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I've used a small whisk to get fairly similar forms to those in PC's dream image – with a spatula, I got a sort of clumsy, slab-like effect, perhaps a narrow one would do the trick – although I've never attained that level of browning (I've never even considered the possibility, but now I'm intrigued).

Here, those buckets that plaster of Paris and ceiling paint come in are very popular for this purpose (they're free, have a wide mouth, a lid, a handle, and clean up easily); not hideous, but admittedly, not gorgeous. I'm curious: Are your outside bins normally wrapped in plastic? I know open bins compost much more slowly.

Maybe it's more a planning issue? It sounds (and I may be misunderstanding) like things have reached the point of being combined a bit haphazardly, because they're there/you're used to them. Maybe just a little pruning is in order.

You're welcome CI (January & February 2012, pp. 19–21) says to preheat the oven to 425 F° (218 C°), put the croissants in the oven, and reduce the temperature to 400 F° (204 C°), and bake them for 12 minutes, then rotate and switch the positions of the two baking sheets, and bake for a further 8 to 12 minutes. The time given in the Tartine recipe is a bit longer, but the real issue may be your oven temperature, which may be higher than that indicated by the temperature knob/button array (from what I've both read and personally observed, this is extremely common, far more common than these accurately indicating of the oven temperature). The only way to determine/resolve this is to get an accurate oven thermometer, and use that as your guideline, instead of the temperature knob/button array.

Im particularly enchanted by the blue and yellow ones. Would you mind saying a bit about the flavours? I always like knowing what's on the inside, too.

Not clear as to whether or not you're interested in a commercial unit (they don't generally run small), or if, by 'professional' you mean one that's a good quality. To get you started, have a look here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?/topic/136006-espresso-machines-for-less-than-500/page__p__1774410__hl__espresso+machine__fromsearch__1#entry1774410 and here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?/topic/119939-best-espresso-machine-800/page__p__1615548__hl__espresso+machine__fromsearch__1#entry1615548 After researching espresso machines for a couple of months, I decided that the Rancilio Silvia was the one that best fit our requirements (and got a unit for my boyfriend as a birthday present last year). To date, I have to say that it still seems the right choice.

I've been gearing up to try CI's croissant recipe, although I haven't done it yet. RE:butter, they instruct to beat the cold block flat with a rolling pin until it is pliable, then roll it out in a parchment paper envelope, to make an easy-to work with shape. RE:freezing, the CI recipe says to form them, put them, 1"/2.5cm apart on a parchment covered baking sheet, cover with plastic, freeze for about 2 hours, then transfer to a zip-lock plastic bag; they may be kept frozen for up to 2 months. The instructions for the rising and baking of the frozen croissants are, proceed as you normally would with your formed croissants, but increase the rising time by an hour or two.

The question is, given an intensely flavourful dish, and an identical-except-for-flavour-intensity counterpart, would the former ring the 'Ah, that's enough' bell more quickly than the latter? I've certainly done the 'Well, I've had enough, but... damn, this is so good, I'll keep eating, regardless' sort of thing, but I am always aware of when I've reached satiety (even if I ignore it). Still, I can put away a lot more plain crisps at a go, than marmite-flavoured ones (even though I'll pick the marmite-flavoured ones over the plain ones, almost any time).

Hi gekichan, and welcome to eGullet! Pastrami isn't something I've attempted to make, but there was the the The Great Pastrami & Smoked Meat Experiment (click!), which covers quite a lot of territory, and is likely to go into your question. With any luck, some of the experimenters will weigh in now, with their expertise.

Coconuts are concave so flat graters don't work. But you don't – okay, I don't – grate coconut in the shell, and the meat tends to break apart, so the original form isn't particularly relevant. At least, that's been my experience. But unless you're grating masses of coconut on a regular basis, I'd hesitate to go with a dedicated tool that doesn't really do anything else.

More 'pasty' than mochi, I'd say. Kind of yelled 'starch starch starch!', if that makes any sense. Those remind me of the herbal jelly with the large, dark tapioca pearls that I rush to get at Saint's Alp, every time I go back to NYC (sometimes, straight from the airport). And definitely, Asian gelatine desserts are mostly about texture, a texture I happen to love, but since the ingredients involved are often such blank slates, it would be interesting to add something(s). I'm thinking more interms of aroma than flavour (although a bitter or sour note could be interesting with the mildld sweetness), layers of, say rose and cacao, or citrus and orange blossom might be. Or coffee and coconut cream.

I'd just go with one of the coarse Microplane (or similar) graters, unless there is something about grating fresh coconut that makes this out of the question. Just do not get any grater with a plastic frame, since it will break in no time.

Your comment sparked an immediate online search for "Vietnamese agar jelly". This turned up masses of images of gorgeously coloured and wobbly sweets, so regardless of whether or not this thing was an agar jelly (the gelatin part didn't seem as clear as most of the jellies I saw online), I've got to thank you for introducing me to this. Don't know how I missed it, up to now. Might be; that green definitely looks like the colour of the green ones, and the surface has than 'skin' look. Purple from the magenta plant? This definitely calls for further research.

Yesterday, as I was trawling one of the local pan-Asian shops for black vinegar, I noticed these bright purple and green things, sitting on one of the shelves, next to the sushi mats and MSG. They were simply wrapped in cling film, and their colours really stood out. I gently prodded one: gelatinous; warm. I finally asked one of the women in the shop what they were (they had no labels), and I was told that they were made with what sounded like 'blé' (awfully close to the Danish word for 'nappy', but I assumed she meant the French for 'wheat', unless there is some Asian-language word that sounds like this..?), and flavoured with 'blomst', (flower). I'll take a chance on sweets where I would be reluctant to tackle something savoury, and anything gelatinous speaks to me. So, I got a purple one. Behold (poorly focused mobile phone picture, unfortunately): The purple portions were gelatinous, and the white layers were starchy. It didn't taste of anything particular, but it wasn't a horrible experience by any means, and I'd love to have a version that involved actual flavour. Since they were warm, I'm guessing they were made by the shop owner, which suggests they are part of her culinary heritage. In-depth investigation of this was precluded by the fact that neither of us spoke very extensive Danish (and we had no common language). The shop is called Minh Áhn, which I believe is Vietnamese, but I'm far from certain. Anyone have an idea of what it is, where it comes from, and how it is made?

. . . .Do you have a reference to the particular Cooks Illustrated discussion regarding alkaline cooking of potatoes? . . . . The issue in question is the January & February 2012 of Cook's Illustrated; the discussion is on p. 15, lower right corner. One point that emerged was that cooking potatoes in an alkaline solution breaks up the the cut surfaces, making them crisp far more efficiently when fried/oven-fried (increased surface area, I'm guessing).

I'm guessing that a price tag in the range of $800 has a lot to do with it. That, and for some reason, people don't take smaller kitchen appliances that seriously.

Those are spectacular looking! Did I miss where you described what flavour these are?

Would they be 110 V or 220 V? If 220, please grab me one (I'll bring a bigger suitcase :-) ) I think they operate on batteries (this, I believe: http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/6/Tools/MeasuringTools/SpecialtyMeasuring/PRD~0574554P/Mastercraft%2BDigital%2BTemperature%2BReader.jsp )!

I've bought Trappist Preserves products in NYC, and particularly like their kadota fig preserves. St. Dalfour's (also widely available in NYC) products exceptional, too (the apricot preserves are my personal favourite).

Check McGee's The Curious Cook for a full discussion of the effects of oil on the breakdown, leading to wiliting of salad greens; unfortunately, all my books are in moving boxes at the moment. However, the takeaway is that if you want salads to be at their best, dress them as soon before serving as possible: When you have a mix of greens, the more delicate ones may start to wilt in as few as 15 minutes, sometimes less.

Absolutely - syrup and raw bits They're in for a treat

I'm just watching from the sidelines, now, but was hoping to read that you'd be bringing things representing those two flavours! For the liquorice, Johan Bülow, or?

The oil in the vinaigrette will begin breaking down the waxy cuticle/cell walls almost immediately, so, depending on precisely what is in the salad (i.e. tender v. more robust greens), the greens in particular will often show visible signs of wilting within 15 minutes.

Actually, ha-la-PEH-nyo; the letter 'e' is never pronounced as an 'ee' in Spanish (for that, they use the letter 'i').

Really sorry to hear about this. Is the advice to replace because of some form of chemical contamination, or just odour?