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Some people like the creaminess of taro in their desserts like in ice cream or soup. I like taro in pancake form, much like the daikon pancakes in dim sum. Others can't stand it. Hate the starchiness.

In the December 2003 issue of Cook's Illustrated magazine there is a recipe for the perfect Cheesecake. There is an entire page on doing a water bath and the benefits. However, just last Saturday on PBS I watched the 30 minute program from Cook's Illustrated and Cris Kimball and another woman specifically said not to do a water bath for your cheesecake. How can the same organization speak of Cheescakes in the same month and provide conflicting information? Anyhow, I tried the water bath just like the magazine recipe called for and my crust got soaking wet somehow. Any one else notice the conflicting information? Any advice? Thanks in advance!

Ok...my hubby and I took our 3 kids (5yrs, 23 mths & 1 mth) to the Cheesecake Factory yesterday and it was packed. There were people lined up to put in a bid for a possible table and get their in-house pagers, others milled around the bakery peering in on the cheesecakes, some were sitting at the entrance while, still others were winding their way to the bar. After waiting in line for around 3 to 4 minutes we finally put in our bid for a table for 4. The wait? 20 to 40 minutes. Can you imagine waiting that long with 3 kids?? We got our pager and parked our respective butts in front of the cheesecake display window and hoped our kids wouldn't embarrass us. My flirt of a son soon found a 20 something year old lady to play peek-a-boo with and my hubby soon found a trio of ladies who actually lived a few blocks away from our house. I spent most of my time prying my daughter's nails out of my jeans and looking at the desserts. Is it me or do their cheesecakes look a little too involved? Our pager finally went off 30 minutes after we got it. Thank God! Our server was very nice and, noting that we had kids, asked if we would like some bread and butter along with our drinks. I wish more servers were like that and Im sure other parents of little "monsters" like ours would understand why. Unfortunately, they do not offer a children's menu. We ordered a cheese pizza for the kids to share and our apps: Mini Crabcakes for me and Chicken Nachos for my hubby. Being the annoying customers that we are, after realizing that the kids were getting crankier quicker than usual, we called her back and threw in my entree order: Herb Crusted Filet of Salmon with a Fresh Lemon Sauce, Asparagus & Mashed Potatoes. The crabcakes (2 of them) were pretty big and came with Tartar and Remoulade Sauce. We thought they were damn good and tasted like those at Cafe Matisse for half the price. My kids were stuffing their faces full of pizza when the Chicken Nachos arrived. They came on a HUGE PLATTER and I mean HUGE. If you are going to order those, let me warn you, that is an appetizer that could serve 4 people or stuff 2. It's that big. The highlight of my dinner was the entree. The salmon was absolutely delicious on its own. It doesn't taste all that well with just the Lemon Sauce but when you add some potatoes to the salmon and then dip this combo into the sauce.....ummmm ummmmm ummmmm my tastebuds just about exploded. I did have a few problems with the Cheesecake Factory and their portions. My salmon could have fit in both my hands and still spill over. The portions were way too big and I noticed a few other patrons also having trouble eating that much food. You can get stuffed eating their appetizers alone. I also got some feedback from a few ladies at another table about the cheesecakes. They said the best cheesecake overall was the plain cheesecake with the fruit topping. One cheesecake to stay away from is the Key Lime Cheesecake. Oh....and my hubby says to warn you about the German Chocolate Cheesecake. It doesn't taste like cheesecake, has a huge chocolate blob on top and tastes more like a layer cake. I ordered a Giant Brownie Icecream Sandwich, the other half of it is now taking up residence in my freezer. As I said before....the portions are HUGE. All in all, I thought it was an okay place to eat....WITHOUT the 23 mth old. Service: Excellent Food: Great Kid Friendly: So So (No Kids Menu) Edit: Hubby says to get there before 4pm to avoid a long wait. How did you find the food?

In Morocco we were served dessert couscous more than once. It was almost as if the couscous had been cooked with milk, raisins, sugar and cinnamon powder. Of course there was the ever favorite orange blossom water. What was most unique was the piping hot reduced milk that was served alongside this sweet couscous. It was as if the couscous was being treated like a pudding or even a porridge. Are there restaurants in the US that serve this sweet couscous? Is thre an Arabic name for this dish? Is it a traditional dish?

What's your basic recipe for yellow cake meant to be frosted? This isn't something I've ever focused on and I'd like to have the ability to handle the order if it ever comes up.

A friend is having a dinner for some of our friends. She is most famous for her Middle Eastern/Lebanese dinner parties. I asked her what I could bring and she said some dessert that would go with Middle Eastern food. Any ideas?

Several months ago I enjoyed a slice of olive cake at La Tartine Bakery in San Francisco. Savory, not sweet, this loaf cake (4"x 4"x 12" brioche pan probably) was very moist, rich, slightly crumbly, contained oil-cured olives, red onion, Nieman Ranch ham, guyere, vermouth, and it's my sense that it was not yeast leavened. I haven't been back on days that they have been baking it, so I haven't been able to do a proper autopsy. Any ideas?

Perhaps you'd be willing to comment on a few of your favorite Vin Santos, David, and why you recommend them--and also speak a bit to some your favorite desserts at Babbo that proved to be good wine matches for Vin Santo? The first olive oil ice cream I ever had in New York was at Babbo, in a wonderful dessert with pumpkin seeds. How easy or difficult has it been for you to create wine matches across the whole dessert menu?

Kara Newman's tale of two cakes, and two wars. +++ Be sure to check The Daily Gullet home page daily for new articles (most every weekday), hot topics, site announcements, and more.

Ed, I just plain don't like Asian desserts. Can you help me to see the light?

I'm preparing for my annual holiday pie baking (I only make pies twice per year). I'm generally okay with the crust method I've been using - "Pie Crust Sticks" and I add a spoonful of orange juice in place of part of the water. Works really well and I plan to continue unless you folks can convince me that I'll get a truly superior crust if I make it from scratch (I'm open to discussion but please note that I have no mixer or food processor if that makes a difference). Here's the focus of my problem: in an effort to make a pecan pie that stands out from the ordinary and has a truly rich flavor to the filling, I've been experimenting with ingredient variations. For starters, I use 1/2 dark karo syrup and 1/2 light rather than all light syrup. I've also been replacing about 1/3 to 1/2 of the total amount of Karo syrup with real maple syrup for richer flavor. I have also been replacing the refined white sugar with dark brown sugar. People absolutely love the pies - the flavor is richer and more intense than a traditional pecan pie but I have a problem with consistency - the filling tends to stay a bit towards the liquid side. I recognize that the maple syrup won't "set" or thicken in the same way as the Karo syrup. Should I reduce the proportion of maple syrup or can someone suggest a way overcome this obstacle. Also.... is the use of dark brown sugar impacting on this in any way? Would using turbinado raw sugar perhaps be a better way to get a richer sugar taste but possibly with better results? Any and all suggestions appreciated. TIA!

Do you have favorite desserts that you prepare using Indian spices or ingredients? What are they? Recipes? Where did you get inspiration to make them?

Great article in NJ section of the Sunday NY Times by David Corcoran and Karla Cook highlighting desserts served in NJ restaurants. I was thrilled to see so may food articles in The NJ Sunday section. Marge Perry also wrote a very interesting article about a cheese maker in Vernon. John Foy has an article about top restaurateurs in the state and there is an article about culinary students in Newark. So--what are some of your favorite desserts and where are they served?

I like rum cake.

I didn't know where to post this, but I need to find someplace in the 5 boroughs that sells cake carriers (useful when you are bringing a cake somewhere). This is for Thanksgiving, so mail order is pretty much out of the question. New York Cake & Baking Distributors doesn't sell them and they were pretty snippy when I asked if they knew who might. It doesn't have to be fancy, and I'd prefer it had a handle. Ideas?

I recently retruned to NYC from my annual trip to southwestern PA (Uniontown)- My family runs a business there and we have a weekend of meetings each year surrounding my departed grandmother's Oct. 18th birthday- It's a great time to be in that part of the world- the foliage is amazing and it's buckwheat season. Part of the trip is breakfast at Braddock's Inn (or Glissen's) on route 40 between Uniontown and Farmingdale. It's $3 for up to 6 buckwheat cakes. Sausage or country ham is $2 extra. the cakes are delicious- light and a little grainy, with a distinct buckwheat flavor. I can still taste them ! Cheers, Charles

Authentic sweet potato pie, or banana pudding? Tbe NY Times would like to know ...

i just picked up some sliced rice cake. these are basically pasta-like slices, about 1/2 to 1 inch in diameter (oblong), made of rice. they are slightly chewy and quite satisfying. i've never seen these other than at a shanghai place in NJ (china 46), where they are served with shrimp in what is a brothy, garlicy "sauce" (the sauce tastes as though it has butter, as it's so rich, but i'm assured by the restaurant that it doesn't). it seems to me that they really take on the flavor of whatever it is that they might be cooked in, he said, ending a sentence in a preposition. i'm wondering what i can do with these things. any ideas?

Every New Year elderly Japanese, usually men, succumb to mochi, the rice cake of death. Mochi is rice pounded into a paste that is then grilled or served in soup. It is very sticky and difficult to chew but a beloved treat. By taking too big a bite, one winds up with a ball of goo that sticks in the throat. Hm. Drunken old fart husband, New Year's treat, portion size matters...

I made the cupcakes from the new issue of Cook's tonight. Such an easy, quick recipe, and really, really good. So satisfying. An uber-yellow cupcake, with whipped chocolate ganache icing. Who makes cupcakes around here? What are your secrets, your favorite things, etc? What icings do you use? What are the variations you notice?

In this little chunck of guilt-free calorie-free time between Christmas and New Year's resolutions when everyone is getting together with family and friends, preparing and consuming special meals and treats, what is everyone making, or buying, or looking for at the table? I love these little chocolate cakey cookies frosted with fudge and topped with a maraschino cherry half. They are a must have, and gingerbread christmas tree cookies frosted with the good old fashioned 10X, butter, and milk recipe frosting with red hots as decoration. Somehow the season also seems to make me think of mint and chocolate too. Maybe people have alot of mints around at the holidays to help people who have indulged a bit more than they should ease their stomache pains. Everyone lists off what they had or served for dinner, I think we need to start seeing more detail about the really special parts of everyone's meals - desserts. Life is Short - Always start with dessert!

We've had threads for the best coffee, seafood, pizza etc, so for all the sweet toothed eGulleters out there, where are the best places to get great desserts? I'm not talking bakeries and we all know about Kilo, Calories and Second Cup (if you consider Second Cup to have great desserts. Personally I can't even stand their coffee, but that's another story ) It just seems that the existing dessert spots all buy from the same supplier. Soooo.....I'm looking for either restaurants that allow patrons to just order dessert (that's I tough one, I imagine)or establishments designated for the dessert and coffee crowd. Let's hear 'em!

Tom, I believe you have discussed your excitement with some restaurants beginning to realize the value of a true pastry chef, such as our own Steve Klc. Please share with us what you would like to see with desserts, their importance in a meal, and how vital is the role of a talented pastry chef. Thanks for participating.

Andrea, thanks for taking the time to engage in these discussions, and congratulations on your latest James Beard Awards nomination! I'm interested in your personal philosophy of wine and dessert matching. Has the ever increasing complexity, and the occasional "savory" component, of restaurant desserts led you to change your strategy? Apart from the obvious issues of sugar and acid, are there specific observations you've made, where a certain element of a dessert might seriously enhance or detract from the synergy of a wine pairing? What obscure, interesting, or off-the-beaten-path discoveries have you encountered recently with regard to "sweet" wines? Have you experimented at all with alternatives to the usual suspects? For example, at Petrossian in Paris, I've sampled the Parfums à Boire- a flight of infusions incorporating, flowers, roots, spices, and fruits, all prepared à la minute at table- that were designed specifically to accompany the selection of desserts. As a pastry chef, the experience opened up a whole new range of possiblities... juices, infusions, perhaps even beers and other spirits. Any thoughts?

I work in a 50 seat restaurant, preparing all the desserts and setting up the menu. I have complete (well-almost) control over whats on the menu. The waitstaff can't seem to sell dessert, no matter what I put on the menu. They say "This is not a dessert town", these people don't eat dessert..... I say BS!!! They don't know how to up sell How do the rest of the pros (here) do it? How do I tell these career waitrons that if they put a little umph into describing the desserts they might actually sell some. I'm all for giving a few away but the owner is knee deep in bills and really doesnt want to give anything away. He is really happy (yes, people who haveread my previous posts will remember my plight) now with the desserts and the menu Help me sell my hard work so that it is not in vain? What makes people buy dessert? A waitress' description? a quick glance of a fancy dessert as it goes by???