Mike Nolan

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  • in reply to: Half and Half, Whipping Cream, and Heavy Whipping Cream #8453
    Mike Nolan
    Keymaster

      I've only had it on scones and similar products, it's so expensive we don't buy it often.

      My wife's scones recipe is sweeter than most, almost like a shortbread, except that it rises a lot. (Sorry, I can't post the recipe, she got it from a caterer years ago on the condition that she not give it to anyone else.)

      in reply to: Half and Half, Whipping Cream, and Heavy Whipping Cream #8447
      Mike Nolan
      Keymaster

        I wonder if what you saw was Devonshire clotted cream?

        in reply to: Half and Half, Whipping Cream, and Heavy Whipping Cream #8441
        Mike Nolan
        Keymaster

          The Wikipedia article on whipped cream says it takes 35% butterfat for cream to be whippable, but Harold McGee says 30%. The higher the butterfat content, the easier it will whip. Heavy cream is one of those things where I read the label carefully in the store, not all brands have the same butterfat content.

          Having the cream and utensils very cold helps, some sources suggest putting the mixing bowl in the freezer for a half hour.

          McGee also notes that 'natural' cream, that which rises to the top of whole milk, is only about 20% butterfat, the invention of centrifugal separators made it much easier for dairies to produce heavy cream.

          in reply to: Quiche/Pizza cross #8438
          Mike Nolan
          Keymaster

            I often use a layer of chopped spinach and ricotta cheese in a stuffed pizza or a lasagna. I haven't made either one in a while, though, mostly because either recipe makes a LOT of high-carb food.

            in reply to: Half and Half, Whipping Cream, and Heavy Whipping Cream #8437
            Mike Nolan
            Keymaster

              Most stores in the USA seem to carry 3 types of cream these days:

              Half and Half - usually 12-18% butterfat.

              Table Cream - Can range from 20-30% butterfat. I've got a lot of candy recipes that call for 22% cream.

              Heavy Cream - Generally 30% or more butterfat, around here it's usually 38%

              As I recall, it takes about 30% butterfat in order to make whipped cream, so table cream generally won't whip into whipped cream. (McGee confirms the 30% figure.)

              Corrected: According to McGee it takes about 25% butterfat in order for it to be stable, ie, adding cream to a hot sauce or soup without it curdling, so most brands of half and half are likely to break if used in a sauce.

              In England you can sometimes buy double cream, which is somewhere around 55-60% butterfat. I've never seen it in the USA, not even through restaurant suppliers.

              When I was growing up, our milk wasn't always homogenized, so occasionally there'd be a layer of cream at the top. That was pretty rich cream.

              In most parts of the country, you can't buy raw milk in stores, though I've been told that in Nebraska if you go straight to the farm they can sell it to you, though the two dairy farms I've asked about it won't do it. I can get raw goats milk from a local goat farmer/cheesemaker that way, but have never done it.

              in reply to: What are You Cooking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8420
              Mike Nolan
              Keymaster

                Yeah, we're in leftover mode for a day or two here, as well, though there aren't as many leftovers as there sometimes are after my son has been to visit.

                in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8419
                Mike Nolan
                Keymaster

                  I usually make the honey wheat bread with coarsely ground whole wheat flour and I often add 1/4 cup of cracked wheat. I generally don't soak either, though I've done it a few times. I find soaking whole grains in milk doesn't work as well as soaking them in water, I probably don't let it soak long enough because the milk goes funky.

                  If you use the 7 grain mix, I'd suggest using half water and half milk and soaking the grain in the water overnight.

                  in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8415
                  Mike Nolan
                  Keymaster

                    Buttermilk has a lot of milk solids to it, so it takes more buttermilk than it would water to hydrate the flour.

                    in reply to: What are You Cooking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8406
                    Mike Nolan
                    Keymaster

                      We're having cheese souffle for supper tonight to go with the Pao de Queijo I made. I may make some kind of marinara sauce, that'd go well with both of those.

                      Followup: A simple marinara (tomato sauce, oregano, basil, thyme and 4 cheese blend) went very well with both dishes.

                      in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8405
                      Mike Nolan
                      Keymaster

                        Today I made donut muffins/holes and a batch of Pao de Queijo (gluten-free Brazilian Cheese Rolls)

                        The donut muffins/holes are mostly road food for my son and his family, they leave for home Saturday morning.

                        in reply to: What are You Cooking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8402
                        Mike Nolan
                        Keymaster

                          For lunch today I made pizza bread using half of the hoagie buns I baked yesterday.

                          For supper we made the third sous vide protein, tri-tip, sliced thin and served au jus, like a French dip, on the hoagie rolls I baked yesterday. We cooked the meat to 142 degrees, that's in the 'medium' range and it was light pink, which was exactly where I wanted it.

                          in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8401
                          Mike Nolan
                          Keymaster

                            I made chocolate souffle today, using a Mary Berry recipe. It isn't a screamingly CHOCOLATE dessert, next time I think I'd also make some kind of sauce, like an Anglaise sauce.

                            in reply to: Judith Jones #8400
                            Mike Nolan
                            Keymaster

                              Book editors are seldom heroes, but Judith Jones deserves that accolade. Julia Child was one of several cookbook authors she 'discovered', and she also was the one who told Doubleday that they just HAD to publish "The Diary of Anne Frank".

                              in reply to: What are You Baking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8391
                              Mike Nolan
                              Keymaster

                                I made hoagie rolls today in preparation for tomorrow's meals. I forgot to put the butter in the dough, it was still in the microwave. I hadn't use the sandwich roll pan in a while and probably didn't oil it enough, the rolls stuck badly to the perforations in the pan, but I was able to get them off without too much damage.

                                in reply to: What are You Cooking the Week of July 30, 2017? #8390
                                Mike Nolan
                                Keymaster

                                  Last night we made sous vide scallops and orange roughy. Both were excellent. My son made a lemon/orange glaze to go with them, it was quite interesting.

                                Viewing 15 posts - 6,766 through 6,780 (of 7,561 total)