jbates

Mesh instead of weights, using the KitchenAid, great ideas. Thanks to all of you for posting recently, I now have a few more options for my next ferment.

I'd recommend having one, so many uses - excellent for heating and holding the milk for yogurt at an exact temperature. I have the Joule, and love how the app reminds me when the program is done.

My local Fred Meyer in Washington state has them coming from Chile.

Good to know, I wasn't aware there are vacuum-specific oils. My info was from a sous chef who used a mid-sized Vacmaster in their kitchen and it got a good workout.

From my research after I bought my VP-215 you should be able to use any "10W non-detergent hydraulic oil" which your local auto parts dealer should have on hand or be able to order. I got mine from O'Reilly's for around $5 a quart.

I bought some a while back, it's tasty. A bit different from LoGanMa. Yours looks great. I've got Sichuan chili powder coming to make the Cook's Illustrated version. Any special tricks for your recipe?

I've used my Kuhn Rikon hotel pressure cooker (11" diameter) on the CF for a couple of years now. I use it as a normal pot as well. The pan heats up evenly and accurately. A couple of times I've overheated the milk while making yogurt and had lightly caramelized milk solids on the bottom of the pan; the stuck bits covered the pan from edge to edge without a ring. I haven't tried the flour test, will have to play around with different pans. I suspect the pan base thickness plays a part.

I suspect it won't be long, since the water in the purée is not being boiled out like in a jam. The acid might help though. I don't have access to a similar recipe with a known aW value that I could use as a reference either, unfortunately. I'd suggest contacting your local university/college culinary school and asking if they have an aW meter. If so, make up a batch and let us know the result. BTW got a link to the full recipe?

I'd expect that the brine they come in would continue to preserve them. Divide into appropriate size bottles and share the brine between them.

What I've done for pop rocks is to put the pieces in a fine sieve and pour thinned chocolate over the top. Shake it around while the chocolate sets up. I'm sure caramel bits would work similarly.

I assume you discard the zested skin? Or can you chop it fine and add back into the pickles?

For a 4x8 configuration I suspect it's a Chocolate World cherry (https://chocolateworld.be/winkel/moulds/frame-moulds/CW2116), or perhaps a Hans Brunner (https://www.brunnershop.com/en/Frame-Moulds/Moulds-for-Pralines/Round-pralines/Ball-praline.html). Some manufacturers only produce the cherries in a 3x8 configuration. if you're in the US, Tomric and/or BakeDeco should be able to get these for you.

If you're serious about repeatability with your recipes then the CF is a great investment. I'm very OCD with my recipes so now I can make them perfectly every time. Perfect pancakes, none of the throw-away-the-first-one nonsense, just-so scrambled eggs, etc.

If anyone needs (another) ControlFreak, subscribers to ChefSteps' StudioPass are having a 15% off sale (save $225!) until December 23, 2020 when purchasing through polyscienceculinary.com

If you're a subscriber to ChefSteps' StudioPass, for the next week you can get a 15% discount off the ControlFreak induction cooker (saving $225) until December 23, 2020. Very accurate cooking temperatures FTW. I use mine daily, highly recommended!

I always repolish, especially on larger flat surfaces like tablets. I get disappointed when an item has streaks or release marks, even if only I notice it 😊.

Never seen that before. I'd recommend calling Breville, it may need a warranty service/replacement.

I've used luster dust before and then backed it with white or black, but didn't do the clear coat first, will have to try that.

There have been a lot of fakes appearing on Amazon this year. The main problem is that the real and fake boxes get thrown in together in Amazon's warehouses, and if you buy one that is "Fulfilled by Amazon" you can't guarantee you'll get a real one even if you buy from a trusted seller. The boxes for the fakes vary in quality, and the lids usually don't have the Ball/Kerr logos.

@Wisper And if you do use the ready-made truffle shells (I highly recommend this too), then also buy the matching truffle shell filling/sealing tray. Makes it much easier when piping the filling and capping them off. I bought the thick plastic one from PastryChef.com (I think it was around the $90 mark), but they don't seem to stock them any more. The only US online place that seems to have trays in stock at the moment is AUI (https://secure.auifinefoods.com/metal-sealing-tray-for-truffles-0041500000) but their thick aluminum/steel version is expensive ($235) for a metal sheet with some shaped holes in it — but it will last forever. If you're in the UK, then Home Chocolate Factory has them for £73.

Amazon has a listing for 1 pound bulk bag, but it is currently unavailable, so it doesn't show up in the search. It was from a legitimate health food place in Canada. The first bag I bought via Amazon a couple of years ago (shared some with other attendees at the chocolate workshop in St Louis), and this year I bought direct to avoid the "Amazon tax". Just in case the "illicit" rules started getting policed again, DM me if interested and I'll share the site link.

Excellent work. Are the apple leaves part of the mold?

Just watched the VP95 video. The digital programming looks nice, and no more guessing on an analog dial. The incline plate is a great idea, I'll have to get in contact with VM and see if they're making one that'll fit my VP215.

There's a process now for acidifying the garlic to remove the botulism problem, based on research from U of Idado: https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8568.pdf (including recipe). The original research paper and a bunch of other preservation stuff is at https://ucfoodsafety.ucdavis.edu/consumers/food-specific-resources-home-food-preservation

I have one of those. I lined it with some inch-thick foam to cushion the fruit (plums would split on the mesh). They can be a bit aggressive on softer fruit, or if it's firmly attached. For my Eureka lemon tree I had to really yank the fruit and that sometimes broke the little branch it was attached to. I haven't yet got the Fisker I mentioned but it's on my list. Planning to attach a funnel-like collector underneath with a tube that runs down the shaft (either mosquito netting or PVC). I should be able to cut off multiple fruits without moving the blades too far. Not sure what the bottom end of the tube will have but maybe a peg to hold everything back and then just open it over a bucket that's close enough to avoid bruising the fruit. (Got this idea from a video of an automatic apple picker)