Deryn

I have both a Thermomix and a Vitamix - and frankly, I prefer the Thermomix for pretty well everything. Can't say I really find 'tamping' that big a deal with the Vitamix though. No experience however with a Breville / Blendtec - sorry.

Ah for the days when you could just use one trash can for everything. I now have to have 4 fairly large cans and they are ugly and don't fit in a conventionally designed kitchen so I have eliminated all waste cans in the kitchen. I lined them all up in a cubby hole space in the hall (which is 30 plus feet from where I cook). I guess all the trekking back and forth will eventually do my waistline some good but I still wish I didn't have not to think or walk and could just step on a pedal of a single can sitting nearby. The plastic bins I am now using are all black. I labelled the front so I remember if they should have a blue bag and hold plastic/metal, a blue bag to contain paper/glass, a compost bag or a clear bag for what little is allowed to go in the 'regular' trash these days. Swinging lids, no step pedals, no auto activation - but a heck of a lot cheaper than pretty stainless with or without an electronic mechanism. On the other hand, I need another closet to store all the different bags I now am commanded to use - and if I could still just use one type as I used to perhaps I could actually afford a stainless step-on can! All that said, I third the motion to just buy another step on can - don't go touchless.

I've been on the road for the better part of a week so I am just catching up. As usual I have timed my trip badly so I miss Canadian Thanksgiving (for the 3rd or 4th year in a row I think.) I am turkey deprived. Thanks for all the turkey talk and pictures though - my mouth is watering and I am jealous!

Yes, Suzi, I saw that too. I thought he was 78 (though he looks much younger) so I was surprised he is now 80. I thought he was very gracious and tolerant of Rachael today - I don't think it was her best show but she tried. I was glad to see Ming and Jacques Torres there as well. I missed the first few minutes - did she mention the book then? I didn't hear it talked about later during the actual 'party'. Having just watched Jacques make the eggs and caviar dish which turned out so nice and creamy, I thought hers looked awful compared to his but he kept smiling through it all. And he was sweet about that panini'd burger melt too (but I never saw him take a bite). Haven't seen him make one of those but somehow I think his would be different.

a) I don't even see, from reading the recipe, why it is called an 'icebox cake'. It doesn't sound as though it spent more than a few minutes in an icebox, if that. Maybe they intended to make it look that way just to match their recipe title but it isn't attractive to me either. b) That said, although the recipe doesn't call for 'texturing' the sides as far as I could tell, I am not totally sure that that is condensation (though yes, it looks to be at first glance). Perhaps, for a Halloween party, it might be made to look vaguely like a spider web or crocodile skin? c) Sandra Lee is NY Governor Andrew Cuomo live in paramour and has been for years. I highly doubt she entertains with these 'out of the box' recipes in that capacity. d) She is currently undergoing cancer treatment - perhaps she didn't even have the time or strength to proof this latest issue of her mag?

By accident I managed to catch the first installment of this series and then, miracle of miracles (because most PBS site videos never work for me) I caught up on the 2nd and 3rd last night using their interface! I love Jacques. He is so sweet, gentle and down to earth/real. One just gets the feeling he is in the kitchen with you - he is so approachable. Why can't all food shows be made with people of his ilk (and talent)? I am SOOOO tired of perky.

Perhaps you could Skype with Anna before (or during) your video recording session so she can add her critical advice to the process, although I am sure that having her there in person would be much more effective. I am looking forward to seeing how this all goes. New kitchen gadget! Fun!

I found the PEI scalloped potatoes bland as all get out unfortunately - no distinctive taste at all in my opinion. Surprisingly, I thought the Montreal Smoked Meat one was probably the best of the bunch - although no, there was no smokiness there. The Butter Chicken was somewhat ok as well but didn't whip me away to India and fill me with the kind of satisfaction I get from the real stuff. Couldn't stomach the idea of bbq so those stayed on the shelf. I am not a chip fan in any way, shape or form (haven't bought any in many years till now) and these flavoured ones kind of scare me with what they must have in them to create those tastes so I won't be eating any more but I did take one for the gipper (and my waistline - which didn't need increasing).

Interesting that the Siemen's (is that the one in the video?) is only a 4 pot as well since the video (as I recall anyway) quite clearly showed the demonstrator pushing around 5 pans at one point (though he didn't exactly say you could use more than 4). I guess my bottom line guess - the $5k USD was in the ballpark (even if obviously it would cost a lot more than that for the mods needed to actually install it). Too bad but I am not surprised.

No, I don't have one so I can't really help you with your questions but it is very 'pretty'. I love the fact that you can put your pots anywhere and that you can have more than 4 pots at a time (which I believe has been a limitation even on zone free induction stoves to date) and that even my long fish cooker pot would fit on it easily. However, I worry about the electronics component and its reliability/longevity. I am also not a fan of 'scrolling' so I would prefer knobs to an electronic interface or, at the very least, an easier to use tap/push button/'dial' representation of some kind if it has to use a screen at all. I don't know the price but I hazard a guess it ain't cheap (it would surprise me if it came in under $5k USD) and you won't be able to buy it at BB&B with a 20% off coupon. And, out in the boonies here, its reliability (the electronics part especially) would be a big issue for me since I doubt service would even be possible if needed. I think I will keep using my cheap portable induction burners for the time being, nice as that Siemen's one may be. But, I would not hesitate to pay the big bucks for induction copperware from France!

I have 2 of the Lee Valley maslin pans and have used them for preserves and candy making at various times so I second Elaina's suggestion. I also have a wonderful big old Dansk copper pot with no handles (and several smaller ones with handles) I have used on occasion. And I am hankering after one of these http://www.pots-and-pans.co.uk/stellar-7000-14cm-milk-sauce-pot#.VhHUdv2NREZ which I first saw on a candy-making show from Britain a few months ago (done by these people - http://www.hopeandgreenwood.co.uk/our-story). While they are small (compared to the maslin pan), I love the handle and the very tall (relatively), straight sides - and they seemed to do well for them making many kinds of candies.

I have not had a 'sticking problem' yet with the IP SS insert (with the possible exception of during one of my rice experiments - but that was easily solved by soaking for a few minutes). That begs the question, rotuts - why would one need a non-stick surface at all in one of these cookers, if stuff is 'steamy'/moist and never sticks anyway?

Two dishes my mother made with some regularity stand out in my memory as my favorite meals when I was a child. Simple fare for simpler times. As I have mentioned before, I don't think of her as a good or very interested cook but we didn't starve or balk at every meal either. The first is my mother's sausage and olive 'casserole' (primarily comprised of browned pork sausage, green olives, tomato paste, and egg noodles) - which probably came from some magazine and wasn't handed down through the generations as far as I know. If they had come from her side of the family, I expect I would recall my grandmother making them too but I don't. I usually left the sausage bits (unless they were crispy) and devoured the rest, especially the olives. The other was definitely started by someone else (a Polish lady who used to help my mother clean house occasionally) and there never was a written recipe as far as I know but I reinvented it through taste memory for my family and my daughter now makes it once in a while so I guess it started a new tradition. I love 'tangy' flavours (note that the olives were my favorite part of the preceding recipe) so what I loved best about those cabbage rolls (so much so that I just can't bring myself to eat any made by anyone else because this ingredient is usually missing) is the sauerkraut. They were made with the standard ground pork, cabbage leaves and rice/onion mix, piled in layers into the pot or pressure cooker, and doused liberally with V-8 juice and a lot of sauerkraut. Huge rolls - one was a meal even for an adult. It was one of those pots you feed off for days and they just get better and better as time goes on, even if they no longer resemble 'rolls' when the cabbage breaks down. I have recipes from the turn of the last century which were probably handed down from even before then, but browsing through them I didn't recognize anything my grandmother or mother made when I was a child, so I don't think they made it through the generations intact.

Mine too ... but I wonder if the IP stainless pot would fit in that cooker. Both seem a similar shape and they are both 6 litres. If so, I might order one eventually to supplement (not replace, unless it was ready for retirement) my IP and get an extra IP pot to use in it if the makers had not, at that time, begun to supply it with an SS pan, at least as an option. I never imagined I ever would be, but I am now so very hooked on this type of appliance that I can see having 2 on the counter.

THanks, Chocolot. Did you take those pics? If so, can I use them and how do you want them attributed?

Thanks, Chocolot. Snazzy colour! It must not be as deep as the current one (?) then if it only holds 3/4 the amount because the number of shelves looks the same. It is a bit sad that they have to have the machine tell us to close that drain valve. You would think we grownups would not have to be spoonfed (but sadly I know we often do!) Any word on when the newer version may be ready for release? I won't take this to the other forum I belong to since 'I' don't have permission - but I am sure some there who could not manage the larger size might be interested.

One of my specialty dishes when I first began entertaining over 40 years ago was pickled shrimp. I love it and my guests did too back then. My shrimp had to be imported to the Yukon from Vancouver's china town in those days - by my mother-in-law whenever she went on vacation 'outside' (the Yukon) so they were frozen and were of a middling size - but for us they were a rare treat. The recipe I first used was from Great Dinners from Life I think. I still fondly remember that 'appetizer' and crave it from time to time - but I am not sure I would waste fresh local jumbo shrimp on it either. Pickled shrimp is very different from cerviche because the shrimp are first cooked and then marinated. My method was simply to blanch (well, don't overly cook it, in boiling water with whole pickling spices) the shrimp and then layer it in a (pottery) casserole with oil, a little bit of vinegar (not red) and thin lemon slices, a bay leaf or two and whatever spices are still clinging to them. Chill for a few hours and serve.

I am now technically part of that 'older crowd' I guess - but I am pretty sure I have tastes still like the younger ones. There is light at the end of your tunnel I think - I don't think those of us edging into senility now have the same tastes as those of my father's generation. My parents were raised on bland food - and it was the food they made and consumed with gusto to the end (though, I did get my father to like middling bland by the end of his life, really spicy things were beyond his ability to stretch his palate). I hate to put it the same way as gfweb did but he is right - they will die off. I don't think 'my generation' will be going back to pablum any time soon. If I were you, I would at least partially cater to them for the time being and when you notice their numbers diminish, start quietly modifying the menu to be a bit more exciting. All that said, your location (on the edge of 'south' and in a relatively small town) may also be an issue that one would not have in more northern areas. I find southerners often are not too adventurous (except in larger places where there is also a larger more transitory younger group of people - perhaps in a college town - I know Asheville is finally coming out of the dark dull ages) with their flavourings and more traditional in general in their likes and dislikes when it comes to food and (particularly) cooking times. ps. I can appreciate your problem. A few years ago I 'taught' cooking to a group of seniors at my father's retirement home. I learned quickly that my tastes were not those they were interested in learning to acquire so I had to adjust my demos to just be a little fresher and less overcooked than what they got in the home dining room - we found a middle ground, but, it took time.

Well I am back with the steamed rice test. The way I did it was, in short, NOT a good idea but I thought I should report it anyway so you don't get quite so creative. First, I looked for my metal steamer basket thingie and could not find it so I had to use a bowl - mistake #1. I really think it would have worked out much better if the steam could have gone right through the rice rather than just 'surround it', primarly on top. At any rate, I washed the rice and I soaked it for over an hour (which may or may not have been mistake #2). Mistake #3. I first thought I would use the steam function but after a couple of minutes I began to worry because steam was escaping constantly (which may be the way it is supposed to be with the steam function - makes sense - but instructions/troubleshooting chart in the manual say there might be an issue if you let it steam more than 2 minutes so I was not sure - the instructions could indeed be more explicit). I am also pretty sure that the container I used was not ideal for that setting. Many more mistakes - all for science, of course! Since I was pretty sure that 2 minutes of steam was not going to actually cook the rice, I decided, leaving the rice in the bowl above about 2 cups of water under the trivet, to use the low pressure rice setting instead. After 10 minutes of that and 10 minutes slow release I checked it and it was definitely NOT gluey - all grains were quite separate (and appeared to have shrunk to more resemble the 'slimmer' jasmine shape) but it wasn't soft so I put it on another cycle (exactly like the last). Don't bother - this was a failure unless you like your rice 'crispy'. I got the same results actually in the microwave for 10 minutes (with 2water to 1rice ratio). I also need to qualify my #3 test in my previous post. I just tasted the top of that batch which was 'ok'. But when I scraped the rest out of the pot so I could wash it for the next test, I think I see what hummingbirdkiss was talking about - the bottom was pasty. All in all, all this experimenting has led me to 2 conclusions - take them with a grain of 'rice'. 1) the best method for calrose may be my #2 - it was definitely sticky but not pasty even at the bottom. 2) The worst method is steaming in a bowl, at least the way I did it (and probably the pasty bottom of the #3 version too - maybe less water or a shorter release time might have helped with that one). The problem with using just the rice setting for calrose vs jasmine is probably the starchiness of the calrose itself. Maybe to combat that it should be cooked with much more water which can then be poured off. Or the other idea I have not tried yet is to coat the grains with a teaspoon of oil first - would that help to contain the starch a little without making the rice greasy? I didn't as I said, try what I think is the proper steaming method either - where the heck that steamer went I do not know. I could try more experiments using the soaking times - none, 1/2 hour, 1 hour, 4 hours but not for a few days. Anyway, I am not sure all of this really helped - except maybe to tell you all what didn't work. I usually use calrose only for risotto and had not tried cooking that in the IP before so this was very interesting to try - but, I am not totally sure that the IP is the best way to cook plain calrose rice either. PS - So glad you are getting on board the IP train, Shelby!

Well, I am sorry not to have been back with my results for the calrose rice earlier but I ran out of rice and had to drive 150 miles round trip to get some more. I also didn't take pictures (I don't have an iPhone - sorry) but I think this is more about texture and taste and neither of those show up well in pictures I find. I am no rice expert as I have said before, but, I thought all results were edible. I now have so much cooked rice that I am thinking of calling up UNICEF and offering to feed at least half of the 3rd world tomorrow. 1) Last night, I did a Jasmine rice 'control' run - 1 cup jasmine rice, washed for a minute or so, soaked for 1/2 hour, 1.5 cups water, a pinch of salt and cooked on low pressure for 10 minutes, slow release for 10 minutes (then I opened the vent but there wasn't much steam left). Results: nicely sticky and middling soft, all grains visible. A bit 'stuck' to the bottom. I just added some water and boiled it till it came unstuck. I guess I could have boiled a bit longer and had congee. 2) This morning, I did exactly the same with Calrose. Results: Though this is calrose and therefore definitely will be stickier/starchier than the jasmine, I felt it was also fine. It was sticky but not what I would call paste. I could still see all the grains fine but they don't fall apart. Not too soft but soft enough - no hard bits in the middle. 3) Next, I cooked calrose the same way as I think Anna did her jasmine (brief wash, no soak, 1 minute high pressure, 10 minutes slow release) and got about the same result as #2 above, except I had a bit of water left (perhaps a tablespoon or so - not sure why but maybe my table isn't quite level so it pooled on one side) when I opened the lid so I just stirred that into the rice and let it sit a minute before I tasted it. I am thinking 1 minute high equals approximately 10 minutes low pressure. 4) I will be back tomorrow morning with the 'steamed' rice experiment results. That was the point at which I didn't have quite enough rice and after the drive I am tired so I think I will do it tomorrow. Sorry - but stay tuned. 5) Haven't tried calrose by washing and soaking and then using the rice setting alone - but I suspect that would end up pastier than any of the above methods. If I am in the mood for more rice, I will try that too tomorrow morning. PS - Your cheesecake looks divine, Anna. I loved the one I made too .. didn't really use a recipe though (my worst habit) but it came out well too. Too bad - makes it too easy to make cheesecake - and I love the stuff.

Since I am not a rice expert, and have never made 'Korean Rice', I have been doing some 'research' to try to guess what exactly it is that hummingbirdkiss is trying to recreate. I think I will try several experiments. In the first I will wash and soak the rice for half an hour and then use the 'rice' setting and see what I get. Water to rice ratio will be 1.5/1 (but if that doesn't produce a good result I may try it again reducing the water). Then I will wash and soak another batch and use a bowl to steam the rice for .. not sure here how long yet - maybe 20 minutes? Then I will try pressure cooking (at low setting) for 6-8 minutes, followed by steaming for ... not sure how long .. but maybe 15 minutes. And I am guessing that Korean Rice texture should be somewhat 'sticky' and 'soft-ish' but not too much so. I note that, in the following recipe (which isn't what we want but it does involve steaming in the instant pot - http://instantpot.com/black-sticky-rice-pudding/) they say to steam for 30-40 minutes. This is, if that is true, not going to be much quicker than in a dedicated rice cooker I would guess. I also found a site which said if you want Korean rice, you should buy Korean Rice (which, I am gathering may work better than either calrose or jasmine.) And another that said the hard layer at the bottom of the pan after cooking Korean Rice was called 'noonga' or something like that I think - and should not be thrown away but should have 4 cups of water added to it and then be boiled to make a 'soup' for breakfast (congee?). At any rate, I am wondering if I should be trying to get that layer formed when cooking Korean Rice or not. At any rate, I will report back with my 'findings' when I can. I expect that will be tomorrow sometime however.

hummingbirdkiss - What proportions of Calrose to water did you use? And what setting did you use - just the rice button? I can try it for you - I have some Calrose and the IP is empty right now. Is there anything else I should know about 'Korean' rice making? I am not sure what I should be looking for in terms of a particular texture or taste I guess but I am happy to try the experiment for you. eta: Is this http://mykoreankitchen.com/2007/05/25/how-to-make-perfect-korean-steamed-rice-step-3-how-to-soak-and-cook-the-rice/ the procedure you follow? I don't normally soak my rice but I can if that is required. Their recommendation for 1.5 (or 1.2 - not sure how I will know exactly is the 'right consistency' after soaking either ) cups of water to a cup of soaked rice seems high for this particular machine if you just use the rice setting. I put too much water in once - just with regular non-converted rice - and it was 'soggy' when it was done using the 'rice setting'. Is that the result you are getting?

I never drink any of the Starbucks 'coffees' that are so sweet and expensive and caloric. But, I do admit to buying their micronized 'instant' Italian coffee by the gross. I travel a lot and those are really handy and good for long drives (I can use a in-car pot to heat up the water and since I drink coffee black, no sugar - and tend to like it strong and bitter so they are ideal for me). I wish someone else would start micronizing and packaging single cup coffee 'bags' so I could wean myself off Starbucks - but till then, they sort of have my 'business' (often indirectly if I can find them in a grocery store, mind you). I have never found an instant coffee other than Starbucks that I can stand, much less enjoy. And I have found that, even a year after expiry, that micronized stuff holds up well.

I think the PBS site videos are set up to use Flash somehow - and I don't allow Flash on my computer any more so they never work for me these days. I wrote to PBS once to ask why all I ever get is a black screen (and no indication of why they won't play) but they never responded. I will have to stay up late or wait till they come to some other medium near me (perhaps Netflix in a year or two) I guess. But thanks for trying, rotuts.

I don't like icing on my cinnamon rolls either. Too sweet for me. I love my Thermomix for making cinnamon bread dough. So fast and easy - and the machine does all the kneading. While I don't make cinnamon rolls very often any more, the only machine I use for them now is the TMX. 'Regular' bread however I make completely by hand, even though I have a food processor (which can at least cut down on the initial mix if not the kneading), a couple of Kitchen Aid mixers and the TMX. I was at one time given a bread machine but I never used it. I know one can just make the dough in it and not cook the bread into those non-homemade looking loaf shapes but that machine just never appealed to me for some completely unknown (to me) reason. I still love kneading by hand just as I did when I first started making bread 50 years ago - very satisfying somehow. Perhaps there will come a time that I cannot handle the kneading process .. not sure what I will do then. I can certainly appreciate though that your 'student' and many like her or people with any disability at all should probably use a bread machine - it seems ideal for that so they can or will make bread at all. I think everyone should know how to make bread - and try making it at least once in their lives (and hopefully more than that). (p.s. Darn you all - now you have me thinking about making cinnamon rolls. I may have to haul the TMX out of its corner this afternoon. )