Homemade green tea "latte"

• 3 pours of maccha
• 3/4 full cup of water
• 3-4 teaspoons of sugar
• 2 tbsp of vanilla sweetened soy milk

1. with frother, froth up the cold soy milk
2. incorporate water with maccha and sugar with frother
3. slowly add in the soy milk.

VERY TASTY! could use more maccha and more milk, but tasted like a healthy version of outside stuff...enjoyed it a lot! and its cheap to make

*probably taste way better with half and half...or whole milk

The Curry Method

http://www.curryfrenzy.com/curry/html/curry-method.html

Finally we get to pulling all of the above together to create a curry. Some of the following steps are optional and depend on the curry being made or your preference.

• Step 1. Optional. Crackle some whole spice seeds in a hot pan for 1-2 minutes util they crackle.
• Step 2. Put some oil (more is better) into a frying pan on a medium heat, add finely chopped onions and cook until translucent or slightly brown. Each gives a different flavour and texture which you can try to see which you prefer.
• Step 3. Now add the main curry powder or paste and stir in. Then add grated ginger, crushed garlic and any fresh chopped chillies.
• Step 4. Now add the main ingredient. If this is meat you should try and brown it well on all sides to add lovely caramelised browning flavours. Add some stock or water to prevent burning if needed.
• Step 5. Add stock or water to cover the ingredients and simmer until main ingredient is cooked.
• Step 6. Add the sauce body to thicken and/or flavour as required and bring back to a simmer.
• Step 7. Stir in some garam massalla powder thoroughly. Optionally add 1 crushed clove garlic for extra strong garlic taste.
• Step 8. Taste and season.
• Step 9. Optional. Garnish the finished dish with coriander leaves or a dash of yogurt or twirl of cream or some ground or sliced nuts.

Depending on the main ingredient, most curries are quite tolerant of longer cooking and will keep on a low simmer while other cooking catches up. Alternatively remove from the heat then reheat through just before serving.

Water Content of Ingredients

Water content in foods varies widely. A large number of foods are more than half water by weight, including boiled oatmeal (84.5%), cooked macaroni (78.4%), boiled eggs (73.2%), boiled rice (72.5%), white meat chicken (70.3%) and sirloin steak (61.9%).^[2] Fruits and vegetables are 70 to 95% water. Most meats are on average about 70% water. Breads are approximately 36% water.^[3] Some foods have a water content of less than 5%, e.g., peanut butter,^[3] crackers, and chocolate cake.^[4] Water content of dairy products is quite variable. Butter is 15% water. Milk is 87% water. Swiss cheese is 37% percent water.[3

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dry_matter

meats - 70% water
bread - 36% water
butter - 15% water
milk - 87% water

No Knead Baguette (Stecca) Recipe (Jim Lahey)

No Knead Baguette (Stecca) Recipe

Recipe from My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method by Jim Lahey. If you want to keep the baguettes plain, just skip the step of embedding the garlic, olives and cherry tomatoes.

3 cups (400 grams) bread flour
1/2 teaspoon table salt
3/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon instant or other active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups (350 grams) cool 55-65F water
additional flour for dusting
20 pieces of the any combination of following: whole garlic cloves, whole olives, halved cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt

1. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, table salt, sugar and yeast. Add the water and, using a wooden spoon, mix until you have a wet, sticky dough, about 30 seconds. Cover the bowl and let sit at room temperature until the surface is dotted with bubbles and the dough is more than doubled in size, 10 to 18 hours (24 hours if you have a cold cold home.)

2. When the first rise is complete, generously dust a work surface with flour. Use a bowl scraper or rubber spatula to scrape the dough out of the bowl in one piece. Fold the dough over itself to her three times and gently shape it into a somewhat flattened ball. Brush the surface of the dough with some of the olive oil and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the coarse salt (which will gradually dissolve on the surface).

3. Grab a large bowl (large enough to hold the dough when it doubles in size. you could also use a large pot) and brush the insides of the bowl with olive oil. Gently place the dough, seam side down into the bowl. Cover bowl with a towel. Place in a warm draft free spot to rise for 1 to 2 hours. The dough is ready when it is almost doubled. If you gently poke it with your finger, it should hold the impression. If it springs back, let it rise for another 15 minutes.

4. Half an hour before the end of the second rise, pre-heat the oven to 500F, with a rack in the center. Oil a 13″ x 18″ x 1″ baking sheet.

5. Cut the dough into quarters. Gently stretch each piece evenly into a long, thin, baguette shape approximately the length of the pan. Place on the pan, leaving about 1 inch between the loaves. Embed the garlic cloves, olives or cherry tomatoes into the loaves, about five pieces per loaf. Drizzle, tab or brush olive oil on each loaf. Sprinkle sea salt or kosher salt over each loaf, remember to go light on the olive loaf since the olives are salty.

6. Bake For 15 to 25 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Cool on a pan for five minutes, then use a spatula to transfer the baguette to a rack to cool thoroughly.

Note: The baguette may become a bit soggy in just a few hours because of the salt on the surface. If that happens, reheat the loaves in a hot oven until crisp.

Italian Meringue - No Weeping!

Info:

Italian meringue is made with boiling sugar syrup, instead of caster sugar. This leads to a much more stable soft meringue which can be used in various pastries without collapsing. In an Italian meringue, a hot sugar syrup is whipped into softly whipped egg whites till stiff. This type of meringue is safe to use without cooking. It will not deflate for a long while and can be either used on pies and Baked Alaska, or spread on a sheet and baked for meringues.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meringue

Ingredients

• 1 cup superfine sugar
• 1/3 cup water
• 5 egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Directions

In a small pot over low heat, combine sugar and water. Swirl the pot over the burner to dissolve the sugar completely. Do not stir. Increase the heat and boil to soft-ball stage (235 to 240 degrees). Use a candy thermometer for accuracy. Wash down the inside wall of the pot with a wet pastry brush. This will help prevent sugar crystals from forming around the sides, falling in and causing a chain reaction. Prepare your meringue.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, whip the eggs whites on low speed until foamy. Add the cream of tartar, increase the speed to medium, and beat until soft peaks form.

With the mixer running, pour the hot sugar syrup in a thin stream over fluffed egg whites. Beat until the egg whites are stiff and glossy. Spread the meringue over a hot cake or pie, and bake as directed.

For Meringue Cloud Cookies: Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Dollop spoonfuls of meringue onto baking pans, alternatively you may use a pastry bag with a star tip. Bake for 2 hours until crisp. Turn off the oven and allow meringues to cool and completely dry out.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/italian-meringue-recipe/index.html

No Weep Merigne

Never Fail Meringue
This makes a tender meringue, and it will not weep!

2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cold water
1/2 cup boiling water
3 egg whites
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix cornstarch and water. Stir into boiling water. Cook until thick and clear. Let cool completely.

Beat egg whites; gradually beat in sugar, salt and vanilla extract. Beat into cooled, cooked mixture; continue beating until mixture stands in peaks. Spread on pie. Brown in preheated 375 degree F oven.

http://www.theingredientstore.com/joesplace/swap1.pl?noframes;read=7270

Turkey Brine

http://www.the-perfect-turkey.com/turkey-brining-recipe.html

2 gallons (256 oz) water
1 cup Diamond Crystal kosher salt*
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 bay leaves
1 Tablespoon peppercorns
1 bunch sage
1 bunch thyme