[Italiancook]

Joan, I don't know if you'll see this, since you're going to visit your sister, but . . .

. . . . thanks so much for your response. I haven't experimented with buttermilk yet to see if I can handle it (I do just fine with butter & sour cream). I'll try this bread, using nonfat dry milk. If I run into a dryness problem, I'll opt for the Lactaid milk, which is what I have on hand. I'm not big on tenting anything in the oven, so I'm glad you gave your good experience with not tenting. Hope you have a safe trip.

[Italiancook]

I haven't baked anything yet, but I'm pondering a white sandwich bread. In the past, I've made the Amish bread, but it uses a lot of yeast, as I recall, and it rises super fast, and I must be using the wrong size pan or letting it rise too much in the pan. It tastes good, but I'm never happy with how high it is above the pan, baked. So I checked KAF's site. Have any of you ever made any of the breads listed below? If so, what is the texture of the bread, if you recall. I don't want to end up with squishy store-bought bread.

"Our Favorite Sandwich Bread"
"King Arthur's Classic White Sandwich Bread"
"Classic Sandwich Bread"

[Italiancook]

On Saturday, I made a double batch of The Neely's (Food Network) Broccoli Soup. For the freezer. I really like this soup. It only has 1/2 cup cream (I use half 'n half) in a single batch. Because i'm now allergic to cow's milk, I used only 1/2 cup in the double batch. I should be okay.

I also took a meal to sick people this week. Because time was short, I made it easy on myself. Using 1 quart beef broth & 2 quarts chicken broth, I made Rice in Broth. Because the recipe book called for 2 cups of rice, I ended up with cooked rice and had to add broth to the quart containers. Good news was I ended up with 2 quarts for the freezer.

I also took them Cuban Bread and deli ham and cheeses for sandwiches. I gave them cannoli for dessert.

[Italiancook]

I had no idea what grains of paradis is, but as soon as I saw the choices, I knew the correct answer. I must have read this somewhere and only remembered part of what I read.

[Italiancook]

I missed this and am surprised by the correct answer. It must be everything skeptic7 attributetes it to.

[Italiancook]

I guessed wrong, but am really impressed by the correct answer.

[Italiancook]

How do you measure the temperature inside your oven, BakerAunt? Do you have a thermometer that goes inside the oven with the readout outside the oven? Does such a thing exist -- anyone know? That's what I need -- something that will tell me the inside temp without having to open the oven door.

I gotta tell y'all, I'm excited. For years, I've "imported" Parm-Reggiano cheese from Chicagoland when people would come this way. Now, that life has stopped those visits, I tried local cheese and was sorely disappointed.

Somehow -- I don't recall how -- it was eons ago -- maybe an online search -- I found Frank and Sal Italian Market on Staten Island, NY. I ordered a pound of Parm-Reggiano & 24 "made daily" cannoli shells. They just arrived. Cheese looks fresh-cut, just as they advertised. It's well-sealed in plastic. If it tastes as good as it looks, I'll be a regular Frank & Sal customer. I have my eye on the DOP Pecorino-Romano they have on their website.

My husband just opened the shells. None were broken. Tonight, I'll make the ricotta filling for the shells. It needs to sit in refrig overnight. Tomorrow, we'll eat high on the hog with cannoli. I'll be giving cannoli to the neighbors. Twenty-four shells is more than we can use. The filling recipe also makes more than we can use, so I have to giveaway some.

[Italiancook]

I visualized what I thought airline chicken would look like and got it right. Only because chicken served on an airline wasn't one of the answers.

[Italiancook]

Happy Birthday, Mike! Because of you, I know where to buy bulk cream of tartar. I use it often with baking soda in place of baking powder for medical reasons. Because of you, I have a marble (I think) pastry board that I love. Maybe it's granite. I just know it works great. Because of you, I now bake and greatly enjoy artichoke pizza. So thanks, Mike, for all you do for this site!

[Italiancook]

As a cat person, I laughed aloud about the WSJ cartoon. So true.

[Italiancook]

Aaron, thanks so much for your informative post. I'm encouraged by all you can do for pizzas within 2 hours. I'll keep pluggin' away along the learning curve. Thanks!

[Italiancook]

Thanks, RiversideLen, for explaining to me how the site works! Mike,, we have espresso spoons, and it never occurred to me to try one with the capers. BakerAunt, I agree with you about TJ Maxx. I found my first LeCreuset dutch oven there for a pittance. Didn't know I needed one until I saw it, but I use it on a regular basis to make soup.

[Italiancook]

I guessed correctly only because I make tacos and figured out which answer would be best in a taco.

[Italiancook]

I baked a Lemon Loaf Cake from Cook-Ahead Cookery. I've made this many times but I goofed at the end. When cake comes out of oven, a syrup of lemon juice & sugar is poured over it. Then it sits in the syrup for 15 minutes before being removed from the pan. Today, for the first time, I poured the syrup over the cake when the syrup was piping hot. Result was that it boiled around the edges of the hot pan. Consequently, the boiling burned the edges of the cake.

I made this for the freezer, for dessert for a friend who's coming to lunch next week. I had planned on serving it cut into a shape, instead of as a slice. So I'll be okay -- the edges will be cut off anyhow. I just hope the burnt edges don't adversely affect the interior of the cake.

Later today, I'm making 2 boules of "Cuban Bread" from The Complete Tightwad Gazette. For the freezer. One will be for the luncheon next week.

[Italiancook]

How do you like the kneading spiral, BakerAunt? Kitchenaid comes with the kneading hook, but last time I checked, they sold the spiral. I've been debating whether to buy it. Do you think it does a substantially better job?

[Author]

Posts