FrogPrincesse

Welcome to eGullet, Melinda. Now you have me craving a Martinez. I haven't had one in ages. From Trader Joe's, an assortment of beers. La Fin du Monde and Saison Rue are favorites. I've enjoyed the intense pine-hop aroma of the Stone Enjoy By that I've had on tap, so I got a bottle. The Stone Porter is usually good so we will see how this vanilla bean version tastes like (sounds a bit scary to be honest, but the reviews are pretty good). The SheGöat from the Bruery's Preservation Series is completely new to me. It's a German Weizenbock-style beer. Also, not from the liquor store, but a gift from a friend... Nikka's grain whisky. I was pretty excited when I realized what it was.

Last night's salad was blood oranges, dates, and parmesan. The greens were a mix of baby arugula and freckle lettuce, and the nuts were hazelnuts.

Last night's dinner was local mahi mahi with new potatoes, meyer lemon, and creme fraiche.

Thanks Hassouni. I will do that as the last step if I have too much sediment left.

It will just stay here so the embarrassment is complete. :-) Very nice summary. Seems like an interesting clientele too. Could it be the Harry Palmer? Or was it gin-based?

I bought some really nice ginger and started my first batch of falernum last night. I used Adam E's recipe. I could not justify buying more bottles of rum (cabinets are already overflowing) so I went with Bacardi for the white, in an attempt to finish a Costco-size bottle which I inherited and has been collecting dust for years, and Whaler's for the dark. We will see how it goes. What does everyone use to filter? I was going to use a fine metal strainer followed by a nylon mesh, similar to what I've been doing for orgeat.

Sadly the public market is now closed. With its difficult location, it never really took off. Thankfully, there are still plenty of excellent farmers' markets in San Diego.

With the suspended fruit technique, you mostly get the essential oils from the skin rather than the bitter compounds from the pith that you extract when you immerse the whole citrus. There is something in France called "confiture de vieux garçon " (old bachelor's macerated fruits) which is basically a maceration of whole fruit in eau de vie. Delicious and pretty too, as you can build various fruit layers in your jar. That's typically done with done with stone fruit and berries though, not citrus.

From the bill:

Here are more details about the scope of this new safety law (from this document from the California Restaurant Association):

A new food safety law became effective this year in California which requires cooks to wear single-use gloves (or use utensils) when handling any "ready-to-eat" ingredients. See this article in the LA Times and also this one about the impact on bartenders. This means that cooks will have to use gloves or utensils to plate dishes, or that sushi chefs will have to handle fish and cooked rice with gloves. It also means that bartenders will need to wear gloves when handling ice and garnishes. Cooking is a very tactile experience and I can imagine how much frustration this is going to generate for cooks (and bartenders). I will be curious to see how this gets implemented. The article mentions that there may be circumstances under which an exemption is granted ("Restaurants can apply for an exemption by fulfilling strict requirements for training and written guidelines") - hopefully that can help minimize the impact.

Karl Strauss Full Suit Belgian Brown Ale. Malty, a little sweet. Pretty good but not unforgettable by any means. I like this quote from their press release:

Apparently the same technique can be used to make limoncello. See this article in the NYT with a recipe. They use Everclear and suspend the whole lemons for ~ nine weeks.

I imagine that the alcohol vapors solubilize some of the aromatic compounds in the fruit and then condense back into the liquid.

Taketsuru, terrible? Really? What didn't you like about it?

Reviewing my list from last year... I think I've achieved my goal regarding cocktail experimentation and tiki drinks (cf. the Spirits & Cocktails forum). I've made bread regularly, including fougasse, Italian semolina bread, and a bunch of others, but haven't made sourdough yet. I got distracted and did not make confitures, caramels, or vinegar in 2013. I hope to do that this year. Adding to the list: make falernum, perfect my ravioli technique, and learn more fabulous chocolate tricks thanks to the eG workshop. Also I really want to make duck confit and this may be an excuse to buy an Anova... we shall see.

Mischief from The Bruery, a Belgian-style strong ale which is part of their year-round lineup. A little tart/acidic at first, which took me by surprise. Then some sweetness and depth in the finish with a good flavor from the hops. Overall it feels light while being very interesting. I think it pairs well with food and will buy it again for sure (it sells for less than $10 for 750 mL).

From the duty free store at the Narita airport. I tried to find a bottle of Miyagikyo but they did not have any. Their Suntory selection was better than Nikka. So I went with Hibiki 12 (could not pass it up at $30) & 17 years.

Favorite drinks with genever (a bunch already mentioned by Rafa & Hassouni) - John Collins, Southside, Death in the Gulf Stream, Improved Holland Gin Cocktail, Daniel Eun's Ice Pick, and like Hassouni my favorite one is probably Eric Alperin's Holland Razor Blade (I use piment d'espelette in mine). There are more ideas in the Genever thread.

If it's anything like the 40°, it should make a really nice daiquiri...

Beautiful! I bet the kids were delighted.

Egg wash (the same used to glaze the galette).

I am sure that it's ok given the extreme conditions... What kind of sour did you end up making (base liquor)?

Hi Franci!If I were you, for simplicity I would bake the galettes the night before, and reheat them in the morning if you get a chance. Galette des rois is better still warm from the oven, but when I lived in France we just bought it from the neighborhood bakery and reheated it before eating it. Frangipane vs. almond cream - aren't they essentially the same thing? For me, 1 box of puff pastry is only enough for one galette (I use one sheet for the top, and the other for the bottom). Last year I used a box of Pepperidge Farm puff pastry sheets (~ 500 grams) and the galette yielded about 8 slices, or maybe 10 small slices for kids. For 27 kids I think you will need at least 3 galettes, maybe 4 if you want some for the teacher and for yourself! Regarding the cooking temperature, I went with Anne Willan's recommendation of 20-25 min at 425F/220C until brown, then 375F/190C for another 15-20 min. Her recipe is available here on google books. That's the one I use every year.

It looks like flower petals. Hibiscus?