andiesenji

I'm with you. I have never cared for lamb. I will prepare it for others but have a lot of difficulty eating it and if it is "old" lamb, I simply can't put it into my mouth. On the other hand, I love kid and goat. Many people think that goat meat has to be "gamy" or stronger than lamb, but oddly enough, it is mild and almost sweet. If I were to compare the flavor to anything, it would be closer to elk, another meat that is mild and lacks gaminess. I like it much better than venison which is often pretty gamy. I don't like dougnuts and I also am not at all fond of cheesecake.

I didn't order any Kona, because I still have some from another vendor. However I am most impressed with the Dark Guatemalan. In addition to the individua sleeves ofl flavored pods(7) , I also ordered the regular pod sampler and am going to order the Sumatra dark roast and the Kenya French roast in the Mega pod boxes to take to the office.

Solutions catalog. Has the toaster bags These are different from the kind I found at the As Seen on TV store which didn't work so well. I ordered some to try. These have a higher temp resistance.

Here is an update on availability of pods for the Senseo. I have ordered several varietals and flavors from Baronet Coffee Their selection is staggering. I sent a couple of boxes to a friend to whom I gave a Senseo machine for Christmas '04. I am extremely pleased with these coffees. The flavored ones are quite strong. I use one flavored pod and one regular dark roast Senseo for a double cup. The chocolate raspberry is amazing!

Yes! And they are excellent. Mrs. Smith's bakery The recently added Cinnabon Apple Crumb Pie, as well as the Deep Dish Peach Pie and the No Sugar Added Apple Pie are also excellent. The seasonal pies, Hearty Pumpkin and Pumpkin Custard are also very good. I have been told the mince pies are also good, however I make my own mincemeat so have never tried Mrs. Smith's, so I can't say from personal experience how they are. The ladies who used to spend a couple of days prior to Thanksgiving and Christmas baking pies at the senior center here in town, to serve to the homeless and others who didn't have the resources for a holiday dinner, began relying on Mrs. Smiths pies which were donated through a local market. (I used to help make pies and it was a lot of work - we made about 200 total) I still volunteer my time, and help with the planning and we had a tasting session to decide on which pies would be best. The market and Mrs. Smith's jointly donated the pies.

I like to make a lot of things from scratch, however I love the frozen cheese blintzes sold at Smart & Final. I believe they are made by the same company that makes the Golden Blintzes line but come in a larger package. I think there are 18 in a box - I have 10 in a vacuum-sealed bag in the freezer. S&F carries only the plain cheese blintzes but I think there are other varieties. I prefer them baked in the oven, rather than fried. They are great for breakfast but also make a wonderful dessert, especially with fresh strawberries.

You can't compare TJs to Staples because they have never tried to destroy local markets, unlike the book giants, beginning with Crown, who moved into neighborhoods and undercut prices so much that local book stores couldn't compete. TJs carries stuff that other stores don't carry, from small producers who can't get shelf space in major markets. They have saved several small wineries from bankruptcy and also supported and backed a small producer of pasta who now has a respectable business. I happen to know these people and know how much they put into their business which would never have made it without TJs. You should talk to some of these small food producers before you knock TJs as simply being a "chain" because without them, a lot of people would be out of business and out of work. They are a world away from Whole Foods. I don't shop at Whole Foods because I do not like their predatory business plan.

I have used Plasti-Dip on the handles of tongs, whisks, metal spoons and ladles. A local meat cutter has several of his knife handles coated with it, mainly to make them easier to grip. Once the stuff cures, it is far more stable than paint, except for epoxy. It is used on food-grade container handles. You can check specs at this site.

I am rather shocked at some of the tirades against TJs. Granted, some of their offering may be mediocre but if you actually tried them and found them of poor quality, then you should inform the store manager. If you didn't try them, then don't comment. People like what is familiar to them. A friend who visited Manhattan for the first time last week and tiring of hotel/restaurant food after 5 days, was very happy to find a TJs where she could purchase some ready-to-eat items she could store in the room fridge and consume when she was ready to eat and not have to rely on finding something in an unfamiliar city after a meeting ended after 11 p.m. It is certainly fine for residents and fequent visitors to trumpet the worth of local shops and favorite merchants, but put yourself in the place of someone who is not a resident, not familiar with the neighborhood but IS familiar with TJs. It is like a friendly port in a storm, welcoming and reasonably priced. I believe most people in the city are friendly, however I have personally been treated rudely by merchants, shop clerks and people on the street during my few visits to New York. I was grossly short-changed at a neighborhood deli and would have been out more than $50.00, had not another customer come to my aid. The clerk, caught in what I considered outright theft, threw the rest of my change and the bag with my order on the floor. I wouldn't pick it up but asked for the manager who came around to the front, picked up the money and the bag and returned my $100.00 bill and asked me to leave, as if it was my fault. Thanks, but I will take TJs any day, over this kind of "service." Incidentally, three other customers who had been in line also left when I did. I had to walk a couple more blocks, but found another deli that had great service and probably better food. They also threw in some extras with the sandwiches, plus some meat scraps for the dogs, when I told them I was there for the Westminster show. They made a very good impression.

I bought mine after reading about Harold McGee's experiments with whipping eggwhites in copper.

On of the reasons I keep my old 5 qt. KA stand mixer is that I have a copper liner for one of the bowls. I bought it quite a few years ago specifically for beating large batches of egg whites for meringues (schaum torte) and I found that egg whites beaten in copper have greater volume, more uniform bubble size and do not deflate as easily as when beaten in other type vessels. For years I beat eggwhites for shaum torte by hand in copper bowls with a very fine "piano-wire" whisk for this reason (back in those days I had very strong arms). Mine is the 5-qt made by Atlas. Old Dutch also made a liner for the 4.5 qt mixer. You can sometimes find them on ebay. It looks like this.

Once I opened it, I couldn't put it down. Even knowing what came next, from various other writings, it was still enchanting to know all the little details that determined how she developed as a cook/chef/author and entertainer. I feel it is an intriguing portrait of a most remarkable person. What I find most interesting is that non-foodies are buying and reading it with great enjoyment. One of the women in my office (a non-cook, empty-fridge, person) remarked that she had no idea of the complexities of cooking as a profession, the time consumed in writing cookbooks or putting on a TV show.

First, check out the supplies at the San Francisco Baking Institute The bannetons are cheaper here than at any other place I have found. Plus they carry the linen liners if you have your own baskets, also inexpensive and other supplies for artisan bakers. You can find some remarks about using bannetons at the Bread-Bakers list - here is a sample Bread-baker's list If you decide you would like to subscribe to the Bread-Baker's list, which is run by Reggie and Jeff Dwork, (two extremely dedicated bakers) you can sign on at this site This is an email list and you get a daily digest of the posts (like the archived discussion in the previous link). I have a round pizza stone for my combination convection/microwave oven (Sharp) and I have a rectangular slab for my big oven which I use less often. I also have a half size sheet pan filled with split or half-thickness firebrick (I could have used quarry tile but this was available and handy). For the latter, I spread a handful of coarse cornmeal onto the peel, turn the shaped and proofed dough onto that which allows it to slide easinly onto the hot bricks. The direct heat causes the bottom of the loaf to harden rapidly and that and the cornmeal keeps it from sticking to the bricks, so I have had no problem with snagging on the edges. The coiled bannetons do leave a nice impression on the surface of the loaves. I generally slash mine in a cross on top or a square pattern around the top, after turning out onto the peel.

In my opinion you were ripped off. I have hosted parties for groups at several local restaurants and as long as I guaranteed a certain number of covers, the room is gratis. Even at Coco's, one of my clubs has had a semi-annual breakfast and they give us a room as long as we guarantee 20 or more diners. At one local Mexican restaurant I have always had two or more servers plus a bus person and the owner provides many extras. The last time he set up a buffet with several main dishes, all the sides ones could wish, desserts, large pitchers of beer, sangria, plus non-alcoholic horchata, lemonade, hibiscus drinks. It was $655. for 48 people, including tax and gratuity (although several of the guests tipped the servers and busboy themselves, because the service was excellent and because some orderd bar drinks which weren't included.) I thought it was extremely reasonable and asked the owner if he was sure he had not made a mistake, but he insisted on that amount. He also insisted on giving me the "leftovers" in three of the large foil steam-table containers. I took them along to the dog show the following day and several of us had the leftovers for lunch - heating the stuff in the oven and microwave in the motorhome.

It occurred to me that this might be ideal for handicapped individuals. With one of the powered chairs, that has an elevating seat, it would make everything very accessible. And it would also work well for blind people, particularly since they could stand in one place and rotate the ring to bring the appliance they need into reach. I am forwarding the link to a friend who works in rehabilitation, I think she will be interested too.

I just had a little phone chat with my aunt who reminded me that, indeed yes, as a child I was given chores in the kitchen fairly often, obstensibly to keep me entertained, however, she also said that I had to be either peeled off my pony or forcibly separated from my grandpa so the poor man (her words) could conduct necessary business. (My grandpa and I had our own mutual admiraton society, apparently, according to my dad, my aunts and my older cousins, that began shortly after my birth. In fact, my dad has often said that on the day I was born, he was pretty much relagated to a corner while my grandfather was the recipient of congratulations from the gathering of family and friends. I was the first girl born into the family in a generation and the only one for nearly 10 more years, so much was made of it.) My nickname for a time was "Little Burrdock" because I was always stuck to grandpa. Growing up in a large family with many well-traveled members who brought back recipes and food stories from far away, I learned to appreciate all kinds of foods that were unknown in that area. We also had lots of visitors who also brought new ideas about different foods. It also helped that my great-grandmother was a "collector" of receipts with a great interest in foods. I met my first avocado when I was about eight and immediately fell in love. One of the relatives, who lived in Florida, brought some "Alligator pears" when he came to visit for the Christmas holidays. My grandpa's cook, a Gullah woman from the Carolina lowcountry, knew how to handle them and made a salad with chunks of avocado, tomato and sliced onions dressed with the same "dressing" she made for "wilted" lettuce, that is, just hot bacon drippings, sugar and a tiny bit of flour cooked in the drippings then adding a measure of vinegar and water. Delicious!

I have several Global knives and store them on mag. strips. I have a lot of knives and have mag. strips for each type where I will be using them, however I have a fairly good-sized kitchen. I mount the strips vertically so the blades are held horizontally, except for the veg prep area where the strip is at a 45 degree angle with the smaller blades at the top and the largest at the bottom. (I will get a photo later and post it.) I bought my mag strips at The Knife Merchant I have 2 18-inch and 3 24-inch. (I have 2 of the 24 inch mounted parallel to each other in the pantry to hold the very large (and heavy) butchering knives, pizza knife, large mezzalunas and a big cleaver, because a single strip won't hold some of these heavier things.) Chef Depot has a bunch of magnetic strips and some nice optional storage solutions. They are very reasonably priced.

I think Chop-Rite is the only US company still in production. I had one years ago - built like a tank.... I gave it to a friend who moved onto his boat after a divorce. He did a lot of fishing....... I don't know who makes coffee mills now. I do know that Lehman's carries this one from England and a couple of others. They cater to the Amish and others that do not use electric appliances so usually have a good selection of hand-powered things. They also have a great collection of grain mills. Lehman's grain mills

How about fried "pies" made with dried apples. These keep beautifully, wrap in wax paper or brown paper or even foil or baking parchment, but not with plastic wrap. Fried apple pies and here is one with fresh apples fried pies (apple) some people add raisins, which I don't care for, but if you like them..... I got these in my lunch when I was a child and I made them for my kids lunches. I think the Amish and the Pennsylvania Dutch really perfected these - farmers carried them out to the fields for their lunches because they hold up well in transport. And I bet no one else will make them.

Scandia wasn't a chain restaurant. I was just talking about some of the great places of the past where you got exceptional quality for amazing prices. Chasen's chili for instance, which you could have while watching real Hollywood "stars", was extremely reasonable and you got one of those neat little individual bread loaves on its own little wood cutting board with it. I'm very familiar with the Cock and Bull, we used to take guests there for dinner before a film at the Egyptian. I don't remember if I ever had a meal at Le Petite Jean In the 60s, when I lived in Glendale and Burbank my husband and I had house accounts at The Smoke House, Sportsmen's Lodge, the Tam'O Shanter and Sorrentino's in Toluca Lake, Trader Vic's and the Dresden Room in Hollywood. We used to see Bob Hope in Sorrentino's quite often as it was just 4 blocks from his house. We had to do a lot of entertaining and this was before credit cards - I don't recall exactly when Carte Blanche came out but having a house account was much easier than carrying a lot of cash. We also trekked down to the beach cities to Tony's On The Pier (the old one with the rickety outside stairs), the Warehouse and Latitude 20. And of course we had to make one visit every month to Kelbo's, just for the ribs. I can't remember that any of those places were so expensive they were out of reach of ordinary folks. A far cry from today when all of the high end places are totally out of reach unless one is willing to take out a loan. Even the Coconut Grove wasn't a bank breaker in the early 60s.

I have the Northern Tool grinder and I also have the band saw so I am pretty confident that the machines will do just about anything you ask of them. I think the grinder is about 9 years old now and it has gone through tons of meat, or rather tons of meat, poultry, wild game, etc., has gone through it. My neighbors use it. I live in a somewhat rural area, a lot of my neighbors are hunters and I have former clients who are hunters for whom I used to do dressing or butchering and preparing game meat for cooking. This grinder has run for 5 or 6 hours straight without overheating, stalling or giving any problem whatsoever. It's a lot heavier than any of the others I have used or owned at one time or another.

I made a fluffy omelet, started on stovetop, finished in oven. Filled with a little minced ham, a tablespoon each of duxelles and onion confit. A couple of dashes of tobasco were beaten into the egg yolks before folding them into the whites.

I was pretty young. My earliest memory (about age 3) is riding my tricycle around the huge round kitchen table and having my grandpa stick a piece of biscuit with sorghum molasses mashed with butter into my mouth every time I went past him, occasionally alternating it with a piece of ham, bacon or sausage. I have been told I began talking at 9 months (haven't shut up yet) and my first word was biscuit and my second word was ham! I remember standing on a stool next to the big rectangular kitchen work table and the cook showing me how to pat out biscuit dough and cut the rounds out. (Have you guessed this was in the south?) I also remember sitting on the back porch next to one of the girls who worked in the kitchen, with a dishpan full of peas and shelling them into a big bowl. I was the only girl in a herd of boys and while I got plenty of play time, some times the boys could do things I wasn't allowed to do and I was easily bored, unless I had something to read. The philosophy at that time was "idle hands are the Devil's playthings" so I was kept busy doing things and I was always begging to be allowed to help in the kitchen. Fortunately my grandpa's cook and the rest of the kitchen help made a pet of me and let me hang out and do things. It probably made a lot more work for them but it was a lot of fun for me. It also gave me a life-long appreciation of what goes into preparing a meal.

I agree with most of what you say, chow guy. However there are some "overpriced" chains that do have certain "stores" that do a better job than others. In recent years, I have been to five Ruth's Chris steak houses in soCal. Two, the one in Woodland Hills, and the one in Irvine, have served exceptional meals. The others were, in my opinion, just so-so, however at one time the Beverly Hills location served a fine meal. Some places are great for special occasions and some places are just plain fun, especially for families. Some of the great places of the past, now long gone, served truly great food and weren't really all that expensive. Scandia, once a Hollywood fixture, where the waiters (and they were serious about being waiters, all male, all older than the norm) wore long white aprons high on their chests as one used to see French waiters in old movies, served wonderful food and at very reasonable prices. They served some lobster dishes that I have never found equaled elsewhere. The first time I went there for dinner was after seeing How The West Was Won at the Cinerama dome in 1962. I don't mind the occasional "experimental" food as an appetiser or whatever they call it now, but I do like real food for my meal. I like funky places too. There used to be a place in Las Vegas called the Green Shack and it was really a shack. I think it had been there since the '30s when Boulder/Hoover dam was being built. It closed several years ago but whenever I went there for a dog show, my friends and I always made a point of having at least one meal there. The fried chicken was extraordinary. They also served wonderful biscuits and a bread pudding that was out of this world. The floor was uneven, the walls had interesting cracks and there were historical photos stuck everywhere. The mayor and most of the city council as well as a lot of police officers were regular customers as were some of the older Las Vegas characters, all now long gone. I remember when El Pollo Loco was one walk-up stand on Alvarado in L.A. and whenever I had to drive into L.A. from the valley, where I lived at the time, I would go and stand in line for a bag of the chicken and a stack of the tortillas an a cup of the coarsly chopped fresh salsa. (I don't like the salsa they have now, it is nothing like the original. It was cheap and very, very good.) I think it has lost something in the mass merchandising but still turns out a fairly tasty chicken. I also loved a barbecue stand that I think is still on Victory Blvd., in Glendale, just south of the Burbank/Glendale city limits and has been there for many, many years. People are drawn into the place by the aroma drifting into the street and many times I saw someone make a U-turn after driving by and getting a noseful of the wonderful smells. I haven't been over that way for years but when I lived on Riverside Drive, back in the 60s, it was a frequent stop. Again, the stuff was inexpensive but terrific.

I practiced on a piece of a wide, flat shoelace - - - Sadly, I don't think they make them any longer. Back in those days we wore "saddle" shoes, with wide flat shoelaces - nothing else was considered "stylish" unless you wore white bucks (Spaulding, with red rubber soles) and they had the round, braided laces. Gads, what one went through for fashion......