John DePaula

Thanks so much! I thought it might be salvagable. ← I did re-cook the caramel and voila! this worked like a charm! Thanks Ke Kau; you saved my bacon, um... caramel!

Thanks. By all accounts, it sounds like it's difficult/impossible to do the job without a professional. I thought I might try a 2-pronged approach: get a drill bit designed for enamel and drill just until I reach the metal; then, get a cobalt drill head to drill out the metal part. Unfortunately, these two items will cost more than the faucet itself. But right now, I just don't have the time...

I have an old-style Enameled Steel Kitchen Sink. I want to replace the faucet with a new one but the holes are a different spacing than what was used in the 50s, the sink's vintage. Hole sizes need to be about 1.0". The thickness of the steel is about 1/8". I think the faceplate will cover any minor damage to the enamel. Can this be drilled? Can a plumber do this?

I love this recipe for Roasted Fig Chicken. Sometimes I like to use dried apricots, in place of the figs. Note: the recipe omits 1/4 c. water from the ingredient list.

Thanks so much! I thought it might be salvagable.

I recently did an experiment with 4 different thermometers in my kitchen. I stuck all 4 in a pot of boiling water. Now we all know that they should have read exactly 100C, right? Here are the results: Analog Lab Thermometer: 102C Taylor Analog Candy Thermometer: 97C CDN Digital Instant Read Thermo: 91C Polder Digital Instant Read Thermo: 100C As you can see, they were all markedly different. And the results will probably vary for a different temperature range. As for why the melter goes on and off like it does, it has to do with hysteresis. In order to maintain a particular temperature accurately, you have to have hysteresis. That means, for example, that if the control circuitry turns on the heating element at 30C, then it won't turn it off until the temperature reaches 32C. And then it won't come back on until the temp drops below 30C again. you need hysteresis to keep the unit from cycling on/off rapidly when you reach your setpoint temp of, say, 31C. The system, the mass of chocolate, needs time to respond to the nudge of heat. The temperature dial on the Mol d'arts are just a rough estimate of the true temperature of the chocolate. And really that's enough. You don't have to use a thermometer to temper chocolate. Just adjust the dial to keep it at a workable temperature.

I cooked my caramels a touch too long. I know that if they are too soft, you can recook them to a higher temperature to correct. But for caramels that turn out too hard, can you remelt, maybe add some cream, and cook to a lower temp?

Chef Rubber Refractometers That's pretty cool, having a digital readout. Not sure it's worth the extra bucks. I have a Sper Scientific that I bought from jbprince. It's a nice piece of equipment but I do have to fiddle with the light a bit to get a good reading. Mine allows you to flip it so that you can read high and low brix ranges.

Which end of the range is most important to be able to capture? ← I'd say the high end for the pates de fruit. ← Yep, you're looking for about 75 brix for pates de fruits.

Take a look at the Boiron site: General Instructions for Making Pates de fruits You can use lemon juice in place of tartaric acid. It is not necessary (or desirable) to add applesauce. If you do not have glucose, it is possible to substitute corn syrup. You do not need a fancy confectionary frame. Instead, you can line a cookie sheet with foil that has been lightly oiled or buttered. Take a look at the book 'Candymaking' by Kendrick and Atkinson for good beginner info. You can also use molds made of high temp silicone. ETA: I've heard that some folks buy rectangular wooden dowels at the hardware store, cut to size, and wrapped in foil, then oiled, to use for confectionary frames. You could then place these on a silpat. You do not need a refractometer, but it is useful for consistency from batch to batch. You do need a good thermometer. Hope this helps.

Funny story: Shortly after moving to Paris, I was having dinner at Le Suffren and committed a great faux pas – I ordered coffee with my dessert. The waiter just looked at me and said, Non Non Monsieur. Apres. He really wasn’t mean or condescending about it (ok, maybe a little condescending…) but he let me know that it simply wasn’t done. Hmmm…. Never did get my coffee. Hey, John, Thanks for pointing out the article. That was a good read.

Yeah, I thought that might be pretty good. I was thinking that it might make a nice inclusion in some ice cream, too. My dipping technique has really improved; very VERY thin shell. Though, hand dipping is not a task I'll ever really enjoy... By the way, I cut them in rectangles, too. But I found that various cutters produced some lovely results, too. I don't find the Hot Chocolates too sweet at all. But I make them with 70% bittersweet, so...

As far as the Hot Chocolates are concerned, what do you do with the leftovers? If you prepare them as suggested by cutting out rounds, you end up with lots remaining. Can you do anything good with it?

We had a lovely meal in Colmar on Christmas or Christmas Eve, details are becoming a bit fuzzy after so long. It was Le restaurant « A l’Echevin » . It's worth checking out as options may be slim at that time. In Strasbourg, we stayed at Hotel Suisse. I thought it was charming and friendly. A little rustic but quite comfortable; definitely not Holiday Inn.

I have made Creme fraiche at home using Julia Child's recipe. Very easy. Delicious! Haven't used it in chocolates, though.

Where's that "I'm so jealous" emoticon when you need it???

Does anyone know if Chan Chira, a Thai restaurant in Strasbourg, still exists? I ate there in December of 2003. It was absolutely fantastic. After several months in France, I was really craving spicy food and it was a wonderful surprise.

I spent one Christmas in Alsace: Strasbourg, Colmar, and surrounds. Lovely Christmas market in Strasbourg. Towns are pretty as a postcard. Make reservations as far ahead as possible esp. for restaurants. Don't have any specific recommendations on that front.

Does anyone know where you can buy these, now? Usu. I see them at JBPrince but they're out... Gray Flex Demi Sphere 1-1/4" x 5/8"

Yeah, I really love the Boiron products...Mmmmmm... Haven't tried the White Peach yet, but it's on my list. Let us know how you like it, if you buy some. Cheers. P.S. Kerry, how did you like it?

Yeah, I really love the Boiron products...Mmmmmm...

Nope, that's not a problem at all.

The smallest sized round mol d'art would be perfect for hand dipping. ← I don't do a lot of hand-dipping, but I think that my chocolate seems to thicken quite a bit faster with the small melter. Perhaps because the chocolate on the center surface is farther away from the heat source; maybe I'm just not stirring often enough... On another note, if you're thinking about getting the Mol d'Art I would just add that a second pan for the melter is well worth the extra money. Useful for swapping out another type of chocolate. Also, when I'm done with a batch of chocolate, I line the second pan with parchment and pour in the remaining chocolate. Forms a nice bar that exactly fits the pan which speeds up melting for next time.

I am not very experienced in ice cream making, but I can speak to one of your questions (#2 above). The egg yolks are tempered because you want to prevent getting little bits of scrambled eggs in your custard. You accomplish this by adding a bit of the hot cream to the yolks, whisking all the while, and then adding that back to the remaining hot cream. Also, I'm sure you know that you want to heat this mixture up sufficiently to kill any bacteria - very important, at least in the US.

I love my Mol d'art melters; couldn't do without them. Though I've sometime seen them advertised as temperers, they are, in fact, just melters. I never table my chocolate; partly for hygiene reasons, and partly because it makes a mess. With the melters, you melt a mass of chocolate. Then you just need to add some seed chocolate and stir. The seed chocolate, itself, needs to be in temper but that's how the chocolate is sold. Hope this helps.