fou de Bassan

In a few months we will be leaving the US for Melbourne. We plan to stay for a while(7yrs +). We will be leaving our large appliances behind but I'd like to bring some small appliances, namely my KA mixer , Bamix stick blender and the espresso machine. Is buying a transformer or converter a feasible option or should I sell these things and buy new when we arrive? Also, what foods can we bring into the country? I hoping to bring some items with me. Are there any recommendations of things to buy here and bring with me(unsweetened baking chocolate?, books? etc.)? Thanks in advance Kathryn

I love the Corsican theme in your photo. The ham, the plate, c'est un vin corse/corsé, n'est ce pas?

Gingerly, thanks again! I've bookmarked both links and the photo does look almost exactly like those I have. Now that I have a source I will not be so sparing with them. Seriously, no one could touch them because I was afraid to not have enough for the next polow.

Gingerly, Thanks! I'll do a search for sources. I was taught to plump them in hot water and put them on top of the rice with a bit of saffron tinted rice for contrast. Is this common?

Yep, it is. The author calls for cinnamon or bay leaves. Since I don't have a chance of finding cinnamon leaves here I was glad for the substitution. I have to say, the author, Camilla Panjabi is great about that and offers a thorough introduction which I was happy to have.

I was taught to make persian rice, in Montreal, by a lovely woman whom I have lost contact with. The last time I saw her I coaxed these from her. She called them dried red currants. She was mysterious as to her source and I have not been able to find more, either on the internet or in middle eastern markets. Can anyone tell me their Persian name and where I can find more? I used all that I had to make the ?(then I put them back in the freezer) Thanks in advance kathryn

Finally I found the cord that connects my camera to the computer. This was a wonderful curry. Here are some of the spices: We had pappadams and rice alongside I liked the color that the spices gave to the finished dish (bhuna gosht).

We did chicken two ways: buttermilk soak and plain flour and spice coating Chicken before 2nd flour coating My thermometer and my great grandma's chicken frying fork! I was taught that the oil is hot enough when you can fry a piece of bread in it. Half-way point Done! This is the buttermilk chicken which we found to be heavier and less crispy than just the flour coating, but delicious just the same! Thanks for all of your photos! I have enjoyed the fried chicken odyssey.

Lucy, I am looking forward to reading your blog. As an aside we almost named our firstborn Loic but went with something much harder to spell!

Daddy-A, Thanks for the blog! It brought back some great memories and made me want to return to Vancouver soon. Your dogs are too cute, they seem like real characters.

Yes, Chefzadi, Please do! My MIL spent some time working in Algeria in the late 1950's and still waxes rhapsodic about the food and the people. I've been looking for an Algerian cookbook, either in French or English, and have had no luck. So I'll happily sign up for a copy when it happens!

Oh Congratulations!!! Enjoy the first few days of sleep, you'll need them. And keep lots of fruit on hand for quick snacks.

Johnson's Organics just outside of Green Bay and Cattleana Ranch in Omro, Wi. are two that I would Highly recommend. The folks at Cattleana esp. represent the ethos of the Slow Food movement. They raise grass-fed beef and free-range chickens and have started a CSA. Both worked in the world of finance and decided to return to their farming roots. He is a Certified Master Gardener and dedicated to local foodstuffs. They live very closely with their livestock and the CSA is a part of their home. Really, I think highly of their dedication to what they believe is a sustainable agriculture. Not to mention their beef, chicken and produce.

Chefzadi, I think this is great news! You are giving me great ideas about future classes. As involved as we are in food it is easy for us to forget that our education was incremental and gradual and we need to return to that for the classes. Thanks for the updates! fou

Guppymo, Thank you for identifying taro stem. I see it often but could never get a name for it. So, what do you do with it? I am loving this thread more each page.

We'll be having Braised Beef with Guinness and for dessert, Butterscotch Tart. Both from 'West of Ireland Summers' by Tamasin Day-Lewis. This is a lovely cookbook with memories from a really good down-to-earth writer(IMO).

Wow! The photos look amazing! After reading the considerable posts about soaking in buttermilk I am tempted to try a comparison. It isn't the way my great-granny did it and I've always gone for the adage 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' but I'm tempted. As for the buttermilk soak, I've been wondering why. I mean, why buttermilk? Is it because old hens were used and needed to be tenderized? Does the lactic acid have something to do with breaking down the tough flesh? Or is it because buttermilk was plentiful and milk from the farms was often sold? Does anyone know?

I'm looking forward to your blog! I've only been to Vancouver once but what trip it was! We stayed in Kitsilano close to the beach and it was just lovely.

When I was a nanny I asked the parents to make a list of the foods their children preferred. I also asked the main cook to give me a few pointers on preparation for the first week. They never refused and I was saved a lot of guesswork and wasted time. I think most kids like simple things. The vegetable steamer was my greatest ally in the kitchen ,cooking for kids. Children also like to eat small amounts all through the day. So, if you make a large container each of cut up fruit and vegetables in the morning you'll have the beginnings of meals or snacks when they are hungry. Try plain, simple food at first and enjoy your time!

In Edna Lewis' 'The taste of Country Cooking' , she gives a recipe for Cream Gravy. 4-5 Tablespoons fat from the frying chicken, then add 4 Tablespoons flour and brown it quickly then add sweet cream and simmer properly. Add salt and pepper to taste. I'm looking forward to this on Friday. Contrary to almost all of the other posters I don't soak the chicken in anything. Just coat it with seasoned flour, let it rest an hour or so then another quick dredge in the flour and straight into the pan of half lard, half oil. I learned this from my great-grandmother and it has served me well. I can't wait to see everyone's photos!

Sorry to post so late. I did want to report on the lamb curry. I made Lamb Curry with Stir-Fried Spices from 50 Great Curries of India by Camilla Panjabi. My book tells me that it is from Delhi and is called Bhuna Gosht. I used a lamb shoulder roast that we had in our freezer. The recipe calls for stir-frying the spices first, then adding the onion and frying for another 15 min. Then adding the boned meat and the bone and cooking for 20 min. with more spices and finally adding still other spices and tomatoes and water and simmering for 20 min. more. The result was absolutely delicious and worth making again. I have to say I haven't hit a clunker in this book yet. I'm up for Fried Chicken. At least it is warm enough to open the windows for a bit. fou

This may sound old fashioned, but I LOVE GOOD PASTA PRIMAVERA. Sorry, I pushed caps lock but the emphasis stays. The first strawberries from the patch eaten out of hand. soup of fresh peas and mint

cucumber? fou

Andiesenji, you make a mean cornbread!! My great-granny would have been impressed as she was a stickler on crumb. Alas, I never made into her personal pantheon of great cornbread cooks but she didn't have anything against my fried chicken.

Danielle, I sympathize with you completely. We, too, try to avoid pesticide-laden produce but in the midwest that isn't always an option that's affordable or convenient. OUr solution is to provision as much organic as we can and prepare what we can't carefully. I would suggest joining a co-op as that can lower costs considerably. And pester, pester, pester your local grocer to have things like organic potatoes and carrots on regular order. Then support them. this past autumn the organic lettuce at our grocer was actually less expensive than regular lettuce. There are also CSA's and mail-order firms on the internet that have great produce but they tend to be expensive. (We do use them in Jan. and Feb. when there is little to be had in the stores.) fou