andiesenji

Trader Joe's heavy cream is indeed heavy cream, higher fat content than whipping cream. AND --- more importantly, it is not "ultra pasturized" - it develops more volume and can be used for making small batches of cheeses, etc. which is much more difficult with the ultra pasturized stuff. It will keep in the fridge much longer than regular whipping cream, actually an amazing length of time after the "sell-by" date. It is a good product.

What you actually need is more exposure to distracting things. As you work with these distractions you learn to tune them out and it becomes easier. If you isolate yourself all the time, you do not develop the "calluses" on your perception that allows you to concentrate on something and ignore the extraneous and annowying activities around you. I have done a lot of volunteer cooking and baking at a senior citizen's center and until you have worked around them, you have no idea how much they like to talk, and talk, and talk. One advantage is that they seldom expect an answer. I would go on with my work and listen with one ear, making an appropriate, uh huh or ummmmm, or how about that! from time to time. The main thing is to do the job and not hurt anyone's feelings. Plan a small meal, invite people into the kitchen and work around them. As I said, you have to be exposed to it to learn to live with it.

I buy green mangoes at a Phillipine market to make green mango, chile, lime pickle. The regular mangoes become too mushy, even when underipe. But that is just my opinion.

for the lace things I mentioned, go to this site http://www.shoppalstores.com/retro_shop/index.cfm in the search window type in: crocheted covers The bowl covers are 8 inch, 10 inch and 12 inch in diameter and also will cover a plate and the sides will hang down like a skirt. a paper lace doily on top will keep the material in the center clean. The tiered plate stands can be decorated with flowers. I use them often and wrap herb stems around them for decoration. I have one that has 5 tiers that swivel out and can be aranged in a arc. I tried to find a similar one as the vendor where I bought mine has gone out of business. The hatbox idea sounds great also. A collection of various sizes would be attractive. I have several graduated Shaker boxes that I decorate for Christmas and arange in a spiral and set columnar candles on them, small to large from top to bottom. Two years ago one of the girls in the neighborhood had a 4th of July wedding. They had a patriotic theme. They also had small cakes, not cupcakes, but square tea cakes, decorated with the flag, shallow round cakes, "muffin tops", decorated like starbursts and a few other items, I can't recall the others at the moment They had a collection of drums of various diameters and depths arranged as the centerpiece on two folding tables fastened together to make a large square, with the cakes and some pulled sugar ribbons winding through the little cakes.

This is a great idea, particularly if you want to grow several varieties or in particular, the "fingerling" potatoes. I am not growing them in containers this year because the main garden has been expanded so they could be grown in the raised beds, however I have in the past with exellent results, though not as great a yield as yours. I had purple and red, the Finnish yellow and a Peruvian blue. The Finnish yellow were similar to the Yukon gold but more buttery tasting. We drilled holes around the the containers on the sides, about 1 inch from the bottom. Any container here with holes in the bottom is invaded by the very aggressive roots of the fruitless mulberry and cottonwood trees on the property, unless a barrier is between the container and the ground. Any plants will soon appear sick and will die off. If you dig in the soil in the container you find fine roots and as you dig deeper the roots get bigger. My gardener tried to move one container in which the incoming root was an inch in diameter and he had to cut it with a saw to move the pot. The cottonwood trees grow rapidly and provide a lot of shade but they can send roots out for long distances to reach water and nutrients.

Check out the tiered plate stands on this site: http://www.finehomedisplays.com/products.asp?cat=8 Other types are available on other sites. You can use plates with lovely designs or plain white. You can use lace "plate skirts" to make them more decorative - they are often used in weddings with a Victorian theme. I will see if I can find a photo of one. I am at my office today so do not have all my resources. Here are some made specifically for cakes, I think they are far too expensive. http://www.winbeckler.com/victoriastands.asp This place has some larger tiered buffet servers which might be even better for your purpose. http://www.galasource.com/prodList.cfm/119...tands,1,1,F,MX1

I am going to try some major arm-twisting.... I have left a couple of messages for Dan. At least he finally has an answering machine. However he still refuses to get a cell phone. At one time he had a pager but threw it out the window of his car on the Santa Monica freeway when he was stuck in traffic and someone kept paging him. I happened to be riding with him that day. We were on our way to the Pacific Design Center (AKA The Blue Whale) to look at something he wanted to get for his sister. He is clinging to the 20th century and refuses to dip a toe in the 21st, technology-wise. I hope he forgives me for telling about his quirks.

I love that roaster. I nearly killed my ex over it. That was many years ago but I can still work up a good snit over what nearly happened to it. While packing my van for a dog show, back in the early 70s, I heard my husband banging around in the kitchen and as I was going back into the house for another load of stuff, he passed me, heading for the garage with my roaster in his hands. I stopped, turned around and followed him and asked what the "heck" was he doing. The rat was going to use it to catch the oil he planned to drain from his truck. Needless to say, I snatched it out of his hands and threatened him with maiming if he dared to touch anything from my kitchen. My best find at a garage sale was a pair of ugly black spoons, long handled, large spoons rather heavy. The people told me they were "old iron spoons" their grandmother had brought from Wales around the turn of the last century. Cleaned up they were hallmarked english silver, a basting spoon and a stuffing spoon, one made by Hester Bateman, one by her son Peter. Oh yeah, I paid $20.00 for the pair plus a ball jug by Hall china. Since the advent of ebay and Antiques Roadshow, it is getting more difficult to find really great buys. I collect odball antique kitchen gadgets but they have to be in working order.

I meant the Rau Ram. I grow a lot of cilantro but in the high desert temps it bolts rapidly and is useless except for saving seed. The Rau Ram can be grown in a pot indoors over the winter, lives outside fine in high heat (in the shade) and if I need a new plant I just break off a stem, stick it in water and in a couple of days there are rootlets and it can be planted in a pot. Check this site for information and a picture. Several nurseries carry it in the L.A. area. Or you can find it fresh at Asian markets and just plop it into a jar of water on a windowsill when you see roots, plant it. http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/polodoratum.htm

I spoke to Dan the Man last night and invited him to visit eG and see what we are about. He is still a computer/web novice, (actually a Luddite about things like this - Jeez, he still has an 8-track in his old Barracuda) and he said he would think about it. I think he would be a fun addition to the community as well as have a lot of tips for people considering the "rolling kitchen" type of outfit. He has some great stories about cooking for the movie and TV people on various locations. At one time he had a sign stuck on the back of the truck that said "200 visits to Vasquez Rocks and counting" -- because so many films are shot there. (For instance the Flintstones movie, he woked on that one.) Dan also worked in some well known eateries around the L.A. before going into this business. He swears he will never go back to working as a line cook or sous chef. His rig is set up for cooking full meals just about anywhere. He has two of the big Kohler 12.5 generators on board for electricity to operate the regular appliances as well as an induction cooker. He mainly got it because it is cooler to work with than the gas stovetop and the air conditioner does not have to work as hard.

By the way, thanks for starting this topic. This is an important one. Far too often people who are affected by things such as this are hesitant to ask for advice, they do not want to appear to be a complainer, or sound "whiney". My attitude is always "ASK", there may be someone who can make your life easier.

I have been adding cinnamon to my daily food intake since I was diagnosed with type II diabetes a year ago. My internist recommended several books and one book went into detail on the herbs, spices and vitamins that help to lower and stabilize blood sugar and also affect the way the cells react to insulin that is produced by the body. I am at my office today and as part of my lunch I will have an apple, chopped up and sprinkled with Splenda mixed with cinnamon (in a shaker I keep in my desk), nuked in the microwave for 3-4 minutes then topped with a generous dollop of cottage cheese. With a combination of diet and exercise my blood sugar is normal without medication. I took Avandia for several months, until my daily tests showed normal. Rather than take the capsules, I have added cinnamon to many of my foods, not necessarily sweet ones. I have found that many savory dishes are actually enhanced, not overwhelmed by the cinnamon. I measured out various amounts on a gram scale to get an idea of the volume required as a daily "dose" .........

If this ever happens again, wash your face and your eyes with milk. The casein in the milk will glom onto the capsaisin and carry it away and stop the burning. I have even put it in a dropper and into my nose when I got a snootful of Scotch Bonnet powder. Believe me, it works.

Ouch! That can do damage. Are you okay now?

Congratulations JennotJenn Onward and upward!! Your recipe sounds delish. Just consider how versatile this delectable meat can be. I defrosted some I had frozen a couple of weeks ago, gave it a boost in the convection oven for 18 minutes. I had no tortillas......however, I did have pita bread. Tossed the meat with pico de gallo and some homemade salsa verde. Then stuffed it into pita. topped with a dollop of crema Mexicana, Agria. This is a serious contender, not traditional but a great "fusion" <g>

Exactly. If you require a certified kitchen, have you considered working a deal with one of the private schools, particularly church schools, or service organizations in your area. Here in town I know several caterers who have deals with the Elks club which has a state of the art kitchen, fully certified, the senior citizens center and a Baptist church school which also has a fully certified kitchen. The churches and the seniors centers are always in need of additional funds and often are willing to give one a break in exchange for help in some of their fund-raising events. I have professional portable equipment and before arthritis made it impossible, and before my kitchen was certified, I worked with these organizations setting up for pancake breakfasts, etc., in exchange for use of their facilities at a nominal rent, whenever I needed to do work that I could not do on site at my client's home. At present there is a group of ladies using the kitchen at the Baptist church to bake loads of cookies to ship to military men in Iraq and Afganistan. They are shipped out from Edwards AFB but have to be prepared in a certified kitchen. One personal chef that I know, recently moved to the San Bernardino area. He has one of the large catering trucks and used to work for the studios on location, feeding the crews. These were full meals, not fast food. He and a couple of partners had several of these units but he decided to go off on his own to do something different. He takes his unit to the clien'ts home, does much of the prep work in the unit then moves it into the house. These units also have to be certified and inspected, much more often than a regular kitchen. I think it is every 6 months. This might be the solution for someone who has no other way of getting a business off the ground.

Do you have the big Magnalite roaster? I have had mine for close to 40 years and it has seen a lot of turkeys come and go. It is what I use when I have to cook a very large turkey (30 pound) in a hurry. I have one of those glass cheese keepers and also a very old ceramic one which came from a "general" store in Bishop, Calif. when it went out of business back in the 70s. My glass cheese keeper is a reproduction from Brookstone and had a printed notice that the instructions on the lid called for "1/3 pint vinegar which is excessive for modern tastes." It sy that equals 5.3 oz. They recommend a maximum of two tabelspoonsful and a mild vinegar works as well as a strong one. (use the amount of water and of salt as shown on the lid). The ceramic one is made essentially the same way but is larger and rectangular but with beveled corners so it actually has 8 sides. It is white with a narrow cobalt blue line at top and bottom and around the lid and the handle is blue. It says CHEESE on one side in cursive lettering in black. I wanted to get to the Rose Bowl event yesterday but the lift which loads my scooter into my van was on the fritz. I like garage sales but getting in and out of the van has become a real chore and having all the stuff in one place is easier for me. I miss the early morning adventures though.

All my "regular" loaf pans are 10 inch. If all you have are the smaller pans, use only 2/3 of the dough you have been using.

Actually I think they serve the chicken with a yogurt sauce but she didn't give me the recipe for that and is now off doing something with her kids. As I read your bit about the bunny rabbit, "jugged hare" popped into my head. I think I need some lunch.

This is the reason I had my kitchen remodeled with a separate air-conditioning and exhaust system and had it certified. The building and safety inspectors were here every other day and county dept. of health made three inspections, since then I am on a biannual inspection rota. They take scrapings from the fridges, freezers, ovens, exhaust system, cabinets, storage bins and from the sinks. I have a big blue A, which I could display if I was in an area zoned for commercial usage. The last inspector quipped that he wouldn't be afraid to have surgery in my kitchen......

Behemoth, Is this the recipe? I called a friend who dictated this to me over the phone. Her auntie's recipe, not in any cookbook as far as she knows. Goan recipe, Chicken Caafreal or Cofreal, (She was reading from a scribbled card and translating into English. 1 chicken cut up, about 2 pounds 3 teaspoons salt, non-iodized, sea salt or kosher 1 sour lime 10 Indian chiles, dry, small (about 1 1/2 inch x 1/4 inch), chopped 2 green chiles fresh, medium size, chopped 5 large garlic cloves 4 inch piece ginger, grated 4 black peppercorns Oil for deep frying. Directions Cut the sour lime in half, rub the chicken pieces with the sour lime, squeezing the juice onto the chicken. Lay on a platter to catch the juice. Sprinkle the salt over the chicken then rub well onto the meat. Place all the chiles, the garlic cloves and the ginger into a mortar and grind to a paste (or process in a mini food processor). Grind the black peppercorns and add to the paste, mix well. Spread the paste onto the chicken pieces. Cover tightly with plastic wrap or place in a container that can be sealed and place in fridge overnight or for at least 8 hours. Pour about 2 inches of oil in a pot and heat to 350 degrees. Fry 3 or 4 pieces at a time until nicely browned, turning 2 or 3 times. Remove from oil, drain on paper towel (or brown paper bag) and place in oven while you fry remaining pieces.

In California, if you cook anything at all in your home kitchen that is going to be served to other people and for which you are paid, you better have a certified kitchen, no matter what your title. Caterer, personal chef, private, chef or what. The fines are substantial and can wipe out a years profit or more and if you have portable equipment it can be seized and sold to cover the fines. And you are out of business until they give you a hearing. If you cook in the client's kitchen that is a different matter. However you should have a clean bill of health, be tested for hepatitis and TB and carry that documentation with you.

My grandfather was actually an engineer, and went to India to survey areas for dams, bridges, waterworks, and so on. He did not get on well with the colonial government because he was a trifle outspoken about the conditions he saw and wanted to do something about it. He had inherited wealth so wasn't totally dependent on his job and the from the stories I heard he was not above telling one of the bigwigs where to stick it. His first wife died out there from cholera in 1911 (all his children were in boarding school back in England). As I recall he remained perhaps two more years then went to Egypt where he stayed during the early years of WWI. He returned to England, hated the climate and decided to emigrate here, where he had visited and traveled extensively in 1897/98. He was of the privaledged class but hated prejudice in any context, thought segregation was an obscenity and generally was decades ahead of his time in thought. A liberal when liberalism was not even on the horizon.

What a fantastic selection of spices and herbs. My array of Indian spices and herbs is not quite as formidible as yours but I have a fair selection. I believe I inherited the interest, or developed it from early exposure. My grandfather spent several years in India, mostly northern, during the first decade of the last century. He developed a passion for Indian foods and Indian culture in general. After emigrating to America in 1919 he settled on a farm in western Kentucky and insisted on at least one Indian meal a week. His cook was a Gullah woman from the Carolina lowcountry and learned to prepare the meals he liked. He had to import most of the spices, herb seeds, vegetables, not usually found in that area at that time. By the time I appeared in 1939 some things were difficult to import but he still got a tea chest packed with goodies, from one of his old friends, who still lived in India, every few months. I did not realize at the time how interesting the household was. I wish I had paid more attention. We had traditional English foods, southern "soul" food, typical foods of the area and Indian foods. Curries, hot, sweet, sour, various chutneys, and sideboys, as well as foods from the middle east from his few years in Egypt. No wonder I love diverse foods.......

I am also looking forward to your blog adventures. You have a great way with words...... Andie