gfron1

Caviar are a snap if your solutions are correct. And with the 96 dropper, you can have thousands of caviar in minutes. I did chocolate caviar a few months back on a tuile - yummy! The ravioli I haven't had as much luck with. That's definitely technique. You can get the Lochness monster pretty easily but you'll need to work on the ravioli.

From today's NYT

I think this could be a top 10 most difficult eGullet request! What about a pavlova sweetened with stevia? That would be really pretty, would have no flour or sugar, just sweetened meringued egg whites and fresh fruit. If you wanted the custard filling, then you could use a mascarapone, again sweetened with stevia.

As I walk away with tail between legs, I'll have to delve into the numerous coffee and espress topics in the forum to get up to speed. The irony is Kevin Knox (Coffee Basics) is a good friend and he was always trying to get me to appreciate good coffee...it was a vain attempt.

I'm embarassed to ask since to me a good coffee has caramel and chocolate and whipped cream and sprinkles... (you get the idea), but what's the difference then between a Palombini and a Peet's - knowing that Peet's roasts to order and has an Italian roast and Espresso roast.

I was thinking the same thing. Its funny that there might be interest in an American bakery in a city (Paris) that most people think of as the gold standard when it comes to bakeries. Either way, good luck and keep us posted on your success!

The chocolate chip cookie Bake-Off would be a great starting point .

Check out this and other topics on the subject in past posts.

Ultimately that's your decision. You know your market and competition best. If you can pull off a 10%, then great...who knows though, you may be able to get more, or may end up less. The key is knowing your true cost for every truffle that leaves that shop so you can price from there.

I'm no rice expert and I would suggest you check out this topic or this one. I use hitomobore for sushi, and I was once told by a customer that Calrose included talc. I have no confirmation of that. But I have always assumed calrose was a poor man's sushi rice since its more readily accessible at the grocery store.

This topic is cracking me up! The peppermint story reminds me of many chili pepper miscalculations (but I'll leave those to another topic).

We've got that eGullet synergy happening here! Great idea Vanessa. How long would a tuile stay dry? Depends. I've done some that are more sugar based such as this one It stayed dry forever. But I've done others that are more like crisp, thin sugar cookies which would absorb the cake moisture. Either way, I would decorate right before serving to maximize the crunch. Besides the mouth-hurt factor, I went in this direction because of the mouth-glue factor. I hate having my teeth stuck together.

Thanks for all of the replies. I really appreciated the illusion to a karate belt (albeit a joke) because just as I wouldn't wear a black belt into a studio unless I had earned it, I didn't want to step into the kitchen misrepresenting myself. I'll get the whites and put a duct tape name badge that says, "NOT A CHEF" that way there will be full disclosure. Thanks again.

Anna, I also wanted to congratulate you on a beautiful dessert. Its funny because I made a saffron mousse and wanted to decorate it with a pine nut brittle (very similarly to what you did), and had the exact same problem. I wanted the texture contrast, but it ended up being painful in the mouth. I've leaned toward tuile/cookies or other items for that reason.

Great - this will make a little girl very happy! She really wants certain flavors, and now it looks like she can have them.

I sell it at my store, but I've never used it. I think the fragility of regular phyllo would be compounded with whole wheat. If I ever get the motivation I'll do something basic and post the results.

I certainly agree with you that quality should match the prices. I'm still not quite in agreement on the coffee machine. You said espresso machine which to me implies multi thousand dollar piece of imported hardware that's not easily fixed or replaced on a weekend. You have enough legitimate concerns that I'd give them an inch on the coffee.

Are there any rules for what someone should/can wear in the kitchen related to how it relates to training and education. As a self-taught, untrained person, are there any chef's jackets/shirts that would be inappropriate for me to wear in my commercial kitchen?

The recipe I have calls for: 1 C. Sugar 1/3 C. Light Corn Syrup 1/2 C. Water 1/2 t. Flavoring Can I substitute a flavored syrup like my Armenian sour cherry syrup? I have all sorts of fun syrups but I need to know if they would work. I'm open to any recipes. Thanks.

A specialth item! Geez, I use mine 3-5 mornings for eggs, and probably every night for something...I even throw in a lunch here or there. Sarcasm aside, these aren't marketed for the commerical kitchen - they are marketed for home use, so they should be judged for the use they were intended...and I still say that mine looks today just like it did when I got it, and performs the same too.

Before I understood the technology, I sent back a pan that had lines on the bottom. I now describe them as the marks you see after you run your fingers over velvet - you can see them but no difference in feel. There was nothing wrong with my pan, and they sent me a brand new one - no questions asked.

I think that's more a customer service issue. I've sent pans back to a number of companies over the years. Some argue with you and some just say 'here's a new pan' My experience is that SD leans toward - here's the new pan.

Or better yet - let her watch Ace of Cakes - give her some colored fondant and let her play in the corner.

So, I thought it might be time for some group therapy. Okay, actually I need it. A friend asked me to provide snacks for a big training tomorrow (for therapists), and so I thought, "Great! I'll make my favorite scones and a batch of Ling's brownies." But my mom is in town and I didn't want to ignore her. So I asked if she would make the brownies (its just following a recipe right?). She had some hesitation in her answer so I did all of the mixing. All she had to do is divide the batter between the pans and bake it while I was out doing something else. I came back and sure enough, she had burned the bottoms. Argghhh! What was worse is that she thought they were perfect - so she didn't even know what she had done. I of course wondered if I wasn't adopted. I don't have time to do another batch, so now my friend and 25 therapists, who have been hyped up about me making the food, are going to think I can't even make a pan of brownies! I'm done whining...just give me an "Awe" and I'll shut up now. Who's next for their therapy session?

I've bought 3 freezers and 2 coolers in the past 2 years and acitydiscount.com has consistently been the best price for the equipment. There shipping isn't bad, but always check on freightquote.com for comparable shipping prices. Acity is a regular ebay merchant so you can start there as well.