Text 39898, 139 rader
Skriven 2010-07-09 21:52:00 av Janis Kracht (1:261/38)
  Kommentar till text 39874 av Ruth Haffly (1:396/45.28)
Ärende: A dinner party.. but you have to work first! :)(3)
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Hi Ruth,

>> garden beds, I have another type of mint besides the spearmint we
>> used.. I think that one is a peppermint.

> You would have to be really moderate in the use of peppermint as it's a
> lot stronger in flavoring.  A little would go a long way. (G)  OTOH,
> peppermint tea, if you've overeaten, would help to settle the stomach.

Yes - I planted the peppermint and made tea with it, because Ron was having
problems with his intestines from the med he takes for the MG.  It does help a
lot. We'd hoped it would and luckily first found it at the Binghamton farmer's
market.. turned out the fellow who was selling it was an organic herbal farmer
from Windsor, that was neat.  Anyway, soon after that I checked the type I'd
planted last year, and it was peppermint and it comes up every year :)

>> Yeah, I know what you mean.  I'm always looking for 'easier and
>> better' things to do with my cooking (g).

> Sometimes the better way isn't always the easiest but in the interest of
> good health, is well worth the extra time to do it.

Most things I do in that vein turn out to be not such a big deal to do.. You
know, once you've ground the flour the next step isn't such a big deal (g).  I
guess if I waited to grind flour and then make bread or whatever, that would
take a while :)  I got used to cooking from scratch long ago, when $$ was
tight.  Then it just made more sense, and we couldn't stand most store bought
foods. :)

Last night, around 9pm I made a cherry pie with cherries I found at wegman's -
boy was that good :)  A little sweet for my taste, but good :)

==Cherry pie==
Filling:
1 double crust pie crust (see below) 4-5 cups dark cherries
2 cups sugar (or less (g))
1/4 Cup tapioca
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Mix the filling ingredients and let stand for 15 minutes.  Pour into pie shell
and bake for 15 minutes at 450F.  Reduce the heat to 350F and bake for 30-40
minutes more.  Cool on a rack.

Pie Crust:
2 1/2 cups flour
pinch of salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/4 cup butter
4 Tablespoons chilled water, more may be needed.  If so, add only a teaspoon at
  at a time.

In a bowl, place the flour and pinch of salt, and 1/2 the shortening.  Work it
in with your fingers and then add the butter and rest of the shortening and the
cold water. When it can be gathered into a ball, stop working it. Cut in half..
use 1/2 for the bottom of the pie, fill the bottm with the filling, and roll
out the 2nd half for a pricked topcrust.  Preheat the oven to 450F.
===

> We'll be trying it out, as well as our new ravioli maker (slightly
> different from yours--one piece, no "dimple maker" piece) when we get
> back to NC.

Sounds interesting :)  What's the name and or company?  I don't think I've seen
that one :)

>  This one makes 12, came with a "cute little rolling pin"
> (Steve's words) and has "sticky" feet so it won't try to get away from
> you as you roll.

That's a bonus :)  When I have the counter cleared off and have lots of room
the one I have doesn't seem to move as much (g).  I wish I'd had time to show
you how the villaware attacment for the Atlas macaroni machine works - you
might have like that one as well.  At first I thought the raviolis were going
to be too small, like the atlas attachment I have, but that wasn't the case.
they're about the size of the villaware stand-alone that we used that day.

>> It involves pretty much the same idea as the ricotta, but also
>> requires kneading by hand and cutting the curds. Not impossible if
>> Steve does the kneading for you :)  I'm not sure, but I think the whey
>> from making ricotta would not work.

> OK, proper instructions do help.  I thought you had said that the whey
> could be used but I must have mixed up the cheeses in my head.

No, I don't think so.... I think I was remembering wrong (grin). I remembered
reading that recipe, but I'd never made it.

> But I doubt she will try making it. (G)

It's not easy for older folks to take the time to do it.. I know how hard just
regular cooking was for Mom as she got older.  What kills me is my Aunt
Carmeline, one of Mom's older sisters.. she still cooks complete dinners every
night since her son, my cousin, moved back home last year.  She tells me that
she's really wiped out after she does it, but doesn't think she has much choice
:(   I wish Billy, my cousin, would give her break :(

>> Maybe you can find a couple of dozen at farmer's markets in your
>> area... I didn't see Italian Tomatoes at ours, but I know Wegman's
>> gets them locally later in the year.  Mine should be coming around
>> soon, we've had really good warm weather.

> We've also got a produce stand locally that would have them.  I got my
> salsa tomatoes there last year.

That's great :)  Windsor also has a farmer's market but unfortunately, none of
the local farmers sell veggies or fruit there.. they all take their produce to
the binghamton farmer's market.  The only thing I've seen at the Windsor market
is homemade jams, bread and such.  One of these years I should get my extra
veggies there :)  I don't know if the village charges a fee to do so, but I
have a feeling they will.

>> > I'll try to find an exact temperature.  Steve was speculating about
>> > heating the milk in a microwave oven--have you tried that and if so,

>> I believe it's about 160F.. that's what I remember.  I have to buy a
>> new instant read thermometer.. somehow I keep killing them (laugh).

> Look for a digital.  You can also get a laser "point and read" like
> Alton Brown uses. (G)

Yes, I haven't been able to find a digital one around here .. surprising, I
thought.  Maybe I'll order one online one of these days.

>> > Again, thank you for the cooking lessons and the Chinese cook book.
>> It was SO great to have the two of you come over - I hope that you
>> find some good recipes in the cookbook, as well.  The other one I have
>> by the same author is fantastic, so I expect the one I gave you is
>> also good.  You could tell how much I use that other one (g)

> Handy dandy Chinese cooking in an easy lesson. (G)

Let me know if you think of any recipe that one I gave you doesn't have.. If
the other one I have has it, I'll be glad to post it for you :)

Take care,
Janis

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