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Messages - scyrene

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1
Desserts / Re: Dulce de Leche courtesy of Bron
« on: December 16, 2010, 02:55:50 am »
I've made this three times now - I can't get enough of it (oh dear!) - I'm going to make it with my friend at the weekend, too, and maybe over Christmas for family.

One word of advice: if you forget to add the bicarb, don't do what I did - stop the machine halfway through, add the bicarb, and turn it back on. It frothed EVERYWHERE (think hot sugary milk all over the place). Still, once it had calmed down, it cooked down fine! :)

2
Desserts / Re: Dulce de Leche courtesy of Bron
« on: December 04, 2010, 07:39:33 pm »
So! It was a success - amazing how it transforms, even with the lid on!

So here's what I have done with it: turned it into homemade Baileys (equivalent)! I have blended the dulce de leche with a couple of hundred ml milk, and just under half a bottle (~300ml) whisky (I used JD, as that's what I had) - it is DELICIOUS! A great new version, which needs neither egg nor glycerine! :)

3
Desserts / Re: Dulce de Leche courtesy of Bron
« on: December 04, 2010, 05:56:15 pm »
I am currently making this - it's a bit of a test to see if my machine is working again, after a part was replaced. I'll report back!

4
Starters and Snacks / Chicken Stock Concentrate
« on: November 29, 2010, 12:12:50 pm »
Chicken Stock Concentrate
Ingredients:
One chicken carcass, or equivalent in bones
Two medium carrots, washed and roughly chopped
One onion, peeled and roughly chopped
One or two sticks of celery, washed and roughly chopped
Half a dozen black peppercorns
A bayleaf (optional)


Preparation:
Put the ingredients into the steaming basket - you may have to press down to fit them all in (the carcass will crush into a fairly tight space) - and even then, the lid may only just fit (but it will!).
Put the basket into the jug, and pour in water to come up about halfway into the bowl (i.e. to the top fill level in the jug, but obviously it'll be less than 2 litres, as some of the volume is taken up by ingredients).
Put the jug onto the machine base, and fix the lid - try to press the measuring cup into the hole, but don't worry if it doesn't fit properly - as the meat and vegetables cook, they'll soften and break up, taking up less space.
Set the machine to 100ºC, 30 mins, speed around 2.
After this time, lower the temperature to 90ºC, and set it again for 60 mins, same speed.
Then, remove the basket carefully (using the spatula as a handle), making sure all the liquid drains into the jug.
Reset the machine, without the measuring cap on, to 70ºC, speed 4, for 60 mins.
Check the amount of liquid remaining - the smaller the volume, the more concentrated it is, but you don't want it to boil dry. I'd stick it on for another 30 mins minimum, same speed and temp as the previous step. You are aiming for no more than a couple of cups of liquid at the end (rather less than 500ml I'd say), but it's a matter of taste.
Pour through a sieve into a jug or bowl, leave to cool.
Once cool, place in the fridge, preferably overnight.
Any fat will have risen to the surface and solidified (it does not set hard, more like softened butter). This will separate off from the stock, which should have set into a jelly.

Tips/Hints:
I'd been making stock in my TM for a while, before it occurred to me it would be the perfect device for concentrating it down. The combination of relatively low temperature and high speed means the water evaporates without the flavours becoming too caramelised or even burned.
You can add salt to taste, once the stock has been strained, but it is not essential.
If you use a previously-roasted carcass, you'll get much less fat, but it will still taste good. The fat can be used for softening onions, or in Jewish cooking, or for roasting potatoes.
Other vegetables can be substituted - fennel, celeriac, a few mushrooms, kohl rabi, etc. If you happen not to have onion, try shallots, or leek, or even spring onions or chives (if you're desperate!).

5
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: March 08, 2010, 11:44:30 pm »
I made a Victoria sponge with whipped cream and strawberries for assembled family (to go with a coffee and walnut cake I made yesterday), and a blood orange sorbet for me... :)

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Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: February 27, 2010, 11:25:45 am »
Yesterday I did a modified batch of my potato cream (soup), and a coffee and walnut cake with coffee icing.

7
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: January 28, 2010, 08:55:13 pm »

8
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: January 27, 2010, 01:29:13 pm »
I bought a huge box of tomatoes cheap today so have been making cooked tomato puree.  But now I've run out of jars, and I've barely started on the box.  Any ideas how else to store?

How about sun-drying them? Or in a low oven if the weather's not hot enough... :)

9
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: January 26, 2010, 11:22:51 pm »
I washed it in the basket for 1 minute at around speed 5, then discarded the water and cooked it in the basket pretty much like normal rice (Varoma, speed 3-4, until done ~18 minutes).

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Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: January 25, 2010, 05:00:30 pm »
I just washed and cooked sushi rice with kombu in the TM, and steamed peas on the lid! :-)

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Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: January 21, 2010, 07:57:25 pm »
I've just made the base for green tea ice cream, using the vanilla ice cream recipe in the TM cookbook, and adding a couple of spoons of matcha. Waiting for it to cool and then I can freeze it! :-)

12
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: January 17, 2010, 08:57:13 pm »
Thanks andiesenji! I eat a lot of rice too, but I tend to only have one type in at a time, eat it, and then get another one. To be honest, I shop for price on certain products - wild rice, red rice (from the Camargue in our case), and high-end risotto rices are too pricey for everyday eating - and I'm quite happy with straightforward white or brown basmati for most things, and arborio for risotto...  :D

13
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: January 17, 2010, 05:27:18 pm »
What is "mahogany" rice? And what does "steel-cut" mean here? Like, milled by steel blades (like the TM)?  ???

14
Main Dishes / Re: Tomato and parsley sauce (for pasta)
« on: January 16, 2010, 12:20:25 pm »
And it's so much nicer than it sounds! Hope you enjoy it... :)

15
Main Dishes / Tomato and parsley sauce (for pasta)
« on: January 16, 2010, 10:00:42 am »
I've put this here, but it could go in the Vegetarian section, too.

Tomato and Parsley Sauce/Salsa di pomodoro e prezzemolo
Serves 1-2
Ingredients:
Olive Oil (extra virgin is best)
1-2 cloves garlic
1/2 tin chopped tomatoes
1 vegetable stock cube
handful flatleaf parsley

Peel the garlic, place in the Thermomix with 1-2 tsp oil. Chop speed 4-5 for 2-3 seconds. Scrape down with the spatula. Cook 1-2 minutes, speed 1, 100ºC. Add the tomatoes and stock cube. Cook 5-8 minutes, 100ºC, speed 1. Add the parsley, blitz speed 8 for a few seconds (not too long - you don't want a purée). Stir into pasta.

Tips/Hints:
This is adapted from Nigella Lawson's Forever Summer. I've made this quite a few times and it is absolutely delicious - one of my favourite sauces for pasta. It is intense, savoury, and satisfying, pretty healthy and very cheap (especially if you grow your own parsley). You could substitute fresh, ripe tomatoes for the tinned ones, or even passata if that's all you had. Seasoning isn't really necessary, as the stock cube adds salt, and the parsley is quite peppery.

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