slkinsey

Re Jackson Hole: I always go to the one on Columbus and 85th. Pretty good, I think. Always get the "Soul Burger" -- a bacon cheeseburger with sauteed onions and Canadian bacon. Like, at some point someone looked at a bacon cheeseburger and said, "that just doesn't have enough preserved pork on it." That is my kind of thinking! Re setting a date/time: Could also do weekend eves upcoming. For that matter, I could do tomorrow at 1:00.

So... fan of the Hedgehog, eh?

Oh... I can do evenings/weekends too, if lunch is no good.

Well, yes they can be separated to a certain extent when just discussing the design. The point of my article was to explain how various cookware designs differ and by so doing to provide people with a basis for selecting cookware following an evaluation of their cooking needs and resources. The stovetop is a resource. So, when it comes down to making a choice of which cookware design to acquire, the stovetop is one variable to consider along with all the others. For example, people who own electric stoves understand that they do not respond quickly when the heat is adjusted up or down. So, an electric stove user who wants a super-responsive pan for saucemaking has to understand that a primary limitation on responsiveness will be the heat source. This should inform his/her decision as to what kind of cookware to purchase. It may not make sense for such a person to invest in copper, for example.

Man... where did your friend get these ideas? No, copper doesn't warp easily. The only common cookware material that has serious warping problems at a usefully heavy gauge is unclad aluminum. Thin copper, such as Mauviel's "Table Service" line (which I should point out, is not meant for cooking) might warp. But this is true of all cookware with insufficient thickness. No, it is not the case that "thicker the bottom, the worse [the warping]." The opposite is true: thicker gauges are less prone to warping than thinner ones. I have to say, Okralet... I'm a little bit disappointed that you would bring this up or give credence to such ideas, since the idea that copper warps easily and that thicker copper warps even more goes entirely counter to the information provided in my article. Glad you like the rondeau!

So... how about this week? Anyone up for Thursday at 1:00? Obviously we won't be able to include everyone every time. Presumably we'll be able to make a good split between weekdays and weekends.

Are you ready? This is very special . . . Sweet, dude. Maybe not quite as good as having a wallet that says "Bad Motherfucker" on it. On the other hand, since Chinggis Khaan was a prime example of a bad motherfucker, perhaps it's the same thing. It's very close anyway. That's what I'm trying to say here.

FWIW, the Sur La Table "mattone," besides being remarkably un-brick-like, doesn't seem to offer any special benefits that can't be attained with a two heavy skillets (one above and one below). I usually use a heavy copper fry pan as the base and a cast iron skillet as the weight. This is not to say, however, that Wolfert isn't correct about the difference between the results from the clay gizmo she recommends and using two skillets. I, too, would be interested to hear side-by-side comparisons.

So...? When is the inaugural meeting of Burger Club? I'm free ~1:00 on weekdays this week.

Whoa! Fat Guy got a Chinggis Khaan wallet and key-case! Score! All I have is a Tutankhamen's tomb bottle opener.

It's OK... although weasels and ferrets are cousins, it's common for ferret-lovers to call them weasels. That is Zebulun. As it so happens, Steven, Ellen and Momo dropped by to see the ferrets yesterday. Momo was apparently inconsolable that his mother got to play with the ferrets and he did not, and cried in the living room (as big tough dogs are wont to do). Anyway, there were some pretty cool pictures taken by Ellen. Asher is the salt-and-pepper looking one with the stripe on the middle of his head, and Issachar is the champagne colored one.

Given a little notice, bergerka and I can usually arrange our schedules for weektime lunches.

Word. Say your Rosary. Oy... I don't know if I could take it. I literally haven't been able to watch a baseball game since a certain-game-that-shall-not-be-mentioned in 1986.

I think it's probably because it is so simple. It is relatively easy to make a good roast chicken and yet can be incredibly difficult to make an excellent roast chicken. Starting with great chicken can make a big difference. But, on the other hand, certain techniques can elevate meidocre chicken. So it is a cooking task with a lot of little variables with which we can tinker. There are also built-in challenges. Primary among them will always be the problem of preserving a moist breast and yet cooking the legs completely. Many of us understand that the most effective way of achieving this is to cook the legs and breast separately... but that wouldn't really be a challenge, would it? I think many of us appreciate the challenge of tinkering with all the little details that separate mediocre roast chicken from good roast chicken from awesome roast chicken. Now... I definitely like steak and double-cut pork chops better than roast chicken. But, as long as I start with quality ingredients, it's a lot easier to cook an amazing steak than it is to cook an amazing roast chicken. FWIW, I don't think this kind of interest is reserved only for roast chicken. One can find similar discussions about other relatively simple cooking tasks such as making hamburgers and omelets.

I usually just go ahead and remove the ribcage when I spatchcock. That results in a boneless breast with wings attached and bone-in legs.

Boiling wort for making beer. Not too many other things you can do with unlined copper. I suppose you could make a ton of caramel? The world's largest zabaglione? Traditionally, polenta is prepared in giant unlined copper vessels over an open fire. The thing to remember is that copper is poisonous. Personally, I wouldn't use it for anything other than sugary stuff (which includes wort). 40 lbs would last a long time, for sure. But that's the beauty of it. BKF is useful for a zillion cleaning applications. Probably something you could store in a closet or something. The web site probably gives you some idea of the size of the container.

Bergerka and I are in.

My 11" Mauviel frypan weighs 5.5 pounds My 11" Falk saucière (aka sauteuse evasée) weighs 8 pounds. An 11" saute pan should weigh somewhere in between these weights, say, 7 pounds. Definitely not for one handed flipping when full of food. (NB: these are alll 2.5 mm)

OK, Suvir... in one fell swoop you have acquired more Falk Culinair than I have. Seriously, though, if sounds awesome. We await reports of your impressions. If you want to keep the finish bright, definitely go out and buy some Bar Keeper's Friend (and I just noticed you can buy a 40 lb container for 50 bucks on their web site) and some Scotch Brite pads.

Plus, it's fun to say. Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock Spatchcock

Tana, I can't beleive this got by. I'm just a country goy myself, but I'm guessing you're both. I don't have a Joy of Yiddish so I may be wrong. I'm sure somebody will enlighten us. She's a shiksa.

Bergamo is a cool town. Also the birthplace of Gaetano Donizetti, one of my favorite composers.

"Derby Style" Bourbon Pecan Tart This is my pecan tart from the NJ BBQ at Bobolink. Looks something like this. For the Crust 1-1/2 c All-Purpose FLour 3/4 c Pastry Flour 1 tsp Kosher Salt 14 T Unsalted Butter, cut into 0.5 inch cubes 1 pkg Sour Cream (8 ounces) For the Filling 1 c Lyle's Golden Syrup 3/4 c White Sugar 6 T Unsalted Butter 1/4 tsp Kosher Salt 2 T Arrowroot 2 Extra Large Eggs 4 Egg Yolks 3 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract 3 T Bourbon 1-1/4 c Roughly Chopped Pecans For the Chocolate 1/4 c Bittersweet Belgian Chocolate 2 T Unsalted Butter 1/4 c Cream For the Topping 1-1/2 c Whole Pecan Halves 6 T Unsalted Butter 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt 1/4 c Lyle's Golden Syrup 1/2 c White Sugar 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract Crust Place all ingredients except the sour cream in a bowl and put bowl in the freezer for at least one hour. Toss well to coat all butter cubes with flour. Remove in bowl from freezer and turn onto pastry board. Roll ingredients with a rolling pin, flattening the butter cubes. Do this a few times, scraping the rolling pin as necessary. Return the mixture to the freezer for 15 minutes and repeat the process twice more. When finished, the butter and flour should look like a pile of torn up paper. Add as much sour cream as is needed to get the dough to come together. Don't knead the dough. Just press it together and fold it over on itself to incorporate the sour cream. Return to the freezer for 15 minutes if it starts getting warm. "Turn" the dough at least 3 - 5 times as you're getting it to come together. Once the dough comes together, wrap it in plastic and keep it in the freezer for a minimum of 30 minutes. Roll out dough, place into tart pan with removable bottom and bake blind according to your favorite method. Filling and Chocolate Melt the butter, milk and chocolate together according to your favorite method. When smooth, thin and syrup-consistency, sprinkle across the base of the tart shell and spread around to make a thin layer of chocolate. Set aside or refrigerate. Mix the arrowroot in the bourbon. Put the sugar, syrup, butter, and salt into a good saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 - 7 minutes. Take the pan off the heat for a few minutes. Stir in the bourbon/arrowroot mixture and the vanilla. Mix the eggs together in a large bowl. Stir in the hot sugar mixture in a thin stream. Put the chopped pecans in the baked tart shell and pour in the filling mixture. Bake in a 400F oven for 30 minutes. Topping While the tart is baking, spread the pecan halves on a cookie sheet, add 3 tablespoons of butter, sprinkle on the salt and put in the oven. When nicely roasted (7 - 10 minutes), pull the sheet out and set aside. When the roasted pecan halves are out of the oven, cook the syrup and sugar on the stove for 5 minutes. Time this so the sugar mixture will be hot when the tart is ready to come out of the oven. After the 30 minutes of baking are over, pull out the tart and set aside. Mix the roasted pecan halves with the hot sugar mixture and spread across the surface of the tart. Return the tart to the oven and bake for 10 minutes more. Check the tart at 5 minutes to make sure the pecans aren't getting too dark and remove early if necessary. Serve with unsweetened whipped cream and a big glass of Booker's bourbon on plenty of ice. Keywords: Dessert, Expert, Tart, American ( RG616 )

Soon as I get my hands on a digital camera, I'll do just that. I think "spatchcock" should be an eGullet slogan. Like maybe the logo thongs could say "spatchcock this."