Recent content by summer57

I have induction and use a stove-top pressure canner. Use the magnet test to check if your intended canner is magnetic and suitable for induction. However, you can always get a separate single burner for pressure canning. My cousins are commercial fishers and can a lot of salmon, they use a...

Only making a few this year: Kipferl - those Austrian crescent-shaped cookies made with vanilla sugar & almond flour Linzer cookies - Another Austrian cookie, sandwich cookies with jam, the top cookie has a star cutout Shortbread wtih pistachio, dark chocolate & orange peel. My daughter's...

I'm in Vancouver, so it rarely snows and doesn't get very cold. It was supposed to snow today, but like the last few days, it's been sunny and really nice. No rain, around 4C, or 40F, today. It's supposed to snow Sunday morning, turn to rain in the afternoon, and get really cold by Tuesday...

I use a lot of tofu - coincidentally, made Mapo Tofu last night. I have never had tofu collapse and fall apart. But, I do handle it carefully because I like the nice little cubes or strips, if I'm making hot & sour soup. One trick I learned from Kenji is to microwave the little cubes for a...

Thanks for the tip! I don't think I've seen their kielbasa here, sausages, ground pork & bacon. I get kielbasa at the German or Russian deli, seems to be made at the same local manufacturer, no labels, expensive and either turkey or pork, really good and apparently authentic, according to my...

I've used my Pullman pan for many years for a a couple of different recipes. One recipe's by Thomas Keller, it's a good one. There's a decent recipe on King Arthur website. Recipes for Pullman pans are also call pain de mie, so look for recipes using that name.

How did this beloved show go so wrong? Bake Off’s Mexican week made CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company) Vancouver today, and not in a good way. The commentator used the word ‘Travesty’ a few times. Called it insensitive, bordering on racist, with appalling pronunciations of ‘wako mollie’...

Turkish Lentil Soup, my version 3 tablespoons salted butter 1 tblsp olive oil 1 onion, diced 1 or 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika 1/2 tbsp hot smoked paprika (sometimes I use Korean pepper, to taste) 1 tbsp whole cumin 1 cup red lentils, rinsed...

Tomatoes! Of course! The local greenhouses are dumping excess tomatoes right now. Not normally a fan of greenhouse tomatoes, but if they're cheap & roasted first, they're pretty good in a soup.

The original Great British Bake-Off started in 2010 on BBC. It moved to a new channel and new production team a couple of years ago. Challenges typically involve dishes that none of the bakers have ever seen or before. It relies on the baker's creativity, experience with ingredients, general...

Soup! I love it. Made Turkish Lentil soup yesterday. So easy, so frugal. I have ham & pork shoulder stock in the fridge, ready for Tuscan Bean or any bean soup. Never been a fan of pea soup, though my family's from Quebec. On my list for November/early December: Mushroom Barley Butternut...

I haven't watched this week's show, but I think the show's changed a lot, not in a good way, since the first few years on BBC with Mary Berry was the co-host. I agree with taxie that Digestives are a good substitute for graham crackers. Also, I've had homemade marshmallow, and it's pretty...

This is the first year I didn't get fruit. I moved from my southwest-facing deck to an east-facing condo, so all I get are the leaves, which is perfectly fine, because the leaves are a very useful part of the makrut lime tree. When I did get the little makrut limes, and there weren't many, I'd...

Lately, I've been getting a Tunisian oil - Terra Delyssa. It's excellent, great price, too, especially now that Costco carries it. Kirkland Tuscan oil's also very good. Reminds me of the time when my husband and I were driving in the south of France. We took a wrong turn, and ended up in the...

A friend has had a big Bay tree in-ground for years in Point Roberts, WA. Zone 8b, I think. Fresh bay is so much better than the dried leaves from the store. I'm just across the border, same zone, and keep my Makrut Lime on the deck in a container most of the year. If it's super cold, I bring it...