JAZ

My complaint about many Cook's Illustrated articles is that "problem" they're attempting to fix rarely seems to be a real problem. A friend of mine once described Cook's Illustrated's approach as the "straw man theory of kitchen science," which I think is dead on. In the May issue, for example, they're trying to come up with a recipe for a fruit fool that doesn't use custard. The reason, they say, is that "cooking custard is a fussy endeavor." News flash, folks -- no, it isn't. And it's certainly no more fussy than their solution, which is mixing sour cream into whipped cream for the base and then "softening gelatin in some uncooked berry puree and then combining the softened mixture with some heated puree to help melt and distribute the gelatin." I mean, please. If you want to put that much effort into the fruit for a fool, why not make a custard?

Id use the Le crueset, at least its enameled cast iron. ← I'd recommend against Le Creuset for caramel. It hold so much heat that by the time you get the caramel out of the pot, it's overcooked. At least that was my experience back when my only large pan was LC -- I tried to use it for candy and was really frustrated with the results.

For the current season, please see this new topic.

A new foodblog will begin next week, just in time for the beginning of summer. Here's a preview. Probably not too difficult to guess the location: But maybe not so easy to guess the blogger:

I think it's becoming clear that people's tastes vary, and we might differ on what constitutes a "compromise." I bought Gordon's gin as my "house gin" for a couple of years because in San Francisco I could almost always get it on sale for $12-$13 for 1.75 liters (compared with Beefeater at $26-$30). I was on a budget, and for that price it was fine for most cocktails (I saved the more expensive gins for martinis). Once I started using Beefeater or Boodles or Tanqueray regularly, though, it was really hard to go back to Gordon's. I don't think it is a "very high quality" gin. It's a good gin, for the price. If I were back on my old budget and could get it for the old price, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. But it definitely would be a compromise for me.

MoGa, I wasn't talking about your tacos -- I was replying to the suggestion that anything in a tortilla counts as one. Your method isn't exactly the same as what I've seen for refritos (and pinto beans would be the usual bean used), but it sounds as if the end product is a pretty typical bean taco.

I beg to differ. I'm not sure that I'm a "purist" but I don't think that a taco can be filled with anything that's available. For me, it has to have a Mexican or at least Southwestern flavor profile. If you use a tortilla for other fillings, I'm sure it can be good, but I'm not sure I'd call it a taco.

Licking our wounds after that first cocktail, this one seemed like a sure thing. Indeed, this is a pretty fantastic cocktail. I hadn't been familiar with this particular Apple Brandy, but I guess it was a contract distillation by St. George for some folks that own a Gravenstein Apple Orchard in Sonoma. ← I made one of these last night (using Laird's Applejack, because that's what I had). Nice nightcap -- I liked it enough to make another tonight. It's amazing how a drink with no honey in it can taste this much like honey.

I tried corn and potato pancakes from Tom Colicchio's Think Like a Chef that I'll be making again. The recipe calls for baking a russet potato (I cheated and boiled it) and mashing it. Mix in corn kernels cut off the cob, along with egg yolks, creme fraiche and a little flour. Then you fold in egg whites, which lightens the whole thing up, and fry small patties. They were great, and the batter even held up for a second day. Major pain to flip, but other than that, they're a great side dish.

I don't agree that toast should be crunchy throughout; toast should be crisp on the outside and soft inside. Which is why I love my toaster. If you want good toast, you buy a good toaster. Toaster ovens do nothing well -- they're not good ovens and they're not good toasters.

I tried the frozen Italian meatballs, and was favorably impressed -- nice texture and good flavor. They're huge, though. I wish they had a small version.

Do tell. Pretty please. ← Here's the story.

I don't know if this has anything to do with your sauce, but one thing that affects bitterness is salt. If you added salt toward the end, it could have mitigated the bitterness quite a bit. (An interesting note is that the reason that salt can seem to enhance sweetness in things like vegetables and even baked goods is that in canceling out the bitterness, it makes the sugar stand out and things seem sweeter.)

Janet, Tell me a little more about this cocktail with the mandarin vodka and the Liellet Blanc. What ratios are you using? You say it's like a martini. Does that mean mandarin vodka instead of gin and the Lillet (a small amount) instead of the white/dry vermouth? Or is there a different ratio? (maybe more Lilltet). Is there anything else?? ← Jeff, I'm sorry I didn't see this before now. At the time I wrote that (Jeez -- almost 5 years ago!) I'd recently tried a drink at a local bar that was a variation on the Vesper -- with Absolut Mandarin substituted for the regular vodka. Then someone gave me a bottle of the Hangar One Mandarin Blossom, so I was playing around with it. But I haven't made it since. As I recall, I used about a 3:1 mandarin vodka to Lillet ratio, and probably added some orange bitters, if I had them back then. However, I got a bunch of tangerines and have been making a gin-based drink that's similar. A friend named it the Tableau, which seems right to me, so that's what I'm calling it. The Tableau 2 oz. gin 1 oz. Lillet .25 oz. fresh tangerine juice dash orange bitters

Those who aren't familiar with Hansen's can read about it here, in Todd's Daily Gullet article.

I'm spoiled having lived in San Francisco for 20 years, but we just found very nice, very large artichokes for $2 each. It's high compared to what I was used to at my SF produce market, but pretty good for Atlanta.

The skillet is what's sometimes called a "French skillet" -- it's not as flared as, say, All Clad's. It's shaped more like a sautepan -- a little deeper and with straighter sides. For many jobs, I like it better than "American" skillets. (One of All Clad's newest pans is their own "French skillet," which looks just like Le Creuset's.)

Last year, I found the Spirited Dinner I attended to be the low point of the whole conference. Too many people for anything but banquet quality food (there seemed to be about 80 at the dinner I attended), no explanation of most of the drinks, and when the "bar chefs" did speak, it was virtually impossible to hear them. Maybe some of the other venues had smaller groups, but unfortunately, there's no way to tell from the website how many reservations each place will take. I'm sure that all the chefs and bar chefs will come up with great menus and drinks. The restaurants are some of New Orleans' best, and there are some great mixologists featured. But don't expect an intimate dinner with a bar chef. You'll be at a banquet.

It sounds as if you've got what's sometimes called "country ribs" -- even though it's boneless and has, in fact, never contained a rib bone. You're right -- it's shoulder, cut into strips. I love it for braising, but I'm not sure how it would work for pastor. I just used country ribs to make chile verde. After browning and simmering for a couple of hours in a tomatillo and chile sauce, the meat just falls apart -- you can shred it with a fork. If you want to roast it, I'd suggest low heat for a couple of hours.

I posted some recipes here a while back that you might like (by the way, the strawberry version is now called the Ballet Russe). My aunts and female cousins all loved them. If you want something easier, try a quarter ounce homemade grenadine and a healthy shot of bitters in champagne. Really good, and a beautiful color as well.

Last night we had tacos with skirt steak, corn and tomato salsa, guacamole and salsa verde. My original idea was to make flour tortillas from an old recipe in Fine Cooking magazine which I'd always wanted to try, but we got a late start on dinner, so we just used tortillas from the grocery store. I'll try making them next time. The skirt steak was marinated in orange and lime juice, chipotle, garlic, salt and oil. Ordinarily I add cumin, but I forgot. Skirt steak searing. Heating the tortillas. Building the taco. The salsa verde was charred tomatillos, poblanos and jalapenos, pureed with onion, cilantro, salt, lime and cumin. The corn salsa has tomatoes, red pepper, red onion, and avocado, seasoned with cumin and red pepper flakes.

Le Creuset's stainless clad line has a great pouring lip. My Demeyere Sirocco saucepans pour beautifully, but they're a little expensive if you just need a pouring lip.

Makes sense to me. But I have trouble enough finding 80/20 ground beef; I've never seen anything with a higher fat content. Do you find it at a regular market, or a butcher?

No specific pointers, but keep in mind that frozen, the vermouth will taste much less sweet than at room temp or even just chilled. I've made sorbets with champagne, and the first time, I way underestimated the amount of sugar needed.

It saddens me that I will never be able to write a sentence as perfect as this one.