July 4th celebration ideas

Hard to believe the 4th is coming up next weekend. I'm remembering my childhood when we would spend the day at Crystal Lake in MI. We would swim, boat, picnic, eat cotton candy, ride the merry-go-round, watch the fireworks and fall asleep in the car on the way home. Great memories are always asociated with good food and I certainly remember the traditional Aunt Corenes' potato salad, my moms' baked beans, of which I make better now, and grandmas' desserts. I know we also had fried chicken, but can't remember who made that.

Decorate your picnic table with patriotic food. Here are just a few ideas to help you get your creative juices flowing. Stop in the store and pick up some great cookie cutters i.e. map of the U.S.A., a wavy flag, a star and decorate with fun red, white & blue sprinkles or use patriotic paper muffin cups for your cupcakes and top with patriotic sprinkles and a small flag. You can make a fun jello mold layered red, white & blue.

Don't forget that the Thieves market is also going on that day. Stop by our booth and say 'Hi' then join us back at the store for some cooking demonstrations and great sale items.

Share the fun and cook with someone.

BJ

Can we talk Vanilla?

While I was at the Gourmet Food show in February, I visited the booth of the Arizona Vanilla Company. I was thinking that it would be nice to carry a local vanilla here at the E.P. if it tasted good. They were kind enough to send me samples to try in our cooking classes. It just happened that the day I received the samples Nick Malgieri was teaching a class here at the store and I asked him to give it a try. He was not sold, stating that Nielsen-Massey was the best and that it was all he ever used.

I personally thought it had a nice nutty aroma and I liked the taste, but I'm not a professional baker not an expert on vanilla.

So, my questions are: Has anyone out there ever used that particular brand? (AZ Vanilla Company from Mesa AZ)
If so, what is your opinion?
Would you buy if I brought it in the store?
Do you prefer imitation over the pure extract?

Essential Equipment

For those of you who don't read Cooks' Illustrated, there was a good article in the August issue on essential equipment to have in the kitchen. Under 'Cookware' the top 3 pieces listed were AllClad-Stainless steel/SS 12" fry, SS 4 qt. sauce pan, SS 2 qt. sauce pan.

Next they talked about Calphalon nonstick fry as a best buy, but then mentioned not to spend big bucks because the coating peels after a time. I'm sorry, but how can it be a good buy if after a short time a consumer will have to go spend more money to get another one. Unless, of course; you don't mind eating teflon coating in your eggs.

Personally I'd rather spend a few extra bucks and buy a Swiss Diamond non-stick with a life time guarantee and not have to worry about what's in my eggs.

Did I mention that here at the EP we carry the AllClad pans that were mentioned?

Maiden Blog

This is my maiden ‘Blog.’ I hope it’s not like the Titanics’ maiden voyage. I have a 2-fold goal here. The first is that as a reader/hopefully a ‘foodie’ you will find my blogging informative. Second-most important- is that I will be challenged to learn even more about a field that I have loved since I was about 7yrs old.

I get asked a lot what is Epicurean Palette mean? Webster says it is a devotee/connoisseur of the art of good food and drink. Epicurean implies a love or knowledgeable enjoyment of good food and drink. A ‘Foodie’ is one who takes their food more serious than most-or one who appreciates fine quality of food. Palette, as in an artist palette. The art of creating fine food and drink is what I had in mind when choosing a name for my new business.

At the E.P. it is our desire that when you first enter you will feel inspired to cook and entertain. We believe that your kitchen is the hub of your home and is where people gather together.
Presentation and ambience is everything and we are here to help you create the ambience in which you want to entertain your family and friends as they gather around food.

In these tough economic times we are all finding it necessary to cut back, but it presents the opportunity for us to be creative and to open up our homes to family and friends and entertain more.

Hopefully you will find this blog site informative. I will talk about product, food preparation, quick tips and short cuts, entertaining ideas, wedding planning tips and anything else pertaining to ‘Epicurean’.

I look forward to hearing from you.
Gustare la cucina, enjoy cooking