Starship Asterisk*

geckzilla wrote:I have thought about that. I admit to opting to the dry pepper flakes since they are so quick. I've also got a fear of slicing spicy peppers since the last time I did my hands burned for three days after. Some gloves would have helped.

I use peppers in everything, and am relatively immune to the effects of capsaicin on my fingers. But gloves are frequently recommended. I like dried red peppers, too, but fresh jalapeños have such a nice flavor, and just a hint of tartness, that they can really kick sauces up a notch, especially tomato-based sauces.

geckzilla wrote:I have officially perfected spaghetti sauce. The family and guests have stuffed themselves. I'd put the recipe here but it's actually pretty standard--fresh Roma tomatoes, onions, garlic, sweet italian sausage, a few spices, a can of tomato paste to thicken at the end, etc. It just takes quite a few tries at making your usual sauce to get a knack for it, I think.

That's the New York perfection. But i don't live in New York, and i don't eat sausage, Italian or otherwise.
But speaking of spaghetti sauce, i used to use it for making pizzas, as it tasted better than pizza sauce. But that may have been partly because of the ground beef or turkey and chopped veggies i put on it, before it got covered with cheese.
Every time a certain aunt and her husband would come to visit, she would order me to make pizza. I would make up 4 big cookie sheets of it, figuring I'd have enough to eat for a day or two. NOPE She'd take all the uneaten pizza back home with her. I'm glad she didn't come to visit all that often.

I have no idea where you get the idea that spaghetti sauce or perhaps sausages are some sort of New York thing, but ok. The sausages are removed from their casings and then fried and look much like ground beef. If you dislike the flavor of sweet Italian sausage I do recommend trying ground pork in place of your usual ground beef. Mmm!

Regarding the pizzas, you could try to find a topping she hates but you love and cover one of the pies in it.

geckzilla wrote:I have no idea where you get the idea that spaghetti sauce or perhaps sausages are some sort of New York thing, but ok. The sausages are removed from their casings and then fried and look much like ground beef. If you dislike the flavor of sweet Italian sausage I do recommend trying ground pork in place of your usual ground beef. Mmm!

Regarding the pizzas, you could try to find a topping she hates but you love and cover one of the pies in it.

Because you said you have "officially" perfected spaghetti sauce, and you are in New York.
I don't bother with pork products at all.
My aunt hasn't visited for over a decade, she's too old to go out much anymore, so pizza thievery is no longer a problem.
Besides, i haven't made pizza in years, I've just become to lazy
So now, once in a while, i settle for a pathetic 'bought' one.

My geographical location has no bearing on my culinary skill (or lack of). I think it would cause rift in the family if I were to shun pork. Might be a Chinese thing. I mean, they eat all meats but pork seems to have a special place.

I'm rather proud of the meat and tomato sauce I made two days ago. I used minced beef from cows that had not been given any antibiotics, ground bones from dead animals or weird performance-enhancing pills, and bacon from pigs that had lived a similarly healthy life. I then cut eight organically grown tomatoes in slices and allowed them to simmer for an hour with organic red wine. I grated my friend's homegrown carrot and added it to the tomatoes along with her homegrown onion and garlic and some organic celery. I simmered it for a while, then fried some bacon (I removed some of the fat) and fried the minced meat in the bacon fat. Finally I mixed together the tomato sauce and the ground beef and bacon and added some salt and black pepper. That's all! It was the kind of tomato and beef spaghetti sauce that my grandmother could have made, if she had ever made that kind of food (which she didn't)!

Ann

Ann, you almost made a Bolognese meat sauce. The main difference is that you start the meat in the pan first, then add the wine to it and simmer it until it's almost gone. This breaks the meat down a bit. Then add some milk and do the same thing, which thickens the sauce and enriches the flavour. Then finally add the tomatoes and the rest and simmer for at least three hours, adding a bit of water if needed. It's fabulous! Goes well with any pasta, and particularly well in Lasagna.

Rob (now I'm hungry)

Thanks, Rob! I'll do it that way next time!

Ann

As in the first first post on this thread... pumpkin bread warm from the oven.

num num num

owlice wrote:As in the first first post on this thread... pumpkin bread warm from the oven.

num num num

Sounds good! and homemade cranberry sauce; turkey drunstick; pumpkin pie with wipped cream topping; etc; etc; etc!
Gonna be full all afternoon!

Christmas nums are coming! My wife will bake some pies; I'm sure! We are going to go to my Daughter and Son In Law's for Christmas; so a lot of treats will be a surprise! Tis the season to gain weight!

I thought this was funny. I laid the pecans in straight rows and the expanding bread reminded me of plate tectonics. It formed a fault and split the rows of pecans. I knew it would happen but I didn't think of it like that until this time because of the way the pecan rows made it so obvious.

Interesting effect. Looks like Alligator Bread

That is such an elegant demonstration of plate tectonics that an ancient Greek philosopher could have come up with it.

Or maybe Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, patron saint of baking.

Ann

Today is the fourteenth of March, or,, as you Americans say, 3.14. 3.14 is π, of course, or Pi. Or Pie. So I decided to buy (no, not bake) some pie for my colleagues, and the cafeteria only had this kind of pie, so this kind of pi(e) it was. It was pretty good, too.

Ann

Ann wrote:Today is the fourteenth of March, or,, as you Americans say, 3.14. 3.14 is π, of course, or Pi. Or Pie. So I decided to buy (no, not bake) some pie for my colleagues, and the cafeteria only had this kind of pie, so this kind of pi(e) it was. It was pretty good, too.

Looks pretty good. I think we'll drive to the nearest pizza place (an hour away, but very good) tonight and have a slightly different kind of pi(e) for dinner.

How about some carbonated ice cream for desert? It's fizziness will help wash down all that Pi of any variety.

My goodness me!!!!

I think you just showed us a new murder weapon - dry ice ice cream that contains clumps!!!

Ann

ooh! That's a bit harsh. Murder by ice cream. Is that better than murder by chocolate?? Or, perhaps combine them for... murder by chocolate ice cream.

I have been on a lemon craze this summer making fresh lemonade all the time. Decided to mix things up tonight and made some lemon pudding. Just followed this recipe, omitting butter, using slightly more corn starch, and not straining the zest and lemon bits out. I tasted some warm pudding and it is so lemony and delicious.

geckzilla wrote:I have been on a lemon craze this summer making fresh lemonade all the time. Decided to mix things up tonight and made some lemon pudding. Just followed this recipe, omitting butter, using slightly more corn starch, and not straining the zest and lemon bits out. I tasted some warm pudding and it is so lemony and delicious.

Thanks for that link. SKYMAN123

Pat's mom and dad brought some bulk plums and strawberries home and I thought we'd have trouble eating them all while they were still fresh so I threw them into a yummy pie. The plums are quite tart but the strawberries are very sweet. A little sugar, a little cornstarch... delicious!

geckzilla wrote:Pat's mom and dad brought some bulk plums and strawberries home and I thought we'd have trouble eating them all while they were still fresh so I threw them into a yummy pie. The plums are quite tart but the strawberries are very sweet. A little sugar, a little cornstarch... delicious!

Shall I PM my mailing address?

Haha, I don't think it is going to survive the night. Maybe one day I can take you up on your spaghetti offer and bring a pie in exchange.

geckzilla wrote:Haha, I don't think it is going to survive the night. Maybe one day I can take you up on your spaghetti offer and bring a pie in exchange.

I got second place in our town's annual pie contest a couple of months ago with Sticky Toffee Pudding Pear Pie. Maybe we should trade...