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Meet & Eat: Erin Zimmer, Serious Eats Staff Blogger
"barbecue grub"? Don't the grubs fall through the grate?
Seriously, welcome Erin!
Gordon Ramsay 'Cookalong' Live
Well, I didn't cook along, because 1) my wife is allergic to potatoes, which makes steak & chips RIGHT OUT, and 2) I'm in the USA and can't get it live. Still, the recipes, prep lists and equipment lists were published in advance so if one wanted to one could prepare. And judging from the live webcams on the set, there were at least a couple of dozen folks cooking along.
I'll probably try the scallop dish another time, and the butter-on-steak trick looks worth keeping.
In Videos: Japanese Anime 'Moyashimon Microbe Theater'
Pretty cool! Except ... the organism most often used to ferment sugars to alcohol -- saccharomyces cerevisiae -- is not a bacterium, but a yeast, a member of the Fungi kingdom, biologically speaking.
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Recent Comments | Response to Comments
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I'd say yes, the specks make a difference. They make the ice cream more rustic, but not necessarily better. Some people like it that way, and some people don't. I like 'em all, and am glad there's more than one style.
Meet & Eat: Erin Zimmer, Serious Eats Staff Blogger
"barbecue grub"? Don't the grubs fall through the grate?
Seriously, welcome Erin!
Gordon Ramsay 'Cookalong' Live
Well, I didn't cook along, because 1) my wife is allergic to potatoes, which makes steak & chips RIGHT OUT, and 2) I'm in the USA and can't get it live. Still, the recipes, prep lists and equipment lists were published in advance so if one wanted to one could prepare. And judging from the live webcams on the set, there were at least a couple of dozen folks cooking along.
I'll probably try the scallop dish another time, and the butter-on-steak trick looks worth keeping.
In Videos: Japanese Anime 'Moyashimon Microbe Theater'
Pretty cool! Except ... the organism most often used to ferment sugars to alcohol -- saccharomyces cerevisiae -- is not a bacterium, but a yeast, a member of the Fungi kingdom, biologically speaking.
What's Your Favorite Local Cheese?
The Point Reyes blue is very good, and the people are friendly. My wife suffers from celiac disease (no wheat, rye or barley!) so we were concerned about the practice of culturing the penicillium mold on bread. We called Another California Blue Cheese Maker and got a brushoff, but when I called Pt. Reyes I was transferred to the head cheesemaker, who assured me that while they did in fact use bread-cultured mold, they had had the cheese tested with the accepted test for gluten and it was unmeasurable. This is now our first-choice blue cheese, and my wife can eat it without fear.
If you could create a hybrid fruit or vege what would it be?
Isn't "tomacco" the hybrid tomato/tobacco from The Simpsons?
Mine would be a strain of wheat that doesn't have the protein that causes celiac disease. It would be awesome, but isn't amusing, sorry.
Emergency Food Kit: For When the Going Gets (Really) Tough
275 servings and 23 pounds? That's just a little more than 1.3 OUNCES per serving! Heck, an instant ramen pack usually has about 3.5!
Gas vs. Charcoal Grilling: Where Do You Stand?
We use a gas grill for two reasons. One, it's really easy to stop by the store on the way home, fire it up, go inside to season the meat and prep the veggies, then grill it all. Presto, tasty dinner. When we want wood smoke, a steel box with soaked chips laid on the "grate" does the trick.
Two, my wife has celiac disease and commercial charcoal uses wheat straw as a binder (verified with a call to Kingsford), so we're playing it safe.
Welcome to the New Serious Eats
RSS is updating, but it seems to be missing a lot; I think it's just syndicating what's "before the cut". That's annoying, since RSS is the main way I access seriouseats.
Cook the Book: Grilled Shrimp with Pancetta and Radicchio
This sounds very good, but I have two questions: How is this "grilled" when there's nothing about a grill in the recipe, and why does it matter that the sauté pan is straight-sided?
Cook the Book: 'The Young Man and the Sea'
I like many kinds of seafood, but I think my favorite is maguro nigiri sushi -- the tuna and rice are near perfect if done well.
I do have to say, though, that the bacalao at Esca is fantastic.
Do Menus "Lie?"
One of the most outrageously misrepresented dishes I've seen recently was "Spaghetti Carbonara" made with béchamel sauce and baco-bits. Not an egg to be seen. Properly made Spaghetti Carbonara is one of the sublime peasant-foods I can eat for days, but this monstrosity wasn't even edible.
Midtown restaurant for a date?
I don't get to NYC very often, and I'm not sure what "not too expensive" means, but last time I was staying in Midtown my colleagues and I got a table at Esca just by walking in and asking, and had a terrific meal. It's not cheap, to be sure, but it's not Per Se/Le Bernardin expensive either!
Do You Love Iceberg Lettuce?
Oh, yeah! I've liked that so-simple salad of a wedge of iceberg lettuce with blue-cheese dressing ever since I first had it in the first-class dining room of the SS United States in 1963.
And Point Reyes cheese rocks! My wife has celiac disease and (oversimplified) cannot eat wheat or wheat-derived products becaus of the gluten proteins. When we called Maytag to ask if their blue cheese was gluten-free they refused to say for sure.
When we called Point Reyes, the switchboard connected us to Monte McIntyre, the master cheesemaker, who said that while the mold culture was indeed grown on bread, they had had their cheese tested in independent labs and found no detectable gluten.
We've been happily eating their cheeses ever since.
I like to just make a simple vinaigrette with black pepper and blue cheese instead of mustard as the emulsifier. It breaks faster, but is sure tasty.
Meet & Eat: Erin Zimmer, Serious Eats Staff Blogger
Erin:
Someone sent me a link to the blog you did on QSR oatmeal (Jamba Juice won). I've since discovered what an oatmeal afficionado you are and wanted you to know two things:
1. Jamba Juice serves Country Choice Organic Steel Cut Oats
2. You can buy them at a variety of local retailers
Just thought you would like to know.
Warm regards,
John DePaolis
Chief Cookie (and Oatmeal) Officer
Gas vs. Charcoal Grilling: Where Do You Stand?
I cook on a propane powered custom grill and many people taste that i get a heck of a lot of flavor. i've been to many cook outs and contests w/ the hardcore charcoal experts w/ their cans of bud light, to each his or her own, i just wonder how many competitions the people w/ the strongest opinions have won?
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
The specks annoy me, however I do like green mint ice cream (which bothers my mom...).
If I have to have vanilla, I prefer the French Vanilla from Vic's in Sacramento. (they have two vanillas)
Meet & Eat: Erin Zimmer, Serious Eats Staff Blogger
DC misses its favorite foodie!
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
Breyers vanilla bean!
Meet & Eat: Erin Zimmer, Serious Eats Staff Blogger
i love the idea of your elementary school's "free table!"
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
So, the question must be asked, what is the best vanilla ice cream (with or without specks)?
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I don't think so. Actually, I tried the Green & Black vanilla pictured in the post, and it was good of course, but not amazing.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
Years ago, it was supposed to imply (and it usually did) that the ice cream was of premium quality. Today however, I firmly believe it is more "eye candy" than anything else.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I work in the dairy industry and can tell you that the specks are mainly for show. Someone else mentioned that they could be ground up pods and that is essentially correct. When they make vanilla extract the pods and seeds are mashed up and soaked in ethanol to extract the flavor components. Once the extract is removed, the pods and seeds are dried and ground further to make the specks. There may be some residual flavor in the specks but not much. An ice cream manufacturer will buy those specks from a vanilla supplier by the boxful and add them to the ice cream along with extract to get the flavor.
A better indicator of quality is whether the flavor is vanilla extract only since that is a defined flavoring. If the label says vanilla and other natural flavors, that means the flavor company has padded out the natural vanilla with additional natural flavor components to tweak the profile. And, of course, when the labels starts talking about artifical flavor and vanillin, walk away.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
Good vanilla ice cream without flecks vs. good vanilla ice cream with flecks...They are a different breed of cat so it's hard to fairly compare them side-by-side, at least in my book. Each can be satisfyingly good in its own way.
I agree with those who say that flecks don't necessarily equate quality and flavor in a vanilla ice cream.
I'm hoping for a debate about coffee ice cream. There are some really bad coffee ice creams out there and I wonder if coffee ice cream lands on the SE Team's list of classic ice cream flavors.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
Mmm vanilla bean ice cream... I'm a flecks person myself, but I don't think it conveys "quality".
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I don't really care if it has flecks or not. If the ice cream is good, then the ice cream is good.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
As far as taste goes I really don't think there's a difference - but I really enjoy me some black specks, and make sure to add them to mine at home.
Some *do* say you eat with your eyes... right?
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I like really yellow vanilla ice cream. I've never seen yellow with flecks. Only the pristine white with flecks. Thus, no flecks > flecks.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I agree with the above, I think in cheap ice-cream flecks are added for show. and the effect is purely psychological. In homecooking, I find using real vanilla to be much more flavor effective.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I'm not sure why people say it's just a psychological thing. The specks have a texture that is pretty obvious. And since we don't blend our steaks before eating them, I'd say that those specks can make a difference.
All other things being equal (air %, ingredient list, etc) I prefer specks.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
NO! it's just like green mint ice cream!
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I enjoy the specks. I know it's a psychological thing--seeing the specks. But, hey, we eat with our eyes first.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
i went to madagascar and brought home 2kilos of vanilla beans fresh from a vanilla-growing village - the beans are without a doubt so much better, for everything - the flavor they impart is stronger, more earthy and real
now, putting the beans in alcohol and drinking it is pretty nice too - let it sit long enough and it will become extract
we've made ice cream many times with them and it is always amazing
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
@lawofmurphy - I worked at Starbucks for 8 months and managed to avoid everything but the tea and the plain, bold coffee! If you're lactose intolerant, dead set on avoiding HFCS, not too fond of sweets and trying to limit caffeine, Starbucks has few options. No chocolatey chips for me!
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I've made vanilla ice cream flavored with beans, and flavored with vanilla extract. The flavor is different. Is one better than the other? Not really. It's a matter of personal preference. I like both. Vanilla extract is easier, though, so maybe the fleck in home made ice cream tell you that I've taken the time to slit open a vanilla bean instead of measuring out liquid from a bottle.
In commercial stuff, I'd say the flecks are more about marketing than anything else.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
I've read that the specks are often not really the little seeds from the inside of a vanilla bean; instead they are made by grinding whole vanilla pods that have been made into extract then dried.
The Vanilla Ice Cream Wars
flecks= fresh beans. i must have the flecks.
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I'd say yes, the specks make a difference. They make the ice cream more rustic, but not necessarily better. Some people like it that way, and some people don't. I like 'em all, and am glad there's more than one style.