gfron1

You can make a curd without butter?! I use a zipped up version of Amernick's Lime Curd which I have made into a number of flavors. Its very good and very easy. thanks for the link.

I've recently had a rash of folks who want to buy my lemon curd. Great! But, I really can't keep doing it to order with my schedule. Has anyone made a curd that either has an extended life in the fridge, or better yet, shelf stable? Is the citric acid that Kerry had me get going to be my key? ~Puckeringly yours!

Is that ever true! Its not an issue of day of the week, but time of the day. Yesterday was all about Greek salads...I'm sure its because of my cute little cucumber swirl garnish

I was just thinking..."She wouldn't be asking if she had one of those now would she." So here's how I do it when I don't have my wire handy. I typically work from frozen since its sturdier (not necessary). Then, I use a bread knife for the serrated edges (they also tend to be longer). I score, aim for the center (if I can't go all the way through), and cut around the cake going only to the center. Eventually you come to the beginning. One other method if you have enough knife length - lay some guides on the table on two sides of the cake (confection frames are great or dowels, etc). and let them be your guide. I hope something helps.

I can't for the life of my cut straight with a knife so I bought a wire cutter and its been a godsend. I wish they made them longer for my big cakes.

I don't think we're getting anything surprising, just this special cover and the sigs. As many others have said, a few extra days and paying full price is hardly a concern in comparison to what we'll receive.

yeah, a few days are easily justified to me with these perks.

The CI recipe is exactly what I was looking for - thanks. I'll try Nyleve's recipe on my next batch for comparisons sake. Hot crumble coming out of the oven in 2 minutes - just in time for breakfast.

Thanks for these suggestions - he's working on reservations as I type.

Pam reminded me of two other things. First, there are buyers groups that they can join. I haven't found their prices worth the membership, but its an option. The main perk is that you can buy in smaller lots if you don't want to get cases - not an issue for most stores. The other is that many of my suppliers are giving shipping breaks right now because of the economy. I just had one of my favorite suppliers, Ritrovo Regional Italian Foods, give me a freight break because they know that's the sole reason I haven't ordered from them in a while.

Not too unusual - olive oil and thyme. Or my personal creation - celery, white chocolate, dried olives...yummmmm

I should add that there is nothing better your friend can do than get to the NY Fancy Food Show next summer. That's where they will meet all of the people they need to meet.

Sounds exactly like what I am doing. Realize that location means a lot in this question. If your friend is in a major city, things change, but here's my response anyway. I deal with some 80+ producers/manufacturs v. distributors. I deal with less than a dozen distributors. The plus is price and relationship. The negative is my time. I often have reps call me only when their month is short and not when I need them so I try to go directly if at all possible. A good example - I use Harolds Imports for much of my small inventory gadgets (based in NY). I have a rep in Sante Fe. I rarely hear from my rep, yet the get a cut of all of my purchases - why? As far as "negotiating your price," that depends how big of a store this will be. I don't have much negotiating power unfortunately. This goes back to relationships. Many of my supplier "Friends" will email me when inventory runs low or if they have something that they'll be putting on discount shortly to allow me to beat the rush. A few specifics from the northeast: Taste of Crete ExV Olive oil - my absolute favorite for taste, value, packaging...Esther is a gem. European Imports out of Chicago had a nice overall selection but can be pricey. Raja Foods is my go-to Indian distributor Chicago Importing Company for European goodies. Carl Brandt for mass produced high quality sweets. This could go on forever, so let me know specifics and I'll share what I can. Cheese - Cheeseworks East, unbeatable selection. Peters Imports - When I need specialty foods but don't want to buy too many. They're a bit more expensive but I meet a lot of customer requests through them. I avoided some of your topics because I get them from the west coast and I have no doubt that you'll have better sources in NYC or NJ.

I'm in my 5th year. You're a different shipping zone, but I have a lot of distributors on your end of the country. What do you want to know?

You can find a discussion HERE in the Vosges thread. The bars can be found at most gourmet stores and directly through vosges' website.

My spouse is heading to Cleveland tomorrow and is staying at the Radisson Gateway (651 Huron). He's looking for a nice Friday night dinner, preferably walking distance. Light on the pocket, but no food restrictions. He eats it all. A place with wine would be nice. Any suggestions?

Not even sure if that's what they are, but imagine a fifty cent piece lying down with a 3" toothpick standing staight up out of it, and the whole thing being one piece of metal. It comes in pastry tip kits often times. But forget all that, just be creative - why not a wire coat hanger bent to fit around the pan. Skewers brought together and tied with a twisty tie. You have something at home that will let you sleep well

Every day I retard for baking in the morning. My bread (which isn't as fragile) goes on parchment on a standard baking sheet. I cover it with a kitchen garbage bag. To keep the bag from touching I use an elevated cooling wire rack LIKE THESE that stands above the dough. I've also had to get creative and find things to hold the bag up like cones, skewers, etc.. One tool that has come in handy is that little pastry tip cleaning stand or the pate choux filler tip. Good luck.

Zyllis doesn't make the pull cord anymore - only the pumps. And I've had so many pump spinners returned that I've stopped ordering them for my store.

That's right! I'll make you a batch to celebrate your visit And Theresa - you can post recipes if you put them in your own words. The list of ingredients can be verbatim, but the instructions can't. I'll try the site again in the meantime. Or, you can PM me the recipe. Thanks.

Well, for what its worth, here's my castagnaccio pre-baking And the same after baking And my face pre-swallow And the same after swallowing We've revised our love-child description. If Lapsong Souchong had sex with Elmer's Paste, this would be the love child. Enjoy!

Great! Thanks guys. I'll let you know how it turns out.

I'm looking for a topping like you would find on mass bakery coffee cakes. HERE'S an image of what I'm shooting for. My toppings are tasty but I want to recreate this texture that has so much appeal and comfort to customers. Can someone share a recipe please. Thanks.

I remember a topic a year or two ago when a bunch of us tested the measure of our measuring devices. We found that they varied wildly. Well, after finding a lost 9x13 in my kitchen this morning I pulled out a measuring tape only to learn that my beloved 9x13 was actually 9.25x12.75. I demand a Congessional investigation! I want a multi-national intervention to regulate these shinanigans!

I can find a use for anything and I had a good price...always the bargain hunter. I made the castagnaccio, and it was the godawfulestmostdisgustingcrap ever! Don't take it personally Andie. I think what happened is that my flour is from roasted chestnuts and so my cake/tart tasted like if smoked bacon had sex with Elmer's paste...this was its love child. Oddly enough it was fairly decent with a bottle of pinot grigio. As Tyler said, "It's not horrid, but it is the second worst thing you've ever made." (The first being the infamous rose water trifle incident of 2005.)