Pam R

Parve foods are foods that contain no dairy or meat ingredients and are generally plant based (they can contain fish or eggs). The chicken soup bases jackal10 mentions are parve and completely vegetarian (vegan). They are often used in kosher cooking when preparing a meal where no meat is allowed.

I bought one of these last year (I actually bought 3 electric skillets in December). I'm not crazy about it and it's my least favourite of all of them. It doesn't get hot enough for me, and as pointed out, it doesn't heat evenly. The one good point is that it's easy to clean. Just lift it out and into the dishwasher. But I'm more concerned with the cooking than the washing. I have a GE that I've been using for a few years and like a lot - and a Black and Decker that I'm happy with.

They were my favorites. (thanks) This is what happened. I wanted to add just a swirl of whipped cream and a fresh raspberry to them. My mother, remembering a tart she used to get at a local bakery years ago, thought they needed a sugar/icing (a la the Imperial Cookie). Before I knew what was happening, they were being iced. Ugh. We tried adding some fresh raspberries but they just ran. In the end, the bride tried one right away and declared them her favorite dessert. There were only a few left at the end of the night, so they were wrapped up for her to take home. BTW - this wasn't a catered event. This was my cousin's shower. My sister and I are in the wedding party, so we co-hosted the shower. I would have liked more variety, but by the time we got done with the savoury food, there was only so much we could do.

The shower was tonight. We didn't have the time to get as many things done as we wanted, but I was happy with what we had (and the guests seemed to enjoy!). Here's the dessert table - we refilled as needed: (l-r: Raspberry Almond Frangipane Tarts - didn't love the look, but they tasted fantastic), Lemon Swans, Chocolate Cups with Chocolate Mousse, Lemon Meringue Tarts, Éclairs, Fresh Fruit Tarts, Key Lime Tarts. Some close-ups: And finally - the mini pavlova. They were so good - but by the time they got to the shower, they were too soft to serve. But we had them there on a counter, and people kept popping them in their mouths and said they were delicious! We should have filled them once we got there, but were concerned we wouldn't have the time. Thanks for all the suggestions - it was a big hit.

None. I freeze it all the time.

I agree with a lot of what's been said. Definitely add some potato to the soup. When you puree it, the potato will help to thicken it and cut back on the 'sharp' pepper taste. I also like to use stock, instead of water. I don't go for a lot of spices in my soup - simply saute onions and garlic in some olive oil, add some roasted and peeled peppers, raw potatoes, stock, salt and black pepper. Simmer until everything is soft then puree. Add a splash of cream before serving - helps to 'smooth' out the flavours.

Great suggestions Rob. I've been to your hometown Lior, and I remember how hot and humid it can get. My walk-in coolers/freezers have compressors on the roof, but all of my display coolers/freezer have the compressors are in the store. They give off a lot of noise, and if it's a warm day outside, our air conditioner has a hard time keeping up with the heat they pump out. If this is in your home though, it may not be an option. I also prefer uprights - more space for product taking up less floor space.

Being the other person who failed completely at making rock candy, I'd like an update please. I'd also like to know if it picked up a lot of smokey flavour.

Word to that. Also, don't season your egg mixture. It doesn't disperse properly (salt can eventually dissolve but pepper flakes just tends to stick together like wallflowers at a dance). Instead, season your breading/coating. ← Just to beat a dead horse, don't skip the flouring step. The egg wash needs something to stick to. I season the flour, eggs, and breadcrumbs. My theory is: why not? Another option - if you want something other than regular, dry bread crumbs, and you're not into the panko is matzo meal. I never refrigerate before frying, and have never had a problem with the breading coming off. Now - if you're making fried chicken vs. chicken tenders, I skip the bread crumbs and do a second dip into the flour.

Out of your list, this is the only place I've been to recently - last weekend. I hadn't been in about two years - favoring Victoria Seafood for my dim sum fix. I also had a terrible experience at Kum Koon the last time I was there - when I couldn't get a cart to stop at my table to save my life. Last week was a completely different experience. The food came so fast - we kept saying no thank you, hoping that they would return when there was room for more. They did. It was really, very good, but almost everything was cold. If it had only been hotter, it would have been outstanding. I have to be honest with you - while I appreciate local (or Canadian) produce, I'm just happy to have good produce wherever it's from. I have recently bought BC cherries at Sobeys, and noticed that Superstore had 'local' signs by the cucumbers, but if you're looking for more local produce, I'd recommend visiting Vic's or Crampton's Market. I picked up some amazing local berries a couple of weeks ago at both places and get a weekly email from Campton's letting me know what's coming in for the week. Crampton's deals with the farmers and I think they do a great job. There's also the farmer's market in St. Norbert on the weekend.

I agree - you could probably use any number of juices - but you may need to mix in some lemon juice to get it to set up. I've made orange curd many times, and it will not set up well unless I add some lemon juice. I'm played around with sugar and egg quantities, and nothing worked. I made a batch of key lime curd a couple of days ago and froze it for use next week. With lime, it's just a matter of replacing the lime juice for lemon juice in your recipe.

Are you looking for traditional foods (Ashkenazie) or just recipes that happen to be kosher?

of course! Where called it "French-Canadian meets Mediterranean fare" Looking forward to your next instalment. I love when you're home.

I'm going to reply to more of the above posts later, but!!: I did just that last night. About the size of a loonie (Canadian $). They're in a ziplock, ready to be filled. Very, very cute.

I can't get kosher animal gelatin, so I've tried fish and agar agar. No luck with the agar at all, but the fish wasn't terrible. I only tried it the one time though. I don't think a lot of humidity is good.

Mini cheesecakes are a great idea. I have plenty of mini-muffin pans . . We've got spanikopita triangles in phyllo in the freezer and ready to bake, so I'd probably stay away from phyllo, but puff makes perfect sense. Perhaps rectangles with some pastry cream and berries . . Shortbread crusts might be good as a base for a little key lime tart . . . I love this. I have whites in the fridge leftover from the curd today, I'm going to go whip some up now and bake them off. I'll stick to circles . . The chocolate cups with the mousse would be great. I think I have a case of them at work. Is that too chocolaty? Should I try another filling in them? And I really like the idea of the boxes . . but I'm not sure if I can do them . . . I'll check the book, I have it at work. Thanks! (Any creme brulee ideas? )

I'm co-hosting a shower in a couple of weeks and I'm trying to get some of the baking done. We've decided to keep it to pick-ups, no big cakes. I have a batch of key lime curd done and in the freezer, and I'll be doing a lemon curd as well. I'll also make a batch of pastry cream and maybe some chocolate mousse. I plan on using fresh fruit (hopefully there will be some nice berries available), chocolate glaze or ganache, whipped cream and meringue to finish things off. I've baked off a batch of little eclair shells and choux puffs, with some necks should I decide to make them into swans (filled with lemon curd mixed with whipped cream). I'll freeze them until the day before, then thaw and fill. Here's my question - other than basic tart shells and the choux, what can I use to hold the fillings? And I was thinking of making little creme brulees, but is there anything I can bake them in that's edible? Is that a completely unreasonable request?

I wonder if it's the fish gelatin. I experimented with it a long time ago and my marshmallows didn't set up like I expected they would - but I didn't try it again to see if it was the gelatin or if perhaps I didn't whip them enough. But all of the commercial kosher marshmallows I get have fish gel. so it should be doable. If I can find some more fish gel. I'll try them again. Has anybody else used it successfully?

How about using balloons? Mette did an amazing demo on chocolate containers using all sorts of objects - click.

Lior - what kind of gelatin are you using?

Cheryl - What's happening with your plans?

How did they turn out?

Just a little. I know, I know. But they are strangely popular and definitely quick and easy.

Well, of course you did! Where else would you sit? When I was growing up, the place with the pu pu platters was the Moon Palace. I remember breaded shrimp and spring rolls and some beef on a skewer that you had to finish cooking over the flame. I don't remember what else was there - but something about the sizzle and the char was very enjoyable. The Moon Palace looked nothing like your Kowloon. It was a modern space in a strip mall. I imagine it would have been even more enjoyable if they had a Volcano room.

We always throw them on the grill. I marinate them for an hour or two in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano or rosemary, s&p and have never had a problem with them being tough.