FoodMan

Thanks for this interesting tid bit Suvir. Actually, I started wondering about it while watching "Six Feet Under" the HBO series this season and one of the characters who is breastfeeding said she's been eating lots of Fenugreek and it helped a lot although it made her sweat stink . So I guess they were not making it up. Now all I have to do is get my soon-to-be-mom wife to eat plates full of it. A very tasty recipe I tried with dried Fenugreek leaves is Lamb Meatballs, from Monica Bhide's book. They were very tasty and they had a a tatse that I describe as very savory. I also use it in some stewes and curries. I've never used it as powder or green. FM

Exactly. I don't think I've seen the one where he adds tomatoes to the Bolognese. The recipe I'm talking about in which he uses a little tomato paste is from the "Babbo" book. He also mentioned the same thing -Bolognese being a pink meat sauce- in a FoodTV Q&A. slkinsey, welcome. What u said is also very true My Bolognese normally never has any tomatoes (some paste only) and I use it for lasagna bolognese as well as tossed in pasta. This time however, Tomatoe-y and slightly saucy is what I wanted FM

Oh no Jin, I was not talking about the tinned tomatoes . What I meant is that his recipe for Bolognese only uses tomato paste and no whole tomatoes at all (canned or fresh) FM

Linguine with Bolognese sauce. The sauce had beef, bacon, milk, white wine, canned tomatoes and tomato paste among other things. topped with some fresh parsley and shaved Parmesan. A slight variation on St. Mario's ,his does not have any canned tomatoes in it but I wanted it to be a little more tomato-y. Dessert: Pound Cake with butter Pecan Ice cream. FM

wetter dough, longer fermentation time would be my suggestion. When making the same Ciabatta you are talking about I try to get it as wet as possible and still be able to handle it. Following the exact directions and fermentation times in the book might not give best results due to the fact that humidity and other conditions affect how wet you need to make your dough. Hope this helps. FM

Chicken, thighs and legs roasted with a mixture of : garlic ginger soy sauce orange juice sesame oil Gomasio First covered then uncovered and broiled along sliced carrots (the ones with the ridges) so that they get a nice color and crispy skin. Served sprinkled with fresh cilantro and toasted sesame seeds on top of white rice. Dessert: Alton Brown's Coacoa Brownies -- so rich and delicious FM

Our second marriage anniversary is on the 26th and we are debating whether to go to "Mark's" or to "Simposio" which is a very good Italian retsaurant from what I've heard. I guess it has been established that "Mark's" is a winner but what about "Simposio"? Has any e-gulleteers tried it? I tried the CitySearch stuff but I simply do not trust that site's reviews. Any help in deciding is appreciated. FM

AB = Alton Brown Anthony Bourdain = Tony or Bourdain

1) YES 2)I am not sure since I never met him but have never heard a bad report about him until Tony said what he said. I am a big fan of Mr. AB so I guess this puts me in the "dweeb" category. I enjoy his show very much and I watch it even if the recipes or instructions given are ones that I've done hundreds of times. It is smart, funny and entertaining. Above all it WORKS!!! No recipe or instruction taken from Good Eats have ever failed. One such example is this past thanksgiving's turkey which was cooked based on ABs recipe. It was the best I've (and everyone that was there agreed) ever had- brined, simple, no basting required, moist and delicious. So say what you want about AB, in my book he is a winner. As for keeping the lid closed on the Grill... I believe AB used it only after his trusty Charcoal one was hijhacked . Moral of the story: USE CHARCOAL IT'S THE ONLY AND BEST WAY TO GO. FM

Great article, I enjoyed it very much. I thought he said that about the "Filet Mignon". He says you will never find it in one of his restaurants. Same idea I guess...all muscle and no fat or connective tissue. FM

That is great mamster, I've made this bread several times from the Bread Baker's Apprentice book and it is fantastic. I even use a very similar recipe-with Olive Oil added and a bit less wet- to make pizza dough. Retardation does give great results. Jackal I should be trying this recipe this week. FM

Well thank a lot for all those who offered advise and help especially Elizabeth. My Croissants were also pretty successfull (considering the fact I've never made them or puff pastry before). My wife loved them and had a great Mother's Day, she actually said that she will not eat the store bought ones anymore....lots of weekends spent rolling dough. I used a combination of Elizabeth's recipe and Julia Child's, I actually halfed the recipe because I did not want to waste too much butter in case it really flops . I did make a poolish as a starter (using instant yeast) on Friday and baked the finished croissants on Sunday morning. From Julia's recipe I used the idea of adding flour to the butter to absorb the water and I used her detailed turning techniques. What would have been helpful though is if she specified the thickness of the dough in each turn. Nightscotsman's advise is on the spot, they do take a long time but they are worth it and they require lots of patience. The couple of problems I had were: - Until I got the hang of it, the first couple of them did not exactly look like croissants. - Some butter still seeped out during baking, but not too much to where the layers did not form. This seemed inevitable since I cut right through the butter/dough layers when forming the croissants. Or I probably did something wrong?????? They were very flavorful, buttery with a nice crispy crust (after reading the previous posts I think should cook them longer next time though). I did take several pictures of the process and the finished croissants which I will post as soon as I download from the camera, hopefully tonight. Thanks again everyone FM

That is true, PM is made with very sour Pomegranates. Also it has absolutely no sugar added as far as I know. Just pure reduced sour Pomagranate juice, but I can ask her next time I call to be sure. I do get Olive oil once in a while as well as jams, preserves, cheeses and zaatar but green wheat!!!???, nope. Where have u seen green wheat and what is it used for? FM

Hey, watch it! I happen to like Jamie. Not his show, but I love his recipes. I agree... It is easy to make fun of the guy but IMHO he is a great cook and almost all his recipes that I tried work perfectly. He is energetic, loves food and inspiring. The "Naked Chef" is amuch better show than "Oliver's Twist" though. I also really admire (YES I KNOW THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH CULINARY PROWESS PER SAY) what he did with 15 and the effort and personal cash he invested in this non-profit place. The best for him. FM

Elyse, what makes you think 300 well made croissants is too many for 2 people to eat!!! but thanks anyways. I just went over the Torres recipe and it got me wondering: Why fresh yeast? Elizabeth's and Julia Child's recipes uses fresh yeast as well. Does it really matter. I use instant yeast for everything. What is the conversion ratio? Sorry for all the questions but despite all odds I am trying to get it right from the first time for this Sunday (fingers crossed). If it works out I'll post some pics. FM edit for spelling

"..second one is sweet and tastes nothing like the molasses" Sorry for not being clearer, I meant the Grenadine tastes nothing like the Pomegranate molasses (PM) not your average everyday American molasses. You are correct though the PM is very different than regular molasses which I believe is a by-product of sugar making (correct me if I'm wrong). The PM on the other hand is made from the juice of sour Pomegranates that is reduced down slowly over a low heat. It has a dark color a thick consistency. Very similar to Balsamic Vinegar in color and texture. It is pretty tangy with a mildly sweet undertone. The only reason I know this is because my grandmother (in Lebanon) makes this stuff and has made it all her life, actually the half bottle I have at home is from a batch she made about 2 yrs ago!!! time to order some more FM

Pomagranate Molasses is defenitly not interchangable with Grenadine Syrup. The first is a middle eastern tangy ingredient while the second one is sweet and tastes nothing like the molasses. I use the molasses only for savory dishes or sometimes as a substitute for lemon juice or balsamic to give a dish a different -and delicious- flavor. FM

Elizabeth- Thanks for going through the trouble of posting this lengthy directions. When u followed Torres' recipe did u make a poolish also? I do not have a scale either so I will probably follow Julia's recipe and use your technique. Thanks again FM

Just to get back to someones comment .... Alton Brown is not a chef, he never claimed to be a chef and he does not WANT to open a restaurant. He is just a guy who has a great show, likes food, teaching and movies . As for Mario (St. Mario), he is also great but I thought his shows got cancelled since I haven't seen him on TV for a while now, is this correct?. MM is a great show. Everything I wanted to say about Emeril has already been said. Good for him but "Emeril Live" gets on my nerves these days ,I used to like it a lot and he is one of the celebrity chefs who got me going for my love for food and I thank him for that. "Essence of Emeril" is much better and more interesting for me. On the culinary side, his recipes are very good and eating at his restaurants has been a wonderful experience. FM

Thanks for all your comments folks. This Julia Child recipe is one of the longest and most detailed I've seen, it is very helpful though. Elizabeth, I would be very interested in getting any other comments or recipes you might have about this. I can defenitly try making them with a Poolish. FM

Does anyone make their own Croissants? If so please post a recipe that you have found to be successful. I personally have never done them but I want to bake some for my wife for mother's day. Thanks FM

Thanks Jin. I will give it a try. FM

elyse, I'm agreeing with you all over the place. I almost always pepper my fries. Is that weird or something? of course it's not weird. i put pepper in the ketchup so i get a bit of pepper on each fry (otherwise, the pepper bounces off of the fries). If you want a different way of enjoying the fries, squeeze a little lemon on them and sprinkle with a lot of freshly ground black pepper....very tasty and the lemon will make the pepper stick FM

In my opinion and in agreement with many of the other posters, pepper just tastes good. I do not add it to all recipes and when I do I do not add it because the recipe asks for it. I add it because I really love that black pepper taste in most food items, especially stews and braises (to which I add a lot of it). I also love it on steaks, fresh ground on salads, plenty in mashed potatoes and creamy soups,... In my vocabulary there is no pinch of pepper, it's and all or nothing situation. Salt is supposed to enhance the flavor of food and it does. Pepper on the other hand, pepper you should be able to taste. Oh, and I stopped using the pre-ground variety years ago, only freshly ground or sometimes crushed will do. my 2c FM

Jin- Is the chop grilled then flash fried ? For how long? to what effect? It sounds like something I would like to try. FM