Mawrter's Profile
Advice on coffee grinder...
Solis Maestro or Maestro Plus. Rather than a higher-level, fancier mass-market grinder (like the KA or Capresso), it's a lower model of a more serious performance class/brand, if that makes sense. I have it and it is the sweet spot for me in the performance/price ratio (and exactly your price-point, I note). Any lower performance and I wouldn't get as much out of my espresso machine; any higher and it would be overkill b/c my machine probably wouldn't yield an improved shot.
http://www.wholelattelove.com/reviews.cfm?itemID=809
It Is Impossible to Find a Functional Stainless Steel Steamer Basket.
I too am totally disgusted with the never-ending series of almost instantly broken steamers. Considered and rejected the bamboo steamers for the same reasons as already mentioned. I have actually tried using two broken stainless steel steamers shoved together - the bottom one already had lost its center stem. It wasn't quite as ridiculous as it sounds, but it's also not like I'm *recommending* it! :/
That IKEA steamer JK shared does look sturdier than most.
I'm planning to just quit with the fold-up steamer style b/c it's pissing me off too much (!). Planning to get this kind instead: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30152346/, which is made to go with: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00101155/ I'm not thrilled about getting a new pot, but trying to hack other kitchenware into a steamer that won't break or burn somebody is not worth the pain.
Man, do I hate shoddily-made crap and the economy and mindset that goes with it.
Preferred grease to season a soapstone pot?
Hey Hounds - I just received a glorious soapstone dutch oven from my dh for Christmas. Never seasoned one before, and eyeing coconut oil, tallow, bacon grease and lard. Leaning toward the lard.
Here are the instructions: http://fantes.com/manuals/soapstone_naturstone.pdf
Anyone with experience? It looks pretty straightforward if you're accustomed to seasoning cast iron or carbon steel. TIA!
I beg you, can we stop all this hand-wringing and snobbery about cast iron
I don't think mineral oil is such a hot idea for cast iron. Mineral oil IS good for maintaining wooden kitchen stuff, like counters, cutting boards, knife handles and wooden spoons. I think they best curing medium for cast iron is a food-grade sat fat, like bacon grease, lard or tallow -- or, if you're veggie, coconut oil. HTH.
Anyone familiar with Italian ranges? ILVE, Fratelli, etc.
Felicitations, Cherie! Glad you love yours! :)
Anyone familiar with Italian ranges? ILVE, Fratelli, etc.
Yeah, Joe, I think it does. It's not my favorite feature, but I do love the ::performance::.
Anyone familiar with Italian ranges? ILVE, Fratelli, etc.
It's fairly noisy without the convection and even noisier with. As with any gas stove, you need to turn on the exhaust fan when you have any burner on, and your fan determines the noise level there. I really don't have a lot of experience with other, comparable ranges, so I don't know how it stacks up comparatively.
Seasoning Cast Iron WITHOUT Crisco?? [Moved from Home Cooking board]
Yes, you do, although you don't have to season the outside as much as you need to on the inside. Fortunately, the seasoning that you give it by cooking on the inside of the pan kinda takes care of things naturally. It really is an elegant, do-able system.
I want to try making coconut milk yogurt...
I wonder what would happen if you made the coconut milk yogurt, and then strained the runny result, just as your would strain regular cow milk yogurt to get a thicker, creamier Greek-style yogurt? I haven't tried this myself, but I think it would be worth a shot.
Phoenixville
The original one is still going strong in Paoli, still doing a great bar crowd and still popular among people who apparently hate food.
People that think that not measuring when baking is a virtue
I'm with the general consensus here. Ironically, I actually find myself wishing I (and the American recipes, equipment, etc. that I use) were more in the groove of using *weight* to measure ingreds, b/c it's more precise than volume. It would be a big shift for me, but I understand it's especially helpful in gluten-free baking, which is like doing high school science lab in zero gravity.
Xilantro in Wayne... never again!
Wow. Just wow. We were excited about another local food oppty, but the interior didn't look promising, and your review pushes me firmly over to the "Why bother" side. Thanks for the candor! I'm sure every customer has their preferences and peeves, but every single thing you said would bother the hell out of me. BTW, Matador across the street is pretty good.
Cafe Apamate closed?
Anyone hear anything about the Apamate crew doing their next thing, whatever it is/will be?
Lidia's Crostata di Riso e Zucchini - is rice raw or cooked?
Sherlockcook, it's in the public domain now, so here you go:
http://www.lidiasitaly.com/recipes/detail/498
wild boat in Philly area
Just bumping up this slightly dated thread b/c I was wondering the exact same thing as the O/P...
My friends who hunt keep threatening to go get some wild boar that they'd sell me (and they're an invasive species, too - the boars, that is, not the hunter friends) ... but life stuff keeps getting in the way.
I can probably deal with D'Angelo's, but I'd be even more into getting a 1/4 or so. Anyone? ::hungry eyes::
Grass-fed beef
Livengood is also at the Bryn Mawr Farmers Market. I like their beef a lot!
Dark Drinking Dens
Completely unhelpful, but does anyone remember that place that was around in the late 90s, somewhere around 15th & Carpenter, in a dark, slightly campy Soviet style? Wish I could remember the name. Lots of vodka & cigarettes.
How about the new places that serve absinthe? I haven't tried them, but I think at least one is speakeasy-styled. Anyone been?
Cafe Apamate closed?
Oh no! I loved Apamate! What a disappointment. They never seemed to have enough business, so I'm not surprised. I loved their format, so I'll try whatever she does next. Thanks for the info.
Organic you-pick fruit raspberries and blueberries within 1.5 hours of Philly
Definitely not organic, but they might be moving toward IPM.
CNN: Clueless in the Kitchen
My dh went to middle school at about the same time as you, and everyone was offered a "choice" of two: wood shop, metal shop, cooking and sewing. I say "choice" instead of _actual_choice_ because while some girls took shop, for boys to take cooking or sewing would have been social suicide then.
So my dh, who is quite decent in the kitchen thanks to his nonna and his devotion to chow, didn't take any form of home ec and is still curiously deficient in things I assumed are basics for all adults: can't sew a button; doesn't know about keeping handles tuned in on the stove but not over a burner; doesn't know about keeping sharp knives out of the soapy soaking water; is unclear about containing/removing raw meat "contamination", etc. I viewed all this with suspicion at first, thinking he was being "selectively stupid" to sucker me into doing his domestic crap for him, but no, he really didn't know (and would never fake incompetence anyhow), and however much I tell him, it's not the same as learning when you're a kid so it's ::part:: of you, yk?
CNN: Clueless in the Kitchen
I went to middle school in the early 80s & had 2 years of those sorts of classes - boys and girls together, required for everyone. The first year was 1/4 cooking, 1/4 sewing, 1/4 wood shop, 1/4 metal shop. The second year was the same except metal shop was for only 1/8 of the year and the remaining 1/8 was mechanical drawing.
Children's Books that Feature Food
I just did a keyword search on this thread (which I've been reading all along, but will not re-read in toto!) & is it possible that "Bread and Jam for Frances" by Russell Hoban (text) & Lillian Hoban (illus.) was not mentioned? Now *that* is a classic kids' food story! How's that Albert for a chowhound?
Children's Books that Feature Food
Congrats on the new grandchowchildren! Green Eggs & Hame may not be new, but man, what language, what humor, what universal kid themes! I didn't have it as a kid (I read it but not to death) but it was on the Most Favored Titles list when my son was small, and now we both can recite it.
Grass (pasture) Fed Chicken?
If you were local, I would SO try your chicken! Sounds delicieux!
Grass (pasture) Fed Chicken?
I'm glad you had such a good experience. Have you noticed her chicken cooks a little faster, too? I'm ruined for conventionally produced chicken now. Oh, and Mountainview's hens aren't laying so much now, but once the heat backs off a little, try the eggs. They are seriously unbelievable.
Anyone familiar with Italian ranges? ILVE, Fratelli, etc.
Hi Cherry! Okay, now that I have some miles on the new stove, I love it! It's powerful and responsive definitely feels like an Italian performance machine. Everything on it feels and acts extremely sturdy with the exception of (so odd, who would imagine this?) the oven racks. I'm pretty surprised, but the rack flexes when I place a Le Creuset French oven (covered pot) full of the makings of broth. I'm not worried it will break or anything, but bowing under the weight surprised me.
The stove works very well, and I love the convection feature. The convection seems kind of noisy to me, but I have no idea what other stoves are like in terms of noise. But the results are fantastic, and I'm getting a feel for which settings are best for which foods. Although the oven does heat up the kitchen a little, the door seems very heavy and seals very tightly -- light years beyond my old stove. In fact, you need to be careful b/c when you open it, heat releases in a burst way beyond anything I've ever experienced with any other stove -- the directions caution you about this. I can imagine baking bread with a pan full of ice cubes could result in an amazing texture, like a pretend steam oven. Once I try that I'll report back (although it may be awhile, since I am gluten-free and bread isn't high on my list anymore. Sadly!).
I have only tried the rotisserie feature once and it didn't turn out well, but I didn't really know what I was doing and clearly, overcooking a chicken isn't the stove's fault. I was extremely nervous about trying out the griddle, but it worked beautifully. I have never had an easier or better time making pancakes. I haven't tried the wok feature yet; I don't even have a wok, but I'm getting excited about learning.
The little holes around the circle where the gas comes out were not as precise as they needed to be & my dh had friends machine them so they worked better. Even now, after adjustment from the gas technician, we are still occasionally getting an orange or yellow flame when it should be all blue. I don't know whether this is a warranty service issue, just a quirk, or whether my dh will be able to adjust further himself. I think this would really bug me if I didn't have a fairly handy guy and good resources to address these issues. This is not a maintenance-free stove - it has its quirks; cleaning is pretty involved and I would not recommend to to someone who wants a simple, low-maintenance, fuss-free machine to do basic cooking with. I like it, but I cook a lot and like things with a bit of personality.
Here is the recipe I'm currently enjoying for Brazilian cheese bread: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/easy_brazilian_cheese_bread/ It's traditionally gluten-free and I really like it. It is somewhere between Japanese moochi and gougeres, if you can imagine a continuum between those two little bready bites. There are lots of different recipes out there, so I should try some others to see which one I like best, but this one matched the ingredients I had on hand & I've been really happy with it.
Long Island sources of grass fed, pastured, humanely and sustainably raised meat and dairy
HUGELY appreciating this thread - thank you, all!
Groceries, seafood, ingredients, etc. in Sag Harbor/Noyack area
Needing the same info, so appreciate all the helpful contributions - thanks!
