Waterzoy

I have a celeriac for this evening. It will be going into a gratin with some potatoes. I thought I might throw the top into into the stockpot with some other vegetables for a vegetable stock.

Hi. I hope a British fairy cake is permitted on this thread. I made these for my daughters this afternoon for when they got home from school. The most common topping for this style of cake in the UK is icing sugar mixed with water and whatever colouring you fancy. I used pink because it appeals to my girls and the decorations on the top are sugared rose and violet sweets. I love the swirls of buttercream frosting on some of the cakes in this thread - they look wonderful. Here are mine from earlier.

I have always loved this verse from 'The Eve of St Agnes', by John Keats. And still she slept an azure-lidded sleep, In blanched linen, smooth, and lavender'd, While he forth from the closet brought a heap Of candied apple, quince, and plum, and gourd; With jellies soother than the creamy curd, And lucent syrops, tinct with cinnamon; Manna and dates, in argosy transferr'd From Fez; and spiced dainties, every one, From silken Samarcand to cedar'd Lebanon.

We had a very nice Gewurztraminer as recommended by Jackal10 this evening and it was just right with the salmon. Thanks for the advice. I wouldn't have thought of sherry....it sounds intriguing. I'll experiment with this and also with the vodka. Thanks again.

I have just bought a French sauvignon blanc following the advice of my local wine merchant to be serve with blinis, smoked salmon and a dollop of soured cream. I'm not sure whether this recommendation is the best though. Is there a more appropriate wine match that anyone can think of? Thanks.

White rice

Andie....thanks for pointing out these UK sources....much appreciated.

Whisky......often used to add some 'bite' to marmalade.

I guess my kitchen work surfaces are part of the problem as they are tiled and if I stick it to a melamine tray I then have problems with that skating about. I agree a clamp would be much better. I didn't do much research when I bought mine so I didn't really think about the problems I might have with it....I just assumed the one I bought would be fine. I am now weighing up spending a bit more and getting an electric one. The US models recommended in the thread I posted earlier looked great but the weight of them would make shipping from the US quite a daunting expense. I have put this on the back burner for myself for the moment but I did see that you can get a Moulinex for about £60 in John Lewis. The KitchenAid attachment is about the same price I think. I'm now going to investigate clamp hand-helds as well. I hadn't come across that sort before. Rachel

I got mine online from Lakeland ← I saw some in John Lewis on Saturday. Divertimenti do have some. Check out this link. https://www.divertimenti.co.uk/epages/Diver...Product/View/49

I have a cheap counter top meat grinder that I really hate using. My need is also for grinding small amounts maybe once or twice a week, but even this level of use is a real chore....I find it hard work to grind, the suction pad is hopeless for my work surfaces and I always end up with a bruise on the heel of my hand where I've been trying to hold it still and grind at the same time. It is however very easy to clean. The brand is Kitchencraft and it was about £15. I asked for advice here a week or so ago about buying either an attachment for my kitchen aid or getting an electric one. The link to the thread is below (it got merged with a thread from a couple of years ago). I know you have specifically expressed an interest in a hand held grinder but I thought you might find some useful information this thread anyway. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...20grinder&st=60

I don't know much about kitchen hierachy but I'm sure I've heard the term 'chef de brigade'...maybe this is it.

I made the chocolate and fresh ginger gingerbread today. On the whole I'd say it worked fairly well but I do have a couple of queries that I hope some of you with more baking experience than me might be able to answer. My cake looked much denser than the photo in the book. I am not familiar with the US cup-measuring system and method of measuring butter by sticks and tablespoons, so it's possible that my measuring of ingredients caused a problem. Too much flour, perhaps? Any thoughts? Also, I made some kind of mistake when I was making the icing. It was fine until I got to the gradual whisking in of the butter. At this point the oil separated from the butter and sat on top of the chocolate. Should I have allowed more cooling time for the chocolate before I added the butter? I didn't have enough chocolate in the house to re-do the icing so in the end I drained off the oil and put what was left of the chocolate on top of the cake. Despite the problems I had, though, it does taste great. Here's a photo so you can see the texture. Any suggestions on how I could improve it are welcome.

I'm making the Daube de la St.-André from Paula Wolfert's "The Cooking of South-West France" and I'm following her recipe fairly closely. It's in the oven at the moment, mid-way through the first long, slow cook. These are the spices for the quatre épices. This is the pancetta and parsley/shallots/garlic which, when mixed, are layered with the beef. This is after the addition of the spices, thyme, clove-studded onion and wine, just before it went into the oven.

Thanks Becca.....what you suggested sounds like what I'm after.

Thanks Tracey. The recipe I have in mind is 'Fresh ginger and chocolate gingerbread' from the newest Dorie Greenspan book.

I have a recipe from a US baking book that calls for 'molasses (not Blackstrap)'. I am not sure what the equivalent would be that I could buy in the UK. I'm guessing that Blackstrap molasses are similar to what we call 'treacle' which is extremely thick, black and often used in dark, sticky gingerbreads. I assume that molasses must be something lighter, more syrupy than thick and perhaps a bit sweeter than treacle. Can anyone enlighten me as to what I could substitute for molasses? Thanks.

Admin: threads merged. I want to get a meat grinder - does anyone have any opinions on the meat attachment for the KitchenAid or whether I'd be better off with a separate machine altogther, either manual or electric? I'm looking for the best tool for the job rather than aiming to save kitchen space. Also, what is the most appropriate cut of beef to be mincing for use in meatballs, burgers etc.

There is more information on mandolines in the thread below. Gifted Gournet in post no. 5 has included links to more threads. Hope this helps. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=85964&hl=bron

Mine is a Bron Coucke and it is superb. They are expensive in the UK but I had a look on Froogle and the US prices seem to be a lot lower. Have a look here http://froogle.google.com/froogle?q=mandol...=Search+Froogle

'La Bonne Cuisine' by Madame Saint Ange has been translated into English fairly recently. It's a great guide to French cooking and a very entertaining read.

I'd like to add my thanks to Dorie Greenspan and to everyone involved in this Spotlight Conversation. I'm new to eGullet and a fairly inexperienced baker and I have found Dorie's responses and the subsequent member posts really informative and interesting....baking seems a lot less threatening. It has been an engrossing read. Thanks again to all.

You might also find that the manufacturer has a contact number for recipe advice. I have a Panasonic breadmaker and called their recipe advice line for help on adapting a recipe for the machine I have. They were very helpful generally and the advice I received was spot on.

Thanks James and Phaelon....your advice is appreciated.

Thank you both.....I'm pleased to have your thoughts.