JAZ

If you'd like a different carrot soup recipe, here's one based on a soup shot I had years ago in San Francisco. It's very easy, but don't skip the chive oil.

There's this "Hommage" line by Thomas Keller -- quite expensive, though. You might also check out the Revol line of porcelain dinnerware either online or at Sur La Table.

No, after they're frozen, we pop the cubes out and into a freezer bag, freeing up the trays. I've never noticed any residual taste after a run through the dishwasher (and mine have been doing double duty for stock and ice for several years).

We reduce our stock by either 4 or 8 times (that is, 1 gallon to 1 quart, or 2 gallons to 1 quart), then freeze it in the medium sized silicone ice cube trays (like these). With this size, the cubes are just under 1 ounce, so the math is easy when you go to reconstitute -- if you reduce by 4 times, then one cube produces half a cup of stock; if you reduce by 8, a cube gives you 1 cup.

What kind of volume are you talking about? Two gallons? Five?

From what I've read, it seems that Heublein began bottling cocktails surprisingly early, before 1900. Here's a brief history of that company: Heublein Inc. I've always assumed that they were the first, but I'm not certain of that.

I make a "no-bake" cheesecake topped with lemon curd that's good in a graham cracker crust, although lately I've switched to ginger snaps instead. The only time-consuming part is the lemon curd. Here's the recipe (scroll down).

I find it curious that Ruhlman has changed his mind so completely. Three books ago, he extolled veal stock as the best thing to hit a home kitchen: and In his latest book, veal stock doesn't even make the top 20. I feel sorry for all his readers who ran out back then and spent a fortune on veal bones to make stock, when it's now water that's the marvel.

Much of my cookware is Demeyere -- the Sirocco line, which I believe has been discontinued. I've also used several pieces in other, newer lines. I love it and would recommend it highly. However, as far as I know everything they make is induction-compatible, so I find it interesting that they have a line specifically for induction ranges.

Vinaigrettes -- I especially like mustardy vinaigrettes with vegetables.

I'm not very experienced with pain au chocolat, but I have used puff pastry squares in mini-muffin tins with other fillings, both sweet and savory. Maybe that would work.

Not that I'm an expert on blue cheeses (I loathe it), but isn't Roquefort made with sheep's milk? For me, the nasty quality of sheep on top of blue mold would probably make it the worst possible blue cheese in the world.

A long time ago, I took a class on Turkish cooking where I learned a how to make a great rice dish with dill. It's very easy -- briefly saute rice in lots of butter (1/4 C for 1 cup of rice), add about 1-1/3 C water, half a tsp of salt and 1/4 cup minced dill. Bring to a boil then cover and simmer until water is absorbed and rice starts to form a crust on the bottom of the pan (10-20 minutes). Remove from the heat and let rest for 15 minutes or so.

I'm confused. Do you use pancetta or proscuitto, or does it matter? Your comments about "wrapping around melon" make me think of proscuitto, but in your instructions you referred to pancetta, which seems to me to be a more natural choice.

If you'd grown up in the Western US, you likely wouldn't feel that way. "Best Foods" seems fine to me; "Hellman's" seems weird.

The Hellman's/Best Foods in the squeeze bottle is definitely different, at least in texture; it's smoother and a little thinner. I much prefer the Hellman's jar to the squeeze bottle for that reason. I've never tasted them side by side, so I'm not sure how they compare on that front. Kraft, as I recall, has the same eerily smooth texture as Hellman's in the squeeze bottle. I'm not a fan, but I still prefer it to Duke's.

In this topic on sweet potato salad, Jaymes said (about mayonnaise): I have to disagree: while some cooks here in Atlanta use it, most that I know prefer Hellman's. I certainly do. Duke's is oddly sweet -- halfway to Miracle Whip, in my opinion -- and I can pick it out immediately in things like tuna or potato salad when it's used. If I were faced with the choice of Duke's or nothing on a sandwich, I think I'd have to choose the latter. Am I missing something? Do people really like Duke's? Are there other brands worth trying?

I tried Fatburger once, and nothing about the experience inclined me to give it even one more try. First, the service was very slow. We didn't go during peak hours (in fact as I recall, only a other customers were in the place besides us) but it took a good 15 minutes to get our food. While that's not too long in regular time, for a "fast food" place, it's forever. Second, the burger was okay, but for the price, a disappointment. We could have spent the same amount at a local non-fast food place and gotten a much better burger, or spent half as much at Burger King and gotten something almost as good.

My guess is that it might be the level of glutamates. We do an experiment with salt and glutamate (we use MSG) with our beginning cooking students in which we give them plain water, then water with a pinch of MSG so they can experience the difference. One time I over-measured the amount of MSG, which resulted in a very odd mouthfeel.

Actually, as I learned in this topic, there are at least two results that people call "caramelized" onions -- the ones that brown on the outside, which I think you're describing, and the ones that slowly brown all the way through and break down into a paste, which is what I always thought of as "caramelized." The latter type actually rely on simmering slowly in the water thrown off by the onions. The liquid itself turns a golden brown, as do the onions. If you want them to turn a darker brown you can achieve that result by cooking off the water at the end, but they certainly will brown in the liquid. I do it all the time -- crowd the pan, salt the onions, cover the pan and cook very slowly. I end up with a great result, although I'm sure it's different from yours.

I haven't heard many positive reviews of the extruder.

A couple of years ago, I saw Ina Garten pour oil into water for macaroni and cheese, saying that it would keep the macaroni from sticking. So it does still happen.

So I know that mirepoix -- the mix of onion, celery and carrots typical in French cooking -- is supposed to be the backbone or starting point of stocks, broths, soups and sauces. Having learned much of my cooking from traditional texts like Mastering the Art of French Cooking, I absorbed that lesson. For years I made my stock with the trio and then used that for soups and sauces. Then I started making my stock without anything but meat and bones and decided it made for a much better result -- if I want the taste of vegetables I add them later. I gradually stopped automatically using mirepoix and found that in most cases, it made an improvement in my cooking. I was reminded of this recently when I made tomato soup using a recipe I found that called for the usual mix of onion, carrot and celery. I figured I'd give it a try again, but sure enough, it wasn't great. Not only was the tomato flavor severely muted, but since the soup was only partially blended, it also left little bits of carrot and celery in the soup, which were offputting. I'm glad I gave it a try, because now I know I was right. No more mirepoix for me (at least not automatic mirepoix). Am I the only one?

Not a TV show, but in a blog post on chicken curry, Michael Ruhlman says that his kids "are getting their veg from the chicken stock." When a reader points out that the chicken stock in a serving of curry contains virtually none of the nutrients of the vegetables used to make it, he steps in it even deeper with his reply: "really? then why does stock made with onion carrot and celery taste so much better?"

I tried this Food & Wine recipe for braised chicken with mushrooms and artichokes and will definitely make it again. I did make a couple of changes -- I used dry sherry because I was out of white wine; I degreased the sauce; and I thought the cream was overkill (I served it with fairly rich mashed potatoes; maybe with a leaner side the cream would have worked). To serve, I garnished with gremolata. It was great.