FoodMan

Catfish fillets pan fried in Samen (ghee/clarified butter) topped with toasted walnuts that have been lightly fried after the fish was done, lime juice, cilantro and Tahine sauce (tahine, cumin, water, garlic, and lemon juice). Sereved with plain rice Dessert: homemade vanilla ice cream with bits of caramalized nectarines in it. FM

ditto, I would be very surprised and unhappy to see him endorsing such junk. FM

OH, the corn fungus. I've seen it on TV but never had a chance to try it. Thanks FM

What's huitlacoche???

Kristin- I thought the eel and rice dish was very interesting, can you expand on the eel though. Is there a specific brand name to look for in the US?? Is it normally boneless?? Are the packages frozen when bought so they need to be thawed??? Thanks FM

Damn! and I missed it! I saw Tommy's post before he deleted it. If you are interested PM me and I will send it to you

Americans don't eat duck... Why??? Because it does NOT taste like chicken.

I'm hearing more and more good stuff about Hugo's so I will put it on my list for places to go to soon. Fifi sorry, I cannot help because personally I've never been to Rio Ranch. I do believe someone mentioned that their steaks are pretty good once though. So maybe a nicely grilled steak should be ordered rather than the CFS. FM

Prompted by the "Where's the Houston Crew" thread , where it was mentioned that we should have a fine dining thread , and the "Texas Forum" thread here goes this one. The latest fine dining spot I've been to in Houston was Mark's and I have already posted the review under the Houston Restaurants thread but here it goes again: "- Lobster salad. Garlic and herb roasted lobster tail, served with a variety of citrus, shaved mangoes, and lightly dressed greens. - Texas Diamond H Cross Quail and Foie Gras Over ginger-spiked butternut squash, accented with a huckleberry vinaigrette. - Spring corn soufflé served with lobster and crawfish, oyster mushrooms and Avruga caviar in a shallot Chardonnay sauce. -Roasted Escolar over fork mashed lobster potatoes, asparagus and crispy sesame shrimp in a Cabernet Sauvignon sauce. - Roasted Maple Leaf duck, served with wild rice, pearl pasta, roasted figs, raspberries and mangoes. -Dessert: Chocolate Mousse layered Crème Brulee Chocolate Hazelnut Tort with roasted hazelnuts and white chocolate Sabayon. Wine: A red Pinot – Domain Vincent Gerardin, 1999 “Les Gravieres”. I had to drink most of the bottle myself since my wife is pregnant and cannot participate in this pleasure . Thanks to the laws of Texas we took the re-corked bottle home with us and I enjoyed the leftovers the next day." Another restaurant that was mentioned in that thread was Zula. Last time I was there was a while ago and it was a great experience even though I do not remeber exactly what we had. I'm pretty sure we had the crab cake (The BEST) and we also had a lobster risotto which was very good. Due to a certain...mishap we ended up having our wine for free that night and the manager and staff were very professional and prompt in handling the situation. Between the above two places I would say Mark's is my favorite for both the atmosphere and the food. This weekend we will be having dinner at "Aries" whose chef was one of F&W best new chefs this year. Anyone been there???? Other palces on my list (if the budget permits): Simposio Visio Rouge Boulevard Bistro (if Pope does not close it first) House in the Hights Anyone been to any of these?? Please share. FM

I might be able to help with that since I had the same problem. I moved my baking stone to a low rack instead of keeping it on the oven floor and I also bake the bread till almost done and move it using a peel to a higher rack so that the bottom won't get charred for the final few minutes. I'm thinking moving the loaf to a higher rack is the more effective of the two points so I might put my baking stone back on the floor of the oven. My 2 Cents FM

Ok, here are my results for both before and after...the oven rise of course. FM

Chef Fowke- Is there going to be a scaled down recipe (6-8 servings) for us non-bulk-purchasing-folk?? After seeing that pic you posted, I have to try some pastrami making at home. FM

I am a huge fan of AB and I have the Oxo salad spinner to prove it (thanks, "W"!). I've tried his "Serious Vanilla Ice Cream" and it kicks butt. I enjoy seeing the "why" behind the food process...explaining the science behind something so minor like why crushed garlic is stronger than sliced garlic, presented in an entertaining way...or the classic "Three Chips for Sister Marsha" (aka known as "The Thin, The Puffy, The Chewy") explaining the how's and why's of chocolate chip cookies and why some are crispy and some are chewy. Eye opening, to say the least. If you like "Good Eats", you'll like the Good Eats Fan Page. I'm thinking about buying a t-shirt from the site: "I'm a briner, not a nutritional anthropologist." me too....the ice cream does kick butt (try adding some caramalized nectarine pieces to the mix, have some in the freezer right now)...enjoy that as well....three chips is great (I have about four recorded tapes worth of GE)...excellent website, they actually have the script for every episode FM

I made only one can and it IS heavy enough to sink. You do not need to weigh it down. First I would like to thanak you for posting the experiment's results. I think I expected such results and I do think it is worth it to boil a few cans at a time and store them so u can use them for whatever, whenever you like. My next project with the stuff is to try and make a Dulce De Leche ice cream similar to that of Haagen Daaz (Hey, one can dream!!!). As for the Jamie Oliver recipe, it is wonderful. I can paraphrase it when I get home and hacve the book handy if you like. All it is is a baked mini-tart shell filled with banana, Dulce De Leche, and topped with espresso whip cream and caramalized almonds. FM

Ok let's assume I've never heard of Alice Waters. Please explain to me what DOES she do?? I was under the impression that she was a Chef. FM

Ms. White, thank you so much for taking the time to participate in this Q&A, I love Ham hocks and I buy them at the store whenever I get a chance, however I am getting tired of just adding them to soup or beans and I was wondering if you have any new and non-traditional methods to prepare these things (I have two in the fridge right now). Thanks FM

Mathew- I do not see any bashing from people who never ate her food...I was just asking a question. FM

I've never eaten at CP, and never met AW. I want to know, can she cook???? Is it worth going to CP on my next trip to CA?? Or is she just way overrated?? FM

This does make a lot of sense. I will do my best to give it a try in the next few days. Thanks again for your detailed responses Elie "FM"

The others are more expert than I am, but lots of factors: a) Ferment out your starter sponge or clef so it is a lot sourer b) Bulk ferment for longer c) Ferment the starter and bulk ferment warmer. If you look at the graph in the science bit you will see that the lactobacteria (which contribute to the sourness) peak at a higher temperature than the yeast. Fermenting at 90F rather than 85F makes a big difference. An accurate thermometer really helps. d) Some starters seem to produce a sourer bread than others. e) The ash content of the flour is important, as the ash neutralises the acid. Use a lower ash flour. Ther is some discussion in the literature about the ratio of acetic acid (from the yeast) to lactic acid (from the Lactobacteria), with some claim, the former contributing to a sour taste, and the later contributing to a sour smell. Some also say that a firmer sponge gets sourer, although I've never noticed any difference. The biggest effect, for me, is to ferment the starter for long so it is very sour. Of course, you can only get that true San Franciso taste in San Franciso. Thanks for the suggestions. I will try fermenting the portion of starter that I will be using for double the time and at a slightly warmer temp and see if that makes a noticeable difference. I already tried making a firmer dough per Reinhart's advise in order to get a sourer bread but I did not notice any difference. FM

I know this is a little of topic, but why on earth would anyone want to put a nut "extract" in their coffee. ESPECIALLY Almond extract, this stuff makes any coffee taste really vile and alcohol-like. FM

I've said this before but this is the single most useful piece of information I learned from Jackal's recipe which was archived a while back and I've been using to make bread ever since. Oven spring is an amazing thing!!! A small unassuming piece of cold dough (never room temp) takes on a life of it's own in the oven, it just never siezes to surprise me. (I have a couple of pics to post to show this). Jackal et al, this was a great class with fantastic pics. I loved that oven. I do have one question: Why does the store bought sourdough taste a little "sour"?? Where as mine, while still great tasting, hardly has that sour taste. Is it the type of starter? or is there anything I can do to get a more sour bread? Thanks Elie "FM"

Dosa stuffed with potatoes and eggplant. The first time ever making these tasty crepes at home and they came out great ( I only ruined the first one). Served with tomato chutney and coriander chutney. FM

I agree, I absolutely hate Starbuck's coffee!! But the worst coffee I've ever had, by far, was at work - we had that Green Mountain French Roast. 1) I can't stand French Roast, and 2) for some reason, that stuff smelled like fish!! I couldn't even stand the smell of it, let alone stomach a cup of it. Starbucks tastes pretty darn good. I love the stuff even though a little overpriced. Worst coffee ever is at work, "Community" coffee that has been ground God knows how long ago and is sitting in little packets. I think i can get better results toasting and brewing sawdust. FM

Live and learn. You are soooo smart. Thanks. However, I really cannot take credit for this bit of info, I learned it in one of Alton Brown's "Good Eats" episodes. FM