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AlaMoi

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Posts posted by AlaMoi

  1. oh yeah . . . the right amount of batter is always a joy to determine....  you can use the measured method - find a cup/bowl/can of the 'right volume' - pour the batter into the 'measured volume' then to the waffle iron.

     

    with practice you can eyeball it - although the rise / out-squish will vary with the recipe - i.e. yeast vs baking powder vs starter ....

  2. you'll get close.

     

    both pancake and waffle  recipes come in variations of ". . . . add melted butter / oil . . ."

    for 'bare' cast iron/aluminum my experience has been . . . they require when hot, pre-bake, brushed on oil/butter in the first months time.

    eventually, the fat builds up the slick polymer layer - but they will always need an oil/melted butter component to the  recipe.

    there is a myth that non-stick coated plates don't require oil/butter in the mix.  it's a myth . . . I do both baking powder and yeasted/Liege waffles using a non-stick - but a bit of butter makes for perfection.

     

    frankly I think the melted butter does a better job - at making for non-stick as well as for taste.

     

    • Thanks 1
  3. 'stuff' sold by weight - i.e. a 5# bag of . . .

    there is usually some 'pre-sorting' for size/weight, but in order to make the bag as close as possible to the specified weight selected smaller size/weights is added to the reach an acceptable tolerance.

     

    I'd dump out my last bag and take a pix - but I've already used up the small ones . . .

    • Haha 1
  4. I have metal stamped/ground measuring cups, , , for the sole purpose of loading them up and dumping the contents onto a (tared) scale . . .

     

    I have my failings.  like:  how much onion for a beef stew . . . really?  like +/- 70% is gonna' make some kind of difference?

     

    onion - and others - are a really good example.  just like salt - Morton's vs. Diamond vs. the kid with the umbrella . . .

    the weight of some "volume" can vary by a significant amount.  finer grains/grinds make for higher density . . . .

    the volume of rough chop to diced to fine diced to minced makes a really huge difference when weighed "after the slice/dicing"

     

    so,,, I'm all for weights vs volume - but there are some details to be attended to . . . .

  5. methinks the best educational tool for the question is:

    buy a five pound bag of onions - dump them out and observe the sizes.....

     

    recommended for late fall implementation with a fresh crop. 

    Jan-May our Giant bag of onions usually contain 2-5 onions that are sprouting and basically rotting in the bag . . .

    it's a Giant thing - Weis Markets (across the street) has far superior 'fresh produce' as the season wears on.

    • Like 1
  6. I have a 6 burner Viking. 

    the individual burner grates have little rubber feet . . . 6x4=24 pieces . . . went to the shop to buy some, $3 _EACH_ x 24=$72 for pencil eraser size rubber thingies - that go crisp, break off, disappear about every 3 months. . .

    the auto-igniters died.  no local service tech.  estimate:  $200 "travel time" + parts + labor - and of course, they can only figure out what parts they need at the first $200 travel visit . . .

    unplugged the auto igniter junk, use a

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B093KCMBQX

     

    so . . . mega-caution needed on Viking stuff.  it breaks, a lot, and repairs will not make you happy.

    • Like 1
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  7. ps:  I'm not going to make my own . . . whatevers

     

    in our markets, only flour tortillas are offered.

    do corn recipes not have a 30 year shelf life?  no clue.  simply put, corn tortilla are just not available . . .

     

    I do a breakfast burrito -

    pre-prepped:  bacon strip - microwaved for speed/ease

    flour tortilla re-toasted in a dry hot pan

    scrambled egg

     

    the soft/toasted tortilla is ready . . .

    lay in one strip of bacon

    add one scrambled egg

    add  ~1 ounce 4-blend cheese

    trim side edge of tortilla to make fold/wrap/roll "ideal"

    roll the tortilla and fasten with toothpick

    the residual heat melts the cheese

     

    the grins show 'we loved it"

     

  8. anyone knowledgeable in the banana trade?

    bananas are usually a "mono" crop - huge plantings of the same variety . . .

    I know there's currently a virus spreading and killing off huge swaths of 'old' plantations - new planting are different strains.

     

    reason I ask:

    at Costco, bought a bunch of "organic" bananas - the eventually go speckled / brown spots skins - but the banana itself did not go mushy/over ripe as the "usuals" do.

    origin was Columbia - I'm presuming there's new plantations with virus resistant types there?

     

    • Like 1
  9. if the taste works - go for it!  I've found many/most cakes using melted chocolate tend to the dense side.

    the batter depth may also have inhibit the 'normal' rise . . .

     

    things rarely go perfect first time around - especially if you have to modify to size/amounts/etc.

    once one knows what to expect it makes for an easier prep.

  10. that recipe calls for two 20cm pans - the  depth is not given.

    I would not recommend baking the entire batch in one 20cm pan - i.e. twice as 'thick'

    the center of the pan will take much longer to bake at double depth - which will likely over-bake-to-dry the edges.

     

    it calls for springform pans - those with a removable bottom - and greased paper on the bottom. 

    indicates to me the baked cake is quite fragile

    the "sides" of a springform pan "comes off" - allows you to get the entire layer 'out of the pan' without breaking it.

  11. had one once.  round, with lever.  tiny holes.  mega-PITA to clean . . .

     

    so, presuming one has a knife/knives, and a thick/bangable/smashable cutting board . . .

    (honest question!) why a press?

    one can chop, dice, mince - from "whole' to smashed, from smashed to knife pureed . . .

     

    I find 'chopping off' both the root end and the tip - followed by a nice flat smash - generally removes 99.25% of the skin.

    from there it's only a question of how fine-sized the garlic must be, for the dish.

    • Like 1
  12. the dear doctor exiled me to a low fat diet . . .

    how much is low?  no answers . . . make it up as you go . . .

     

    fish, poultry per se are very low fat.

    beef can be low fat - you have to be picky.  ground beef 80/20,,, no.  92/93/95/x - yes.

    steaks - trim the fat!  the marbling does bring fat, but it is minimal compared to a big ole fat cap.

    USDA Prime vs Choice is the amount of marbling - you can see this with ye olde' eyeball!

    pork - same idea - the meat proper is rather lean, but the typical fat cap is not - trim trim trim.....

     

    salad greens - low fat. but brings up the point - the greens are fine, the creamy dressings . . . not so low fat!

     

    how you prepare the fish/poultry/pork/beef is THE controlling factor to "fat consumption"

    fish / chicken smothered in cheese . . . no, not low fat.

    meatballs and spaghetti . . . . works until you put piles of parm on it.

    grilled/broiled steak is not outrageous, unless you do the resto trick of ladling melted compound butter over it . . .

     

    as for "dishes" - petty much all the vegetables are ultra low fat - sauted in butter,,,, oops!

    potatoes are one of my fav - low fat, very filling/satisfying.

    but baked potato with butter, sour cream, bacon bits . . . no so low fat.

    • Like 2
  13. one of our "family dishes" is a corn "casserole"

    the usual is canned creamed corn, evaporated milk, flour, sugar and fresh kernel corn.

     

    now, every summer when the sweet corn hits it's peak,,, I husk&cut the kernels off, spread on a pan & freeze.

    once frozen, whack the corn into chunks and put in freezer bags - typically 4 dozen ears.

     

    I thawed and stick blenderized a batch of kernels in lieu of canned cream corn - stellar results

     

    long shaggy dog story to convey:  chopping up/blenderizing/FP'ing home kernels works very well.

    not heard about corn cob stock, but it's on my list for this summer.....

     

    keeping in mind,,,, this is corn that was picked in the AM and in the freezer by 4.....

    with a little help . . .

    cdcombo1.thumb.jpg.ab8c01e36cd8ace128523eb5df3db1a5.jpg

     

  14. I find corn starch more apt to produce a shiny / glistening sauce - I use it most for stir fry.

    another:  velveting beef strips for various Asian inspired dishes.

     

    for most other 'thicker needs' I use a roux.

    however, when things go sideways and I need a quick fix thicken I'll use potato starch, potato flakes or corn starch slurry.

     

    corn starch seems to thicken at lower temps, i.e. a roux is not up to full thickening power until the 'sauce/gravy/whatever' actually boils a bit.

  15. off topic abit . . .

    I'm okay with grating a couple T of cheese for 'it goes on the pasta, Silly!' but casserole type dishes needing fractions/cups . . .

    nah, limited enthusiasm there . . . 

     

    so I got a new 'old-stock' grating attachment for the lift bowl KA mixer. 

    (the old style has conical grating inserts - the 'new' style has cylindrical grating inserts)

     

    the nit with the new style is the gratings do not "auto-exit" - one has to provide some assistance to get the cylinder to clean out in a tidy continuous fashion....  otoh.... the new versions, especially non KA brand, are all stainless steel, no plastics, etc.

    so, it's a toss up.

     

    but a KA grater / slicer is like "dude - this is rad!" over a box grater for larger qtys.

     

    • Like 2
  16. yes - self-check out theft has many possibilities and avenues for criminals to exploit.

    putting something in the bag/whatever without scanning is an obvious.

    weight checking flags that , , , most most items.  super light items, not so much....

    more sophisticated methods are 'label swapping' or more sophisticated home printed 'fake labels'

     

    I use self-checkout at the supermarket - mainly to pack the bags with the eggs on top . . . but anyway . . .

    I often experience

    "Please scan all items before placing them in the cart"

    "Please remove the last un-scanned item from the cart"

    and . . . what happens . . . after 10-20 seconds the "error" times out and

    "Please continue scanning"

     

    if the system stayed "stalled" until a clerk came and verified the transaction is proceeding honestly . . .

    that would work much more better.

    Perhaps Walmart uses that approach?  no clue, rarely shop there . . .

     

     

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