Louise's Profile
Foods that make you ill?
Nothing. I can eat anything and as long as it isn't spoiled it gives me no distress at all. No migraines, no gut rumblies, no nausea, no speeding through, no unhappy returns. Some smells are gross, but not incapacitating. (Pont l'Eveque cheese = the aroma of a well fermented trash can on a hot day) I even walked through the not entirely refrigerated Muslim butcher's market in Singapore without trouble -- equatorial heat + mutton = about what you'd imagine. And I bought and ate a whole durian. Not all at once of course.
best cheez-its flavor?
Oh, yes! Someone else who likes the extra browned crackers. Do you also like the extra toasty saltines in a sleeve too?
Where's your callus?
Guess I use the pinch grip too, and I hope my co-workers weren't alarmed by my coming into the breakroom and picking up one of the bagel knives briefly then putting it back.
That grip is definitely the most comfortable and efficient if I am facing a pile of veg to slice and chop. The callus is still there even though I only cook for two now. Note, on the base of the finger itself, not on the edge of the palm.
Where to buy mochi
I don't think it is seasonal. Did you try the freezer section?
Their website is not too helpful in searching for products unfortunately.
ISO English Peas and Fava Beans
The favas at Berkeley Bowl last weekend I believe were labelled from Mexico.
Chipotle Chicken- Too spicy! How to cool it down?
Maestra, can you post this in recipes or home cooking? I'd love to try it!
Suggestions to use up Brandy?
On the mushrooms theme, when I'm using them in risotto I deglaze with a little brandy after sauteeing and before adding rice.
Help identifying a savory Italian Easter pastry
Note, the above link somehow got the comma trapped in it, so it comes up with an error.
Try www.casatiello.it
Bauer takes a shot.
Ruth, those are all good points. I'll add that I can afford to visit inexpensive restaurants more often than high end ones, so of course that's where I pay the most attention.
Does anyone like fondant?
I actually like fondant.
And I find chocolate repellent. If it was abolished, I would not weep.
Wagashi, anyone?
Oh, yeah. I lived in Tokyo a while, so they were easy to get hold of. I could have eaten a box at a sitting, being the uncouth uncultured childish unrestrained American that I am.
They are really good. And they are really rich--not fatty, but sweet with stuff like dense chestnut or bean paste. My favorite? Any kind with a gelatin/granulated sugar coating so it's sort of crunchy. There is a lot of variety, and though there are a number of types that are universal, there is a lot of creativity and variation. One restriction, though, they are usually very seasonal wrt both ingredients and design. For example, you will see cherries and cherry blossoms in the spring, and maple leaf shaped ones in the fall, and never the other way around.
Limon Ceviche Recipe [moved from San Francisco]
I just looked at the menu and it isn't clear to me that there is cream. The description says 'creamy'. Also googled Peruvian ceviche and none of the recipes include cream.
Also it occurs to me that just as the acid in lemon or lime juice 'cooks' the fish flesh, it would also 'cook' the protein in any milk/cream in the marinade, rendering it curdled.
With that in mind, perhaps it doesn't contain any actual dairy products but perhaps some items mashed/pureed into a creamy consistency a la romesco sauce.
Black Glutinous Rice
My understanding is that in SE Asia, it is eaten in NE Thailand alongside marinated & grilled chicken. But in Thailand, it is apparently eaten mainly in sweets, usually as a snack and not part of mealtimes.
You may wish to look up Laotian recipes as it is eaten there as well.
Please explain what's wrong with this sauce...
It's curdled. He may have cooked it too hot or too long. Also, he should use cream. Half and half may be ok, but plain milk will be very thin, missing the point of an alfredo.
Try the below:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fettucine-Alfredo-350227
Remember, it should be *simmered briefly* only.
Argh, I hate you potatoes au gratin
If a casserole is very undercooked after 1 hour 15 min, what temperature were you using? Have you checked that the oven gauge is accurate? Mine sure isn't, I trust the $5 thermometer I stuck in there, not the dial.
Argh, I hate you potatoes au gratin
Another poster beat me to asking, how does it go wrong?
Potatoes undercooked?
Grease separates out and is abundant?
Unimpressive flavor?
Curdled?
There's a recipe on epicurious I've been planning to make with creme fraiche--commenters advise not to use too fancy or expensive ingredients. Supermarket swiss and land-o-lakes creme fraiche gave the best results by far.
Sweet lemons?
They aren't Meyers. I bought some once out of curiosity and an earlier poster described it best, insipid.
Meyers are tart but not as tart as regular lemons and the skin has a slight tangerine aroma. I wouldn't eat them just as a fruit, but use them for cooking. They'd be good with fish, or as a lemonade base.
Healthy Ethnic/Spicy Cookbooks for Simpletons
This site has some good and simple and *spicy* recipes:
http://www.thaifoodandtravel.com/recipe.html
And if you don't want to dive in making curry pastes, she has good brand recommendations.
Castella (Japanese sponge cake) - why is it smarter than me?
Mixing technique is important too. You mention that it lost volume as you whisked in the other ingredients--are you sure you were supposed to whisk them in too? The whisked egg/egg white recipes I've made emphasize *folding* the other ingredients in, to minimize the deflation.
How do You Peel Chestnuts ,skin and shell without taking a year to do it...
And only stick a few in the water at a time, so they stay hot.
Cold chestnuts = skin sticking like superglue.
Mineola, a citrus fruit
We can get tangelos in the SFBA without trouble. I made some into sorbet about a month ago and it was great!
random pasta Q
You aren't alone in liking it a little chewier.
I undercook it slightly anyway on the philosophy that undercooking can be fixed, overcooking can't.
"Problem" ingredients
I found a tasty way to use them up--Chinese scallion pancakes. They're really easy and take staple ingredients to fix--scallions, water, flour, salt, oil (pref sesame oil).
"Problem" ingredients
Fresh herbs and celery. Though celery can be used up in a clean out the fridge type vegetable soup. And I suppose fresh herbs can go into a salad mix, depending on what they are, probably not rosemary.
mushroom stems
If they are tough like shiitake or (sometimes) portobello stems, then they go either into stock or compost. If it's just a cosmetic thing, you can always use the stems to make duxelles.
Is this recipe correct?
Or is it bad proofreading?
Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen has a recipe for brown sugar cookies that includes 1 tablespoon of allspice and 2-1/2 tablespoons of cinnamon, for 3 dozen cookies.
Does anyone else have this cookbook? Has anyone made this recipe? I'd think that they meant teaspoons and flubbed the proofreading--note, I'm pretty sure they actually spell out tablespoons, rather than using the t/T abbreviations.
Thanks.
Bitter Melon?
Here's a recipe for cooking it with eggs.
http://www.thaifoodandtravel.com/recipes/bitterm.html
We Love Calamari
Good point. Deep fried calamari is forgiving. Other preparations can be less so, even for the smaller specimens.
