GEEZ, Isn't it awfully early over there?  Go back to bed!

Since I can't play yet, I have to just ask questions.  Is the Thermomix capable of dry roasting some things?  For example, many seeds and nuts are better if they are "toasted" before use.  Sooo, let's say I want to use some pignoli (pine nuts) which should almost always be toasted first, can I just throw them into a TM and let it stir them as they toast?  What about smaller quantities, like whole cumin seeds?

I for one, realized that, and that's the frustration with being in the US.  With no one local, there's no demo or support, so I might as well buy through the internet.  Quite frankly, I think I'm into my cooking toys enough to figure it out   But I can also see the value of a conscientious rep who would help with recipes and make sure you'd get the best out of your investment.  This great forum fills a lot of voids.

I recently wrote them.  They said:

We have three excellent TM31 cookbooks in the English language.

1. "Fast and Easy Cooking" book with 300 recipes, UK£19.95 each   
2. "Demonstrator Delights", 88 favourite recipes from our UK demonstrators,
UK£12.95 each
3.  "Full Steam Ahead" with 74 steam cooking recipes, UK£19.95 each

Thanks, I sent email to the folks in the UK.  Figured the shipping would be less from there.

Thanks   Cooking has been my hobby for many years and I've accumulated a lot of fine tools.  The tall thing you're referring to is a baker's rack.  It's simply an aluminum rack with runners for sheet pans every 10cm or so.  I put break on wooden trays in there to rise.  The plastic thing is just a cover that has a zipper on each side so it can open up.  If it's cold, I can put a heated pot of water in the bottom to help the bread rise.  In fact, looks like there's some bread in there in the picture...  The animal is actually a wooden cow's head on a table my wife and son bought for me some time ago.  It's like a back splash, perpendicular to the table top, with the cow's head sticking out.

Here's another picture from a different angle.  First off, please excuse the mess.  Once a year members of another forum get together at my place to socialize (Kitchen Knife forum  (http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showforum.php?fid/26/)  The pictures were taken then.  We had about 50 people coming over



Now, on this picture, if you look center top, you'll find a tribute to my mother-in-law wearing the hat  

I'm active in the Big Green Egg forum too.  I know there are some members from down under, but not many.  This past year, I was invited to compete at BBQ competitions with a team.  You can find a lot of pictures if you're interested, of the ECG (that stands for East Coast Gathering for the Kitchen Knife group), some food I've cooked, my house, and even my dogs and me (and the rest of the family if you can pick them out) here:  http://picasaweb.google.com/unconundrum

LOL, I'm bidding on one of each    The 31 is new and the 21 is used.  I didn't look close enough.  I thought the 31 was a "buy it now" but I was wrong.  4 days to wait.  I bid on the 21 to see if I can get it for a good price.  I've read that there are some features of the 21 that were changed for the 31, and I might prefer the old features for certain things.  There's about 3 or 4 times a year where two units might come in handy