Introduction: Cuneiform Clay Tablet Cookies. <PIC> When I was growing up, it was a family rule that we were allowed to play with our food as much as we wanted, as long as we ate it afterward. To this day, I try to take advantage of this rule as often as possible. Which is why, when I came across the idea of baking edible gingerbread replicas of Mesopotamian cuneiform clay tablets, well...I got a little bit obsessed.Last year a New York Times article linked to a blog post in which I documented my earliest efforts (I'm the anonymous blogger studying Hittite), but the process has come a long way since then.  I bequeath to you, dear reader, the wisdom gained by my previous endeavors, featuring dough recipes that (mostly) hold their own under fire, and pointers for making them look as much like the real thing as possible, including helpful links for info & inspiration.I like to make a small batch of several different cookie doughs for some aesthetically pleasing & realistic variety in the resulting tablet collection. I've included recipes for shortbread (my favorite), classic gingerbread, and honey-lemon gingerbread. As for equipment, along with the usual suspects (baking sheets, oven, mixing bowls, etc.) you will also need:parchment paper    plastic for wrapping the dough as it rests (e.g. a ziploc bag)    bamboo/wooden chopsticks, or a small dowel rod    a pen knife Step 1: Shortbread Dough. <PIC> Beat together until light & fluffy:1 cup butter ½ cup light brown sugar 2 tsp granulated sugar ½ tsp saltBeat together and add:1 large egg 1 tsp vanillaFold in:3 cups flourAfter all ingredients have been mixed together to form a crumbly dough that holds together when pressed, divide the crumbly dough into two plastic bags. Form the dough inside into a disc; it should be much easier to manipulate it when it's inside the plastic. Seal it up  tight, and let it rest in the fridge for an hour.  Note: The pictures show me making a half recipe. Step 2: Gingerbread Dough. <PIC> Whisk together:1 ½ cups plus 3 tablespoons flour¼ tsp baking soda ¼ cup sugar ¾ tsp cinnamon 1 tsp ground ginger ¼ tsp ground cloves ¼ tsp ground nutmeg ¼ tsp saltMix separately:¼ cup vegetable oil½ cup molasses1 tablespoon waterdash vanillaAdd liquid mixture to dry mixture, and work everything together with a spoon just until it holds together and forms a stiff dough. Wrap & seal the dough in plastic and let it rest in the fridge for an hour, or overnight.Honey-Lemon variationJust for fun, this makes a cookie with a different flavor and a lighter color. It's the worst of the three in terms of taking in texture, since it's soft and sticky, but it has a great flavor. Follow the same instructions as above, with the following changes:Replace molasses with ½ cup honeyOmit vanilla, nutmeg, cloves, & cinnamon (but keep the ginger!) Add zest of 1 lemon and ½ tsp lemon extractAdd more flour liberally, as needed Step 3: Roll Out & Cut Cookie-dough Tablets. <PIC> Real cuneiform tablets can be as small as a postage stamp or as big as a sheet of letterhead, but most are somewhere in between and actually reasonably cookie-sized. Rectangular tablets are usually receipts, inventories, tax documents, or personal letters. Round tablets usually contain the school exercises of student scribes, with scribbled proverbs, math problems, or simply repeated words and letters. Make a variety of sizes, and don't worry if they're not perfect shapes -- it will only make them look more realistic!Roll out dough about ⅜ inch thick, or 1 cm.  This is a little thinner than actual tablets, but better for cookies.For rectangular tablets, aim for 2 x 2½ inches up to 2½ x 4 inches.  Cut square and rectangles with a knife, a dough scraper, a pizza roller, or whatever else you have on hand for trimming dough.For round tablets, aim for 2½ to 3 inches in diameter. Bigger is more like real tablets, smaller is better for cookies. I stamp out circles using the mouth of a drinking glass.Any leftover dough can be molded into shape by hand, which actually gives you a more authentic look.  You can form all your tablets by hand, but it takes longer to do it that way.I like to roll out and shape my "tablets" first, and then put them all back in the fridge. When it comes to inscribing them, take one or two tablets out of the fridge at a time to work on. The dough will soften up as you go, and it's much easier to work when the dough is chilled. Step 4: Fashion a Stylish Stylus. <PIC> Before you can inscribe any cuneiform, you need a trusty stylus to write with.  You can make an excellent and serviceable stylus out of a disposable chopstick or a small dowel rod. Using your pen-knife, shave the chopstick down so that it is flat on one side.  Then make another cut at a slight angle, so that the cross-section of your chopstick is a triangle with one slightly curved side.Historically a stylus would have been made with a split reed. SEE HERE for tremendous practical and historical details, and make sure to scroll down for loads of helpful pictures.Optional: Make the other end into a point. You can do this with a pen-knife or, depending on the size of your chopstick, with a pencil sharpener. A pointy stylus was used to draw pictographs in the earliest clay tablets. Later, the line-drawings of pictographs were stylized into the classic wedge-shaped cuneiform we all know and love. The pointy end of the stylus could also be used to draw straight lines across some tablets as a guide for writing neatly, or to lightly trace out the text you plan to write so you can figure out the spacing beforehand and concentrate on making good wedge-shapes later. However, while the pointed stylus might have worked for real clay tablets, in my experience it doesn't work well with sticky dough.  It just rips it up and makes a mess.  I recommend using a dough scraper or knife to make the lines instead, and skipping the tracing stage. Step 5: Exercise Your Scribal Prowess. <PIC> Now it's time to settle in and start writing. This is the time consuming part, and fair warning, it takes practice and patience. You may want to start with some internet browsing for inspiration. Get ready to practice your letter forms with Omniglot and ancientscripts.com. Also check out this excellent 5 min. video on Mesopotamian scribes & making the basic wedge shapes, and see here for more tips, details & pictures. You can also use a Cuneiform Translator to write your name in cuneiform (not necessarily accurate, but fun!).I recommend beginning with a large disc tablet with lines. That's how real scribes started learning, after all. Keep a small bowl of flour on hand and to dip your stylus into it regularly so that it doesn't stick to the dough as you're working. And dig deep!  The cookies will puff up when you bake them and lose some texture, so exaggerate the forms at this stage.For the classic wedge shape, lead with the point of the triangle to make the deep "head" end of the wedge, and rock the shaft downward slightly into the dough to create the tail.The large < sign is called a "Winkelhaken." Hold your stylus at an angle, using the pointed edge of the shaft to make the bottom half of the sign. Then roll the stylus slightly into the dough, so that the long edge of the triangle presses into the tablet and makes the upper half of the < sign. See the third picture.Practice making all the different wedge styles, then move up to writing sign inventories like Old Persian or Ugaritic. Honestly, just writing out the various alphabets can make for great-looking tablets the size of shortbread fingers, and they're historically accurate too. Then, if you're feeling bold, look at some pictures of real tablets to copy. Keep in mind that it will take far more time than you might expect to write even something very simple, and cookie dough isn't as perfect a writing surface as clay is, so don't expect to replicate the most complicated tablet you find on your first try.The Met (great pictures and accurate information about size, date, etc) Spurlock Museum (same as above, but a bit more user-friendly) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (a massive hub of various collections) Step 6: Dry & Bake Your Tablets for Posterity. <PIC> Fun fact: many of the tablets we have were never intended to be preserved.  Some important documents were fired on purpose, but others (like school practice tablets) just happened to end up baking in building fires and thus were preserved for posterity.  Our cookies will be baked, but I fear they will not last for millenia to come.If you are making gingerbread, place the tablets on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and dry the dough for 12+ hours. This will help them keep their shape. After the drying period, preheat oven to 300* F and bake for 12 to 14 minutes depending on how large you've made your tablets.If you are baking shortbread, no drying period is required. Place the tablets on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, preheat oven to 400* F, and bake for 10 to 12 minutes.When you take them out of the oven they will be large and puffy, but they'll settle back down a little bit after cooling for a few minutes. The rounded, puffy edges of baked cookies will make them resemble real tablets even more than they did before baking, at least shape-wise, but unfortunately you will lose some of the cuneiform texture no matter what.The final verdict: Shortbread wins, in my opinion. The gingerbread has a more satisfying texture to write in, but the shortbread keeps its impressions better and tastes delicious. But why choose one, when you can make both :) Step 7: Delight Your Friends and Confound Your Enemies. As for you, Gilgamesh, let your belly be full, Make merry day and night. Of each day make a feast of rejoicing!


Introduction: Homemade Grape Juice!. <PIC> This Instructable will show you how to make grape juice.
Grape Juice is a bit more simpler to make than wine. Making grape juice is also alot cheaper than buying it.
I would highly recommend you give it a try!You may need to put your grape juice in the frige or freezer to stop it fermenting. Step 1: What You Will Need. Things you will need
A Colander for rinsing the grapes
A Large pan to cook 8 pounds of grapes (this will be used to mash and boil the grapes aswell)
A fine sieve to Strain the mashed grapes
Another large pan to collect the grape juice Step 2: Pick the Grapes. <PIC> If you don't have grapes, you may need to buy a grape vine or buy Grapes from the store, But that wouldn't be homemade, would it?
Picking grapes:
All you need to do is pinch them at there stem and then put them in a bowl!
You will need a few bowls to carry the grapes back in. Step 3: Wash and De-stem the Grapes. <PIC> Put the grapes in the sink or basin you have prepared. Next rinse the grapes to get insects and dirt off of them. Then pick the grapes of the stem and put the stems a side, And your done!
Note: Discard Un-ripe grapes. Step 4: Mash the Grapes. <PIC> Using a potato masher, mash 4lb (pounds) of grapes until the juice has all been squeezed out of them.
You should mash the grapes for about 10 minutes to ensure you have got all the juice out.
Note: your grape juice at the moment may look dull and grey. DON'T WORRY, when cooking the colour and taste will change. Step 5: Cook the Grapes. <PIC> Put you mashed grapes onto the stove, (in the pan you mashed them in).
Once you have brought the grape juice to the boil allow it to simmer for ten minutes.
Note: Stir occasionally , to stop grapes sticking to the bottom of the pan. Step 6: Staining the Grapes. <PIC> Now, you will need a fine mesh to strain the grapes which attaches to a tripod. Place the tripod in the large pan and pour the cooked grapes in to it. Let the juice drip though.
Note: You may wan't to leave it over night to get all the juice out. Step 7: Adding the Sugar. <PIC> The recommended amount for sugar is 3oz per pint, but I wasn't sure so I set up a blind taste test.
I marked had two glasses and put sugared juice in one and un-sugared in the other.
Next I found some suspects and, I being the only one which knew which was sugared asked the suspects to try each one.
Over all sugared won. So I sugared the juice and put them in to a bottle. Step 8: Drink!. <PIC> Enjoy you Drink!


Introduction: RENDANG: the Spicy Food From Indonesia. <PIC> RendangDid you ever hear that name? It is a traditional food from Indonesia. Rendang (we also call it Randang) is a very spicy food. Not spicy, not rendang.I believe that "for you" making Rendang is easier than say the name. Haha, just kidding.By the way, are you ready? Sure! Step 1: You Need. <PIC> WaterBeef (cut it into dices) Coconut milk  (I use the instant one)Salt Chilli Garlic Onion Chopped galangale Bay leaf Vegetable oil Beef flavoring Sugar Step 2: Grind. <PIC> Grind the ingredients (chilli, salt, garlic, onion) with mortar and pestle / blender. Step 3: Fry the Ingredients. <PIC> Fry the grinded ingredients.Add the bay leaf into the fry pan. Put some sugar and beef flavoing. Put the chopped galangale into the fry pan too.PS: Cook it slowly. Step 4: Still in the Fry Pan. <PIC> Put the beef into the fry panAdd water, don't too much don't too a little. (it helps you to make the beef softer). Make sure the water is tasty (Don't add too much sugar/salt).Wait until the water lessened/subsided (the beef will softer and the taste is absorbed into the beef.)Add the coconut milk, keep cooking for a second.PS: Cook it slowly. Step 5: VOILA. <PIC> Ready. Better you eat rendang with hot rice. Step 6: FINISH. Thank you for looking my work.Hope you'll make it better.Other food works:Nasi KuningNoodle Omelette


Introduction: Donkey Kong Coconut Barrels (Jello Shots). <PIC> Every red-blooded gamer knows at least some portion of the Donkey Kong legacy! This great ape is one of the most iconic characters in all of video-game-dom! I was first introduced to DK on the Super Nintendo. I would watch my older brother and sister play Donkey Kong Country all the time, and while I did my best to emulate them I was never quite as skilled. I never got very far in any of the DK games, but what I enjoyed about the games wasn't the challenge of the levels or the feeling of accomplishment after defeating a boss, what I always played for was the scenery and design of the levels. Jungles, ancient temples, pirate ships, volcanoes, beaches, tunnels, mine shafts, anywhere the DK clan went was some place totally unlike anything my little single-digit-aged brain had seen and those were the only places I wanted to be (you can only imagine what happened after I saw the first three Indiana Jones movies).The original concept of this jello shot came to me as I was planning to attend a wrap party for a tropical themed musical my friends had been working on. I wanted to bring them something fun for the party so I whipped up this idea with some input from my ever-so creative girlfriend. I hope you all go as coconuts for it as we did! Step 1: Ingredients and Tools. Ingredients99 Bananas (1/3 Cup) Kahlua (1/2 Cup) Unsweetened Coconut Milk (1/4 Cup) Cold or room temperature Water (1/4 Cup) Knox Unflavored Gelatin (2 packets) Hot Water (2 Cups) (Optional) Sweetened coconut flakes (1/4 Cup, Lightly Toasted)ToolsLiquid Measuring Cup (Size: 1-Cup) Liquid Measuring Cup (Size: 4-Cups)  Shot Glasses or jello shot cups Large Stirring Spoon A refrigerator for cooling(Optional) A small pan or toaster oven for toasting coconut flakes.Serving SizeMakes 14 Jello Shots Step 2: Preparing Your Ingredients & Mixing 'em Together!. <PIC> Pour your Kahlua, 99 Bananas, Coconut Milk, and Cold/Room temperature Water into a large bowl. Make sure you stir it well so that the coconut milk mixes nicely with the other ingredients. Now place it in a freezer until it's chilled. (Tip: If you're not sure if the mixture is chilled enough, touch the side of the bowl. If it feels freezing cold, then the mixture is, too!)  Step 3: Making Your Gelatin & Cooling Your Jello. <PIC> Pour the contents of 2 Knox Unflavored gelatin envelopes into a large measuring up then boil 2 cups of hot water and pour it into the measuring cup with the gelatin powder. Now stir it all together making sure to  remove all the lumpy-bits. Take your chilled alcohol mix out of the freezer and pour it into the hot gelatin mix. Stir thoroughly!Once you've finished mixing all of your liquids start pouring it into our shot glasses or jello shot cups right away and then stick them in your refrigerator immediately! You'll need to let these guys sit in there for about 2-3 hours before they turn into jello.(Tip: DO NOT PUT YOUR SHOTS IN THE FREEZER! Doing so can be a time saver if you have done it before and know how long to keep them in there, but if you leave them in too long they'll be ruined. Just plan ahead and allow 2-3 hours for them to set properly in a fridge.) Step 4: Toasting Your Coconut Shreds. <PIC> Stove Top MethodTake your sweetened coconut shreds and place them in a small pan. Place your pan on a burner at medium-low heat. Stir or toss your coconut shreds frequently so that there is an equal amount of golden brown and white color to them. Once you have about half of them looking golden brown and delicious, place them in a bowl to cool them off.Toaster Oven MethodPlace your sweetened coconut shreds on a toaster oven sized baking pan and place them in your toaster oven. Set it to toast and keep a watchful eye on it. This method is faster than the stove top, but can also lead to burnt coconut shreds very quickly if done neglectfully.(Tip: An easy way to tell that it is time to stir or toss your shreds  is if you see a little wisp of smoke rising out of the pan.)(Tip: If you don't know what I mean by "tossing" your shreds, it's that fancy trick that chefs do when they grab the handle of the pan and flip the ingredients around by shaking the pan.) Step 5: The Fun Step: Serving and Ingesting!. <PIC> After about 2-3 hours, take your jello shots out of the fridge. They should have a nice firm, but jiggly consistency by now. Sprinkle a little bit of lightly toasted coconut shreds on top of each shot and enjoy!


Introduction: Ginger Cream Ale. <PIC> Hi there, I decided to record my latest experiment for pride and posterity. Because this ginger ale is made with some lactose, it will remain somewhat sweet even after a full fermentation. Because it is made with a lot of fermentable sugars as well, it will ferment to a fairly high percentage of alcohol. (an educated guess would be roughly around 8% ABV)  Step 1: Equipment and Ingredients . For equipment, you'll need: A scaleA bowl A large pan (I used a large steam kettle, like a restaurant might have.) A large spoon, for stirring A food processor (or a knife, if you don't mind chopping your ginger by hand) And for ingredients:1 kg corn syrup solids or dextrose1 kg brown sugar 400 g ginger root200 g lactose (milk sugar) 20 g vanilla flavouring A ginger bug or brewers yeastAnd some corn sugar or dextrose for priming. I'll update the amount needed when I finish the batch. If you can't wait to find out, simply google "priming sugar calculator" and use it to figure out a precise amount.  Step 2: Measuring. <PIC> Scale out each ingredient and reduce your enemies- er, I mean ginger root, To a pulpy mash in the food processor.  Step 3: Boiling. <PIC> Put all your ingredients (except for the ginger bug culture and priming sugar) together in a large pan and add 3 liters of water. Stir the whole mixture and turn up the heat! Once it reaches a boil, let it cook for another 5-10 minutes and then remove from heat.  Step 4: Beginning Your Fermentation . <PIC> Once your brew has cooled down a bit you can transfer it to an 11 liter pail and add enough water to bring it up to 10 liters. Add your ginger bug (or pitch your yeast, whichever you're using) Close the pail with an airtight lid that's fitted with an airlock to prevent any dust or bugs from getting in while still letting the CO2 escape. (if you don't have an airlock, don't seal the pail tight; leave a crack for the pressure to escape.) Leave the brew in a warm place to ferment for 7-14 days Step 5: Cold Crashing and Racking. Once your brew has completely stopped fermenting, cold crash it in the fridge overnight to force any sediment to the bottom. Once it's thoroughly settled, use a narrow hose to siphon the liquid off. Be careful not to get too much of the sediment through the hose.If you don't have the hose for the job, you can pour the liquid into another pail leaving the sediment behind. You may have to repeat this step once or twice to get your brew more clear. You can save the slurry from the bottom to ferment your next batch with.  Step 6: Bottling . Take 500 ml of your brew and put it on the stove to heat, then mix in your priming sugar. Once it's fully liquefied and hot, remove from heat and mix in another 500 ml of the brew to cool it down. Add the priming liquid to the whole batch and stir it in.  Now fill your bottles! You can use a pail with a spigot or you can pour the brew through a funnel. Cap your bottles and store them in a dark place.  Step 7: Taste Your Sweet Victory. After 7-14 days, your Ginger cream ale should be carbonated. Refrigerate and carefully pour into a frozen glass. Remember to leave the last mouthful in the bottle because there will be a little sediment. Sit back and sip, reap the rewards of your labour! Your brew should continue to improve for about two months after bottling. I'll add more photos when I finish this project.


Introduction: Summer Squash Recipes. <PIC> My garden is overflowing with summer squash! Here are a few more ways to use it up!  Step 1: Cheesey Summer Squash Casserole . <PIC> Very easy to make! Prep time: 5-10 minutes Cook time: 45-60 minsIngredients 3 cups of squashed chopped into chunks1 cup cracker crumbs1 cup cheese, shredded 2 tbsp. butter1/2 an onion chopped2 eggs, beaten Directions1. Mix all ingredients together (leave out 1/4 cup of cheese for top)2. Top with cheese and a few cracker crumbles.3. Place in casserole dish, cover with foil or top and bake at 350 degrees for 45mins-1 hourMy kids do not care for squash, but they will eat this dish. :) Also great for to bring to parties!or *stuffed squash is also quick and easy to make. Step 2: Squash Bread. <PIC> Makes 2 loavesPrep Time: 20 minutesBake Time: 40 minsIngredients3 cups flour4 tsp. cinnamon1 1/2 tsp. baking powder1 tsp. baking soda3 cups squash, shredded 4 eggs1 1/2 cups sugar1 cup oil4 tsp. vanilla extract Directions1. preheat oven to 350 degrees.2. Mix, flour, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda thoroughly.3. In a separate bowl mix eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla. beat for 3 minutes.4. stir in squash5. Add the dry ingredients and mix until moist. 6. Pour into two well-greased loaf pan. Bake for 40 minsGreat for dessert or breakfast!


Introduction: Dark Chocolate Dipped Cherry - Individual Size!. <PIC> On a diet? In summer you don't have to give up the decadent stuff. Here's a 2 minute instructable to make a chocolate dipped cherry for your pleasure.I hope you appreciate the grainy food porn pics!INGREDIENTS1 tablet dark chocolate1 cherry1 microwave safe bowl requiredIf you're feeling ambitious: chop up toasted almonds to roll the cherry in after coating with chocolate. yummm Step 1: Melt a Tablet of Dark Chocolate. <PIC> Put the tablet of chocolate in a microwave safe bowl.
If you're lazy:
Micro it for 1 minute. You can use the cherry to stir the melted chocolate around and cover it. (How eco, no utensils)
If you're not:
Micro for 30 seconds.
Then stir the chocolate around until it melts from the heat of the bowl. This way ensures the chocolate won't burn. Step 2: Roll the Cherry Around to Coat. <PIC> Either eat it fondue style with melted chocolate.
Or pop it in the freezer for a minute - and voila - chocolate covered cherry in 2 minutes!
(PS You can microwave the leftover chocolate and swath it up with another cherry from the bowl :)


Introduction: Super Fruit Sushi. <PIC> Make some fun and healthy fruit sushi! Ingredients: Banana, Grapefruit, Orange, Mango, Jicama, Honeydew or Kiwi, Cantaloupe, Chia Seeds, Honey, and Lemon/Lemon JuiceYou will also need: Apple Corer OR Glue Stick Lid & Plastic Wrap Step 1: Nigiri: Rice. <PIC> Start by cutting a 0.25" thick slice of jicama.   Then, take that piece and cut out a rectangle that is 2" by 0.5". Done. Step 2: Nigiri: Tamago. <PIC> Cut out a rectangular piece of mango. It should have the same dimensions as the jicama from the previous step.     Cut the ends off at an angle (see picture).    Place on top of jicama.Take a toothpick dipped in honey and draw a line down the center of the mango.    Sprinkle some chia seeds on the honey.    Use two toothpicks to move the seeds into a straight line.    Do this down the side of the mango as well. Step 3: Nigiri: Ebi. <PIC> Cut out a rectangular piece of cantaloupe. It should be slightly longer than the jicama- with one end cut at an angle.   Cut the corners off to give it a rounded look.     Find the midpoint of the longest side and cut downward, at an angle until you reach the the bottom end of the angled side (see picture).    To make the tail, take the piece you just cut off and cut a triangle out of it. Tuck the tail underneath the end of the body so that it is sticking out.   Cut little valleys on the top of the body to give it texture.Cut down at an angleThen, cut straight down.Use the knife blade to remove the piece you just cut.Place everything on top of jicama and you're done. Step 4: Nigiri: Toro. <PIC> Take a slice of grapefruit and peel the membrane off.    Cut it so that it is the same length as the jicama (2").    Then, slice it diagonally.    Place on top of jicama and you're done. Step 5: Rolls: Outside. <PIC> Slice the bananas into little rounds.    Take an apple corer and remove the center part of the banana.  If you don't have an apple corer, find some  sort of cylindrical lid- like the one on a glue stick. To use it, just cover the inside with a piece of plastic wrap and push down on the center of the banana.    Remove the peel and dip the banana into lemon juice  (to prevent browning).    Roll the outside of the banana in honey.    Roll the banana in chia seeds.    Cleanup by using a toothpick to move any seeds that may be on top to the sides. Step 6: Rolls: Inside. <PIC> Cut round pieces of kiwi (or honeydew) and cantaloupe to fill the center of the banana. If the pieces you make are not tall enough, take half of one of the banana pieces you just removed and put it back into the hole- then place the kiwi or cantaloupe on top of that.    For the grapefruit, just keep pushing small pieces into the hole until it is full.    Try different combinations of fruit to make colorful rolls. Just add the fruit in one piece at a time.


Introduction: Small Homebuilt Cider Press. <PIC>      When life gives you lemons you make lemonade; when your neighbor gives you several bushels of apples, duh, make cider!  However in my case, I didn't exactly have a cider press sitting around waiting to be used, so I built this little jig over the weekend.
     The frame is made out of some scrap 4x4s and 2x4s, the plunger out of 1" pine board and plywood (just because I ran out of pine), and the screw is from a bench vise.  To attach the plunger head, I drilled and tapped a 1/4" hole in the end of the screw vise, and bolted it on.  After some use, I've found that it's best if you cut the bolt that holds the plunger on so that it bottoms out in the hole, that way you can tighten it without sinking the bolt head or washer into the soft pine board when you start pressing cider.  The bucket is a cheap ice cream maker bucket with a small hole drilled in the side and a spigot made out of some hardwood scraps glued on.  I sealed all of the parts of the wood that come into contact with the cider with a couple coats of Howard's butcher block conditioner.
     Eventually, I will upgrade the cheap plywood and pine plunger to a better hardwood one, probably oak, but for now, this one works just fine.

      When I got ready to start pressing, I quartered the apples and ground them up with a meat grinder, which I must say worked incredibly well.  I bought 2 yards of tulle to use as the press cloth; lining the bucket with it, I slopped in several ladle-fulls of the ground up apples and folded the tulle over it, then pressed away.  The one main problem with this design I found is that since there is only one hole for the cider to run out through, I had to tip the press as I was tightening it to get all the liquid out.  Other than that, no problems, only delicious fresh cider!


Introduction: Fix Your Melitta Coffee Grinder. <PIC> If you've got a Melitta brand burr coffee grinder like model MEBG8B but it won't grind anything, maybe you've got a stuck button.  Here's how to fix it.With our grinder, the buttons for 4,8,10,12 cups seemed to simply do nothing.  It turns out that the shut-off button (top center) had jammed.  Although I managed to get the button out of its cockeyed position, the grinder still didn't work. Step 1: Remove the Beans. <PIC> First, take off the lid from the bean reservoir and empty the beans into a bowl.  We don't need those little buggers bouncing all over our floor! Step 2: Remove the Controls. <PIC> The five buttons (4,8,10,12 cup and shut-off) are all located on a single plastic-chrome piece on the front of the grinder.  Using your fingernail, a very small screwdriver or other implement, insert it at the top in the seam between the chrome piece and the black plastic.  Pry gently, and the entire control panel will probably pop out easily.  It's attached with a few inches of insulated wire, so it won't entirely fall off, and there's no reason to worry about losing any pieces. Step 3: Inspect the Buttons. <PIC> A flashlight will help you get a better look at the buttons.  Each "outer" button in turn pushes on a plastic post connected to a button on a circuit board, not too unlike the buttons in your computer's mouse.  In my case, the posts are colored blue, and are sort of hidden inside a spring-like housing that keeps the outer button aligned with the post and provides the recoil on the button.
I looked at each of the four buttons at the bottom, and there was very little gap between the outer button and the inside posts.  I could see the "grind" buttons working correctly as I pushed each of them.  However, the shut-off button was indeed stuck!  The post was sort of stuck in the down position. Step 4: Gently Pop Up. <PIC> Use your very small screwdriver to lift the head of the post.  It may have a bit of a lip on it like mine did, in which case I was able to sort of lift the post out of its "stuck" position.  If you think you've got it, compare it to the grind buttons again.  Try out the action of the stop button.  Does the post now depress AND rise again?  Good!
Now, just like the cardinal rule of working on the internals of your computer:  don't be overconfident;  test your changes now, and don't be cocky, putting everything back together before you know for sure.
Plug the grinder in and push the "4-cup" grind button.  It should buzz to life.  Hit the shut-off button now, gently, so it doesn't jam. Step 5: Replacing the Controls. <PIC> It works!  Now we just have to put things back together.  Be sure that the circuit board portion of the controls fits inside the housing, and guide the controls straight in.  There should be three little teeth that gently snap into place when you press on the panel.
Get back on that horse and brew some heaven!


Introduction: No Churn Ice Cream. <PIC> No-churn ice cream with simple ingredients. Indulge in an airy, fluffy ice cream with 5 different flavors! Step 1: INGREDIENTS:. <PIC> 2 cups heavy whipping cream1 (14-ounce) can sweeten condensed milk1 teaspoon vanillaMIX-INS:Chocolate-orange: Melted and cooled 1/2 semi- sweet or dark chocolate and 1 teaspoon orange zest.Banana: 1 cup pureed bananaStrawberry: 1 cup strawberry sauceFresa colada: 1 cup strawberry sauce, 1/4 cup shredded coconut, 1/4 teaspoon coconut extract (optional)Nutty+boozy coffee: 1/2 cup creamy almond butter, 2 teaspoons coffee liqueur. I used Barney butter, almond butter vanilla+espresso flavor Step 2: DIRECTIONS:. <PIC> With a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks occur, careful not to over whip. The cream will be done when you pull the beaters out and then it stands at attention.In a large bowl, whisk the vanilla into the sweetened condensed milk. Gently fold in the whipped cream with a spatula, slowly incorporating the two mixtures together so it stays light and aerated.Scoop the mixture into smaller bowls and gently fold in your desired mix-ins.Transfer the mixture to an insulated tub or paper containers and freeze for 4-6 hours.To serve, allow sitting for a few minutes at room temperature, wet an ice cream scoop and spoon into dishes, on cones or eat straight from the container. The ice cream will melt a little quicker than custard-based ice creams, but that’s okay!


Introduction: Tootsie Roll Cookies. <PIC> After Halloween was over all I had left were Tootsie Rolls. I don't understand why kids don't like them because I think they're awesome, but that doesn't matter. So, one day I thought of putting Tootsie Rolls in my sugar cookie dough and they ended up tasting just like a chocolate chip cookie!
This recipe yields about 3 dozen cookies. Step 1: Crush the Tootsie Rolls. <PIC> Take your Tootsie Rolls and fill resealable bags with them. (Make sure the wrapper is still on, because they will come off when you crush them.) Keep them in the freezer over night so that the Tootsie Rolls are rock hard. The next day, take the Tootsie Rolls out of the bag and crush them with a hammer, a frying pan, or whatever else you have laying around that could shatter the Tootsie Rolls. The pieces should be no bigger than the size of a chocolate chunk. Gather the shattered pieces and put them in a bowl. Repeat this until you have approximately 2 cups of Tootsie Roll pieces. Make sure all of the wrapper comes off the Tootsie Roll. If there is still a wrapper on it, obviously, you should take it off and through it away. Keep the shattered Tootsie Roll pieces in the freezer while you make the cookie dough, otherwise they will get really sticky. Step 2: Alternative Crushing Methods. <PIC> If you don't like hitting the Tootsie Rolls with a hard object, or you still have really large Tootsie Roll pieces, try cutting them with a sharp knife. It is a little trickier and you have to apply a lot of force to cut them, but they turn out exactly the same way as the crushing method. Step 3: Preheat the Oven. <PIC> After crushing the Tootsie Rolls and putting them in the freezer, preheat your oven to 350 F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside. Step 4: What You Will Need. <PIC> For this recipe you will need:
2 1/2 cups of flour
1 cup of softened butter
1 1/2 cups of sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 egg
2 cups of crushed Tootsie Rolls Step 5: Making the Dough. <PIC> Cream together 1 cup of butter and 1 1/2 cups of sugar in a large bowl. Beat until light and fluffy. Add in 2 teaspoons of vanilla and 1 egg and mix until everything is blended. In a smaller bowl mix 2 1/2 cups of flour and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. Gradually mix in the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Continue this until dough is well mixed and doughy. Step 6: Adding the Tootsie Rolls. <PIC> Gradually fold in your Tootsie Roll pieces. Continue mixing until all 2 cups are in the dough and none are falling out of the dough. Step 7: Rolling the Dough. <PIC> Take the dough and roll it into half-dollar size balls. Put the dough on the parchment paper 1-2 inches apart  from each other. Step 8: Bake and Enjoy. <PIC> Bake the cookies at 350 F for 10-12 minutes. The outside edges of the cookies should be golden brown. Take the cookies out of the oven and let them rest 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheet before taking them off the pan to rest.
Once they are cool, eat your cookies and enjoy!


Introduction: Healthy and Delicious Coconut Oil Popcorn. <PIC> We make lots of popcorn for our family and friends for snacks and movie nights. We have tried lots of recipes and poppers over the years. This simple and healthy recipe is so far the best we have ever had and everyone that tries it agrees. Ingredients:1/2 Cup - Orville Redenbacher's Original or some other high quality popcorn kernels. 1 Heaping Tablespoon - Carrington Farms, Pure, Unrefined, Cold Pressed Organic Coconut Oil. A Few Generous Shakes of Pink Himalayan Salt.  Step 1: Add Ingredients and Pop. <PIC> Turn on your hot oil popcorn popper. Add heaping tablespoon of coconut oil. Add popcorn kernels. After all kernels have popped, turn off the popcorn popper and sprinkle pink salt to taste. Start your movie and enjoy!


Introduction: Easy Popsicles. <PIC> Do you like popsicles? but are you out and don't want to go to the store?  Well Read on then! Step 1: Supplies!. <PIC> You will need
- A play doh container
- Wooden skewers
- Fruit juice
- Duct tape
-scissors
All household items. Step 2: Preparing. <PIC> First, take out playdoh and wash out Thoroughly! It isn't toxic but just be be safe!
Cut skewers to size. Step 3: Making the Popsicle. <PIC> First, pour the juice in the playdough container.
Then take skewer and duct tape it into place.
Put in freezer for at least an hour. Step 4: Eat!. <PIC> Take it out of the freezer then eat!


Introduction: Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake With Chocolate Ganache and Spiked Berries. <PIC> What's not to love about a chocolate-ey dense cake made of the very best ingredients -- chocolate, butter and eggs!   (And it's gluten-free!)  This relatively simple dessert is sure to bring a "wow" factor to the holiday table -- or any table! Step 1: . <PIC> Let's start with the cake:Cake Ingredients:10.5 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) chocolate, chopped 3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter 7 large eggs, separated12 tablespoons sugar1-1/2 Tbsp. instant espresso, dissolved in 1-1/2 Tbsp. water2 teaspoons vanilla extractPreheat oven to 350°F. Step 2: . <PIC> In a medium saucepan over low heat combine the chocolate and butter, stirring frequently until melted and smooth. Remove from heat. Allow to cool. Step 3: . <PIC> Line bottom of a 9” spring-form pan with waxed paper or parchment; butter the pan and the paper. Wrap outside of pan in foil. Step 4: . <PIC> In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat egg yolks and 6 tablespoons sugar until it is very thick and pale, about 3 minutes . Mix gently the chocolate mixture, espresso and vanilla into yolk mixture.In another large bowl, using clean beaters, beat egg whites on higher speed until soft peaks form. Slowly add remaining sugar, beating until medium-firm peaks form. Step 5: . <PIC> GENTLY fold whites into chocolate mixture in 3 additions. Step 6: . <PIC> Pour batter into prepared pan.Bake cake until top is puffed and cracked, about 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack (the cake will fall). Step 7: . <PIC> Loosen the edges of the cake by cutting around the sides of the pan. Removed the pan sides. Place a disc/plate/cardboard round on top of the cake and invert onto the disc/plate/cardboard. Remove spring-form bottom and wax paper. Step 8: . <PIC> While the cake is baking make the spiked berries and the GanacheMake Spiked Berries12 oz. bag frozen mixed berries½ cup sugar½ cup water2 Tbsp. orange flavored liquour (optional)Combine berries, sugar, water and orange liqueur in a small saucepan over medium heat and simmer until reduced and thickened. Reserve. Step 9: . <PIC> Make Ganache:3/4 cup whipping cream 9 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) chocolate, chopped½ cup toasted chopped hazelnuts (reserve)Combine chocolate and cream in the top bowl of a double boiler with a few inches of simmering water. Stir until the chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.Remove bowl from double boiler and let ganache cool slightly, about 10 minutes. Step 10: . <PIC> AssemblePlace cake on a cooling rack set over baking sheet. Spread about a ½ cup of ganache smoothly over top and sides of cake. Place in the freezer for about 3 minutes until about set. Repeat with remaining glaze. Press toasted hazelnuts into the side of the cake.Chill for at least 1 hour and up to a day. Step 11: . <PIC> Serve at room temperature and topped with spiked berries.Serves 10-12


Introduction: Blueberry Coconut Porridge. <PIC> This is one of my all-time favorite breakfast recipes! It is so simple, nourishing and delicious. I love this best in the warmer months, and it's so nice to open the fridge and not have to think about making breakfast! Full of healthy fats, protein and fiber, this porridge should keep you satisfied and energized all morning.INGREDIENTS 1/4 cup rolled oats4 teaspoons chia seeds2 teaspoons unsweetened coconut flakes1/8th teaspoon cinnamon (pinch)1/8th teaspoon sea salt (pinch)1/4 teaspoon almond extract (sub 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract)1/4 cup full fat canned coconut milk6 tablespoons filtered water1 teaspoon maple syrup or honey (sub 2 drops stevia or eliminate for lower-sugar)1/3 cup fresh or frozen blueberriesDIRECTIONSPlace all ingredients in a small bowl except blueberries and whisk to incorporate. Stir in blueberries. Whisk every 2 minutes for 10 minutes to prevent chia seeds from clumping.Cover bowl and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. To serve, enjoy as-is or top with almond butter and extra blueberries (my favorite).


Introduction: Better Than Chicken Nuggets. <PIC>   Yeah I know I'm being bold with the title, but I mean what I say. I'll have these beauties over fast food and store bought any day >:)  Ingredients:  2 Chicken Breast (Boneless and Skinless)  1/2 cup cornstarch  2 eggs  1 tsp. salt  1/2 tsp. black pepper  6 Tbsps. flour  1 tsp. baking powder  1/4 cup vegetable oil Step 1: The Set Up. <PIC> Have 2 Bowls ready. One for the cornstarch and the other one with the flour, salt, black pepper, baking powder, and eggs mixed together and set aside.Cut the chicken breast into cubes/bite size pieces and pat dry with a paper towel. Step 2: Dredge, Shake, Dredge. <PIC> Coat the chicken pieces in the cornstarch *Do this a few at a time so they don't stick togetherRemove excess cornstarch. I find it easier to use a strainer for this.Dredge all the chicken pieces in the egg mixtureNow lets Cook!! Step 3: Fry Em Up. <PIC> Heat the oil, on medium, in a large frying pan.Once its heated through, place the chicken pieces One by One and Spaced Out so they don't stick togetherFry one side till golden brown (3-5min) then flip and fry the other sideServe Warm :)*Make sure when you are frying, to wear long sleeves. Oil will fly*


Introduction: Kingdom Hearts 2 Keyblade Cake. <PIC> When it comes to cake designs, I usually get a lot of notice before a birthday. In this case, my son gave me a week. One...week. I thought he would want Link or Mario or some other video game character, but he had been playing a lot of Kingdom Hearts 2 lately and decided he wanted a cake in the shape of the Keyblade. Okay...at least it's better than his brother who wanted the actual Keyblade for his birthday ("But Mom...it's only $500!").
No, the cake doesn't take a week to make - just to plan. The cake only takes an afternoon to decorate. The cake is cut out of a 13 x 9" cake. It looks like a big cake, but it really only uses about half of the actual cake. These instructions assume you already have your cake baked. So if you don't, go ahead and bake it - or buy an un-decorated sheet cake at your local grocery store. I'll wait :) Step 1: Carving the Cake. <PIC> Take a look at the photo (I've tried to outline the cuts so you can see them better). For this cake, you will use the whole top strip of cake shown in the picture and part of the second strip. The bottom left corner piece was used to make the handle and the bottom center piece was used to make the blade. The rest of the cake can be put aside for you to munch on as you assemble the Keyblade Cake.
For the handle, the square cake piece needs to be rounded out on one side and the center cut out (creating a large "D" shape).
From the inner cut-out section of the handle, the center is cut out to be used. The side pieces can be discarded (eaten). Step 2: Assembling and Icing the Pieces. <PIC> Line up all the sword pieces (except the blade) on your cake board or preparation surface (I highly recommend you decorate this cake on the surface you plan to serve it on). In the previous step, I mentioned you will use "part of the second strip" of cake. At this point, with your cake pieces assembled in front of you, determine how much of that second strip you want to use. This determines the finished length of your cake. In the photo, only about 3" of the second cake strip was used.
Remove the inner handle (to make icing easier) and ice the rest of the cake with vanilla icing. This is quick and easy using a large size 789 Wilton icing tip. Smooth down the icing. The icing will be underneath a layer of fondant so it didn't need to be really smooth and it didn't need to be applied too thickly, either. Step 3: Covering With Fondant. <PIC> Cover the whole sword (still without the blade) with marshmallow fondant (recipe here). Roll out small round cylinders made of fondant and place them vertically at the tips of the handle. Trim the height if necessary. This creates the protruding edges. then continue to cover the rest of the handle.
Trim a bit off the ends of the inner handle piece (the one you removed in the previous step). You may need to test the size by placing it in position. The area is smaller now that you have iced the handle and covered it in fondant. Once the inner handle is sized down to fit the new space, ice it and cover with fondant and place inside the handle.
At the top center of the handle, lay an extra piece of fondant beneath the top layer to jut out the top handle more and give it some shape.
Use trips of fondant to cover the ugly seams and add more details (like the ridges in the top part of the handle). Step 4: The Blade. <PIC> Ice the top and sides of the "blade" cake piece. Roll fondant into 2 round cylinders and place at the ends of the two inner blade tips. Roll a strip of fondant to wrap around the sides of the blade piece leaving the seam in the back (along the straight edge).
Then cut a top piece out of fondant (complete with the rounded tip details). I apologize for not having a photo of this step - the photo I have already has the "paint" on the cake. Step 5: "Painting" the Cake. <PIC> With the final touch of the keyblade in place, you can place it at the end of the sword and start painting.
Mix about 1 Tablespoon of almond extract (you can also use vodka) with yellow food coloring to achieve the color you want. Brush the paint on the fondant all over the sword on up to the handle. Do not discard the yellow "paint". You will need it later.
For the handle, mix about 1 Tablespoon almond extract with silver Pearl Dust, found in cake decorating isles in craft stores (or use edible glitter) and a smidgen of black food coloring. Use this mixture on the outer handle area. You may need to paint this area more than once.
Once the silver areas are done, add more black food coloring to the "paint" and color the inner handle and the "bolts" in the corners of the handle. Step 6: The Chain and Mickey Charm. <PIC> For the chain, roll marshmallow fondant  into ropes and form into rectangular chain links. Go ahead and close the links at this time even though they aren't linked together.
For the top chain hook, Roll marshmallow fondant into a rope and create a "corkscrew" to go into the end of the cake. Attach a "clasp" to the corkscrew, and then attach the base of the "clasp" to a chain link.
For the Mickey Mouse head, roll out marshmallow fondant to about 1/4 inch thick. Lightly press a 2" biscuit cutter into the fondant for the main part of the head and a smaller circle (I used a bottle cap from a sprinkles jar) for the ears. Just lightly press the circles into the fondant. Don't push all the way through. Then cut out the Mickey Mouse head.Note:Once I cut it out, I thought something was off. Then I realized that Mickey's ears were supposed to be full circles just barely attached to his head so I molded the fondant ears to make them more full circles. It looked less like a bear head then. Keep that in mind when you're cutting out your mickey head. Don't go by my picture - keep the ears a little more off the head.
The hole in the top of Mickey's head was created using a size 12 round decorating tip.
Paint all the pieces with your yellow gold "paint".
Once the paint dries, cut a hole into the end of the cake on the handle and insert the corkscrew chain piece. Cut one end of each chain link and began connecting the links lightly pressing the links to close. End with the Mickey Mouse head.
With the chain and Mickey charm in place, your cake is complete!


Introduction: Mac & Cheese Assimilation by Shellfish. <PIC> Mac & Cheese Assimilation By ShellfishResistance is futile my friends in this seafood variation of Marconi & Cheese perfect for summer!  Chopped Artichoke Heart thrown in for good measure along with a combination of shellfish a dish even the Borg will find appetizing. Step 1: Ingredients. <PIC> The fact that humans by nature can't let some stuff go helps explain the endless popularity of Macaroni & Cheese.  Going back even further is the role shellfish has played in the human experience.  The measure of life and death in some cases boy do we love shellfish.1 each 4 to 6 ounce Rock Lobster Tail (shelled, cooked and sliced) 2 each clusters Canadian Snow Crab Legs with Claw (shelled and chopped) 12 each ounces peeled and deveined 31/35 Count Shrimp 8 each ounces dried Barilla Elbow Macaroni Pasta (cooked and drained) 6 each ounces chopped Roland Artichoke Heart Quarters 2 each ounces Roland Diced Pimentos 10 each ounces Sargento Fine Shredded Cheddar & Jack Cheese Mix 2 each ounces Challenge Butter (salted or unsalted) 2 each ounces diced Red Onions1 each tablespoon minced Garlic 4 each tablespoons finely chopped Fresh Parsley 1 each squeezed Lemon1 each teaspoon Paprika (garnish) Step 2: Instructions. <PIC> Note: These steps happen quickly.  For best results having the ingredients prepped ahead of time is a must.  Cooking to blend is important throughout the process.Wash your hands with medium hot water and soap.   In one large baking pan or two medium baking pans fill 1 inch of water and place in oven.  Heat oven to 475 degrees for 30 minutes.  Oven steam 1 each 4 to 6 ounce Rock Lobster Tail for 15 minutes and 2 each clusters CanadianSnow Crab Legs with Claw for 8 minutes.   Slice Rock Lobster Tail first length wise in the middle then in 1/4 inch slices width wise set aside.   Keep lobster shell for final plate.   Shell the Snow Crab Legs to remove the meat and coarse chop set aside.   Keep the two crab claws for final plate.   In a medium sized skillet on medium high heat melt 1 ounce each Challenge Butterand  add 1 each tablespoon minced Garlic and  1 each tablespoon finely chopped Fresh Parsley cook for 1 minute.   Add 6 each ounces chopped Roland Artichoke Heart Quarters, 2 each ounces Roland Diced Pimentos and 2 each ounces diced Red Onions cook for 1 minutes.   Add 12 each ounces peeled and deveined 31/35 Count Shrimp cook for 4 minutes.   Squeeze 1/2 each Lemon  and add 2 each tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley stir to blend.   Add the portion of Rock Lobster Tail and Canadian Snow Crab cook for 2 minutes then turn off heat.   In a separate large sized skillet on medium high heat add 1 ounce each Challenge Butter to melt.   Add the cooked and drained Barilla Elbow Macaroni Pasta cook for 2 minutes.   Add 5 each ounces Sargento Fine Shredded Cheddar & Jack Cheese Mix to pasta and stir to blend.   Add the contents of the Shellfish & Artichoke mix to the Macaroni & Cheese and stir to blend cook for 2 minutes and turn off heat.   Preheat oven to 350 degrees for 30 minutes.   In a baking pan add the blended Shellfish Artichoke Macaroni & Cheese contents.  Top with 5 each ounces Sargento Fine Shredded Cheddar & Jack Cheese Mix and cover evenly to an inch from the edge of the pan.  Bake in oven for 20 minutes at 350 degrees turn off oven and remove baking pan to cool.   To make final plate design take the lobster shell open up to add desired amount of Shellfish Artichoke Macaroni and Cheese giving the effect of bursting out.   Then place the two crab claws to give the design life.  Garnish with parsley, lemon and Paprika. Step 3: Stirring Method. <PIC> Total cook time to this point is less then 10 minutes.  Stirring to blend as a cooking method is a great way to buildup the colorful effect of this dish. Step 4: Keep It Colorful. <PIC> A signature of my plate or table design philosophy is to make each step look colorful and appetizing so in the end its just serve, eat and smile. Step 5: Mix Macaroni, Cheese and Seafood. <PIC> I like using a lot of butter in this recipe which helps add a true country flavor to the Macaroni. The above two steps are again quick.  Once the Macaroni & Cheese are mixed together add the Shellfish & Artichoke Medley turn off heat and stir to blend. Step 6: Time to Bake!. <PIC> Important to spread the cheese mix evenly leaving an inch from the edge of the pan.  When the cheese melts it will cover that space without crusting on the sides. Step 7: Take Out of Oven. <PIC> Wow!  It really turned out as good as it looks.  If you like more of a golden brown top feel free to cook longer. Step 8: DONE!. <PIC> The final plate design was fun using the lobster shell and crab claws.  A life long fan of Star Trek there is little chance this creation will live long and prosper.  But in the end its purpose was to be served to the collective or in this case the family.


Introduction: Green Tea Crepe Cones. <PIC>
Crepes, pudding, whipped cream, fruit, wooHOOOOOO! Step 1: Assemble Gear & Ingredients. <PIC>
You will need a batter spreader, which can be located through a web search (available at many resellers), or constructed from two dowels.  The one in the image is made from one 5/8"  7-inch dowel, drilled to fit a 3/8" 9-inch dowel.
Heat - resistant silicone spatula
Disposable food service glove
Electric Griddle For the batter:
2 cups flour
4 slightly beaten eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup brewed, room-temperature green tea
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons cooking oil
Place all ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl and blend until smooth. While your batter is resting, assemble:
Ripe fruit, sliced
Whipped cream or topping
Prepared pudding
Chocolate, caramel, butterscotch, fruit, or other syrups
Chopped nuts, sprinkles, etc.
Ice cream Step 2: Clean and Slice Fruit. <PIC> Clean, trim and slice your selected fruit.  Set aside. Step 3: Pouring and Spreading the Crepe. <PIC> Preheat your griddle to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Using a cup or ladle, pour 1/2 cup batter into the center of the griddle.  Holding the spreader in your fingertips by the very tip of the handle, and with the crosspiece resting gently in the center of the batter, move the batter smoothly in a circle, keeping close to the center of the griddle on your first rotation.  Then, continue spreading toward the outer edge until the crepe is the proper size (it will be self-evident when it won't spread any farther). Step 4: Flip the Crepe. <PIC>
Using a silicone spatula, carefully work your way around the edge of the crepe.  When you are able to lift one edge up (on the right side, if you are right-handed),  flip it over onto your left hand, while moving that hand slightly back -- NOT up.  Pulling up will cause the crepe to rip.  Also, it's a very good idea to wear a food service (disposable) glove to protect your hand from the heat.
Flip crepe back onto spatula, then back onto your hand until most of it is loosened, and then place the crepe on a plate or towel.  Crepes can be stacked without sticking.
There are very helpful videos available on YouTube that demonstrate the making of crepe cones. Step 5: Add Toppings. <PIC> Pudding!  Whipped cream!  Fruit!  ICE CREAM!
Make your wedge about 20 percent of the outer diameter, moving in a cone shape toward the middle.  If it extends slightly past the center, that's okay. Step 6: Folding and Rolling. <PIC> Fold the crepe smoothly (not loosely) over the fillings.  Then, take hold of the filled portion and roll it over the unfilled portion of the crepe, keeping it close as you roll.  If the fillings try to escape, just pack them back in after the cone is upright. Step 7: Dress It Up!. <PIC> Roll cone in a square of wax paper or foodservice paper to hold it together.
For a more traditional cone-type arrangement, add some extra ice cream and froo-froo.
A spoon is helpful.  A plate underneath is crucial.
Enjoy!


Introduction: Cheese Fondue. <PIC>  Step 1: When to Eat Fondue. <PIC> Fondue is a winter dish. If you have a hankering for some melted cheese in the summer, eat raclette instead (raclette cheese melted and scraped onto baby potatoes and cornichons). Fondue is also a social dish, and it should be shared with as many friends and family as can sit around the table and reach into the pot. Of course, rules are made for being broken... I usually jump at the chance to eat it whenever the occasion arises, even in the summer time. Step 2: Equipment. <PIC> The fondue pot is called a "caquelon" (kah klon -- but don't pronounce the "n"). It can be made of clay but most fondue restaurants prefer enameled cast iron pots. Not only are they stronger but they distribute the heat more evenly. The only drawback is that it might take the cheese a little longer to melt. Do not make fondue in any reactive pot, such as aluminum or any other metal, and never make it in any pot treated with a non-stick surface, such as teflon. The cheese needs to be heated constantly even as you are eating it. For this you will need a "rechaud" ("spirit stove" is the translation suggested by rabid_engineer -- it's a metal stand which holds the pot over an adjustable flame). If you don't have one it can be improvised: a few bricks, a sterno or even 6-8 tea candles and a metal grill from the stove-top or small barbecue will do the trick. Fondue forks are longer than standard forks, which makes it easier to reach into the pot, and narrower, to fit small pieces of bread. They are also sometimes color coded, which is not important for cheese fondue. It matters only for Bourginonne fondue, which requires you to let pieces of meat cook in hot broth or oil. You can use regular forks -- it just won't be quite as comfortable to share the pot with a group of people. Step 3: Ingredients. <PIC> Cheese As I mentioned in the intro, there are many types of cheese fondue. This one, the moitié moitié, uses 50% gruyere cheese, and 50% vacherin fribourgois. If you can't find vacherin you can make a pure gruyere fondue. It won't be quite as creamy but it will still be delicious. The approximate amount of cheese is 200g per person, or about 7 oz. So for 6 people you'd need 1lb 5 oz of vacherin and 1lb 5 oz of gruyere. If this is your first taste of fondue, maybe you would use a little less. In New York City a store called Ideal Cheese in the upper east side sells both types of cheese, and I've also found them at Sahadi's on Atlantic Avenue and at Fairway. To locate a supplier you can contact a Swiss consulate near you. They are used to calls from homesick Swiss expatriates looking for cheese.  Wine Swiss white wine is also hard to find, because it is expensive to produce (land and labor are at a premium in Switzerland), and because it is not appreciated as much out of the country as it is within. It you can get a Chasselat from Vaud (Epesses is my favorite), or a Fendant from the Valais. Otherwise search for a Chasselat from the Haute Savoie region in France. That's right across the lake, and their wine is similar and more widely distributed. You want something light and dry. Definitely NOT a Chardonnay or a sweet desert wine, but an Italian white such as Orvieto could work in a pinch. Potato starch is what most people use in Switzerland, but corn starch is more common in the US, and it works just as well. Kirsch is cherry brandy. It is possible to omit this ingredient and just use wine, but it adds a nice flavor. Garlic is not optional. It adds a necessary tang. You can even drop in a few larger chunks if you are feeling adventurous. Bread. The perfect bread is called "mi-blanc," but I've never seen it outside of Switzerland. It is a crusty white loaf of medium density. Whole grain bread is much too heavy, and baguettes are usually too light, although they will make an OK substitute. Portuguese peasant bread has the right texture. NEVER use pre-sliced sandwich bread. It won't taste right and it will fall apart in the cheese. In the French speaking part of Switzerland mi-blanc bread is cut into thick slices and served in a basket on the table, preferably on a red and white checkered napkin. People then break the slices apart with their hands. Swiss Germans will serve the bread pre-diced into bite sized pieces. No matter how many years they spend in the French speaking region, no matter how hard they work at hiding their accents, cutting up the fondue bread is a dead give-away. Season the fondue with freshly ground pepper, and a little nutmeg, if you'd like. Step 4: Preparation. <PIC> Before you start you need to be ready to serve, because you can't leave the stove while the cheese is melting, and you need to serve immediately as soon as it is ready.  Set the table with salad plates (bigger than saucers, smaller than regular dinner plates). Cut the bread in thick slices or bite-sized chunks if you'd like to appear Swiss German. Set up the "réchaud" with a match ready to light the sterno. Get the caquelon ready by cutting a clove of garlic in half and rubbing the sliced side all over the bottom and sides of the pot. You want the surface to be coated with garlic juice and oil both for flavor and to prevent sticking. Prepare the gruyere by grating it. Prepare the vacherin by slicing it into chunks, approximately 1/4" wide. Keep the two cheeses separate. Measure out the wine. Swiss recipes call for one "white wine glass" for each serving. These glasses resemble shot glasses and contain a little under 1 dl, which translates as  about 1/3 cup for 7 oz of cheese. Press one clove of garlic into each cup of wine. If you'd like to, cut up one clove into small chunks. Mix 1/2 tsp starch (corn or potato) per serving with the Kirsch. The amount of Kirsch can vary according to your preference, but you can start with 2 tbsp per serving. Once all the dinner guests are present you can start cooking. It will take about 10 minutes and everybody should be ready to eat the instant the cheese has melted. Put the wine and garlic into the caquelon and turn the heat to medium-low. Add the gruyere and stir continually with a wooden spoon. The cheese should melt but not boil. When the gruyere has melted, add the Kirsch with the starch mixed in and the the vacherin piece by piece. Let each piece melt before adding the next, and keep stirring continuously. Season with freshly ground pepper (and nutmeg if desired) to taste. Serve immediately. Step 5: Serving. <PIC> Adjust the temperature of the sterno so that the cheese bubbles very slowly when the cheese is not being stirred. With the proper equipment this is easy, but if you're making do with an improvised system you will need to raise or lower the pot, or add or blow out some candles. Put a piece of bread on your fork, stir it around in the pot for a few seconds, then eat while the next person stirs in their bread. Grind some fresh pepper onto your plate and dip the cheese covered bread onto it before eating. Fondue is a rather delicate emulsion so it needs to be continually stirred. If everybody is chatting away and not eating, the cheese might separate into an unappetizing mix of rubbery cheese and oily juice, particularly if it is 100% gruyere or if the cheese is not fresh. If this happens not all is lost: take it back to the kitchen, mix some extra starch into a small amount of Kirsch and stir, stir stir over moderate heat till you get it back together again. If that's not enough, a small amount of baking soda might help. Whatever you do, NEVER drink coke with fondue, and I strongly advise against beer or any other cold carbonated beverage. Drink HOT tea (not iced) or white wine. Coke in particular does bad things with the cheese in your stomach. It makes the cheese rock hard and entirely indigestible. You will feel sicker than you have ever felt before. I am speaking from experience. In "Asterix in Switzerland" the hapless guest who accidentally drops his bread in the cheese gets thrown into the lake. The real tradition is a bit more mundane. Female guests are supposed to kiss all males gathered around the table and vis versa. As teenagers, bored by these rounds of kissing (we're talking three pecks on the cheek, not French kissing...) we used to play truth or dare.  When you serve the white wine, offer the last drops in the bottle to whomever needs the most luck in love. These coveted drops are called "les amours."  Once the melted cheese is all gone if you're lucky you will be left with a crispy brown crust stuck to the bottom of the pot. This is called the "religieuse" (translation: the religious woman -- don't ask me why) and it is the best part of the fondue. Scrape it off with your forks and enjoy... To clean up, pour cold water in your caquelon and let it soak overnight. If it's not too cold, crack open a window. Morning after smells of a fondue party are not very pleasant. Step 6: Fond(ue) Memories. <PIC> Some Swiss households have a special room, usually in the basement, devoted to eating fondue (and drinking, if truth must be told) called the "carnozet." (pronounced car-nots-ey) I had some friends in apartment buildings who had outfitted their rented storage cages in the basement with table, benches, and wine racks. We spent many enjoyable hours crammed into these small dark spaces eating, drinking, and making as much noise as we pleased. I would do it here in Brooklyn but I think it would spook my neighbors, and I need the storage... After watching Reagan's and Gorbachev's motorcades zoom by on their way to peace talks and attending my parent's dinner party with Raisa's interpreter I threw my own "red" fondue party. I baked red bread, dyed the fondue and the white wine with red food coloring (drinking red wine would have been unthinkable), and stupidly, lit the room with red lights which destroyed the effect of the dyed food. Everything just looked gray but we had fun anyway. In the dead of night, all decked out in our communist paraphanelia we roamed the empty streets, waving a red flag and singing the Internationale at the top of our lungs. We did not get arrested but we did get a few frightened looks. A melancholic fondue memory is my high school sweetheart's Thanksgiving visit during my freshman year in college in Providence, RI. Since we had no special equipment we huddled around the electric stove top in the deserted dormitory in a (failed) attempt to recreate the good cheer of fondue. It just made me even more homesick. Years later, a fondue compatible enamel pot from Zabar's became a tacit engagement present: it was the first purchase I made in common with the man I later married. Despite his Tennessee roots he shared my enthusiasm for melted cheese, which was a definite selling point. I proposed to him in the subway on the way home from a Swiss restaurant in the East village. I didn't mean to propose in the subway -- I meant to do it over fondue, but somehow the cheese did not give me enough courage. I was only able to blurt out the question as the N train pulled away from City Hall. One last warning about fondue: it always gives me weird dreams. Not bad, just vivid and unsettling. Euro art film dreams.


Introduction: Grape Jelly. <PIC> I was cleaning out the frig so we'd have some place to store leftovers from Easter supper and found four pounds of over ripe grapes shoved to the back. Since throwing out unused produce is a common occurrence in this household i decided to stop the vicious cycle and make jelly...
After all, everyone loves jelly, even if they don't use it.
Imaging a picture of grapes in a bag here, (camera fail!). Step 1: Clean and Cook the Grapes. <PIC> First thing you should do is wash the grapes, follow that by picking them off the stems, you don't need to be perfect. Be sure to pick out any moldy or mushy grapes, we aren't trying to make ourselves sick.
I had half green and half red grapes. I cooked them for about 20 minutes until they were a delicious mush. Step 2: Strain. <PIC> Line a colander with cheese cloth and drain the mush into a bowl for a couple of hours, when it's cool gather up the cheese cloth and squeeze any leftover juice from the mush, compost the mush. Step 3: Cook the Juice. <PIC> I got three cups of juice from the grapes, probably could have done better, but whatever. So I added two cups of sugar so it wouldn't be too sweet, and boiled over medium heat until the candy thermometer read 220 degrees Fahrenheit.  As you can see, even three cups in a 6 qt. pot tried to boil over, do not leave it unattended.  Step 4: Canning. <PIC> So I decided not to can such a small quantity, you can do a standard boiling water process for 5-10 minutes and it will keep for a year. Instead I washed out an Ikea Beer Mug with boiling water and poured the jelly in and covered with saran wrap, it should last 3 weeks in the frig.
Let gel overnight and enjoy.
you probably noticed that it is a little runny, there are two possible causes, I used over ripe fruit which is low in pectin, and I used less sugar then generally recommended (3/4 cup for each cup of juice). Next time I would probably just cook a chopped up apple with the grapes to add pectin.
BTW, it tastes freaking awesome, better than any commercial grape jelly I've ever had.


Introduction: SLOW COOKER ROOT BEER BBQ SLIDERS. <PIC> ROOT BEER SLIDERS 2 lb pork tenderloin, halved1 can(s) root beer2 Tbsp liquid smoke1 Tbsp seasoned saltROOT BEER BBQ SAUCE3 can(s) root beer1/4 c sugar1 bottle store-bought bbq sauceSERVING 24 slider buns24 dill pickle slices24 toothpicksINSTRUCTIONS1. Place the pork tenderloin in the bottom of a slow cooker and sprinkle with the seasoning salt. Pour the root beer and liquid smoke over the top. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours. 2. Put 3 cans of root beer and sugar in a pot and cook over high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and cook until the consistency is syrupy. Stir the desired amount of root beer reduction into the BBQ Sauce. Set aside.3. Remove pork from slow cooker. Shred and toss with desired amount of BBQ sauce. Serve on slider buns with pickles and extra sauce. Pierce each sandwich with a toothpick.


Introduction: Polvorones De Canele. <PIC> Polvorones de Canele are easy and fun to make Mexican cinnamon cookies. With these simple steps, you'll be making and enjoying them in no time! Step 1: Ingredients/ Materials. Cookie SheetsMixing bowlSmall bowlMixer2 cup butter1 cup confectioner's sugar1 teaspoon ground cinnamon1/2 teaspoon salt2 teaspoon vanilla extract3 cups all-purpose flour Step 2: Confectioner's Sugar. <PIC> Pour 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar into a large mixing bowl. Step 3: Butter. <PIC> Add 2 cups(4 sticks) of butter in with the confectioner's sugar. Step 4: Mixing. <PIC> Mix the sugar and butter together with a mixer until you get a thick paste. Step 5: Vanilla. <PIC> Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Step 6: Flour, Salt and Cinnamon. <PIC> Combine 3 cups of all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. Mix them with a mixer until it's a stiff dough. Step 7: Cinnamon Mixture. <PIC> Mix together 2 cups of confectioner's sugar and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon in a small separate bowl. Step 8: Making and Coating the Cookies. <PIC> Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll them in the cinnamon mixture. Then, place them on a cookie sheet. Step 9: Baking. Bake them in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Be careful, they're hot! Step 10: Enjoy!. Now all that's left do do is let them cool down and eat them:D


Introduction: Coffee Bean Extract. <PIC> Here's another popular extract that is easy to make. We don't use coffee extract as often as other extracts, so I'll make one small bottle every 6 months so it's always available. Making your own coffee extract is cheaper than buying it in a store and more impressive. Great way to add coffee flavoring to a homebrewed stout. Will last forever if stored properly. All these extracts, we really should invest in smaller brown bottles.  Step 1: Beans. <PIC> Crush up your beans. Crush, not grind. You want rough smashed pieces, not a fine grind. Use about 4 tablespoons for 1 cup of alcohol.  Step 2: Alcohol. <PIC> You can use vodka, clear rum, bourbon, or brandy for your extracts. Nip bottles work great as they're small and super cheap. 1 tablespoon of crushed beans per 1 alcohol nip should be enough to get a small extract going.   Step 3: Bottle. <PIC> Pour the coffee beans into your jar and then fill with alcohol. Put the cap on and give it a shake.  Step 4: Age. <PIC> Keep the extract out of direct sunlight and allow to age for 2-4 weeks. Don't forget to give the bottle a daily shake. After 2-4 weeks you can strain out the coffee beans and keep the extract in your cupboard for whatever needs you have.


Introduction: Bleeding Gum Rolls. <PIC> It is Halloween time!Making food look scary and horrifying is absolutely fun. Here is a Bleeding Gum replica of Good Food.This is an absolutely delicious appetizer. The tomato-chicken gravy creates the bleeding effect.I have got the gums and teeth from cucumber slice.Hope you like this Halloween idea.If you like it please vote for me in the contests it is in.Thank you. :) Step 1: Ingredients. <PIC> Preparation Time - 15 minutesCooking Time - 10 minutesChicken (Shredded) - 1/2 CupPepper - 1 Tsp Salt - As required Oregano (Dried) - 1 Tsp Tomato - 2 Garlic - 1/2 Tsp Cucumber - 1Olive Oil Step 2: Cook the Chicken. <PIC> Pressure cooker Method:Place the cleaned and washed chicken in the Pressure Cooker. Pressure cook it till the chicken is tender and done.When you get the smell of the stock or by 10-15 minutes the chicken will be done. Take it out of the pressure cooker after the pressure has released.You can use any method to cook the chicken and shred it. The main aim is to get shredded chicken. Step 3: Shred and Mince. <PIC> Separate the chicken from the bones. Shred the chicken. In an mixer mince it to a coarse texture.In a pan heat some oil. Roast the shredded chicken till it turns light brown. Step 4: Tomato Puree. <PIC> Blanch the tomato and remove the skin. In a blender/Mixer puree the tomato. Step 5: Chicken Tomato Gravy. <PIC> In a pan heat the olive oil and add crushed garlic. Saute it. Now add tomato puree. Saute till tomato gets cooked and the water content gets reduced. It should be almost dry. It will take 5 minutes. Add pepper, salt and dry oregano. Add the roasted chicken mince.  Saute for 2 minutes. Step 6: Cucumber Slice. <PIC> Slice the cucumber in the middle lengthwise.With help of knife slice a small portion so that the seed are in the middle.Do as in the photo. The slice should be very thin or rolling would be difficult. Place the slices on tissue or absorbent to remove excess water. Step 7: Roll. <PIC> Add the tomato chicken mix in the middle throughout the length of cucumber slice.Roll it.Now the tomato gravy behind the seed portion of cucumber will look like blood.The seed looks like the teeth. The seeds of cucumber give a good haunted and halloween effect.A Bleeding Gum Halloween Appetizer.Hope you enjoyed it!


Introduction: 5 Min Microwave Weetabix Cake . <PIC> Weetabix is one of my favorite breakfast item.I usually eat it with warm milk and chocolate syrup.It's high in fibre and good for babies too.This time I'm gonna make its cake version.Hope you'll like it.. Step 1: 1.You Are Gonna Need - 1.2 Weetabix Biscuits 2.1 Egg  3.250 Ml Warm Milk 4.vanilla Extract 5.Chocolate Syrup 6.sugar 2 Tb Spoon 7.Nuts and Raisin (optional). <PIC>  Step 2: 2.Whisk the Egg and Add Vanilla Extract and Sugar...whisk! . <PIC>  Step 3: 3.Now Add Weetabix Biscuits(crashed). <PIC>  Step 4: 4.Pour Warm Milk and Whisk It Properly. <PIC>  Step 5: 5.Now Add Some Dollops of Chocolate Syrup As You Like! . <PIC>  Step 6: 6.Set It Aside for 10 Minutes . <PIC>  Step 7: 7.Now Add Nuts and Raisins and Microwave for 5 Minute and You Have Done It ! . <PIC>


Introduction: Tutti Frutti Rainbow Mochi. <PIC> Super easy to make and kids love them! Step 1: Ingredients. <PIC> per color:42 g jello powder of any flavors you like, strawberry, raspberry, blue, lime, orange, lemon, grape, whichever :)1/2 c glutinous flour1/2 c hot water1/2 c sugar, this is optional (your mochi will be much sweeter with sugar obviously. My oldest son doesn't care whether I add sugar or not, but my younger sometimes would choose the one with additional sugar).cornstarch/potato starch/tapioca starch, whichever you have at home! Step 2: Method. <PIC> Place jello powder in a bowlMix in glutinous flour (and sugar)Pour in hot boiling water, stir to combineMicrowave for 1 minute long, stir Dump mass onto potato starch and sliceCoat slices with the starch and place mochi on serving plateEnjoy :)


Introduction: Italian Meatball Pie. <PIC> The ultimate comfort food - hot meatball sub, dripping with rich, savory tomato sauce and lots of melted cheese - baked into a tender bread crust pie. Can food possibly get any better than this? Step 1: What You'll Need:. <PIC> (Note: This recipe makes a large enough pie to feed 8 people.)
Dough:
 - 1 tbsp. (1 pkg.) active dry yeast
 - 1/3 c. warm water (105-115 degrees F)(see note in step 2)
 - 1 1/3 c. warm water
 - 2 tbsp. sugar
 - 1/2 tbsp. salt
 - 1 1/2 tbsp. shortening
 - 4 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
Filling:
 - 1 1/2 lb. ground beef
 - 1/2 c. fresh bread crumbs(see note in step 3)
 - 1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
 - 1 egg
 - 1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
 - salt and pepper
 - 2 c. (500ml) store-bought or homemade tomato sauce
 - 2 c. grated mozzarella cheese
 - 3 tbsp. butter
 - 3 cloves garlic, minced Step 2: Making the Bread Dough Crust. <PIC> Dissolve the yeast in the 1/3 c. warm water. (Use a thermometer to check the heat of your warm water, so that you don't kill the yeast with heat. This will ensure a light and tender bread dough crust.)
Pour the dissolved yeast into a large bowl, along with the remaining 1 1/3 c. warm water, sugar, salt, shortening and 2 cups of the flour. Using an electric mixer, mix the dough until smooth. Using a spoon, add in as much of the remaining 3 cups of flour needed to make the dough easy to handle, and not too sticky.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead the bread dough until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Return dough to bowl and spray with a little oil. Turn dough over and spray with a little more oil. This will prevent the dough from sticking to the bowl. Cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm place* for 1 hour, until dough doubles.
(* a warm place can be on top of your fridge, on the stove while preheating, in a sunny window, on top of a computer monitor, anywhere that is a little warmer than room temperature) Step 3: Preparing the Meatballs. <PIC> In a bowl, mix together the ground beef with the fresh bread crumbs*, parmesan cheese, egg, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste.
Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop, or your hands, divide meat into meatball-sized portions, placing them onto a plastic cutting board. Once the meat is divided, roll the pieces into nice, round meatballs.
Place the meatballs into a large, non-stick frying pan with a little oil. Cook meatballs over medium-high heat until browned on the outside.
Pour 1 c. of the tomato sauce into the pan, reduce heat and let meatballs simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes. This will finish cooking the inside of the meatballs, as well as infuse them with tomatoey goodness.
(* to make fresh bread crumbs, place a torn-up slice of bread into a food processor  and pulse until you get crumbs. One slice of bread makes about 1/2 cup of bread crumbs) Step 4: Rolling Out the Crust. <PIC> Dump the risen dough onto a floured counter and divide into 2/5 and 3/5 pieces. Roll out large half of dough large enough to cover the inside of a 10" (25 cm) pan* with a 1" (2.5 cm) overhang. Place into the pan and press into corners.
Roll out the smaller piece of dough into a 12" by 12" (30x30 cm) square and cut into 1-inch strips. These strips will be used to make a lattice top to the pie once it is filled.
(* I suggest using a 10" springform pan, which will provide extra support when the crust rises during baking. I used a quiche pan, which also worked well, but the crust overhang drooped slightly over the edges during baking.) Step 5: Assembling and Baking. <PIC> Place the meatballs evenly into the bread dough crust. Pour extra 1 c. of tomato sauce over meatballs. Top the meatballs with the grated mozzarella cheese.
Lay the dough strips in a grid pattern over the top of the pie, weaving each piece into the others to form a lattice top. Use a pair of kitchen shears to trim the edges of the dough to no longer than 1 inch past the edge of the pan.
Using water and your fingers, seal the edges of the pie closed by rolling the edge of dough over on top of itself, like the crust of a pizza.
In a small bowl, mix the butter and minced garlic, and heat for 30 seconds in the microwave. Using a pastry brush, brush the top crust of the pie with the melted garlic butter.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cover the pie with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise again, about 20 minutes.
Place the pie in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Now the hardest part: let the pie rest for 15 minutes before cutting into its deliciousness.  Step 6: Eating the Pie!. <PIC> There you have it - one ooey-gooey, cheesy and delicious, hot-meatball-sub in a pie dinner. Serve up a nice big slice of this pie with a cesar salad and a dish of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, for dipping all the extra bread crust pieces in! Yummy!


Introduction: Mint Pulao. <PIC> -Mint pulao is flavorful and can be good one pot meal. Main flavour of pulao is with green paste which is blend of ginger garlic,coconut,chillies and onion.-This can be served with some raitaIngredients:-Tsp black cumin seeds-Small inch cinnamom stick-Bayleaf-2 cardamom-1 clove-2 diced onions-2 diced tomatoes-one diced potato-2 cups of chopped mint leaves-2 dry red chillies-Tsp ginger garlic paste-2 tsp dry dessicated coconut-Half cup of boiled fresh green peas-Tsp of coriander powder-Salt as per taste Step 1: Preparing Mint Masala Paste. <PIC> -Before staring the procedure we need to prepare mint masala paste which is the blend of spices and mint leaves.-Mint rice taste and flavour is with mint masala paste.-Keep all ingredients ready for mint masala paste. we need to take 2 cups of mint leaves,2tsp dry dessicated coconut, tsp of ginger garlic paste,one small onion chopped and 2 dry red chillies in blender. Step 2: Blend to Paste. <PIC> -Blend by adding little water in blender to paste Step 3: Procedure for Mint Pulao. <PIC> -Once mint masala paste is ready next step is pulao preparation.Take a vessel and add little oil to it. -When oil is heated add tsp of black cumin seeds and when they splutter add small inch cinnamom,bay leaf, cardamom and clove and saute for few minutes Step 4: Add Onions and Potato. <PIC> - Next add onions and saute for few minutes. Add diced potatoes and cook for some time Step 5: Add Tomatoes. <PIC> -once potatoes are slightly cooked add 2 chopped tomatoes and mix.-Next add half cup of boiled green peas and mix everything. Step 6: Add Mint Masala Paste. <PIC> -Add prepared mint masala paste and mix so that all veggies are coated with mint paste Step 7: Add Salt and Coriander Powder. <PIC> -Add  pinch of turmeric,salt as per taste and a tsp of coriander powder and give a mix Step 8: Soak the Rice. <PIC> -Take 2 cups of rice and soak the rice in 4 cups of water before starting the procedure Step 9: Add Soaked Rice. <PIC> -Transfer soaked rice to cooked veggie mint masala paste and give a mix.-Add 4 cups water for 2 cups rice Step 10: Cook Rice. <PIC> -Cook rice by closing the lid and mixing in intervals. Step 11: Garnish and Serve. <PIC> -Garnish with mint leaves ,onion slices and serve hot


Introduction: Honey-Chocolate Heaven. <PIC> This Smoothie was inspired by a Honey-Chocolate Pie my Mom makes. The Pie recipe was a Grand Prize Winner back in the 1960's and it has the most wonderful taste!
The ingredients in this Smoothie may surprise you, but the unique flavors will surely delight you!  Step 1: Ingredients You'll Need:. <PIC>
FIRST... If you want to create a fun sugar-chocolate rimmed Glass, you'll need:
		A bowl filled with a small amount of water
		A bowl filled up 1/2" with powdered Sugar
		Magic Shell Instant Freeze Chocolate Sauce
For the Honey-Chocolate Smoothie, you'll need:
		 1/2 Box of Chocolate Ice Cream- well-frozen. Just cut the entire box in half and remove the Ice Cream onto a plate and cut it  into smaller chunks.
		 1/2 Cup Sour Cream plus 2 T for the frozen Sour Cream garnish.
		 1/2 Cup Half & Half or Milk
		 1/2 Cup Honey
		 1/4 teaspoon Almond Extract Step 2: Sour Cream Garnish. <PIC> Much to my delight, I discovered Sour cream freezes great!
Blend 1 heaping Tablespoon of Sour cream with 1 teaspoon of powdered sugar.  Stir it up and spoon into a baggie.  Snip off the corner and pipe it onto a piece of wax paper.
Place in the freezer.  You'll use it to garnish the Honey-Chocolate Smoothie. Step 3: Blinging the Glass.. <PIC> Dip your glass into the bowl of water and then into the powdered sugar.
Dip it into the water again (quickly) and then into the sugar again. For once, double-dipping is perfectly acceptable and desirable! ;-)
Put your glass into the freezer for several minutes.
The spout of the Magic Shell is pretty big, so I suggest you shake it well and transfer it to a squeeze bottle with a much smaller spout as pictured.
Once it's frosty-frozen,  take the glass out of the freezer and drip/drizzle some Magic Shell Chocolate around the rim. Since your glass is frozen, the Magic Shell Chocolate won't travel far and make a mess.
Freeze again until your Smoothie is ready to be served. Step 4: Blend, Garnish and Serve. <PIC> Put the Sour Cream into the blender first.
Add the Almond Extract, Chocolate Ice Cream chunks and cover with Honey.
Pour the half & half over the top. and blend on med speed until all ingredients are well mixed.  If the Smoothie is too thick, you can add more cream/milk or just turn the speed up and blend longer.  Higher speed creates heat from energy.
Once the desired consistency is achieved, pour the Smoothie into your beautifully-blinged Glasses, top with the frozen Sour cream-Sugar garnish and drizzle with a little honey...
Serve!


Introduction: Gourmet Swan Meat Burgers. <PIC> Turn the meat from wild swan into delicious burgers.
Recently I had the opportunity to go hunting and I managed to shoot a swan, if you find this offensive please do not read on.
Searching for recipes for swan meat on the web prove fruitless the only thing I did find was plenty off opinion that swan is tough, grisily mud flavoured meat that is nearly inedible. This is certainly not true. I thought I'd give it a go anyway as I believe if you kill something you should use as much of it as possible. Killing anything just for the fun of it is blood lust.
Firstly I'm going to assume you have LEGALLY obtained some swan meat. In New Zealand where I'm posting this from it is legal to shoot 1 swan per day in most parts of the country during duck hunting season. ALWAYS check with local authorities before blowing the S?#t out of anything. I'm sure they are protected in some parts of the world.
I'm also assuming you know how to harvest the meat from the bird. google or youtube search 'breasting out a goose' will give you some idea of what is involved.
 Step 1: First Experiments With Swan. After I had boned out the breast meat I decided to see what the meat was actually like. So I egg and crumbed a few of the tenderloins and then shallow fried them. I cooked the meat till just well done.
Swan meat is very lean there was about a quarter of a teaspoon of fat on each breast so it is important not to over cook game as it can become tough and dry.
HOW DID TASTE?- Well, those people who had been telling me it was tough and foul tasting were wrong. The Meat was very tender indeed, I think this was helped cooking over a medium heat and not over cooking the meat. Swan does however have a very gamey taste, it's one of those tastes you either like it or you don't.
Certainly all myths about taste and toughness have been dispelled, but with almost no recipes available I was left wondering what to do with the rest of the meat?  Step 2: Enter the Hamburger. <PIC> Burgers are a one of my favourites and there's nothing like a nice flavoursome patty, so I decided to see how swan would work in a burger.
the key to successfully cooking game is to match the intensity of the flavours.
for this patty recipe I used;
1 swan breast (about 1lb)
a few dashes of worcestershire sauce
Rosemary
Sage
Bread crumbs
Pepper
1 egg (optional if the meat is looking a bit dry add an egg otherwise leave it out)
You'll also obviously need;
burger buns
lettuce, tomato etc
pickle
Mayo
and fruit chutney- Iike tamarillo (red egg shaped south american fruit) but peach, apple will work well.
 Step 3: Get Making. <PIC> If you have a mincer then feed the meat and herbs through it, other wise you can make a coarse mince by chopping the breast into smaller and smaller pieces with a knife. If you do use a mincer put a slice of bread through after the meat to push any left over mince through when the bread starts to come through turn off the machine.
Add worcestershire sauce and pepper and mix.
Note I don't add salt to patties of marinates as salt can draw moisture out of the meat instead I salt the meat just before cooking or even after cooking.
check the consistence of the mince, when you stir it it should stick together reasonably well if it doesn't bind well add an egg and a handfull of bread crumbs this will help the patties hold together during cooking. Step 4: Form and Refrigerate. <PIC> Once you have mixed the ingredience devide into 4 even sized portions.
Form into balls- you can do this by cupping the meat in your hands, I like to throw the meat from hand to hand a few time to help it bind.
Squash the meat into patties.
Cover and refrigerate for at least half an hour, this stops the patties from breaking up during the cooking.
 Step 5: Cook, Assemble and Enjoy.. <PIC> While the patties are in the fridge prepare buns tomatoes etc...
cook the patties to well done, then assemble the burgers. I served the with lettuce, tomato, dill pickle and chutney.
Enjoy.


Introduction: One Minute Eggs! . <PIC> Ever super hungry and need something (somewhat) instantaneous? Here you go! I hope you enjoy and keep coming back for more like this ;) Step 1: Crack the Egg. <PIC> Get a measuring cup and crack one egg into the measuring cup. Step 2: Season. Season the eggs how you please, I recommend one dash of fresh salt and one dash of fresh pepper. Step 3: Scramble. <PIC> Scramble the egg with the seasoning.  Step 4: Pour Into a Bowl . <PIC> Pour into a small bowl to prepare for cooking. Step 5: Microwave. <PIC> Put the eggs into the microwave for one minute, or more if it is not fully cooked line in the next step. Step 6: Enjoy!. <PIC> Take it out of the microwave and enjoy your simple, quick and delicious eggs!


Introduction: French Cheese: DIY. <PIC> For this challenge cheese 2016, I will make... cheese. French cheese, of course!Making cheese can be extremely simple or extremely complicated.From a technical point of view, the cheese is casein agglomerated and more or less processed.In France, there are about 1000 different cheeses, based on cow's milk, goat's milk or sheep's milk. Each region has its specialties, and a cheese can have a different taste depending on its region of production.I'll show you the easiest way, and everything you'll need is in any supermarket.The hardest part in making cheese is patience. Ripening takes from a few days to several months, and it is difficult to resist eating it. But be patient, the result will be there!The cheese is made for about 10,000 years, now you can do it yourself!Ready? Step 1: Ingredients and Material Needed. <PIC> Ingredients:- Raw whole milk- Lemon juice (or rennet) - 35ml/milk liter- Yoghurt "petit-Suisse" or fresh cheese unripened- SaltMaterial:- Saucepot- A faisselle (Personally I reuse the faisselle of a pot of white cheese bought in supermarket)- A cheese mold: You can buy it on internet or make it.- A thermometer. (Optional but recommended)- A knife- A skimmer (optional)- A cheese press (or dumbbells, big books, or something heavy) Step 2: Prepare the Milk. <PIC> - Gently mix the 4 Yoghurt "petit-Suisse"(or fresh cheese unripened) in a liter of milk.- Gently mix this preparation with the rest of the milk.- Heat milk to 80 ° C (176 ° F) Step 3: Coagulation. <PIC> - Pouring the lemon into the milk, and let the milk coagulate. Do not touch, and avoid any source of vibration. Step 4: Draining. <PIC> If all goes well, the milk has coagulated. We will have to recover the casein (white mass).- Recover the white mass with a large spoon, a sieve, or directly into the dish.- Put everything in the "faisselle".- Press the white mass to release the "whey".You can put a weight on it to make some kind of press.- Let go for a few hours. Step 5: Molding. <PIC> - Put the white mass into the mold and press it.- Let go around 24 hours. Step 6: Salting. <PIC> - When the cheese begins to dry, rub each side with a little salt. Step 7: Refining. <PIC> - When the cheese is compact enough, remove the mold.- Rub each side and slice with a little salt.- Be careful not to put too much salt!- Return it each day.This stage can last from a few days to a few years. The longer you let it dry, the more pronounced the taste. Your patience will reward! Step 8: Tasting. <PIC> After a long wait, it's time for tasting!To taste it, nothing is worth good bread, and if you are of age, a small glass of wine!


Introduction: Cold Smoke Generator Hack. <PIC> Here's a truly great tip on how to create your old "cold smoke" system for cold smoking meats, fish, dairy, garlic - you name it! Follow the simple tutorial and you too will soon be creating amazing produce and there really will be no going back. Step 1: What You'll Need. <PIC> All you need for this great hack is a kitchen sieve and some food quality wood dust or pellets for cold smoking.Also a tea light candle or blow torch is required to start the wood off. Step 2: Preparation. <PIC> Make sure the wood dust is as dry as possible to guarantee a good smoke (this may involve microwaving it beforehand). Step 3: Watch the Full Video Methodology Here:.


Introduction: DIY: Ice-Cream Party. <PIC> What you’ll need:Free printable cone wrappersScissors  TapeIce cream (chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, neopolitan or whatever flavours you prefer)Ice cream Cones (regular and/or waffle cones) Toppings (chocolate syrup, whipped cream, sprinkles, caramel, etc.) Friends, preferably your own Step 1: . <PIC> Print out your free cone wrappers, banner, and cards — designed with Neil Summerour’s Flirt Script — in color. Tape string to the back of banner and fold your tent cards. Step 2: . <PIC> Roll the cone wrappers around the cones and use a strip of clear tape to fasten the two sides together. Do this for as many cones as you’ll need. Step 3: . <PIC> After your designs are cut out and folded, you can start setting up. Tape or tie your banner up behind your table then set out each tent card with the corresponding topping or ice-cream flavor. If you’re outdoors and it’s a breezy day, we suggest taping down your tent cards so they don’t blow away. Step 4: . <PIC> Invite your best pals over and start building your custom ice-cream cones. Step 5: . <PIC>


Introduction: Bourbon Pecan Pie Candy Balls. <PIC> These candy balls were inspired by bourbon pecan pie, which is my absolute favorite pie EVER!Who doesn't like bourbon pecan pie?Monsters.  That's who.These little confections are sweet and gooey and luscious and don't require any baking!  Yay!And how fun to serve these at a party!  Everyone will think you're super crazy fancy. Step 1: Ingredients. <PIC> For approximately 24 balls, you will need:2 tbsp Bourbon ½ cup Crushed pecans ("cookie pieces" size) ½ cup Light corn syrup Pinch of salt 6 tbsp Sweet butter (room temperature) 2 cups Vanilla wafer cookies (Nabisco Nilla Wafer kind; pulverized) Powdered sugar Step 2: Marinate. <PIC> Combine the pecans, corn syrup, bourbon, and salt.Cover and let stand for 1 hour at room temperature. Step 3: Dough. <PIC> Combine the pecan mixture with the vanilla wafers and butter until you have a thick dough.Cover and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes until scoopable. Step 4: Form. <PIC> Form approximately 24 balls.  A ½ oz disher helps.Refrigerate to set. Step 5: Coat. <PIC> Coat the balls with powdered sugar.Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.