3000 miles 'til dinner.

Anonymous asked: Dear MIL,
This is not exactly a food question but, more a prep question. How does one learn
chopping techniques? I love watching the chefs on Food Network and how they use their knives. Maybe a video on here explaining some fundamentals ? Anyway Thanks for all the great recipes!

You are doing the next best thing to actually taking a cooking class or having a knowledgable cook/chef show you the ropes, then practice, practice, practice!  I spoke recently with a friend who is taking a cooking course in LA and a solid portion of the class was devoted to learning how to properly use and maintain kitchen knives. She said she was astounded at what a difference technique makes, as well as safety (less chance of slicing your finger…keep those fingers tucked in when chopping!) There’s a great “chopping onions” scene  in JULIE & JULIA. 

Anonymous asked: Can you use the beer bread recipe for making dinner rolls? If so, how do you actually make rolls? Or if the beer bread recipe isn't appropriate for dinner rolls, do you have a good recipe on hand? Thanks MIL!

Yes, but the rolls will be hearty, not light and fluffy like you expect from a dinner roll recipe, as there is butter or egg included. To proceed, make the  BEER BREAD batter and set the batter to rise for a few hours. Scoop out onto floured surface and knead for 10-15 minutes, adding flour as needed. The dough should be smooth and elastic, not sticky. Test: poke two fingers into dough; if holes begin to swell and fill up immediately, the dough has been kneaded long enough. *Kneading the dough long enough makes a finer crumb roll or bread.  

Place the kneaded dough in a buttered/oiled bowl, cover, set in warm place until dough doubles in size.

Place dough on floured surface and shape into rolls (remember they will double in size);  place in buttered pan, cover, set in warm place until double in size.  Bake!

PS) I’ll post a fluffy dinner roll recipe soon!

snackgirl asked: Hey MIL! I'm going to tour a friend's new apt. for the first time this Saturday night and told her that I would bring a drink before we leave for dinner. I'm thinking either something sparkly or a cocktail. Got any good ideas? Might make for a good and quick Over-21 Mission!

I have a bottle of Yazi Ginger Flavored Vodka in the pantry, lovely holiday gift from your sweet friend Mindy, so decided to get creative recently. This cocktail has the same ingredients as a lemon drop, but I used the Yazi for the vodka. I also had “pink” sugar in the pantry and rimmed the glasses with pink for an extra special sparkle. For a party, consider pre-mixing the recipe and simply pouring as needed.

Yazi Ginger Flavored Lemon Drop

Servings:   10 (3.5 oz.) cocktails

1 1/4 C. fresh squeezed lemon juice

3/4 C. simple syrup 

1 1/2  C. Yazi Ginger Flavored Vodka

3 T. Triple Sec (or any orange infused liqueur)

*sugar for rimming glass, lemon twist for garnish

*chilled soda water

Mix lemon juice, simple syrup, vodka and triple sec. Refrigerate until very cold.

To serve: rim martini glass with lemon slice to moisten, dip in sugar, pour 3 oz Yazi Lemon Drop into glass, pour in a splash of soda water and drop in lemon twist

♥ Helpful Hints♥

*simple syrup - measure equal portions granulated sugar & water into a pot and bring to a boil. Stir until sugar dissolves, remove from heat and cool. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. 

*pink sugar - in a zip lock bag, add 1 C. granulated sugar + few drops of red food coloring. Seal bag and shake and squish until food coloring is evenly distributed

*martini shaker option: pour 3 oz portion of mix into martini shaker, add ice, shake briefly and pour into glass

*Yazi pre-mix can be made 1 day ahead

Anonymous asked: I am so excited about the chocolate cake recipe!! if it's the same one you've made before, then I'm in love! I loved it when you just served the cake with whipped cream. can you give a recipe for the whipped cream you made? i want to make this "naked" with whipped cream. -- marites

Whipping cream is a snap in the food processor and literally takes a few minutes. Fill the bowl no more than 1/2 full with heavy cream,  turn on to full speed and whir until cream just begins to thicken. Turn off, add vanilla and powdered sugar to taste (see below). Continue on full speed until cream is as thick as you want.

1. with this method, cream can quickly turn to butter, so don’t walk away

2.   1 C. cream + 1 t. vanilla + 2 T. powdered sugar= 2 C. WHIPPED cream

3.  powdered sugar contains a little cornstarch and helps the whipped cream hold it’s shape;  if you make the whipped cream hours ahead of serving time and don’t add powdered sugar (it’s actually delicious unsweetened) it may begin to “weep” milk/liquid; simply bring it back by whisking vigorously.

4. other ways to whip cream:  use a deep, chilled bowl and whisk vigorously,  electric mixer or blender  (in a pinch, use a fork and really get a workout!)

(MIL post)

Anonymous asked: why were my brownies crumbly? they were moist but didn't hold together? was it something in the process or did i add too little/too much of a certain ingredient? also just for future reference, can you EVER substitute baking soda with baking powder or vice versa? can you do any fix-its so that they can be used in a recipe?

The Killer Brownie recipe isn’t very forgiving when you substitute ingredients.They will still be delicious, if for instance, you substitute egg whites instead of whole eggs, white granulated sugar instead of brown and/or margarine instead of butter, but each will make a difference. Substituting egg whites for whole eggs will make the biggest difference in the texture and the “crackly look” on the top. Of course, anything but real butter will make the biggest difference in taste!

HINT #1 for a less crumbly brownie: chilling the brownies before cutting helps tremendously….all the the butter and chocolate goodness will become firm (after all, the main ingredients in this recipe are chocolate and butter, very little flour) HINT #2:  chill in the freezer if you are in a hurry

Baking Soda and Baking Powder - both are leavening agents with different ingredients. Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate; baking powder is sodium bicarbonate (known as baking soda), the acidifying agent cream of tartar and a drying agent, usually starch.  

Both react when combined with moisture and acid,  the resulting chemical reaction producing bubbles of carbon dioxide (gas) that expand under heat/oven temps, causing baked goods to rise. 

Baking soda -  pure sodium bicarbonate.  It cannot act alone in cake batters unless it is accompanied with an “acid” ingredient such as sour cream, buttermilk, sour milk, yogurt, lemon juice, honey, chocolate, etc.  exception: it may be called for in cookies where there is no acidic ingredient in the recipe. Baking soda will add a harsh taste if too much is used so measure accurately.  Baking soda begins reacting as soon as it’s added to moisture/acid. 

*No - Baking soda cannot be substituted for baking powder. 

Baking powder - sodium bicarbonate with the acidifying agent cream of tartar 

*Yes - baking powder can be substituted for baking soda if you: 

(a) substitute 2x baking powder for the amount of baking soda called for in the recipe 

(b) make your own baking powder by mixing 2 parts cream of tartar to 1 part baking    soda

FYI: There are two choices when purchasing baking powder 

*single-acting powder - activated by moisture, so you should bake recipes immediately after mixing

*double acting powder: reacts in two phases. Some gas is released at room temp when activated by moisture, but the majority of the gas is released when finished batter or dough is put in the hot oven (best to buy double-acting powder) 

Anonymous asked: Can't wait to make Mission #11, your brownie recipe. But can you explain the differences (when it comes to cooking) between bittersweet, dark chocolate, baking, unsweeted, semi-sweet and your average Hershey bar?

Unsweetened chocolate -  pure ground, roasted chocolate beans, made into chocolate liquor by adding some form of fat, for the strongest, deep chocolate flavor.

Dark chocolate -  small percentage of cocoa butter & sugar added

Bittersweet chocolate - typically more sugar added then to dark chocolate (1/3), cocoa butter, vanilla, sometimes lecithin. *interchangeable with semi sweet chocolate in baking

Semi-sweet chocolate - typically 1/2 sugar, cocoa butter, sometimes lecitin * interchangeable with bittersweet chocolate in baking

Milk chocolate - highest percentage of fat, sugar and milk added

White chocolate  - cocoa butter (without the cocoa solids) with sugar, vanilla and nutmeg

Anonymous asked: The killer brownies look soooo good. How many bars of bittersweet or dark chocolate will render 12 oz.?

It depends on the chocolate bar/size you choose.  I most often use imported chocolate from Belgium, available at Trader Joes in 16 oz. bars. Choose bittersweet (or) 72% dark. In a pinch, a standard size bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips (12 oz or 2 C.) will work too and Joes stocks good quality chips. However, semi-sweet chocolate (chips or bars) typically have more sweetener.

FYI: Milk chocolate and dark chocolate also available at Joes.

Anonymous asked: What does "folding in" mean?

cooking/baking term:  fold in

(1) The folding technique is used to gently combine light and airy mixtures into a batter. Folding also traps extra air in the batter.

(2) it is important the mixtures you are combining be approximately the same temperature so they will combine smoothly.

(3) When folding, the lighter mixture is poured over the heavier one

(4) Using a rubber spatula, start at the back of the bowl, cut down vertically through the two mixtures, across the bottom of the bowl and up the nearest side (a loop-de-loop). This down-across-up-over motion gently turns the mixtures over on top of each other, combining them in the process.

snackgirl asked: I'm making the Kofta tomorrow night, but I don't have the garam marsala spice and either does my local store. I do see a few substitutions online. Can you suggest a good substitution blend?

Garam masala is a blend of spices. You can actually make your own blend. It usually consists of (ground) cardamom, cumin, black pepper, coriander, clove and cinnamon.  The Kofta recipe already calls for some of these spices, so consider adding more of each and wing it (allspice, nutmeg).  I would say that cumin and cinnamon are the two  spices most important in this particular dish, but just think of the wonderful aroma many curries emit and that will help in winging it. Curries are very personal!

littlepinkdevotional asked: What food processor(s) do you recommend for everyday use that won't break the bank?

Cusinart Pro Classic DLC 105 - 7 Cup bowl. This is perfect for everything, especially if you are cooking on a regular basis at home for a household of 4-8. No need for a bigger machine.  It is straight forward, easy to use & dependable.  ($99.99)  cusinart.com

Anonymous asked: I have a rice pudding craving - can you help? Please.

Creamy Rice Pudding Servings:  8

4 C Classic Creme Anglaise (stove top custard, thickened with egg yolk)

3 C cooked Jasmine or Basmati rice

Prepare rice (1-1/2 C rice + 2 -1/4 C water + 1 t. sea salt) by following basic stove top or rice cooker directions.

Prepare Creme Anglaise, using a classic recipe.

Strain custard into rice and mix.  Chill at least 2 hours.

mydadspals asked: I like making stock. I especially like making it super clean and clear, but one thing i've read about is clarifying at the end with a blend of egg whites and sometimes leeks and raw meat (of whatever stock you're working with). Have you ever tried this? Is it worth it? I feel like i skim and strain it enough that it might not be.

Because you have experience with making stock, you know that any vegetables used in making stock will add color and flavor, i.e. carrots, onions with skin intact and celery. Browning the meat/poultry and bones before adding to the stock pot will also add flavor and color.  I have never tried raw egg shells or egg whites, but know that it is suggested for a final “clear” (not cloudy) stock. For a less cloudy stock, after the initial straining (pouring through a wire colander), try pouring a second time through a large a large unbleached coffee filter/in coffee cone (at least a #4), catching the final bits and pieces of meat and veg. This takes patience …. can be a little tedious!

Anonymous asked: Any ideas for a dessert for a Greek dinner? I've joined an international grub club here and have been assigned the dessert. No baklava please. -Kerry

Creamy Rice Pudding Servings:  8 

4 C Classic Creme Anglaise  (stove top custard, thickened with egg yolk)

3 C cooked good quality long grain white rice ( my version: Jasmine, Basmati)

3 T rose water or orange blossom water

Roasted Pistachios

Prepare rice (1-1/2 C rice + 2 -1/4 C water + 1 t. sea salt) by following basic stove top or rice cooker directions. Prepare Creme Anglaise, using a classic

recipe.  Strain custard into rice. Stir in rose water or orange blossom water. Adjust taste. Chill. Garnish individual servings with Roasted Pistachios.

Other ideas - google or cookbook

Greek Custard in Fillo

Baked Stuffed Pears in Puff Pastry

Yogurt Cream Mousse   *similar to Swedish Creme on our blog except

use all Greek style yogurt, no cream/sour cream

Anonymous asked: Can you teach me how to make poached eggs? I've tried before and it's a disaster!

The “how to” of poached eggs is coming up soon on our blog!