KarenS

covering a custard prevents a skin. If you use foil, cover first with paper (aluminum plus steel can create a current-that is why, if you cover steel pans of lasagne w/out first wrapping them with plastic wrap or covering it with paper-you can "melt" the aluminum.

cheap zesters or melon ballers- they break after using once or twice.

dungeness, Australian mud crab, soft shell crabs, I like crab much better than lobster.

I like Chef Mavros, Hokus, LaMer.

valrhona my favorite and easy melting too. Karen

Fried sage leaves sprinkled with sea salt.

The Chef in Las Vegas was trained under the old Chef, Micheal Mina, he has left the company ; the new Chef (this year, recently is LM).

Yes, with Torkaris- kimchee is preserved cabbage. As long as you have not stuck your fingers (or anything unclean in it). It is a pickle. My downstairs neighbors where I used to live made it evey year, out side on the walkway in a large crock covered and wrapped in cheesecloth. I love kimchee (my favorite is daikon).

You don't have to keep it warm. Many restaurants cook their risotto to "very al dente" and then spread it out on a sheet tray to cool. The line cook then uses this and stirs and simmers with the hot stock on hand to finish. Risotto is a great party/catering item because ot this trick.

I really love good and spicey huevos rancheros. Too bad there is no good place in Hawaii for them .

Oh, and about levain. This is how all bread used to be made. Commercial yeast was not available until the 20's. Yeast is naturally occuring- I have my grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great- grandmothers recipes for yeast/ bread. Starters were precious things carried acrss the country, and passed on to family and friends. Hawaii is not the best climate for bread baking. You need to be careful with your starter- other not such great things can grow in there if you are not careful about temp control!

Tell them to bring me some -or call me! We could use good bread at Neiman Marcus (until we get more ovens baking more bread would be impossible - what with popovers, desserts, monkey bread, meat, bacon, salmon, etc... No, I don't have dedicated ovens!

skchai, Thank you, I am glad you like the pastries . Doug Lum is a long time friend of mine (his wife is a retired pastry chef). Doug belongs to the group "Hawaiian Island Chefs". Even with a discount- I can't afford Neiman Marcus either!

I make berry purees by cooking half of the berries with sugar until thickened (I do this with fresh and frozen), I dump the cooked onto the fresh/ frozen and burr mix and strain (chinois). I always add salt and some kind of acid to balance (lemon juice, etc..). Your sauce will be thick and shiney, with good color- plus depth and a fresh taste.

You know that is illegal; you must be paid for all the time you work. Your restaurant could be liable (fined, and forced to pay all back wages). Be very careful- plus, don't give away your labor!

I love Hawaii- the fact that I can go home from work and go swimming at a beautiful beach. The people are very nice, and so is the climate. I am the Pastry Chef for Neiman Marcus Honolulu. We have three busy restaurants (and a nice view too).

Oh yes, I have many specifics. I am not willing at this time to share them. I work in Hawaii you know. I have worked for Beverly Gannon, Phillipe Padovani, Alan Wong, and with Mark Ellman and others. Does "housemade" ice cream just mean stirring in flavoring to prepared (full of crap) base? HRC could also mean "pull the wool over your f****ing eyes".

My dad grew up in LA, my mom in SF. My dad has never eaten at BK or McD. My mom only once, when her friend took her as a joke when she was retiring. I never eat fast food. It is expensive, wasteful, and bad for the enviornment. There are so many other choices. The fallacy is that it is cheap. Hell no, you could have roast chicken , turkey, burritos, sandwichs, and save money with better quality. My mom made good burgers. I see my friends fighting the "suck in the kids early thing". 2-3-4 year olds that are eating that fat and sodium filled food as "building their bodies". It is the toys, the tv, etc... A mother can say,"please, my child does not eat fast food"-the school will take them there as an outing! A birthday party can mean "we are going to McD". People need to ask if that is O.K. Don't start children down the path of high fat/sodium/sugar/ bafore they even have a chance to make a choice.

So, should we bring up the heritage of Germany? The fine cuisine, the treatment of humankind, etc...

Container loads of salisbury steak certainly help explain some of the poor Hawaiian eating habits. Many of them were left from WW2 (60 years ago aprox). Most people never calculate rice consumption to their total days consumption- it is just there. This is in addition to pasta, bread, pasta salad, sushi, fried wings, fried katsu, fried noodles, maunapua, gravy, buttered corn, saimin, mac salad, fries, spam musubi, poi, sweet potatoes, and every sauce and gravy very sweet. Vegetables and fruit don't get much notice.

Comparing HRC Chefs to Alice Waters is funny. In Hawaii it is not about passion- it is more about money. Ice cream base, best foods"aioli", imitation "crab" frozen bobolis, pre-made creme anglaise (purchased). soup bases, chicken "broth", frozen seafood, opihi out of a jar. These are not fresh driven kitchens. They are in a step to evolving there. One of the problems seems to be that everyone wants to be a celebrity and not cook in their own kitchen. They now all have Chefs of their own and don't venture much into their kitchens.

I don't eat fast food. My reaction to Rick Bayless endorsing Burger King. I will also never eat at his restaurants or purchase his books. His choice and my choice. It is about farming communities, health, the enviornment, and choices. I hope that he feels that the money is worth it.

I like half butter/ half creme fraiche (heated) and then in the kitchenaid with the paddle. Sometimes I add turnips, sometimes celery root etc... I am kind of tired of garlic in mash potato. I usually do olive oil and salt and pepper these days.

My mom always made pickles.

I also bake pumpkin and butternut squash for pies, but always with water for moisture- you want the starch wet, that is perhaps why your baked sweet potato pie seemed fiberous, it needed more moisture combined with the starch. I like both types of pie. My grandmother preferred sweet potato. I think that it has a lot to do with the kind of pumpkin you use (also baked, with water-cut side down). I use sugar pie pumpkins or kabocha. Both are sweet on their own with dense flesh. Jack-o-lantern pumpkins are not very good for pies.