Best Dishwashers 2011

With so many different dishwashers available in today's market, finding one that's right for you can be a daunting task. You need to look into different factors to narrow down your options. Getting a dishwasher nowadays is not just about getting your dishes perfectly clean or avoiding the laborious dish washing chore, but it also involves getting one that comes with a state-of-the-art design, quieter, yet quality performance, and are energy-efficient at an affordable price.

Best Dishwashers 2011

Best Dishwashers 2011

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Best Dishwashers 2011

Best Dishwashers 2011

Based on the test undertaken by the Good Housekeeping Institute, the 5 best dishwashers in terms of performance, rinsing effectiveness, energy and water consumption, convenience, and value are as follows:

ASKO D3530 tops the list for it's best in overall. Its sophisticated design comes with a stainless steel finish interior and hidden controls. Its interior lights up, for your loading convenience and it also comes with a fold-down tines and cup racks. It's the most water-efficient in both normal and heavy-duty cycles. Highly priced at a little over ,200 is definitely worth the investMent.

Second on the list is the KitchenAid KUDS01FLBL dishwasher. It's easy to load and comes with a removable and height-adjustable upper shelves, which helps fit different sizes of dishes and a mesh sack for smaller wares.

The stainless steel-designed Miele G892SC is third on the list. It's best for pots and pans and is good at polishing hard to clean casseroles, sauce pans, and glasses. It also comes with a height-adjustable upper shelves ideal for big kitchen wares.

Kenmore's Elite 16482 dishwasher comes in fourth. It's packed with baskets for all kinds of kitchen wares. It's also loaded with sensors that can detect load size and soil level and would adjust water volume and temperature. It also comes with other amazing functions, such as sanitizing rince, delayed start, and a child lock, for safekeeping.

The FrigidAire PLDB998CC dishwasher completes the list. It's one affordable dishwasher that offers quality performance. Priced at around 0, it out-performed several high-priced models. It's capable of washing just the lower or the upper shelves, whichever way you want it, saving you time and water if you have less than a full load. It's also loaded with great functionalities, such as high-temperature sanitizing rinse and delayed start.

Best Dishwashers 2011

Best Ever Whipped Potatoes

The humble potato has traveled all around the world and every where it lands, it makes a lasting impression on the people who eat them. But there was a time when no one but the ancient Inca's were eating them. In fact the word potato is derived from the word batata which means sweet potato in Spanish.

Best Ever Whipped Potatoes

Best Ever Whipped Potatoes

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Best Ever Whipped Potatoes

Best Ever Whipped Potatoes

The reason only the Inca's were eating them is because all the other civilizations new the potato to be a member of the nightshade family which are poisonous. So how did the Inca's eat them? Well, they learned how to domesticate them and essentially cultivated a variety that was not poisonous. Christopher Columbus brought them back to Spain in 1492 and from there they spread around the world.

In today's modern supermarket with super variety we can find dozens of kinds of potatoes. In reality there are only 3 kinds to be concerned with. The best way to group them is by the starch content. There are high, medium and low starch varieties. High starch varieties, like the russet and best for baking and making mashed potatoes. The medium starch varieties, like the yukon gold are good all purpose potatoes and they go well inside soups. The low starch varieties such as the norland red are best for boiling and making into potato salad.

So, for our recipe, we are going to need the high starch russets. In total you will need 2.5 to 3 pounds for 10 servings.

We first start out by peeling the russets. You want all the potatoes to be the same size so that they cook evenly so cut up the big ones to match the small ones. Next we add them into a heavy pot. Add just enough cold water to barely cover them. Bring the pot to the stove and salt the water liberally (at least 1 teaspoon or more). Turn the heat to high and cover the pot.

Now, don't go too far. When the water starts boiling, you need to turn down the heat. You don't want to have a rolling boil in the pot. That tends to break up the potatoes and turns the whole thing into soup. Once you have lowered the temperature check them every 2 minutes. The way to test for doneness is to squeeze one with a pAir of tongues or 2 spoons. If the potato yields to the pressure and falls apart, then they are done.

While the potatoes are Cooking, there is other work to be done. Everyone knows that you have to add dAiry to mashes potatoes. Here is the best way to do this. Take 2/3 C of low fat buttermilk. Add to that 2 or 3 tablespoons of whipping cream. Take 2 or 3 garlic cloves and cut them into small pieces (about the size of a small pea). Add the garlic to the milk mixture and heat just to simmering for about 15 minutes. Do not overheat this mixture or the milk will curdle.

Now, you have your garlic infused milk and the potatoes are cooked and drained. The best way to mash them is with a mixer. But not just any mixer. You really should use a stand mixer like a Kitchenaid. They make short work of this arm twisting chore. Place the hot potatoes in the bowl of the mixer (if you want, you could have added the hot potato water into the bowl to heat it up first). Next using the flat beater and the mixer on speed 2 or 3 start mashing the potatoes. Gradually add the milk mixture (be careful not to add the chunks of garlic). You have to eyeball this part. The amount of liquid needed really depends on the potatoes you use. When you have added just enough liquid increase the speed to 5 or 6 and beat for about 1 minute.

Stop the mixer now, scrape the bowl if necessary and change the beater attachMent to the whip attachMent. Next we whip on speed 9 or 10 for 2 more minutes. We are almost done. Remove the bowl from the mixer.

It is decision time. We now have light fluffy whipped potatoes that are infused with garlic. If you like, at this sTAGe you can decide to fold in some chives, some bacon bits or some Parmesan cheese. I would add 2 or 3 tablespoons. Of course you don't have to fold in anything because the potatoes will taste amazing by themselves.

Serve immediately with your favorite meal and enjoy the sounds of 'mmm' that are sure to come from your friends and family.

Best Ever Whipped Potatoes

Silver Service

What is a Silver Service Waiter?

Silver Service

Silver Service

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Silver Service

Silver Service

Referred to by the French as "English Service" or service anglais, silver service technique has all but died out in private homes (except perhaps for those of great wealth).
Silver service actually describes the process of serving diners from a "silver" service dish to the diners plate, rather than the more common practise of serving the plate to the diner.
Thus the silver service waiter or waitress must bring the Food to the guests via a platter and must be well acquainted with the appropriate etiquette and technique (see below).

Origins

Silver service waiting has it's origins in the manors, country seats and fine houses of the British middle and upper classes of previous centuries.
It has a sister term of "butler service" which emanates from the age old practise of giving the waiting staff Sunday evenings off - the butler, who presumably was not given the evening off - would serve the diners from a silver platter which he carried from person to person. One can easily imagine that the Food on the platter would be the re-presented meats etc. from a large Sunday lunch - perhaps the guests were still rather full?

Silver Service Etiquette

• Meals are served to the diners from platters carried to them, not by laying down plates of Food on the table.
• The guest to the host's (hostesses) right is served first.
• Service is conducted in a clockwise direction.
• Food is always served from the left and cleared from the right.
• Glasses are served and cleared from the right
• Glasses are laid out to the right in a diagonal fashion with the water glass in front of the diner - ordered in sequence for the wines by course.

Is silver service still popular?

It is a convivial practise although not always particularly practical. This being said - many people really enjoy the sense of history and even grandeur that comes with this rare type of dining and in the right setting it can really add style to an event or function.

Where would I be able to find a Silver Service Waiter?

Generally any quality hospitality staffing group or caterer should be able to offer you Silver Service for a dinner - and occasionally some restaurants too. Certain venues that you may choose for a special event, especially those with large private dining rooms should be able to provide you with appropriately trained staff.

Silver Service

Make Chocolate Cake

This is a very good chocolate cake recipe that is healthy and you won't have to hear that same old advice from your doctor as to why shouldn't you eat chocolate cake!

Make Chocolate Cake

Make Chocolate Cake

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Make Chocolate Cake

Make Chocolate Cake

Ingredients to make a chocolate cake:

1 cup soy milk

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 cups whole wheat flour

1-1/2 cups raw sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

4 egg whites (large), at room temperature

Preparation on how to make a chocolate cake:

1. Heat up oven to 350 degrees. Spread out two 9-inch round cake pans or one 9x13x2-inch pan with vegetable oil Cooking spray and sprinkle with whole-wheat flour.

2.Heat the soymilk in a medium size saucepan until its hardly boiled. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa until thickened and almost smooth (some tiny lumps will remain). Let stand 2 to 3 minutes to cool slightly. Whisk in the applesauce and vanilla extract.

3.Mix the flour, 1-1/4 cups of the raw sugar, the baking powder, soda, and sea salt in a large bowl.

4.Beat the egg whites in a medium size bowl with an electric mixer until thick and foamy. Gradually beat in the remaining 1/4 cup of raw sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form when the beaters are lifted.

5.Pour the cocoa mixture over the whole-wheat flour. Stir just until blended.

6.With a rubber spatula, gently stir about a quarter of the egg whites into the whole-wheat flour mixture. Fold in the remaining egg whites until no white streaks remain. Pour into the prepared pan or pans.

7.Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool completely. Garnish with your favorite fresh fruit.

VANILLA FROSTING

2 egg whites, at room temperature

1/2-teaspoon cream of tartar

1/4-cup honey

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1-cup instant nonfat dry milk powder

1.In a bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and continue beating, adding the honey and vanilla.
2.Gradually add the nonfat dry milk powder, beating constantly, until the frosting is a good spreading consistency.

It's not so hard to make a chocolate cake! Enjoy!

Make Chocolate Cake

How To Install Furring Strips to Concrete Walls

If you are planning to finish a baseMent you will most likely need to install furring strips to the concrete walls so that the walls can be sheetrocked.

How To Install Furring Strips to Concrete Walls

How To Install Furring Strips to Concrete Walls

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How To Install Furring Strips to Concrete Walls

How To Install Furring Strips to Concrete Walls

Attaching furring strips to concrete walls can be easily done using 2"x2"s or 2"x3" kiln dried wood studs, liquid nail glue, and some fluted concrete nails.

Due to moisture in the baseMent, I prefer to use a 2"x4" pressure treated stud laid flat along the bottom of the wall. Lay the stud on its flat side up against the wall. The furring strips will sit on top of the pressure treated stud, such that there is effectively a moisture barrier between the baseMent floor and the kiln dried studs.

The kiln dried studs should be placed on 16 inch centers along the wall, again resting on the pressure treated 2"x4". The kiln dried studs should run the enTire height of the concrete wall.

To secure the bottom plate and studs to the wall, I first run a bead of Liquid Nails (designed to adhere to concrete and wood), along the enTire length of the bottom plate/stud. If you are using 2"x3"s for the furring strips, the glue should be applied to the wider side, such that when the stud is installed, you effectively have the flat side of the stud attached to the wall.

Start with the application of glue on the pressure treated bottom plate.

Next, using a drill and a masonry bit, drill pilot holes into the bottom plate. The holes should be placed every 16 inches along the length of the plate and should penetrate the concrete walls approximately 1.5". Then using 3" fluted nails and a 3-5 lb sledge hammer, pound the nails into the holes. Note: I prefer to drill and pound a nail, one hole at a time to eliminate alignMent problems.

Once the bottom plate has been installed, repeat the process on the vertical kiln dried studs. Install one stud at a time, again on 16 inch centers. Make sure they stand straight and level.

To help hold the vertical stud in place while you are drilling holes and pounding in concrete nails, I like to toe nail the bottom of the stud into the bottom pressure treated plate first.

Once the glue has set up, the furring strips will be strongly Fastened to the wall and ready for drywall.

Note, however, you may want to apply pink board insulation in between the studs to provide some level of insulation between the concrete walls and the finished sheetrocked wall. Simply cut the insulation to the proper width, apply some Liquid Nails to the back side of the insulation board, and then press the insulation in-between the studs.

How To Install Furring Strips to Concrete Walls

The One Recipe You Should Never Make With Your KitchenAid Mixer

A few weeks ago I was researching the KitchenAid stand mixer and I came across a blog post by someone that I thought was not the best advice. The blog post was all about making pancakes with your mixer (or any stand mixer really). Now the recipe was probably pretty good but the process is what was flawed in my opinion.

The One Recipe You Should Never Make With Your KitchenAid Mixer

The One Recipe You Should Never Make With Your KitchenAid Mixer

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The One Recipe You Should Never Make With Your KitchenAid Mixer

The One Recipe You Should Never Make With Your KitchenAid Mixer

For me pancakes are all about being soft and light and fluffy. They should not be dense or chewy or gummy in any way. If I wanted that, I could make a trip to one of those all night breakFast joints and get a stack of hockey puck flap jacks.

No, for me pancakes need to be handled with care and attention. The reason is gluten. Now for a bit of Food science. Gluten is a protein, actually it is a composition of 2 proteins named gliadin and glutenin. When water is added to wheat flour and then mechanically mixed, gluten forms. And it is this wonderful gluten that gives bread dough and Pasta their chewy and elastic characteristics. But since the gluten content is increased by mechanical mixing or kneading, it is not something we ever want to do if we desire to have light and fluffy pancakes.

So, the next time you want to enjoy some pan fried goodness for breakFast, leave your mixer tucked neatly away. Instead, follow this basic Cooking process.

You can use any basic pancake recipe that you like. The key to a great result is in the mixing. What you want to do is mix all the dry ingredients first in a bowl that is large enough for your batter. Next, mix all the wet ingredients in a separate bowl.

Now, before you add the wet to the dry, get prepared. An electric griddle is probably the best appliance for Cooking pancakes at home but if you have to use a frying pan, that will also work. There are 2 differences. An electric griddle has a built-in thermostat which means the heat will remain more constant than with a pan on the stove. Second, the griddle means you can cook a lot more pancakes at the same time. I use a pan on the stove myself but I never cook more than one pancake at a time and I keep them warm in the oven till ready to serve. It's not the best but I have no more room to store a griddle so I chose not to buy one. Using my stove, I heat the pan for 2 minutes at level 5. Then I turn down the heat to 4 when Cooking. If I notice that things are taking too long, I increase the heat for about another minute and then lower to 4 again.

Now that you have a hot cooking appliance ready, it is time to mix the batter. You want to achieve the mixing as Fast as possible without activating too much gluten. So, take the wet ingredients and literally dump them into the dry. Then take a spatula and fold in the wet ingredients for 10 to 15 seconds. That is it. Some of the dry may not be perfectly mixed but that is all right. I have never had a lumpy pancake using this method.

Next, place some batter on the griddle or in the frying pan and wait. You want to see the bubbles forming all around the outside of the pancake. That is the sign of a flapjack that is ready to be flipped. If the heat is high enough the bottom will be nice and brown. If it is too low it will be pale in color and conversely if it is too hot the bottom will be very dark. So as gently as possible flip the flapjack and continue cooking the opposite side. Normally the second side will cook in half the time as the first.

When serving the pancake always have real maple syrup on hand. It can make all the difference in the world and the taste is like no other. Since you put all this care and attention into making the best pancakes you could, you deserve to have them sweetened perfectly with a little maple syrup.

There you have it. Next time you get a craving for some flapjacks, keep the KitchenAid mixer covered and instead use the dump and fold method for the lightest and fluffiest pancakes you can make at home.

The One Recipe You Should Never Make With Your KitchenAid Mixer

Are All Kitchen Mixers Created Equal? What to Look for When Buying a Mixer

Ignore all those infomercials for fancy (and essentially useless) kitchen gadgets. Instead, you should spend your time and effort on choosing the perfect kitchen mixer. A kitchen mixer is one of those appliances that every serious cook needs. A good stand mixer can save you hours of work in the kitchen doing a huge variety of kitchen Jobs. No cook should be without one.

Are All Kitchen Mixers Created Equal? What to Look for When Buying a Mixer

Are All Kitchen Mixers Created Equal? What to Look for When Buying a Mixer

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Are All Kitchen Mixers Created Equal? What to Look for When Buying a Mixer

Are All Kitchen Mixers Created Equal? What to Look for When Buying a Mixer

But not all kitchen mixers are created equal, and having a low-quality stand mixer can be almost as bad as not having one at all. Like other appliances, good quality stand mixers are a great investMent, as these machines can last for years-- even decades. If you spend the time and money finding the perfect one, you won't have to worry about buying another for a very long time.

There are several things you should look at when shopping for a new kitchen mixer. There is price and quality, of course, but you should also consider things like speed & controls, capacity, attachMents, and add-on options.

Speed and Controls

In general, stand mixers have anywhere from 3 to 15 speeds. The more speeds your mixer has, the more flexible it will be in its uses and the more control you will have with mixing.

There are several kinds of controls that come standard on kitchen mixers. Probably the most common is the dial control. This adjusts speed more gradually, allowing you to go from low to high as you choose. You may also find stand mixers with slide controls, pushbuttons (as on a standard blender), and switches. The newest kitchen mixers are controlled with a touchpad, and have a digital display panel. These look great, but are not so different from standard controls. One new innovation in these types of mixers that you may want to opt for, however, is a timer. This has a countdown on a digital display, and will shut down automatically after a certain pre-programmed time.

Capacity

A basic stand mixer will have the capacity to mix one batch of cookie or bread dough. Many other models, however, are sold with two different sized bowls, allowing the capacity to be adjusted to many different recipes. Though standard bowls are generally the size of a medium mixing bowl, kitchen mixer work bowls can have anywhere from a 1.5 to 7 quart capacity.

AttachMents & Optional Accessories

Like other appliances, one thing you will want to look at when buying a stand mixer is if it will do everything you need. A standard kitchen mixer comes with a set of beaters for batters, dough hooks for mixing bread doughs, and one or two mixing bowls. However, many come with extra attachments and optional accessories to make kitchen work even easier. These include paddles, splatter shields, or flat blending rods for mixing drinks.

Many of the best kitchen mixers can be converted into different kinds of kitchen appliances by buying a simple accessory. This kind of stand mixer can be transformed into a meat grinder, a juicer, a Food processor, a can opener, or a Pasta maker. While these units and their accessories are expensive, they can easily replace almost every kitchen appliance you have.

Are All Kitchen Mixers Created Equal? What to Look for When Buying a Mixer