Sally599's Profile
Chicken Stock "Etiquette" Question
While I agree that staph toxin is an issue, staph normally grow on skin and not in peoples mouths, that's strep, they have toxins too but not heat stable. So since you find it on human skin, you'd get just as much contamination by pulling the meat off the chicken with your hands so having someone eat the meat is not really an issue unless it extends the amount of time that the chicken is at room temperature---you probably don't want anything to sit out for more than about 2 hours. Etiquette-wise, I would think it odd if I found you ziplocking the bones from me meal and might reconsider future events, it's not like I want to kiss everyone who's been at your house.
How to store massive amounts of flour and rice!
Yeah, you might want to freeze it overnight at any rate to kill off any bug eggs etc that might be in there before you put it into airtight storage---an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
T-day desserts ahead of time
The day before is best for pies due to the crust issue, however you can actually freeze your crust and filling for fruit pies (separately) and combine them at the last minute for a fresh pie. I'm only in charge of dessert for the holidays so I've never actually done it but here is a link to the basic process.
http://www.sunset.com/food-wine/techniques/summer-pie-anytime-00400000015380/
Oh, also we've made and frozen fully cooked pecan pies and they taste great after thawing on the counter.
To Wax or Not to Wax? Homemade Jelly
People also died before the age of 30 for many generations---why relive the dark ages?
Super-duper pumpkin pie?
Yeah I heard about the shortage and bought a couple of cans thinking there would be none and yet the shelves are fully stocked more so than ever---it turns out I live in a major pumpkin producing state (home to Libbys)--who knew?
quince jelly
You have to let the fruit oxidize to get it to turn pink, like when apples turn brown. If you added lemon juice you probably inhibited this reaction. If its cloudy then you might have forced it through the jelly bag rather than letting it naturally drain.
!@#$! Starlings!
The strawberry containers worked great until I got in some bird netting.
Pinching off tomato growth
So if there are little branches sprouting out of the intersection of a main branch and the trunk, these are the suckers and basically what they do is put energy into the growth of the plant rather than the growth of fruit. If you pinch them off you will get more fruit production. Pinch them off before they start growing.
Fig and Cherry Trees
For your fig, depending on the variety it could be this year---I've seen them fruit at around one foot tall. The main problem will be if they ripen in time for you to harvest because they do come late in the year, always a problem in Chicago which is pretty close weather-wise.
I'm not sure about the bing cherry but my grandma had a sour cherry tree and it did not require a second tree.
My jam tastes like a gummy bear!
UPDATE: So I tried a couple of recipes this weekend. The first used around 1/3 apples as the fruit content in combination with sour cherries which are low pectin---no pectin was added. This formed a pretty decent gel and the texture was soft and nice---more of less what I was looking for although the apple does seem to sweeten the cherries some. Second batch was a no pectin Nectarine/pineapple---this uses the older method of basically cooking down the fruit---it does end up as soft fruit in a syrup-like base---more like a fruit butter in taste. Not enough gel but it still tastes good. The final method used about 1/2 the box of commercial pectin and was a strawberry jam---it came out really thick and oddly kind of stringy---still tastes good but the texture is off. After having this experience I started reading about pectins. I had used the low sugar pectin for this----it was all that was in stock at the store. Apparently the gel structure formed by low sugar pectin is not the same as for "normal" HM pectin. I think part of my problem is that I like the HM pectin which is more typical of apples and that---where as the LM pectin is usually either citrus derived or chemically modified by exposure to acid. I just thought they added some magic ingredient (Ca++) in order to get the gel to work without sugar but there are changes to the pectin structure itself and that changes the gel network. My basic hypothesis is this---LM pectin forms a tougher gel than HM or apple pectin---its not the amount of pectin which is critical as half a box of LM pectin created a loose gel with tougher strings of gel interspersed. Quite literally, the different pectins are like mixing apples and oranges.
My jam tastes like a gummy bear!
So I had bought this gourmet preserves cookbook and I flipped through it again last night and it looks like the author has already done the work for me----she uses commercial pectin but around 1/3 to 1/2 a packet (2-3 T of 6 per pkg) but additionally tests for jelling using the plate method but also aiming for around 218 which is maybe 2 points below the gelling point so i'm not sure about that---she also has some which use apples or pears in the recipe to provide natural pectin for things like strawberries and cherries. I'm planning on testing a few out this weekend. I'll let you know how they turn out.
My jam tastes like a gummy bear!
My mom used to make strawberry jam without pectin which has a softer set and while I have this recipe, I don't have any recipes for other fruit. I tried using commercial pectin--the standard kind uses too much sugar and the no sugar kind set too much like a commercial jelly--there seemed to be too much jelly to fruit for a real jam. Can anyone recommend a good cookbook for these type of old-style no pectin or maybe reduced pectin preserves? The strawberry that I like has the consistency of liquid plumber gel formula at room temp but fully sets in the fridge--when it hits bread it just sort of melts in except for the strawberry chunks.
Does a sandwich need a protein?
Yes, cheese is full of protein, even animal derived protein at that, thus the original sandwich which includes swiss cheese already has a protein. I think the author meant to imply meat specifically and not protein in the literal sense.
Your favorite homey/vintage/nostalgic dessert
OK, I'm there with you in the image but I hate to tell you that the closest we ever got to dessert at lunch was a slice of watermelon cut right out on the picnic table. Dessert was for special occasions and usually consisted of pie or ice cream. Being 10---homemade stuff was lame, everyone else had a modern mom and they got to go to the ice cream truck rolling by with its siren song. When we were lucky enough to visit the ice cream truck, after dinner when all the veggies were consumed, my ideal summer treat was some bizarre concoction known as a frozen toe. It was a type of pink sherbert on a stick shaped like a footprint with one gumball in the big toe. That gumball made all the difference--because it made the experience last long after everyone else had finished. So I'm sure that's not what you were looking for but as a 10 year old I had a lot to learn.
!@#$! Starlings!
So I got all excited about planting seeds this year and they just got set out over the last couple of weeks (its cold up here). Anyway, there is a pair of starlings nesting on the roof of my balcony/fire escape and they are stealing the seedlings whole. At first it was just a squash and a zucchini, but then I noticed a cucumber missing and one snapped off a whole tomato plant right before my eyes. I don't have any netting available and I probably won't have time to get any this weekend. Any advice to thwart these guys? Right now I put a few skewers in and some shiny Christmas balls that might scare them away for a day or two.
Miniature squash-container gardening
They've only been outside for a couple of weeks since they are from seed and not WFF but there was an incident---a starling has eaten like half of the seedlings I put out including the squash and the mini zucchinis, unfortunately I need to start again.
quince tree source
A friend of mine is looking to buy a quince tree this year. She doesn't want to get just a little one or two foot stick and is looking at an on-line source that will ship 4-5 foot trees. Its a little nobody company in Georgia and I'm sure she'll regret it. Does anyone know of a fruiting quince tree source in the Chicago area or a reputable on-line source----not the flowering/ornamental kind.
Everyday Desserts
I tried the epicurious one which was not bad but I actually like a version from Nick Malgeiri that uses just a simple syrup combined with orange zest with whole oranges which are lightly poached----very clean and fresh tasting compared to the spiced version.
Also I just had a great fruit salad from cooking light which was pineapple, mango, kiwi and strawberry combined with a simple syrup infused with basil and mint---very nice.
Help!!! Cake needs potato starch, can I substitute something?
I know this is an old thread but I just tried something from this months cooking light that called for it. i could not find it and didn't want to sub cornstarch because they were going on and on about the potato starch and how critical it was to the lightness and how not to use potato flour which is heavier so I just took dried instant potatoes---the flake kind and buzzed them in the coffee/spice grinder. Worked like a charm.
Getting rid of roly-poly's(or pill bugs)?
A picture would help---can you find it in the following guide?
http://www.gardeners.com/Plant-Pest-Photo-Gallery/5288,default,pg.html
Palm Sugar -- Now I know why
The mini tub of it that I have suggests that you refrigerate it and use within one month so I think its really not for keeping very long once you open it, but then this actually had standing liquid on it so it may be different from what you bought. Good stuff though.
Getting rid of roly-poly's(or pill bugs)?
We have rabbits even in the heart of Chicago, I can't imagine that you wouldn't have them but squirrels can also be an issue especially in early spring. I've even had starlings (birds) pull up young sprouts, lots of things are hungry this time of year. Most of the insect damage I've seen involves holes in the leaves etc while animal damage is often more severe like getting chopped off at ground level. My mom thought she had cutworms until she actually saw a squirrel chew off the bottom of a sunflower to knock it over and get the seeds.
Getting rid of roly-poly's(or pill bugs)?
I don't think these guys are to blame they like to eat stuff that's in the process or rotting----it could be slugs, but the beer should have worked. What are you doing to protect against rabbits?
Taste vs Beauty in Herbs
Do you normally buy the typical green culinary herbs or try out the more unusual variegated or differently colored herbs. Example purple basil or tricolor sage vs the normal green. Which still work for cooking? I found silver thyme to be very nice in both color and taste but on the other hand basil is often not so good in the purple form, although the small leaf varieties are nice. Any examples of cases where the pretty herbs don't lose their characteristic taste?
Worthwhile patio tomatoes?
Last year, I grew the "patio" cultivar of tomatoes, I harvested all of two the whole summer----now they were tasty and the plant never got very big which was desirable but the yield was pretty small. I don't really like brushing up against tomato foliage so I'd rather have a smaller plant and I like a high acid tomato. Anyone have favorite varieties that are worth while, producing early and often. I'm considering the hanging basket versions that are along the lines of cherry tomatoes because they always seem to have a lot of fruit but I'd rather have a more normal size/non-sweet tomato if possible.
