Irish Foodie's Recent Activity
Chowhound Post
DESSERT COOKBOOK OF MONTH- July & August
I vote for "BUTTER, SUGAR, FLOUR, EGGS" by Gale Gand. I know it's been around for awhile, but I love Gale's style and enjoy her ideas. I've made a few things of hers and they always come out beautifully. I also like the idea of "TARTINE", but I'm a little intimidated -- but maybe that's the perfect reason to suggest it!
Chowhound Post
Biscuits [Split from White Lily Flour Thread]
I've got Cookwise and here are the ingredients for "Touch of Grace Biscuits"
1-1/2 cups Southern self-rising flour
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/3 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp shortening
1 to 1-1/4 cups buttermilk or 3/4 cup buttermilk and 1/2 cup heavy or whipping cream
1 cup bleached all-purpose flour for shaping
2 tbsp butter, melted
Shirley recommends a greased 8-inch round cake pan
Notes on flours: If low-protein Southern self-rising flour is not available, use 1 cup regular self-rising all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup instant flour (such as Shake & Bake or Wondra) or cake flour, plus 1/2 tsp baking powder. If self-rising flour isn't available, use a total of 1-1/2 tsp baking powder.
Re: use of self-rising flour during shaping...
Shirley's techniques call for you to spoon a biscuit-size lump of wet dough into a bowl of all-purpose flour. Then using well floured hands, shape it into roughly a soft round. Shake off excess flour, place in baking pan, pushing biscuits tightly against each other so they rise up and not spread out.
If you used self-rising flour for this shaping step, the leavener in the flour would leave a bitter taste on the outside of the biscuits.
Hope this helps,
Irish Foodie
Chowhound Post
Need help from bakers
I am making a pumpkin bread and would like to decorate the top. If I top it with pecans dipped in simple syrup, will they burn before the bread is done?
thanks for your help!
IrishFoodie
Chowhound Post
Domestic foodie honeymoons?
Hi Pei,
You probably have everything planned, but if No Cal is on your itinerary, I would Highly recommend taking cooking classes at Ramekins Cooking School in Sonoma. It gets wonderful high profile chefs as well as very good local talent. They offer master classes from time to time which are amazing.
I personally find the NoCal wine country to be especially romantic in the winter and it is my favorite time of the year to visit. There is no one around, the weather is gentle with no snow to deal with. The locals are very laid back and casual, but the quality of restaurants is superb.
If you wind up in Sonoma, I hope you enjoy yourselves. Wherever you decide to honeymoon, you will have a wonderful time because you'll be with your new spouse!!
Chowhound Post
inspire me -- chicken soup
I love Tortilla Soup. It’s a chicken soup with Mexican ingredients to spice it up and deliver a delicious flavor combination. Ingredients and techniques differ but a basic version is to use your chicken stock as base. Add some cumin, onions, chopped tomatoes, and corn kernels. Simmer to blend flavors. Pour into bowls and garnish with your choice of fried tortilla strips, minced cilantro, minced onion, sour cream, grated cheese, and chopped green chilies. This is also great for fighting off a cold.
Chowhound Post
Cooking & Baking Tips for a New Bride
Hi everyone,
My niece is getting married and I thought I would give her some kitchen tips. Her mother doesn't cook and I'm the one the girls turn to for anything food related. If it was your niece what would you say?
Thanks!
Chowhound Post
Cheap homemade party favors
Congratulations Pei,
I live in the San Francisco bay area and we did a wine country theme. Because I married an Italian man, I got tiny bottles of olive oil and balsamic vinegar @ Cost Plus. I found a tiny little square dish in terra cotta colors from a local restaurant supply house. I put them together in a celo bag and tied them with a trio of ribbons in rich green, purple and gold. They were beautiful and everyone was impressed.
You could add a little bag of herbs to make a bread dip - that would be fun! I'm sure you'll find something that says "You" to your family and guests. You'll have to let us know what you finally decide on.
Good luck and have fun!
Chowhound Post
How to delete duplicate posts?
Help! Somehow I wound up posting the same message 3 times instead of my intended once! Is there any way to delete posts? If you can help, it is at http://www.chowhound.com/topics/388839.
Thanks!
Chowhound Post
Easter Brunch
Check out opentable.com. They have a list of places offering Easter brunch for this weekend, or you can search on regular b'fast/brunch spots. They have pretty good descriptions and URLs for you to check out. One of my favorites is the Sunday brunch at the Top of the Mark. It's really expensive, but the view is the best in the City and the food is high quality and plentiful.
Chowhound Post
Sonoma, Healdsburg, etc.
My husband and I visited Healdsburg last summer and it was fabulous. Walking around the old-fashioned town square, eating a sweet treat from Downtown Bakery, and window shopping at the boutiques was delightful. We had one of our best meals at a great restaurant just up the road in Geyserville called Taverna Santi (I'm still dreaming about it). There is so much to do around the area that I’m sure your time will fly by.
In planning our trip I found helpful information from the Chamber of Commerce (http://healdsburg.com/hbg_chamber/index.asp), an organization dedicated to promoting the wineries (www.wineroad.com) and a site with everything you wanted to know about local artisan farmers (http://www.farmtrails.org/). They all had lots of information on where to find the best wine, food, produce, and other fun things in the area.
My personal favorites include:
Dry Creek General Store
3495 Dry Creek Road, Healdsburg
Phone: (707) 433-4171 Website: www.dcgstore.com
Homemade food, wine selection, gourmet food. Picnics to go. Monday-Thursday, 7am-7pm. Friday.- Sunday, 7am-9pm.
Downtown Bakery & Creamery
308A Center Street, Healdsburg
Phone: (707) 433-2719 Website: www.downtownbakery.net
Handmade, organic breads and sourdough starters. Open daily 7am - 5pm.
Oakville Grocery
124 Matheson Street, Healdsburg
Phone: (707) 433-3200 Website: www.oakvillegrocery.com
Marketplace featuring pizzas, sandwiches, salads, great picnic fare, wine bar & seating on shaded terrace. Open Sunday-Wednesday, 9am-7pm Thursday-Saturday, 9am-8:30pm.
Taverna Santi
21047 Geyserville Avenue, Geyserville
Phone: 707-857-1790 Website: www.tavernasanti.com
Santi brings timeless honest Italian cuisine to the Sonoma County Wine Country. Familar and provocative dishes recall treks through the Italian Countryside-yet the setting is a historic 1902 landmark buliding in the Alexander Valley; Award winning, Zagat rated. Lunch Thursday-Monday, 11:30-2pm., Sunday Brunch & Lunch 10:30am - 2pm, Dinner Monday - Friday, 5:30pm - 9pm., Sat. & Sun, 5pm - 9pm.
And you may find a tour you'll like at one of these sites:
Healdsburg Area Winery Tours Phone: (707) 433-6090
Website: www.healdsburgareawinerytours.com
Healdsburg Walking Tours, LLC Phone: (707) 484-6249
Website: www.healdsburgwalkingtours.com (Guided Walking Tours)
I hope you have a wonderful time. Let us know where you went and what you found. Enjoy our beautiful wine country!
Chowhound Post
30th bday dinner for approx 10?
A16 has a beautiful glass enclosed area in the back that should hold 10 comfortably. It's private but still part of the restaurant. And the Italian food is outstanding. It got a James Beard nomination - one of our favorites!
