Something Delicious

[Sachita]

Originally Posted by ahk

Talking about agave-- I thought you'd be interested in this article. I use to use agave in most of everything (baking, drinks, food) but I had an awful spike in my sugars and talked with my MD about it and it turns out its not really that good for you. Its not a natural sweetener. Check it out!!

Also, you can buy low - acid coffee-- http://www.puroast.com/ -- I have found that this one tastes pretty good.

awww dang that sucks huh? lol It's always something. But I;m good with honey too. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

[JustLovelyJenn]

Originally Posted by ruffryder

GOOD MORNING!

who likes french toast?


I'm gonna make some with cinnamon and some peanut butter and syrup on top. I saw some with the peanut butter inside and some bananas mmm I want to try that too!

This is exactly what I am in the mood for!!! I guess I know what I am doing for dinner at my house tonight... breakfast for dinner... its a house favorite.

[Sun]

Good Morning Delicious People!!

Greetings from the Empire State

It is a sunny 45 degree's out here on eastern long island and the ocean breeze is amazing, especially after some time in the dry desert air.

How is everyone doing? I am jet lagged but will recover. Its so nice to be back home for the holidays.

This morning I had a real NY everything bagel and have to say, if you are going to do carbs, this is the way to go. Nothing quite like it. My sweetheart and I have an ongoing joke about bagels. She scoops them out and has everyone in her office doing the same thing. This is supposed to be a way of "saving calories" but then she slipped one day and said "this makes more room for the cream cheese" Aha, I thought. This is the part of the diva conspiracy, as they try to encourage carb lovers like me to toss out the heart of the sacred NY bagel. Well, as a result of this bagel massacre that occurs in her midst, she never prepares a bagel and hands it to me. Ever. I usually head to a bagel temple, where the body of the bagel is appreciated for the iconic art that it is.

This morning in my jet lagged delirium however, she got me. I received a sweet text asking me to bring her coffee at work. As I headed to the coffee shop she sent another text asking me if I wanted a bagel since they had a delivery at her office today for the patients. Sure, I replied.

So..I get to the office and was distracted saying hello to all of her co workers (who by the way all had to show me their new manicures because another co worker just opened her own nail spa and has a nail artist there who does amazing work, I mean amazing, like Swarovski crystal inlays, crazy, styling, NY bling nail art) when she handed me an everything bagel, wrapped up. So after a few minutes, I left. When I unwrapped the bagel later on, I realized that it was in fact, scooped. Dayum!! Well, I can be glad for the calories that saved me, but I was really looking forward to the whole bagel. Eventually a request for ice cream is going to hit my phone and I am seriously thinking about replacing it with frozen yogurt (which she does not care for) and attaching a note "its less calories honey " lol.

As funny as that might be, I would seriously not do that and disappoint her.

Ok so that is my bagel story for today. Perhaps I will have better luck with a slice of real NY pizza. Funny how whenever I have been away for a while I go right for the NY classics.

Another thing that I am looking forward to as the waters on the eastern seaboard get colder is oysters. We can get Wellfleet oysters from Cape Cod and they are amazing. The colder the better. I can knock out 2 dozen for a snack in no time. Shucking them is not so much fun but worth it.

So what are all of you delicious people up to today?

[JustLovelyJenn]

After the bullying fiasco with my son yesterday, I decided it was time for a piled high ice cream sundae!!! We got some good, all natural strawberry ice cream, and all the fixings to go with it.... Mine ended up with bananas, ice cream, hot fudge, hot caramel, crushed up oreo cookies, whipped cream, and of course, it was topped with cherries!! (with a side of a lactose pill so I could enjoy it and not pay for it too bad later)

On a side note... we make our own caramel, and its the most amazingly simple recipe I have ever seen.

Place a can of sweetened condensed milk in a large pan of water on top of a rack so its not touching the bottom. Keep at a low boil for 6 hours, adding water as needed so the can is always covered... open, and enjoy...

[Ursy]

Originally Posted by JustLovelyJenn

After the bullying fiasco with my son yesterday, I decided it was time for a piled high ice cream sundae!!! We got some good, all natural strawberry ice cream, and all the fixings to go with it.... Mine ended up with bananas, ice cream, hot fudge, hot caramel, crushed up oreo cookies, whipped cream, and of course, it was topped with cherries!! (with a side of a lactose pill so I could enjoy it and not pay for it too bad later)

On a side note... we make our own caramel, and its the most amazingly simple recipe I have ever seen.

Place a can of sweetened condensed milk in a large pan of water on top of a rack so its not touching the bottom. Keep at a low boil for 6 hours, adding water as needed so the can is always covered... open, and enjoy...

Bullying fiascos are never good - I hope all parties have recovered. Your sundae sounds incredible!
And yes, that method makes the best caramel ever.

Speaking of which, I thought you might like this "experiments in dulce de leche". While it doesn't provide any surprises, I think it's still interesting...

http://theheartoffood.com/experiment...stion-of-time/

[Sun]

Originally Posted by JustLovelyJenn

After the bullying fiasco with my son yesterday, I decided it was time for a piled high ice cream sundae!!! We got some good, all natural strawberry ice cream, and all the fixings to go with it.... Mine ended up with bananas, ice cream, hot fudge, hot caramel, crushed up oreo cookies, whipped cream, and of course, it was topped with cherries!! (with a side of a lactose pill so I could enjoy it and not pay for it too bad later)

On a side note... we make our own caramel, and its the most amazingly simple recipe I have ever seen.

Place a can of sweetened condensed milk in a large pan of water on top of a rack so its not touching the bottom. Keep at a low boil for 6 hours, adding water as needed so the can is always covered... open, and enjoy...

Hi Jenn,

I saw your post about the bullying and am really glad that you are confronting the oppressive system that allows that to happen. Great job! Definitely worthy of many ice cream rewards. I hope that your son is doing ok too, it is never fun to be bullied. It can be so confusing for kids.

Ok I can seriously NOT make caramel. I will have a teenager bouncing off the walls for days. She will suddenly start sneaking in cans of sweetened condensed milk. She will pretend to go to SAT study classes but will secretly be making caramel with her friends in someone's backyard. I see the writing on the wall, the red flags are not going to get by me this time. We had a 1950's themed party at work this summer and I brought home bags of candy and 50's style snacks like Twinkies that were intended to be fun fluff decorative items for the dessert buffet...omg huge mistake. Sugar high kid.

Ok maybe I will make caramel for Christmas.

Maybe

[cinnamongrrl]

Originally Posted by Sun

Hi Jenn,

I saw your post about the bullying and am really glad that you are confronting the oppressive system that allows that to happen. Great job! Definitely worthy of many ice cream rewards. I hope that your son is doing ok too, it is never fun to be bullied. It can be so confusing for kids.

Ok I can seriously NOT make caramel. I will have a teenager bouncing off the walls for days. She will suddenly start sneaking in cans of sweetened condensed milk. She will pretend to go to SAT study classes but will secretly be making caramel with her friends in someone's backyard. I see the writing on the wall, the red flags are not going to get by me this time. We had a 1950's themed party at work this summer and I brought home bags of candy and 50's style snacks like Twinkies that were intended to be fun fluff decorative items for the dessert buffet...omg huge mistake. Sugar high kid.

Ok maybe I will make caramel for Christmas.

Maybe

Do you uhh.....need our address again...???

<<lovesssss caramelllll....toffee too...js

[Sun]

Originally Posted by cinnamongrrl563

Do you uhh.....need our address again...???

<<lovesssss caramelllll....toffee too...js

Oh hello caramel girl.

If I make caramel you will get a care package for sure.

Toffee is a good idea too. Hmmmm...

I recall a time in the past when I announced to my gf that I was going to study making confections. The reply cracked me up;

"you have just made yourself 98% more attractive to most women with that simple statement"

Omg I laughed so hard. In any case, I have been engaged in a self study but would love to work with someone who is really good at working with chocolate.

[Ursy]

Originally Posted by Sun

When I unwrapped the bagel later on, I realized that it was in fact, scooped. Dayum!!

Noooooo! That is the best bit! I hope to try and make bagels some day... the recipe tells me that you boil them first before baking. I think that's interesting!

Originally Posted by Sun

Another thing that I am looking forward to as the waters on the eastern seaboard get colder is oysters. We can get Wellfleet oysters from Cape Cod and they are amazing. The colder the better. I can knock out 2 dozen for a snack in no time. Shucking them is not so much fun but worth it.

I LOVE oysters. I had a vegetarian friend who used to say she wouldn't eat anything with eyes. I said to her, "so that means you wouldn't eat a potato, but you'd eat an oyster?" She totally didn't get it.

[Sun]

Originally Posted by Ursy

Bullying fiascos are never good - I hope all parties have recovered. Your sundae sounds incredible!
And yes, that method makes the best caramel ever.

Speaking of which, I thought you might like this "experiments in dulce de leche". While it doesn't provide any surprises, I think it's still interesting...

http://theheartoffood.com/experiment...stion-of-time/

Nice link Ursy thank you. Interesting how the results were sampled after the dulce de leche solidified. I think that I would want to sample the warm product.

Originally Posted by Ursy

Noooooo! That is the best bit! I hope to try and make bagels some day... the recipe tells me that you boil them first before baking. I think that's interesting!

Bagels are fun to make. The boiling water is the key. There are many theories in NY as to how to make a great bagel. What I have found when consulting with the bagel experts is that you can never skip the boiling step and expect to get a real bagel out of the deal. Some people try to do this and the interior is fluffy not dense and chewy. It may look like a bagel but it is a bagel fraud. Also, the oven that the bagel is baked in makes it. My favorite places use older stone ovens. A brick oven would work as well. A wood fire would be ideal but even a gas heated stone oven where the bagels are cooked on the stone, make the crust hard and crispy and that quick shock of heat seals in the now formed (by boiling) strong gluten strands. This is really an art as much as it is a science.

When I was going to school in NYC back in the day (seems like forever ago now) I would stop by H&H bagels and look to see what was coming out of the big stone ovens (looks similar to huge pizza oven) and get one of those bagels while they were hot. I recall stepping outside into the brutally cold winter mornings with a hot bagel and eating it as I walked down the street to school, thinking that this was the best thing ever. All for about .50 cents.

The bagel police aka Mi Amore, believes that she is helping me by deconstructing the bagel. I really don't to have to sneak around for a bagel. Imagine? It feels so wrong, so dishonest. Some guys sneak away to a strip club with their buddies, I am gonna wind up sneaking off for a bagel or slice of pizza with mine

We both love to eat so, since I am the one who has the challenges with gaining weight, she has become carb police. You would never know that she can eat as much as she does because she clearly burns it off. So people are always asking her how she stays so thin and this is one of her tips. Scoop the bagel.

Originally Posted by Ursy

I LOVE oysters. I had a vegetarian friend who used to say she wouldn't eat anything with eyes. I said to her, "so that means you wouldn't eat a potato, but you'd eat an oyster?" She totally didn't get it.

LOL that is truly funny.

I love oysters too. I have been trying to figure out how to prepare them for Christmas. I think that I will do one platter of raw oysters and one platter of baked oysters, 3 different ways. M.A.'s oldest daughter is coming in from college in CA for 2 weeks and she loves food too, so she will enjoy the oysters as well. Now to decided on the 3 preparations. I am thinking Rockefeller for one. Perhaps a twist on it, and get rid of the Pernod. Not my favorite part. Any suggestions?

[Ursy]

Originally Posted by Sun

Also, the oven that the bagel is baked in makes it. My favorite places use older stone ovens. A brick oven would work as well. A wood fire would be ideal but even a gas heated stone oven where the bagels are cooked on the stone, make the crust hard and crispy and that quick shock of heat seals in the now formed (by boiling) strong gluten strands. This is really an art as much as it is a science.

I have to make do with an electric oven, but at least I have a pizza stone. Love my pizza stone, it's awesome.

[Sun]

Originally Posted by Ursy

I have to make do with an electric oven, but at least I have a pizza stone. Love my pizza stone, it's awesome.

The pizza stone will do the trick.

Also research the preferred types of wheat that are used in bagel making. Not your run of the mill wheat. Ha. Mill. Funny. I seriously need more coffee.

[Ursy]

Originally Posted by Sun

I love oysters too. I have been trying to figure out how to prepare them for Christmas. I think that I will do one platter of raw oysters and one platter of baked oysters, 3 different ways. M.A.'s oldest daughter is coming in from college in CA for 2 weeks and she loves food too, so she will enjoy the oysters as well. Now to decided on the 3 preparations. I am thinking Rockefeller for one. Perhaps a twist on it, and get rid of the Pernod. Not my favorite part. Any suggestions?

I haven't had oysters rockefeller yet, but it sounds really good to me.

I haven't tried this one yet either, but I think it could be good!
Finely grate ½ a thumb-sized piece of peeled ginger and mix with 6 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar, 1 finely chopped and deseeded red chilli and a little finely sliced fresh coriander. Stir in a teaspoon of sugar until dissolved. Serve in a dish with the oysters.
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/s...nger-rice-wine

We went to a persian restaurant a few years ago and had an appetizer of oysters and caviar with sour cream. It wasn't a combination I would have thought of by myself but it was absolutely wonderful!

[Sun]

Originally Posted by Ursy

I haven't had oysters rockefeller yet, but it sounds really good to me.

I haven't tried this one yet either, but I think it could be good!
Finely grate ½ a thumb-sized piece of peeled ginger and mix with 6 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar, 1 finely chopped and deseeded red chilli and a little finely sliced fresh coriander. Stir in a teaspoon of sugar until dissolved. Serve in a dish with the oysters.
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/s...nger-rice-wine

We went to a persian restaurant a few years ago and had an appetizer of oysters and caviar with sour cream. It wasn't a combination I would have thought of by myself but it was absolutely wonderful!

Jaime Oliver's dipping sauce is similar to one that I make but I do not use coriander and I use soy sauce. I like to serve that one with a cucumber salad that is just thinly shaved cucumbers and sweet onion (I do this on the mandoline) with rice vinegar, sugar, water, salt.. Let the cucumbers sit for a few hours and become soft. Then I shuck the oysters and lay some cucumber slices at the bottom of the shell. Replace the oyster. The oyster and cucumber are eaten together. You can drizzle a little of the sauce on top.

The combo of sour cream and caviar on top of the oyster is very popular in NY. That combo has long been used as a way to showcase good caviar. I like the Tobiko and Masago from Japan very much. I like to work some Nori into a wrap for a small rice cup for hand rolled sushi (think ball of sushi rice, small enough to be pressed into a small cup, then wrap a piece of Nori around that) and top off with a fresh oyster and some orange Tobiko.