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Young2Cook

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  1. I just bought a bottle of Creme de Violette, opened it and THEN read the label - it's "full" of artificial coloring! And it's on its way back to the store....
  2. Are these these the black beans from Spain? I bought them in Europe and they were ok at best. They're black but they really have more in common with kidney beans. The closest thing I've tried would be Black Valentine but BV's I eat on their own. The tolosanas I wouldn't. I'd cook or serve with meat, etc. ←
  3. Thanks Abra, for starting this thread. As for your bean photos, just don't let the Supreme Court see them. We all know porn when we see it.... Actually, I came to the thread looking for some information on Tolosana Beans. Does anybody know anything about them? There are a couple of brief mentions on the web which say they're good with seafood - or blood sausage - but everyone seems to just be quoting everyone else and no one seems to be especially convincing.
  4. Cloche saucers seem to do that...... after mine suffered a similar fate, I resorted to using the dome on top of my pizza stone. Works well, but I think auto-steam I get with the closed LC doufeu gives a better loaf.
  5. I had good luck just doubling the recipe in a lazy way: 6 cups organic white AP flour, 3 cups filtered water, 2 tsp DC kosher salt, but only 1/4 tsp Red Star yeast. Let it sit for 18-20 hours, turned it into a bran scattered baking dish for about 45 minutes, then rolled it into a hot, cornmeal scattered LC doufeu that had spent 45 lonely minutes in a 450° oven. Baked covered for 30 minutes, then uncovered for 20+ minutes until it looked right and had the right sound when knocked. I agree the flavor isn't as full as loaves that start with a biga or have more salt, but that's for more experimenting. I've also made it with marinated chopped olives (not as tasty as when done with kneaded dough), sourdough, 1/2 whole wheat (home ground) and all whole wheat (too heavy.) So far, my fave is the 1/2 whole wheat. Isn't this a great recipe to play with?
  6. What is the minimum amount of yeast I can use for the maximum amount of flavor? VERY nice looking sandwich - are you sure you're a beginner? Given how attractive your bread is, perhaps a good starting point is asking which loaf you preferred in terms of texture and flavor? In my somewhat limited experience, there are so many variables in terms of grain, different additions, and climate, probably even the pH of your hands in shaping the loaf, that what works in one location for one person may not turn out the same for another person or place. But....if you preferred the 1.25 tsp loaf, why not do a series of loaves, each using 0.25 tsp less yeast? I'd be very interested in your results.
  7. Wonderful topic, thank you! Could you also include clues about how to choose veggies that we did not grow up eating? For example, lotus roots or bitter melons or....(the list goes on indefinitely.....)
  8. Interesting game rules, and interesting also how many of the earliest memories, the ones around age two, seem to involve mouth feel. Mine does too. I was about two, sitting in our next door neighbor's kitchen, eating soft boiled eggs in a bowl with pieces of equally tender soft bread to dip in the egg mixture. The color and textures of that memory are still vivid. It's also likely my earliest memory, taste or otherwise. /Deborah
  9. What do I regret? Let me count the ways...if I had it to do over, given our cooking style, I think I'd opt for a 3 bowl deep stainless or two separate sinks. Of course, you have to have an extra mile and a half of counter space to accommodate a three-holer, but you've got one to wash veggies in, one to put dirty dishes in and a third tinier location for the garbage disposer. We recently put in an extra high gooseneck sort of faucet. Liked the way it looked, thought it would make washing deep pasta pots easier, yada, yada.... If you go this way, just make sure that it will fully slide back to the, um, upright position. As it is, ours tends to dangle low on its hose, not a sweet sight. A suggestion on the disposer switch, we put it behind a small hinged panel that runs in front of the sink and above the undersink storage. This way, the person who has their hand down the disposer (trying to fish out the artichoke leaves before all hell breaks loose) can gracefully hold the panel shut so no one else inadvertently turns on the electric pig.
  10. ":Do you know if there were swirls of almond paste as the filling of the cake? I've found a few recipes online with this feature that look good. Also, a recipe that I've been wanting to try is an almond ring cake (that also uses almond paste) in Deborah Madison's, "The Savory Way". I can't find the cookbook right now to describe further details." Good question about swirls. I hate to confirm how long it's been since I tasted this coffee cake, perhaps 40 years. I don't remember the details, just that the flavor and texture were great - and that the whole ring was large, perhaps 24" or more across. My mother would purchase sections of it most of the time. A whole ring was really pricey and reserved for very special occasions. I'll check out Deborah Madison's recipe; thanks for suggesting it.
  11. A version appeared in the LA Times and then in The Best American Recipes a couple of years ago. I've made it and I can vouch it has the same "DNA" as the original. To die for, and to find oneself in heaven. The recipe I'm seeking now is the coffee cake ring, also wonderful, although more special Sunday brunch than celebratory dessert. Thanks for helping in the search.
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