Darienne

I don't suppose there's a chance it is galangal?

Should be fine. Just remember to thaw and bring the batter close to room temperature before baking. Even more reliable if you use double-acting baking powder. Baking powder is formulated to start rising immediately when the mixture is moistened. Double-acting will have a second rising-powder reaction when heat is added. Brilliant idea. Now why have I never thought of that? (no answer, please) I have whipped up two batches of muffins...chopping nuts, shredding carrots, etc...in the last few days to give to our stalwart outdoor renovation workers...it's cold in east central Ontario...and it would have been handy if the muffin batter had already been frozen in papers as my own days are full of massive confusion right now. Thank you muchly, minas6907.

Biggest problem making confections!!! Not the sugar, not the butter, not the mixture, nor the heat, nor anything like that. It's the insatiable mouth of the confectioner. Been there, Done that. Etc.

Thanks to this topic I have learned a lot about roasting root vegetables which I am doing as we speak. No longer just tossed in oil and into the pan, but seasoned with whatever ahead of time. Makes a difference for certain. See...I can learn... Thanks again all.

I vote for the freezer. For one thing, no one can get into them easily if they are packaged and frozen...(and hidden under something else preferably).

My best tip is my cheat sheet for measuring butter. Canadian butter comes in one pound blocks...not in sticks...and so getting the correct amount needed for a recipe can be a pain. American butter comes in convenient sticks. On my fridge I have a small printed paper with the weight equivalents of 1 Tablespoon, 2 Tablespoons, etc. to one cup, covered in MacTac, with a tiny earth magnet taped to the back. One quick look tells me how many ounces of butter I need and weighing a small chunk of butter is much simpler than jamming it into a measuring cup. (I have the equivalents written down because I can no longer remember much of anything. )

That sounds a little like what I do, although I'm particularly big on time lines; on a single page, I make one for each thing I'm preparing, which really helps pinpoint potential conflicts ahead of time, and really reduces the chance of unpleasant drama when coordinating a dinner party. I'm with the planners and the mise-ers. All the dishes and potentially problematic ingredients... have to buy them, find them, thaw them, grate them, etc...go down on paper and also the steps to set the table. Ed and I cook Chinese food together. He does the mises according to a printed step-by-step plan per dish I made for him and then I step in, like the chef , and cook everything at the last minute. But then I have always lived by the list.

Now I am confused. I can't find any food references to 'macheteros'. What is 'eating short Macheteros'? Surely you are not munching on Machete wielders. My foolish error. Should have reread your first Guabo reference. The aril and seed do look a bit like Shmoos. I had a book about Shmoos when I was a kid...many long years ago...and they would just keel over and die from delight if they thought you wanted to eat them. Included were recipes for cooking Shmoos.

Fascinating as always, PanaCan. Do you eat the arils with your fingers? from a bowl? take the seeds out first?

Patrickamory, thanks so much for the revised recipe and photo. I am going to make this for our Annual Chinese Feast this year. Looks great!

Good point. Stop kidding oneself about having self control. Just get it outta here! (Or wrap it up and knot the ribbon. Actually just wrapped today's output.) As for devouring food literature. It's cookbooks for me. Just have a wonderful time looking at the photos and dreaming of time to make whatever it is. Perhaps I should get some Mexican cookbooks and learn Spanish. I also have a lot of enjoyment following eG threads and posting on them.

I make a lot of confections and chocolate dipped goodies, both for friends and folks who are good to us (vets, carpenters, butcher, etc, etc), and for charities. I might keep a very few for us, but the rule is that as soon as it is ready...it goes right into presentation boxes, tied (knotted too) with ribbon. And Dejah, if you are there, thanks again for the hot water tip. Haven't had one cup of insipid herbal tea since the day you posted that advice. Either lime or lemon juice goes into my hot water. I just reread your post and noticed the thermos part which I hadn't taken in. Brilliant. That's next. (Right. Some of them are not insipid, to me the ones full of taste are terrible. Have yet to find one I could tolerate.) ps. Just reread the 'don't buy it or make it' phrase in Margaret Pilgrim's post. Some of us JUST HAVE TO MAKE STUFF. Making it is more important than eating it. Really. I'm serious. Never buy the stuff I make anyway.

Good one, Ilana. You are really going great guns now. There will be no stopping you, senorita. Ole!

Thanks Andie. A tad too late for this meal. I finally gave up on the mixer and mashed the lumpy bits through a fine sieve. That seemed to work...but you are correct about the flavor. Morale of story: do not let my DH pick avocados. I take it that the paper bag/apple/banana actually 'ripens' them.

OK. I'll bite. How does one soften avocados and why didn't I know last night? Making a Tex/Mex luncheon spread for us and our two stalwart workers. DH picked out the avocados for me. Oh well. I wonder what the consensus would be for trying some of the pork recipes with beef. Or even chicken. Although there are enough really good beef and chicken recipes to pick from. Our current favorite (part of today's enchilada filling) is Puerco Pibil. What would it be like with beef or chicken for those who cannot eat pork?

A little research leads me to believe they are gulab jamun - which supposedly is a dessert! There are a number of little fried ball desserts in the Indian/Pakistani cuisine. I was so curious about this that I looked up "Pakistani vinegar balls" (just to start) and actually found a recipe for Ragullah which called for vinegar, but that was only to separate the whey from the milk...not soaked in vinegar. So curious...

This kind of fun is a very good kind of fun. Andie, I like the idea of a pinch of chile pepper. Must try it soon.

What time is dinner?

It looks great! Hooray for you!!!!

As it begins to get clogged, you simply reverse the turning handles...all the pits and stones will be scooped to the top of the metal plate and you can fish them out.

Here is what one looks like.

The nice thing about some of the vegetables being cooked longer than necessary is that they caramelize around the edges. Caramelized Brussels Sprouts.

My way is really simple. Put all the vegetables: white potatoes, sweet potatoes, parsnips, carrots, onions and Brussels Sprouts into a pan with only olive oil. Then when they are done, back into the bowl and add salt, pepper and thyme. That's it. Love 'em. Tried adding turnip, but I don't like the way the flavor seems to pull sideways on the mix. Sorry. I am not a very sophisticated cook.

A hand-cranked food mill? I use one to remove apple seeds or raspberry seeds using different discs. Would something like that work?

First involuntary gasp and shudder of the day. That's terrible. Hope all is mended now. Reminds me of the time my Father was trying to fix the stand mixer for my Mother and the beaters were in place and it was plugged in. For some unfathomable reason, my Mother turned it on while my Father's fingers were entwined in the beaters. Not a pretty picture. To this day, I wonder....... At least you did it to yourself...