Can I come hang out with you folks?

I'm more than a bit over the jeff gannon flack and finally calmed down after the election so spending less time on the main DU site, thought I'd come see what you were up to here.

I'm a sourdough bread baker (and other bread), cheesecake maker, chocolate baker/maker - really, basically a baker who lives alone so isn't that interested in cooking meals. But I LOVE to bake! Also love to watch foodtv.

My favorite show there is Good Eats - Mr.Brown just is an inspiration, I love how much he educates his audience. But what really makes me happy is when they show the pastry and baking competitions - it's staggering, to me, what they can do under all that pressure! I also love some of the festivals - pies, chocolate, etc. Great stuff.

We have a great group here. Lots of good recipes and advice. Can't wait for you to add your favorite recipes and tips.

I'll try to post a recipe tomorrow.

Hmmm.... wonder what it will be????

Recently, we had a longish thread on our favorite and not so favorite personalities who cook on tv. So, jump in and post. I'm pretty new here, too. And I also love to watch Good Eats.

I also have a few questions for you already. I'd like to make some things with chocolate. I've been checking out some fancy shmancy chocolate sites. There are some great sounding chocolates for sale out there on the net. I'm not a chocolate snob. But I'd like to try some from Belgium for baking. Maybe all I need is good old supermarket chocolate. I'm interested in your thoughts on this.

Btw, I also like to watch Jacques Torres work with chocolate on his program. I like watching him create his fancy chocolate art.

Edit: PS!!! I just visited your blog link and this posted quote is fantastic. Here it is for anyone interested - I'm going to memorize this for sure!
"Many people consider the things which government does for them to be social progress, but they consider the things government does for others as socialism" ~ Justice Earl Warren

Well, okay Justice Warren!!!

I love Callibaut chocolate from Belgium. I've tried a lot of the fine chocolates - Valhrona (French, I think), Scherffenberger (American - SF), Guittard (SF), Ghiradelli (sp?) (SF), and others, but I keep coming back to Callibaut dark. You might be able to find it locally if you are in a large city - often Whole Foods Markets carry some fine baking chocolate, and check with wholesalers and food suppliers, sometimes they will sell to you or refer you to one of their customers who will order it for you. Or check with local culinary schools, they would know of a source. If you need to order online, now is a good time to do it - many suppliers won't ship during the hot summer months because of problems with melting.

Not as good a Callebaut, but rather less expensive and (for some) more easily available, is a baking chocolate from Trader Joe's. It comes in milk, semi-sweet and an extra dark. It comes in a 17 oz bar and is quite reasonably priced.

Good luck! Let me know if you have more questions, I love working with chocolate.

Just read all the posts and you'll quickly see there are lots of us who prefer to hang out here. There's no pressure, no angst, little in the way of politics. We can certainly assume we're all of (generally) a like mind with respect to politics, so its fun to hang here and talk about other things.

There's a great deal of interest in baking, though none of us are really expert at it ...... knowledgeable, in some cases, but that's about it. I for one look forward to hearing from a "flour head" (may I call you flour head? :hi: ... just kidding ...... I promise to never say that again!)

So just kick on back and enjoy. Its a great group here .... and always fun. I'm sure you'll fit right in.

ROTFL - "Flour head!!!" ---- :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

I spent about 5 years during which _ALL_ I wanted to do was bake bread so - yeah - "flour head" certainly fit!

I'm something of a nut about it - I have 3 bookcases full of cookbooks (mostly baking) in my kitchen (a dream come true!) and a whole array of mixers - a Kitchenaid stand mixer, a Bosch, and a Magic Mill DLX. I love them all and they all have certain things at which they excel.

times.

and if i start a sourdough "starter" will it capture yeast from my dog's ear infections? (yuck!)


truly, welcome and I can't wait for some cool bread recipes to work the "Beast" out with :)

it won't capture and dog ear bugs - I spent several years studying and working with sourdough starters and they are fascinating little "pets" to work with. If you take care of one and keep it healthy, the good yeast and lactobacilli create sort of a self-protective environment where only the good stuff survives. 'Course you can have problems if don't take care of them... like any pet. No, really, they are a lot of fun but do take a little attention.

I'm in your district - I'll be interested in talking to you about how you manage your baking when the weather heats up.

i installed a new Trane on the roof last year, and I have a swimming pool

you are here in phx?? wow! "they" say to beg or borrow a starter if you can get one........

perhaps I can impose on you once I get a little better with the Beast (My new Wolfgang Puck 700 watt mixer) and get some starter next fall.

I am very much a neophyte baker, but have had a couple sucesses in the last few weeks so I have hope that I may be starting to get the hang of it. I plan on baking some bread tomorrow as a matter of fact (as i have most every weekend lately)

"They" are correct - it's much better for folks who haven't worked with sourdough before to get an established starter - there's a much greater chance of success and satisfaction with a known, good starter.

A Wolfgang Puck 700? Oh my gosh, a mixer I haven't seen yet! I'll have to check it out online find out about it. I'll be curious to hear how you like it, and if you've used other stand mixers, how it compares.

I grew up in AZ and still have family in Chandler and PV.

my grandparents who lived on West Glendale. I remember when Bell Road was pretty much the north end of the Valley - how things have changed!

boonies, surrounded by desert.... now we have a 4 starbucks in a 10 mile radius :(

Union Hills and 7th Street, three blocks of north of Union Hills. Please tell me that is Dem area.

that is Dist 6 :hi:

I'm in district 16, Waaayyy south-east Gilbert. Jeff Flake's district. It's so red here that the Dems didn't even run a candidate against JF. When first elected, he promised to term-limit himself to 3 terms, this would be his last except that he's reneged on his promise and will run again in 2006.

You have a store? What kind of store?

room

we're not open to the public, but we have a nice "captive" audience :)

I can make puff pastry, brioche, biscuits & focaccia & that's about it.

I love working w/chocolate. Callibaut is my favorite. Luckily we have a store that carries it.

You're probably the only person who might understand my pain. Several years ago I found a double boiler at an estate sale for $12.00. It was copper with a super heavy ceramic (porcelain?) liner. I loved that double boiler. It was fabulous for melting chocolate. Never scorched the chocolate, easy to control the temp, etc. Plus, it was terrific for Hollandaise & Bearnaise sauces. Christmas Eve I pulled it out to make an over-the-top dessert. I dropped it. Bummed my entire evening. It's still sitting in the kitchen. I keep hoping it will repair itself :) I've looked & the only replacement I can find are over $150.00. I still get a bit depressed when I think of it.

I really look forward to asking you questions next time I do some baking & getting some great recipes from you.

best.

And you make puff pastry, brioche, biscuits & focaccia??? That qualifies you... as I see it, anyways.

Oh what a shame about your pan! I wonder if a metal-worker could straighten it out for you? How badly is it dented? Or is it broken in some other way? Sounds like it was a wonderful pan, as well as such a lucky find, - I'm really sorry, what a sad thing to have had happen, especially on Christmas Eve. Hope you found another way to get your dessert done - also curious as to what it was!


I saw in another post that you had a recipe for Puff Pastry made in the mixer. Will you share??? I've only made puff pastry once, would love to have as easy but great recipe for it - I LOVE the stuff...

it was the liner that broke into pieces. No way to repair it.

It is really easy. I should have told you that I make a cheaters version. I've never attempted the classic one. I use to buy Pepperidge Farm until I found this recipe. I never really like Pepperidge Farm puff pastry (love those cookies, though!). Someone told me, or maybe I read somewhere that there's either no butter or very little butter in their pastry. I've never looked on the back to see if that's true, Anyhoo, this freezes beautifully & you can make all kinds of fancy hors'doeveres, hors'deovres, poo-poo dishes with it.

The dessert was one I got out of Spago on Chocolate (I think that's what it's called-can't lay my hands on it right now). It really wasn't that good & as soon as I was half way through I realized his directions were lousy. I don't visulize very well & even reading through a recipe before hand I really won't notice something's wrong until I'm actually making it. I guess the dessert was ok. It got eaten, but not what I was hoping for. Also, between breaking the double boiler (I have another cheapo that I used) & the directions being spotty, I was pretty ticked. Lousy cookbooks is a subject for another day that I could write pages on. :)

QUICK PUFF PASTRY

1 lb. unsalted butter, chilled
2 cups all-purpose flour (spoon & sweep)
2/3 cup bread flour
1 cup ice-cold water
1 teasp fresh lemon juice
1 teasp fine sea salt

Cut the butter into 1/2 inch cubes spread on baking sheet & freeze about 15 minutes

combine the flours in the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the paddle blade. Add frozen butter & toss to coat. With the machine on low, mix until cubes are two-thirds their original size

In a glass-measuring cup, stir water, lemon juice & salt to dissolve salt. With machine running, add to flour & mix just until dough holds together.

Place dough on a floured surface & pat into a thick rectangle. Dust top with flour. Roll into a 16x5 inch rectangle, with long edge running vertically. Using a pastry brush, brush off the flour on surface. Fold the dough in thirds, bringing top third down then bottom third up. Rotate dough so the open sides are on the right & the fold is on the left. Repeat rolling & folding 3 more times, being sure to brush off flour from the surface before folding & keeping the open side to the right. (A total of 4 turns.-make a shallow mark for each turn.) Wrap in plastic & refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Roll & fold the dough 2 more times. Wrap & refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. (Dough can be prepared up to 2 days ahead, wrapped & refrigerated. It can be frozen, wrapped in foil for 2 months. Defrost overnight in refrig. If it is very hard, let stand at room temp for about 10 minutes. Then pound horizontally & vertically with a rolling pin until pliable but still cold.)

If you divide the dough into portions use a large knife & cut straight down in one push; never saw through the dough.

Thanks so much, I look forward to trying this (maybe tomorrow - I've got some creamed chicken that would be SOOOOOO good on some puff pastry!)

That sounds great & reminds me of something. My husband & I went to lunch at a restaurant that had just opened. The special was creamed chicken w/basil over puff pastry. It was awesome & I was going to play around & see if I could figure it out. Would you share your creamed chicken recipe?

I use the puff pastry over my favorite chicken pot pie recipe & it really dresses it up.

You have several options.

First, you could probably use your chicken pot pie recipe if you like it real well - reduce the amount of chicken to make it saucier, and maybe reduce or omit the vegetables (if any).

I posted a couple of other recipes in a separate thread you can try.

Looking forward to trying the Puff Pastry recipe... thanks again for it!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=82&item=6158647835&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW&tc=photo

and all the ebay listings for "copper double boiler" they are several listed...

http://search.ebay.com/copper-double-boiler_W0QQfkrZ1QQfromZR8

God, AZ you're talented on the computer, I wonder how heavy it is? My 'liner' that ingredients go in was really thick. I've never bought anything on Ebay. Is it tricky?

ANY questions, don't assume anything

read the shipping costs and instructions carefully too

i have had 99% positive experiences on ebay and have some lovely scores to show for it :)

you just need to know what the items are worth (to you) and bid away :)

I went over & signed in on Ebay just so I could bid on the liner. I sign in with my user name & password & the same screen keeps popping up. It won't let me sign in. ugh, ugh, ugh. I get so ticked at computers I could just hurl it out the window. I think it's something to do with my cookies. I've deleted & reset & hit every damned thing I can think of to no avail. Hubby & I are going walking & when I get back I'll go at it again. The item is up for 4 days so hopefully even dumb old me can figure it out. Thank you AZ & Housewoof for your suggestions & AZ for finding it for me. You have no idea how bummed I get everytime I think of dropping that bowl. I never think to buy on Ebay-hooked on estate sales I guess.

best.

You have to register before you can sign in and bid. There might be something about them needing an email verification of your email address, or something like that, before they activate your account.

What does your error message say?

Got my user name & password. Got the confirmation in an email. Followed their link & filled in user name & password. Hit enter. Same screen came up. Filled in user name & password. Hit enter. Same screen came up. Did it again & again. Deleted cookies, added link to firewall. Same thing. Wish me luck. I'm going in again. This will NOT defeat me! :)

I've had good luck buying and selling on ebay, too. I like how the questions and answers are now public. It saves time.

Seems like I had the same problem that you're having now logging in. All of a sudden I couldn't get in after years of being and ebayer. But I can't remember why since it was so long ago. I know that's cold comfort. But just so you know it could be a common thing to happen. I may have had my security set too high.

Maybe when you're finished bidding and getting your replacement part, you could help me to learn about these type of double boilers. Now that I see how well they perform, I'd really like to look for one at ebay, too. The prices look reasonable compared to a new one. Also, I don't want to bid if there's a chance that an acquaintance is also bidding! ;)

Good luck!

AZ has the picture & the link. So go for it!

As far as double boilers go I don't really think the copper part is important. It looks pretty but I don't think it's essential. Housewolf undoubtedly knows more than I do & maybe she can confirm or deny my opinions. I think the most important part is the liner or insert as ebayers call it. The heavy porcelain is the important part. It keeps the ingredients from getting too hot & the temperature is easier to control. So I would just look for one that has a thick insert. Maybe 1/2 or 3/4 inch thick? I never measured my broken one & now it's been recycled so I can't go measure.

Also, I'm probably tell you something you already know but when you use a double boiler don't let the bottom of the insert touch the water in the pan. I always think it's really more of a double steamer than a double boiler.

Those prices on ebay are very good. Like I posted before, the closest I could find were in very high end shops like William-Sonoma, etc & they were running well over $150.00 which is kinda outrageous if you're not martha

I've had great luck and success with Ebay also, do much of my shopping there. AZ gave the same tips I would so just to re-inforce what she said, pay attention to the shipping charges 'cause sometimes people pad them quite a bit, and email the seller with any questions you might have, or even if you want more pictures. For instance, the seller could tell you more about the thickness of the liner, as well as dents or dings of the base.