I would like to start experimenting with Ethiopian dishes at home. I know there are a few small markets on Fairfax, in the "Little Ethiopia" district. Are there any larger supermarkets anywhere in the LA area that would have the exotic spices?

(For what it's worth, below are a few of the spices (spice-blends) that I think I need, based on a quick skimming of a few Ethiopian cookbooks.)

Netch Azmud (Aswan Seed)
Tena Adam (Rue)
Berbere
Kosseret ( Butter Herb)
Makulaya / Saute Spice Mix
Manteria / Butter or oil Seasoning Spice
Matafecha / Flavor Enhancing Spice Mix

There was an on-line article a few weeks ago about this phenomenon (travesty??), but no recipes. It's so extravagant, I'd like to try it for some holiday parties. It's actually a complete pie, that is somehow baked inside a cheesecake. I assume both are baked at the same time (ie, that the pie is not baked separately, and then added to the liquid cheesecake, where they are both baked)

Google has not been my friend. Any suggestions on how/where to find these recipes?

I really miss the shaved ice desserts I would get in Singapore and Malaysia on my travels. The ice would be shaved so finely it was fluffy and light. Topped with simple syrups, sweet beans and corn, etc . . . drool.

I'd like to be able to make this at home. Looking at the shaved ice machines (eBay, Amazon, etc), it's clear that there are commercial ones available costing from a few hundred bucks to several thousand. And there are many models for consumers, which seem to range from $25-$80 or so. But the lower-priced ones all seem to give a course cut . . . the texture we all remember when we had snow-cones at a fair. This texture would not work with the recipes I want to try . . . the end result must be very fluffy to work for me.

I saw a disc made for a KitchenAid food processor. It's called the Cheese Grater & Ice Shaver. (Model KFP7PI ) Has anyone every used this? If so, how successful was it in shaving ice? I make desserts rarely enough so that I don't need a commercial-grade shaver, so an attachment like this would be perfect if it actually did work.

If not, any suggestions on a consumer-priced ice shaver that is in the Under-$60 range? Or is this an example of getting what you pay for, and it's just not possible to get fluffy fine shavings without paying a premium?

I've just started making filled chocolates at home. I've made my own peanut butter filling, and my own marshmellow and caramel. No problem there. But I'd like to try cherry, almond and so on . . . the ones we can but at any chocolate shop.

I've seen a few ready-made products on-line (in a plastic pouch, just cut a corner and squeeze out). A sample, from Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Chocolate-Cr%C3...

But the on-line places totally jack you on shipping. A reasonable $4.00 for the pouch, but $5 for shipping!?! I just can't justify paying that.

So, I am looking locally. I was surprised that Surfas does not carry these types of products. Any suggestions? I live in Santa Monica, so anything on the Westside is preferred. But I'm happy to drive anywhere in the LA/Valley area.

Much thanks for any advice (other than to try making them myself at home, which I of course know is an option already).

-josh

Thanks for the links. I'll try both recipes and will report back my successes (or lack thereof).

I've been making chocolate pudding recently. Using almond or soy milk. A bit of salt, some sweetener (honey or agave syrup), cocoa powder, and cornstarch. Easy as pie.

I add, for variation, almond extract, malt powder, etc..

But I have been having a craving for butterscotch. I can't make it from the mix (the only versions I see in my local stores all have gelatin). And the only recipes I have found on-line are definitely not vegan (butter, eggs, etc).

Can anyone help??

I was on campus at USC the other day, and I I stopped by a temporary cafe--it was a guy serving vegetarian food (vaguely Hari Krishna style). What stood out was an AMAZING salad dressing. The best I've ever tasted in my life! I ended up doing what a lot of people there were doing--I bought a bag of the dry salad dressing mix to take home. Wow...just as good when I made it from his mix.

But the mix is horribly expensive, and I'd love to take a crack at making it from scratch. It has almonds, amino acids, nutritional yeast and spices, per the nutritional info on their own website. (You then combine r 1 part dry dressing mix; 1 part neutral oil; 1 part water.) Anyone tried this guy's dressing? Anyone been able to replicate it, or come anywhere close?

And, for anyone on campus at USC (on Wednesdays and Thursday, I think), here's the guy's website.

http://www.thegourmetashram.com/dress...

Thanks in advance. The link does work, but (as you intimated) no recipe. ???? Hmmm. Looking forward to seeing what you'll be typing up and posting . . . it sounds like a recipe I'd like to try for myself.

Anyone made these recipes? Would love to hear how they turned out.

Steve, at which S & F did you find this product? I tried the Venice one (on Lincoln Blvd) and the WLA one (on SM Blvd, west of Bundy), and both told me that they do not carry it.

Great link. Thanks so much. Should be perfect. (I have no idea if the tastes of malted milk vary from one brand to another. . . . I guess I'll find out.) :-)

I live in WLA.

1. Anyone know of stores that still sell the 40 oz size Carnation malted milk powder? (I only see the much smaller 13-14 oz size now in Pavillions, Ralphs, etc., but I need to find the larger size, if it's still out there.)

2. Alternatively, is malted milk powder sold in bulk in any stores in the area?

Much thanks to all of you . . . I'll be trying out a few of these recipes. You guys rock! :-)

One of my old girlfriends is Georgian (USSR). Her mom would make for me this hajapuri (sorry, it doesn't really transliterate from Georgian to English well). A flat bread with cheese. [Drool] I'd love to try and make it, but I have not been able to find any recipes yet. Any suggestions?

Recipes that do not call for butter are especially wanted.

link to a photo of the dish:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/idecreas...

Forgot to post a few photos, if that helps

My favorite single dish, from traveling in 108 countries, was Jing Gao (镜糕 ), a street food dessert I found only in the Muslim Quarter in the Old Town of Xi'an, China. Sweet rice, but not too sweet. A few toppings added. Totally addictive. But no one I know has even heard of this dish, let along have a recipe I can make at home.

I already know that my home-made version will not match the original, since you need specialized wood molds (which are stuffed with ingredients and then steamed). But if I can come even anything close, I'd be a happy camper.

Thanks in advance. (And if you do have a link for me and other readers, I do not read Chinese, so a recipe in English would be greatly appreciated, if it's available). :-)

-josh

Keg,
Thanks so much. 1 tsp. I'll try using it "straight". And also (based on your other advice), with a bit of water to first rehydrate it before adding to the recipe.

mucho appreciado :-)

Thanks Quine. That was fast.

Have you made this recipe before? I am wondering if I could get by with roughly pureeing the spinach mixture (ie, not going all the way, and stopping the blender/processor before it becomes a smooth puree). Would that affect the subsequent cooking process, do you think? I tend to prefer more texture in this dish, if possible.

I love Indian food. I love spinach. I *love* saag paneer. But I am very allergic to onions. Every recipe I've seen has onions as an integral ingredient. Anyone have a recipe that does not require onions in it, but is still delicious?

Onion powder is actually fine . . . I have no bad reaction to it for some reason.

Thanks in advance for any recipe/advice/links.

-josh

Thanks Paul. I vaguely knew that black rice came in sticky versions (I've had black rice desserts in Thailand, Lao, and Viet Nam on past trips.), but forgot to mention that in my OP.

The rice I got is one of the long grain versions.

Well, what kind of food is he looking to make? What kinds of foods does he and his family like to eat? Getting just a regular Italian cookbook with yield dozens of veg recipes. A Veg Italian cookbook will yield even more, of course. I love the Real Food Daily cookbook . . . although I've only tried to do 3 of the recipes so far, I've made those 3 scores of times.

Is your dad eager to cook (ie, willing to play around in the kitchen a bit and have fun experimenting), or, is this a grudging acceptance of his new duties? Indian cooking looked intimidating to me at first, but with only about 10 spices in one's cupboard, you can make a million dishes quickly and easily, and can easily swap your favorite vegetables into pretty much any dish in this cuisine.

If I had to guess at one book that might be a good fit, I'd suggest, "How to cook everything vegetarian," by Bittman.

I picked up some black rice at the local co-op today. Any idea how to prepare it? My instinct is to use my method for basmati. (Wash rice a few times. 1.5 to 2 times water. Tiny pinch of salt; tiny bit of olive oil. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cover. Voila . . . done in less than 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and let sit for a few minutes.)

Anything about black rice that would suggest more/less water, or other cooking changes I'd need to make?

Yeah, I know; heresy.

But I'm dealing with an onion allergy (plus the whole vegetarian-therefore-no-eggs issue),

1. Okay to use: Green onions, garlic, onion powder
Not okay: Any other onions (other than in powder form), shallots.

I'd love to be able to make some for my girlfriend

2. And to make it even tougher on you guys, I'd like to be able to make it without eggs, to make it truly vegetarian. Any suggestions? Or should I not fight 5,000 years of culinary history, and instead make her some nice Indian food instead? :-)

Thanks guys. I now have a few resources. I mostly want to make sure that I don't have a "salty" butter powder (for obvious reasons when making sweet dishes). I may do some experimenting, and then re-post my results. Heck; experimenting in the kitchen is always fun, even when the results don't work out. :-)

I'm a bit embarrassed to admit it (well, actually, I'm not, since it doesn't really involve me) ...

My girlfriend has an almost pathological fear of butter. But it's the shape and feel that freaks her out. (That's why a stick of margarine is no good either.). But when I mentioned maybe using powdered butter to her, she said, "That's just fine."

Go figure. So, since I love to bake (and since using applesauce in place of butter had not yielded good results), I'm gonna take a crack at making cookies, cakes, rolls, etc. with this powdered butter.

The things we do for love, huh? :-)

Any suggestions? I tried my local cooking/gourmet shops (here in LA, Surfas and Sur La Table). No one carries it, so I'm thinking it has to be through the internet. My quick search did not have any luck.

What do I tend to make?
Cookies (usually choc chip)
Bundt cakes, pan cakes
muffins.

I was afraid that you guys would tell me that icing would be more tricky than the cookies, cakes, etc. I have tended to make ganache instead of frosting, and it has worked very well. But it has limited me to chocolate flavoring there; if I could come up with a good cherry frosting with good mouth-feel, that would be a nice addition.

Does anyone have decent cream cheese frosting recipes that don't call for butter? I found a non-butter recipe for cinnamon rolls, which I love. But they're just not the same without a cream cheese frosting drizzled on top, and if I could find such a recipe . . . [drool]

I've certainly tried substituting both applesauce and pureed prunes in recipes. I didn't like the resulting texture at all (re muffins and cakes).

I am hoping that if the texture is reasonably close with using shortening, I can get by with losing the butter flavor in a lot of recipes, since a lot of what I make has other strong flavors. For example, ginger in gingerbread. Cinnamon, chocolate, etc. in cakes or muffins.

Obviously, a butter cream frosting will be weird w/o the butter. But a flavored "butter" cream might taste nice (again, assuming the texture is fine).

My girlfriend hates butter. The look, the smell, the taste. It's been banned from my apartment. I love to bake, but (obviously) a large percentage of recipes call for butter.

Can I use shortening in its place? I am thinking mostly for cakes, cookies, etc., but also for icings, if possible. Anyone done this? If so, what ratio? Equal amounts???

Any warnings or caveats I should be aware of when using?

Thanks Elaine,
As my OP indicated, I get only 2 hours of (weak) sun per day. Hence the need for grow lights. I'll check out Home Depot and the website you linked to.