Jmahl

Made my weekly bread batch adopting Heartsurgeons formula but upped the whole wheat to 20% and baked a little longer for a really hard crunch in crust. We are very happy with the results. Here is the formula. 800 gms KA white flour, 200 gms whole wheat flour, 750 gms water heated to 100 degrees f., 20 gms salt, 12 gms granulated yeast, 2 Tbs. honey and 2 Tbs. caraway seeds. Enjoy.

For an early dinner chili relleno con tres quesos (with three cheeses) red beans and toasted tortillas.

Can't disagree with all of the above, but for me short ribs in chile ancho sauce. Heaven.

Today we tried this recipe from the New York Times - Restaurant Style Pork Chops with Goat Cheese Polenta. Works nice. With it we drank a bottle of a 2008 Achavar Ferrer Malbac from Mendoza.

Thank you for a great thread. Brings back memories of another time in the Bronx. Thanks again. Jmahl

Today I tried my first Julia Child recipe inspired by the movie. Its a Gateau Reine de Sada made according to Julia's instructions with some liberties taken. The chocolete buttercream was a hoot to work with. Later friends are coming over to try it. I will report back. Jmahl

Of course you are right. That is why I need a spell checker. It is also called queso Chihuahua or queso asadero. Now I see above that we have a spell checker or at least one that can be downloaded if I can figure out how. I should have looked for the new features. Actually any melting cheese will work. And to confuse things further, when we only have queso fresco in the larder we use that. My wife is a fantastic cook and you do not question what is offered. On your question as to adding quisado de calabasa to the quesadilla - why not - you are the one who is going to eat it aren't you? There are no quesadilla police. So, melt, fold, add what you like and eat up. And yes, I would like three more. Jmahl

A book entitled "French - delicious classic cuisine made easy" by Carole Clements and Elizabeth Wolf-Cohen and published by Hermes House a British import that I found at a Borders or some other big box book store in the bargan section has some excellent very doable recipes for a beginner. I have cooked a lot out of this book and compared recipies to those in the classics. It compares very well with good explainations and good photos. I hope you can find it. Jmahl

In the state of Coahuila in the North of Mexico a quesadilla is a corn tortilla heated on the comal with a melting grated cheese like Menninite cheese and allowed to melt. Then served folded where hot fresh sauce can be added. It is usually a late supper thing served with beans and calabacita. That's cooked diced zuccini squash with chile and cheese. Simple but oh so good. Jmahl

Great to be back. Love the new look and the ease of uploading photos. For dinner tonight, a simple lasagna and a bottle of a good South African Red. Now that we have updated our computer expect to see more from the Border. Regards, Jmahl

An absolutely dazzling thread. I think I have to change my travel plans. Jmahl

In the oven will work - but the texture changes. There is nothing like fresh. To make 18 tortillas with a little practice is nothing. If that will not work for you then for a softer texture in the oven wrapped in a slightly damp cloth and then in foil to keep the tortillas from drying out. Hope this helps.

Beautiful. Looks like we have another convert. Jmahl

Just baked up a batch that has been in the frig for four weeks. It has been over 100 degrees here every day in Texas for weeks and I could not bring myself to turn on the oven until today. The dough looked a little funky but turned out fine. Enjoying a hot chunk broken off a corner of a loaf right now with home make grapefruit marmalade. Great stuff.

I used a light seed - results have been very good. I intend to keep trying using various combinations. Jmahl

in follow-up to my prior post - I just purchased a new bottle of Campari at the duty free. No change from the prior post except the price. Now up to $18 for a liter.

Beautiful demo Doc. It is obvious that your training has come in very useful. Since we stated making our own bread over two years ago we now make our own marmalade and mustard. Can't tell were this is going to lead.

Well soon - turned into almost a year and a half. Just made my first batch of mustard. I will report back on how it turns out. Looks good right now. Just noted - this is my 600th post. Jmahl

Should do no harm however I have found that if you put the grates in a self-cleaning oven on a shelf and run a short cycle they will come out like new. Give it a try. Jmahl

We let the dough rise on parchment paper with flour and cornmeal as the base. We then transfer the risen loaves with the paper to the stone. After about 15 minutes in the oven we slide out the parchment leaving the loaves directly on the stone. It is very neat - no struggle with wet dough. If you get the parchment out early you can use it again.

I'm not sure that I follow the argument, however I believe that v. gautam's point is well taken. My grandmother who immigrated from Czarist Russia in 1910 would tell be about the delight of a slice of black bread smeared with chichen fat as a delight as a child and the fear of her father not having the gold coin to pay the landlord and being put off there little piece of land. Yes, for my grandmother America was paradise. But that does not mean we can't learn something from those old peasants. Respectfully, Jmahl

You are so right and to make it worse - the price of scrape iron is way, way down.

Is it possible to remove a non-stick teflon finish after it is beyond its prime when it would be a crime to throw out a high quality SS pan?

Its without question cooking incorporates the appellations of the sciences of mathematics, chemistry, physics, heath science, administration -- accounting, human dynamics and probably many more that don’t occur to me right now. For elementary and middle school students cooking can be the gateway to these disciplines that otherwise would not be attempted. For students who need to see it and do it to understand it cooking can be the gateway. That is one of the goal we are trying to implement in founding a community kitchen in our local community.