Perhaps make the batter and let it rest in the fridge overnight before baking, and baking the batter cold? It will allow the flour to properly hydrate from the moisture in the batter, which will generally result in a thicker batter which resists topping sinkage. Good luck!
Once at a bakery where I used to work, we made key lime pie and would typically make it with Carnation condensed milk. One time, we got Dairy Girl brand (I think?) instead. It was different enough that it didn't allow the pie to set up when baked, and I believe the first ingredient on it's list was sugar and not milk. So, beware that different brands may vary depending on the application.
Definitely eating at Short Leash Hot Dogs in Phoenix is the best food truck experience I've had. Super good food and super nice people!
#2 (cheeseburger) Animal Style, fries well-done, and a root beer. I don't mess around with the shakes, I've had them many times and find them kinda blah. And for those of you complaining about rappy fries, I'd generally agree with you, except for the Phoenix location just off the 202 and Scottsdale/Rural. Amazingly, they're the best InO fries I've ever had, including Cali locations. They're always cooked well and not limp. Hot and crispy every time. Don't know how they do it.
The brand of ranch I prefer is Litehouse brand, sold in the jar (not the bottle) in the refrigerated produce section. It's all normal, natural ingredients and good texture. I'm mostly heartened by the fact that it requires refrigeration, and it's not some Frankenstein dressing that's shelf-stable even though it includes egg and dairy products.
@missmochi - I agree! I think the idea of tres leches cake is strange and I don't care for soggy cake.
Maybe some sort of avocado soup, pureed? That might be tasty.
That looks awesome now! They should make ones that come like that, with two colors.
@wednesdayvail - what's cake batter popcorn??
@A Serial Cereal Eater - Uncooked spaghetti!! I would do that, too! It's so gross now, to think about haha.
Another thing I love that's kinda weird, is sea salt Kettle chips dipped in ketchup. It's like really crispy fries!! :D
Usually, it's Ben & Jerry's right out of the pint container... and usually I'm done when the spoon hits the bottom :-/
Something I haven't eaten in years that I loved as a kid, was leftovers of those crappy frozen fish sticks. Thing was, I wouldn't reheat the leftovers, I'd just eat them cold out of the fridge with plenty of ketchup. So tasty!
I remember Lays had a dill pickle-flavored potato chip out in AZ around 2005 that I really liked, but haven't seen it for several years. I think they stopped distributing that flavor in the southwest, maybe it didn't do so well? :(
@carmason - that sounds great!
@BitchinFixins - don't be afraid :) Provided you're using a recipe from a trusted source, and follow it to the letter, you should have success. As far as the yeast goes, would that be considered yeast in cake form? I'm sure you can find resources online that will be able to tell you the correct amounts for conversion to compressed fresh yeast from dry. Good luck!
I looove PBS cooking shows! America's Test Kitchen and Cook's Country are my favorites, and Mexico: One Plate at a Time when I manage to catch it. I happened to watch some show with John Besh recently and he made the best looking gnocchi! Thankfully I found the recipe online and I'll be making it when I get a food mill or ricer!
You're welcome! I especially love her tip about how the macaron batter ("macronage" I think?) should flow like lava when it's ready to be piped. It takes a bit of practice to see what this means, but it's a spot-on tip.
A word of advice for you macaron first-timers: Brave Tart's blog has a great post on making macs and it's very helpful cause she describes the procedure in great detail. I've had great success with her recipe and method! http://bravetart.com/recipes/Macarons
A word of advice for you macaron first-timers: Brave Tart's blog has a great post on making macs and it's very helpful cause she describes the procedure in great detail. I've had great success with her recipe and method! http://bravetart.com/recipes/Macarons
@LearP - Ugh I totally agree with you! Jack In The Box tacos are like sacrilege in the world of tacos. Who the f*** puts American cheese on a taco?! That's just wrong.
Agreed on the mayo comment! I can't tolerate it on my sandwiches, and if I make chicken/tuna salad, I'll do like over 2/3 the dressing as sour cream, with just a little token mayo for texture.
Hah! I love reading all of these. :)
That would be my own self-compiled, handwritten cookbook of primarily pastry recipes that's helped me at many workplaces. The cover is on the verge of falling off.
@redhairedgrrrl - that comment about "nobody's allergic to apples" would have pissed me off so much! They must not be very good at treating their customers well if they just contradicted you and wrote off your allergy, which could have been fatal for all they knew! Jerks.
I often wonder if I have some sort of food allergy cause lots of the time at night, i'll get wheezy and start coughing, usually a while after eating dinner (don't remember what specific foods it might've been). Sometime I think it'd be interesting to get an allergy test done, just to rule stuff out.
Most of our food experiences are, if we're lucky, quite good. However, I'm sure most of you have had some not-so-tasty experiences along the way. Tell me, SE, what have been some of your dining downfalls? Were you stuck eating someone else's sub-par cooking? Had a terrible restaurant experience? Is there a specific food that you just cannot stomach? What say y'all?
I'm curious about everyone's snacking habits! What snack foods do you have an impossible time putting down? Are there any particular foods that just get the better of you, to the point where you can't trust yourself to go near them because you know you'll just eat every crumb/drop/piece?
For me, I think I have the hardest time with ice cream, especially in pint containers (I'm looking at YOU, Ben and Jerry!). I know they're not single-serving containers, but my brain sure thinks so! God help me when I sit down with a pint of ice cream, chances are there will be none left when I decide to stop.
What say y'all, SE? :)
SE is chock full of glorious food, photos, recipes and lively discussion about all the above. I know food allergies are very common, whether it's gluten sensitivity, lactose intolerance, anaphilactic shock from a peanut butter sandwich, etc.
What foods are you allergic to? Are they life-threatening allergies, or slight ones that allow you to indulge in said food regardless, only to suffer mild disomfort later?
Here on SE, I imagine a lot of you have formerly/currently worked in restaurants. I'm curious what some of your first restaurant job experiences were like -- were you a line cook, dishwasher, perhaps in the pastry kitchen?
As for myself, I've been in restaurants/bakeries for the past 5 years now. My first restaurant job was at a local Tucson, AZ sandwich restaurant. I was gunning for a position in their pastry department but had to work on the sandwich line for a month before anything opened up in pastry. It was a great learning experience, as I had only ever done pastry and baking in my own home up til then. I learned a lot there and though I left after 2 years, I'm grateful for the time I spent there and it really got my foot in the door to branch out with my skills.
What say y'all, SE?
As I sit here, trying to finish this cup of Yoplait Light (lemon cream pie flavor), I'm regretting my choice of snack. Why, oh why did I stray from my beloved Chobani? It had been ages sincce I'd eaten Yoplait Light and I had totally forgotten about the aspartame, HFCS, and other assorted scariness.
If you all have prefered brands of yogurt, what might they be?
Feeling nostalgic for Christmastime (already!)are today, I got to thinking about food-related traditions my family has. My mom has a Mirro cookie press from the '50s at least, and every Christmas, she'd make red and green spritz cookies with almond extract. It wasn't Christmas without them. Those, and her homemade cranberry bread! Mmmmm.
What are some food traditiions in your family? Not limited to Christmas, obviously, but any holiday/occasion or just anytime!
Seeing the post made by the SE staff inspired me! What are your Easter candies of choice? I remember growing up, every Easter my sisters and I wouldthe each get a basket full of candy (and lots of Easter grass!). My favorite was always the choccolate bunny. Classic, even if the chocolate was God-awful!
I assume that most of you Serious Eaters are quite fearless and willing to try anything in the kitchen. However, most people seem to have certain dishes they're afraid to attempt either due to past failures, or just plain intimidation. Mine would be souffle. I made one once years ago and I recall it turning out a deflated mess.
What are your cooking fears?
Say the world was ending in 12 hours -- what would you want as your last meal you would ever eat?
I'm very indecisive right now, but I'd say a good homemade burger, fresh-ground, with Kenji's McDonalds-style fries and a big, frosty mug of root beer.
I've recently gotten into bread baking at home and I don't have any bread baking books yet. I was wondering if any of you know of some good online resources for bread recipes to get me started before I buy a baking book? Thanks!
I received a mandoline slicer as a Christmas gift and sadly, it sucks. It's a Joyce Chen brand which I'd never heard of. It's very flimsy plastic with a cheap blade that's not very sharp and not even adjustable for thickness. Can anyone recommend a good mandoline that is in the $20-$50 range? Thanks!
I've seen some posts on SE regarding people's favorite Thanksgiving dishes, but what are some of your least favorite ones? This may be a common answer, but to me, the turkey is always sort of a boring, dry stopover on the way to three helpings of stuffing :) what say you, SE readers?
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I have been wanting to make the Tzatziki Potato Salad recipe from Smitten Kitchen ever since I saw it! I love some good tzatziki and it's just so light and fresh-tasting, perfect for warm weather :)