DanM

I have a veal shoulder roll to cook on Sunday. I'm not a big fan of red meat, but we have company, so I need to make a bigger feast than necessary.... Anyhow. How to cook this cut? I was thinking about pot roasting it in a dutch oven with mushrooms, potatoes, carrots and onions. Brown the meat, deglaze with white wine, as the veg, meat, broth, and a bouquet garnis. Set it in oven 150c ish for 3 hours? I might unroll the cut and add some persillade and reroll. Any thoughts? Also, is 1kg enough for 4 adults and 4 kids? I am also serving roast chicken as a main (for the kids...). Thoughts? Dan

Here is what I have so far. A pairing knife and a tomato knife Veg peeler Victorinox cheese knife Polaine bread and tartine knife (optional, but fun to have around) Can/bottle opener Mini cutting board (fits perfectly in my cooler for picnics) Pizza cost Not shown, the wooden spoon and slotted spoon that my 2 year old declared were hers. I am considering an oven mitt. I've been in a few places where I had to find a dry bath towel to take food out of the oven. I also need a solution for small amounts of spices. Salt I'll just keep in a zip top bag. Dan

I am bumping this thread. I am looking at buying a meat grinder and would like to hear the advice of others. There are two options, a Kitchenaid attachment or a stand alone electric. The all metal attachment costs about 90 Swiss Francs. An electric from bosch or Moullinex will run about 140chf. Any advantages or disadvantages between the two? Thanks! Dan

Sorry for the delayed follow up. In the end, I did a simple braise in the pressure cooker with herbs and aromatics. In addition, I made a chantrelle cream sauce, roasted potatoes and courgettes with dill, and challah. The veal with buttery soft after 40 minutes in the pressure cooker. Thanks again for the advice! Dan

We will serve around 7-7:30. Tickets to Geneva are your concern. Dress as you wish. Just a warning, we have three kids who just finished their first week of school.

Sadly, I have not replaced the sous vide side our move to Switzerland. Maybe braise in a pressure cooker to help break down the connective tissue?

Thanks. I have only seen it cut cross wise for osso bucco. Any suggestions on how to prepare it? Grill and cut into medallions? Veal schnitzel?

The local grocer had a couple of packages of jarret de veau, or veal shank for half price. Clearly, this is not the case or the French have some strange cut of shank that does not include the bone. I am hoping someone here might be able to identify what cut this is. It is boneless and came in two pieces, weighed about 500g and are about 15cm long. Any help will be appreciated.

Yes, but that would be a dull and boring life. Since we started this expat experience, I have dragged my kids to Alsace, Venice, Barcelona, Israel, Nuremburg, Hamburg, back to the US, and Lucerne. This does not include the numerous day trips to neighboring France and Switzerland. I currently have plans in the works for Genoa, Jerusalem, Rome, Provence or Brittany/Normandy (I haven't decided yet), and Vienna over the next 18 months.

Victorinox has a similar knife for about 5 francs... and it comes in fun colours! I might swing by their store to take a look. https://www.victorinox.com/ch/fr/Produits/Couteaux-de-cuisine-et-professionnels/Couteaux-doffice/Couteau-a-tomates-et-de-table-Swiss-Classic/p/6.7831

This is a good idea... I have been tempted by Bodum's french press travel mug.

Sorry, but I disagree. It is an issue with AirBnBs as many hosts/companies that run AirBnB apartments equip their kitchens with the cheapest items possible, keep the provisions to a minimum, and provide little maintenance for them. The pairing knife is essential as I have a 7 and 9 year old who are not yet comfortable using a 8" chef's knife, so a cheap paring knife is always a good option. Our routine on trips is to fill a box with cut up fruits and veg for lunch and snacks throughout the day. This is usually supplemented with fresh bread, cheese, and a tartine or rillette that we pick up as we head out for the day. with As such, a veg peeler for the carrots, apples, and other items is essential. Most bakeries I have been to during our travels do not have slicing machine, so a serrated knife is useful. I don't do much real cooking while travelling. It's mostly heat and serve. As such, spices are of limited use during our travels. As far as buying as I go, I have found that I will at times spend 15 euros per trip on salt, pepper, spices, oil, etc that usually get thrown out or left behind. I am also contemplating a silicone expandable strainer. Ravioli, tortellini and similar pastas are quick and easy meals for the kids. It is damn annoying when there isn't one in the apartment.

I am getting annoyed with poorly equipped and mantained AirBnB kitchens. The knives are damaged, basic tools missing, buying salt and pepper every time I travel, etc... I want to make a knife roll for the 4-6 times a year that I travel. These are the basic utensils that are either commonly missing or in poor shape at most apartment rentals. Here is what I have right now... Chef knife Bread/serated knife paring knife can opener corkscrew (aka my victorinox cheese pocket knife.) wood spoon veg peeler salt shaker pepper in a grinder no more than 6 spices/herbs. Paprika, garlic powder, herbs de provence, and 3 tbd... Tabasco? zip top bags What else should I add? Any advice would be appreciated. Dan

Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a rare breed and hard to find. There is only one kosher wine from this appellation. I was in luck and found it at the kosher market. It was an amazing wine. Thanks for the suggestion!

I found a lamb shoulder on the cheap and the market is brimming with fresh apricots from the Mediterranean coast. I found a recipe from River Cottage Fruit for slow roast lamb shoulder with spiced apricot sauce. The ingredients are listed below. I assume I should have this with a red wine, but what type? Since I live in Switzerland on the French border, I have easy access to Swiss and French wines. Other countries are as rare as a dog that speaks Norwegian. Any advice will be appreciated. Ingredients 1 shoulder of mature lamb, or mutton or hogget, on the bone A little olive oil, to trickle 2 tsp fennel seeds 3 tsp coriander seeds 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half 10 cardamom pods 1 tsp black peppercorns 2 star anise 2 tsp dried chilli flakes 2 tsp sweet smoked paprika 10–12 apricots, halved and stoned 4 garlic cloves, finely sliced Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper Mint leaves, to finish (optional) Many Thanks!

Challenge accepted. I have most of a bag of frozen veg, some flagolet beans, broth, and three chicken thighs. I browned the chicken, added the veg and beans, and then the broth. I let it simmer until tender. It was a little soupy, so I whipped up some drop biscuit dough, evacuated the chicken, cooked the dumplings, and then, through the magic of television, I have chicken and dumplings.

This morning I picked up a massive bundle of fresh baseball sized onions. I am in the process of making progress for dinner with them. Now what to do with the tops. I have a bundle 4" thick and about 12-25" long of greens. They are a bit too big and firm to use like scallions or green onions. Any suggestions? ETA... How about grilling and serving with romesco sauce like calcots? Thanks!

Yes. It has been several years since it was commented on and I did not feel like digging up and flogging a dead horse.

The market over the border in France had baseball sized Spanish grown artichokes for 1.80 Euros per kilo. I have never seen them that cheap. There are about 8-10 artichokes per kilo. Now what to do with them? I am looking to branch out from the old standby of steam, roast, fry or grill and them plucking it leaf by leaf with some mayo or other dipping sauce. Any other creative ideas out there? Thanks! Dan

We are heading to Barcelona in February and can use some recommendations. We are traveling with a 7, 9, and 15 month old. Specifically, I need simple places for lunch or places to pickup for a picnic. Dinner out is unlikely as Spanish dinners are too late for our kids. Vegetarian friendly is a plus. Any suggestions for pastries? They are an easy snack for the kids. Thanks! Dan

I am looking for new ideas for our RoccBox pizza oven. It is a bench top propane or wood fired oven with a stone floor. They claim it can get as hot as 500°c. We have used it a few times to make pizza, pita bread, roasted mushrooms, and padron peppers. Tonight I will be using it to make flammemkuchen. What else can I use it for? Any brilliant ideas out there? Maybe an apple crumble? Dan

Thanks Teo. It will be a bit touristy, but we are going to try and keep away from it as much as possible. What about on the mainland? Do you have any suggestions that would make it worth the trip for an evening adventure?

We are planning a family trip to Venice during the kid's fall break. I am looking for dining ideas that will put up with two kids who, if their life depended on it, cannot behave in public. A vegetarian friendly restaurant would be a plus. Thanks! Dan ETA: I can also use suggestions for gelato in case they surprise me with decent behavior.

Oh yes. It is a favorite around here. There is a wealth of information in the book that will be useful. Sadly, the binding is starting to fail on my copy. This will be fun. We were at the Divonne les Baines market this past sunday and had a picnic lunch which inlcuded a tasting of fresh that morning, one day old, one week old, and one month old goat cheese. The girls had a blast with it. Thanks for the warning. Sometimes the places that make you offer a prayer to the dysentery gods are the best places to eat. It is just a game of Russian roulette.

Now that we are living in Geneva, Switzerland, Northern Italy is at our doorstep. Turin and Milan are a half days travel by train. I am starting to put together some ideas for a week to 10 day trip though Italy. We have 6 and 8 year old girls, so I think a little light hearted fun should be part of the plan. When I'm not immersing ourselves in the local culture, I think I will be introducing the children to local styles of pizza (although, pizza is culture!!). I will make those ungrateful twits my lovely children sit there and explain to me how this pizza is different than the last. If you were to plan a pizza tour of Italy where we would explore the local style, what cities would you visit and what style to they serve there? Thanks! Dan