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Beth Wilson

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Everything posted by Beth Wilson

  1. A few years back my little sister found herself in the midst of a divorce, going to school and raising 3 kids. She helped organize a group of people in the same predicament to get together and cook in a community centre kitchen. The cost was $5 - $10 per person and a vegetable or cheese item. The menu was pre-planned and the $ went towards the meat purchase while each person was given a list of something to bring. Like 10 lbs of potatoes or 5 lbs of carrots. Oh, and you had to bring empty casserole dishes to take home what you made. One of the ladies took turns looking after any of the children brought along, and the rest of the group got a cooking lesson. They all contributed to making a large meal or two. Apparently it was done twice a month with everyone leaving with 2 meals for the family and sometimes a lunch too! She seemed to like the day out with friends while her family got to reap the rewards of a day of cooking. I think community cooking would be a great way to spend the day with friends, just like community gardening has become so popular.
  2. I am glad to hear I am not the only person who has heated up the Maple Syrup only to have it crystallize. I tried doing this years ago and was frustrated with the process. Of course I just took the sugar mass I was left with, cooled it down, threw it in the processor and made some nice maple sugar that goes great as a topping on cappuccinos or sweetener for coffee. I asked a local maple syrup producer who explained that there are different stages of maple syrup flow. The first is very light in flavour and contains a lot of water, as the tree "wakes" and the spring thaw continues then the tree draws up more nutrients from the root system providing the darker colouring and flavour. She explained that the sugar content changes as well and only some of the maple syrup is suitable for toffees. Unfortunately I can't remember which sugar stages were more suitable for caramel as I was discouraged with my first attempts and was stockpiling a lifetime supply of cappuccino toppings. I will see if the expert is around and can help out again. She made a wicked maple butter but won't share the family recipe with me.
  3. I agree with Kerry on the fresh bread...I also love to see unique condiments like homemade mayo and different mustards. I always like to try something unique I don't have at home . One tip I will pass along on your planning - my friend opened a small deli sandwich shop in a quaint little town and 2 weeks after she opened her doors a chain shop broke ground down the street from her. She did not check with the local planning department to see what developments were in the works for the area. A very costly mistake for her, as she did not last 6 months once it opened. Good luck with your new adventure.
  4. I would say the second most popular fudge I sell in my store in the summer is the chocolate M&M. Make a batch of chocolate fudge, blend in some M&M's and decorate the top. The kids (young & old!) always request a piece with the most M&M's on it. It is probably best to let the fudge cool a bit before adding the M&M's. I purchase the fudge from a local lady so I am not 100% sure when you would add them.
  5. The other day I had something similar happen to me! I went into the store to help a customer who was kind to point out I had a lovely smear of white chocolate on my forehead! Thank goodness for the regular customers who care enough to say something! Of course I am pretty sure the two fellas I served before this kind customer didn't say anything at all so what did they think? Oh well, it could have been worse!
  6. One of the things I remember from my first year was when I purchased my first really big order of chocolate. I don't remember what kind it was but I purchased it from a company I later figured out really didn't specialize in 'nice' chocolate just 'ok' stuff. For my first summer, every batch had lumps that I couldn't get out or the temper didn't hold for very long. I agonized about my choice of business and seriously had doubts about my future of my business. The chocolate was temper-mental!! Finally I took a course, got some decent chocolate and discovered I was pretty good at chocolate making. My regret was not figuring out that I must have been using very old chocolate and should have gone to a professional chocolate supplier in the first place. Convenience and price are not always to your benefit if you are getting substandard product. Of course this was my first order so how was I to know? It was a whole summer of mistakes!
  7. I love this thread! I have to add my little memory of one of the many meals my sisters and I subjected my poor Dad to as we grew up and were learning to cook. One meal sticks out the most, a lazy lasagna dish where the noodles were cut up and mixed with some tomato sauce, cheese and I seem to recall vegetables. My older sister had made the dish all by herself and would not allow any of us in the kitchen to help. It tasted ok but had these unidentified soft white lumpy things in it (not the pasta), but since it was her first attempt at serving the whole family we all quietly ate it. No one had the heart to discourage her from trying again but after dinner we sneaked a peak at the recipe to figure out what those white lumpy things were. The recipe called for 2 tbsp of flour and she misread the recipe and had put in 2 cups of flour. We couldn't help it and kinda had a laugh at her expense but she took it well and has become a great cook after all. Now that we are adults she has been recently diagnosed as dyslexic and we reminisced about how all of these mistakes make sense now! But we still laughed again! They were some pretty big gooey white lumps!!!!
  8. I have a collection of Click Clack airtight storage containers that I keep carrying coffee beans around in from my local roaster. I just get him to grind the coffee right into the container to be environmentally friendly! I have left in the trunk since my last trip into the grocery store one chiller bowl that came out of my ice cream maker. I had lent out some of my cold packs so my ice cream chiller made a great substitute. I am glad you took the topic idea seriously Kerry! This should be interesting!
  9. I used to work with a girl from Dresden, Germany and she did a poppyseed custard cake that was yummy...It wasn't sweet and I seem to recall all of her desserts were more along a coffee cake style. Hope that helps! b
  10. Isn't it funny the things that you learn and wish you had known in the beginning. Like knowing how long certain things take so you learn to start them earlier in the day rather than later. I can't tell you how many times it took extra time to get the chocolate into perfect temper and of course it got later and later into the evening.....who knew that chocolate needed so much tlc. I have been acquiring a nice pile of pans, silpats and spatulas gradually over the years so when I do get the chocolate into temper I don't have to stop and wash up all the time. I have a ton of stuff to load into the dishwasher at the end of the night but at least I didn't have to stop when the chocolate is in temper. I used to loose the temper while I was off cleaning up for my next batch and the frustration was making me rethink my career choice! I love silicon spatulas!
  11. I haven't seen those Ice cream cups in years!!! You mean they are still out there? Not in Northern Ontario... I guess I will have to check next time I am in the city then! I will have to put it on my things to do list! Thanks!
  12. I was a sucker for cracker jack & pink elephant popcorn. I recently tried them lately and for some reason they just didn't satisfy me like they did when I was younger. Why is that? I miss the little cups of ice cream that came with a little wooden spoon on the lid.
  13. Pfeil and Holing have one; they are a commercial distributor near NYC. Here's a link to their item: Handled Dog Bone cookie cutter I like the copper cutters from CopperGifts.com - they make them to order and you could ask about adding a handle to any of their items. I've found they're very nice to work with, and their cutters are rugged enough to stand up to commercial abuse.... ← It's perfect!!!!! Thanks!!! and my friend thanks you too!!!!
  14. Hey! With all the fancy equipment and tools that you see everywhere, especially this time of year, it seems cooking outdoors is popular. After a winter indoors, why wouldn't you want to spend as much time outside as possible????
  15. On the topic of cookie cutters..... any ideas on where I could buy some cookie cutters for someone with strained hands? I have a friend that is cooking up a storm of dog biscuits for a fundraiser and she recently strained her tendons in her hand. Is there such a thing as a handle dog bone cookie cutter? She strained her hand at work and what bad timing for a fundraiser! Any ideas would be helpful! Beth
  16. Cool!!!! Another reason to head to the hardware store to get some more chocolate tools! Thanks for the tip!!!! B
  17. Wouldn't it be cool to be able to try out those molds!! Can you imagine how much chocolate it would take for the elephant one! A destination to add to my "Must see list". Thanks for finding another place for me to add to it. What would we do without your adventures Kerry!
  18. Don't give up on the bark too early. It is so popular here that I am sure it will catch on with sampling! Keep notes on all those other requests from your customers. I have had some strange requests and eventually when enough people ask for it, I try it. Some end up in the store for sale and some end up with the teenagers and their friends when they come looking for "rejects". My weirdest request lately was for chocolate dipped butter tarts. It is a very sweet tart on its own and I can't imagine dipping it in chocolate as well. I haven't been able to bring myself around to trying it yet....l I tried cashew bark recently with salted cashews and found it quite addictive. Most people I offered it to try put their noses up at it until they tried it!
  19. What a wonder of information & pictures! Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
  20. It would be nice to have the option of a pizza place that delivers or not. Consider yourselves lucky to have the option. I was visiting my sister in her small town and her local pizza place was also the gas station. I can't recall if it was any good so I think it was not memorable. You get a funny feeling about picking up dinner at the gas station. Enough said.
  21. I just splurged on some nice Lagostina pans at a Homesense Boxing Day sale. I love them! and the price was right! They had some models with what appeared to be silicone grips??? It didn't say if they were suitable for putting in the oven so I opted for the heavier stainless steel handles. I found they had many styles and price ranges for Lagostina and I really had to sort through to find the one I liked. Some were more substantial than others. If you can find the pan you want at the price you want to pay then I would say Lagostina makes a nice addition to the home kitchen.
  22. Any ideas on where you will get your custom boxes done? I am thinking of taking that plunge as well and I am concerned I will have to order a ton of cases to get it done. I imagine a maze of cases in my storage area! If anyone has a suggestion I would appreciate it. Beth
  23. I have been really happy with The Chocolate Doctor's DVD's. Sometimes when I am in a rut I watch them again to get a little inspired. I think today is such a day!!! They are much cheaper and really helpful!
  24. I am looking to purchase an enrobing machine for my small operation. My problem is I am 10 hours of driving away from Montreal where DR & Perfect equipment are located and 9 hours away from Tomric in Buffalo. I am hoping to make it to Montreal to see some demo's so I was wondering if anyone who has used an enrober has some tips or hints for me to watch out for? I am looking at the smaller pieces of equipment since space is an issue. The specs offered by the companies tend to be vague. Size, Quantity & price. Since I have never worked with an enrober or seen one in action any suggestions you can offer would be a help! The pricing is between $10,000 - $21,000 Can$ so you can see I don't want to make this decision lightly, but where do I start? My experience with purchasing equipment so far is the suppliers & manufacturers seem to assume you already know what you are doing and the instructions are minimal. I am hoping to get the equipment in and be efficient on it before July since that is my busy season!! Thanks! Beth
  25. This is funny! I set mine off 3 times tonight for dinner. Hubby says "Going to be a great dinner if I set it off 3 times in one night!" Usually is just goes off once. I also would love to know if there is a solution to this problem. I like toast in the morning and I have set it off almost every single morning. Moved the toaster around the kitchen to 5 different spots and it still goes off. I have re-discovered cold cereal as a result since I can't seem to take such loud noises in the morning.
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