Milk Street Q&A

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Mitch - You always have the most fun party ideas! :-) My only tip is something they do at the dumpling shop I go to sometimes. They paint the dumpling wrapper with just a small marking made with food coloring so they know which are pork, shrimp, tofu, etc. Each flavor has a corresponding color. There are also edible markers that are used for cake decorating that might do the job as well. Not sure if/how that might work when boiling, but maybe it's worth a trial run? Good luck and have fun at the party! Best, The Milk Street Team

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Renee - We checked in with Chris and he said he almost exclusively uses this Maalouf olive oil from Lebanon. Stone-milled exclusively from a single grove of small, slender Souri olives grown in North Lebanon, Maalouf's early-harvest oil possesses a potent green color and a buttery, rich flavor with hints of green apple and artichoke. It has a subtle peppery kick and addictively long, nutty finish. This is truly an all-purpose, extra-virgin olive oil without the overpowering bitterness that mars many other brands. We get a very limited inventory of this small-batch oil; once we're sold out, we can't get more until the next year's olive harvest and, unfortunately, right now we are sold out. However, if you click the "Notify" button we will let you know when it's back in stock! Best, The Milk Street Team

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Susan - It depends on which salsa you are referring to. The Salsa Macha calls for dried guajillo, ancho, and morita or chipotle chiles. The Charred Habanero Salsa calls for fresh habanero chiles. The Fresh Tomatillo and Serrano Chile Salsa calls for fresh Serrano chiles. Best, The Milk Street Team

Answered by Elizabeth Mindreau

We are not aware that Francesca Guccione teaches any cooking classes.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Gabrielle - If you aren't a fan of the supermarket pizza dough we recommend contacting a local pizza shop to see if they offer dough balls for sale. Often they will sell these to you fresh or frozen. Best, The Milk Street Team

Answered by Elizabeth Mindreau

Dear Lynn, Perhaps you have already found the solution to making doughy centered Mexican wedding cookies. If not, this article from Food 52 might be able to help. The author mentions "The addition of ground-up nuts almost guarantees tender cookies." Here is the link. https://food52.com/blog/19002-swap-one-ingredient-get-entirely-new-rich-buttery-cookies Also, I would be happy to do a little research to see if your grandmother made something similar to Mexican wedding cookies but was something else entirely. If you could tell me where your grandmother was from, where she lived and in what time period, we might find a solution to your multi-decade hunt. Best, Elizabeth Milk Street's Culinary Researcher

Answered by April Dodd

All of our livestream classes are recorded and all registered attendees receive a copy of the recording - along with the recipes, a discount to the Milk Street Store and any bonus resources that come up during class - in a post-class email that typically goes out the morning after class. You'll have access to the recording for a minimum of two months weeks, though you can also download it and store it locally to keep it on hand for as long as you wish. And don't worry about taking a spot from someone else; our livestream classes have a really high capacity, so there's room for everyone!

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Carol - Hopefully some other folks will weigh in on specific brands they recommend - we haven't tested sheet trays at Milk Street - but almost all sheet trays will warp a little bit as a result of the metal expanding as it heats. In general, most sheets won't warp permanently. Once the metal temperature equalizes it should return back to the correct shape. Personally, at home I use this one which has warped a little bit but not enough to affect cooking in any way. Hope that helps! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Linda - First, the whole recipe can be made ahead and frozen for up to a week or refrigerated for up to 2 hours. See the headnote at the top of the recipe here for freezing/refrigerating instructions. We haven't tested preparing the base ahead of time but we \think\ it could work. We would add the egg yolks and vanilla and then refrigerate the mixture - probably for no more than a day or two - and then bring to room temperature before adding the egg whites. If you find that the mixture has gotten too thick as it sits, add a little more heavy cream, a tablespoon at a time, until the consistency is loose enough to add 1/4 of the whites easily. Good luck! Best, The Milk Street Team

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Marianne - We exclusively use conventional bake when developing our recipes at Milk Street. In our experience elsewhere, we have found that convection baking is best when browning or drying is the goal. For example, when roasting meats or toasting or crisping such as in making granola, crisp cookies (biscotti), or dried fruit or vegetables. Otherwise, we have not found much improvement in cooking with convection for cakes or pies. In fact, in some cases, the air that blows the heat around on the convection cycle can cause certain, more delicate, baked goods to rise unevenly or pie doughs to be more likely to slump. Best, The Milk Street Team