ElsieD

Well, damn, that was the first thing that popped into my head! I'll nominate superauto espresso machines -- I don't care what anyone says, you don't need a $3,000 machine to make a lattemochafrappewhip. (Built-in espresso machines from Miele and the like also qualify as stupid indulgences...) ← I'm curious - why the rap on all-clad?

Thanks for your kind offer. I'm in Ottawa so I should be able to find it here. Which bulk food store did you get yours at? We have lots of Bulk Barns around here but there are also health food stores that carry bulk products so I'd have to be terribly unlucky not to find it. If that happens, I'll take you up on your offer. Oh, and is it the diastatic or non-diastatic one or does it make a difference? I just had a look at Harold McGhee's book "On Food and Cooking" to see what he had to say about this. He refers to "malt extract" and says that "it is used frequently in baking to provide maltose and glucose for yeast growth and moisture retention". He does not refer to either diastatic or non-diastatic, just "malt extract". Elsie

What a wonderful pictoral. I'm going to have to try both the recipe and then follow the baking directions. First, though, I have to find malt powder. Where can I find this? Note than I am in Canada.

I have purchased Felchlin in Canada. I live in Ottawa, and just across the river in Gatineau there is a wholesaler from whom I have bought it. If it interests you to contact him, his particulars are: Kurt Schmid Import-Export 25 Rue Audet Gatineau, Quebec 819-771-9940 Note that I have no vested interest in his firm. He has various chocolate so maybe you can get what you need from him.

I like provolone, havarti or jack cheese. It has to melt and not overpower the other flavours.

Are you planning on using a pizza pan? You know, one of those ones with holes in it? If not, I think you can say sayonara to your crust.

You can buy it at the fish markets - Merivale Fish Market and Pelican, on Bank street both carry it. I have seen it at other places as well - but where else escapes me at the moment.

We did a taste test of the bacon yesterday. I thought the flavour of the one cured without the rind was slightly better than the one cured with the rind. My husband thought the opposite. Given that the two opinions cancel each other out, I guess it makes no difference. Neither could I tell any difference in the taste between the one that had ice cubes added to the cure and the one that didn't. The moisture content and flavour seemed to be the same as the one without. It sure is good stuff, though. The maple sugar and maple syrup really adds to the flavour of the bacon.

I make them on toasted English muffins. I add cheese and my own home-smoked bacon (cooked). We often have them on the weekend. No condiments - just salt & pepper.

I will post when I am finished. My initial reaction is that the piece that has the water in it seems slower to firm up, but then it's only been a day. Mine will be an 8 day cure as I want to smoke them Friday as I'm giving away a slab on Saturday. What proportions of what did Kutas use? (I'm not familiar with him.)

Okay, I'm going to just add a couple of cubes and forget about the extra salt. I took the skin off one slab before adding the cure so I may as well do it to that one and make it a total experiment. I'll likely be smoking it on Friday so that will tell the tale...........

Chris & qrn, thanks for your suggestions. I am going to add a couple of ice cubes to one slab and I will also add a bit of salt to make up for the dilution. I don't know how much salt to put in as I initially used weight as the measure but I'm thinking maybe a couple of teaspoons. Does this sound about right? And adding just a couple of ice cubes should help with overhauling the cure. Chris, since you add water to your cure, do you change the cure ingredient quantities? Thanks again.

Chris, this is interesting. I too, use the Ruhlman method and find, as you did, that there doesn't seem to be much liquid. I have three bellies curing in the fridge now - I started them last Wednesday - do you think I can add a bit of water to them? Mine are in large zip-loc bags with as much air expelled as possible. Maybe I could add a couple of ice cubes to each one for a slow (but cold) infusion of water? My bellies pieces are about 2 1/2 pounds each. Thanks for your thoughts on this. Elsie

That looks wonderful. I have had the same experience - price versus quality. I just bought some more bellies at a Chinese grocery store, which is where I bought my last batch. I paid $2.59 a pound and they have a very nice proportion of lean to fat. Their bacon is better than the upscale butcher shop where I used to buy my bellies for around $4.00 a pound.

Are you talking about the garlic tops which are called scapes? If they are scapes, try looking for garlic scape(s) soup.

What does the ingredient list say?

I try and cut it about the same as the bacon you buy in the supermarket, not the "thick cut" but the regular cut. I have an electric slicer but it can be a bit tempermental. I got three more pieces of pork bellies today that I will start curing tomorrow. This home made bacon really is very, very good.

I don't know what recipe you used but I use one found in Michael Rhulman's book, "Charcuterie". It uses maple sugar and maple syrup. Also, I let it cure for at least a week, rinse, let it sit on a rack uncovered for 24 hours in the fridge to form a pellicule, and smoked it for 6 hours. I have a Bradley also but I used my Weber this time. (Picture below of the finished bacon.) I have no problems cooking it up. My biggest problem is the cruddy slicer I have that results in bacon sliced less evely than I'd like which means the bacon doesn't all want to cook at the same rate.

In Canada, I pay about $2.50 a pound, but that may not be relevant to the prices paid in the US. $5 a pound sure seems like a lot though. ← Here's a picture of some I made the other day.

In Canada, I pay about $2.50 a pound, but that may not be relevant to the prices paid in the US. $5 a pound sure seems like a lot though.

Can you tell me where the recipe is? Thanks! ← http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...dpost&p=1669405 ← Thanks for that. They sure look good.

Can you tell me where the recipe is? Thanks!

I used to make the Jacques Pepin's Potatoes Fondant a lot until Fine Cooking produced "Crowd Pleasing Crispy Potatoes" in it's January, 2007 edition. These are spuds that are boiled, flattened and baked in the oven in olive oil. Delicious. But, I can't wait to try these Crash Hot Potatoes. I think the crusty bits on top will be delicious. Thank you for the link.

Where did the recipe come from? Can you share? I'm always on the lookout for new spud recipes.

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I made a note of this and will try them out. I often make recipes from Epicurious.