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Alix reminded me of an incident many, many years ago. We and another couple had gone to one of the better restaurants in the area at the time. Not a fancy "5-Star", but a nice place with rather average food and service. After the meal, we were all chatting, and I was opening one of those...

Oh, come on, Background. We agreed early on to refrain from personal attacks, and it has been my intention to do so. If I have worded things badly, or if you have misinterpreted (eiher or both are disinct possibilities!) then I am sorry. Not my intention. As for the "juvenile" bit, that was...

Right you are, GB! Let me ask you this: Have you ever heard of someone being offended by a well mannered, well dressed person? [Based solely upon those attributes, of course - not by the persons attitude, statements, etc. I know I often offend people even while wearing suit and tie -...

There are some rules that I believe are not subject to relevance, change, or interpretation. The major one is the "Golden Rule". That is, or should be, the basis for all societies. Keeping to the sbject of dining (for it is all too tempting to digress to other aspects of the subject), the...

I guess I went off the deep end a bit in my last post. Sorry, Background. t's just that I see our society apparently losing ever more of the values that had made it function better than it does today. I find myself falling victim to the trend toward the LCD, as Background calls it. We...

Interesting response, Background - and not unexpected. I appreciate you candid expression. However: I trust you are familiar with the concept implied by the "lowest common denominator". That is what is happening to our civiliztion's culture. Ever more leniency is tolerated, resulting in...

Wow! Amd I was hesitant to broach this subject, thinking few would be interested. Wrong again!! My Beautiful Wife of these past 52 years and I dine every night. Like some of you, fine china, crystal, silver, linen, etc., and wonderfully fine cuisine she prepares regularly. To the point that I...

As opposed to eating, that is. While well prepared foods are certainly enjoyable and healthful, I believe the "ambience" of the meal is equally important for both pleasure and health. Anyone can grab a burger - and some of them a darned good, too. Devoured at a sporting event, the beach, or...

Ah, fellow tequila lovefs - my kind of folks!:chef: Yes, I have made this salad quite a few times. B/W and I do the rustic cooking thing )over an open fire in a pit on the ground) almost annually, u just for fun and reminiscing. The quality of tequila is not terribly important, as not a...

If the black is from the spray coating, ammonia or steel wool will remove it fairly well. If, however, the discoloration is from actually overheating the stainless steel, the dark color is often "all the way through", and is permanent. But, being optimistic, it may just be surface oxidation...

I'll take a shot at it, 'Elf. All cooking times, baking or whatever, a simply general guides, for every situation differs at least a little - often a great deal. As a smaller loaf will heat through more rapidly, that suggests the baking time will be somewhat less. But the old rule of...

We met, purely by chance, in a tiny, out-of-the-way village in Mexico some 40 years ago. It was our first venture into Mexico - a camping trip. Gergiabelle and her husband, Ismael, were Chilean, also on a camping vacation from their present residence in California. Ismael turned out to have...

The potato is probably my favorite vegetable - no matter how it is prepared. Heck, I even like 'em raw! For a nice lunch, a bowl of potato soup satisfies both taste and tummy. And, by tossing in onion and chilling, you approach that most famous of classy soups, vichyssoise. O.K., I know...

Coating ferrous metals (iron, steel) with oil is the industry-wide accepted method to prevent the oxidation of the metal. The oil prevents the oxygen in air from reacing the iron - it's just that simple. If cast iron is not so oiled, it will rust even if simply sitting around. Heating raw cast...

Thanks for all the kind - if undeserved - words, Pete. You must remember, I, like you, am a beginner at the bread baking thing, so my thoughts here are simply what I have experienced, and should not be taken to much to heart. Also, Pete, don't be hesitant with the Biga-sponge-starter thing...

Just for fun, I decided to give some of the suggestions on this interesting thread a good try. First, the "Biga" thing. Using the posted "Bakers' Percentages" (100% flour, 74% water, and 0.2% AD yeast) I made my biga - or rather bighino, I guess - using 5.4 oz AP flour, 4 oz (1 cup) warm...

Today's paper had an article stating nutritionists had determined we consume too much salt, which can lead to hypertension (high blood pressure). It recommended "not more than a teaspoonful per day". For starters, a few years ago the "experts" determined that salt had little effect on...

by "round" do you mean disk shape or ball shaped? If using a soft dough, a ball shape will flatten into a more or less disk confinguration. For a ball shaped loaf, a somewhat drier or stiffer dough is necessary. I had good luck making a round (sort of cylindrical) loaf recently by using a...

Pete, I get a thinner crust with a lower temp - 335 to 350 F. Amd a softer dough. I also find that a dough soft enough for a very thin crust and a soft interior tends to flatten too much when making an unsupported loaf, so for that I use a loaf pan. Browning of the crust at the lower temps...

George, you are probably correct, and weighing everthing will surely improve reproducabillity. But few recipes list weights, and even fewer cooks are inclined to "do the math" - simple tho it is. I know I'm 'way too lazy to bother with all that. Instead, I'll continue to use recipes as a...

Mike, no one is ot to hang you. But you prove my point. There is no way to ensure results will match those of the recipe writer. Just too darned many variables. So I find it silly when a bread recipe calls for "2 cups plus 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of water"! Granted, I've seen only one that...

Mike, as you mentioned, even the measurements on the bag of flour are approximations. A serving is 1/4 cup. But we aren't told how that flour is treated prior to measuring. And there are "about" 75 servings in a 5 lb bag. If one does not have a scale, it is of little use to know that means...

I've been unsuccessful lately in making sourdough starter, so I referred back to Fleischmann's Yeast website to consult the "authority" on the subject. I halved their suggested recipe, using 1 3/4 cups AP flour, 1/2 pkg active dry yeast, and 1 cup warm water, mixed to a smooth cream. Well...

As promised, I made a whole wheat loaf using the windmill stone ground bread flour. water, salt, and yeast, letting a sponge stand overnight as before with my home grown wheat. Came out nicely - a normal 1 lb loaf. But, darn it, it didn't taste nearly as flavorful. Howcum!! (Not my...

I don't know how I missed this thread. Looks like you all have been having fun. Mostly I bake plain white bread: flour, water, yeast, salt. Gave up measuring, because there are just too many variables. I simply adjust the flour/water ratio as I go until the dough feels right: almost but not...