Lisa1349

Thanks for sharing the info and the how's and why's, Chef. I switched to Rumford after Cooks Illustrated decreed it was the best baking powder. I've been happy but I too had never noticed the metallic taste in others.

I thought I'd bump this topic up to see what everyone's thoughts are on biscotti of late. I got Giuseppe Orsini's new book Italian Baking Secrets and tried an altered version of his maple pecan biscotti. He features nearly 30 recipes, some with butter, some without. I prefer them without, and my favorite ready made ones are from Gilda's. Hers don't have butter, and she coats them in sugar. She also makes them flatter so they're more about the outside crackle than the inside. Her fig and lemon are to die for. I was trying to make my maple pecan in the flat style, but they still came out tall so when sliced thinly they're more about the cross section on the side. The flavor of them alone is just so so, we'll see what dunking brings later on today. The book overall is intersting, I like the picture of cannoli on the cover.

It's hard to get nice blood pudding here in the states. What's the meat to the left of the eggs? Country ham? What's in the beans?

I had black bean sauce too! I sizzled some ginger and garlic in oil, added BBS, and tossed with blanched haricot verts. A great accompaniment to pan roasted wild Copper River salmon with a drizzle of Yuzu rice wine vinegar. Delish and quick. Take that Rachel Ray!

Eggs benedict with salmon 2 ways: Scottish smoked and roasted Copper River. No muffin to cut down the carbs. A great way to start the weekend!

Not a full food site, but enjoyable Phillyist

Heading to SB tonight. Looking forward to it as I haven't seen such a polarizing topic since babies in Bell restos. I going with not-so gourmands so I'm interested to see their reaction. I'm hoping the food will taste like NY. Will report back.

This has become on of my favorite topics here. Ann, your steak and eggs will be my husband's birthday breakfast this Saturday. This weekend I made eggs in the basket after watching V For Vendetta where it was featured twice. Here are some pics - a posted a short pictoral on my blog, Lavender Sky, link below. On the griddle Done! On Monday I had a craving for nova lox and bagels so I drove 20 miles roundtrip collecting lox from Michael's deli in King of Prussia, PA and NY bagels. Worth it!

I've encountered many rancid oils out for tasting at WS. The ones you can purchase of course aren't but because the masses can't manage caps correctly, the oils are exposed to too much air. If you're in any store of quality, ask for a taste. If they don't already have one open even if it's not on display - they'd be smart to open one for you. It usually leads to a purchase even if it's not a purchase of what you tasted. I've been favoring an Australian olive oil that comes in a bag in a box. $10/liter that I buy at Giant Supermarket of all places. Tonight I'm making mashed potatoes with olive oil and goat cheese with roasted chicken. Yummy.

I had Wegman's dry aged prime ribeye this weekend. It was great. I was disappointed that it wasn't offered bone in. Unfortunately, I cooked them on a grill that was new to me and over did them a little. Despite that, they were still terrific. When I think ahead, I order steaks from Niman Ranch. I cooked their dry aged prime rib for Christmas and it was sublime.

I tried this method with excellent results. I know my Goya white beans were older because they took a whole hour extra to cook. Great bean making. I added andouille sausage at the end. I also made white bean and escarole soup from them. It would have made a killer bean dip.

Not a full melt down, but at Bertucci's in Plymouth Meeting we were in a section with a new waiter who was bady in the weeds. After waiting a ridiculously long time to receive drink orders, the waiter appears carrying over 25 drinks on one large tray. Drinks for the whole section. The tray tipped over as he walked past a pregnant woman. Who was wearing white. The waiter kept slipping in the puddle and couldn't get up. When he was able to stand he walked out the back door never to be seen again. Hysterical.

And after being on the Goomba Diet you hear Tony's quote when he sees Bobby Baccala from afar, Even sushi played a role last season. Food also plays a role in all the scenes of my own life. It looks like I'll have to try the hot dog/cream cheese combo.

I love the presense of food on the show - reminding me of the good ol' days living in Bensonhurst. What were the Lincoln Log sammies about in the mst recent episode? They looked like hot dogs split with cream cheese. I like hot dogs with (gasp) american cheese, but cream cheese? I get that hot dogs look like lincoln building logs - but with... cream cheese? Has anyone eaten this? Is she hitting the chianti too much?

The loving captive husband was sitting at the bar at Victory in Downingtown yesterday and noticed the well known bar fly order a Prima Pils, slow pour. The bartender filled the glass with mostly head, let it settle and continued on this path until the glass was full. It was too noisy to inquire there the flavor effect it has on the beer. My hypothesis is this reduces carbonation and mimics beer that comes from a beer engine as ooposed to the usual keg line. Can anyone offer insight? I know the man who ordered it is a serious afficionado so it's not just unnecessary drama similar to someone ordering an extra dry martini when all they really want is gin straight up.

Percyn - that is an awesome compliment, especially from a breakfast pro! Bruce's fried rice looks way better than mine - care to share the technique? And Ann, those eggs you had were poached beautifully! I have to photograph my funny "Golden Eye" breakfast - 1 sunny side up egg on each of 2 corn toaster cakes with chorizo on the side... it's looking back at you! All terrific with a drizzle of maple syrup.

There it is... we're officially off topic. Here's a question, how many of those 4 drinks ordered by the instructor are ordered in a restaurant on a regular basis? If Katie weren't there to set trends in bar consumption, what do the masses order when there's no guidance? martinis with no vermouth that aren't really martinis, cosmos, stuff and tonic?

I missed the DDC dinner there in '04 - has anyone been recently? The 2006 reviews on CitySearch aren't great but I generally think people who review on CitySearch as opposed to eGullet just aren't into food anyway. We have a gift cert for Ravenna and was thinking about it for a romantic anniversary coming up.

The batter is egg yolks, lemon zest and juice, cottage cheese, canola oil, baking powder and flour folded in to whipped egg whites. Folding in to whipped egg whites is also the method used in The Armchair James Beard pancakes which are more traditional. The pureed cottage cheese gives the pancakes a wonderfully moist interior and great texture. Think of a crepe with leavening.

Higher end butter generally have higher butterfat content, so there would be less to strain. I can't speak as to how the flavor of expensive butter translates in the clarifying process. In restaurants, when you buy tubs of clarified butter, it's made with inexpensive butter so it has a very neutral flavor when cooked - it's more about getting sensational browning at a great temperature.

That's great info, Helen. I vote for salt, or natural chemical compounds that mimic the flavor of salt. Since you said you purchased the 'value' brand, the don't want to list Morton's table crap on label. However, I know you know your stuff so you wouldn't buy salted butter to clarify... so the answer is in Helen's link. I'm impressed that you clarify butter. Edited to add: I had the pleasure of meeting the Parma butter producer in Spain. An interesting farm fellow who knows how to party. I would also use those decriptors for how the butter tastes!

I often cook out of James Macnair's Breakfast and yesterday I made his Lemon Souffle Pancakes. I love using up the cottage cheese I buy and intend to eat - the batter is made in the blender with cottage cheese or ricotta, then fold in egg whites. With super crispy bacon and gobs of butter. I make a little pancake for the top of the stack so I can eat that before I add syrup. Enjoyed with a pot of Guatemalan French press coffee with foam. Edited to clarify use of cottage cheese.

P.S. Don't know if this would qualify, but, Great Falls ice cream in Bridgeport is right on the Schyulkill and has wonderful benches and such for eating a cone and watching the falls. The do sammies and stuff as well.

M! For those who hadn't gotten it already. I was going to take a cousin there tonight to learn... closed on Mondays Nerve of hard working chefs to take a day off!