SethG

Fascinating stuff! Thanks for blogging. I had no idea about that Illy deal. I've been telling my wife I'm not going to become one of those espresso nuts, but man.... that's a good deal. Isn't it?

I want to know if Jaymes ever got those fig preserves. And how did she like them?

Just added the Laurel's Kitchen Whole Grain Bread Book (the new edition, not the old out-of-print one). Fourteen bucks at the Strand annex.

That brioche looks fab, brn! I made the apple tart tonight. I gotta say, I didn't find it to be a lot of work. But I just started a leave of absence from my job, so I was happy to make dough in the morning, blind bake the dough and make the filling in the late afternoon, and then complete the top layer right before putting it all back in the oven. I found that spreading out the work did make it seem like no big deal, however. I think this would be a good dessert for a dinner party-- you can do everything but the final layer of apples before the party. I left my pre-baked shell and the filling sitting for a couple hours before I put it all together. And the final layer of apples was a breeze with my new fancy Bron Mandoline. Did you guys cut yours by hand? That would probably have taken me a lot longer. The only real trouble I had (and it wasn't really a problem) was in the crust-- I made mine in the food processor, and I stopped adding water too soon. Everything worked out fine, but I had to be very gentle with my dough when I rolled it out to avoid breaking it. In the end, though, I think it was the best pastry dough I've ever made. I've made some tarts here and there, and I always think pastry crusts are easy, but this was notably better than most I've tried. I didn't go back to check other recipes, but it seemed when I was making it that this recipe for tart dough had more butter and shortening than some others I've tried. Did I mention that the tart was fantastic? Four of us gobbled the whole thing down. It was gone in a flash. I would make it again in a heartbeat. So focaccia this weekend? And I still owe you all some brioche. Edited to fix my picture.

Because that's what the Nigella recipe says to do. Doesn't it? Sounds like I should go ahead and cookfor the full time. I don't think I'm brining this time. It doesn't fit the schedule. But next time, I'll try it. (I always brine my pork chops.)

So I just ordered a 7 pound shoulder roast. Nigella says you can't overcook it, but she calls for a roast almost twice the size of mine. Should I change the cooking time at all? I see that Tommy went for seven hours at 275, but I'm wondering if I should go for 22 (or maybe 15) hours at 225? Also, FYI, mine is not a butt, sadly, but rather a picnic roast. I understand this to come from another part of the shoulder. Since I've read that it is often used for pulled pork, I'm figuring it will be good. Am I wrong?

Plax, that tart looks good to me. I see a little unevenness around the rim of your shell but I think you're being hard on yourself! It looks delicious. Did you see the instructions for lining a tart pan on page 352, accompanying the color illustrations of the apple tart? I think these instructions are a bit easier to understand than the ones in the recipe proper, which I agree are hard to follow. Haven't tried it yet, myself. But I will make the apple tart on Sunday or Monday. And catch up on brioche during the week, I promise!

I bought one of these mandolines yesterday. There's still a dozen or so on the shelf. I'm going to try it out this weekend and I'll post if I think the adjustment screw is really a problem for the amateur cook.

Rhea, your brioche looks sensational. I'm in awe.

I'm giving my summation in my trial tommorrow, and shortly after I'll be catching up on brioche. (If you tell anyone you saw me here tonight, I'll deny it! ) Seems like several people were up for the apple tart. When I proposed this thing I was thinking we'd do both pastry and bread. I like the idea of alternating, or just trying to do a mix-- we don't have to take turns rigidly. My vote would be for apple tart this weekend, and foccaccia sounds great to me after that. Anyone else want to add two cents? And anyone want to offer any more brioche tips? I'm sure what i've seen here so far will help me.

Christy's Jamaican Bakery, that's right. It's a flatiron-shaped space on the South side of Flatbush (that is, the Park Slope side), at Sterling Place, I believe. If it isn't Sterling, it's Park Place, but I'm almost certain it's Sterling. They sell other stuff, but I've never been able to keep myself from just getting the beef patty. And be careful, they're hot-- you can burn your tongue if you're not careful.

And the Brooklyn Bengali restaurant is......???

This whole exchange encapsulates why I love eGullet. Such constructive feedback, and from the creator himself! Where else would this happen?

Please straighten out your information and name this Brooklyn Bengali restaurant immediately.

Well, I'm not going to make brioche this weekend after all. I look forward to your pictures, and I'll catch up to you all next week by making both apple tart and brioche. I'm currently in the middle of a trial (I'm a lawyer) but next week I start a two-month leave. So I'll soon be free to bake every day for a while if I so desire.

That does look good, McDuff, but it's no fair showing off your professional skills here among us amateurs! I'm wicked busy, but I still want to bake some brioche twice this weekend, whatever that entails. Are others still in?

Um, just to return to the topic. So I can understand the notion of spending a lot on a cake mix for the pretty tin. And I made reference in my initial post to the inflated wedding gift prices many of us pay. I guess that explains the whole thing. But somehow the food items just seem so much more inflated than the cookware. What if I have a half-devoured chunk of parmesan? Can I return it, eat half of it, and keep returning it forever? That would make it a great bargain, eventually.

I haven't checked out the Williams-Sonoma catalog in quite a long time, and when I looked at a new one I was surprised at the number of actual food items for sale. Then I saw the prices! The outrageous, criminal prices. I can understand paying retail for quality cookware, I guess, and I suppose people care less about the value when they're buying wedding gifts, but how can you offer with a straight face: 2.5 lbs. of parmesan for $49? a 26 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce for $8.50? 12 frozen sticky buns for $38? three pounds of bacon for $39.50? 12 marshmallows for $17.50? (?????!!!!) A box of cake mix for $14.00? It's a joke, right? They can't possibly make money off these items; they're just window dressing for their lifestyle image, right? Do you think anyone buys them?

Good for you, sweetbaker54, and welcome!

I agree with both of your statements. I haven't looked at the recipe, but that tart looks good in the photograph, and I've been wanting to make one.

I offer this with my usual caveat: please disregard my opinion on wine. I don't know what I'm talking about. But a friend recently brought to our house a bottle of Groth Merlot that she bought while touring wine country in California, and I was prepared to hate it, but came away pretty impressed. What do people who know think of Groth? I think their Merlot retails for 30 or 40 bucks. I'd certainly prefer the first-rate Chateauneuf du Pape you could get for that price, but still, I was very happy with the way it tasted.

I'm so happy to see all these photos of beautiful bread! Okay, so twice baked brioche this weekend, and we'll do some kind of pie after that? Ellen, was there a pie or tart you had in mind? I don't have Baking With Julia with me; are there any true "pies" in there? By the way, Rhea S, the SAF instant yeast I bought came in a vacuum-sealed bag that was stamped with the date it was packed as well as a suggested "use by" date (about a year after the packing date). If you still have the bag yours came in, you might want to check. The last thing I want to say about the challah-- the center of my loaf was quite delicious. The ends were a little dry. I made my loaf plumper in the center, as I was instructed to do, but I think next time I won't. The loaves you see in stores usually have tapered ends. How do they bake them evenly?

brn (may I call you brn?), How are you trying to post the pic? I haven't used imageGullet, but I understand you need to compress the image before you try to upload it. I just host pics on Imagestation.com, and if you need help with that you should PM me. ChzHead: lookin' good! Your loaf's much more evenly shaped than mine was. Edit: and Heather, I find myself taking the book off the shelf all the time just to flip through all the pictures. The book is so nicely produced.

I looked at the double-baked brioche this morning, and it looks pretty good to me too. I'm not sure that I can get to it this coming weekend, though-- I'm very busy at work this week (I happen to be at work now ), and it might spill over into the weekend. Then again, I might need enough of a break to make a little relaxing brioche! When do folks want to make it, if that's what we're making? By the way, I single-handedly ate about half of my loaf of challah this morning, but I'd give it a B+. I wish I'd eaten it while it was still warm, but to do that I would had to have eaten it at about 3:30 a.m. I think I overcooked it by about 5 minutes. The bottom crust was a little thicker than I would have liked, and the crumb was a touch drier than I think it should have been. Still, it was very good. If I hadn't heard such great things about the recipe here I wouldn't have been at all dissappointed. My expectations were very high. Next time, I'll get it right. Edit: and I meant to add that pie crust and country bread are good for upcoming projects, too. And let's not forget pastries and cakes! I should mention that I also made sourdough this weekend, and it was a spectacular failure, as I could have predicted when I couldn't find a place to revive Jackal10's starter at the right temperature. It looked sluggish, and probably could have used another whole day with a new feeding, but I was determined to make bread in spite of the warning signs, and so I got what I asked for: a loaf that barely rose, with the density of a brick.

This describes me exactly! Anyway, I made challah tonight. Just took it out of the oven, actually. If it tastes as good as it looks, I'll be very happy. Isn't it huge? And there's another in the freezer I now have only to defrost and bake. I did the kneading by hand, and put some foil over it halfway thru the bake, as I thought it might get too dark. My rise went nice and quick, at the lower ends of the estimates in the book. I used SAF-instant yeast again, and I think I'll keep using it because I have a big box of it and it removes a waiting period from the recipes-- although figuring out what 75% of 1 1/2 tablespoons is (as the book suggests) can be a bit of a drag. Will anyone else post pictures? Next project? Let's hear it. I picked challah. We had a request for brioche. Is that too similar to challah? Tell us what you think.