Shel_B

I don't want a NY-style cake, and I'm ignorant about using the Instant Pot for such an undertaking. However, reading Tropicalsenior's post has increased my understanding of cheesecake-making technique in general and I'll keep the info in my back pocket until some future date. I'd like to get more use from my Instant Pot and the recipe does look interesting.

I can wait. Not planning to make a cheesecake today. Again, thanks.

Is that the generally accepted way to reduce such a recipe? It makes sense to me, and seems like a good place to start. Thank you²

Ahh! That looks like what I want, and the size and technique fit well into my comfort zone. I'll have to look at the recipe more closely, but from what I can see with a first look, there's something here that I can work with. Thank you for the link.

I wouldn't mind making a smaller cheesecake but I haven't a clue on how to properly reduce the recipe. How much of each ingredient would have to be reduced to give what size result? What size pan would be needed? How do I adjust the baking time? I am out of my comfort and experience zone when it comes to baking.

No, I don't have a stand mixer. I appreciate the thought, though.

There's a cheesecake recipe that I'm hot to try, and it can be made using the food processor for mixing. However, my processor is too small to contain the full amount of ingredients. Can I mix up about half the recipe amount, empty the processor, add and mix the balance, and then combine both batches and mix them together well by hand? I don't see a problem with this, but I'm not much of a baker and have only made a cheesecake once, so I'm not much of a cheesecake maven either. Ingredients 7 eggs 14 oz sugar 1 cup cream ¼ cup flour 2¼ lbs cream cheese FWIW, it's a Basque cheesecake recipe.

I saw this video earlier. Is there a way to use this technique without a crock pot? Maybe in a warmed, cast iron pot instead of the crock pot? Or ... ?

Sad to say, this item was a disappointment to me. The flavor was pretty good albeit somewhat subtle. It got lost when the cheese was spread on my morning bagel. I tried one half of the toasted bagel with my usual, and preferred, shmear, and the other half with a greater amount of the spread. In both cases the peach flavor seemed to disappear far into the background. The cheese itself was less than fine. It had a gummy texture that I found disconcerting. However, it's only fair to point out that I'm not much of a crem cheese user, and when I do use the product it's made by local companies that don't use gums, stabilizers, etc., so my point of reference may be somewhat skewed. However, I've not had the complaint when using Philly, which does happen. There's a bagel shop near me that uses Philly straight and in their spreads, and I don't have that "gummy" experience there. YMMV, and it probably will.

I'm planning to braise some chicken thighs and there are a few braising pot options that I can choose from. These pots will allow for hardly any space between the thighs to one that allows almost two inches between each piece. The advantage of using the larger pot is that I can use more braising liquid of which some can be saved for a future use. Will I get a better braise from a more closely packed pan, or does it even matter?

Ahh, @Maison Rustique ... You are an enabler. I saw your post and when I went to TJ's this afternoon I looked for, and bought, the Peaches and Cream Cheese. I'm looking forward to trying it for breakfast tomorrow.

Reminds me somewhat of Heston Blumenthal using tomato stems in the sauces he prepared.

It was a holiday or anniversary of some sort back in the mid-1980s and my GF and I were at her Dad's home along with her aunt and uncle. I was cooking dinner in Dad's kitchen, and was making a roast of some sort. I was removing the roast from the pan to put on a platter when, with a resultant loud thud, the roast fell to the floor. I was devastated. I wanted to make an impression on Dad and the relatives. I had no idea what to do. Did I feel the tears of my frustration and incompetence? A moment later the aunt walked into the kitchen as a result of hearing the roast fall, and she obviously saw my distress. With many years of cooking behind her, she offered her sage advice: "Pick it up, wipe it off, and serve it. They won't know." As she left the kitchen to go back to the dining room, she turned to me and said, "We'll eat from the other end," smiled, and glided into the dining room.

Has anyone tried this? CLICK HERE for the story " ... I came across a blog post from Zingerman's Bakehouse that discloses they've been including the whole banana—peel and all!—in their banana bread for years."

Thank you. While this model Le Creuset was on sale, this particular color had an additional 11% off on Amazon, so the price was quite good. Add to that, an additional 6% credit from Amazon because I chose "Amazon Day Shipping."

Thank you. I wanted something to brighten the stovetop. All my other cookware is rather bland ... stainless, anodized aluminum, black. Time for something more colorful.

A couple of months back, I was watching a cooking show and the Le Creuset 6.75 quart round Dutch oven was being used. I liked the lower sides, larger cooking surface than my 5.5 quart model, and the additional capacity, but didn't really need it. I have an All-Clad D5 8-quart pot that serves quite well in this general size range. However, Amazon had the Le Creuset on sale at an excellent price, and I do like Le Creuset pots, so I bit the bullet, pulled the trigger, and clicked the Buy option. It'll be here on June 6th ...

Thanks for your thoughts. The more I look into this, the greater my tendency to agree with you. The next time I get to the poultry market, I'll buy a bunch of thighs and continue my experiments in that direction. I'd really like to get this dish to work ...

I just found a few suggestions for cooking the thighs at a lower temp, which I will try. The suggested temps were 165-175 degrees. Your 150-degree sous vide suggestion is close to those temps. I don't have a sous vide setup. Not sure I want one. Thanks for jumping in.

I visited Brennan's quite a few times. Loved the place and, like you, was saddened when they closed. The last time I was there I had Irish coffees with my friend Jack ... I'm starting to think it may be the turkey, too, but I want to play with this dish a bit more. Maybe a braise isn't right for the thighs, but the braising medium and the apples are great ... maybe another way to use the recipe, such as making a marinade of the braising ingredients and then roasting the thighs? I also thought about using chicken thighs, and was musing about duck thighs or breast but I've not looked into how well they'd do with apples ... I believe they'd be fine.

The original cooking instructions are: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium Dutch oven or heavy oven-ready pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Season turkey on both sides with salt and pepper and add to pot, skin side down. Cook until skin is golden and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer turkey to a plate and add shallots to pot. Cook until shallots soften, about 5 minutes. Add apples and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Return turkey, skin side up, to pot; add cider and broth. Bring to a boil, cover, then place pot in oven. Cook 1 1/2 hours. Uncover; cook 30 minutes more. I've adjusted the oven temp up and down by 25-deg in each direction, cut 30 minutes from the covered braise and both reduced and increased the uncovered braise by 15 minutes. FWIW, of the five other braised turkey thigh and leg recipes I have in my collection, three call for a 90+ minute braise and two call for 2 hours.

I never said I don't like turkey thighs. I don't like the texture in the braise results. I continued to make the braise because in so many ways the dish is exceptional, so I tried to improve the results. If I feel a dish has potential, I don't give up on it ... I keep trying to improve it. Asking for advice here is just another step in trying to improve the result.

Apple cider braised turkey thighs have been on my menu for several years, although I only make the dish about once, maybe twice, a year. While flavorful, the thighs always seem to be a little stringy and somewhat chewy. I've tried adjusting time/temp a bit, and the results have all been about the same. Adjustments have been small. I've no issues with other braises ... chicken, beef, pork ... so I'm doing something wrong or there's an problem inherent with turkey thighs and a cider braise. If it's helpful to know, there is some apple cider vinegar in the braising liquid as well as some apple slices. So, any thoughts of what can be done to troubleshoot this dish?

That is why I asked ... the suggested use of vinegar is very common ... just this morning I was watching a cooking video from a chef with, I believe, a very good reputation, and he too, recommended vinegar (as well as bleach). For years I was skeptical about using the technique, and stayed away from it. Sweetie used it in her home, friends have used it, chefs have recommended it, even America's Test Kitchen has suggested it. So, before relying upon it myself, it seemed like a good idea to ask here, where I generally respect and trust the knowledge of the forum members.

It sounds as though you're doubting me, to put it mildly. Three of numerous similar articles. : https://www.arnoldwood.com/blog/how-to/sanitize-cutting-boards/#:~:text=To kill the germs on,wipe it with hydrogen peroxide. To kill the germs on your cutting board, use a paper towel to wipe the board down with vinegar, then use another paper towel to wipe it with hydrogen peroxide. Bleach – Sanitize both wood and plastic cutting boards with a diluted chlorine bleach or vinegar solution consisting of one teaspoon of liquid chlorine bleach in one quart of water or a one to five dilution of vinegar. Flood the surface with a sanitizing solution and allow it to stand for several minutes, then rinse and air dry or pat dry with paper towels. https://misen.com/blogs/news/how-to-clean-a-wooden-cutting-board#:~:text=Because vinegar is acidic%2C it,with a washcloth or sponge. Because vinegar is acidic, it helps disinfect the board by killing bacteria and mold and preventing their further growth. It can also help deodorize your board. Spray the board with a solution of 4 parts water to 1 part vinegar and wipe it down with a washcloth or sponge. https://www.thespruce.com/clean-wooden-cutting-board-4772583 Disinfect With a Daily Solution Spritz your wooden cutting board with distilled white vinegar or a solution of 3% hydrogen peroxide. Rinse with hot water. In these articles, other techniques were suggested as well, including using bleach and hydrogen peroxide.