Kris

I prefer the flat side. When I order buffalo wings for myself, I usually ask for all flats (or "the thin side" depending on where I'm ordering from). I've always been accommodated without an extra charge. The reason why I like the flat is because: 1. The skin is not as "slimy." 2. The meat is more tender and not as rubbery. 3. I don't like the tendons of the drummette portion.

Ditto.

I've seen a few episodes...the wedding, the tailgating episode, Colonial Williamsburg. I like the show.

I am NOT a blue cheese lover...or even a blue cheese "liker." But I tried some of this last week and I'm hooked.

Cake mixes - I prefer baking from scratch Pesto Chicken & beef broth - I make my own stock these days Frozen dinners - too much sodium Kraft mac & cheese (gave it up years ago) Boxed meal helpers Hummus Parmesan cheese in green can - prefer grating fresh parmiagiano-reggiano Bottled vodka sauce - make my own Campbells cream of "fill-in-the-blank" soup - whenever I need a creamy base for a recipe, I just make a homemade bechamel sauce and add cheese, chicken stock, etc. Bisquick

I haven't checked back on this thread in a good while (as you can see). But it's still a topic of interest to me. I would love to taste a scratch white cake that was moist and delicious. Too bad you live so far away. I took white cake off my menu and I don't even offer it to my customers any more. In all the years I've been baking, I've only gotten one request for "white cake." I offered up my yellow cake instead and she was happy.

This does seem rather shortsighted doesn't it? LOL But I guess publishing a black cake recipe in the summertime (when most people aren't even thinking of Christmas cakes) would seem premature.

Sorry about the late reply, but I wrap my black cakes in a large piece of plastic food wrap. Then I place them inside the tin/plastic container (whatever I'm using to store them in). I'm happy to report that even though I got a late start with baking my black cakes, they were a hit. I only made 9 but I sold all of them without any leftover. Actually I ran short this year since a few of my customers came back to ask if I had any more left. Maybe next year I'll make a full dozen of them. Of the 6 mini bundt sized ones I made, I gave 4 to my mom and kept 2 for myself.

I thought that with the Italian by heating the sugar syrup mixture up to 248-250 F, that would be sufficient to kill any potential salmonella in the meringue mixture. Am I wrong? At any rate, I've made both Swiss and Italian meringue buttercreams. The Swiss tastes less sweet to me and more buttery. And the technique is easier than Italian. But I find that the Italian is more sturdy and doesn't break as easily as the Swiss. With both icings, I find that they lose their flavor after a while and you have to re-flavor it.

Yes, I find that it's closer to 15-20 mins. for the bowl to be cool and not warm or even tepid. I love Italian Meringue Buttercream. So does my family. My mother swoons over it and when I make her a pineapple or lemon coconut cake, it's the icing recipe I use.

How does this Missouri ham differ from Honey Baked Ham? I've had Smithfield and other southern hams but, although I soaked them longer than suggested, just did not lose the salt. The first time I made the Smithfield en croute but it was still too salty for us. ← I'm not sure how it differs. But the one I ordered was specifically referred to as a city ham. When I reheated it with the glaze, it was somewhat dry and not juicy. I served it for Thanksgiving a few years ago and my mom and sister remarked that it was somewhat dry.

I was late this year, but this past weekend I made 9 black cakes plus 6 mini bundt black cakes! I dosed them liberally with rum and port wine - hopefully they'll mellow out by the time Christmas rolls around.

I'd ordered a 1/2 city ham (spiral) from Berger's about 2 years ago for Thanksgiving. I found that the meat was a bit dry upon heating it up.

This is what my parents did. And my MIL. The rest came out of hubby's and my pockets.

When it comes to stuff like this, I'm not as creative as some of you are. So I just ordered a floral arrangement with some candles. LOL

I've also heard it referred to as the oyster.

Thanks for the advice. The only reason I added a little water is because the chef advised the class to do that in a cooking class I recently took. I haven't used it yet, nor did I put onions in it. I am curious about something though...Now that the schmaltz is hardened in my refrigerator, it looks like it separated into two layers - one bright yellow layer at the top and a lighter beige colored layer at the bottom. The top layer looks more like what I'm accustomed to seeing as melted chicken fat. What is the bottom layer?

Yes I threw out the skins. I really don't eat chicken skin unless the bird is fried. Plus the skins weren't crackling crisp. They seemed slimy. Maybe I could have cooked them a little more but I didn't want to chance it and burn the melted fat. Edited for grammar.

Today I bought eight pounds of chicken necks and back to use in making a batch of chicken stock. As I was removing the skin and fat globules from the chicken parts, I thought to myself, "hmmm, maybe I should try making my own schmaltz. I wonder how it will come out." So I took all of the skin and fat and put them into a large skillet with a little water under a very low heat - not even a simmer. About an hour and a half later the skins were curled up and starting to brown and I saw a yellowish liquid in the pan. I strained out the skins and poured the golden liquid into a container. I guess this is schmaltz right? I can't wait to try it in my cooking. I plan on making a roast chicken tomorrow night for dinner - it will definitely be basted with the schmaltz.

I decided to try a few new cheeses...so I headed to the counter at Fairway's in Brooklyn with my Murray's Cheese Handbook in hand and gave a shot at a few new cheeses. 1. Gorgonzola Dolce (Italy) - Too sharp and tangy for my taste. After trying several different kinds of blue cheeses, I've decided that I really don't like blue cheese. 2. Tomme de Savoie (France - one of the recommendations from the Murray's handbook) - yummy. Earthy and rustic, not too sharp, not too mild. I definitely like this one. 3. Queso de Mahon (Spain - a D.O. cheese) - recommended by the sales clerk as well as the Murray's handbook - very good. Quite salty and pungent with some sharpness to it. After a few bites, I thought I recognized some cheddar-like undertones. I can only eat this one in small doses due to the salt content though.

My maternal family did this 3 1/2 years ago and it was a big hit. My grandparents had 9 kids, so there are a lot of cousins and their offspring. A good number of them contributed to the family cookbook too. There were also anecdotes and some family history that a lot of the younger relatives didn't know about. I was in charge of the project - I tracked people down, compiled the recipes, edited them and typed them into a workable format. We had the cookbooks reproduced at Staples in a comb binding with a photo of my grandmother on the cover. A few weeks later, we presented the cookbook to my grandmother at a family tribute we held in her honor. She was so pleased and happy and ended up showing off the cookbook to her neighbors and friends in the senior citizen complex in which she lived. My grandmother died last year at the age of 92 and I'm so glad we were able to put this together while she was still alive. http://members.aol.com/pastorreunion/cookbook.htm

I'm hosting Thanksgiving this year for a crowd of 8 adults and 2 children (niece & nephew). This year I'm adding a few new twists to the classic Thanksgiving dinner (twists as far as my family and I are concerned): Starters: Spiced nuts Deviled eggs Pumpkin cranberry bread (I'll add dried cranberries to my usual pumpkin bread recipe for a nice contrast of sweet and tart tastes). Soup: Butternut squash soup. I tried this out for the first time today since I don't like to spring an untested recipe on guests. It is absolutely scrumptious. My family likes the pumpkin soup recipe I usually make, but I think they're going to like this one even better. Main course & sides: -Fried turkey! - I've been dying to make a fried turkey and now that I have a 28 quart electric fryer in my possession, I'm going to give it a shot. Next weekend I'm planning to do a test run. -Roast turkey breast baked with the stuffing underneath (since you can't stuff a fried turkey). This one is for those who love the breast meat and who may want something a little more traditional. It's also for those (meaning ME!) who like the stuffing baked in (or under) the bird. This will be a regular bread stuffing without superfluous additions like sausage, apples, chestnuts or oysters. I'll make gravy to go with it. -Baked, glazed ham - This one is for hubby and his mom, since they're big pork fans. I keep the glaze simple with pineapple juice, brown sugar & honey and I decorate the ham with pineapple slices, cloves and cherries. -Baked macaroni & cheese -Candied sweet potatoes (I'm still thinking of a way I can add a twist to this one) -Collard greens - two versions, one simmered with hamhocks, one simmered with smoked turkey parts -Creamed spinach and Horseradish mashed potatoes - Some type of corn dish. I haven't decided on this one yet. But I believe you HAVE to have corn represented on Thanksigivng. Maybe I'll just make mini corn muffins or something... -Cranberry sauce - In the past I've tried making homemade cranberry sauces and relishes but the group consistently prefers the jellied Ocean Spray stuff in the can. So I must comply. -Baked beans - this one is for hubby. I've NEVER, EVER heard of any family having baked beans for Thanksgiving, with the exception of hubby's family. So I'll incorporate it just for him. Desserts: -Apple pie -Bourbon pecan pie -Sweet potato cheesecake (for my almost brother-in-law) -Coconut custard pie All of the desserts will be made with scratch crusts & homemade fillings. Beverages: Wine Sparkling apple cider

I'm almost positive that after a few weeks soaking with rum and port wine, those cakes will be just fine. lol I doubt anyone will be thinking about their "so-called gumminess." Nor will they notice. Your cakes will definitely keep for Christmas 2006. Just add a sprinkling of rum/wine every two weeks or so. This will ensure their moistness and freshness. I find that the liquor tends to settle at the bottom of the cake. So you can even turn the tin upside and let it sit that way for a week or two to evenly distribute the liquors throughout the cake. If you wanted to keep the cakes longer than Christmas, you would just sprinkle them with a little rum/wine combo every week or so. My black cakes from last Christmas lasted well into February 2006. However, if you preserve the cakes right, they could probably last until Christmas 2007. A black cake would never last from one Christmas to another in my house though. LOL I'm going to bake up my batch of this year's black cakes on November 11th. That will give me plenty of time to mellow them out before Christmas.

Copeland's - 145th Street right off Broadway. ETA: I agree with the above poster's assessment about Sylvia's. Food is nothing to write home about and it's mainly riding on it's reputation these days.

Luckylies, I've never, ever encountered this problem before so I'm puzzled. The only thing I can think of is to use a toothpick or cake tester to poke holes in the "gummy" cakes. Then try pouring the rum/wine combo over the cakes. Hopefully it will sink in that way. After taking the baked cakes out of the oven, I usually let them cool for about an hour or so. Then I remove them from the cake pan, place them in a tin lined with plastic food wrap and start soaking the cakes then. You want to do it while the cakes are still warm.