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USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

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Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

I think my Black Friday shopping this year will be focused around getting a stand mixer. Do any of you bakers have recommendations?

I've made it this far in life stirring by hand, or using a hand mixer. I think I want a Kitchenaid stand mixer, but not sure which one.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

jen said:
Tonight I have to bake the sweet potato casserole, throw together the apple-cranberry tart, assemble and bake manicotti, and frost cupcakes. I was out of town from Fri-Tue, so I mashed the potatoes ahead of time, and made the manicotti filling, frosting and cupcakes. Tart dough was already made. It worked out pretty well.
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That's a busy night! We need to bake our sweet potato casserole (cooked and mashed the potatoes last night) and then roll out the dough and make the pecan pie. (I need to go buy pecans after work, hopefully places won't be sold out!)

wolverineTrumpet said:
I think my Black Friday shopping this year will be focused around getting a stand mixer. Do any of you bakers have recommendations?

I've made it this far in life stirring by hand, or using a hand mixer. I think I want a Kitchenaid stand mixer, but not sure which one.
Click to expand...
I gather the Kitchenaid is pretty standard. Bear in mind that it takes up a lot of counter space.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

DaveStPaul said:
Ah, but did the beans get fully cooked? No they did not. :mad: I turned the cooker off when I went to bed -- it had been cooking for 12 hours -- still hard in the middle. I'll crank it back up this afternoon, see what a few more hours can do.

So there's my big lesson, I guess: even if the recipe says no soaking necessary, you should still soak yer beans.
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Yeah, the only way you can do beans without soaking is a pressure cooker, even then soaking is the way to go.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

wolverineTrumpet said:
I think my Black Friday shopping this year will be focused around getting a stand mixer. Do any of you bakers have recommendations?

I've made it this far in life stirring by hand, or using a hand mixer. I think I want a Kitchenaid stand mixer, but not sure which one.
Click to expand...
I have the basic KitchenAid and love it.

I think I am all prepped for T day. Earliest I have ever finished up cooking. Just have the creamed leeks to make tomorrow and the Turkey to brine.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

wolverineTrumpet said:
I think my Black Friday shopping this year will be focused around getting a stand mixer. Do any of you bakers have recommendations?

I've made it this far in life stirring by hand, or using a hand mixer. I think I want a Kitchenaid stand mixer, but not sure which one.
Click to expand...
I'd get the best one you can afford, they last a lifetime or at least they used to? I have a cheaper model that has been abused for 15 years or so, still works great
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

wolverineTrumpet said:
I think my Black Friday shopping this year will be focused around getting a stand mixer. Do any of you bakers have recommendations?

I've made it this far in life stirring by hand, or using a hand mixer. I think I want a Kitchenaid stand mixer, but not sure which one.
Click to expand...

I have the artisan 5 quart from Kitchenaid. I have no idea what makes it "artisan" (you can slap that name on anything, and people will buy it), but that was the one on sale when I had 30% off at Kohls, so there you go. I had pretty much the same one before that - it lasted maybe 7-8 years until the motor wore out (it is very handy that I can use the old bowl with the new mixer). I've used the "bowl lift" ones too, but I'm not sure of the differences besides personal preference (and price).
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

I wanted to make this for Thanksgiving, but very few in my family would like it: <a href="http://www.jsonline.com/features/recipes/180169181.html">Cranberry Maple Pecan Tart</a>.

Someone please make it and tell me how delicious it is. Maybe I need to make it and bring it to work.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

jen said:
I wanted to make this for Thanksgiving, but very few in my family would like it: <a href="http://www.jsonline.com/features/recipes/180169181.html">Cranberry Maple Pecan Tart</a>.

Someone please make it and tell me how delicious it is. Maybe I need to make it and bring it to work.
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Looks yummy, why would your family not like it?
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

goldy_331 said:
Looks yummy, why would your family not like it?
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Because they are picky and have boring tastes (for most of them - the blander, the better). They will say they don't like cranberries or maple (I've made maple things and not told them it was maple - and they liked it). I'm thinking of making it anyway. We need 5 different desserts, right? :) It only serves 6-8. My brother, sister-in-law and I will like it and they can take the leftovers.


edit: although I just realized I don't have enough cranberries, so I'd have to go to the grocery store. The day before Thanksgiving. For cranberries. I think I'd rather run into traffic.
 
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Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

Cranberries I can see since they're tart, but, man, how can you not like maple?
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

jmh said:
Cranberries I can see since they're tart, but, man, how can you not like maple?
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The only thing I can think of is a bad experience with fake maple. Most maple-flavored things don't taste overly maple-y, just sweet. And DELICIOUS.

Random delicious maple combination: Dill pickle spears with fresh, warm maple syrup. So. Good.
 
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Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

What are your thoughts on the "stuff the bird ~40 minutes before the end, in an attempt to avoid the salmonella problem" technique? Is it effective in having non-germy stuffing that still gets some flavor from the turkey? Or are we still just better off making stuffing outside the bird and using stock/broth instead of water?
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

jmh said:
Cranberries I can see since they're tart, but, man, how can you not like maple?
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The problem I have with maple is that the flavor and smell can be over powering at times, especially the smell if it's warm and I'm not the one eating it.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

ExileOnDaytonStreet said:
What are your thoughts on the "stuff the bird ~40 minutes before the end, in an attempt to avoid the salmonella problem" technique? Is it effective in having non-germy stuffing that still gets some flavor from the turkey? Or are we still just better off making stuffing outside the bird and using stock/broth instead of water?
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Stuffing dries the bird out, Do it with sausage in a baking dish in the oven, add chicken stock to it and plenty of butter, onions celery and an a beaten egg or 2 into the chicken stock so it holds together
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

walrus said:
Stuffing dries the bird out, Do it with sausage in a baking dish in the oven, add chicken stock to it and plenty of butter, onions celery and an a beaten egg or 2 into the chicken stock so it holds together
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Way back when, my mom always used to prepare the stuffing by moistening it with stock so it was moist before it went into the bird. Of course, she then made the classic mistake of putting the stuffing in the bird from the get-go (although it always had to be hot when it went into the bird).
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

Dressing is always better when baked separately from the bird. You get more of the crunchy bits on top, and avoid the slim chance of food poisoning.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

My mom stuffed the bird right from the get go, no one ever got sick.
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

leswp1 said:
This. Half the stuff people are freaked out about now should have killed my family yrs ago.
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Couldn't agree more. My grandmother always said "You'll eat a peck of dirt before you die."
 
Re: USCHO Cooks: Open Your Mystery Basket.

Brined, fresh from the farm turkey. COnvection oven. Anyone have experience? I asked last yr but I think it was in the other thread.
 
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