Norm Matthews

Thanks for all the information. I have never had risotto in a restaurant but only at home when I made once or twice a long time ago. I expected to hold it in the rice cooker for less than an hour but it turned out to be over two hours before they got home. I learned my lesson. It looked a lot more appealing before it went in the rice cooker than it did when it came out but it still tasted good. It was the first time Cassie and Charles had had it and they both made comments about how it looked.. like oatmeal or gruel, but both liked the taste. Charles said if he was forced to have only one thing for a long time, he'd be ok with that.

The rice was done about 5:30 and the kids were off work at 5 so i figured I'd be OK if they were a little late. They went to get rentals for the guys in their wedding and didn't get home until almost 8. The rice was in the rice cooker all that time. It didn't dry out but was kind of gummy looking. It still tasted OK but next time i won't start it until everybody is home.

Kids got off at 5 today so I planned dinner for 6 but they decided to get rentals for the guys in the wedding and didn't get home until almost 8 so everything was held for a couple of hours. I think the rice suffered the most but everyone liked it anyway. Stuffed dates were a big hit too. I was given an Italian cookbook for Father's Day so all the recipes came from it today.Wine was Valpolicella which I had not had in almost 40 years but used to be one of my favorites. Salad was mixed greens with candied walnuts, shaved parmesan and pears poached in red wine, , honey and cinnamon. Appetizer was dates stuffed with ricotta and wrapped in proscuitto. Meatballs made with ricotta and sauce made from scratch Risotto with pancetta, mushrooms, onions, red wine and chicken stock.

Thanks. I am glad to hear there is a stop and hold place. The only risotto I have ever had is what I have made myself and that was only twice before today and it was just plain and also quite a while ago.

I only plan to keep it on warm for an hour or so.

Son gave me an Italian cookbook for fathers day and I am making dinner with recipes from it. I want to make as much ahead as possible so last minuted prep will be at a minimum. The recipe is for risotto with onions, mushrooms, red wine and chicken stock. After I have made it on the stovetop, is it going to be ok to keep it warm in the rice cooker?

Son and his fiancee made Father's Day dinner for me today since Cassie works tomorrow. She made mixed vegetables cooked soft but still crunchy with jalapenos and Creole seasoning and fried sweet potatoes while son made T-Bones on the grill. Dessert was a trifle made with cake, baked apples, fruit jam, cake and whipped cream.

Once several years ago when I was driving to Seattle, I stopped at a truck stop in Idaho and ordered a Chef's salad for lunch. The menu said the salad had HB eggs, ham, chicken, cheese, etc. I would be surprised if they wouldn't have hard cooked eggs for breakfast. How hard is it go cook eggs ahead of time? The one I had seemed to have been cooked quite a while ago and/ or held in hot water for a while since the yolk was about as green and any I'd ever seen. The chicken and ham were processed lunch meat and the cheese was Velveeta. I didn't feel very for well the rest of the afternoon.

Kim Shook: Cassie said she used a Wilton #21 tip and started with a star in the middle then did a circle around it for each flower on the cake. It was only a 5 or 6-inch cake. Cassie has does cake making-decorating as a side line. If you are on facebook, you can see some of her work here https://www.facebook.com/CassiesCakesAndSweets

I just watched the video and noticed that short grain rice was used. Here in the US, most people use long grain rice which would have a different texture and taste. (I personally prefer medium grain rice.) I have some experience with pottery and am pretty sure that that cooker will crack if not used with a gas flame. A regular electric coil stove will likely heat the bottom to much while the upper part stayed cool enough to cause thermal shock. I am not sure about a flat glass top electric stove though. It seemed to take longer to prepare rice with this cooker than it would with a good quality rice cooker which is about 20 minutes from start to eating.

I recall several years ago Nobu did a guest appearance on Martha Stewart show and she asked him how to cook rice in a saucepan. He showed her. Then she asked "Is that how you do it at your restaurant?" He said "No. We use a rice cooker" My ex is Korean. She used a rice cooker every day at our restaurant and had one at home. After 30 some years, I finally replaced it last month. I would not think about trying to cook rice any other way.

Today was Cassie's birthday dinner. I got everything ready today and was going to pre prepare as much today and have it ready for her birthday tomorrow then I found out that she works tomorrow so everything got finished today. I am tired. We had Cuban steak (Chuck eye with garlic oil, adobo and Cajun seasonings) grilled; with chimichurri sauce, nopalitos, french fried sweet potatoes with jalapeno catsup, and a Latin style salad with corn, black beans, red onions, avocados and a dressing with orange and lime juices. Cassie made her own birthday cake.

I can't recall that that has ever been my experience with grocery store eggs, but in the grading system used by the USDA, one dozen “Large” eggs could contain some eggs that are significantly smaller, or larger than others, providing the total carton weight is approximately 24 ounces, all eggs in that carton are, based on an average, “Large” for the purpose of sale. This means a large egg should weigh, on average, 2 ounces. That’s all it is, an average weight.

I went to a boutique olive oil store yesterday and tasted some oils. Grapeseed was the most neutral tasting oil they had. Sunflower oil tasted like sunflower seeds. It would be interesting in mayo but not sure I'd like it on a regular basis. Grapeseed oil was very expensive at the boutique store but then I went to the Asian market and got half a gallon of rice bran oil for about the same price as a pint of grapeseed oil at the other place. It is pretty neutral tasting too.

Grocery store large grade AA eggs are all close enough to being the same size and age that there isn't a need for concern over the differences. If you raise your own chickens or get them from a farmer down the road, those concerns might be valid. Fresh eggs tend to be harder to peel but steaming them seems to ameliorate that problem. This is an observation made from using this steamer for about 7 years. Most recipes expect one to use large eggs for use in baking.

Several years ago my son brought home a Nordic Ware that steams eggs in the microwave. I was skeptical but it works. 6 to 8 minutes steams the eggs and they peel easy and do not have a green ring. The eggs are shielded from the microwaves while the steam cooks them quickly. The steamer will only do 4 eggs at a time but that has not been a serious problem for me. Here is a link to what they look like. http://www.amazon.com/Nordic-Ware-64802-Microwave-Boiler/dp/B0007M2BN0

A couple months ago I discovered an olive oil speciality store, almost across the street from the Farmer's Market. I just finished a small bottle of their butter flavored olive oil. They also have coconut oil and infused flavored white and red balsamic vinegars. I mixed some pineapple white balsamic vinegar with a BBQ sauce and it went well with chicken. I will check out the Asian market for rice bran oil and see if they have any.

Many years ago I had a book by Euell Gibbons who was a proponent of natural diets. If I recall correctly, he said that the young dandelion leaves were edible and I think he said the roots could be roasted, ground and used as a substitute for coffee. I think I have a recipe around here somewhere for dandelion flower wine. edit PS: I could probably make around 5 gallons of wine from my neighbors dandelions.

Sorry if you took offense. I wasn't referring to you but rather separating it from other types of olive oil that can and often do get used for frying. I wanted to make the point that just because it's olive oil does not mean it has a low smoke point..

Smoked Pork Chops with a salsa made with fresh cut pineapple, red bell peppers, onion, kiwi, sriracha and cilantro; sugar peas and rice.

I have never used extra light olive oil but mentioned it to illustrate that for high heat cooking and frying, that olive oil isn't always a low smoke point oil. When you heat any olive oil it loses many, if not most of it's good attributes. I do keep EV olive oil in these two containers and notice that it gets rancid smelling after a short time. However, on the other hand, I have not noticed any unpleasant odors with canola oil, so I went to the kitchen just now to see what the fuss was and discovered I don't have any at the present time. All I have right now is peanut oil, unfiltered EV olive oil, and sesame oil.

One wouldn't want to use Extra Virgin olive oil for frying due to relative cost alone but Virgin olive oil, Pomace olive oil and extra light olive oil all have higher smoke points than lard.

I was at the Asian Market the other day and noticed they had Genco olive oil in gallon tins. Isn't that the company that was owned by Don Corleone?

Some things someone in my family thinks they don't or won't like will get added when they aren't looking, like a dash of brandy or anchovy paste.

I use mostly butter or olive oil or both in combination for sauteing. I use peanut oil for deep frying, but I have no problems using canola oil either. I think it is a shame it was the target of those urban legends.