Lisa Shock

Thanks! Please keep us updated on how long it lasts, since some guides say two years tops.

I found this article to be of interest: http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/health/article-1200993/Why-calorie-counting-makes-fat.html Looks like the texture of food affects the calories expended to consume it. So, look for more whole foods and less processed foods. If you eat meat, get a steak, not a burger. Eat a salad made with carrot slices rather than grated carrot.

My Delonghi stand mixer has a juicer attachment which works well. It's the sort that you'd use to make carrot juice, with a rotating screen inside.

We have friends who moved to one of the swingin' retirement communities in Phoenix - and there they have Charles Chips! My friends are in heaven! My folks never subscribed (in Florida), but my friends' folks did, and my friends shared. Charles Chips were wonderful! Not sure they're worth moving to Sun City for, though. Ask me again this winter. I live in Phoenix, but a ways from Sun City. Are these chips also sold in stores? If so, do you know which ones? I'd like to try them.

I'm catching up with this online. Tennille got a set of knives designed by my favorite Iron Chef: Michiba! The show has been fairly unremarkable, I doubt that I'll watch another season.

It may also be the breed of cow. I recently bought some heavy cream from a local dairy called Milk Thistle that uses Jersey cows instead of the much more common Holsteins, and it was another thing entirely. It seems to have a higher fat content. My parents live next to a dairy farm that only has Jerseys. They do produce a higher fat milk. IMO, It's also better tasting. (although food can affect flavor as well) Jerseys aren't as large as Holsteins, so they don't produce the same volume, but it's definitely a case of quality over quantity. Once, when I was a teenager, the dairy that buys the milk from the farm had a power failure and couldn't take any milk, so the farm gave us large amounts of raw milk. (normally, their contract does not allow them to sell/give milk to anyone but the dairy) We made butter and fresh cheese from that milk and it was amazing. I have never had better butter. Also, we had several pounds of the butter in the fridge (we should have frozen it) and, oddly enough, it had a cheddar cheese flavor after a couple of weeks' time.

I'd bring back the idea that snacking spoils ones appetite for dinner, and the idea that no dinner is complete without dessert. IMO, dessert should be the spectacular finale to every dinner, at home or in a restaurant.

I have 78 home type cookbooks and I have used all but 5 of them. (one is a 1930's celebrity cookbook with glamour shots of movie stars, another is an 1811 receipt book that I just got) So, that's an unused 6.4%. I'm a vegetarian and have found that I'm not interested in a lot of vegetarian books because they aren't very good, and there are a lot of meat related books which are also of no interest. Of the 78 books, 9 are vegetarian. I really like books with a lot of story, like Scheherazade cooks! by Wadeeha Atiyeh or Caramel Knowledge by Al Sicherman. I do own 211 vintage (pre-WW2) professional baking & pastry books. (recipes make large volumes, all weight-based measure, require equipment to produce some items, etc.) Some of these are problematic because they don't contain recipes; they are piping guides or guides to making sugar flowers, etc. Many of these books also contain similar recipes for basics like royal icing or devil's food cake. But, I'll admit that I mostly by these books for design ideas and have only used two of them to make cakes. So, in those I am at 99% in terms of cooking. I have used at least half of them for their designs and decorative motifs, though. I also own some reference books, food history books, and cocktail books. The cocktail books have a 100% usage rate.

I hope the patient is feeling better by now...

Actually, the most recent recipe that I downloaded from the Cook's Illustrated website (crumb cake) actually had two sets of measurements weight and volume, so kudos to them!

This is also the perfect time to give people a sample and a bit of education. Prepare some small thin squares of your chocolate, hand them out and tell people to snap it in half and to look at the texture. Note how well tempered chocolate snaps. Then ask them to hold it in their mouth and let it melt on their tongue. Tell them about how real cocoa butter melts at body temperature. Also mention that natural chocolate contains hundreds of different flavor compounds and, of all the foods in the world, is second only to wine in flavor complexity. You can additionally mention that like wine, when paired with other foods the flavors can be transformed and elevated. Keep your chin up! There will always be people who cannot taste a difference, or, who actually prefer the colored shortening. I can't tell you how many times I have made something with high quality dark chocolate and maybe 1/3 of people (non-foodies) trying it have said they don't like it. Your niche is the person who can tell the difference and wants the experience. Those people may only represent 2 out of every ten who walk past your stand. But, those people will be loyal to you if you serve them well. I agree that excessive signage will work against you. A small, elegant plaque stating something like 'genuine pure chocolate' might be the only one I would use. -Only because the oil-based stuff cannot be labeled as pure chocolate (yet) in the US, it has to be labeled as chocolate flavored.

While I really like the idea, I think that people are distrustful of online petitions because of the potential for abuse. If you can figure out how to do it, I'll sign. That said, another idea would be to comment about whether or not a book has weight-based measurement in amazon.com reviews. Something like, 'great book, but I'm only giving it 3 stars because it uses volume measurement' or 'perfect guide, and it uses weight-based measurement, bravo, 5 stars!'

They should be acidic enough to prevent botulism. I think that the big concern is that half of the peppers aren't being soaked in brine. I'd turn them frequently and try to use them as soon as possible. You may also have some problems with discoloration. You probably figured this out, but, next time, put a small slit in the peppers so that the liquid gets inside.

The pan provides support for the loaf and will determine the height. Using a larger pan than the recipe calls for will give you a lower, flatter loaf. The big bread pans are usually for white breads which generally triple in volume, the smaller ones for whole grain breads which generally double in volume and do need more support. Certain ingredients, like whole wheat flour, act like mini-razorblades and cut gluten strands into short bits, meaning that they cannot develop the long networks of fibers which support more and larger gas bubbles. So, these breads are usually more dense and almost cake-like. Some do require a loaf pan to aid in supporting the structure as the dough rises. Still, you may wish to check your yeast, make certain that your water isn't too hot, and always give enough proofing time. -Any of which could have caused your problems.

The New York Times is discussing the topic of weight-based measure: http://themoment.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/09/weighing-in-the-bakers-dilemma/ People may wish to comment there, as a shift in their editorial policy would be very helpful in changing the American food publishing landscape.

How acidic was the pickling liquid?

If you get the Larousse in English, try to get the 1961 edition, printed from 1961-1987. I prefer that version since it has more detail and depth. Some beginner topics are not covered very well, for example, you need to know what they mean by a 'fold' when reading the croissant procedure. But, they cover a lot more of the old-school dishes and practices. I like: The Pastry Chef's Companion: A Comprehensive Resource Guide for the Baking and Pastry Professional by Glenn Rinsky & Laura Halpin Rinsky The New Food Lover's Companion by Sharon Tyler Herbst and Ron Herbst (or their older version, The Food Lover's Companion) Other than those, I have a couple of copies of various Escoffier books, but, do not know them well enough to say which is best. If you read French, seek them out in French. I also have some very specific books for reference on commercial candymaking, ice cream manufacture, and other niche topics. There are great books on many very specific topics, the trick is to figure our what you are interested in and then ask what the standard reference is for that specialty.

The starch molded ones? Yes. I know that the starch procedure isn't chocolate-making, but it of interest. Plus, there seems to be disagreement on how to best seal the finished chocolates.

I'd love to do a hands-on class for the little liqueur filled chocolates. I know that you'd have to prep some centers in advance for it, though.

Well, like any burn, application of cold as soon as it happens will lessen the severity of the burn. There are topical anesthetics available over the counter for tooth pain (like Anbesol) but, numbing the tongue can cause odd side effects like sensations of choking, so apply with caution. I tend to use burnt as an adjective. EG: look at that burnt waffle, what a waste! I tend to used burned as a past-tense verb. EG: we certainly burned a lot of waffles this morning!

Yes, other fresh produce that is low in acid needs to be handed with care. They can all carry botulism spores. Some may have lower initial amounts than garlic, but, if you create a good environment for it to grow & multiply in, it will grow & multiply.

My big issue with this episode was Jennifer's illness. I think that the show should make some effort to accommodate such situations. I don't think a contestant should be removed for being sick, it isn't a long-term event like breaking both of your legs or some other big catastrophe, it's an everyday part of kitchen life and the show should be prepared to work around it. On the one hand, I know that people admire the trooper who toughs it out, but, on the other hand, it is a violation of most health department codes to prepare food when a person is sick. I wouldn't want to be a judge tasting her food that day, that's for sure!

I'd like to point out that using a mix doesn't save much time. On average, for a cake, a user saves about 13 minutes -most of which would have been spent scaling ingredients. And, brownies take less time to assemble. That 13 minute savings is a direct trade for ingredient quality & freshness. I'd also like to point out that many people here appear to be using recipes that call for ingredients to be measured by volume rather than more accurate weight-based scaling. This inaccuracy may account for some disappointing results.

You can make margin on pizza, but, it's tough to produce when you get busy, and can have a long wait time for the customer. IMO, it's a tough item to serve to waves of tourists, especially when you can make sandwiches faster. You may want to look at making savory pastries that can be eaten cold straight from the bakery case. These will get customers waited on very quickly. You could fill croissants or turnovers with cheese & veggies, as well as salamis. (swiss/mushroom, mozzarella/spinach, cheddar/broccoli) Danish made with a savory goat cheese and herbs like Boursin, but your own house blend, is very tasty and will keep for hours. (experiment with various flavors, things like curries and other stews can be incredibly tasty fillings!) You can also top focaccia bread (loaves or single serve small ones) with olives, roasted veggies, herbs, etc. and it can be sold cold or reheated for a minute. I have an idea for something that isn't tested, but might work in winter: bake a cone of bread or puff pastry and have them cold and ready to go in quantity. Serve them to customers with paper on the outside like a big ice cream cone, except fill it with a savory stew-like item like curry or tomato sauce with veggies, meatballs, etc. It's all easy to make and keep on hand. I second your idea of working on standard recipes for pasta & potato salads. You'll keep costs down, and, you have the chance to really set yourselves apart from the crowd. Make these salads signature in some way, whether it's spicy/sweet curry potato salad or a balsamic pasta salad with lots of julienned raw veggies. This way, there's never any chance that anyone will think you got the salads from a supplier or store. Good luck!

It should work just fine. If you have bread flour, you could substitute that for the AP flour in most recipes. The extra gluten will help hold it together. The issue I see is that cooked sweet potato has more moisture than regular potatoes, so frying will be messier.