Vinegar Reduction Gone Right

I'm working on a vinegar chewing gum. The difficulty with using straight vinegar is that the flavor and acidity concentration is not enough to shine through the base. Inspired by @r8cheljane, I decided to go with a vinegar gel center. I felt that a simple reduction would be a good start.

Spoon Suspended by Reduced Vinegar
On the heat, it was where I wanted it. Cooled down, not so much.

Pulled Concord Vinegar
It was like taffy so I stretched and twisted it for fun.

Vinegar Gum with Vinegar Reduction Center
The reduction spreads well and worked wonderfully between two layers of ice wine vinegar chewing gum.

There's lots of potential here. I plan on trying a "spun sugar" vinaigrette. What are you thinking?

Marrying Maple with Refreshing Rhubarb

Rhubarb deserves better treatment than just pie or jam. Nothing beats the tart crunch of a freshly cut stalk from the garden. Granulated sugar dipping is great for a quick fix but has limitations. Infusing syrup into rhubarb is the way to go.

Maple Infused Rhubarb
This yields both maple infused rhubarb and rhubarb infused maple. 


Rhubarb Infused Maple Infused Rhubarb
Continue to reuse the infused syrup to play with concentration.


The Process
  • Fill a cream whipper to recommended capacity with thinly sliced rhubarb
  • Cover the rhubarb with any syrup
  • Double charge the canister with whatever you have
  • Refrigerate overnight

As always, I hope this idea inspires you to create. Please share what you come up with. 

Sherbet Shines with an Unlikely Partner

Take sherbet to the next level by replacing the citrus with quality vinegar. It adds wonderful depth of flavor that shines through.

Cola Concord Grape Vinegar Sherbet Float

I am patiently waiting on summer fruit to get here after a late start. In the meantime, I continue to seek bright and refreshing ideas to keep cool. Sherbet filled the immediate void. It's a wonderful combination of everything that's great about ice cream and sorbet. Untapped potential worth investigating. Give it a shot and you'll understand.

Guidelines for hacking a sherbet base
  • Replace the lemon juice with a delicious vinegar of your choice
  • Replace the dairy with a mix of equal parts cola and sour cream
  • Start with half the amount of sugar
  • Adjust sugar and vinegar to taste after the base is mixed
If you don't have an ice cream machine, try the ChefSteps dry ice process. It's a good time.

As always, please share your ideas so we can all benefit.

Refreshing Reconstitution - Customize Your Dried Fruit

Dehydration of fruits is a tasty concept born of preservation. Due to the concentration in flavor and sugar, it's not pleasing to eat very many without a hunk of cheese, bar of chocolate or handful of nuts to compliment. Mixing them into a backdrop like bread, yogurt, salad or granola is driven by the transformations as you chew. Reconstituting and adding them to a sauce, braise or soup brings depth. I could go on. We all have methods that we know and love, but here's what else.

Ice Wine Vinegar Infused Golden Raisins

I recently discovered that using a rapid infusion technique with golden raisins and ice wine vinegar is delicious. The puffed up former grapes became rebalanced bursting bites that transformed the pasty center into a delightful jam. It became fruit again.

There's lots of potential with infinite combinations of dried fruit and flavored liquid. Maybe a Bloody Mary tomato or olive oil olives? I hope you'll give the process a shot and share what you dream up.


Equipment: 1 pint (1/2 liter) cream whipper, 2 CO2 chargers

Instructions: Add a 1/2 cup of golden raisins to the cream whipper canister. Pour in enough vinegar to cover the raisins. Pressurize the unit with two charges. Refrigerate overnight. When depressurizing, the vinegar will foam so make sure you set up a catch cup. Don't toss the sweetened vinegar. It makes for a great soda.

MOFAD Q&A

Museum of Food and Drink's Meet & Greet
Held on Friday July 19th from 4 to 6 PM ET


Opening
Hi all, welcome to @mofad’s Q&A on Twitter. We have the @mofad team under this handle and Dave Arnold as @cookingissues. #mofad
Q & A
Q2 @cookingissues When did you first have the idea to open a food museum and why do you think it’s important? #mofad
A2 I was at the Museum of Natural History and realized food need a museum on that scale. #mofad
A2 I also realized starting a museum like that is impossible. The solution: start with groups of individual exhibitions #mofad
A2. Make each exhibition as cool and thorough as any exhibition at a larger museum. That's the way to grow. #mofad

Q3. Everyone, what would be your dream exhibit at @mofad? #mofad
A3: Monster “fish tank” labyrinth immersion circulator demonstrating a whole array of low temp cooking techniques. #mofad
@ourcookquest MOFAD meets aquarium, awesome. #mofad
@mofad A3: An exhibit showing what happens scientifically when fermentation occurs. #MOFAD
@_Mark_S Another pet topic here at MOFAD HQ. #microbes #mofad
@mofad A3: Traveling pop-up 'food court', representing different immigrant influences in America. Everything $5 or less. #mofad
@matthewjennings Good idea. Maybe rotate the offerings depending on which region / city it's in. #mofad

 Jean Dough ‏@ourcookquest
What would you make for this? RT @matthewjennings A3: Traveling pop-up 'food court'... #mofad
@mofad @matthewjennings A food truck roundup is one way to make such an idea a reality. Makes sense w/#mofad pop up to have mobile partners.
A3: Next pop up exhibit: an oversized chile roaster with serious BTUs. Could tumble roast all sorts of goodness! #mofad
@ourcookquest We'd have people sneezing for miles around! #mofad
@mofad A3: I'd love to see flavor/texture/temperature preferences in major food cultures and how they are acheived. #MOFAD #crunch 
MuseumOfFoodAndDrink ‏@mofad
@_Mark_S We're fascinated by this, too. (Why do Americans hate natto and tororo?) #mofad

Q4 @cookingissues will the @mofad focus on American cuisine? Or more general culinary trends? #mofad
A4 Excellent question. Sometimes we will focus on American topics, but we are interested in the whole world. #mofad


A4 NY is a great place for MOFAD because New York, more than any other US city, represents what happens when the world comes together #mofad



Q5: Everyone, what do you think was the tastiest time in history? #mofad
A5 Throughout history and cultures, people like things that taste good. #mofad
@mofad A5: Now. #mofad
Right now with all the serious creativity, sharing & tech! RT @mofad Q5: Everyone,what do you think was the tastiest time in history? #mofad
@mofad A5: Hmm.. probably Medieval Times. #MOFAD
Nice. Going old school there. RT @IronWhisk @mofad A5: Hmm.. probably Medieval Times. #MOFAD
@mofad Isn't the best time right now? Seriously. What don't we have now that there was
before? #mofad
@PrfctLitlBites Well, we can't eat Steller's Sea Cow anymore. That was so delicious we drove it extinct. #mofad
RT A5 @entreedallas: @PrfctLitlBites @mofad @CookingIssues I hate it when things delicious themselves into extinction. #mofad
@PrfctLitlBites What about Thai cuisine pre-chiles? #mofad
A5 Hannah says: the height of imperial China, only if I were a Qin emperor #mofad
@cookingissues A5 The whole how much should we manipulate food argument. Some things are best left alone. #mofad
A5 Emma says: Japan (more specifically Nagasaki) at the height of Portuguese and Dutch trading #mofad

Q6 How about the reasons to keep backing the kickstarter even though we've made our goals? #mofad
A6 Picture @mofad, now picture a guy with his pants pockets turned inside-out #mofad
A6 We've got just enough to fund the puffer, thanks to all of you, but need help moving forward with other programs #mofad
A6 The kickstarter goals were the bare minimum needed to exhibit the gun. We are by no means flush. #mofad
A6 More backing means we grow faster, can go more places, and it sends a message to NYC govt that we have broad support. #mofad
@mofad A6: Exceeding fundraising goals means ed programming & outreach/education opportunities. #mofad
A6: you guys taking the puffing gun on the road? What would it take to hit the west coast? Sure @evankleiman would like to know. #mofad
@ourcookquest It would take the enough backers and enough resources. We would love to do it. #mofad


@matthewjennings So true! We can't grow without cash. (Sad truth) #mofad

Q7 Have you tried puffing anything unusual? Would meat products like dried shrimp, bottarga & pork skin work? #mofad
A7 We haven't puffed a lot in the gun...yet. Just a couple of test puffs. #mofad
A7 pork skin (any skin) would clearly work. I have wondered about dried shrimp and scallops --and casein gels. #mofad
A7 in principle, anything that can get soft with heat,  without blowing apart, and set on cooling, can be puffed. #mofad
@CookingIssues A7 except for PDiddy. ;) #mofad
@ourcookquest While I can't puff Sean Puffy Combs, I bet I can puff dehydrated cock's combs #mofad
@CookingIssues A7 do you have a dream cereal puffing dough flavor combo? Sweet and savory please. #mofad
@ourcookquest We will definitely be doing some savory work. #mofad
@CookingIssues voting for fish sauced cream of mushroom puff #mofad
@cookingissues A7: is the puffing gun difficult to break? How well does it clean if you put something crazy in it? #mofad
@ourcookquest You clean the gun by tumbling bolts inside of it. No joke. #mofad
@cookingissues very cool. It's all about being industrial. What about residual smells? Sanitation easy? #mofad
@ourcookquest That's what the early cereal gurus wanted -bland, easy to digest pre-cooked starch. Puffs with no milk no sugar no salt #mofad

Q8 Any plans on looking backward to key moments in food/drink history as well as pushing forward? #mofad
A8 Absolutely. One example is looking at how spices drove the Age of Exploration. #mofad
A8 The history of food is vitally important to our mission. We use food as a lens to view history, culture, and science. #mofad
A8 Another: prohibition and how that changed beverage culture in the US #mofad
A8 The temperance movement that pre-dated prohibition is actually tied into the same cultural wave that spawned breakfast cereal #mofad
@cookingissues always thought it would be wonderful to see a cookbook library archiving how home food preparation developed & fads 2 #mofad

Q9 Is overall goal to provide an experience to get folks interested in general, or to really delve into each exhibit? #mofad
A9 Both. #mofad
A9 I don't want anyone to say a bigger museum could do a better job on the subjects we tackle. We must delve in. #mofad
A9: Been to many museums that are general and they turn me off. #mofad
A9 At the same time any exhibit we do has to address larger issues in the history, economics, science, and culture of food in general #mofad

Q10 Why is the puffing gun your first exhibit? #mofad
A10 The puffing gun sits at a great intersection of science, culture, and history. #mofad
A10 It's a lot of what @mofad wants to do wrapped in a shiny, 3200-lb package. #mofad
@mofad can you elaborate on your A10? #mofad
A10 Besides the fact that we just love the Puffing Gun so damned much, it really is a good self-contained starting point for us. #mofad
A10 Plus, the puffing gun is only a preview of a much larger exhibit to come on cereal #mofad
@ourcookquest @mofad Q10 would make a great essay. <--why I asked abt a print companion for #mofad

Q11: What do you want us to try puffing in the puffing gun? #mofad
@matthewjennings @PrfctLitlBites @_Mark_S what do you guys want to put in the puffing gun? #MOFAD
@ourcookquest @matthewjennings @PrfctLitlBites I want to make rice cakes with puffed pork skin, dried shrimp and black rice. #mofad


@_Mark_S Sounds amazing. Puffed black rice is apparently pretty easy to make at home. #mofad
RT @aaronhoskins @_Mark_S @matthewjennings @PrfctLitlBites Pretty sure the talented @brooke_mosley did a Rice Krispie treat like that #MOFAD
@CookingIssues Bringing the rice cake out of the shadows. Maybe puff some peppercorns? #MOFAD
@CookingIssues can you puff ground grains like cornmeal to make micro puffs? #mofad
@ourcookquest I'd think so. #mofad
@ourcookquest Most likely. The guy who discovered puffing (Alexander Anderson) did this with cornstarch #mofad
@CookingIssues would be interesting to find out the optimal sized puff for best texture experience. #mofad
A11: @harold_mcgee wants to try puffing green coffee beans. No guarantee it would be delicious. #mofad
A11: azuki beans, chewy ginger candy, cardamom and nitrogen shattered bubble gum. #mofad
A11: @ourcookquest All at once? Could be good as a topping for anmitsu. #mofad
A11: Piper at @bookeranddax wants to try puffing hot dogs. #NotGoodWithMilk #mofad
Made me think corn dogs! RT @mofad A11: Piper at @bookeranddax wants to try puffing hot dogs. #NotGoodWithMilk #mofad
In my twenties I made a cereal for myself with sugared pork rinds and bean shaped marshmallows. Piggles and Beanies. #GoodWithMilk #mofad
A11: @cookingissues What about tofu skin? #mofad
@mofad A11: Seaweed, BBQ, Gin & tonics...sorry they are on my mind today. #MOFAD
A11: @matthewjennings Seaweed definitely puffable, at least according to a Japanese co. that makes mini puffing guns. #mofad
Which ones? @_Mark_S @matthewjennings @mofad A:11 I'm also interested in pork skin, but also grains in general. #MOFAD
A11: @cookingissues Will you be developing a custom puff ingredient that you can use in a drink? #mofad
@ourcookquest I can't puff stuff for my business in the museum's gun #mofad


Needs a tshirt. RT @CookingIssues: @ourcookquest I can't puff stuff for my business in the museum's gun #mofad
I want to puff grass (any old Stan Freberg fans out there?) #mofad
@mofad @PrfctLitlBites Legumes? Could we do: alfalfa, clover, peas, beans, lentils, soybeans, peanuts? #puffthemagicPUFFINGGUN #mofad
@ourcookquest @_Mark_S @matthewjennings @mofad Been playing with freekeh & bulgur a lot lately. Love to see it puffed #mofad
A11: @PrfctLitlBites Great suggestions. Farro's been getting a lot of love, and freekeh's feeling left out. #mofad
@ourcookquest Herbal things. Can I puff a sage leaf? Pesto bits. #mofad
Can the puffing gun fit up the Yale College TD Bell Tower, and if so will you puff some delicacies over Harvard-Yale weekend? #MOFAD
@RaviDGoel Not in the bell tower, but we could do it on the quad! #mofad
@ourcookquest @CookingIssues @RaviDGoel I want a full auto-puffing gun. #mofad
@kitchenmage These days, commercial puffing guns are fully automated. Ours... not so much. #mofad
That's what interns are for. ;) RT @mofad @kitchenmage These days, commercial puffing guns are fully automated. Ours... not so much. #mofad
@CookingIssues More science to investigate. My geek-cook mind is racing. So many flat things need puffing! #mofad


Puffed malt. That is all. #mofad @mofad @ourcookquest
@amytmaster Perfect. Maybe we can double-puff malted milk balls. #mofad
Don't forget ground green coffee! RT @mofad @amytmaster Perfect. Maybe we can double-puff malted milk balls. #mofad @cookingissues

Q12: Will there be opportunities for traveling exhibits to visit other parts of the country? From @SustainFood4T #mofad
A12 If we can get the money and the interest we would love to visit other parts of the country with our exhibits #mofad

Q13 Going back in history is there any food that U don't know how they made it? (ie food equiv of the Pyramids) from @rubydeubry #mofad
@mofad @rubydeubry #mofad Roman liquamen. No-one knows just how they made it No-one is gonna experiment, either, as the base is rotting fish
@CatzInCowbridge Sally Grainger has been studying and making that stuff. I have tasted some of it. Pretty damned good. #mofad
A13: @CatzInCowbridge Fish sauces could be their own mini exhibit. Japanese ishiri is probably pretty close. #mofad
@mofad @CatzInCowbridge @cookingissues been working on a fish sauce cured bacon! #mofad
#mofad I believe trumpets may have to be involved (in the Proclamation) as well ;)
@ourcookquest It is. Sally Grainger's guts-only 3 year old mackerel Garum is a dead ringer for aged Japanese squid-guts Ishiri #Love #mofad

Q14 Why does sticking your hand in a bag of lentils feel so good? Curious about the feelings touching food inspires. @Erin_Fairbanks #mofad
A14 Peter likes the way the interior of fava bean pods feel. So soft. #mofad
A14: Like how some types of kale are sticky when you tear it. Also quite delicious. #mofad
Q14 Smashing your fingers through buckets of rice or dry beans like iron-fist kung-fu trainees doesn't feel great. But I am weak. #mofad

Q15: Will there be a restaurant in the museum? With puffed stuff?? from @amytmaster #mofad
@amytmaster Most certainly. The whole idea is to tie the restaurant into the exhibitions, to make a holistic experience. #mofad
A15. Once the museum has a space with 3 full-sized exhibits, we will probably have at least a cafe. #mofad
A15 And DEFINITELY no wraps. @cookingissues hates wraps. #mofad
@mofad Chicken club? What planet you from? I eat Turkey Clubs and they is awesome. #mofad
@mofad All good people hate wraps. #mofad
Aren't egg rolls just fried wraps? RT @mofad A15 And DEFINITELY no wraps. @cookingissues hates wraps. #mofad
@ourcookquest Fried wraps are great #Chimichanga #mofad
Fried wraps + lettuce even better #KoreanSsam #winning #mofad
Can @cookingissues suggest a coating so it stays crispy? RT @mofad Fried wraps + lettuce even better #KoreanSsam #winning #mofad
What if you made the wrap interesting using a different grain & nixtamalization? RT @CookingIssues @mofad All good people hate wraps. #mofad

Q16 Where do you think the food industry is heading? We're organic but food is still processed. From @thesugarchef #mofad
A16 Sometimes I am hopeful, sometimes baleful about the prospects of the food industry. One of the reasons to start the museum #mofad
A16: I have the fear that organic will not end up being as beneficial as local with the commercialization. #mofad

Q17 What other demonstrations do you have planned after Boom? from @amytmaster #mofad
A17 We have a lot planned. One is called Food Forum - take controversial food issues and bring experts together to debate #mofad

Q18, take 2: What will be in the museum? Will any of the exhibits be edible? from @HeritageRadioNetwork #mofad
A18 At MOFAD you will see, smell touch and taste real, live food. Another reason for brick and mortar. You can't eat the internet. #mofad
Examples please. RT @CookingIssues A18 At MOFAD you will see, smell touch and taste real, live food... #mofad

Q19 @cookingissues what are your sons' ideas for exhibits? from @ourcookquest #mofad
A19 Booker only wants to think about Russ and Daughters salmon and fish roe, Dax just wants to blow stuff up. #mofad

Q20 Is it feasible you think to puff larger hunks of stuff: fist-sized rather than pellet-sized? from @PopSciEats #mofad
@PopSciEats You have to heat through to the core of the product before the outside scorches. I don't know the upper size limit. Yet. #mofad

Q21 Will the museum have more of a domestic or international bent? from @amytmaster #mofad
@amytmaster Both. To the extent that the history of US food is the history of its immigrants, I don't always have to choose. #mofad
How much money would it take to make all of your @mofad dreams come true? #mofad @ourcookquest
@amytmaster We will roll out in a number of iterations. Puffing gun:150k, Full sized exhibit+gallery 2-3mil, 3 exhibit space 23 mil. #mofad
@amytmaster By the time I'm dead I want the museum in a huge space --100's of millions of dollars (as long as we are talking dreams) #mofad

Q1 What is your favorite breakfast cereal? #mofad
A1 Frosted Shredded Mini Wheats and Life #mofad
@mofad A1: Golden Grahams. #mofad
A1 rice krispies! @mofad Q1 What is your favorite breakfast cereal? #mofad
A1 Cocoa rice krispies to yield crazy sweet chocolate cereal milk! #mofad
A1: Honey Nut Cheerios #mofad
A1: Honey Graham Os! #mofad
@mofad A1 Cocoa Puffs #mofad
@matthewjennings Good one! Do they even make those anymore? #mofad
@IronWhisk A classic. (Though not made in a puffing gun.) #mofad
@mofad A1: Steel cut oats #MOFAD
A1 Sweet cereal was forbidden fruit for Peter as a child so he has a weak spot for Cinnamon Toast Crunch #mofad
@_Mark_S Delicious. Not RTE (ready-to-eat), but we'll let it slide. #mofad
@mofad A1: fave puffed cereal would have to be cap'n crunch! #mofad
@nanasmamee One of our faves. According to our cereal personality test, Cap'n Crunch lovers live on the wild side. #mofad
@mofad good to know! 😜#mofad
I wonder if cocoa nibs can be puffed to make a cocoa puff analog #mofad
Puffed ground coffee for micro bursting caffeine delivery. #mofad
@ourcookquest ground coffee is already partially puffed --coffee puffs as it is roasted. Bet we could puff green beans and post roast #mofad
@CookingIssues what about coffee beans then? #MOFAD



Closing
That wraps MOFAD's first Twitter Q&A. Thanks everyone. <24hrs left on our Kickstarter, help us break $100K http://boom.mofad.org  #mofad
If we hit $100K, Dave @cookingissues does lemonade cleanse, Peter does Special K diet, Emma does Cowboy Diet. Bring the pain! #mofad
Enjoy the weekend everybody! #mofad
@mofad Can't wait to see this become a reality. Huge thx to @CookingIssues for all the ways you've influenced me & the culinary world #mofad
@mofad @CookingIssues thanks for taking the time to let us know what #MOFAD is all about. The potential of this museum is simply amazing.
Thanks to everyone who participated in the #mofad chat!

Ready to work together? Get in touch.