jackal10

Sticky toffee pudding is brown, has dates in it and is baked http://recipes.egullet.org/recipes/r444.html Treacle pudding is a light sponge (or heavy suet) boiled pudding with golden syrup Incidentally you can make an instant treacle pudding in the microwave - equal weight of eggs, melted butter, flour and sugar and a little milk to make a dropping consistency cake batter. Put some golden syrup (or equivalent or jam or marmalade or ginger plus syrup) in the bottom of a microwave proof bowl. Put the batter on top and nuke for 4 mins. Serve with Birds Custard or creme Anglais if you can't get Birds (or Ambrosia)

Since Marlena is discussing sweet boiled puddings are there any Japanese equivalents? I can think of 8 treasures rice, but that is, I think, Chinese.

Another colleague remarks I suppose a graphic work of art can be created with food as with any other material, but this is sufficiently unlikely to apply to a plate served in a restaurant that a copyright notice would be needed to put the photographer on notice that copyright was claimed; without the notice, no damages could be recovered because of the defence of innocent infringement. An injunction to restrain future breaches is in theory available, however. Bizarre!

For mixed spice use sweet mixed ground spice suitable for the season - cloves, nutmeg, ginger. Its sold in packet here. More like pumpkin pie spice, than chinese spice or garam masala or even quatre epices - no aniseed notes.. That recipe makes 4 or so good size puds.

My pudding Proportions need not be exact. Basically eaqual weights of everything: 4lbs mixed fruit (1lb each of sultanas, raisins, currants, 1.2 lb of candied peel, prunes, or use the pre mixed dried fruits most supermarkets sell) Ideally soak in a glass of rum of brandy for 12 hours first 1lb each of eggs (weighed in their shells), dark brown sugar, fat (suet or butter). breadcrumbs. 1/2 pt Guiness or ther dark beer - the other 1/2pt for the chef Large glass rum or brandy (also for the chef as well) 1 tsp each salt, mixed spice, nutmeg Stir together, wish, put into basins, tie down and steam for 8-12 hours, then another 4 hours before eating. Keeps forever after the first steaming. For other times of the year make a lighter colour pudding: use white sugar, light ale, etc or there is Figgy Pudding http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,...1667886,00.html

You can let the bread rise overnight in the fridge, if that is moe convenient.

I-am-not-a-lawyer but I believe "fair use" only applies text, not to pictures or to three dimensional objects, such as a plating. Copyright only stops copying, not re-invention. Writing a critique is not copying, nor is creating your own version in your own restaurant, unless it can be shown that you took away the plate (or a picture of the plate) and copied directly from the original.

That is not quite right. Although the photograph is the photographers copyright, if it includes substantially a copyrighted work or a design right work then it may be a derivative work (like a translation), and cannot be published without the original IPR owners permission. This occurs, for example, where a picture includes most of an advertising hoarding; in principle (an in practice for most TV and film work) you must get release from the advertiser. I think that (at least in the UK) a plating arrangement would be covered by design right , unless the chef has applied for a Registered Design. If he has served more than 50 similar plates then it no longer counts as artisitc copyright (70+ years from death of the author) but industrial copyright (25 years from first publication) Unless the customer has comissioned the work explicitly, the IPR remains with the chef, even though the customer has purchased the work, just as purchasing a CD or a book does not transfer the copyright Maybe we should sell edible tags with the copyright © or design right (DR) logo for chefs to add to the food at the pass...

A colleague remarks that since the restaurant is private property the owner can make what rules they like. However they must reasonably inform the user beforehand. There would be less of an issue (at least in the UK) if you were to take the photograph though the window from the road or similar public place, provided you did not photograph the other diners without their permission, as they may have privacy expectations. There is similar case law about photographing artwork in exhibitions, where the painting is long out of copyright.

The secret to a superlative pudding is to leave out the flour. Just use breadcrumbs, so its mostly fruit held together by the breadcrumbs and eggs..

Rough conversion: for the pre-ferment 2 cups bread flour : 10oz 1 US pint warm water at 30C* 1 tsp dry yeast leave for 2 hours at 21C - 24C until the mixture bubbles up and just begins to drop back down for the dough 1 1/2 US pts cold water at 18C - 20C 4 cups (20oz) bread flour 2 tsp salt Overall Bakers Percentages Total flour = 100% (Percentages for each step in brackets) total flour: 800g total water: 550g Hydration: 69% (softish dough) for the pre-ferment bread flour 31% (100%) warm water at 30C* 31% (100% wet sponge (poolish)) 1 x 5ml tsp dry yeast 0.6% (2%) leave for 2 hours at 21C - 24C until the mixture bubbles up and just begins to drop back down for the dough Pre-ferment 62.5 (90%) bread flour 69% (100%) cold water at 18C - 20C 37.5% (55%) 2 tsp salt 1.25% (1.8%)

*waves*

It may be that your faulty thermometer has got some water in it. I had one like that, and it came back to life after being dried out

High tea is a substansial meal - the main meal of the evening, taken on return from work. Typically northern and working class, but also known in the colonies. I'd say eaten around 5pm. Kippers would be good (cv Alan Davidson's "A kipper for my tea") or welsh rarebit, cold meats, pies, breakfast dishes such as eggs, bacon, kedgeree, kidneys. Mac and cheese would be a perfect US dish. Working man's tea: Indian, strong and sweet enough "to stand a spoon up in" (5 tsp of sugar) in mugs. Nursery tea would be for Nanny and the children in a large house, often prepared over the nursery fire, but possibly sent up from the kitchen. Also the main meal of the evening, and light nourishing comforting foods - for example scrambled eggs, but also cake, toast (with meat paste) or crumpets. A light plain tea, such as Assam might be appropriate. Afternoon tea was taken by the ladies in the Drawing room. The ladies did not really eat. A few cucumber sandwiches (small triangles, no crusts), perhaps a a light biscuit, or a small sponge fancy to toy with. Earl Grey (with milk).

How will you prepare them? Long slow cooking, I guess except for the very young...BBQ?

Why not use real edible gold leaf?

That is a dangerous precedent, Jason. It leads to wars. There are many people I know who won't drink US wines for political reasons. No way to world peace and understanding. Champagne is quite far north, and so the grapes make poor still wine. I suspect the micro-climate is not good for US sparklers, since there is little tradition in the right areas. There is UK sparkling wine as well. Nosr of that is grown too cold and far north. Its OK in a good year, but not as good as the real stuff.

I think those glasses for german wines, and in particular for sekt. Other awful presents (fortunately not this year) Any sort of flavoured oils or vinegars, especially in fancy bottles Decorations of plastic pickles Framed cutsy pix of food ANy cookbook with "the 100 best" or something similar in its title

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/055381465...580909?n=283155 Bitter Almonds: Recollections and Recipes from a Sicilian Girlhood (Paperback) by Mary Taylor Simeti, Maria Grammatico ISBN: 0553814656 The book is the tale of Maria Grammatico's upbringing in the convent that derived its income form making these almond delicacies. When the convent disbanded she continued the tradition. Very delicious they are too. Herve This's Molecular Gastronomy Workshop takes place in Erice, and I was fortunate enough to visit the shop, buy the book and pastries, and meet the author.

Google is wonderful. I'm sure he can find a local munch and fellow travellers. BDSM dining: http://www.nyrock.com/spc/2000/lanouvelle.asp http://www.clairevandam.com/enfaq.html#2a http://www.schooldinners.com/ http://bdsm.spuddy.org/ssbbcooks/

Not true, Lucy. Roses come in dozens. Many things, such as presentations on plates, look better in odd numbers

For those who make whole frying pan size latkes (niks as I have now learnt to call them), rosti and the like, the secret to turning them over is to use two plates. Using one plate and sliding never works for me. They break up. Step 1. Put plate one upside down on top of the pan. Step 2. Invert and shake. Remove frying pan. With luck the nik will not have stuck and you now have the nik cooked side up on the plate. Step 3. Put another plate upside down over the nik. Invert. You now have the nik cooked side down Step 4. Put the frying pan (regreased) upside down over the nik on the second plate. Invert. The nik is now rightside up in the pan.

Teint per Teint 10x ? Excuse my ignorance Is that almond flour mixed half and half with cake (wheat) flour?

Wow! They look just like the ones at Herme! COuld you give the recipe/ingredient proportions please?

For a clear oil gell you need something like a clear wax, or a way or polymerising the oil. like linseed oil drying to make a varnish. Not sure it would be nice to eat, and many lipids cloud as they congeal (cold olive oil, butter fat, goose fat) For an oil containing solid emulsion then make an emulsion (e.g. mayo) and set it with any of the water based hydrocolloids - gelatine, agar, gellan etc.