Do you think of lasagna as a sublime gourmet sensation or a stodgy, school food staple?
In Tuscany I've tasted exquisite layers of meltingly tender, fresh pasta fusing into a poem with creamy béchamel and a sparing distribution of rich ragù. This traditional meat sauce of central and northern Italy is made with finely minced beef and chicken livers or pancetta and simmered gently for hours until the flavours mellow. In spring the delicate pasta sheets have been layered with tender artichoke hearts, béchamel and ham, a marriage of delicate flavours to delight the most gourmet palate.
Lasagna (having replaced its plural e with a singular a) is however a dish that has left home and travelled the world. It has made it into the mainstream of microwave meals, supermarket suppers and been massacred in the process. Thick, stodgy sheets of pasta sandwich oozing quantities of sauce and bear little resemblance to their Italian forbears.
To taste the real Italian lasagne that I'm describing, you must take a gourmet trip to Italy, visit the hills of Tuscany or Emilia Romagna with its rich, butter-based cuisine and multitude of fine restaurants. In Ferrara, Bologna or Parma or any other of its beautiful cities, you will be able to appreciate the delicacy of flavour, the melting texture with which genuine Italian lasagne can delight the palate.
Here the lasagne is only a part of a leisurely meal. In autumn you might have started with an antipasto of Parma ham and ripe figs, tasted some fettuccini with truffles, then sampled the lasagne, leaving enough room for your main course of a bistecca ai funghi porcini, steak with fresh porcini mushrooms harvested from the wooded hills around you.
Lasagne is a dish designed for feasting - to make it properly is time consuming: rolling out your own freshly made pasta to make sheets that are thin enough not to be stodgy, boiling it briefly a few sheets at a time; making fresh meat sauce and allowing it three or four hours to simmer unhurriedly; stirring a béchamel sauce carefully so it doesn't burn; lastly assembling all the different components and layering them, judiciously spreading just the right amount of sauce for the pasta to absorb and have a bit left over; adding in freshly grated parmesan to get the balance of flavours just so; baking it all in the oven for just the right amount of time for the flavours to meld into a divine whole. It is a labour of love made at home for special occasions or ordered in a restaurant where you know they do it well.
If you want to try your hand at making an authentic lasagna from Emilia Romagna, seek guidance from Marcella Hazan. Her cook books are the best I know to help you reproduce the flavours of Northern Italy at home. I confess to not having the patience for making my own fresh pasta and so do without lasagne altogether at home. I'm just waiting for an opportunity to get back to Italy so that I can indulge in a gourmet holiday, feasting on lasagna, porcini mushrooms and truffles!
Taffy is an old-fashioned candy which has been made in one form or another for centuries. That makes sense, because it combines two of the most basic possible flavors and ingredients: sugar, and fat (ideally butter, but all too often confectioners use vegetable oil).
It's not just as easy as mixing the sugar and butter together, though. They have to be boiled together, but that creates a thick, sticky mass. Once you get that mass of sugar and butter, it has to be pulled and stretched over and over again. A long time ago the mass would have to be manipulated manually, which could take hours and was very taxing. Now, though, taffy pullers use a taffy machine, which consists of three bars that spin around each other.
This contraption pulls the taffy automatically, which saves a lot of effort for the candy maker and certainly reduced the price and increased the output of taffy. You've probably seen these machines when walking past home made candy shops; they can actually be kind of hypnotic to watch.
There's a good chance that you have heard of salt water taffy. This is actually kind of a famous invention that came out of Atlantic City, New Jersey. Contrary to popular belief, salt water taffy does not actually contain any amount of salt water.
Many different stories purport to explain the origin of the name "salt water taffy." One popular (albeit unlikely) explanation is that one David Bradley, confectioner, had his whole store flooded as a result of a huge storm. In theory, his entire supply of ordinary taffy was soaked with ocean water. Naturally he was quite put out about the whole thing, because it meant that his stock was apparently ruined. However, when a customer came in to ask if he had any taffy for sale, he despondently replied that he had only "salt water taffy." The customer thought it sounded great, bought some, and loved. When the store owner's mother heard the name, she loved it, and it stuck. Or maybe not. It sounds a little unlikely, but it's a nice story.
Taffy nowadays is made from corn syrup, butter, and glycerin, though the most common brands you'll find in stores--like Airheads and Laffy Taffy--contain palm oil instead of butter.
Taffy is a largely American phenomenon. In other countries it is extremely rare to find anything called 'taffy,' although there are many similar candies, like Starburst, Chewits, and Now and Later, for example, which could perhaps go by the same name.
One very popular type of taffy is the Airhead. Let me tell you a cool trick that you can do with one of those. As you probably know, Airheads come in little cellophane paper sleeve things. Just pinch one end of that little sleeve deal (unopened of course) and start flapping the candy up and down. It sounds stupid, but try it. As you continue to repeat this motion, the Airhead will get smaller and smaller. As it gets smaller, you may want to move your hand down the wrapper so that you maintain some amount of tension between your fingers and the candy.
If you do that for a while, you'll end up with this little compounded, compacted sack-of-flour looking thing, because you've condensed the long, thin strip of taffy into something tiny and magical. Then you can just chomp on that mother and be happy, and David Bradly would be proud of you, so help him.
You have this empty corner in your kitchen now because you did a little remodeling and moved your microwave from a cabinet and had it installed over your stove. So, the space is empty and you are wondering how to fill it up. Well, you could actually fill it up in a beautiful way and add some practicality to your space all at the same time with bakers racks. One would be a very nice purchase.
How can bakers racks be both beautiful and practical? Well, let's first talk about how they are appealing to the eye. You see, they can be crafted from all sorts of stunning materials and styled in a number of different ways using stains, paints, accents, and hardware. For instance, you can purchase one that has a gorgeous antique appearance that is crafted from a combination of metal and glass, featuring a metal frame with an aged patina copper finish supporting glass shelving that has a slight tint to it. Or, you could get another that is more modern in its look crafted from wood that has a bold dark walnut finish and sleek, smooth lines.
In addition to those style choices, there are a slew of others as well including those that have a country feel, others that are more contemporary, some that are more artsy than anything else, and you can even get ones that are colonial in their look. There are transitional options as well that combine two, three, or four different style elements, perfect for spaces that do not have one clearly defined style to them.
Now that we know why bakers racks are pleasing to the eye, it is time to talk about what makes them functional. You see, they come with shelves where you can store any number of items and display different things as well. There are options that have table tops too that give you some extra work space and there are even selections that feature enclosed cabinets. These options are ideal for if you have items that you want to stow away including plates, glasses, and even smaller kitchen appliances like sandwichmakers or mixers. If you want to have easy access to different cooking wines, then you could go with selections that are equipped with wine racks. That way when you are working on a recipe, you do not have to leave the room to get what you need for it.
If you like the idea of bakers racks and want to get one for your home, an excellent way to look into the different options is by going online for some comparison shopping. Browsing through the many is a synch since you just have to click through the online sites and their products. What you do buy will also be shipped right to you, so you do not have to fret about how it is going to be transported from place to place.
Ultimately, bakers racks are just a nice choice for putting in that empty spot in your kitchen because they are both practical and appealing to the eye.
Mickey Mouse is one of my favorite cartoons from Disney when I was young. Besides that, I also like Minnie, Donald Duck and Goofy. He has the most charming appearance of all other cartoon characters. I still remember I went to Hong Kong Disneyland for a vacation and take photo with him and Minnie. It is a good memorable moment!
As the famous character is growing popular since the old days, many food merchandise items has been in the market such as Mickey Mouse Waffle Maker, Toaster and SandwichMaker. Mickey Mouse Waffle Maker is one of the fun and cute appliance out there. It has many design and packaging. The most popular one is from Villaware. There are many types of waffle you can make such as one-at-time, 2-at-a-time, and 4-at-a-time waffle maker. You can make up to 4 slice of waffles.
By using a Mickey Mouse Waffle Maker, you can make your own favorite waffle recipes such as butter milk flavor, chocolate flavor, and so on. You can make it with your own special recipes also by using the same waffle maker. You need to change and mixed the require ingredients only.
Nowadays, most of the maker can make the shape of Mickey's face which is cute and attractive especially for kids. They will surely like to eat that as a snack or breakfast. Don't worry about the difficulty of making the waffle because it is very easy to be done and most of the waffle making instructions are easy to follow through.
If you are looking for ways for healthy cooking for two a toasted sandwichmaker or Panini maker is a good choice for quick easy meals. Not wanting another electrical appliance in the kitchen the All-Clad Panini Maker was the best choice for us. Most reviews claimed this stove top Panini maker was not only good at toasted sandwiches but also very good at grilling meats and vegetables. The stove top style is also easier to clean than electrical grills.
The All-Clad Panini maker is one of the smaller grills so it works well for just two people. It's dimensions are 17x11 inches and weighs 9.1 pounds. The actual cooking surface is 8.5X10.5 inches with 1 inch sides which easily fits two 4x5 inch sandwiches or three 1/3 pound hamburger patties. A good Panini maker needs to have some weight to it for even heating and browning. This toasted sandwichmaker has a good weight for it's size and the press is as heavy as the pan. All-Clad has a good reputation and this toasted sandwichmaker lives up to it's reputation. The grill and press heats quickly and evenly and nicely grills the food. It is important to preheat the pan and press on medium, or slightly below and to also spray grill and press with non-stick cooking spray after preheating. Be very careful where you pick up the press as parts of the handle will get hot.
Toasted sandwiches are so easy and can be made from a recipe or your imagination. For a good ham sandwich spray 2 slices of good hardy sourdough bread with non-cooking spray, layer on Swiss cheese, left over ham, canned roasted red peppers (be sure to pat them dry with a paper towel), onions, tomatoes and toast for 5-6 minutes. You can also make a healthy toasted sandwich with left over Thanksgiving turkey. Spread 2 tablespoons of reduced-fat mayonnaise on a slice of crusty Chicago-style Italian bread, layer thinly sliced turkey, artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers patted dry with paper towel, basil leaves and reduced-fat provolone cheese and toast.
We live in Oklahoma where the weather is unpredictable and the wind can blow for days and days. A Panini maker makes a good stove top grill which is a great alternative to charcoal or gas grilling. You can use it grill hamburger patties or meat like beef, chicken, or shrimp and not worry about wind, rain or snow! By preheating the pan and press on medium heat, each on separate burners, it will cook from the top and bottom, searing the meat to retain juices and cutting the cooking time it half.
For simple hamburgers, make patties, seasoned with seasoned salt, pepper and garlic and grill. Or experiment by adding 2-3 teaspoons of liquid smoke or 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce to a pound of hamburger before making patties then season with coarse black pepper and garlic powder and grill. The stove top grill will nicely brown the top and bottom of the burgers with out turning and cook the patties in 10-15 minutes.
Remember, a recipe is merely a guide. With something as easy to cook with as a Panini Grill you can let your imagination run wild!
A whoopie pie appears to be something out of a dream. Its chocolate soft cookies sandwich a light and fluffy sweet cloud of delicious crème. It can get me drooling just thinking about it. Not only does it remind me of a fantasy dessert, but it reminds me of a fantasy movie....one movie to be specific.
Tim Burton's "Big Fish" has always captivated me. There has never been another movie like it. Its soft focused yet dark look captures the beauty and depth of an old adult fairy tale. My whoopie pies....well they look like something the characters would be chowing down on.
The beautifully soft and light yummy chocolate cookies remind me of the sweet yet dark nature that Tim Burton brings to his fairy tale.
The fluffy and very smooth and sweet inside reminds me of all the fluff and floof that the main character puts into his bigger than life stories. This is what creates the central force in his life, just as the crème is the central force in the center of these cookies.
"Just a glorified Oreo," you may say, but nothing is further from the truth. It is so much better. Its soft creaminess matches no other cookie. I'm not telling a big fish, I swear....I've brought the recipe to prove it.
It is as follows:
"Tell a Big Fish Whoopie Pies"*
Ingredients: 1 cup buttermilk, 4 tsp vanilla extract, 1 and ½ cup softened butter, 1 cup water, 2 cups confectioners' sugar, ¾ cup sugar, ¾ cup Splenda, 2 cups marshmallow crème, ½ tsp salt, 2 eggs, 2 tsp baking soda, 2 cups all-purposed flour, 2 cups whole-wheat flour, and ¾ cup baking cocoa.
1) In a large mixing bowl cream 1 cup butter, sugar, and Splenda until light and fluffy. Add eggs and 2 tsp vanilla extract and blend well. In another bowl put together the flours, cocoa, baking soda, and salt, add to the creamed mixture alternating with the buttermilk and water, beating well after each addition.
2) Drop by tablespoons 2 inches apart on baking sheets greased with a butter flavored cooking spray. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool.
3) In a smaller mixing bowl, beat the marshmallow crème, confectioners' sugar, ½ cup of the butter, and 2 tsps of vanilla extract. Spread filling with a flexible metal spatula onto the bottom half of the cookie sandwich. Top with the remaining half of the cookies.
4) Enjoy with all the fantasy and richness of your own fairy tale laced with all the joy and glamour of your dreams come true.
* Base for this recipe is from Taste of Home and then I molded it from there.
