Darienne

Just reread the topic. Jump ahead one year and one month. This is a truly puffball rich summer. So much rain. We have found and given away a number of puffballs in the last few days. Beauties all. Lazy as I am and overwhelmed by other stuff, I decided to just slice and roast the puffball in olive oil and herbs and then freeze it. We fried and froze the one from the last post in 2010. Not a good idea, the slicing and roasting. As I attempted to fold in the olive oil, I ended up with a bowl of crumbles basically. Here's a before and after roasting photo. Bowl is 5 /34 " X 16 " across...BIG bowl. Soup, egg foo yung, enchilada stuffing (along with meat, peppers and other bits)and it will be gone.

C'mon Andie. Go for it. Get it, try it and report back. Personally, I loathe the texture of hard-boiled eggs, but DH loves them so I make them for him (and the pups).

I want to go to lunch with brucesw. :wub:

We shop haphazardly to some extent. We live far out into the country from a large town in East Central Ontario. The town is pretty provincial (don't say I said so)so there is a basic limitation to what we can buy. Just recently we have been able to get fresh poblanos for the first time ever. So we shop when we need to go to town which is usually twice a week because it's the center of forty years of our lives now...dentists, doctors, hardware, computers, lumber, library, etc. When I am out of something at home...I make do/substitute/make something else. On the other hand, we spend time when we can in a small Utah town which is two hours from everywhere. We can live below a sandstone cliff on the wild edge of town and it's still just 5 minutes to the store if I decide to make something for which I need something (assuming I can get it in the first place.) It's a very strange and wonderful time for me living in the red rocks and having a grocery store at hand. We pretty much shop daily then.

My first thought also upon seeing them. Do you ever sleep or do you simply bake wonderful goodies 24/7?

I'm not sure what you mean when you say 'purchased' for the icing. You can buy that kind of icing in little writer pens and that would be the quickest way to make the squiggles. Or a chocolate pen that you sit in hot water before using. I've seen them in a confectionery supply store. I would probably make Royal icing, put it into a snak bag, pinprick a hole in one corner and do it that way. (I have never eaten a Hostess cupcake. Grew up before they were available in Canada. )

I like a happy ending.

Interesting, as always, the differences between recipes. The Rodriguez recipe calls for 5 tablespoons of ground annato...as in make your own achiote paste. No cinnamon here either, but lots of lemon, bitter orange. It calls for vinegar...I use lime. And the Tequila. And banana leaves. It's definitely not for the mild and meek. Interesting about changes in taste. I was talking this topic over with the DH last night and he gave me the sequence of his change of heart and taste. First time, he added sweet commercial B-B-Q sauce to his portion...didn't like the non-sweet sauce. Second time, he went half and half with the sweet stuff. Third time, the straight goods and when we have pulled plain pork on a bun, we both use the Pibil sauce instead of any sweet/commercial sauce. (I could write a 'change in taste' sequence for his feelings about dark chocolate and also salad greens. But he did it!)

It can be an acquired taste. It didn't wow me the first time I tried it either, but like it a lot now. How did you make it/what recipe did you use? That's interesting. I liked it straight from the get go, but DH didn't really like it at all. Second time he did and now we eat it regularly. I use the recipe by and I have no idea why. (Even tried to watch the movie, "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" but gave up pretty early into the film.)ps. One of the main characters in the movie, played by Johnny Depp, insists that his dining companions taste his favorite dish, Puerco Pibil. It must have been the Johnny Depp connection. Wasn't enough.

Update: Good News! We have been eating this green ice cream for one week now and not only am I getting accustomed to the taste, I have grown to really like it!

Best I like the one with the Fleur-de-lis visible and the fruit in one spot. Actually, I'd eat any of them happily without even noticing the plating much...but you asked...

Because I can't get them within 100 miles of where I live, I have frozen them as often as I can get them. Peel, wash, throw them in a bag. Done. (I'd appreciate knowing if this is the best way.) As for using them, besides Andie's wonderful Chile Verde, I have used them in a Lime/Tomatillo Jam from Patti's Mexican Table. Although I have never had leftover Tomatillos, I am hoping for a bit of a crop this summer in this far frozen northland. ps. Weekend of the 27th, one friend is coming from NJ with a batch for me and another local friend is going to the States and has promised to bring me back a batch. Heck, I have even made arrangements with the Produce Manager in the grocery store to make sure they have some for me. Then, perhaps, I'll have your problem too.

Three second hand additional cookbooks for me: one on frozen desserts, one on Asian food, and one on truffles...more cheap than noteworthy. Greed on my part.

Excellent points.

We have a couple of things we do. - the garage opens easily into the kitchen via the breezeway and pots can be put out there when it's cold. And up here in the frozen north, we have a lot of that. - stuff gets left out to cool and I put a sticky note by my bedside to remind me to put it into the fridge. (She who lives by the list...) Can't say which side of the proposition I actually live on.

Not sure where to post this. Not from Mexican websites...but then lime and Jalapeno? Jalapeno and Lime Ice Cream: the story So, I decided to make the above ice cream and put together two recipes because neither satisfied me completely, and then to top it off I would add some Tequila. Jalapeno Ice Cream from Always Order Dessertand Jalapeno & Lime Ice Cream from Fine Cooking, recipe by Keeley Cochrane. One had too much Jalapeno but featured my usual cornstarch and half & half base and added the molasses which was to bring out the ‘earthy tone’ of the Jalapeno. Upon adding the molasses, the mixture curdled and turned an ugly brown color. Perhaps Piloncillo would have accomplished the 'earthy’ thing without the strange curdling effect and ugly color. No, I had not put the lime juice in at the point of curdling. Perhaps the combination of chopped Jalapeno and cream and molasses together might lead to curdling??? OK. Added the suggested green coloring but not sparingly enough. OMG, now it is a really ugly green. Strained out the Jalapeno, cooled the mixture, added the lime juice, zest and Tequila. Into the fridge. The texture left a lot to be desired. Toasted some finely chopped pecans to disguise the unlovely mouth feel. Pistachios or almonds might have been better but it is Sunday and I live in the middle of nowhere. Don’t know how I feel about it. Very strange taste. The Jalapeno (1 only with no bits left in as suggested in the recipe) was overwhelming the lime juice and the ice cream tasted like a cold green chile, very green and ‘vegetabley’. So as it was churning, I added extra lime juice and zest. And some extra ground sugar. Now it’s better but there should be a lesson in all of this. photo: straight out of the ice cream maker before hardening.

My mistake. It was Pastrygirl who posted that very useful reply. Sorry Pastrygirl. I do apologize for getting your names mixed up. As for your comments on adding powdered sugar to chocolate...I was just making some lime and jalapeno ice cream and decided that I had cut down too far on the sugar content and this was after the mixture had been cooked and was cooling. I thought about confectioner's sugar and then realized that I could pulverize some plain granulated sugar and it worked perfectly. Doesn't answer the chocolate question but it's one more bit of learning for me.

You could add fried or roasted pepper strips: sweet colored peppers or what I would use...roasted Poblano strips.

The percentage on the package is the total amount of cocoa solids plus cocoa butter. The rest is mostly sugar, plus a little lecithin and vanilla. 70% can mean 40% solids and 30% fat or 50% solids and 20% fat. Against the same 30% sugar, those two 70%s will taste very different. Not many manufacturers list the cocoa butter content separately. Callebaut has many many formulations and uses a 1 to 5 drop system to indicate the fluidity of each formulation. 3 or 4 is recommended for dipping and molding, 5 may be too fluid to get a thick enough shell. Anything sold as couverture should have 30% cocoa butter or more. The working temp of your chocolate and degree of precrystalization will also affect fluidity. If you have a chocolate whose flavor you like but that is too viscous, you certainly may add cocoa butter to thin it down. I would not add sugar, because what sugar would you add? I suppose you could use powdered sugar, as the particles are too fine to detect and it is used in Greweling's gianduja recipes, but I haven't tried that with straight chocolate. You definitely do not want to add granulated sugar, because it will not dissolve in the cocoa butter but will remain gritty. To adjust sweetness, I would find a different chocolate or do a blend of sweeter and darker until I was happy. Chocolate is one of those things you can work with for years and still keep learning and exploring. Have fun and be sure to post some pics when you make something that delights you. And so I did learn something additional from your post. Why you are rightfully called the Chocolate Doctor. Thanks.

Nothing is too retro for this old lady, but seeing as I have a specific popsicle need for the Dog Weekend, and don't own any old fashioned ice cube trays...heck I grew up with an ice box...my current solution will probably do. I'll find a way to steady all the Dixie type cups for pouring and freezing (or get the 'guy' who is steadier than I am) to pour and then folks can get the popsicles for themselves and I don't need to bag them or decant them or anything. You know when you are hosting a large event, with as many dogs which has a whole other set of considerations, you need to have everyone as able as possible to get coffee, beer, popsicles, etc, as much as possible. For one thing, you ALWAYS have those types who 'need help' as in 'I don't mean to bother you but...' 'here I come bothering you for another thing which I could have asked someone else for or looked for and found myself, yadda, yadda'. Notice how invariably they don't help to clear stuff up. So the popsicles can be stashed in the garage, in the dog freezer, and thems what wants 'em, can get 'em. And...we won't have melting extras hanging around.

Give us a description and someone...not me I wouldn't guess...will be able to tell you what it was.

Report back on Nigella's breakfast bars. Turned out quite well and next time, I'll add cinnamon at least. There is no escaping that they TASTE considerably of condensed milk and if you don't like or can't bear or don't want that taste, then don't make them. Or add cinnamon or something to mitigate against the condensed milk flavor. Oh, Diana is bang on...they are not too sweet, out of the fridge at least. For my own purposes, they are suitable until I find something else. I have to ingest 150 calories or so at 6:30 am with pills that must be taken with food. I DON'T want to eat anything at that hour...just give me a cup of coffee...but seeing as I have NO choice, these bars will work and better than anything I have come up with so far.

Rum if often identified with coconut and if I had had some, I would have used it. As it was I had Tequila and so in it went.

Here's a little goodie that I have never seen before. Found it in a box at the Restore, Habitat for Humanity, my DH's favorite department store, along with Home Depot, Canadian Tire, Home Hardware, etc, etc. I'm sure Andie, our resident expert can tell me more about it. It's a little loaf pan with all sides coming open and then put together with the little moveable wire bit.

Have not made the lime paletas yet but have made the coconut again with great success and praise, including a few with Tequila added. Then made the recipe straight into ice cream which worked out well, adding sufficient Tequila to please the grown up faction. I found the entire ice pop event a bit too fiddly, the making, the careful placing in our always crowded freezers, and the decanting. Then just yesterday I FINALLY located some small 3 oz plastic cups...the kind the dental hygienist gives you to take a sip and spit...and with popsicle sticks, at least the decanting will be given over to the one who takes the pop only, and one at a time. I am speaking crowd control here. Plus you don't have to keep track of those piddly little plastic cover and stick thingies. I have two sets of ice pops given to two sets of friends and now they have to make sure I get back all the stick thingies. Nuisance. Green, but a nuisance.