Mike Nolan
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I think we're having tomato soup and fried cheese sandwiches for supper here tonight. Warm, simple and fast.
I got a 14x14 baking steel for Christmas, but haven't done anything with it yet, not even season the surface. It should be big enough to handle two free-form loaves, which is what I usually make with most of the bread recipes I have.
We really liked the pizzas I did on the grill last summer, and I'm hoping I can de-winterize the grill around the end of March.
King Arthur's latest pizza email talks about making heart shaped pizzas for Valentine's Day. They even suggest using a heart shaped cookie cutter to cut the pepperoni into hearts.
I can't find Oscar Mayer pepperoni any more, and the other brands available in the grocery stores are either really heavy on garlic or too spicy. Interestingly enough, the pepperoni that Valentino's uses is mild and if it has garlic it isn't enough to bother Diane.
Today is our granddaughter's 16th birthday. Somehow that makes me feel older than turning 73 did in September.
Organic and vegetarian have to do with the diets the chickens are fed, don't they?
I wonder how much time 'free range' chickens spend taking advantage of their ability to walk around? I've seen more than one article suggesting it is near zero.
I was reading a review of Philadelphia cheese steak locations yesterday, Geno's got a really bad review, 13th out of 13, and Pat's was 10th:
https://www.tastingtable.com/389069/ranking-the-best-philly-cheesesteaks-from-worst-to-first/
Several years ago I switched from using beef broth to using chicken broth for onion soup, I think beef tends to dominate the flavor profile, and of course I keep the salt down.
I haven't had a really good bowl of onion soup in a restaurant since the Playboy Club closed in Chicago, a LONG time ago. Usually the dominant flavor is salt. 🙁
It was great, and I wound up with about 5 quarts of soup to refrigerate, some for the next few days, some for the freezer.
My wife just suggested putting a chocolate kiss on those peanut butter cookies right after they come out of the oven. Might have to try that next time.
We've got a break in the cold weather, it is currently 42 and headed towards 50. But still a good soup day, and the house smells like onion.
Today I'm making a big batch of onion soup, starting with caramelizing 10 pounds of onions in the oven.
I tend to use the same technique for strands for braiding that I do for loaves of bread. It's a bit time consuming, especially if doing several 11 strand braided loaves.
Scale the dough and roll it into balls. Let those rest for at least 5 minutes to relax the gluten. Flatten them, fold the top down 2/3 of the way then the bottom up to the top. Fold the bottom to the top again and seal with your hand. Do that again. You should now have a log that is fairly uniform in diameter and can be easily lengthened.
