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Corn flour is corn starch - that's why Egaeus's was so messy.D
idn't thicken.

Hi there, I am so inspired by Donna Hay, i am organising a Donna Hay Tag, and I was wondering if you would be keen to take part too….
Here’s the link http://vanessafrida.livejournal.com/202333.html

cornflour is how the British refer to cornstarch, not Mexican masa harina

I'm going to get dizzy when the milk (eyes) are poured on the cereal (eyes) and the syrup eyes on the pancake eyes and the salt eyes on the egg eyes and the and the and the

Excuse me for a moment.

This is a great idea for feeding picky kids. Forget cutting things into cute shapes and whatnot. Just stick eyeballs on everything.

Or I don't know. Maybe it would backfire.

How did she get the eyeballs to float on the milk like that? Why didn't they sink?

...one time my vegetarian friend told me she "doesn't eat anything with eyes". I think I'll send this to her.

Is it me, or does that egg look a little scared?
LOVE IT!

The more I look at the photo, I'm leaning toward feeling terrified...

Let the people who eat fast food eat the manipulated farmed fish and this will free up more wild fish for those of us who still cook.

The problem with the original recipe is that Mr Beard was trying to adjust from Mexican ingredients to something more "approachable" for US consumers. Today I doubt he would do that because the best ingredients are widely available.

First, you should use Crema Mexicana, the slightly sour and very thick cream available by the pound in Mexican markets (the best choice) or in jars near the cheese in most supermarkets (not quite as good as the bulk product, but usable). You should also roast a serrano pepper in a dry pan until the skin blisters, and peel the skin and cap off to replace the Tabasco. So the recipe I would try is:

1-2 firm ripe (not over ripe) avocados, peeled, and pit removed, then mashed with a fork.
1 1/2 cups chicken broth (canned low fat is ok, but real chicken stock is preferable of course)
1 roasted and peeled serrano chile (I leave the seeds - it is going to be blended!)
1/2 cup Crema Mexicana

Blend all these ingredients in the blender until just smooth. Add the juice of one lime and a little chopped cilantro to the top of each serving. It is best if this is made and left to warm to near room temperature before serving. If it is too cold, the avocado flavor will be greatly reduced.

The problem with avocados and soup is that the flavor of avocado is so gentle and soft that almost anything will overwhelm it. The only soup I really like avocado in is Tortilla Soup where the avocado is cut into dice - it's more useful as texture and bulk within the overall theme than it is useful for flavor.

Here's a recipe for Avocado Bisque : (Remembering, of course, that this is not a real bisque as bisque is not made by this method nor is avocado a French vegetable/fruit therefore one could argue if one wanted to that a French definer should not be added to it).

Ingredients
1 large avocado or 2 smaller ones* cut into chunks
1/2 C lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
Salt and Pepper
1 1/2 C rich chicken broth**
3/4 C heavy cream
Croutons if desired

Action Plan
Pour lemon juice over avocado and mash gently. Leave pieces the size of peas. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put mixture into non-stick saucepan over low heat while slowly stirring in chicken broth then heavy cream. Bring to simmer and cook two minutes then serve hot with croutons or chill and serve later.

I always prefer hot soup in chilly weather and cold soup in hot weather - it seems to be useful in a yin/yang physical balance sort of way.

Notes
*There are two varieties of avocados generally available in most grocery stores in the US - the smooth-skinned lighter one and the dark bumpy skinned ones which are Haas. Haas avocados have a much denser flavor and I would advise their use. Two of them if they are regular size maybe even three if they are particularly small.

**Rich chicken broth is specified here because it gives body to the soup and flavor. If salt-free or fat-free broth is used the soup simply will not be what it could be, taste-wise. Homemade chicken broth is best for it does have fuller flavor than anything in a can if it's made right - but of course a decent soup can be made with good canned broth.

I think what killed your soup was the sour cream and lack of balance.

It's possible that when he wrote that book James Beard was using avocados with a much better flavor. Our fruits and vegetables and even meats generally available to the public have been losing flavor quality over the years since in leaps and bounds.

Corn flour is what you use to make tortillas and enchiladas. It's typically sold under the Maseca brand, but others are available. It's also known as masa harina.

I used Lan Chi chili paste with Garlic. It tasted great.

I'm not crazy about the recipe though. It was messy to eat. Try as I might, I couldn't get the coating to be anything but a sloppy mess without overcooking the chicken. It may have been something I did wrong. I used greek style yogurt because that's what I had. Maybe it was too high in fat. I believe that it might be better with deboned chicken that you can eat with a knife and fork. The taste was great though.