroot is an excellent thickener and will thicken liquids at a lower temperature than either flour or cornstarch.

I have some non-stick tube and cone-tube pans but have never used them for angel-food, chiffon or any other type of sponge cake. I use the non-stick ones for fruit cakes and seed cakes, etc. I have old ones that have the three "legs" to make it easy to stand the pans upside-down. I also have some extra long loaf pans with "legs" at the corners, also to rest the pans upside-down. They are available from this vendor. and from this vendor in two round sizes as well as the long loaf pan. NexTag also carries a few of this type. I recommend them as being much easier to use than the ones that need to be balanced on a bottle. I do have some very old ones that have the central cone 1 1/2 inch longer than the sides and unless the cake itself is lopsided, it will balance on the center cone.

Also, there are some states in which the plants are banned because they are an invasive pest plant.

I buy barberries in the local middle-eastern market. I use them in my tea mixtures and in a mincemeat recipe - made with meat - to cut some of the sweetness from the other dried fruits. I have also used the dried berries in pemmican and also cooked them with rice. Barberry recipes and some more about barberries

Vendome liquor stores used to carry those fat little pretzels stuffed with sharp cheddar. (They also had the ones stuffed with peanut butter but I really liked the cheddar. They were in an unmarked cello bag with just the ingredients and nutritional information, no brand name. However, regarding the discontinuation of many of the very popular snacks (and other foods) of yesteryear one just has to look at who actually owns those companies. As the old saying goes, "Follow The Money" and you can see where the ultimate power to cut the "deadwood" in these companies. Far too often, it is not a pretty picture. Who really calls the shots. I haven't been able to find Nabisco Twigs in any market for the past couple of years. It may be a regional thing but I have asked other people, who live in different regions, and they don't see them either. You can ask Phillip Morris why they discontinued lime Kool-Aid.

During the past several months I have added several cookbooks to my collection. The Cat Who... Cookbook by Julie Murphy & Sally Abney Stempinski (Updated version) The Summer Cookbook and Casserole Magic by Lousene Rousseau Brunner The Dlectable Past by Esther B. Aresty History of Bread by John Ashton (1st ed - 1904) Here's How-a Journey Through Good Food by Helen Pendelton Rockwell Puddings and Dainty Desserts by Thomas Murrey The Sebastiani Family Cookbook by Sylvia Sebastiani Grandma Rose's Book of Sinfully Delicious Cakes, Cookies, Pies, Cheese Cakes, Cake Rolls and Pastries by Rose Naftalin Retro Desserts by Dennis Gottlieve and Wayne Brachman Theatre In The Kitchen - A Cookboox by Nesta Morriss and the Committee of Bastion Theatre and New Wrinkles in Thyme, A Basenji Fanciers' Cookbook (Prepared by the Bay State Basenji Club as a fundraising project for Basenji Health Research and the BCOA National Specialty Fund. Not a cookbook but I did buy and just finished Anthony Bourdain's "Bone In The Throat" a murder mystery.

Take the pieces outside, place them on something that is not flamable, steadying them between two bricks works quite well, and using your kitchen blowtorch, bring the flame close to the cut edge and move it along the edge as it melts. That should seal the cut edges just fine. P.S. It helps to have a steady hand or rest the hand holding the torch on something firm.

The book is available through Amazon. for 29.95 and through ABE books for 22.50

I bought Peter Reinhart's book Brother Juniper's Bread Book back when it was first published, because I was interested in the "slow-rise" method of developing more flavor in rustic breads. (1993) I bought Ed Wood's World Sourdoughs From Antiquity (1996) after reading the National Geographic article about the re-creation of an ancient Egyptian bakery. I also purchased a culture from sourdo.com. When Crust & Crumb was published I bought it and found that it further explained and refined these techniques that improved my baking exponentially. (1998) And, of course, I bought Classic Sourdoughs when it was published in 2001. (also bought two more cultures, which I kept completely isolated from each other and maintained them for more than two years). These particular books changed many of my ideas about what constitutes the "perfect" loaf and I did far more experimenting than I had done in the many prior years I had been baking bread. In November 2004 I got the book by Jeffrey Hamelman and I recall spending much of the Thanksgiving weekend reading it and trying out a couple of the recipes. I still love Peter Reinhart's Struan bread, in fact, I bought the Electrolux mixer especially for working this dough because I learned the hard way that it is much too stiff for a Kitchenaid. The recipe, or a close relative, is posted here: Struan bread recipe. One book I will not recommend is The Taste of Bread - there are a number of errors in the translation and some statements that do not make sense. For the price, one would think they would have had someone knowledgeable checking the translation prior to publication. Unfortunately I don't read French.

You can blend sap sago into softened butter and/or cream cheese, to make a lovely spread with a distinctive taste. 1 teaspoon to 4 oz. (Blending salted butter and cream cheese half and half makes a much nicer spread than either alone.) Grate some into biscuit dough. It adds a piquant flavor to mild-flavored dried beans, such as canniliini or flageolets, butter beans (large dried limas). Use canned or cook them yourself. Grated over salads or - - blended with butter in which you saute croutons. Combines nicely with mushrooms. Try it grated over baked winter squash or sauteed summer squash. I only refrigerate sap sago during the hottest days of summer, otherwise it lives in a cheese box in the pantry.

Visit Rose's web siteThe Cake Bible.com Read her blog, it is interesting. I like her book which is going into a new printing with some corrections. I also like Nick Malgiere's Perfect Cakes

I just counted the bread baking books in one bookcase as I try to keep my cookbooks grouped in categories, as much as possible - however there are more that are scattered here and there in stacks because I have been looking for some obscure recipes. That one bookcase holds 181 books just on bread baking. I have to admit that there are more than a few from which I have never used a recipe. Some have been used a lot. Such as, Maggie Glezer's Artisan Baking across America which contains some favorites. Also Beth Hensberger's book, as you mentioned, I think I have all of her bread books. Christine Ingram's "Bread Bible" (seems this is a favorite title) breads from around the world. Several of the books are on bread machine baking. Elizabeth David's book is interesting to read and I have baked a few recipes from it, but not recently. Some are collectibles only, odd titles, such as the following. "The English Bread Book For Domestic Use, adapted to Families of Every Grade, containing the Plainest and Most Minute Instructions to the Learner; Practical Receipts for Many Varieties of Bread with Notices of the present System of Adulteration and its Consequences; and of the Improved Baking Processes and Institutions Established Abroad." by ACTON, Eliza as you can probably guess, this one is a 1986 reprint of a book originally published in 1857. They liked long, explanatory book titles back in those days!!! Also, you might want to take at look at the bread books listed on the Bread Bakers Guild web site. BBGA They also have some recipes on the site that are excellent, I love the English Muffin recipe. links and etc. Perhaps your guy (or you) would like to join the Bread-Baker's mailing list. He can get it as a digest instead of individual emails which makes it easy to read through the titles at the beginning of the digest to see if there is a topic of interest in it. There are quite a few professional bakers who post on the list. Rose Levy Beranbaum, Maggie Glezer and Peter Reinhart, Lora Brody are all frequent posters. Bread-Baker's Mailing list

YES!