lstrelau

You can get circular saw blades for your dremel and also thin abrasive discs that would work well, just be careful not to breath the dust, probably not good for you and it will be messy! Could work wet but that could get your dremel wet too. I am a jeweller and a jewellers saw with a fine blade would work really well if you want a very precise edge. But after all that work you would probably want to keep the shells for more than one go-round - cleaning between uses would be tricky.

FG, is your Bertazzoni oven gas or electric? I have the 4 burner version with gas oven and broiler. THe 'infrared' gas broiler does a pretty good job (though not sure how I would find the sweet spot that MC talks about) has taken me quite a while to get used to the intensity of the bottom heat - can't really use the bottom shelf for any high heat cooking - burns stuff even with convection fan going. Otherwise really happy with the range.

Plastic doesn't retain the heat of the hot washing water anywhere near as much as ceramic or glass so the water doesn't evaporate as fast on plastic.

A truffle slicer would work too (adjustable thickness from paper thin up). Kevlar gloves might be useful though!

Recipe for Arpege Eggs: Recipe for Arpege Eggs:Edited to include a link to some pictures of egg scissors - lots of info on the web: Egg Scissor I bought a scissor for quail eggs (the membrane on them is really tough) that very neatly slices off the top of an egg. The same tool is available in larger size for chicken eggs (maybe also larger for duck ones?). It came from an online store in Japan, stainless steel, plastic handles looks like a regular scissor except one blade is is a flat ring shape that you insert the top of the egg into, the other blade a serrated and sharpened triangle. When you close the scissor the point of the blade pierces the egg and then slices off the top of the egg in 2 seconds flat. Not sure if it was as perfectly cut as the one in the photo on your link but it was pretty tidy. I didn't keep the shells for service last time I had quail eggs but it sure made it easier than trying to use a nail scissor or knife to get the eggs out without breaking the yolk.

I just vacuumed once - used maximum time (60 sec). Used several different liquids including tequila with some chili, lemon syrup and some white wine that was handy. All were interesting. Forgot about one package for over a week and threw that one away without trying. Also, this was using perhaps less than optimal melon available in Canada in winter. Look forward to using really good summer fruit.

I can't remember where I saw it illustrated/described but it is apparently possible to use a manual (i.e. mouth blown) blow pipe to spray chocolate for that velvet look. Maybe you can find a reference with an online search. (I don't think it was here one eGullet but could have been)

Phaz, your thought that the release of vacuum in the VP112 is allowing a bit of air in before the jar can seal makes sense although I still can't figure out why one of my jars worked absolutely perfectly, filled right up and stayed that way and why others only partially filled and others wouldn't even start to rise. More experimentation necessary for sure. Since I scaled the recipe down by a large degree I didn't have as much to play with. I did use 1/2 pint jam jars instead of 1 pint jars which fit in the chamber just fine. I figured the end resultant quantity would be fine for service directly from the jar as individual servings (even though there was only 20 grams of mango base in the jar it 'looks' like a large portion to the diner). Doing a test with other fruits, as you suggest, makes sense too. I did add some pureed frozen saskatoon berries to the remainder of my test batch of mango and while it did expand satisfactorily, the fruit the fruit-to-seed ratio in Saskatoons (service berry) made for a not so pleasant eating experience. Will try the jar in a bag idea and also with the one small container that was made for vacuum sealing - if a person could find a source for inexpensive or semi-bulk purchase of these canisters it could be good for individual service. Another thing to try would be putting a jar (would probably need to be the 1/2 pint size with its lid and snug ring) inside the external vacuum canister and then repeat with additional jars. The eating experience of the aerated sorbet was quite nice, especially as it just starts to soften enough to make it easy to spoon out and before it 'melts'.

FG, I had a nice piece of mirror (thick for strength) custom cut to sit in the middle of my table. You could have it made any size/shape that you wish. Put little silicone feet on the bottom so it won't move and won't further mar the table top. Then if you use candlesticks or flowers or other centrepiece, the can sit on the mirror (nice reflections and even a slight increase in illumination. You can get fancy and have (or maybe find already made) a beveled mirror that is more attractive on the table. Or you might be able to find a nice antique plateau - silver/silver plate galleried mirrored tray with feet that looks nice on the table. You can use it same way, put decorative things (seasonal deco?) when you want to. A bunch of tea lights look nice on the mirror.

This has been my unanswered question from day 1. Can't seem to get a consensus on whether there is any potential leaching of something from the plastic bag at veggie cooking temperatures. I figure, at 56 years old, the small amount, if any, that would leach isn't likely to affect my lifespan or health. (I have non-modernist friends who mutter about boil in a bag and plastic...) but surely someone out here (Nathan??) can tell us if we should be using boilable rather than regular vacuum bags for long time low temp cooking. Llyn

Well, my aerated mango sorbet worked out about the same as the previous poster - one of them did exactly what the book said, filled up the jar to the top, stayed that way and was still aerated and frozen 5 hours later. Of the other 5 jars would expand and then deflate when the vacuum released, even though the lids were sealed. Or they would expand and only patially deflate. Or they wouldn't expand at all. I was not entirely scientific in the 'experiment' and will try it again soon. I assumed the citric acid was to make the sorbet more tart (as in using lemon juice) to counteract the sweetness of the mango/simple syrup rather than performing a more technical role. The ascorbic acid did add a bit of that tartness. Frustrating that the results were inconsistent. Perhaps my chamber vac doesn't pull enough vacuum or I did something else wrong. Onward & upward.

I am making this today - I am in Calgary, elevation 1000 metres so 600 metres lower than Denver - see it that makes any difference. Forgot to buy citric acid so ground up some Vitamin C tablets - there are some fillers in it so that could cause me problems. Also using 1/2 pint jars rather than 1 pint ones since I a) only want to make enough for 6 people as a palate cleanser b) plan to serve it straight out of the jars at table. I have the VP112 Vacmaster so I can try the exterior method as well as inside the chamber Will report back

I have never had one of these and frankly, they scare me - but we have a garden and can compost most of our organic (not meat) waste). But as far as the sharpening with ice cubes is concerned, my Thermomix manual recommends throwing some ice cubes into it and grinding them up once in a while as a good way to sharpen the blades in the machine. So guess there is enough abrasion from the ice to hone the blades in this sort of thing.

Posted this in a previous duck thread but will re-iterate for you here. If you want to try it, send me a PM and I will give you specific temps and other details (if you can't find a recipe online). Yes, this is a bit more work than simply roasting the duck but you are ensured of proper cooking of what otherwise can be overcooked breast, undercooked thighs and flabby skin. Her method gives you perfectly cooked everything plus easy service for company. You can, meanwhile, eat the components by yourself for several meals. When I have been presented with a whole duck I go back to a recipe from Julia Child (in either "Company" or "More Company" though it might be in her other books as well) where she: 1. Roasts whole bird at a high temperature for a relatively short timejust to get it partially cooked. 2. Dismember said bird - remove breasts, legs/thighs, all the skin, reserve carcass and wings & tips for stock 3. Coat legs & thighs with dijon mustard and roll in fresh bread crumbs and continue to roast til done to your taste 4. Cut the skin into 1/2 inch wide strips and roast in pan along with legs until it turns into yummy crackling. 5. At service, slice the breasts on the angle and poach briefly in port and (I think) swirl in some butter to finish the sauce - I can't remmeber the precise rest of the details here. 6. Serve the now perfectly cooked parts of the bird = slices of breast, a succulent crusted leg/thigh and some crispy, tasty crackling. You have the carcass for stock and should be rendered fat for another use. (or make duck soup! Sorry, this is somewhat vague since I am on a road trip and don't have cookbooks with me but, as Julia says, this is a great way to have all of the duck cooked properly (as oppossed to just trying to roast it whole) and there is no last minute fussing with trying to carve a bird for service, the messy stuff is done ahead of time. She recommends (and I fully concur) serving this with a green vegetable and a silky smooth puree of parsnips - great combo.

Looks like ramps can be cultivated, just trickier than your regular cultivated members of the onion family. Being a spring ephermeral just means you would be looking at a bare plot of land (or forest floor) for most of the year. http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/ncnu02/v5-449.html Not at all comparable to truffles which have way more complicated requirements. And even truffles have been cultivated on a small scale.

I bought some boilable bags from another source and use them for any long-time cooking and the ones that I bought from Homestead for short-time items. Do you use boilable bags or just the 'regular' ones? I don't think we can use retort bags in the VP112 anyway. Anyone else have an opinion?

Chris, Did Conrad indicate whether the bags that come with the VP112 are 'plain' vacuum bags or actual 'cooking-grade' bags. Or for that matter does it really matter? I am still curious about this. Llyn

Cut grapefruit in half (perpendicular to stem axis. Use 'swordfish' knife to loosen each segment but leave them in the 'shell'. Then eat with narrow spoon. Some people sprinkle a bit of sugar or maple syrup on top and broil for a few minutes to glaxe. Only thing missing from this knife is that the one I have has a rounded and serrated tip as well as both sides. My Dad would have this for breakfast often as a 'starter'. With the curved/angled blade I also use mine to make 'boats' out of an 1/8th or 1/6th wedge of pineapple (leaving that segment's leaves attached for aesthetics). The shape makes it easy to saw parallel to the skin to release the flesh, then cut vertically to make bite size pieces.

I'm with you. i would change the taps otherwise you will end up confused every time you use a sink somewhere else. Is it only one of your sinks that is 'backward'? For me it would be like getting back to my own manual shift car after I have been on vacation driving an automatic transmission rental car and I forget to use the clutch!

Weird, I just bought a chunk of lardo from Oyama Meats at Granville Island Market earlier this week - have been reading about it too and they had it in stock on this visit. All I have done with it so far is slice it really thin and put it on thin slices of baguette and broiled it for crostini - quite yummy. Froze half to save it for this summer when I make pizza on the BBQ. Aside from pasta sauce are there any other good things to do with it?

I have a warming drawer and also a small second oven so not hard to warm plates even with gold trim but as long as the oven isn't too hot you should be fine with your oven once the main is out - (leave door open to cool it off??). Otherwise, if you have room in a sink you can run hot water over the plates. Except then you have to dry them all off and if you have a lot of guests they won't stay that warm by the time you finish. For future (probably too late for tomorrow), there are electric pads (sort of accordian fold) that will heat plates also you can buy metalized plastic discs that you put in the microwave to heat them up and then interleave them with your plates (stacked on the counter). You don't have to put the plates themselves in the microwave.

Anyone (preferably in Canada) who has already bought Iota Carrageenan and would sell me a smaller quantity than the 500 gram container that I have found so far? Or two or 3 people who would like to share in said quantity. Perhaps other ingredients as well, though not sure what else I might want/need - I have only just received MC and it will take ages to get through it and figure out what else I need. A list of popular ingredients would be useful indeed (It is probably in MC already though?) Would like to try the Mac & Cheese but it would take a long time and lots of pasta to go through 500g.

Mine arrived today - also Canada, Calgary AB. Amateur cook and avid foodie. Just spent the night in the Okanagan on Tuesday!

Had 3 worried days when UPS tracking would not update - my books were scheduled to arrive on the 11th and there was no info when I tried tracking. After speaking to a UPS rep (with no help) I was resigned to calling Amazon.ca this morning and screaming at them to find out where my books were but lo and behold UPS smartened up and my favourite courier brought them this morning to my office. As someone else said, I don't know how I will get them home (didn't bring the car today) so might have to do it piecemeal too. Fantastic books - only skimmed so far but even after everyone's comments and description over the past month nothing quite prepares one for the actual scale and amazing production values. Thank you Nathan! How was Fat Duck by the way?

A couple of my favorite spots in London. More modest perhaps at Ffiona's on upper church street. She won an award for best British food. Very idiosyncratic but fun. Clarkes. Sally still does a fantastic job. Also a pub on Church street called The Churchill Arms. Nice pubbut the Thai resto in back is super. Take a train trip (or long cab ride) east of Redding to Little Bedwyn to a resto called The Harrow. Roger Jones and his wife Sue do a wonderful job.