sanrensho

Feel free to spill the beans. So far, the only thing you've offered in this thread is that you "prefer Le Petit Saigon" over Bao Chao.

^^^I like the caffe shakerato idea. I'm even tempted to pick up a cocktail shaker, even they I don't drink (alcohol).

Malawry, see the post above. The California short grain rices I am familiar with are Hitomebore and Tamaki Gold. (I prefer the former.) Others that I have heard about but have not tried are Tamanishiki and the Akita Otome that Jeniac mentioned. These are all premium rices and more expensive than the Kokuho Rose or Tamaki Classic. Not all Japanese restaurants bother to use a premium short grain rice. I beg to differ on one point that Torakris mentioned. Unless you're boiling the rice into a porridge, the type of rice you choose will make a difference. Medium grain rices (notably Kokuho Rose) tend not to have the bite that premium short grain rices do.

Freezer jam is the way to go in terms of minimal fuss, tools and process. That is, if you have the freezer space. Use whatever containers you have around, as long as you can reasonably seal them from moisture getting in. I actually prefer the taste of freezer jam as it tastes much fresher to me.

Yes, I use RLB's recipe for chantilly crepes all the time, mostly for its convenience (no need to rest the batter). I like the results but don't have a point of comparison, since I usually make crepes in the morning and don't have time to make a regular crepe batter.

No, but you could start a thread in the General Food Topics forum. Might be quite entertaining, actually.

Doh! I should have paid more attention in the first place. Poare is just the product name they are using to distinguish it from Pocky. (Poare, Pocky and Pretz are all from the same manufacturer, Glico.) http://www.glico.co.jp/poare/index.htm My educated guess is that it has no meaning at all, but was picked because it "sounds good." Also, I was wrong, "poire" would be pronounced "po-waa-ru" in Japanese. Sorry for the misinformation.

I think it's a misspelling of the French word "poire," which would be enunciated as "po-a-re" in Japanese.

Yes, it does look pretty close to what a Japanese bakery typically offers. I did some Googling and sussed out the following: Address: 2351 Burrard St. Hours: 11:00 am to 6:30 pm Closed on Wednesdays A few more photos here (text in Japanese): http://norivalsinvancouver.seesaa.net/article/11638446.html

Here's a good thread on the topic of favorite white chocolate. Of the widely available brands, I would say Lindt.

Interesting. I've never heard of this place, but I did find a few photos here: http://flickr.com/photos/doesrails/page8/ I'll have to check it out some time.

Thanks Cheryl! I'll try this in the near future.

Is it is possible that she's never had real buttercream (Swiss meringue/Italian meringue/French buttercream)? If so, you could have her sample some and tell her it's "frosting." See what her reaction is.

SweetSide, are you saying that you skip this process entirely for recipes that require heating the eggs? And you've had no problems? That would be great news if that's the case.

It depends on how moist/sweet you want the end product to be. So there's a certain amount of leeway depending on personal taste. Although it might seem like a lot, you can end up with a very dry/rubbery cake if you add too little syrup.

You can get Wilton glucose from Michael's, but I don't know if it's liquid. (I've never bought it before.) Maybe somebody else knows. http://www.michaels.com/art/online/display...oductNum=sc0398 Here are some links to threads about gelatin (powder vs. sheet). You could also post in the appropriate regional forum and ask about sources for sheet gelatin. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...5599&hl=gelatin http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...0288&hl=gelatin

Thanks for posting the above info. Mmmmmm, raspberries. (Begins taping wrists and forearms in anticipation of raspberry thorns...)

Thanks, CanadianBakin'! I guess the heavy rainfall last evening didn't help things. That would be great if you could let us know once the U-pick gets going. BTW, do you happen to have a favorite U-pick place for strawberries? I was pleased with the raspberry U-pick at Driediger Farms last year, but I'm not really familiar with the other U-pick places in the area. If confidentiality is an issue, please send me a PM!

You're welcome! I'm glad you liked the book. I haven't tried the rice pudding recipe but it sounds like I need to. I can answer two of your questions: 1. The thick stuff is indeed the coconut cream, while the thin stuff is coconut milk (mostly water). Here's a tip: If you ever need to separate the two, pop the can in the fridge for 2-3 hours. 2. Yes, I would use heavy whipping cream in place of double cream, unless you have access to a cream with higher fat content. I don't make rice pudding very often, so I'll let the other experts comment on your other questions. BTW, did you find a satisfying solution for the strawberry filling you were looking for?

It's that time of the year again. Does anybody know of any farms open this weekend? The BC Strawberries site pegs the start of the season as June 18. Thanks in advance.

Pit and freeze. Use later in all kinds of baking and desserts. I wish I had your problem!

Easily a few months. It won't go bad during that time, due to the high sugar content. However, you will find that it starts to crystallize after a few months, although it doesn't seem to affect the taste.

Trim the tops and bottoms of each layer. That will give a better surface for the ganache to adhere to. The "sticky tops" that you mention are like a skin that "peels" off the top of the cake--hence your separation.

As others have noted, that's quite an improvement over your first effort. You deserve a big pat on the back. Some suggestions: -Are you leveling the top of the cake? (Hard to tell from the photo.) Doing so will give you a more even layer of frosting on the top of the cake. -I agree, 3-4 mm of frosting on top is too much. The frosting (ganache?) your using also looks grainy to me. I would go with a pourable ganache, which will still give a nice shiny finish if mixed properly. -Not sure what you mean by this comment: "I need a ganache in the middle of the layers that visible .-)" -In addition to adding more cake/cake layers, another way to get more "height" out of the finished cake is to go with a lighter mousse-like filling.

Sorry, Pam R, please continue ordering what you want. I rarely deep-fry, so that gives you an idea where I'm coming from. Hiroyuki, your comments about not mixing tempura and karaage are interesting. It would have never occurred to me, although it does make sense.