Archive for category Cooking
Stainless Steel Pots and Pans Set
Posted by GuestPoster in Cooking on September 23rd, 2010
If you already know your way around the kitchen, or are just a beginner interested in becoming a better cook, one thing will be necessary soon enough. You are going to want some good cookware, and nothing will work better that a good stainless steel pots an spans set. They can actually help you to become a better chef.
To begin with, stainless steel is durable and strong. It can take the abuse that will sometimes occur while cooking. They can get used every day and will not become battered and banged up. This material is tough enough to withstand the most vigorous use.
It is also highly valued because it will not take on the flavor of the foods being cooked in it. Some cooking vessels are rather porous, so that the flavors of the foods within them gets embedded in the material, and then can taint the flavors of other foods cooked in the same thing. This can lead to some rather odd taste sensations.
The material is also used because of its ability to heat evenly. As the metal gets hot, it spreads out in an even pattern, making cooking times more precise, and avoiding burnt and scorched meals. Even heat also becomes important when cooking sauces and more delicate items.
And these types of pots and pans clean up easily, too, which could be one of the best advantages. Keeping everything clean and neat in the kitchen is vital to good cooking, and to the health of those you are cooking for. An easy to clean set of cookware will make life easier for both the chef and the dishwasher, and this is a huge benefit.
A good, solid, stainless steel pots and pans set can be a boon to any individual who wants to cook better foods in an easier fashion. By eliminating some of the issues that occur with lesser materials, they can do just that. You can start with a few pieces, then build up to a complete outfit over time. You can become a better cook with these items.
Chocolate and Memories: Two Recipes
Posted by GuestPoster in Cooking on September 2nd, 2010
My childhood’s chocolate cake
Loads of nice memories with this chocolate cake recipe, I found it in an old box the other day, and I would like to share it with you all.
Ingredients:
350gr (12½ oz) dark chocolate
200 (7 oz) gr sugar
250gr (8¾) butter
5 tbsp flour
5 eggs, yolks and whites separated
Work the yolks with sugar until smooth and bubbly. Melt butter and chocolate together and add it to the egg mix. Add the flour, one tablespoon at the time, making sure not to form any lump. Whip the whites until firm and add them to the mix. Gently stir with a wooden spoon until it is all blended.
Preheat the oven at 180°C (356°F).
Grease a round 26cm (10in) cake tin with butter and pour the mix in. Bake for 35 minutes. Let it cool to room temperature and dust with caster sugar.
This is the cake we bake for the patron saint celebrations in my hometown: it is really as simple as it looks, the only secret using the freshest and best quality ingredients you can get.
Saint John’s Chocolate Cake
Ingredients for eight people:
200gr (7 oz) dark chocolate
200gr (7 oz) sugar
100gr (3½ oz) butter
4 tbsp flour
3 eggs, yolks and whites separated
Caster sugar
Directions:
Melt chocolate and butter on a low heat, and let it cool.
Mix the yolks with the sugar until smooth, then add the chocolate and the butter.
Whip the whites until firm and gently blend them into the egg and chocolate mix.
Add the flour, one tablespoon at the time, making sure no lumps will form.
Preheat the oven at 150°C (302°F). Grease a loose-bottomed cake tin with butter, dust with flour and pour the mix. Bake for 40 minutes.
Once it is cooked and at room temperature, dust with caster sugar.
If you like less simple things, then put your ability to test with an Italian tiramisu recipe. If, on the other hand, you think chocolate should be a straightforward pleasure, then a chocolate fountain is what you are looking for.