FauxPas

If you did end up with extra apple butter, you can use it in cake or muffin recipes. Do a Google search for baking with apple butter or apple butter in cakes, etc. Or ask here for a recipe! 🙂

The biggest choice will be whether you want to cook the apples with cores and peels or not. If you have a food mill or are willing to strain after initial cooking, you can just cut the apples up and start cooking. If you have an immersion blender or food processor, you can core the apples but leave the peels on and blend them in (I'd probably do this and use my immersion blender). Or you can peel and core and just cook the fruit pulp, but you'll lose some of the thickening benefit of the pectin. Do you want to make just a small batch or a larger batch for canning that will be shelf stable? I'd go for a small batch for your initial attempt. Something like this one, which yields about 1.5 cups: https://www.loveandoliveoil.com/2018/10/small-batch-stovetop-apple-butter.html You can also add other spices like nutmeg or allspice.

With all that you have been going through, I would have expected you to be feeling pretty tired. So pleased to hear your upbeat tones and see you having some bits of fun in the kitchen! Best wishes for healing and travels! ❤️

More mystery. Apparently Murphy said he wasn't allowed to participate in LCK and couldn't say more because of NDAs, but I saw somewhere that Tom had said he "opted out." https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2024/03/top-chef-wisconsin-episode-2-recap-last-chance-kitchen-chef/

Also, just discovered that there is another web-based companion series to Top Chef this season. It's called The Dish with Kish. I watched the first episode and enjoyed it. It's hosted by Kristen and includes background info on production, guest cooks and bits of Top Chef history. Seems fun! https://www.bravotv.com/top-chef-the-dish-with-kish It also shows Chef David Murphy at the end of Top Chef episode 1 and it suggests that he didn't shake hands with Tom. Tom says something like "Are you sure you want to play it that way?"

Is anyone watching Last Chance Kitchen? Any idea what happened to Cowboy Chef? He was eliminated in the first Top Chef episode and should have turned up in LCK but instead there was some 16th Chef instead. I've got to go and watch more Last Chance Kitchen to see if they enlighten us, I've only watched the first episode. Oops, just found this article but it seems to raise some other questions. https://vincemancini.substack.com/p/top-chef-david-murphy-not-on-last-chance-kitchen

When I was still working full-time and only had the chance to do real cooking on some weekends, I would often listen to All Blues on NPR with John Kessler. Saturdays and Sundays, 6 pm to midnight, easy to tune into for an hour or two. Or more. 🙂 https://www.knkx.org/allblues

I make mango bread every now and then. I love mangoes but sometimes buy more than I can eat right away so I peel, cut up and freeze the extra ones. I have some in the freezer right now and was thinking I should either make chutney or a quick bread. Thrifty Foods had ataulfo mangoes for a really good price last week and maybe still does? I think they were $1.25 each. I don't have a favourite recipe as I don't make it that often. But I do like a mix of pureed and diced fruit. Either of these recipes would be a good starting point for me. https://www.garlicandzest.com/mango-bread-recipe/ https://whattocooktoday.com/easy-hawaiian-mango-bread.html

I like Buddha's comments on the episode. https://people.com/top-chef-wisconsin-recap-buddha-lo-episode-1-8611775

Totally agree that the camera work and/or editing was distracting. I definitely noticed that while watching the episode. I hope it calms down a bit so that we can see more of the details and in a less frenetic manner. And better food and chef shots/angles, etc. I had mixed feelings on abandoning the QuickFire challenge. As @blue_dolphinsaid, it's hard to get a feeling for the chefs in the first episode with all 15 doing their own thing. Maybe the grouped challenges would make sense and make it easier to follow each one. But then the camera stuff was so offputting, I still had a hard time figuring things out. More time for one challenge could have been better managed, I think. And then they just added a different kind of challenge on to the end. It felt like Next Level Chef a bit though. And I just want Top Chef to stay Top Chef, darn it. 🙂 In the past the QuickFires sometimes seemed so random that it felt like luck rather than skill to get the win and it seemed unfair to be able to get immunity based on that. But many of the QuickFires were also FUN and some definitely showed skills. I still want to see them but agree that dropping the immunity part makes sense. I thought Kristen was fine. It will be nice to see how she develops the hosting role.

hahahahaha 🤣 Also, totally agree about the grocery store derby. But I guess Whole Foods likes having a big old ad right in the middle of the show. I recorded it last night, will likely watch tonight.

There's also a variety called Early Jersey Wakefield that looks somewhat similar to the Caraflex. They say it was grown in 1840 in Jersey City. https://www.westcoastseeds.com/products/early-jersey-wakefield

I also see them referred to as Conehead or Caraflex cabbages. Article and recipes at Taste: https://tastecooking.com/caraflex-ultimate-cabbage-flex/ Seeds are available for home growing: https://www.reneesgarden.com/products/conehead https://www.johnnyseeds.com/vegetables/cabbage/fresh-market-cabbage/caraflex-f1-cabbage-seed-109.html

A local store sells "meatloaf mix" which is equal parts ground beef, veal, and pork. It's my fave mix for meatloaf but i also like it for Bolognese and for meatballs. I don't think I've ever had an issue with the texture or quality of ground pork from that store, either. Maybe you got a bit of a bad batch?

I'm glad that Il Terrazzo worked out so well! We used to like going there and especially in the summer when the patio was open. And Happy Birthday! 😄