Mjx

Off-the-top of my head, quickie summary, with a recommendation to check this with reliable sources, and the caveat that, although I understand the logic behind using pesticides and herbicides, I believe that their long-term damaging effects are likely to outweigh current benefits: Roundup is composed of an herbicide (which has been assessed as less harmful than a number of other herbicides) and a surfactant, which increases cell permeability, thereby increasing the effectiveness of the herbicide in destroying its targets. This isn't a selective process, however: it is more damaging to all living cells than the herbicide component alone. Roundup has been around since the 80s, at least; it isn't new, and there has been plenty of time to study it, and observe its effects. Because it can damage living cells, several crop species have been developed that tolerate it (the alfalfa strain mentioned above); a number of weeds have naturally acquired a resistance to it, too. Although studies have been done for each of the two compounds separately, there do not seem to have been any EPA studies involving both the herbicide and the surfactant together, and Monstanto was chided for releasing studies on Roundup that were misleading on this point, and involved conflicts of interest. Studies not tied to Monsanto suggest that this is not something you want running in your water or present in significant levels in your food (e.g. 'Time- and Dose-Dependent Effects of Roundup on Human Embryonic and Placental Cells'). Unfortunately, the use of Roundup is not well-controlled; in addition to being used in agribusiness, it is used in parks and such to keep weeds down. Water runoff carries Roundup into water supplies. The compounds in Roundoff have been associated with a wide range of cell damage in living organisms, and endocrine, reproductive, and genetic damage. How much is 'okay'? This is still being disputed. [Edited, because I absentmindedly wrote 'pesticide' where I meant to say 'herbicide'.]

There have been rumours regarding Whole Foods' actual position on organic food for a while. It seems evident that, whatever their next move /marketing strategy may be, they're clearly counting on most consumers not wanting to bother slogging through even the Wikipedia article on Roundup, never mind reading any of the research on the stuff, or being able to differentiate between the biased and the unbiased. I'm hoping they're mistaken.

Leaving aside the dose aspect of this, aren't many herbs and spices irradiated, and wouldn't that have an impact on any purported benefits they might have?

Erin, thank you for pointing that out: somehow, the only original article I managed to spot was the one in the original post, which doesn't include a recipe, just a description of the process. The bread actually came out decently, anyway, and tastes terrific, which is a testament to the claim that a kid could do it. It's a bit flat (which may be partially due to my completely flaking on slashing the loaf), but not a complete pancake.

When is the lid supposed to come off? I'm in the middle of giving this a go (540g flour, 0.5 L water), gave it 18 hours to rise, got in in the oven, and... wasn't quite certain of what to do next. I ran out of steam after reading aobut 8 of the 26 pages that have accumulated for this thread so far, an d put together my plan from what I gleaned . I put the bread in a 450F/230C oven and set the timer for 35 minutes. I wondered about crust development with a lid on, and did get a sense that it should come off at some point. At the 35-minute mark, I removed the lid, and could see this would need another 20 minutes or so to develop a proper crust. Did I leave the lid on too long?

I know this is incredibly trivial, but what's wrong with Miele? Do they suffer from 'Fiat curse' in the US, or something of that sort, owing to mandated import modifications? I'm curious, because in the EU they still have a reputation for reliability. Not luxury or anything, but something you can pretty much count on.

Are there any other restrictions on what you can ingest, other than the ones you mentioned? If you want something quick, you might want to look into some of the stuff bodybuilders take; my brother (who only eats about half a dozen different things) more or less lives on this stuff, and some of it is not bad. You can get powders and premixed liquid versions. Like most of formulae, these can be doctored to improve their flavour, particularly if they don't have corn syrup or artificial sweeteners in them. Can you get bottled yogurt where you are? In the EU, yogurt tends to be liquid, but I haven't seen much of that form in the US. You can add an amzing amount of stuff to that (e.g. cacao, instant coffee, cinnamon), without it becoming too thick to drink. You can also take a pasteurized egg, mix in enough cacao and sugar to give you a loose paste, then gradually add milk/soymilk/liquid yogurt/what-have-you, plus anything else you feel inclined to add (cardamom and a pinch of salt are good) to give a fairly hefty beverage. If I drink that in the morning, I'm good until 14.00.

To me it's always hot chocolate, partly because I grew up in Italy, and the beverage (which you actually spoon from a small cup, since it's quite thick) is called 'cioccolata calda', which is simply 'hot chocolate'. There's another reason, however, and that's that some countries use the term 'cacao', and others use 'cocoa', further complicated by people using the term they think I'd use, while I'm using the term I've heard used locally... 'hot choc' it is.

I did a quick calculation, and figure we (two adults, no kids or pets) spend about $14/day on groceries (which includes some non-food items), even though food is quite expensive in Denmark. We don't buy much that is pre-made, which would really boost the total cost. I also spend less on produce when I'm in Denmark than anywhere else: not because it's cheap, but the quality is rather miserable in many places, there isn't much to tempt. I'm wondering about the source of The FreshDiet.com's figures, and whether or not they're also figuring in all the costs of production (gas, electricity, labour, etc.).

Some of my earliest dining memories are of being taken by my grandfather to a restaurant near his office, where all the waiters were men who looked (to me) to be about 100; I was always fascinated by the way they'd remember everything we ordered, including my usually bizarre selection of ice cream flavours and toppings (I don't know whether I knew yet, about it being usual to write down orders). I think this is the sort of thing that impresses if it works, and maddens if it doesn't, and would probably affect my tip accordingly

If you're talking about approximating the flavour, I'd have to say 'Nothing'(although weirdly, strawberries sometimes remind me of tomato), and substitutions don't usually work out to well. But if you're looking for other things with rich flavour, the first things to come to mind are mushrooms, particularly if they're roasted or grilled. If dairy is okay, I'd try to intensify the flavour of the cheese on pizza. Meat sauces with no (or at least very little) tomato are great with pasta, and starting with a rich broth does a lot for stews and soups. When I make pasta and have no tomatoes, I'll just toss it in a little duck fat, and add capers/olives preserved in oil/small pieces of prosciutto,

Blue and other dye colours don't bother me too much, although they sort of suggest a serious lapse of sanity, when they're found in 'real food' (as opposed to candy, and cake decorations), and given a choice, I do sort of tend to avoid them. The colour of borscht really freaks me out, however, and only becomes worse for me when sour cream is added. I can recall a few childhood differences with an aunt of mine, over whether or not I'd eat borscht (I didn't). She loved that mangenta-ish colour in general, and often incorporated it in various crocheted things for me, which looked particularly frightful with my pallid complexion and reddish hair. Somehow, these only reinforced my aversion to most magenta food.

I switched to silicon spatulas a while ago, because I didn't feel like worrying about plasticizers in maybe-rubber-but-probably-some-sort-of-plastic spatulas. But generally, to get the grease off plastic, rubber, or silicon, you need to apply the detergent directly, work up a lather, and repeat as necessary. I believe (organic chemistry is about a decade behind, me now) it has something to do with these compounds having a greater affinity for lipids than glass, metal, or ceramic.

Why not? That's what I called myself when I was actually cooking in a professional kitchen. Me too, Even though I create and manage every part of my company, I'm not running a kitchen full of employees so i don't refer to myself as a "chef". A lot of high-end kitchens I've worked in everyone calls each other chef, really quite entertaining and a little joke at the term, when everyone starts referring to even the stages as "chef". Labels are for boxes and museum specimens. Seriously – and I'll candidly admit to having a visceral aversion to unnecessary labels – I'm wondering why anyone needs a non-professional label of any sort. The discussion of whether or not you call yourself a chef or a cook makes sense professionally, because if you're applying for a job, for example, 'chef' informs whoever looks over the CVs of the general nature of your skill set. So does 'cook'. But if you happen to be someone who enjoys (or is passionate or fanatical about, or however you'd care to describe it) food, and haven't chosen to do this for money, why go all Procrustean, and reach for a label (this also underpins part of my aversion to 'foodie')? What's wrong with 'I like/enjoy/appreciate food/cooking'? It doesn't even involve more words – three words, whatever you say – so the 'conciseness' argument doesn't apply. I love cooking and baking, and enjoy eating to the point that vacation plans are frequently determined by the food a place has to offer, but I'm certainly not a chef (I haven't the professional qualifications or experience, and I don't do it for money), nor would I care to characterize myself as a cook: notwithstanding my deep appreciation of food, there are other things I do and enjoy as well. I enjoy food. Also, detective fiction, nitpicking arguments, violent physical exercise, and drawing. Stick a label on yourself > start gathering dust. I will now go and hack apart a chicken.

I've been using the CI recipe for quite a while, and really like it. It involves grated chocolate, which really amps up the flavour and body. First made it because options here for mixes are A) dreadful, but not too expensive, and B) not bad, but priced to stun.

I'm not big on oranges in general, but I love blood oranges; they actually have a flavour. I can easily eat half a dozen at a go. The price isn't too bad, here, but the almost criminally negligent treatment of fruit means there's almost guaranteed to be one rotting one per bag, which is depressing and revolting. I just break them into sections, and eat them like that.

We plate, but there isn't any connection between that and our having white dishes; it's because our table is too small for any other option (we're currently using our very nice, if tiny, patio table, because we're holding out for a dining table we happen to really like, but is fairly expensive).

I think you're still not getting it: I don't know that most of the people writing here are professionals (I'm not), but they do have an attitude towards food that also applies to drinks. I think you're missing the point, and asking the wrong group of people, that is, those who actively avoid mixers: it isn't accidental. No one here is waiting to be converted, wishing they could find a better mixer; mixers are simply of no interest.

'Oven-fried chicken' may be a good dish, but the name is stupid (you can't fry in an oven), which I believe is the point. Don't know what you've been brining, but it can really salvage a low-grade bird. You may say 'Fool, why get a low-grade bird?' To which I reply: 'AHA! Clearly, you've never had a (then) new boyfriend show up, beaming (most Danes adore bargains), with the gift of 3/DKK 99 chickens (about USD 15 at that time), which appear to have died of starvation at some point in their mid-teens.' I should add that they were also frozen like rocks. Anyway, I thawed one overnight in the refrigerator, and brined and roasted it the next day. It was one of the best chickens I'd ever had. A novice to brining, I thought that I must have grossly underestimated the quality of the chickens simply because they were small, emaciated, and freezer-burned in spots. So, I roasted another, but skipped the bringing. This one fully lived up to its depressing appearance. I've brined most on-the-bone poultry ever since.

Yep. A term that kills me is 'amateur chef', which seems as much an oxymoron as 'amateur prostitute'.

'Fabricate' doesn't seem offensive, but since it's simply a more formal way of saying 'make', why is it used? (Not a rhetorical question, just curious, since professional terms usually seem aimed at being more precise, or more concise.)

I wonder whether the term 'foodie' itself didn't have something to do with it... I could believe that (yes, I loathe the term).

The problem with 'meat' is that it doesn't include fish (and people are put off when I say 'dead animals'). But I still can't imagine saying 'protein' instead, because it doesn't make me think of professional kitchens, but health nuts who have gone around the bend (the ones who say 'flesh foods' with an expression that suggests that they consider you a murdering creep).

Ginger with lemon, hands down. I'll use fresh ginger, dried ginger, whatever. Quite a bit of it. I sometimes ratchet up the heat with a bit of cayenne. It's more warming than other hot infusions (apart from coffee), which I like because my job means I tend to sit still for extended periods of time, making my body temperature plummet, even in summer. Not exactly a tisane, but I also make thick beverage from powdered rosehips, which is warming enough to make me start sweating. It isn't particualrly tart, so this gets lemon, too. Chamomile and hops, if I'm not feeling sleepy when I should. I like tinkering with the blend too much to go for prepackaged, although I know there are some very good one out there.

I can't imagine anyone finding fault with 'mirepoix' (or the like), it's a common cooking term that concisely describes something specific. To me, 'break down' implies 'to reduce to the smallest possible components', which conjures up the visual of me, the chicken, a stump, and a 20-pound sledgehammer. I don't actually know of a recipe that demands that particular prep, but I'll bet it exists.