kitchenmage

I'll be the dissenter here (but I am always the dissenter when eG talks about the HerbFarm) but if you are serious cooks, as opposed to only beng serious diners, you should definitely consider the HerbFarm. The food is inspiring if you cook and damned good even if you don't. Tell them it is your anniversary and ask for a table that fits the two of you. For us, that has meant a couple of times close to the kitchen, so I could watch, and once by the guitarist, so someoneElse could watch. If you are feeling flush, book one of the HF suites next door, arrange a tour of the good wine cellar (and see "corkscrew guy") and select a bottle to have waiting in your room. See corkscrew guy in any case. btw, for a web site where most of you like the trendy "must put on goggles before entering my kitchen because of the lasers" kind of place, you really should shush about the amusement park references, ya know. Because lasers and foam is pretty darned Disneyland in many people's book. PM me if you want more info about the HerbFarm from someone who actually likes the place.

I just wandered through this because I'm making some minor tweaks in my kitchen and need to replace my dishwasher and thus am considering countertops and I don't have the baking area quite right yet and I need more small shelves above the counters and the light sucks and...oh crud, did i say minor tweaks? what was i thinking? anyway, what i wanted to say is that the really embarrassing part of the unedited playlists is when the school calls you because your five year-old is singing "Penis Envy"** (and teaching other kids the words!) at recess. When theKid was ~18 she stood up at a UB concert and recounted this story, much to the band's delight. **for tie-in to food, call Bourdain

This raises one of those questions I've wondered about. What are the "rules" on freezing various fillings/frostings/icings? Having been surprised at how well some things freeze, there is clearly stuff I am missing. What can you freeze and what just dies when you do that? Patrick (or one of the many other sages here), care to enlighten me? thx ~km

OMG Ann, stop! You're killing me! I'm deep in a project and taking five minutes while a server reboots to amuse myself. The subject caught my eye since I love BLTs but that picture. Now I have to take a break and find my single tomato, pull some homemade bread out of the freezer and put on some bacon. (we need a STARVING smilie icon)

Let me put in a vote for the Herbfarm *IF* you are really into locally produced food, heavy on the creative use of herbs, with a splash of kitschy dinner theater. I've been there a few times and every time I leave with fresh inspiration for my own cooking that sticks me for many, many months...maybe years. Do you have an herb garden? Do you eschew dried herbs as a category? Can you identify fresh sweet bay v. dried? If you answered yes to all three, I'd go. Ask for a table close to the kitchen so you can watch the dance of the sous chefs, go early for the scratch and sniff garden tour, and make sure you get a tour of the special wine cellar with 'corkscrew man.' OTOH, if the thought of four hours that opens with the senior staff giving the provenance of each ingredient/wine and has your waitperson describing each dish in detail makes you want to scream, stay away. As someone who lives in the area and has a huge herb garden, I love the place. Others, with other focuses in their culinary pursuits, are less enamored. I grabbed a menu from one of the meals I had there, around this time of year. Here's a sample: Dungeness Crab Matsutake Flan w/Fennel, Cucumber, Lemon Basil and Borage salad--absolutely silken flan that tasted like crab but a little earthier... Braised Columbia River Sturgeon with Manila clams, apple, leeks and lovage--we have added this to our regular list of things to make at home... Bay scented butternut squash ravioli with chantrelle, prune and sage fritters and thyme glazed shallots--i make parts and variations of this a lot... Quail, Red carrot, salsify, and Chard Pastilla w/wild huckleberry sage sauce... Hope that helps. (edited to fix formatting)

So in other words, what I really need is even more pans? I feel very enabled right now. Thanks ! ← But not just any pans: special pans! those adorable pans you want but can't justify because you "never have just two cups of cake batter"...maybe the ones that cost a buck more, you're only buying a few after all...

I'd make a few small cupcake-like servings for the kids (or the cook) and if that doesn't work out, I'd send the pretty new pan to the first person who gave you a suggestion on eGullet.

Nice suggestions; pretty and delicious. Welcome to Egullet, by the way, avid! ← ludja, I'm on my third (or is it fourth?) copy of the first Traunfeld book; I keep giving away thrashed copies... it's one of my all time favorite books... have you seen his latest? very approachable and great for newer cooks, but without that wonderful section on growing herbs at the back... oh yeah, desserts... the cornmeal cakes sound really yummy... i'll have to drive around and see where the blackberries are ripe, mine are a few weeks off... i make marshmallows often enough that they are easy, i'll have to think about what sort of flavors i have used already... also, miladyininsanity, i just noticed the "My ambition is to Out-Ling the Ling." sig... good to have goals in life...

Interesting, for some reason I always think of citrus for curds. I'll have to see what sort of fruit I canlay my hands on. Darn! Did yours get lost? I just tried macarons for the first time and, while not perfect, I feel like I am close enough that I stand a chance of getting it right next time. I posted my attempt and questions over on the endlesslyLongMacaronThread if anyone wants to see.

I just made macarons for the first time. I'm not so intimidated anymore, the flavor is wonderful, some of them have feet and everything! I am happy with everything except for my piping technique, which needs work, or maybe the batter isn't exactly flowing like magma, or maybe my 'largest tip' is still too damned small or something. Or maybe all of the above. I have to pipe around in a circle -- like an "@" symbol -- and even some of the ones that were rested the right amount of time (based on the feet) have holes in the middle where the swirls didn't all meld together. I assume they are supposed to have some holes in them, but I'm getting the crushed/collapsing tops on an awful lot of them. I used PH's recipe from the great demo by the ex-PH pastry chef. (i love the pastry chef demos here!) 325 for 18 min on an insulated sheet. (was that Patrick's suggestion? thanks!) Questions: Does it get more magma-like if it's mixed more? I think I was a bit nervous about overmixing. Can you hold the unpiped batter for an hour or so? It seems like the right amount of resting time is about 30 min, and so I want all of the sheets to rest the same amount of time...but the only way to do that is to not pipe them at the same time. (or am I being nit-picky?) Any other things I should be doing? These got brushed with either marionberry or toffee nut syrup because that was what was handy. I like the berry a lot more than the other. Oh, I think I have another option for removing the cookies from the parchment. Iput a cookie sheet in the freezer, pulled it out once the cookies were mostly cool and slid the parchment onto the frozen sheet. a few minutes later, I slid a hand under the parchment and gently wiggled my fingers. The cookies popped right off! The empty pan went back in the freezer for whenthe next tray out of the oven.

so wouldn't it be pee-sah-lah-dee-YAY-r eh? (we really need a "ducks and runs" smilie icon!) seriously, i like the rules so i can remember one thing that helps a lot instead of each word... i've got a friend who teaches french and a kid who calls toronto her home even though she's only visited there (and i've never been, so imagine my surprise!) so i'm really aware of my ignorant americanness when it comes to language... heck i know a 2.5 year old who knows american english, mandarin chinese, spanish and american sign (ASL)... (we also need a "slinks away in shame" smilie... )

I suppose it's unfair to say "my herb garden" which is the truth. I've also found it at tea and spice shops, bulk food sections, my health food co-op can order it. There are lavender farms all over the Pacific Northwet and if you are somewhere that has them, go there. If you have access to a few English lavender plants (the straight ones without the extra wings on top, those are spanish), cut flower stems when they are just showing color but before the buds open. Tie a bundle with string, hang to dry, then gently strip off the buds. My pint bottle was full at the end of last summer and is now ~1/3 full, which is about right since I've given some away. For this batch of cookies, I'm hoping that my plants, which are in their second bloom, have a handful of fresh stems. btw, white lavender works in baking without leaving purple flecks if you can find it and care. K8Memphis, I'm guessing you haven't had a lot of chances to cook with lavender. My favorite simpler-than-anything thing is tossing a teaspoonful of buds in with oven-roasted potatoes. swoon It was enough to banish the lavenderIsOnlySweet feeling forever. (edited to fix formatting)

I suppose it's unfair to say "my herb garden" which is the truth. I've also found it at tea and spice shops, bulk food sections, my health food co-op can order it. There are lavender farms all over the Pacific Northwet and if you are somewhere that has them, go there. If you have access to a few English lavender plants (the straight ones without the extra wings on top, those are spanish), cut flower stems when they are just showing color but before the buds open. Tie a bundle with string, hang to dry, then gently strip off the buds. My pint bottle was full at the end of last summer and is now ~1/3 full, which is about right since I've given some away. For this batch of cookies, I'm hoping that my plants, which are in their second bloom, have a handful of fresh stems. btw, white lavender works in baking without leaving purple flecks if you can find it and care. K8Memphis, I'm guessing you haven't had a lot of chances to cook with lavender. My favorite simpler-than-anything thing is tossing a teaspoonful of buds in with oven-roasted potatoes. swoon It was enough to banish the lavenderIsOnlySweet feeling forever.

I think this is a different aspect of the topic...I hope. While I don't care what sort of language is used (other than cutesy, make that stop!) I do care about the specific words used for the badWord. If you are going to say fuck, just say it! Don't say "f***" or "f*ck" or "the f-word" (which one? there are a lot of them in most peoples vocabulary) or "the f-bomb" (we know what bombs look like and that, sir, is no bomb). Just say fuck and get on with it. We all know what you mean, our minds fill in the blanks (otherwise you couldn't say "the f-word" with the expectation that your readers would understand) and it's just ink on a page. At those times when you really can't say the badWord, then find another badWord you can use. When sending email to lists that might go through a corporate server, I swear in languages from science fiction shows--frell and frack are close enough, don't trip mail filters, and I don't have to resort to sh*ving we*rd ch*r*cters in th* m*ddle of my w*rds. I have a theory that American English will one day be reduced to 28 words: the, word, and one word for each letter. The f-word, the s-word, the b-word, the l-word (oh wait, tv show), and on and on...someone said "the u-word" the other day and I am still befuddled. What the fuck is the u-word?

Wow, thanks for all the ideas! You've provided a lot of food for thought; much to digest... Lemon curd for the yolks. (smacks forehead) Of course! (I knew I was missing something obvious) Tartlets topped with a blueberry maybe... The porcelain spoons of creme brulee are gorgeous. I wonder if I can turn up a couple dozen spoons...because otherwise, probably too fragile, like Ling says. Do macarons freeze better unfilled or filled? I've got some time in the next couple of days to try them, but if they work, how do they store best? What type of fillings freeze are best if they are to be frozen? If they don't work, I can decide if I am close enough to try again or move on to something else. I'm also thought about making a simple cookie, piping marshmallow on top and drizzling with chocolate--the adult version of (blanking on cookie name, but you probably remember them) I'm off to scribble out a bunch of ideas, assess the pantry, look at my schedule (which suddenly has 4 events between here and my party, however that happened!) and then I'll be back with a proposed menu for your further thrashing. oh yeah, CanadianBakin' I'll be back with the shortbread recipe too, but if you're impatient, grab your favorite shortbread recipe, toss ~2 tsp dry lavender buds (double that if it's fresh) in a cuisinart/grinder with half the sugar, proceed as usual. My recipe uses 8 oz butter, 9 oz flour, 3.5 oz sugar, and that much lavender--for reference on quantity) I also have lavender sugar (1/4 c. fresh lav. buds and a quart jar of sugar; strain the buds out and toss them back in the jar when using) that I use for this to bump up the flavor. Thanks everyone!

I'm throwing a a wine-tasting potluck appetizer/dinner party in a couple of weeks: four wines with 2-3 dishes per wine, then I'm doing dessert. I am providing guests tasting/food-pairing notes for a single wine and asking them to bring a food for that wine. I've also asked that it all be finger food since there will be ~20 of us beside the pond rather than a sitdown affair. Dessert is where I could use help. I am a fearless and fairly skilled baker and am confident that I can figure out damned near anything given a decent recipe. I want to do a selection of small sweets, preferably showcasing goodies from my herb garden when possible. We will be serving coffee and tea with this, so there's no question of pairing with wine. Which is good, because that would be totally beyond me! I also want to be able to do most of the work on desserts the day before--and earlier would be better. (I've got a huge freezer and a spare fridge.) I've got bread to make too and want to get that in the oven the morning of the party so won't have lots of pastry baking time that day, although I will have some assembly time. Anyway, my thoughts run to something like: macaroons -- never made them, but I'm brave. (I'm reading the huge macaroon thread) I'd love a tried and true recipe, tips, etc. Like what's up with smacking the tray of unbaked cookies on the counter? Can I make the cookies a day or two ahead and assemble them the day of the party? The night before? Got an incredible flavor combination? (okay so many of those are answered in the huge macaroon thread) If I use a bunch of egg whites in the macaroons, is there something clever to use the yolks in? lavender shorbread -- I have a recipe I like and plan on freezing the cutout cookies and baking them off the night before. some sort of truffle -- I've made truffles, but have never made chocolate with chile for some odd reason; this seems like it might be the time. Anyone got a great recipe? (Ling? Where is Ling? I'll just keep talking about dessert here, she'll show up...) Or maybe bark since it's easier...? Maybe some chocolate-dipped dried fruit -- i've got a bunch of good dried apricots and 75% chocolate. or maybe the fruit goes in the bark...? I'd love something in tiny muffin cups topped with a fresh blueberry since my bushes are covered with what should be quarter-sized berries... i vacillate between cupcakes and crustless cheesecake, or both because they really aren't at all alike -- when I'm not trying to figure out how to do a baby crème brulee -- but am open to ideas. Someone suggested panna cotta, but with my fingerfood requirement this seems harder...although i could make shooters, with a blueberry in the middle... So... Other than telling me that I am crazy, what do you all think? Additions? Deletions? Substitutions? Thoughts about flavors, what I can make how early, etc?

speaking of fuzzy things in your food, what about floating fuzzy stuff in vinegar? i've got a bottle of homemade (by a friend) cider vinegar that's lightly clouded with what looks like it might be 'mother' if there was more of it and a commercially bottled white balsalmic that came with floaty wisps. Use? Toss? Strain and use the wisps to start my first batch of homemade vinegar?

oooh! Could I have Boulangerie please bluechefk? Zoe, might I also snag the Moosewood lowfat as well? (just found out we have to get serious about food for a borderline diabetic... thx!

Cala, Without referring to my McGee (which would require moving, and as I was up 'til dawn midwiving kittens, I'm not moving) let me see if I can answer. Baking soda starts to create tiny bubbles (carbon dioxide, i believe) when it contacts the acid. If it's chilled it's a fairly slow process, in my experience at least, which is then sped up in the oven. When you put the batter in the refrigerator, the miniscule bubbles formed and, as long as they weren't disturbed, stayed intact. When you put it in the oven, the heat expands the air in each tiny air pocket--and there are more of them than right after it was mixed--and the cupcakes rise more. btw, this works even better if you put the batter in the tin and chill that, no disturbance by portioning after bubble formation. It's sort of like bread, if you don't degas it during shaping, it has more air pockets and bakes with a more open crumb. (now one of the pros here will come along and correct any errors/oversimplifications...and i'll be melting at the sight of a tumble of half-day old kittens)

I am sooooo coming back here when I need justifications for stuff.

As someone who is concerned about global warming, I need some help with the math here. It's a story problem...because we all loved those! The nearest donuts (or doughnuts? that's a whole other thread, probably already here somewhere) are about 40 miles away, my car gets ~34 mpg, gas is ~3 bucks a gal, it's ~70F outside, and I have PMS-inspired sweet-carb cravings. (TMI? just trying to establish the context) How many powdered sugar donuts would I have to buy/eat to balance the negative environmental impact of driving 80 miles and using roughly 3 gallons of gas to get them? Are there other powdered sugar coated things that provide a higher level of global cooling per pastry item than donuts? For bonus points, factor in a stop for espresso on the way and the three miles of bridges where my car will agitate the cooler water and thus drop the temperature in the immediate area.

It's way out of your way (on the WA side of the Columbia River) but I believe that stockhouse farms has some breeds that grow rather large naturally. I don't recall details but I had a conversation whith Dan a while back and he was talking about chickens that were huge by your usual standards. Maybe if you're taking a road trip you can arrange to stock up...? Time it right and there might be fish being caught then too.

Sean, I made "bread pudding" of a sort with my last pile of leftover cake scraps. Not exactly a recipe, but look here.

When we had our house on the market, I froze a huge batch of chocolate chip cookies, all portioned out and ready to bake. It was wonderful to be able to pull out a handful half an hour before each showing and always have a house that smelled of warm cookies. It's a very primal association for lots of people: cookies = home. At least for a certain fortunate group.

screeches into empty room, waves Hi Kathy! Waiting for this to start will be tough, but I'll console myself with your earlier blog. Whereabouts in Oregon are you headed? (I'm just across the river in Wa.)