Comments on: Pumpkin pie redux

By: Rich

Rich — Tue, 30 Nov 2004 09:43:27 +0000

Thai desserts also tend to be excessively sweet (not the swill you get in most US Thai restaurants—the real thing). Middle Eastern desserts also tend to go overboard with the honey (again, I speak of teh real thing). Continetal Eurpoeans are not necessarily sloaches in the sweet department—just go to a Konditerei in Germany. British cooking tends toward teh bland and fatty—no reason for them to complain about something being too sweet.

By: David Tiley

David Tiley — Sun, 28 Nov 2004 08:47:07 +0000

From: world To: neocons “You don’t have to eat the whole thing, you know.” ———————A lovely, versatile phrase.

By: Tom T.

Tom T. — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 16:59:35 +0000

You don’t have to eat the whole thing, you know.

By: Cranky Observer

Cranky Observer — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 16:51:59 +0000

> Yes, ever had Greek desserts? > Honey cake swimming in honey syrup? > I liked it actually but wow it was > sweet. I have never been to Greece, so I don’t know what is served in restaurants there for dessert. I have had such things in Greek restaurants in the US. While incredibly sweet, they are typically served in a reasonable-sized portion, not something the size of a Chicago softball. Serving size of the typical US dessert is another issue. Cranky

By: KCinDC

KCinDC — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 16:03:20 +0000

Peanut butter is perfectly fine. It just doesn’t belong in desserts.

By: John Quiggin

John Quiggin — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 11:18:22 +0000

OK, reading on I see the Baxters were a false lead and it’s Mark Western who I know well. It sounds like an enjoyable Thanksgiving was had by all!

By: John Quiggin

John Quiggin — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 11:10:50 +0000

Australia is much smaller than it looks on the map! I have a couple of acquaintances called Baxter, though they are not inclined to Marxism as far as I know.

By: obeah

obeah — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 06:06:08 +0000

My husband hasn’t developed a taste for peanut butter either. I do not understand these people. My favorite Thanksgiving dessert is pumpkin cheesecake, which seems to be catching on.

By: riffle

riffle — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 04:33:42 +0000

Eszter wrote: ” I never use vanilla extract, I use vanilla sugar instead. I think it works much better (the former seems to have an artificial taste I don’t like).” I make my own vanilla extract. Get the best vanilla beans you can find (often bourbon beans) and drop them in vodka (some use bourbon whiskey —different from bourbon beans). Give them a few weeks to soak and you have a rich vanilla that gets better over time. Here’s one page that has some ideas. I do things a little differently but common sense should govern your creation: http://www.kitchenproject.com/html/Vanilla_Bean_Page.html I make vanilla sugar, too, but I find for most recipes it’s far easier to maximize the vanilla effect with handmade extract. I prefer my homemade extract to even the most precious commercial product—but I’ve never run across an “artificial taste” in any extract made from real beans steeped in alcohol. On the other hand, what passes for “vanilla extract” in a typical US grocery store generally doesn’t have any real vanillin in it—avoid it at all costs. My dessert preference on Thanksgiving is … pumpkin pie. Even a weak pumpkin pie is a tasty thing. But I’d probably say Bananas Foster is the dessert I’d request for a last meal. Riffle

By: Tom T.

Tom T. — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 04:22:30 +0000

Look, until you European folks disavow the notion that salty licorice constitutes candy, I’m not sure that anyone over here in the US is going to take you too seriously when you critique our desserts.

By: Brian

Brian — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 04:15:45 +0000

Yes, ever had Greek desserts? Honey cake swimming in honey syrup? I liked it actually but wow it was sweet. As a pumpkin pie enthusiast, I forgot my favorite tip about pumpkin pie: it must not be eaten the same day it is cooked. It should rest overnight before eating it. It allows the spices to all blend and mellow and tastes much better. Pumpkin pie is pretty nasty right out of the oven. It has to age a bit. (Unlike say apple or cherry pie which is great warm).

By: KCinDC

KCinDC — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 03:55:25 +0000

The most excruciatingly sweet desserts I remember having were rice pudding and baklava at Lebanese and Greek restaurants, but those restaurants were in the US, so perhaps they’ve Americanized their recipes. The rice pudding was certainly sweeter than any I’ve had at an “American” restaurant, though.

By: Cranky Observer

Cranky Observer — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 02:58:31 +0000

Over the last 20 years American desserts have become far too sweet. My wife, her mother, and her late grandmother all make (made) pies using recipies from the 1800s that use fresh fruit and a reasonable amount of sugar. They taste 10x better than almost any commercial or restaurant pie available in the US today. Cranky

By: eszter

eszter — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 00:57:34 +0000

Harry – Bruce Western is on the sociology faculty at Princeton and both Kieran and I had the good fortunate to study with him. He is an incredibly talented and smart person, I learned a lot from him. Kieran worked closely with him and has some joint publications. Regarding sweets, Gregory suggests: So long as the food is good why ask questions? But many sweets are not that good just because they are super sweet (or precisely because of that). Pastries can look great, but a little bit reveals right away that they don’t taste nearly as good as they look. David – No, it wasn’t a matter of preference, it was a matter of keeping things realistic. I guess it wouldn’t have taken that much extra effort to make whipped cream, but the to-do list gets long pretty quickly so I had to draw the line somewhere.

By: david

david — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 00:52:11 +0000

Why wasn’t the whipped cream homemade? Was it a matter of preference?