Ann_T

Decadent Brownies These are my all time favourite brownies. If you like a fudge style brownie then you will love these. I've played around with this recipe for a number of years. I call it Decadent because of the 20 ounces of chocolate in the batter. Rather than melt butter with the chocolate and then add the sugar. I melted the butter and the sugar together and then added all the chocolate. I also used a combination of brown and white sugar and I think the flavour is even richer. I edited the recipe to show the change. And I topped some of them with a glaze. But decided that they are decadent enough without the glaze. They freeze well. I usually cut them into bars, wrap in plastic wrap and put them into a freezer bag. Easy to pull out a bar when a chocolate craving hits. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Decadent Brownies ============================ 1 Cup butter 20 Ounces chocolate 1-1/2 Cups sugar Pinch of salt 4 eggs 1 Cup flour vanilla to taste 1 Cup toasted pecans/walnuts (or more. I usually add about 1 1/2 cups) Options: Use 3/4 cup brown and 3/4 cup white sugar Add a shot of real espresso Line a 13 X 9 inch rectangle pan with foil and butter. Melt butter and sugar together over medium heat until the butter has melted and the mixture is smooth. Add the chocolate and stir until chocolate melts. Continuing stirring until the mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat. Add one egg at a time and mix well using a wooden spoon. Add vanilla (and espresso if using). Stir in flour and salt and mix well. Stir in the pecans or walnuts and pour into prepared pan. Bake in a 350 °F for approximately 30 minutes. Do not over bake. Brownies should be set in the middle but still slightly soft. Place immediately in the freezer. When cold, remove and cut into bars. Wrap each bar in plastic wrap and store in the freezer. Keywords: Chocolate ( RG1733 )

Here is the dinner I made on Tuesday night based on what was in the pantry. I'm trying to decide whether to take some Bolognese sauce I have in the freezer out for dinner tonigh or if I feel like going out and picking up something for the grill. Ann

OOh perfect timing. I've just started to read the food blogs and I' m really looking forward to reading yours Tupac. I really enjoy your posts to the Dinner thread. Ann

No secrets Susan, I add a little vinegar to the water and I always crack the egg into a little bowl and then slide it into the water. Giving the water a little swirl also helps to keep the egg compact. Plus I think that really fresh eggs work best for poached eggs. Ann

Spinach and Crab, Foie Gras, now that is my idea of breakfast. Thankfully though, Moe is happy with simple poached eggs on toasted homemade french bread. The Eggs are farm fresh free range eggs. With wonderful dark yellow yolks. Ann

I slow roasted one last week. . Skin was wonderfully crisp and the meat was melt in the mouth tender. Served it with an orange sauce. I cut the wings off prior to roasting and they were browned and used to make stock. I have a jar of duck fat in the fridge that I have been using to roast potatoes.

My family loves Yorkshire Puddings. If I'm making 12 I use muffin tins and if I only want six I use a popover/yorkshire pudding pan. The recipe I use calls for 1 cup of flour , one cup of milk and 3 large eggs. Salt and Pepper. I add about 2 teaspoons of fat to each cup and heat in a 450°F oven until very hot. Fill each cup no more than 1/2 full.

I keep going back to look at Percy's Walnut and Cream Cheese Bread. Yum! That and all the Sweet pastry type breakfasts are my favourites. Made an oyster mushroom and chive omelette for Moe this morning. He would eat eggs every today if he could.

I find I get a better approximation if I make the fresh bread crumbs without drying out the bread first - it's a bit lighter that way. ← I agree Mottmott, I tried Panko a few times because it was so highly recommended. But I preferred homemade fresh bread crumbs. I like both the flavour and the texture much better. Ann

Abra, I have to find that recipe. Yours looks wonderful. Makes me wish I was having it for dinner tonight. Linda, I make mine almost exactly the way you do. The only thing different is I add a little cumin and oregano to the chicken broth. The first time we had carnitas was about 25 years ago in a little off-the-tourist-track Mexican restaurant in San Juan, PR. of all places. Came home and duplicated it.

I made this recipe recently and although the Chimichurri Saucewas good, my husband and I both decided that it was something I wouldn't make again.. It really overpowered the tenderloin. Ann

If you have a few left, I would suggest Parisienne potatoes. I make them quite often to serve with steaks, or other grilled meats. Just use a melon baller to carve the russett potato. Ann

Thank you Jen. I do have a couple of shoulder roasts. Your recipe looks wonderful. Mywhitedevil, thank you for the recipe. I like the sound of your recipe. And I did leave one of the legs whole. The other one I had butterflied. Ann

I have a Olympus Stylus 800 which I think is the current model. I've had it for about 9 or 10 months. I'm never happy with the photos taken using the Cuisine setting so I don't use it. I also have a Sony Mavica CD500 which I like better than the Olympus for taking food photos. It is much bigger than the Olympus. Not convenient to carry around. I have a small table top tripod as well as a floor model and I use them both at home. I got hooked on taking photos of food about 3 years ago. But mostly just my own. I never think to take the camera with me to restaurants. Most of my photos are a hit and miss but I did recently start to adjust the White Balance which has improved some of my photos and I never use the flash. Ever. I'm going to play with some of the suggestions here. Thanks. Ann

Susan, I'm sorry about your pot and the problems you had with the ST Squares. The very first time I made these, many years ago, I ended up with a pot that looked just like yours. I've mentioned in the recipe that this mixture does burn easily, but maybe I need to emphasize it better. I usually let them sit on the counter for a bit and then finish cooling in the fridge. But I must admit to usually taking a little scoop with a spoon while they are still warm. Just can't wait for the toffee to set.

Silly Toffee Squares Silly Toffee Squares ==================== Base 1/2 flour 3/4 cup rice krispies cereal 1/4 tsp baking soda pinch salt 1/3 cup packed brown sugar 1/3 cup butter melted Toffee Layer 1 can sweetened condensed milk 1/2 c butter 1/2 c firmly packed brown sugar Topping 1/2 cup chocolate chips semi sweet 1 1/4 cup Rice Krispies cereal . Combine all the ingredients for the base and press into an 8 inch square pan. Bake in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes. While base is baking make the toffee layer. In a heavy saucepan combine the condensed milk with the 1/2 cup of butter and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Keep stirring as this mixture burns easily. Pour toffee over the base. Melt chocolate chips and stir in the 1 1/4 cups of rice Krispies. Stir to coat well. Use two forks to spread evenly over the toffee layer. Chill and cut into squares. Keywords: Dessert, Brownies/Bars ( RG1710 )

Abra, the only reason I slurged and bought a small commercial type slicer was so that I could slice a friends homemade salami paper thin. It was a big splurge. It doesn't get used often but for the times I need it i'm really glad that I have it.

Picked up the baby goat (meat) that I had ordered a few weeks ago from a local farm here in the Cowichan Valley. Geoff has a small farm and his animals are all pasture raised, without the use of antibiotics or other chemicals. The goat had been hanging in the cooler for about 5 days and it was ready for cutting up today. I went out to watch so I could have some input into how I wanted it cut. I ended up with about 25 pounds of meat. I bought one of his baby goats a couple of years ago and for the most part cooked it like I would lamb. The racks and chops were grilled and the breast and shoulder were usually prepared Greek Style. If anyone has any favourite tried and true recipes they would like to share that would be great. I'm going to grill one of the racks for dinner tonight. Ann

Yum, haven't had corn beef hash in a long time. Breakfast today was buckwheat Pancakes with bacon.

I have had LC for a number of years and I recently bought two pieces of the new Mario Batali line. I bought both the roasting/lasagna pan and the dutch oven. I've used them both an number of times and I'm really happy with them and they clean up beautifully. I do a lot of high heat roasting and what I liked about the Batali is that it is safe to 500°F where LC is oven safe to 450°F. Also here in Canada the price of Batali was less than half that of the Le Creuset. Ann

I've had it both ways before too, but I prefer it raw. Drizzled with olive oil, parmesan cheese, capers and a little fresh squeezed lemon. And lots of fresh ground black pepper. I've also had it served with toasted pinenuts . Ann

OOOh I don't think that looks ugly. Makes my mouth water. I had to wait a little longer for breakfast this morning. More like brunch. Rhubarb Pie needed to cool at least a little bit before slicing. Worth waiting for though. Mixed up a little sour cream with brown sugar and vanilla to serve with it.

Yay Susan! Rhubarb for everyone! Maybe you would like some of these, I made them fresh this morning: Rhubarb muffins.. I know, they came out kind of flat, but they tasted really good.. ← Klary, I wish I had seen your rhubarb muffins before I started baking this morning. I bought rhubarb at the farmers market yesterday and used it in a pie this morning. But boy, one of your muffins would have been perfect with an espresso this morning. Ann

Fodgycakes, I have tried the other method of shaping, but I seem to have better results using this method. Glenn, Dockhl, I posted the recipe on Recipe gullet. Ann

Bagels See <a href="http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=87103&view=findpost&p=1186182">Bagel Pictorial</a> Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Bagels ======= 2 cups warm water 4 1/2 teaspoons yeast 2 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon salt about 5 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, unsifted Large pot of water with 1 tablespoon of sugar Cornmeal 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water Toppings: Poppy Seeds, Sesame Seeds Place the flour, yeast, and sugar in mixer. Add water and mix to incorporate. Let rest 15 to 20 minutes for flour to absorb the water. (Note: if you are not sure about the freshness of the yeast proof it first) Next, add the salt and turn on machine and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic. Depending on the mixer this should take 8 to 12 minutes. Dough should be a firm dough, not soft. Place in a greased bowl and let rise until double. Tip dough out on to flour surface and divide into three parts. Working with one at a time, form the dough into a log. Cut into pieces. This recipe will make anywhere from 12 large bagels to 48 mini cocktail size. Roll each piece into a ball and then using your thumb, poke a hole in the middle. Shape bagels (See Pictorial). Let the bagels rest for about 20 minutes on a floured board. Bring a pot of water to boil. Add a tablespoon of sugar. When ready, place the bagels in the water and simmer gently for 1 minute. About 30 seconds on each side. Drain on a tea towel or paper towels and then place on a ccokie sheet that has been greased and sprinkled with cornmeal. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with poppy seeds or sesame seeds and bake in a 400°F oven until golden, about 20 to 35 minutes depending on size. Keywords: Bread, Hors d'oeuvre, Stand Mixer ( RG1709 )