sandra

I thought the traditional recipes for DDL involve condensing milk and sugar in a pot (by boiling off the water), so what exactly is the distinction between cooked sweetened condensed milk and DDL? ←

If you want to use dulce de leche for a cake filling, why don't you buy Dulce de Leche? A cooked can of condensed milk is NOT dulce de leche, it is cooked condensed milk... At the easiest you can buy it at Williams Sonoma here but it should be available in many other stores now... Also, the real stuff is perfect for cake filling and cake covering, for that matter...

There is also Oriental City in Colindale on the A5 (EdgwareRoad) or Wing Yip, also on Edgware but just inside the North Circular...

I have the Magimix Gelato Chef 2200 - bought it from Nisbet's Nisbets's much better price than anywhere else and you don't have to carry it around...delivery to your door! it is heavy. The bowl is not detachable, but a sponge and some paper towels do the job quickly, and not too loud, about 1/2 hour churn depending on recipe...

avocado, hand mushed tomato, chopped cilantro, chopped chiles, chopped white onion, chopped loads of lime juice salt bit of olive oil

That would be "a cheval" which means with a fried egg on top...

update on the new Mexican on Hampstead Road - Marisol has changed the name to Mestizo and it is now fully up and running, open at lunch as well - details still as above...

Oh please do tell how you make this choc/dulce de leche ganache !!!! I make my dulce de leche by cooking an unopened can of sweetened condensed milk in a pressure cooker. Usually 30 minutes after the cooker comes up to pressure suffices, but there's a thread in Pastry & Baking that covers the process in detail with lots of different options (especially this post). If you do cook in a pressure cooker, be sure to release the pressure immediately and remove the can right away, otherwise you'll overcook it. And, let the can cool completely before opening. Next I make a milk chocolate ganache. I tend to make one large quantity of a basic recipe and then divide it into smaller batches and make several flavors at a time. For this purpose, I'd use a 1:2 parts ratio of cream:chocolate (though the exact ratio depends on the fat content of the cream and the actual milk chocolate used). Once the chocolate and cream have been fully incorporated and still slightly warm, I add the dulce de leche, usually in a 1:3 ratio (4 ounces (weight) dulce de leche added to 12 ounces (weight) ganache) - making a pound of ganache. Fold together and let set. This will make a pipable (at room temp) ganache and I find it holds up well under refrigeration if care is taken to prevent condensation inside the container. :Clay ← Excellent, thank you so much - I will be trying this very soon - I actually just buy the Argentine dulce de leche in a jar for everything else, so I'll give it a go with that... Gracias for the rec!

Yes absolutely, also with lime juice... But beer with salt, now there is a good thing....

Oh please do tell how you make this choc/dulce de leche ganache !!!!

Also found a LaBrea outpost at Selfridges - several varieties, including the sourdough baguette...

The Big Easy on King's Road has pretty decent ones...

Hallie, on the menu are taquitos, ensalada de nopales, queso fundido, and then filete con salsa de chipotle, pollo con mole, some fish and shellfish and the usual flan and crepas de cajeta, ice creams - loads more in terms of starters and mains, I juxt can't think of specifics right now... Give them a try, their phone number is: 7387 4064

"ANY IMPROVEMENTS ON THE MEXICAN FRONT IN LONDON????" Actually.... YES... Go and try Sol y Luna on 103 Hampstead Road - Just across from Tottenham Court Road... My friend Marisol, ex-Si Señor, has just re-branded this resto from Venezuelan to Mexican, and she is doing a good job - it's not quite finished yet, and they are open only at night so far... but it's worth a try - I've been a couple of times and the food is very nice... buen provecho!

Pages on Shaftesbury Avenue will definitely have oven thermometers, I bought two there a few weeks ago, they are on the left, as you walk in the door, behind the bookcase, there is an entire display of oven, fridge, digital, candy, etc... thermometers... As for the flours, Waitrose alsways seems to have a good selection, including extra strong Canadian flour, wholemeal, etc... Also, here is a website that can send you flours... Goodness Direct good luck with the baking

Yep, I did not realise it the first time I went either, but that is what they told me there, what I found is this Time Out article, and that is not very clear, is it? Time Out Whatever it is, it was quite good, especially the soupy buns...

Chinese Experience - Shaftesbury Avenue (new Yau) Tas - The Cut Sakura - Hanover Street

I can't answer your question tarka, but while you are on that subject, does anyone know how does it work when a restaurant changes, i.e. Pied a Terre, will it still have it's star after fire and refurb, etc...??

Well, we have been living here almost 10 years, and every year we have a BIG (20-25 people) Thanksgiving dinner which, again, is "ethnic" here! We have the roast turkey, stuffing, mash, yams with marshmallows, green bean casserole, but not the one with the soup, another one with sour cream and loads of cheese... cranberry sauce, gravy, pumpkin pie, etc... I can find everything here, the only issue is having to order a turkey, as they ususally don't eat them here until x-mas, but, the order is in for a 30 lb bird, and all is well - So that is our "ethnic" thanksgiving...

As a Mexican-SouthAmerican, the whole American Thanksgiving dinner is "ethnic" to me, so we have everything that is "traditional" American and nothing from my varied backgrounds, this is what makes it special...! Just a different point of view...

oi! my response to Matthew was deleted, which would have addressed Gary's question before he asked it... did anyone see it?? what's going on?

"Generally people that aren't into food are not going to start their fine dining restaurant experiences at 3 star Michelin restaurants however they are promoted." Then again, most people who are not "into" food probably won't know that it is a 3 Michelin star - or what a Michelin star is, for that matter. Or imagine, for one moment, that out there, there are people who don't have the foggiest idea what "molecular gastronomy" is all about, maybe not even heard about it... That's where Richard and Judy come in....

AHA! Thanks.

nightscotsman, how do you get the dimpled effect on the blown sugar orange?

"I can't imagine someone ripping out a gas cooktop and replacing it with one of these. Well, maybe they were going for "the look" to help sell the house. And, that would probably work for those that aren't cooking freaks. " I'm about to rip out my gas hob and replace it with an induction hob - I cannot imagine anyting gas can do better than induction right now... and I think I am a cooking "freak" as you say...