andiesenji

Slightly OT, but I also would like to plug Peter Reinhart's American Pie, which I think is a fantastic book. The pizza (dough) recipes that appear therein have the benefit of PR's vast bread-baking experience. =R= Still slightly OT but I have to agree with you about American Pie. Peter asked for volunteers to test recipes for the book and many of the bakers on the B-B digest contributed and are mentioned in the book. Bob Koontz, a very good friend of mine, tested several. I have made several pizza from the book and every one has been far superior to my earlier efforts. He takes the guesswork out of it. I have had quarry tiles in my oven since I first had it installed. Although it is a commercial gas oven, it still loses heat if the doors are opened. The stone or tiles maintain an even temperature in the oven even if the door has to be opened. There are other advantages, you can bake directly on the stone if you are making rustic loaves and pies placed on the stone have better bottom crusts than those baked directly on a rack or on a sheet pan. This effect works in an electric oven as well as gas.

This is one of the reasons I began using the food-handler gloves (like surgeon's gloves) several years ago. I would be up to my elbows in dough or whatever, the phone would ring. By the time I washed and dried my hands, the caller had either hung up or it would go to my answer machine which would also cause them to hang up or leave a message and if it was a call I wanted to take, it was a problem. This way, I strip off the glove and grab the phone. Ditto answering the door, and so on. Also I found that some things that I had to handle a lot or for long periods, gave me contact dermatitis. Annoying and not attractive. The gloves solved that problem. A box of 100 doesn't cost that much and are a great timesaver as well as being neater. Friends who maintain perfect manicures have taken to these like gang busters.

I have all of Peter's books and they are all good. This one has more details about artisan breads. I have baked many of the recipes but I actually use Crust and Crumb more than this one, mainly because I have used it longer and the recipes in the book are familiar and comfortable for me. Peter is on the Bread-Baker's list and often posts when someone has a particular question. I think everyone on the list has all of his books and many are much more prolific bakers than I. If you want a broad sampling of opinions ask: http://www.bread-bakers.com/mailing_list.html

I made the Chestnut Torte because I had some chestnuts to use up and I wanted to see how it compared to my old favorite recipe from Nick Malgieri. It turned out quite well. I was pleased with the appearance but will probably go back to my old recipe because it uses more chestnuts and has more of the chestnut flavor.

Sometimes I have to make very large batches of biscuits or scones and I found that rather than working the dough and cutting them, I get really good results with just mixing the dough until blended, then using a large ice cream scoop (3 1/4 in. diameter) to portion the dough onto a sheet pan, then when the pan is full I dip my fingers (wearing food-handler gloves) into melted butter and quickly press them a bit to flatten the dome shape. They come out very tender and raise beautifully. I do keep everything chilled and using the large holes on a grater, grate frozen butter into the dry ingredients. This allows for quick mixing and the moisture in the butter gives a lot of lift in the oven. (I use this grated butter method when making croissants and it has been very successful.)

And to confuse things even further, when fresh, chile Ancho is known as chile Poblano. This is of course, the favorite chile for chiles rellenos. I grow several varieties of chile and this occurs in other types of chiles. They have a different name when dried. Chipotle is not the name of a chile, it is the familiar Jalapeño allowed to ripen until fully red then smoked and dried. There are nine varieties of Chile Puya, most with similar characteristics. Puya alpestris Puya berteroniana Puya boliviensis Puya chilensis Puya coerulea Puya coerulea intermedia Puya coerulea monteroana Puya coerulea violacea Puya venusta It depends on the vendors as to how they are identified. Some do add the type but most do not. The most common is puya chilensis, and venusta. Often they are identified as chile Guajillo, but the latter are milder. Sometimes they are called pulla but of course it is pronounced the same. The color can vary from dark read to pale orange to violet. The only dried chiles I see in the Mexican market here are Chiles Japones - they are similar to Chile Arbol and have about the same heat as Arbol and Puya. Even serious chile scholars argue about the identification of some chiles so don't feel bad if you have a problem. One particular chile was mis-identified for many years until they finally were able to establish the DNA and found that it was a sport related to a pepper that looked entirely different in shape, different growth habits, different leaf shape, different flower. It had long been classified an "inedible ornamental" pepper. However it is edible, medium hot and looks good and grows in containers and is evergrowing, everbearing as long as it doesn't freeze. You can always check in at the Chile-Heads list. Some of the most knowledgeable pepper people on the planet are on the list and always active. The guys who wrote the books are on the list.

I prepare a great many bread puddings, both sweet and savory. For the savory ones I usually use a bread which has a savory base, such as Asiago cheese bread, or Calamata olive, cheese/onion, etc. You may find more savory recipes listed under recipes for "strata" - all a strata is actually, is a layered bread pudding. I have used artichoke hearts in savory bread puddings, however I usually do not put the cheese in the pudding with a vegetable, but put it over the top during the last 10-15 minutes of baking to allow it to melt. Cardoon, which grows like a weed in my garden, has the same flavor as artichoke and I often use it, chopped and blanched, in strata or puddings. When I do use cheese in a pudding or strata, I use a fairly hard cheese, shredded and put into the pudding in layers, instead of mixed in, to make sure it is evenly distributed. I use bacon, cut into bite size pieces then cooked until crisp, ham, also cut into bites and sizzled and cooled before adding. Shredded beef, pork or chicken, all work. Think of the flavor you want and work from there. You can make one that has Mexican flavors, incorporating mild peppers in the pudding or strata, with chicken, beef or pork, and a cheese, such as a queso fresca, then serving two or three salsas, mild, medium and hot, so your guests can add the amount of heat they wish. Also sour cream... Fresh onions may cause the pudding to be soggy, I use carmelized onions or dried, toasted onions. I also use dried tomatoes with olives and cheese such as a ricotta salata for a Mediterranean theme. I use low carb bread and Splenda to make sweet bread puddings for myself because I am a diabetic. I have added fresh fruits, dried fruits that have been plumped, nuts, etc. Sauces can be sweet or savory, milk or cream based, fruit sauces, meat sauces and all kinds of condiments. I usually try to set out something that will contrast with the flavors in the pudding. Also remember that you can prepare any of these puddings ahead of time, bake in a loaf pan and refrigerate. Then when ready to prepare the meal, slice and fry on a griddle and serve hot with the various sauces, or for a sweet one, fresh fruit or syrup. This is a good way to work when cooking for a croud. I have served a sweet bread pudding as "mock French toast" to huge numbers at fund-raising breakfasts when it would have been impossible to make regular French toast.

The smoker looks great, Ronnie. I will be spending part of the day with friends in Orange County. Their son is just home from Irac and they are having a party in his honor. I have three ducks from my freezer now thawing, will cook them tomorrow and prepare the meat for duck tacos, one of Greg's favorites. His mom is making other favorites of his, a sort of tamale pie, made with fritos, layered with ground meat cooked with onions and alternate layer of black beans and also a mac and cheese casserole. Side dishes prepared by sisters-in-law, I have no idea what, and his brothers are bringing beer. I will take my ice cream machine and pre-mixed batches so all I have to do is plug it in, pour in the stuff and turn it on. The poor kid has lost almost 40 pounds since he left home. I haven't seen him yet but my friend says the first night he was home he drank almost a gallon of milk and ate 3 cheeseburgers from Fatburger plus two orders of their fat fries.

The unlined copper is best because the heat distribution is carried to all parts of the pan with no hot spots. Heat conduction in copper is so good that it heats quickly and cools quickly as soon as it is removed from the heat. There is very low resistance to heat conduction which is why copper is used for electrical use. It conducts electricity without heating up as much as other metals (resistance). Aluminum wire was used in house wiring for a time in the fifties and sixties but there were a lot of fires because the wires heated but from resistance. Back to copper. I have a couple of copper kettles and a large poaching pan that are almost 200 years old and are still usable. Copper vessels from Roman times are still usable (though they are in museums). It is expensive and a chore to polish but there is nothing quite as good for sugar work.

I this also a copper pan, Andie? And did you find it on their website or in a store? I went to the website, but can't seem to find this. thanks! --Jan It is listed as small preserving pan

I buy a great deal of tea online. I buy from several importers/vendors such as Harney & Sons, Adagio, British Express, Blue Moon Tea, Capital Tea (Canada), My Gourmet Tea (Ceylon), Betjeman & Barton, In Pursuit of Tea, Republic of Tea, Special Teas and others. I also buy at tea shops, particularly Chado in Pasadena that carries an extensive line of teas. Devan Shah, the proprietor is one of the founders of the Nilgiri Tea Society. I buy from vendors that carry the teas I want at a fair price. I am willing to pay premium prices for rare teas but like to sample first. Several vendors offer sample packages that provide enough for 2-4 cups of tea at very reasonable prices. If one is plunking down up to forty dollars (or more) for four ounces of tea, one wants to know that it is something one will drink.

I agree 100%. The "soft wheat" flour that is sold in the south is difficult to find but at least it is available on line. White Lily has long been a favorite of mine and prior to online ordering, one of my cousins in Kentucky used to send me a "care package" from time to time. A friend in North Carolina swears by Red Band but I think it is more difficult to find than White Lily. The only domestic flour I have come to like as well, possibly better, and also have to order online, is Hudson Cream flour (Kansas). I order it in a 25 pound bag (I use a lot) for 7.00 and 9.00 shipping. I also order their self-rising in smaller amounts and their white cornmeal. If you want to check them out. http://www.hudsoncream.com/ However, for the past couple of years I have also been ordering a flour from Ireland, Odlum's Cream flour. It is available at some specialty shops in NYC but since I am in Calif. that doesn't help me. I read an article about the flour in a Brit. food magazine (Waitrose), which said that for super tender cakes, extremely flaky pastry and scones, it was unparalleled. I have used it to make puff pastry and croissants, as well as cakes, biscuits and scones, and in my opinion it is a superior product. There is a French pastry flour which is probably as good but costs four or five times as much. I am a bit of a fanatic about baking and am ever on the lookout for an ingredient that will produce a better product.

If you buy nothing else, get a good copper pan for sugar/caramel/butter/chocolate. It can be a treasure and can make your tasks much easier. The response to heat is rapid and absolutely nothing else works as well. You do not use this pan for anything else, being unlined it can't be used for cooking anything that has high acid content (except for fruits cooked in sugar for jams, etc., but for sugar work it is ideal. This site http://www.chefsresource.com/solcopsugsau.html and this site http://www.chefsresource.com/solcopsugsau.html have the best prices. I have three and the one I use the most is the 1 3/4 quart, the diameter to depth ratio makes this one the easiest to use for me. The smaller one, 5 1/2 inches in diameter is just a bit too small for most recipes and the largest 3 1/2 qt. is simply too big to handle easily with one hand. If you want to do larger batches, Sur La Table http://www.surlatable.com/ has an 18 cup (4 1/2 qt.) small preserving pan with two handles at an excellent price (49.00) right now. This item is not always available at such a good price. I have two of these and they are extremely useful for candying. Andie

For years a friend in Sydney would pack up a bundle of AWW along with whatever cookbooks I wanted and ship them to me a couple of times a year. Then their site came on line and when they began accepting international orders I bought direct. http://magshop.com.au/Books.asp?CID=522 I have at least 25 of the cookbooks. In the back of every book is a sections that explains the conversion factors and the difference between Australian measurements and English and American. I find that the recipes are easy to understand and I have yet to prepare a recipe that wasn't excellent. Some of my favorites are: Biscuits and Slices, New Finger Food, Wicked, Good Food Fast and The Christmas Book.

Has no one tried True Blue from Australia? I am extremely partial to gorgonzola Dolcelatte and also to Stilton, however I tried the Aussie blue cheese a couple of years ago and found it very satisfying. The only Roquefort I like is the Papillon. I have had a couple of bad experiences with roquefort. One time I opened the package and it had a strong odor of ammonia. I took it back to the store and the clerk cut open three other packages, all had the same odor. I use Maytag when I need a very strong blue, when it is going to mixed into cream cheese, or into a sauce because it is sharp enough to hold its own. Another domestic blue that I like is Crater Lake Blue, made in Oregon. It is similar to Pt. Reyes but just enough different with a little extra pungency without being harsh.

Adele, I know you are going to have a good time with your adventures in baking. There is something so satisfying about watching something that looks like an offspring of the Blob, emerge looking like a piece of art. There are people who will tell you that there are "born" bakers or cooks but the truth is that baking works on scientific principals that are dependably predictable. There are of course certain variables, altitude, humidity or the lack of it, barometric pressure, all of which can have an effect but once you understand how to work in your area you have the basics. I have a couple of hints when baking a new recipe for the first time. Gather all the utensils, pans and ingredients ahead of time. I use a tray for each recipe. This insures that you will have all the necessary ingredients and implements when you are ready to start. You can even measure the dry ingredients and store them in ziploc bags days ahead of time so when you are ready to bake all you have to do is combine the ingredients. If you figure out how much time it takes to do all the measuring and other prep work you will see that it will make a difference, particularly when you run into something that has 10 or 15 ingredients. (I bake numerous batches of various types of cookies for the holidays each year and I do all this prep work ahead of time and have all the pre-measured dry ingredients assembled on a tray or in a bus tub and placed in plastic bags and stacked in my pantry. When I am ready to start baking it works like an assembly line and saves me loads of time.) I use a lot of shortbread for bases in desserts, or just for tea cookies. I mix it in large batches in a food processor and store it in a sealed container in the fridge. When needed I just scoop out as much as I need, press it into a pan and bake. It keeps for several weeks. Heres wishing you the very best of luck in your endeavors, Andie

Add 53 additional cookbooks for me. 4 boxes of books purchased on ebay arrived in today's mail. Publication dates from 1921 to 1986.

More notes about the fruited cocoa cake. I like to give friends the makings for this cake, pre-measured dry ingredients, fruits, nuts, spices, etc., wrapped with a baking pan, and a laminated copy of the recipe. People who seldom go to the trouble of making cakes from scratch have fun with this one, particularly because it doesn't need icing. It is so easy to just dust it with XXX sugar. It is also easy to decorate when one uses the glaze because dragees, candy spots, and othre decorative sugar items stick to it quite well. I bake it in a large Christmas tree pan and 4 small tree forms and group them on a large tray. I surround the "grove" with macaroon coconut and decorating the trees with red hots, green candies and making "strings" of silver and gold dragees. If I feel ambitious I can pipe red and green garlands. It can also be baked in a Bundt pan but the pan can only be filled half way. It takes so long to bake it so the center is done that the outer edges overcook if the pan is filled. It is because the fruit makes the center very moist.

Speaking of resurrecting "classic" cakes, this one is truly ancient. Here is a very old family recipe. The earliest mention of the cake is in one of my ancestor's journals ca. 1690. My great-grandmother found the "receipt" and deciphered the recipe in about 1880. Although it was prepared at other times of the year, it was always called Christmas Cake. I brought it up to date about 20 years ago when I was allowed access to my great grandmama's journals. I have continued to refine it right up to the present. Like many cakes of that era it contains dried fruits and is fairly heavy. You can use a combination of dried fruits, but the larger ones have to be chopped so all pieces are about the same size. I have used cherries, cranberries, blueberries, black currants, Zante currants, sultanas and my home-dried extra sweet seedless red grapes, dried plums, dried persimmons, peaches and pears. As long as the total amount is as listed in the recipe, it doesn't matter about the combination. I often make this for parties and most people love it. Technically it is a "fruit" cake but even people who do not care for fruitcake will eat this. Also like most of the English cakes that are served at tea, it keeps very well, as I have noted in the recipe. FRUITED COCOA CAKE original recipe ca. 1690 Notes: It is important to use Dutch process cocoa. I use King Arthur Flour's Double Dutch Cocoa and Black Cocoa Half and Half. When glazed with the glaze at the end of the recipe, this cake will keep for several days at room temp and will stay incredibly moist. I have in the past made this cake ahead of time and wrapped it well in aluminum foil and kept it in a cool place for 6 weeks. However I now live alone. When my family was still all together, I could not keep it more than a couple of days......to give you an idea of the way things used to be, the original "receipt" called for 6 pounds of twice-boulted flour and 3 full pound loaves of sugar well beaten..... 2 pounds of butter and 3 dozen eggs. 1 cup BUTTER unsalted 1-1/2 tsp SALT 1 tsp CINNAMON 1 tsp CLOVES, ground 1 tsp NUTMEG, ground 1 tsp ALLSPICE, ground 1/3 cup COCOA, Dutch process 3 cups superfine SUGAR 4 extra-large EGGS 3 tsp BAKING SODA 4 cups unbleached FLOUR 1-1/2 cups CURRANTS 1-1/2 cups DRIED CHERRIES 1-1/2 cups WALNUTS, chopped or pecans or macadamia nuts, etc. 3 cups APPLESAUCE, unsweetened chunky style if you can find it, even better is homemade. Preheat oven to 350 F Grease and flour a deep 11" x 15" pan or 2 10-inch square pans or 2 holiday mold pans. In a large mixing bowl (or mixer bowl) cream together butter, salt, spices, cocoa and sugar. beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after adding each one. Mix baking soda with flour and sift, reserve 2 heaping tablespoons. Instead of sifting the flour you can simply put it in a large bowl and run a wire whisk through it which does the same as sifting, i.e. fluffing it up a bit. Add flour to batter alternately with applesauce. Sprinkle the fruit and nuts with the reserved flour, toss to coat well and fold into cake batter. Pour batter into pan and bake for about 1 hour or until cake tests done. (deeper pans will require longer baking) ORANGE GLAZE GRATED PEEL OF 2 ORANGES 1/3 CUP SUGAR 1/4 CUP WATER 1 CUP ORANGE JUICE 3 TABLESPOONS GRAND MARNIER LIQUOR OR BRANDY Combine ingredients in saucepan, bring to simmer, stirring constantly, continue cooking until liquid is reduced by 1/2. Drizzle over cake ( I use a turkey baster and a perforated spoon as the glaze is too hot to dip my fingers into which is usually the way I drizzle icing) . After the glaze has set, decorate edges of the cake and the plate edges with powdered sugar sifted thru a fine sieve or use a cut-out pattern or paper "lace" doily.

I also use various types of pepper, although my favorite black (at present) is the Tellicherry extra bold from Penzey's. I have a small shaker in which I mix fresh ground pepper and kosher salt and carry in my pocket when I am meandering around my garden just in case a ripe tomato should happen to fall into my hand. And of course there are the Persian cucumbers that are coming along just fine. Apricots from my old heirloom tree also benefit from a judicious application of pepper and salt, not to mention the ripe peaches which will be coming along in July. Much of this goes back to my childhood when my cousins and I used to sneak out of the house with a salt shaker and visit the apple orchard. Green apples with salt.....lovely, as long as one remembered that there was a limit, otherwise a tummy ache. The green corn, the little ears that were entirely edible, cob and all. Nothing like the rather tasteless canned baby corn that shows up in salad bars... Geez, now I am hungry. You guys are a bad influence.

You should read some of the posts on the TeaMail list. Incredible detail.... I do love tea but the descriptions of the various aromas and flavors as the tea steeps and as it is consumed, the after tastes and etc., may be educational for some but for me it is enough to simply enjoy the tea. I do not have to reassure myself with all this minutiae to get satisfaction from my cuppa.

Tea is truly a subjective taste. Not everyone senses the same taste in a paritcular tea. You can go broke buying a selections of teas and often they will languish on the shelf until they no longer brew up as they should. I would like to suggest that you check out Harney and Sons http://store.yahoo.com/harneyteas/index.html Harney has a sample program where you can order up to 5 samples of loose teas per order, each sample costs 2.00 and is enough to brew 4 cups of tea. Place an order for a regular item, either in bags or loose, perhaps a tea with which you are familar such as an Irish breakfast if you like strong tea or a Formosa Oolong if you like a more delicate, winey tea. Then add 5 samples of teas that sound interesting and you have a good selection with which to experiment with not a lot of outlay. If you like floral teas, Jane's garden tea is a green tea (Bancha) blended with rosebuds.

I have 3 Perfex pepper mills. One is 30 years old and still works fine. I bought a second one about 10-12 years ago just for white pepper. I bought the third just for allspice 3 or 4 years ago. (allspice is so tough it wore out another type of mill.) They are not cheap but they say they will last a lifetime and so far they have been proven correct. Check at shopping.com to find the best price. Get the 4 1/2 inch model.

and here is a site with recipes for various liquers. http://cocktails.about.com/library/recipes/blirishcream.htm

Perhaps you might find this interesting: http://www.eye.net/eye/issue/issue_01.14.9...rink/dr0114.htm Which reminds me of a friend who can't afford to keep numerous liquers on hand and makes her own when needed. Her secret? Flavored ice creams, French vanilla, coffee or espresso, butter pecan, caramel vanilla, peaches 'n cream, mint chocolate chip, etc. It is allowed to soften, then mixed in a blender with brandy, rum, vodka, Irish, bourbon or rye, she can approximate many commercial liquers and has even invented a few of her own. Brandy with butter pecan is one that people just love. I don't recall she made any mezcal creme liquer but I do know that she loves one particular tequila, Lago Azul which she describes as a "sippin tequila" because it is very sweet and smooth.