dougal

Interesting thought. In the UK, the market-dominant Kenwood Chef and Major mixers (sold under the deLonghi badge in the USA) have very recently started shipping with a fourth mixer tool (in addition to the traditional dough hook, whisk and "K-beater" (somewhat equivalent to the KA paddle). That 4th tool is a "flexible beater", its "wings" scraping the bowl sides... Click here. and Kenwood themselves say An interesting thought.

There's more about it *here* on the Telegraph site ... ← April fools day joke guys ← Y'know, I sometimes wonder if its worth putting links in posts, since people really don't seem to click on them...

There's more about it *here* on the Telegraph site ...

Collagen is very much an animal-origin product. However, you're in good company - from The Cooks Book, Ferran Adria appears to be of the opinion that ordinary Gelatine is suitable for vegetarians ...

However, McSweens "Vegetarian" Haggis is actually according to the small print on the label "suitable for vegans". It has an inedible (plastic?) casing. The content may be meat-free, and pleasure-lite, but its edible. And has some nutritive value. However, sadly, I think one's chances of finding a "white pudding" (or mealie pudding as I once knew them) with a Vegan casing (never mind content) is going to be pretty slim. And the linked Anstruther Fish Bar website says "Puddings, prime Scottish haggis, sausage and steak pies are obtained from our supplier of 25 years (John Dow of Dundee) ..." which really doesn't sound terribly hopeful for Vegans. (John Dow even seems to be so traditional as not to have a web presence...) Scotland isn't going to be particularly easy in restaurants of any kind!

But just 2,790 from the UK !! (And looking for "vegan puff pastry" - with the quotes - from the UK, brings up just... 20 hits... )

Excellent post from jackal10. However, is it fair not to mention that laverbread, er, isn't bread? Good stuff, local speciality, in itself vegan... In the UK, its not too hard to find decent vegetarian food. But vegan is quite a bit rarer. And it would be a very helpful mistake to imagine that, for example, waiters in ethnic restaurants could be relied upon to know the detailed difference. For example, most Indian restaurants would likely be using Ghee... (a butter derivative). The most likely place to find food and an understanding of your preference is going to be in a vegetarian restaurant, where they should at least be able to tell you correctly what is vegan and what isn't. If you know where you are headed, then phone ahead and warn them! You should get some sort of feel at that stage as to wheher you ought to be phoning somewhere else! As for the "white puddin'" (aka mealie puddin') shouldn't that be made with copious quantities of lard? (Or can it be confidently assumed these days to be either artery clogging trans-fats or eco-nasty palm oil?)

It never occurred to me that my gardening problem might be a commercial crop! Various ideas here (and elsewhere on that site) http://www.downsizer.net/Projects/Finding_...inging_Nettles/

It was a distant memory of that page that was stirred when I first saw this thread. The important thing is to be realistic about what you might achieve with the smoke from approximately a half inch cube of sawdust, with the heat having to come from the sawdust burning. Such things are fine for presentational effect, such as in the link posted by jmfangio. BUT, I'm sorry to say its simply not realistic to think of such a thing as being effective for smoking bacon, ham, fish... other than, just maybe, one slice at a time. For cold smoking, one doesn't need particularly dense smoke, but one does need smoke for some hours. Getting smoke for hours, on a domestic scale, without much heat, and without constant attention, frankly isn't totally simple. Or else its a bit expensive. The simplest domestic cold-smoking route would seem to be Bradley's smoke generator module, connected with a couple of yards of (heat-shedding) ducting to your smoking chamber. However, at UK prices, apart from the initial cost of the unit, those pucks would have a significant cost per hour for non-commercial use. I'm having some success with a home-made contraption using an aquarium pump to provide a constant supply of (and the only supply of) combustion air. I can get an hour and a half of completely unattended cold smoking using fine oak sawdust. I'm going to try coarser dust and/or a higher pressure pump... ... my thinking is that while the combustion air volume limits the burner area (and hence the amount of smoke and heat), the pump's maximum pressure sets the limit to the depth of dust that it can maintain airflow through - and hence the stock of fuel, so the duration of the burn. Similarly coarser dust would be more air permeable (so stackable deeper for the same pressure) and ought to be slower burning, both of which effects should extend the time before refilling.

There are lots of things going on. Allowing the flour to peacefully hydrate without the presence specifically of salt (and ideally yeasts) gets the gluten formation off to a really good start - without kneading. (However, if using 'wet' sourdough starters, or yeasted preferments, to get enough water for the autolyse, the starter has to be added in...) This fairly brief rest, after initial very basic mixing only, is the "autolyse" of Prof Calvel. (Google is your friend.) Leaving flour and water together for a period of hours gives a chance for enzyme action, in the absence of yeasts. This "paves the way" for the yeasts (making more simple sugars available, for example). However, most flour has traces of natural yeasts, and given enough time, you'll get the beginnings of fermentation that could lead to a sourdough culture (or a rotting mess). So the first bit, a half hour or so, is about autolyse. Overnight adds more enzyme actions. Several days and you are going to have some fermentation/rotting from yeasts and bacteria. Peter Reinhart's latest book - Whole Grain Breads - is actually about his attempts to control and channel natural enzyme activity to create non-brick and flavoursome wholemeal breads. He has an approach of making different "pre-doughs" allowing them to do their different things in isolation and combining them only shortly before baking - so as to minimise their interactions. Typically one pre-dough would be enzymatic and the other yeasted (whether wild or commercial). Its an intriguing and distinctly unconventional approach. Its not as though Reinhart has invented preferments, soakers or mashes. (Or claims to!) What he has done is explain how (and why) they can be used in specific ways to produce specific results. And that's interesting. There's a discussion of the interaction between salt and gluten (and lots more, naturally) in Emily Buehler's book "Bread Science" http://www.twobluebooks.com/book.php

There might be a couple of misunderstandings there. One is about the nature of the EdgePro's 'pre-set' angles. As Chad wrote in the tutorial: - "The {EdgePro's} angle guide is continuously adjustable for any angle, with marks at 10, 15, 18, 21 and 25 degrees. " Its not as though these marked "pre-set angles" might limit you. Its continuously variable. You want to do 17° rather than 15°, just set it. Ummm. I don't think this is exactly easy to do entirely by hand and eye. I'm really not sure what you might mean by "a sharper edge ... than ... with the pre-set angles". As Chad wrote in the tutorial: - "Sharpness is not just a function of creating a super-thin edge that will readily sever free-hanging nose hairs; it’s also a function of shape and intended purpose. You could grind your chef’s knife to razor thinness, but the edge would crumble the first time you hit a bone or tried to hammer your way through a winter squash. Your knife would be sharp but useless. Similarly, a razor sharp but wedge-thick edge is great on a splitting axe but not much good for carpaccio." The EdgePro would allow you to sharpen to an impracticably narrow included angle. But that isn't what its about. The EdgePro system is about maintaining a constant angle (at whatever angle you have chosen) rather than having you try to maintain that angle "freehand". Chad's sharpening tutorial *is* long. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=26036 But its well worth the time to read.

Yes, that's it. I know you were all enthusiastic but I was wondering how they hold up after being used for some time. ... ← I have one. Northern Tool badged, but bought from sausagemaking.org in the UK. Works a treat. There are just three areas of (extremely mild) concern. -- The crank gear is plastic. Seems solid, but some have somehow managed to break it. IMHO you'd need to apply seriously excessive pressure to do that - and to apply that force when the piston has reached the end of its travel. No problem at all unless you were very ham-fisted. -- I have a bit of tarnish on the basic but effective air vent "valve". It'll be easy to improve/upgrade that bit. -- I reckon the big plastic nut that holds the stuffing nozzle in place might be the life-determining component. But, treated nicely, and stored out of sunlight, it should last for many years. And its something a metalworking shop could replicate or replace simply enough. I'm sure its a standard off-the-shelf item. Maybe I should ask a plumber... It turns out to be no bother to crank the piston back up again (since its missing a quick release mechanism). I put a thin wash-sponge under the thing and then clamp it to the kitchen worktop, rather than bolting the base to anything (as seems intended). I'm pleased with the custom-made stainless steel (parallel not tapered) stuffing tubes I had the opportunity of acquiring - though they are by no means necessary. After you have just once used such a thing, you wouldn't want to use a nozzle on the front of a mincer - ever again!

Hmmmm. It may be pure coincidence, but aaguirrejr's $300 budget does exactly match an EdgePro Apex Kit 3 (which includes a diamond 'steel' and much else) ... EDIT its $200, but £150 ($300) by the time it gets to the UK... sorry! http://edgeproinc.com/ And Toufas might be interested in the video there, the comments here (with a few notable exceptions ) and Chad's comments in the mega eGullet Sharpening Tutorial - http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=26036

It would be sensible to start with water from a place where the quality is checked. In Europe (EU) there are designated 'Blue Flag' bathing beaches where analysis of the water quality is posted, demonstrating that the water quality is both monitored and safe. But in the process of removing the water, we will concentrate not only the salt, but also any undesirable stuff... Filtering it, as finely as you can, seems a sensible step to start with. As does boiling it, at least at some stage of the process. Using solar heating for the bulk of the evaporation saves lots of energy. The slower you evaporate it, the bigger the crystals. There may be (purity, flavour, health?) benefits in - dumping the first crystals/scum to come out of solution - not evaporating to dryness (dumping the last stuff that hasn't come out of solution) - washing the collected crystals with brine that has reached saturation - and baking the final salt in the oven (thats hotter than you'd get in the sun) to ensure that one has dealt with any bio-nasties that might have got through

10g of fresh (compressed, "cake") yeast is broadly equivalent to 4g of active dried or 3g of instant. I said "broadly" equivalent, because 'fresh' doesn't really store well - it loses potency. It should be used as fresh as possible. Which is why dried yeasts were invented... Freezing. Hamelman says: You can increase the quantity to make up the rising power, but you get more yeast taste - and with more dead yeast, (like 'active dried') more glutathione (which weakens gluten - good for pizza, not so good for bread).UK labelling law is quite demanding. Check the ingredients on the various 'instant' yeasts. Doves Farm and Allinsons are just yeast with a miniscule addition of surfactant to help them dissolve easily. (And IIRC Allinson's also has a touch of Vitamin C {ascorbic acid, approved as E300}, which is fine by me.) However McDougalls (I noted recently) is well loaded with a serious cocktail of "improvers". This is *NOT* evident from the 'large print' branding. You need to look at the small print ingredients listing. Well worth checking. But the (essentially) straight instant yeast is excellent stuff, albeit more expensive to use than fresh - but the cost difference should be insignificant in the domestic context, not least when storage life and convenience are factored in. Incidentally, Elizabeth David tells that 'fresh' (compressed) yeast was initially presumed by many bakers to be dried -- previously they'd only had liquid yeasts, whether as creams or barm. So when hot air dried yeast was later invented, they presumably couldn't just call it 'dried'. And so I presume they called it "actively dried", because of the hot air. But the heating does kill a significant proportion of the yeast cells. So glutathione, yeasty taste... "Instant" yeasts are the same stuff, but dried without killing so many cells. (My guess would be a low pressure process.) Last point. Precision in yeast quantity only makes sense if you have time and temperature precision. Generally, domestic manual bakers don't, so yeast and temperature imprecision can be adjusted for by varying the time allowed for rising/fermenting... However breadmaking machines should be consistent in their times and temperatures, and so need more precise quantities of standard activity yeast. Hence the individual, measured and protective packets...

Purely for the avoidance of doubt, let it be noted that McVitie's is (nowadays) a biscuit brand owned by United Biscuits - with many different products. http://www.biscuits.com/80256C1A0047922E/vWeb/pcTSTT5EPGEC Their "Digestive" biscuits are a traditional British favourite (whether naked or with one side covered in chocolate - and available either with milk or plain (ie dark) chocolate) Crushed, the uncoated biscuits would be a classic British base for a cheesecake... But I wouldn't imagine them improving other cakes. And personally, I prefer McVitie's "Hobnobs" (with their rougher and fractionally chewy texture - from some rolled grains) to the basic Digestives.

Really, yes. Its easier, and much more accurate. Hence more consistent - particularly between different bakers. Thus weight measurements are a better means of communicating a recipe. A digital scale can be accurate, precise and cheap - about £8 in the UK - say SF15 or $15? I'm sure you could pay lots more. You needn't. Learn to use the 'Tare' function, and you'll love it. Don't !! Its much better to use the measurements as given. The reason for the variation is that the quantity of flour that fits into a cup depends on who is filling it, the type of flour, etc. Its the actual concept of a "cup" of flour that is imprecise, hence the variability. Technically, the variation arises because the packing density of flour is variable, and unspecified. Have you noticed that flour is *always* sold by weight, never volume? Even in the USA. Ask yourself why that might be...

I think this is a mistaken understanding. The "phenolic" (plastic) knobs on the lids of many LC casseroles are limited to 450F (which is kinda high for casserole cooking). The enamel is of course happy to go way, way higher... Personally, I like the short metal handle on my LC 'Grillit' as it makes it very simple to transfer the entire pan to the oven when I want to 'cook through' as well as to sear/brand the food... I wouldn't want a ridged pan with a handle that wasn't oven safe. It almost goes without saying that this sort of cooking does produce greasy smoke, and so is inevitably a severe test of your extractor fan, despite one's best efforts to minimise the amount of loose liquid! Oil the food, not the pan...

I have a Le Creuset. It isn't easy to clean back to like new. But I learned that's not the way to go. The idea is to just gently wipe it out, like a wok. Not to bother, or worry about scrubbing it hard. And, over time, let it build up an internal non-stick patina.

No! "Active dried" yeast has got fewer live yeast cells per gram than the easyblend stuff. So you have to use more of the 'active' stuff. About 1/3 more. And, as above, you need to 'start' the "active dried" rather than simply mixing it with the flour.

Should have mentioned earlier that I believe 'ordinary' weekends are fully booked for about a month ahead...

Is this really "two nations divided by a common language" again? In the UK, instant/easyblend/breadmachine yeast is sold in 6 or 7g packets - as being a "breadmaking machine dose". There are several of these packets inside an outer cardboard box to make an approximately £1 sale item. (Its also available in bigger single packs too - look out for Allinson's in UK supermarkets.) However "active dry" (or active dried) yeast is the older type of stuff, in coarser pellets, which needs 'starting' in its own warm water and is not suited to breadmaking machines, and so it is not sold in single dose tiny packets. Also, now that I know (from Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain and from Emily Buehler) that the coarser "active dry" yeast is much higher in glutathione (promoting a weaker but more extensible gluten), I have another reason for never, ever using it. Personally, I'd be astonished if your recipe was calling for anything other than a 6 or 7g pack of instant/easyblend (breadmaking machine) type yeast.

I suggested that only because my reading of the brief tells you to do exactly that ! If you manage to come up with an entirely new product category, how do you get a "more eco" comparison, when you have nothing existing to compare it against? Do yourself a favour, bounce that question off one of your teachers. Unlike Option3 of last year's competition, ( 07 link ), this year's brief ( 08 link )seems to make no reference at all to product basic functionality innovation. However, the 2008 brief is *entirely* about designing eco-innovation - in manufacturing, in service, and in disposal. Its about being original specifically in reducing energy consumption (in materials, manufacturing and in use), increasing recyclability, and originality of choice of materials (like how much can be made from recycled stuff and biomaterials) - and what you can come up with for attractive and protective eco-packaging. And demonstrating that you understand the manufacturing implications (ie costs) of "thinking different". I read it as marks to be awarded for good eco-comparisons, and no marks at all publicly on offer for product category/functionality innovation - as such - fun though that might be. Natho, I've tried to help you. It only remains to wish you good luck.

WOOOOAAAH there! As a Designer, the most important thing is to read the brief. Carefully. Here it is: Now, where about in the brief does it say that the product must (or even should) address some "gap in the market"? It seems to me that the brief is ALL about designing a *better* mousetrap. Not finding another creature to trap. This competition is ALL about design, not at all about fundamental product function innovation. If you want to appeal to Breville, reference an *existing* Breville product category. (Hey, like the sandwich toaster...) And then design a *better* one - with better being defined specifically in terms of Eco credentials, particularly relating to the headings given, though you might find others to add, like a reduced water requirement...

Do try the Sportsman's sister The Granville at Lower Hardes (direction Hythe just outside Canterbury). Maybe The Dove at Dargate? You might care to try The Goods Shed in Canterbury for somewhere unusual, if not IMHO as good as it was soon after opening - but good shopping too. There's Read's at Faversham...