andiesenji

Regarding peeling the chestnuts. That chestnut knife, in addition to being ideal for cutting the X in the chestnuts prior to cooking, is also very handy for removing the shell and the skin. The little curved point gets into the crevices where the skin clings, and drags it right out. I have one of these, a Lamson. And one of thesewith no name. I wear a latex glove inside one of the exfoliating gloves which I mentioned several weeks back that I use for removing the skins on dry roasted hazel nuts. They have enough texture to make it easier to hold onto the sometimes slippery chestnuts and the latex keeps my fingers from scalding. Williams-Sonoma also has chestnut knives as does Sur La Table and others. Once you get used to using one you will find it is very handy. One of the guys on the Chile-Heads list mentioned a few years back that he found a chestnut knife perfect for sliting the small peppers he was going to stuff to make "poppers" -- He could make a slit in the side of the pepper, extract the seed and membrane without cutting all the way through the pepper. He said he came across it while poking around in W-S while his wife was buying some fancy linens. I recall that he said it was the only thing he had ever purchased at W-S.

I have a couple of deaf friends and they both have "Hearing-Ear" dogs that let them know when timers sound.

There have been several brands of fish sauce tossed around and I would like to mention my favorite. It is a Phillipine product but it moves off the shelf more rapidly than any of the other brands and the best Thai restaurant in town uses it. It is called: NeliCom PATIS 100% Pure Fish Sauce Export Quality, Carefully Aged. Ingredients: Fish Extract, Salt and 0.1% Sodium Benzoate added as preservative. Manufactured by Southeast Asia Food, Inc. 559 Paso de Blas Valenzuela, Metro Manila

------------------------------------------------- They might get rather soggy in the center and it may compress some causing a dip in the middle. Have you considered still making two but "integrating" them. For instance think of the MasterCard logo. Cut an arc out of one cake so the other cake will fit into it and stack the now boat-shaped cut out piece on top of the center so it is two layers in the center of the composition, however the weight of the second layer would be at the edge of the uncut cake and less likely to compress the bottom layer. Decorate the sides of the layers with slices of kiwi, strawberries, etc., fruit that will not discolor.

I have three Cuisinarts. The 11 cup, the 14 cup and the 20 cup. I use them all, depending on the size of the batch but use the 14 cup more than the others by a factor of 10. I bought it at Costco and it came with all the discs and a thing to keep them in. The only extras I have purchased for it is a flat lid and a domed "dough kneading" lid (which is no longer available). The flat lid is really handy for working with just the blade, easy on and off and the central cap comes off to allow addition of liquids. I have used other food processors when working in the kitchens of other people, my clients when I worked as a personal chef, and my friends when I cook at their homes. None have been as satisfactory as the Cuisinart. I have not used any of the new "streamlined" rounded models, all of my are the old boxy type, utilitarian, not stylish, but real work horses. My very first food processor was a Robot Coupe which a friend sent me from England and which I had to have rewired completely with a new rheostat so it would work with our electrical system.

Here is my "secret" - I have had lasik surgery also, but just in one eye. I like having super sharp close vision in one eye even though it means I can't see across the room with that one. I lived like that for 60 years. Anyway, my opthamalogist told me I have chronic dry eye. He said he could give me a prescription but I would get just as good a result with an over the counter product, GenTeal Gel eye lubricant, made by CibaVision. This is a thick gel which apparently coats the entire eyeball because if I use it prior to chopping onions, shallots, garlic, or ramps - - - I do not tear as much and if I use a nose clip on my nose, I do not tear at all. I figured this one out years ago when I noticed that if my allergies were active and my nose was plugged, I did not tear as much when chopping onions. Apparently the volatile gasses affect the nose as well as the eyes.

Somewhere in my vast collection of cookbooks there is a little book with the title of Breakfast Breads and Teatime Spreads, that has a plethora of savory spreads (as well as sweet spreads) that are delicious any time of the day (or night) with tea or without and are extremely easy to make. I have been trying to find the book, however, as so often happens when one is looking specifically for something, it has proven to be elusive. I am sure that as soon as I stop looking, it will pop up on a shelf and stand there, looking as if it had been there all along, just overlooked by me. It is enough to make one believe in the menehunes.

First get a chestnut knife, makes cutting much easier. I steam them and using the "keep warm" button on my rice cooker I take out just a few at a time, shell and peel them and go on to the next little batch. I freeze them. Marrons glacée - to keep them from falling aparty you steam them first, see above. Then they have to be cooked gently, very gently in the syrup, this works best in a crockpot or slow cooker and you do it in steps. The point is to heat the chestnuts in the syrup very gently for 3-4 hours, in the crockpot you don't have to stir them so they don't break up. Then you turn it off and allow them to cool completely. Then another session with the heating, same amount of time. Another cooling period. Another heating period. The reason for this is that the heat drives out the normal moisture in the chestnut when it cools the syrup flows into the nut to take the place of the moisture that was fourced out by the heat. The next session carries this a bit further -- and so on. When the entire nut appears sort of translucent, they are done. The simplest way to test is to eat one after they are cooled. This same routine works with whole fruits (tiny fruits only) such as kumquats, clementines and the little seckle pears and crabapples - you can even do these last two with their skins on but all of these should be pricked all over with a fine needle. This speeds up the process considerably.

A rich bread pudding uses plenty of eggs. The following is my original recipe I bake this in a loaf pan so it can be cooled, then sliced and grilled on a griddle to make a mock French toast. You can also bake it in a Bundt cake pan. You need one that holds a lot. Extra Rich Bread Pudding 8 extra large eggs 3 cups milk 1 cup cream (or half & half) 2/3 cup sugar (or Splenda to cut calories, it works just fine) 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract. 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 4 to 5 cups rough bread cubes (Tear day old bread into pieces about 1 to 1 1/2 inch cubes.) Spray a large loaf pan with canola oil (or Pam) (can also use a Bundt pan) Combine eggs, milk and cream, sugar, vanilla, salt and spices in a large bowl. Beat until eggs are completely blended. Add the bread cubes and press down into the egg mixture with a spatula. Cover and set aside for about 20 to 30 minutes until the bread has soaked up most of the egg mixture. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour the mixture into the loaf pan to within 1/2 inch of the top. Set the loaf pain into a baking pan and place in the oven. Pour boiling water into the pan till it is about 1 to 1 1/2 inches deep. Bake for one hour. Test by inserting a thin knife blade into the pudding near the center. If it comes out wet continue baking for an additional 10 minutes. Test again until knife blade comes out clean. (It will take longer to bake in humid weather.) Remove from oven and immediately brush top with melted butter.

Duxelles definitely, also carmelized onions, and the sweet red pepper spread found in middle eastern markets. Sometimes mixed together or spread in strips on a piece of toast so as the bites of toast progress, the flavors change. Also homemade pimento cheese made with sharp cheddar recently I have sacrificed some peppadews to a similar mixture made with a rich Cheshire. However if you want something really tasty and somewhat different, take 4 oz of cream cheese, 4 oz of Stilton and 4 oz of chopped dried apricots. Process until the apricots are finely distributed throughout the cheese. Delicious and different.

I have several Hot Trays, some by Salton, others by other brands and all sizer from small to very, very large, the size of a sheet pan. Some I have had for 20 + years and they still work fine, others I have bought on eBay at very reasonable prices. Check in eBay, there are several listed now. Small Appliances. Type warming tray in the search window and search or search using "Salton" "Devon" or "Morgan" all manufacturers of these appliances. They are usually listed in "Other Small Appliances" but sometimes are in another category so search in all Small Appliances. The hot trays use very little electricity I use a multiple plug block that has 8 outlets, a heavy duty cord and is white. I secure it to the underside of the table with the heavy duty Velcro patches made for holding tools to a wall. The block has a switch on it so I can plug the trays in and turn them on all at once as generally they are on when plugged in, with no on/off switch. I also have several large buffet servers, all "vintage" appliances, that have a bottom that holds water at a certain temperature and with one to 4 serving dishes that fit into the unit to keep things at a serving temperature. There are new ones available also, but if you can find the old ones in good condition, they are much more attractive.

Since in some parts of the country autumn is coming on rapidly, I thought I would add this bit of lore. I learned as a child about making pumpkin puree for pies, pumpkin butter and so on - also can be made with the sweeter winter squash varieties, Hubbard, etc., or a combination. Our cook always scrubbed the squash very well and pared off most of the tough, outer skin with a big old knife almost as big as a machete. She would then chop it into chunks and put it in a big pot, seeds and all, cover with salted water and cook until it was very tender, i.e., a piece speared with a fork would fall apart. If everyone was busy and no one was available for frequent stirring, the pot was stuck into the oven and the squash was slow roasted till tender. The resulting pulp was put into a food mill in batches and processed until just the seeds and stringy stuff was still in the mill, that was then dumped out by reversing the motion of the scraper, given a quick rinse and then the next batch was done. It was felt that the seeds, cooking in with the flesh of the squash or pumpkin added something to the quality of the final product and I have found that when I make pumpkin puree this way it does have a richer flavor. Often the seeds split and the meat from inside pops out and is incorporated into the puree. Sometimes the squash or pumpkins do not have a lot of seeds and I simply add some raw pepitas to the mixture - sometimes grinding them first - the addition helps to thicken the puree in addition to the flavor they add.

Regarding the "tread" on the rolled fondant. There is a flat dish drainer which is available in most household stores, it is sort of a translucent white, which has a raised patten very similar to a tire tread. I have rolled fondant directly onto this to approximate clay shingles on a roof, placing the zig-zag pattern at an angle (bias). The ridges are just deep enough to make a good impression into the fondant but not deep enough to come through. Take a look in the housewares section of Wal-Mart, Target, or Bed, Bath and Beyond, etc. This has been a real time saver for me and might work for you.

I also make an apple custard creme which is a very old "receipt", made with thick, homemade chunky applesauce, cooked until thick but not quite apple butter, then combined with heavy cream and egg yolks, a little sugar(or Lyle's golden syrup) and spices, usually ginger, instead of the usual cinnamon. This was ladled into puff pastry "cups" when I was a child but now I simply line large custard dishes with several layers of filo dough, brushed with butter and baked for just a couple of minutes to crisp them then ladle the hot apple custard into the lined dishes. It can be served still warm or chilled. Good both ways. I use about a cup of heavy cream and 4 egg yolks to each pint of applesauce. (This is quite rich.)

With temps still in the high 90s and over 100, Autumn seems rather far away. I do have some fall favorites. I make a layered deep dish "pie" with a base of pecans and carmelized sugar, then a layer of egg custard and finally topped with pumpkin mousse. I don't have a recipe for this, it is sort of a combination of several recipes. Of course there is always bread pudding.............

Rosemary can be dried on the stem. Lay them on a tray in your oven with the light on. This will be warm and dry enough. When they are brittle, they will fall of the stem very easily (like needles from a xmas tree) and you can simply strip them from the stems and store them in an airtight jar. If the stems are sturdy enough, you can put them in a plastic bag and store in the freezer to be used for ka-bobs in the future, soak them before you use them. Opal basil makes a beautiful vinegar and you can also make a basil/white wine jelly which is very nice with delicate chicken salads. Chop and crush the basil before you add it to the warmed vinegar or wine to extract the most flavor. Strain before bottling or jarring. Use the recipe for wine jelly that is on the Sure-Jel package.

If the bay leaves are on stems, pull them or clip them off. Put them into a wire colander and set them on a counter and give the colander a toss to mix them around once a day. As soon as they feel brittle, break in half when bent double, you can put them in an airtight jar. They keep very well. I used to hang them up on the stems but found that little spiders found them perfect for making a nice home and the colander method works much better and the daily tossing discourages any temporary residents from moving in permanently.

I am<img src="http://images.quizilla.com/C/cookbook/1063659190_esviandier.jpg" border="0" alt="The Viandier of Taillevent"><br>You are Le Viandier, by Guillaume Tirel (or<br>Taillevent). Written in the fourteenth century,<br>you were the first commercially successful<br>French cookbook. <br><br><a href="http://quizilla.com/users/cookbook/quizzes/Which%20Medieval%20or%20Renaissance%20cookbook%20are%20you%3F/"> <font size="-1">Which Medieval or Renaissance cookbook are you?</font></a><BR> <font size="-3">brought to you by <a href="http://quizilla.com">Quizilla</a></font> They must be kidding, right?

__________________________________ I have an ancient bacon press - 10 inches in diameter, cast iron, with little "pegs" on the pressing surface - weighs 8 + pounds. It can be used in a grill pan or just any old cast iron skillet to duplicate the action of a panini grill. I use it for pressing things on long rolls, similar to a "po-boy" or similar on really crusty "rustic" rolls or loaves. These tend to push the top of the panini grill back up, while the heavy weight of the bacon press doesn't give at all. You can get similar ones, square or round, though not quite as heavy, at restaurant supply places. Those have the advantage of having a wood handle. Mine is solid cast iron and you need a good thick glove to grab it. When I am going to grill a fresh ham steak, (they always curl like mad) I set the press in the pan so it heats up too, slap the ham steak in the pan and place the press. After I turn the steak it takes only a minute or so to brown, the heat from the press has cooked it. Here is one - nearly as big. but not quite as heavy.

True Several days ago I was having lunch at a very nice local restaurant. Near the service counter two servers were discussing their upcoming weekend dates. A man at the next table placed his order and when it was brought to him and placed in front of him the server asked, "Could I get you anything else to go with your lunch?" Surveying the table, bare except for his plate and glass of water, he replied, "A knife and fork would be nice and perhaps a napkin, it it wouldn't cut into your discussion time." The server asked, "For a chicken-salad sandwich?" "No." the man replied, "For the quiche with salad that I ordered, the chicken salad goes to that table (indicating another table) over there." I left while he was still eating but I wondered if she got a tip. I had another server, I am a regular, and she noticed the exchange and mentioned that the server was the owner's daughter. Otherwise she probably would no longer have a job.

I am very partial to BBC GOOD FOOD which has recipes for all levels of cooking experience, food news, appliance news, etc. It does not "talk down" to the novice as some publications do. I find that very refreshing. The Australian publication "delicious, is also a very informative and interesting magazine with excellent content, again for all levels of expertise.

I have food allergies that can be life-threatening because mostly they cause laryngeal edema which can close off my airway. I carry an Epi-pen. I also have both a dogtag and a bracelet and a laminated card in my wallet that has. MEDICAL EMERGENCY NOTICE in red at the top so that shows when my wallet is opened. The tags say I am highly allergic to alcohol, sulfa, aspartame and iodine. DO NOT ADMINISTER ALCOHOL AS A STIUMLANT! is in big red letters. The printed notice goes into more detail and includes my other, less dangerous, allergies. I can cook with alcohol, and eat such food if it is cooked for a sufficient period of time. It is the raw alcohol esthers that cause the problem so desserts with liquors are a big problem. I make and use reduced wine 'flavors' but these have been cooked for many hours to reduce them down to just the essence and there is no alcohol remaining. I have had chefs tell me that flaming is enough to remove all the alcohol esthers but that is not so, only the highly volatile ones are burned off. The reduction in percentage is not significant. I have found that most servers are very considerate about inquiring in the kitchen about possible difficulties. After all, they don't want to have the restaurant sued and they certainly don't want an incident as serious as having a patron keel over at a table. As far as MSG sensitivity goes, I have found that many times people thing they are "allergic" to it and have reactions after eating Chinese foods but consume other foods that contain it (but where it isn't immediately obvious) with no problems. An ex-sister-in-law used to make a big deal about it when eating in a Chinese restaurant but would happing chow down at a steak house that used Accent liberally and never had a reaction. The level of MSG was probably higher on the steak than it was in the Chinese dish. I pointed this out to her on one occasion and she became very angry, didn't speak to me for months. (No loss.)

Also, many sea salts contain various other minerals and organic matter that is in the "soup" from which the salt crystals form. These all contribute to the flavor and most have been in use for a very long time and have their devotees throughout the culinary world. I have a large collection of salts, some I bought, some were gifts. People who know me and know how much stuff I have are always on the lookout for something different for a gift. I received some pink sea salt from Hawaii a few months ago. Very interesting. I have sea salt from France (2 different regions), Wales, Cornwall, England and Ireland. Also from Saudi Arabia and from Yemen. From South Africa and India and also New Zealand. And then there is black salt, which is actually pink or rose-colored, which is so strong that it has to be triple-sealed by itself or it will transmit its distinctive sulphur-like flavor to everything it is near. Diamond crystal Kosher is the one I use most.

And here are several pasta based desserts or confections. Enjoy! I am still looking for that recipe for the renaissance cake made with pasta. So far I have skimmed through 27 tapes. What a drag compared to DVDs.