jsmeeker

I made the soft, chewy caramels Monday night. It went pretty well. I was out of vanilla. Didn't realize that until I went to get it out of the cupboard and it was all gone. When I work with sugar (or pretty much any sort of liquid on my stove top), everything seems to always take longer than what recipes say. I guess I'm never use enough heat. Anyway, I eventually hit the temperature for the sugar, corn syrup and water, then added the butter, honey and then cream. That mixture eventually got to the right temp. It wasn't as dark as I was expecting. I did stir it every now and then, but I either did it to much or had poor technique. I wound up scraping up some of the darker bits on the bottom of the pot. The caramel is sort of flecked with little brown bits. I poured it out into a metal 8x8 (inches) pan. let it sit over night, then removed it from the pan (a real PITA. I should have lined it with parchment. I can see how the bars ontop of a Silpat would be much, much easier). Then I cut it up into little squares and wrapped them. I wasn't able to find cellophane sheets at the hobby store, but they had sheets of foil. So, that's what I used. I'm glad this class was posted. Will you do more? I'm interested in making some hard candies, lolipops, etc.

Another thing you can do to make this meal more economical is to join their affinity club via their website. They'll send you a 50% off dining certificate when you join (some restrictions apply, such as not valid on Saturdays), and various other 25-50% off promotions during the year. ← Thanks for the tip. There are locations in Dallas, including one close to where I live. (In fact, that's the original location of this chain). I don't think it will work for this time since it's a large group. Also, I'm not worried about saving money on the meal, but was thinking if there was enough wine drinking and people were cool with the same wine, it might be a bit better than ordering by the glass (assuming I selected a bottle that was also by the glass). Anyway, no big deal. I'm also more than willing to buy a bottle so I can get something that *isn't* available byt the glass. (like maybe a Malbec) Can I ask which wines you have enjoyed with your meals at Texas de Brazil?

I went and read the Wiki entry as well. It was interesting to see that it's a popular grape in Argentina. In general, I'm a fan of the "when in Rome" philosophy. I know Argentina isn't Brazil. But it's in the same part of the world. Maybe this is one of the reasons Carolyn suggested it?

Mark, Thanks for the first hand informarion. I'm pleased to know they have a good by the glass selection. Normally, I DO order wine by the glass. But this time, I figured a bottle might be better since the meal is essentially 100% meat and also with a large group (almost 20, I think), there may be enough wine drinkers to make ordering it by the bottle a bit more economical. Carolyn, Thanks for the suggestion on the Malbec. I'm pretty sure I've never had that before. That's exactly the sort of advice I was hoping to get. Can you tell me a bit more about it?

On Friday, I'll be having a nice dinner at a Brazillian churrascaria. You know, one of those blaces that brings around all the various meats on big metal skewers and they slice of pieces for you. It goes on and on and you wind up pakcing away the meat. I've dined at one of these before (Fogo de Chao in Dallas) and enjoyed it. I'll be dining with a large group, but I don't know how many will actually drink wine. My guess is not many, but that's OK. As long as a few other people want some, I can easily justify [at least] one bottle. I think it's pretty obvious (is it??) that a red wine is called for. So, help me select wine. I am totally open to suggestions. It might be nice to have something I haven't had before, something that the others haven't had. I'm really just staring to get more "into" wine and trying to put some more thought into it and exploring stuff that is new to me. I know things like "Pinot Noir" and "Merlot" and "Cabernet Sauvignon". Those are familair, all though probably more in name. Recently, I've been focusing a lot of my attention on Frnehc wines and tryo to get a handle on the way they catgeorize wines. Anyway, like I said I'm pretty open to anything. Old world. new world. Whatever. What will go good with this type of dining? (If it matters, we'll be dining at a Texas de Brazil in Miami)

OK... Thanks. I'll let you know how it goes.

Im going to make the soft caramels tonight. But I have a silly question about using the metric measures. For the liquids, your recipe calls for weights for the water and cream. I know one gram of water == 1 ml of water. I can measure that out easily in a liquid measure (all the ones I have include metric markings). But what about the cream? Is pouring out 500 ml the same as weighing 500 grams? I DO have a digital scale that can easily be switched to metric, so weighing is a non-issue if that's what I ought to do. I'm just mostly curious if it would make a difference. (weigh on scale vs. using liquid measure)

I lucked into getting the first episode (China) of this on my TiVo yesterday, as it was recording a show earlier on PBS and the buffer was still on PBS. I told it to keep the episode so I could watch all of it and I will add a Season Pass for this.. My TiVo will be spending a lot of time watching PBS on Saturday afternoon. I'm still not bothered by the term "foodie".

Didn't think you could buy liquor at a Costco/Sam's type place in Texas. Only beer and wine...

and people always give me crap about the alcohol laws in Texas....

a local grocery store in the Dallas area (and a few other Texas cities) offers cooking classes target for kids and classes targeted for teens. During the summer, they have a "Cooking Camp". (a series of classes over a period of several weeks). I don't know how "upscale" the classes are, but the grocery store itself is an upscale grocery store.

I'm no food scientist, but I think you are over worried with the whole spinach thing.. I've never washed already washed, bagged , ready to use greens (afterall, isn't that the whole point of using them??). I'll continue my practices. I'm not worried. The world is full of bacteria and stuff. It's not all bad. In fact, the overuse of anti-bacterial agents can have negative effects.

last I heard, the research was indicating that the health benefit wasn't limited to red wine. In fact, it indcated that ANY drink was beneficial. In moderation, of course. I think for women, it was one a day. For men, I think it's two a day. No, you can't "bank" the un-consumed drinks. (I just wish I could find a link to a report)

Is that for ANY boxed wine, or just the larger ones that have the dispenser spigots built in?

Lucques gets a lot of great reviews. Also, there is A.O.C. It's not in WeHo, but its really close. It's on Third St., which the next major street south of Beverly Blvd. (borders the other side of the Beverly Center. It's located close to Fairfax.

The last time I wrote a post in a thread about Rachael Ray, the whole thread was deleted. But I guess this is the "official" thread about her and her shows. So, I'll try again. Except this time, it will be easier. What LindsayAnn said. I like Rachael Ray. By that, I mean I like HER. She's got energy and enthusiasm. She seems to be a happy person. She's bubbly and perky. I think she is easy on the eyes. I'd probably actually enjoy hanging out with her. Far better than someone who is uptight, boring, etc. 30 Minute Meals is OK. I think it serves her INTENDED audience well. Does she talk to the viewers like they are children? I dunno. Maybe. But maybe that's what they need. Hell, it's what I need when it comes to certain things. No, not food and cooking (for the most part), but there are plenty of topics I DON'T understand and sometimes learing about it at first as if I were in first grade actually helps. I actually have one of her books. The second 30 minute meals book. As I flip through it (and watch the show), I see a good amount of fresh ingredients. Fresh veggies. Fresh herbs. Convenience items? Sure. But big deal. We'er talking about knocking out a freshly prepared meal in 30 minutes on a Tuesday night after getting home from work as opposed to swinging by Boston Market on the way home or popping a Stouffer's frozen lasagna into the microwave. Ok, yeah in her new daytime talk show, she cranks he bubbly, perky personality all the way up to eleven. It's a bit much. Maybe she'll settle down. Or, maybe not. Whatever.

The in-laws?? Hmmm.... I like N9NE at the Palms. But it's not a traditional steakhouse. It's very hip. and loud. But they cooked a mean steak for me. And it's a cool place. If you are into cool, hip places. This past June, I had a VERY nice meal at Austin's Steakhouse at the Texas Station casino. It's off the strip. The part of town looks slightly "dicey". But it was a very nice meal. I'd recommend it. For a fancy place in a fancy strip casino? How about Prime? Never been, but I hear good things.

Ouch! That does seem high. I guess somehow, I missed seeing an actual menu with prices.

I got my recipe from America' Test Kitchen. Sauce is Franks Lousiana Hot Sauce with some butter, a bit of cider vinegar, and some Tobasco. The wings are lightly dredged in corn starch that's been seasoned with salt, black pepper, and cayanne pepper. Fry in peanut oil. I use a big 7 quart LeCrueset. I let them drain on a rack over a sheet pan, then toss them with the sauce in a stainless steel bowl. You can hold cooked, unsauced wings in an oven if you are cranking them out faster than people are eating them. Everyone raves about my wings. Are they "complex"? No. But I think they are good examples of what people expect wings to taste like.

http://www.nofoiegras.org/FGzogby.htm ← Gracias. ← Your country is rather confusing: 'Panter To Chair Solid Waste?' Please confirm. ← huh??

Looks like they are going for the "not your Father's steakhouse" feel. Sort of like N9NE in Las Vegas (and Chicago and soon to be Dallas) and BOA in Los Angeles (and Vegas). I've been to both, and actually think it's a good concept. (and they both served a really good steak). I am liking the idea of smaller cuts, too. Not only is it good for ladies (I assume that's who it's targeted at), it's also good for people like me that want a nice steak, but really don't need 16+ ouces of meat.

To me, it looks like some stock photo that an ad for male "performance" issues would use.

http://www.nofoiegras.org/FGzogby.htm ← Gracias.

I refer you to a recent Zogby poll on foie gras. And I can assure you the people involved are taking it VERY seriously. ← Tony, Do you have a link to that poll?

This sucks. I wonder if they would care what a guy who was born in New Jersey, but now lives in Texas, thinks about all this? Are there any other suppliers that approach what D'Artagnan provides? ps. Speaking of New Jersey and your show, do you know if Travel Channel will re-air it? It's one epsidoe of No Reservations I have yet to see. (TiVo isn't always perfect)