Wed. Jul 29th, 2026

Mike Nolan

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Viewing 15 posts - 6,106 through 6,120 (of 8,039 total)
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  • in reply to: Daily Quiz for April 9, 2019 #15499
    Mike Nolan
    Keymaster

      Did you read the explanatory text after selecting your answer? It goes through how to compute the correct answer in detail. That part took longer to write than the quiz itself, I'd be disappointed if people didn't read it. (I need to finish a blog post I've been working on that helps explain Baker's Math.)

      in reply to: Pizza-Making ? #15483
      Mike Nolan
      Keymaster

        Semolina is usually considered a healthier flour than white flour, especially for diabetics, what is the dietician concerned about?

        Mike Nolan
        Keymaster

          Here's a page on the USDA site that might help explain the labeling standards:

          USDA Organic Labeling Standards

          in reply to: What are You Cooking the Week of April 7, 2019? #15472
          Mike Nolan
          Keymaster

            I haven't done any baking or cooking today, because I was up until the wee hours of the morning trying to fix the site, and at it for another 5 hours today.

            I think supper is leftover meatloaf anyway.

            in reply to: Daily Quiz for April 6, 2019 #15460
            Mike Nolan
            Keymaster

              Some of the standard 'test taking' hints shouldn't work, I use a random number generator to decide which answer slot gets the 'correct' answer. (I started doing that back when I was teaching years ago.)

              My wife once took a test with 100 true/false questions on it. If you selected 'false', you had to explain why. It turned out that all 100 statements were true, but she got credit for several of the ones she marked as false, because of how she explained her reasoning.

              Mike Nolan
              Keymaster

                Not to cause people to worry, but...

                The USDA investigates hundreds of claims of fraudulently labeled organic foods every year. And if it doesn't have the USDA 'certified organic' seal on it, but just a 'shelf talker' or other unofficial label, is it really organic?

                It is apparently legal to say "We use organic ingredients" on a label, but that doesn't mean every ingredient is organic or that the food meets the USDA certified organic standard.

                in reply to: Cheaper Vanilla! #15455
                Mike Nolan
                Keymaster

                  It doesn't appear that the price has dropped at Sams Club yet.

                  This report seems to suggest that vanilla prices may not return to the prices we saw 3-4 years ago and that more low-quality vanilla may find its way to market:

                  August 2018 Vanilla report

                  in reply to: What are you cooking the week of March 31, 2019? #15453
                  Mike Nolan
                  Keymaster

                    I'm making a meat loaf with black beans in it.

                    in reply to: What are you baking the week of March 31, 2019? #15446
                    Mike Nolan
                    Keymaster

                      Aaron, I still see the unbleached cake flour on the KAF site, but they discontinued the bleached cake flour several years ago on the retail site, though I think they still sell it in large bags to bakeries:
                      https://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/unbleached-cake-flour

                      I don't use much cake flour here, the cakes we make the most often use AP.

                      in reply to: Daily Quiz for April 4, 2019 #15440
                      Mike Nolan
                      Keymaster

                        I've tried using both a fork and tongs, I tend to make a bigger mess than when I use my hands correctly.

                        in reply to: What are you cooking the week of March 31, 2019? #15438
                        Mike Nolan
                        Keymaster

                          I'm fortunate that I can get shank bones and knuckle bones from several stores here, neck bones are a little harder to find. You might have to go to South Bend for bones for stock unless there's a full-service butcher closer than that. (They're something of a vanishing breed these days.)

                          One of the vendors at the summer farmers market sells bones that have had nearly all the meat stripped off for ground beef, I use 2-3 pounds of those in each batch of beef stock.

                          in reply to: What are you baking the week of March 31, 2019? #15429
                          Mike Nolan
                          Keymaster

                            I wondered if you might not be referring to New York Bakers. I've not ordered from them yet.

                            in reply to: What are you cooking the week of March 31, 2019? #15422
                            Mike Nolan
                            Keymaster

                              I bought some vegetable stock at Trader Joe's to use in a soup last year, the soup was OK, but the stock tasted awful by itself. Zoup sells its stocks, I've even seen them in grocery stores, their advertising says "Why would you use a stock in a soup if you wouldn't drink it?" Unfortunately most of their stocks have garlic in them, and they're a bit expensive compared with the Swanson or Trader Joe's stocks. I'm never sure how to cost out home made stocks, because when I make beef or chicken stock I also get several meals out of the left over meat.

                              I bought Rachael Mamane's "Mastering Stocks and Broths" book, she won't use celery in her stock recipes because she thinks it makes the stocks too bitter.

                              I haven't made my own vegetable stock yet, because it is not something I use a lot of, when I make beef stock I make it in a 24 quart pot, chicken stock I usually make in a 12 quart pot unless I'm making a really big batch, in which case I'll use the 16 or 24 quart pot.

                              in reply to: What are you baking the week of March 31, 2019? #15419
                              Mike Nolan
                              Keymaster

                                I've been to a couple of Mennonite grocery stores that I think also buy KAF flours and repackage them.

                                in reply to: What are you baking the week of March 31, 2019? #15418
                                Mike Nolan
                                Keymaster

                                  You might show her the KAF microwave lemon curd recipe, it's fairly easy to make and very good on scones. (I can't post the scones recipe my wife uses, though, because she got it from a caterer on the condition that she not distribute it.) Because it's very high in acid, lemon curd keeps well in the refrigerator, for at least a week, if it lasts that long! We have one Meyer lemon that is starting to ripen on our tree, I'll use it to make a small batch of lemon curd. (It looks like we're going to get at least a half dozen lemons next year, we've already had that many set fruit.)

                                  However, don't try to double the recipe, it takes 4-5 times as long to cook and is more likely to get lumpy. I always strain it through a mesh, that way if you get any egg that overcooks, you strain the chunks out.

                                Viewing 15 posts - 6,106 through 6,120 (of 8,039 total)