Porthos

Plus 1

I eat fast food fairly frequently. Burger King is way low on my list. Bottom of my list is Wendy's Top of list for burgers is Carl's Jr. Top of list for complete menu is Jack in the Box. I kept thinking "Young Frankenstein" as I read your ratings.

Thank you all for your suggestions. teonzo - Your list inspired me to make pineapple-ginger this week. Still thinking about which tea to use. In the running at the moment are PG Tips, Earl Gray and good ol' Lipton.

Jubilee?

What failed on them?

I decided to send an email to EdgePro asking about soaking the stones. I'll let you know what the response is.

FWIW: Neither the instruction booklet that came with my EP or the instructional DVD call for soaking the stones first. The manual calls for wetting the stone with the water bottle after it has been installed on the EP. I'm not sure what the difference is between our EPs would be.

The EP that I have simply has a small squirt bottle for wetting the stones. Soaking to get started would slow me down but I would still use it.

There is one specific factor for me that made the EdgePro an attractive choice. I have very poor hand/eye coordination and have essentially monocular vision which means my depth perception is poor. The EP does the work of maintaining the angle I have chosen as I sharpen a knife. I don't have to guess or hope I have it right. By design it is right each time I use it.

I modified the recipe to suit my impatience. I steep the tea (Bigelow's Constant Comment), then pour the hot tea over the fruit and let set for 20-30 minutes, then add the sugar and then flour. Because my target audience potentially has 12-steppers in it I choose to avoid alcohol. When I use cherries I have used cherry syrup to replace part of the tea but then I think that the existence of cherries is proof of a divine being that loves us.

Those volunteers who do know what a sharp knife cuts like are satisfied with the edges I put on with my EdgePro. We are good enough friends that they would tell me if it were otherwise. Some have complemented me for providing sharp knives. I rotate the knives on the front of the jig as I approach the tip. I have not noticed the "bird's beak" phenomenon as of yet.

There is a cup of dried fruit, a cup of brown sugar, and 2 cups of flour in this recipe. Musically speaking the apricots are the melody, the cinnamon will be the harmony. Since it is just supposed to support the apricots I'm wondering about the right amount. I'm guessing 1/2 teaspoon but not sure if that is in the correct range for my goal.

Anna - where do you buy your meat?

Also do not have any orange extract at the moment.

No star anise or cardamon in the pantry right now and as I am currently unemployed I will go with the cinnamon I have. Next week I am going to do figs but my best guess is that they can stand alone like like the date version I just made. Although I am an avowed carnivore I feed a group on the weekends that includes vegans and when Anna posted that recipe I got rather excited since it is very vegan. Also, I am very much NOT a baker so easy recipes like this one really help me. Thanks for the suggestions...

Anna N shared her recipe for tea bread (Strong tea, dried fruit, brown sugar, self-rising flour) and I have been using it to make bar cookies. I have been using dates or cherries up to now. Today I picked up some dried apricots today to use as the dried fruit. I would like to add a little spice to add a bit of extra dimension but am not sure what spices would work well. Would you please offer up your suggestions. Thanks in advance.

I don't about the HoJos but when KFC brought out it's "grilled" chicken the marks certainly looked like a cosmetic addition.

We WILL be trying this.

When I started hand sharpening I bought used knives on ebay or at thrift stores to practice on. When I got my EdgePro I did the same thing but needed only maybe 3 or 4 to really get the hang of it.

I think it is all about marketing. If it looks perfect it must taste perfect. Myself, I don't care about the grill marks. I grill our dinners 2-3 times a week during the summer and I never bother trying to get the diamond pattern. In fact, I normally only flip the meat, chicken, whatever once.

I will readily agree that it is messier. I took to using it set on an old thick bath towel and that solves the "creep" movement of the sharpener on the counter, absorbs the excess water from the stones, and since it is a large towel I can wipe the blade easily before using the ceramic steel to finish the job.

Not all of the volunteers who help in my faire kitchens have good knife skills, but they are willing to show up - so my knives can take a bit of abuse at their hands.That is part of why I put a new edge on all of the knives at the beginning of each faire season. I also don't bring higher-end knives into that environment. I am fond of Fosrchners (SP) that I buy from restaurant supply stores and I have a few Spanish henkles, the rest are KitchenAid et al so that if they get destroyed or wander off I am not dismayed. RE Bones: we do cut through cooked chicken and pork rib bones on a reasonably regular basis. I always try to use the Forschners for that. After several years they are holding up nicely.

My specific reason for liking this strainer, particularly regarding its lasting power, is that it cleans up way better in the dishwasher than the all-SS models I had in the past. Every though they were stainless there was something, I suspect regarding the drying cycle, where corrosion would develop where the mesh meets the frame. I have yet to see a hint of that with the Oxo. Just my experience...

Plus 1.

3" inch paring knives to 10" chef's knives; 12" slicers, Santoku knives, utility knives, and my pocket knives. I just ordered a replacement medium grit stone because I put so much mileage on the original that I just plum wore it out. Before I got the Edge Pro I did learn to sharpen free-hand. The Edge Pro by design allows me to repeatably put the angle that I want on the edge. I can put a complete new edge on a 10" chef's knife in 10 to 12 minutes. While I heartily recommend it I recognize that each of us has to choose what we personally feel comfortable with.