nightscotsman

Just for the record, according to this site and this one too, Christmas cookies are a Pagan tradition that the Christians assimilated (along with many other Pagan rituals and traditions). Something about leaving food and drink on the mantel for the Hearth God.

I think possibly you might be using too much cream. That would tend to make the finished flan/creme caramel heavy. I would try using half cream and half whole milk.

On a related note has anyone else tried the new "Release" non-stick aluminum foil from Reynolds? I've been working with it for a couple weeks now and I have to say I think it's awsome. I wouldn't line a cake pan with it, but for baking or cooling stuff on cookie sheets it rocks. On the Reynolds site they don't say exactly what the coating is other than "It is a proprietary food-safe coating that is both effective as a non-stick surface and safe for food contact". I just wish it came in sizes larger than 12" wide.

I believe this is exactly correct. Waxed paper is, as the name implies, paper coated with food-grade wax. As we all know wax melts at a fairly low temperature and therefore some of it will transfer to your food when used for cooking. Parchment paper, at least the modern variety intended for food preparation, is paper impregnated with silicone. Silcone will not melt at temperatures up to 500 F (I think) or higher. Therefore it will not combine with food cooked in it or on it and is much more "non-stick" than wax which, when it cools, might bond the paper to the food. In general I also think that parchment paper is sturdier and more durable than waxed paper and can hold up to more manipulation and rough treatment. In short, they are not interchangeable, but waxed paper may be used in many instances as long as you take into consideration what happens to wax when it is heated.

I think we should take up a collection to buy mamster a new saying.

When I dined at Pierre Gagnaire in May this year, the lunch menu was 85 euros. It included an amuse, six appetisers, a substantial main course, four desserts and three trays of mignardise. Althought the amuse was a little odd (wasn't sure how to eat it) the rest of the meal was fabulous. Did he raise his prices over the summer and is now reducing them to come closer to what they were previously?

OK batgrrrl - here's your chance to post your grandma's recipe for caramel cheesypoofs. Jaymes - thanks so much for the recipe. I will have to try it this year. And just for the record, the best caramel popcorn ever can be had from the Karamel Korn shop at the Lloyd Center in Portland. Fresh and warm.

I've heard many chefs wear Anywear clogs. Aren't these bright orange shoes that Mario Batali has on his feet? I haven't worn them, but I've been meaning to find a place that sells them to give them a try. Read more any Anywears here.

Cool, cool, cool. By the way, I don't suppose that Adria book has any English in it, does it? When, oh when...

Thanks for the tip on this one, Klink. Who knew there was anywhere worth eating (let alone sushi) near Northgate? I'll have to remember it next time I'm up that way. It might even mitigate having to endure the mall.

I use Lindsey Shere's recipe from "Chez Panisse Desserts". It's very, very simple with no added spices or lemon juice - just caramel, apples and puff pastry. Nowhere to hide . I like to use golden delicious only during the few weeks when the new crop is available, otherwise I use granny smith. A cast iron skillet works great for me. I personally think puff pastry is essential, though you can use a quick puff recipe that doesn't require the two separate doughs. Recently I just tried Pierre Herme's "inside out" puff pastry method and found it to be easier to work with, faster, and extremely light and flaky. When I can time the ripeness properly, I actually far prefer pear tarte tatin to apple. The pears hold up better baking at high temps and the combo of pear/caramel/butter is heavenly. I've been wanting to try peaches, but I can never seem to hold back from eating them fresh to use them in a tarte.

Excellent report Steve! I really feel like I was a member of your party. Thank you so much for the detailed write up.

I ate at Cascadia this summer and had a very dissapointing meal - see my review here (scroll almost to the bottom). I had the same problem - lack of flavor. There are a couple other reviews and much discussion in the same thread. Based on my experience with their "signature" tasting menu, I would never go back to Cascadia.

This is very good advice. I sometimes like to order two or three substantial-sounding appetizers and skip the entree, since going without dessert is too much of a hardship. Sort of a build-your-own tasting menu on a budget.

I notice in the above recipes that the grated potatoes seemed to be squeezed almost dry after adding all the other ingredients. I've always squeezed them before adding the eggs, flour, etc. Is this wrong? I also add a touch of cream to the mix.

This method was actually the suprise winner in an article on grill-roasting chicken in Cook's Illustrated. Haven't tried it myself, yet.

Ooops - sorry about that. Didn't know there was more than the one in Vancouver. Is this a chain? If so, do they all have the same executive pastry chef, or do they each have their own chef and therefore unique product lines?

I dined at 727 earlier this month and had a similar experience. We arrived at about 7:00 on a Sunday night without a reservation. They told us they were quite busy and there would be a 20 minute wait if we would like a seat at the bar. We settled in and ordered cocktails (which I would have done anyway). After 15-20 minutes (during which time I saw no other parties enter the restaurant) we were seated in the dining room which was maybe about 1/4 full. Did they think we wouldn't notice? What if we had told them we didn't want to wait and turned to leave? Thankfully the experience and food after that was very good and redeemed the less than welcoming reception.

I visited Sen5es in July. Over the course of 3 days I tried to taste as many items as possible from the pastry cases - all of them were excellent. I had no idea they had a dining room or even an upstairs. How does one gain access to this fabled space? My pick for must-have dessert? The stilton cheesecake. Brilliant. They also do a very nice Saint-Honore. If Sen5es is overly crowded, or you would like more plush suroundings while enjoying the same pastry chef's work, you might try Diva at the Met in the Metropolitan hotel about a half a block away. I had a lovely Sunday brunch there.

I usually just buy Freixenet. The quality is fine, it's realatively cheap, and you can find it in any grocery store. No point in wasting a really good expensive champane in a cocktail, as the other ingredients would just overpower the more refined wine. I also prefer to use extra dry rather than brut. The flavor tends to stand up to the mixers better. And if you like cocktails with champagne, or just the occasional glass, one of these stoppers is a must: They aren't expensive and they can keep champagne drinkable for days.

For those really serious about on-the-go dining - the titanium spork. $9.49 here.

Beef jerky is good for snacking. My favorite brand is Tillamook Country Smoker. The Beef Steak Nuggets are especially good. Another good ready-to-eat snack are Clif Bars. Lots of flavors, and unlike other "energy bars", they taste like real food. They have a new line called "Mojo Bars" that are less sweet.

Yikes! If that's what it takes to be prepared for work in a professional kitchen, then I'm doomed. My first love was graphic design. coming out of high school I was completely passionate and obsessive about it and yes, I had very little social life while I went to school and during my beginning years of long hours on the job. But I loved it. I wanted to do everything - no detail was too small to be finessed and no project too ambitious to be tackled. Flash forward more than 15 years and I still care very much about design, but it's hard to shake the feeling I'm just making pretty pictures, and it just doesn't seem as important as it used to. For the past couple of years I've transitioned away from design toward more programming, production and usability on Web sites. Interesting and important work, but I can see where that track is headed and I just don't see myself happy there. This is actually not an uncommon scenario amongst graphic designers. The field does tend to be youth oriented, trendy and superficial which can begin to feel inconsequential as one matures. Am I just "burned out" and need a break? Possibly. But right now and for the past couple of years, I've dreaded going into the office and struggling to care about what typeface a headline is set in, or what the visited link color should be on the web site we're working on. My interest in pastry did not start until a bit later, after I was on my own for awhile. But unlike some of the other hobbies I've been into over the years, my involvement in baking and pastry has only grown and deepened. Often I would find my self at work watching the clock until it was time to go home and work on the cake, or pie, or dessert that was my latest project. I love the hands-on craftsmanship of it, the ingredients, the sculptural and visual creativity. I also love the science of it, which still feels like magic to me, when a set of specific ingredients is combined in a certain way to create more than the sum of it's parts. And of course I love to give people the delight of a well made dessert when all the aspects are working together: flavor, texture, temperature, presentation and how it flows from the previous courses into complete experience. That is something you never experience in graphic design - the direct giving of pleasure - as you mostly never actually meet your audience or get to see them experiencing your work. Pastry becomes much more like a performance in that way. I've seriously considered the big career change several other times in my life, but each time it just didn't feel right. I still had the fire in me for design and there were so many things I wanted to do. Well, I've done those things and the fire has died down. I feel like this is something I have to do, and that if I don't do this now, I never will. I think everyone keeps a list in their heart of "things-I've-always-wanted-to-do", either consciously or sub-consciously. I've worked through many on mine, but a career in pastry has slowly worked it's way to the top of the list. It's time.

Doesn't untreated = ogranic? Many mainstream grocery stores now carry organic produce, including oranges. It is usually labeled as such and kept separate from the conventionally grown selection.

Score!!! Finally hunted down the mythical white and dark Kit Kats while on safari at U Village. Good thing I had my tranquilizer dart gun with me. Big thumbs up on both flavors, especially the dark. I now take back all the nasty, unkind things I was thinking about all of you for taunting me.