What's the one thing you just can't cook/bake...

[kwanfan1818]

Thank you everyone! I've always been terrified of pressure cookers, but perhaps it's time for me to get over it.

Rob ben Israel made Matzoh Ball Soup for a segment of "The Best Thing I Ever Made," and it looked easier to make a souffle in an unreliable oven.

[taf2002]

I love hot cereals except for Malt-O-Meal. That sounds lovely.

[emason]

Weighing in on matzoh balls - from a mix? No way in Hell! But then I fancy that 99.9% of you would hate my matzoh balls. They are of the dense and toothsome variety, and flavored with ground cinnamon and ginger. My grandmother always flavored hers that way, and she was vindicated when someone showed her an old cookbook entitled "Recipes of Hollywood Stars". Eddie Cantor's wife, Ida Cantor, used ground cinnamon and ginger in her matzoh balls too.

I HATE, and I mean HATE, matzoh balls of the light, fluffy, airy variety. To me they have absolutely no taste or texture. Give me my grandmother's sinkers any time.

Now on to rice pudding, which I can't make worth a damn. Marge, do you do yours in the oven or on top of the stove? What's your mother's recipe like? Please post so we can analyze.

[Artemis@BC]

Speaking of rice cookers ... has anyone used one for other grains? I'm thinking specifically of quinoa. I don't have problems cooking quinoa the regular stovetop way, except for all the stirring required -- if it could be done in my rice cooker that would be even easier.

[Japanfan]

I use whole chicken breasts (chicken stock for liquid) with skin as the base of my chicken soup - I've used a whole chicken as well, but deboning it for the soup is time-consuming. I don't know the exact proportions, but would guess that two chicken breasts would do for about eight cups of soup. But it's best to start with less liquid to ensure the broth is not too thin.

To start I brown a lot of garlic in olive oil and add wine - cooking wine is okay but dry white wine is even better. By a lot of garlic I mean about half a bulb or several heaping tablespoons of grated garlic in a jar.

Then I add the chicken stock and chicken breasts with bone, bring to a boil, then simmer and cover to about 30 minutes until the chicken is cooked. For spicing I use bay leaves and savory. A bit of celery adds a flavour as well.

Then the consomme goes into the fridge to cool so I can skim off the fat the next day. I cut the white meat off the breast to put back into the soup and a happy dog gets the chicken skin.

The final step is adding other ingredients to the consomme. Usually it's tofu, spinach or bok choy, and noodles or matzoh balls. I bring the soup back to a boil for about half a minute to cook the veggies.

For a variation I'll make egg lemon soup with orzo.

This is a wonderful and versatile chicken broth.

[BigB08822]

I just royalled effed up some pancakes. Apparently Bulgarian Style buttercream is not just some fancy name. I had no idea. It is about the thickness of yogurt and was all I had so I tried it anyway. The pancakes actually looked really gigantic but they just wouldn't cook. I bet there is a way to tweak it to make it work but I gave up, fast good it is...

[PRlady]

Whew!

Yeah. You THROW OUT the chicken afterwards unless you're one of those strange people who will eat boiled chicken. I guess if I were a casserole type I would put it in a casserole but I'm not.

[puglover]

Any helpful suggestions for Yorkshire Pudding?

[Jenny]

I love Yorkshire pudding, but was failing at it miserably and using packets instead Then I found the tip that turned it around for me - you mix the batter in a jug, and then let it rest in the fridge anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours (which is also a big bonus if you are entertaining. When you've got your pan nice and hot with either drippings or vegetable oil, it's easy to pour into the muffin tin or baking dish.

Let me know if you need a full recipe - I use one by Jamie Oliver but don't see it on his website - I can copy it out from his book Jamie's Food Revolution.

[TheGirlCanSkate]

I don't have time for making old fashioned chicken soup so I take a shortcut. I buy a rotisserie chicken and while I remove the meat from the bones and skin, I start sauteing onions, carrots and celery in as little olive oil in a large pot. In another pot I toss in the bones and skin, cover with water and bring to a boil. One the water looks like stock, I drain the bones and skin and cover the veg with the "broth" - I add in seasonings to taste - thyme, a bay leaf, peppercorns and additional broth (usually from a carton). While that simmers I have started a pot of water to boil for the pasta. I start chopping fresh parsley, slice jalapenos, and green onions. I break apart the meat into smaller pieces (not tiny, just not huge). once all the flavors come together I put the chicken and parsley in the soup. I drain the pasta and put it aside. Then when everyone gets their bowl they add in jalapenos if they want it spicy, green onions for a fresh flavor and wedges of lemons to brighten the flavors. The whole think takes about 30 minutes if I put the pasta water o to boil early enough. I don't like to put the past in the soup because it gets soggy the next day.

[Marge_Simpson]

Here is my mom's rice pudding recipe. (It always turned out fabulously when she made it)

1 quart whole milk
pinch of salt
1/2 cup rice (as written, regular white rice, my mom used arborio)
1/2 cup raisins
1 can evaporated milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
cinnamon and nutmeg, for sprinkling on top

Heat milk and salt in a heavy saucepan, add rice. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 1/2 hour. Add raisins and cook 5 minutes longer. Add 1/4 cup of the evaporated milk and cook for 5 minutes. In a bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, vanilla and the rest of the evaporated milk. Stir some of the rice mixture (the recipe does not say how much, which may be where my problem comes from) into the egg mixture. Stir the egg mixture into the saucepan and cook slowly until thick. (recipe does not say how long this should be, which may also be my problem) Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and nutmeg.

If anyone gives this a go, please tell me where I've been going wrong.

[emason]

Here is my mom's rice pudding recipe. (It always turned out fabulously when she made it)

1 quart whole milk
pinch of salt
1/2 cup rice (as written, regular white rice, my mom used arborio)
1/2 cup raisins
1 can evaporated milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
cinnamon and nutmeg, for sprinkling on top

Heat milk and salt in a heavy saucepan, add rice. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 1/2 hour. Add raisins and cook 5 minutes longer. Add 1/4 cup of the evaporated milk and cook for 5 minutes. In a bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, vanilla and the rest of the evaporated milk. Stir some of the rice mixture (the recipe does not say how much, which may be where my problem comes from) into the egg mixture. Stir the egg mixture into the saucepan and cook slowly until thick. (recipe does not say how long this should be, which may also be my problem) Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and nutmeg.

If anyone gives this a go, please tell me where I've been going wrong.

This sounds delicious and when I have time I will try it out.

I agree that 'stir some of the rice mixture into the egg mixture' is where the problem most likely starts. You are doing this to temper the eggs, so that when you add the egg mixture to the hot pan on the stove, the eggs don't curdle on you. You need to do it slowly and carefully and use a small amount of the rice mixture, gradually getting the eggs heated up a bit so they can take the heat of being added to the rest of the rice mixture. You are going to need to experiment a bit. After that it is low and slow all the way until you get the rice pudding the way you want it. It is all about not curdling the eggs.

Hope this helps.

[Jenny]

For puglover and anyone else who loves Yorkshire pudding and similar popovers, I made these Nutmeg and Black Pepper Popovers last night and they were fabulous.

[Ajax]

Speaking of rice cookers ... has anyone used one for other grains? I'm thinking specifically of quinoa. I don't have problems cooking quinoa the regular stovetop way, except for all the stirring required -- if it could be done in my rice cooker that would be even easier.

Yes, you can use the rice cooker for other grains and even pulses! Millet, oats, lentils, chickpeas, beans...

[Ajax]

I cannot cook steak to save my life. Whenever I try to pan-sear it, I end up with the outside burnt and the inside raw, or if I lower the heat to avoid the burning, it just releases water and I end up with boiled steak. I've tried putting it into the oven after searing but it always ends up overcooked too. I know you have to sear on medium-high heat or even higher but that just releases tons of smoke, too. One time my fire alarm went off I love a good pan-seared steak and really wish I could cook it because restaurant prices for a good steak are so outrageous!

[kwanfan1818]

My main rice cooker is a Persian one, and is multi-purpose, almost like a crock pot: there are instructions for how to set it up to make khoresh, Persian stews. It does have multiple cook time settings. My Japanese rice cooker is very basic and shuts off when the rice is done, but how it knows, I'm not sure, which would be key to cooking other grains in it. If it shut off prematurely, the only option would be "warm", whereas with the Persian one, I can reset the time, and it's not trying to sense done.

[Lanie]

I've found making Yorkshire pudding is easiest in a cupcake tin. (Puddings? Are? Oh, whatever. )

My chocolate chip cookies are always cakey, no matter what recipes I use.

[taf2002]

I cannot cook steak to save my life. Whenever I try to pan-sear it, I end up with the outside burnt and the inside raw, or if I lower the heat to avoid the burning, it just releases water and I end up with boiled steak. I've tried putting it into the oven after searing but it always ends up overcooked too. I know you have to sear on medium-high heat or even higher but that just releases tons of smoke, too. One time my fire alarm went off I love a good pan-seared steak and really wish I could cook it because restaurant prices for a good steak are so outrageous!

Steak in a pan or oven? I've only cooked them outside on a grill. However if you must cook indoors then George Forman grill is the way to go.

[pilgrimsoul]

For me, broiling steaks in the oven works better than pan searing - I get a perfectly cooked steak and a yummy seared crust. The pan is not much fun to clean afterward, but a great steak is worth it!

[emason]

Steak in a pan or oven? I've only cooked them outside on a grill. However if you must cook indoors then George Forman grill is the way to go.

Um, yah, some of us live in apartment buildings where grilling isn't possible. It's perfectly possible to a great steak on top if your stove in a cast iron skillet, but you need to follow instructions and experiment a bit. I'm not that much of a steak eater, so for me, maybe I only do it 2 or 3 times a year.