So I'm sitting here watching Ina Garten make meatballs.
She's using fresh bread crumbs she's put through the Cuisinart. This is
what slays me though- she says she just takes the crust off of about x
amount of white bread and grinds it up. Huh!? Why would you bother to
take the crust off if you're going to grind it anyway? What is the
problem with bread crusts anyway? I think that might be my favorite part
of bread.
Could someone please tell me why? 'splain Lucy?!

Goomba38 > wrote:

>So I'm sitting here watching Ina Garten make meatballs.
>She's using fresh bread crumbs she's put through the Cuisinart. This is
>what slays me though- she says she just takes the crust off of about x
>amount of white bread and grinds it up. Huh!? Why would you bother to
>take the crust off if you're going to grind it anyway? What is the
>problem with bread crusts anyway?

Cooties.

Seriously though, I believe the practice of slicing the crusts
off bread (still practiced in England, last I looked) stemmed from
the fear that the outside of a loaf of bread may be contaminated
with germs and dirt.

Steve

"Goomba38" > wrote in message
. ..
> So I'm sitting here watching Ina Garten make meatballs.
> She's using fresh bread crumbs she's put through the Cuisinart. This is
> what slays me though- she says she just takes the crust off of about x
> amount of white bread and grinds it up. Huh!? Why would you bother to take
> the crust off if you're going to grind it anyway? What is the problem with
> bread crusts anyway? I think that might be my favorite part of bread.
> Could someone please tell me why? 'splain Lucy?!


I'll take a stab at it.

If you say that the crust might be your favorite part of the bread, then you
probably have a taster that can distinguish the taste vs. the texture of the
crust.

She might think that the pure taste of the bread, minus crust, will make the
difference in the taste of the meatballs.

Me? I wouldn't take the crust off, unless it was a almost burnt or heavily
crusted loaf. (Wonder what she does with the crusts? - no doubt some kind
of pudding? No! No!)

I love Ina.
Dee Dee
Dee Dee

Steve Pope wrote:

> Cooties.
>
> Seriously though, I believe the practice of slicing the crusts
> off bread (still practiced in England, last I looked) stemmed from
> the fear that the outside of a loaf of bread may be contaminated
> with germs and dirt.
>
> Steve

Well, that makes sense about as much as anything could? But it doesn't
explain why people would bother nowadays. When it comes to using bread
for strata, brown betty, croutons or anything else I *never* remove the
crusts.

Dee.Dee wrote:

> If you say that the crust might be your favorite part of the bread, then you
> probably have a taster that can distinguish the taste vs. the texture of the
> crust.
>
> She might think that the pure taste of the bread, minus crust, will make the
> difference in the taste of the meatballs.

Well.. her meatballs could have used some parmesan cheese, a little
garlic, some minced parsley and some herbs too...

Bread crusts do have a distinguishing flavor to me. Perhaps not
Wonderbread, but most other good hearty breads. And like you, I always
wonder what the heck they're doing with those amputated crusts?!

Thanks for taking a stab at it.

"Goomba38" > wrote in message
. ..
> So I'm sitting here watching Ina Garten make meatballs.
> She's using fresh bread crumbs she's put through the Cuisinart. This is
> what slays me though- she says she just takes the crust off of about x
> amount of white bread and grinds it up. Huh!? Why would you bother to take
> the crust off if you're going to grind it anyway? What is the problem with
> bread crusts anyway? I think that might be my favorite part of bread.
> Could someone please tell me why? 'splain Lucy?!


First off, using white bread for meatballs is just plain wrong. Using bread
crumbs instead of wet stale bread is just a substitute for when you don't
happen to have stale bread.

In our house the bread crumbs are made from whatever bread we have left
over, be it Italian, French, sourdough, or rye and yes, the crust becomes
part of it.

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:

>
> First off, using white bread for meatballs is just plain wrong. Using bread
> crumbs instead of wet stale bread is just a substitute for when you don't
> happen to have stale bread.

Well, in fact she used fresh crumbs and dried ones. She claims the fresh
kept the meatballs moist and the dried ones helped hold them together.
But I take her claims with a grain of salt since she also added oil to
the pot of boiling water and claimed it "kept the pasta from sticking"
and we all know about *that* old wives tale. I use dried since that is
what I keep on hand for the most part.

>
> In our house the bread crumbs are made from whatever bread we have left
> over, be it Italian, French, sourdough, or rye and yes, the crust becomes
> part of it.

Yes, same here.

"Goomba38" > wrote

> explain why people would bother nowadays. When it comes to using bread for
> strata, brown betty, croutons or anything else I *never* remove the
> crusts.

For what it's worth, I don't bother either. Maybe if she was going
to then toast them, I might see she might think the edges would
become too toasted, but for meatballs? Not likely.

nancy

Janet Baraclough > wrote:

>from (Steve Pope) contains these words:

>> Seriously though, I believe the practice of slicing the crusts
>> off bread (still practiced in England, last I looked)

> ?

> If you go for a classic English afternoon tea in a tearoom or hotel,
>you might be served cakes, and dainty little thin sandwiches with no
>crusts. Otherwise, crusts are usually left on the bread and eaten.

As I said, it is still practiced in England. I did not say
it is universally practiced.

Steve

Goomba38 > wrote in
:

> Steve Pope wrote:
>
>> Cooties.
>>
>> Seriously though, I believe the practice of slicing the crusts
>> off bread (still practiced in England, last I looked) stemmed from
>> the fear that the outside of a loaf of bread may be contaminated
>> with germs and dirt.
>>
>> Steve
>
> Well, that makes sense about as much as anything could? But it doesn't
> explain why people would bother nowadays. When it comes to using bread
> for strata, brown betty, croutons or anything else I *never* remove the
> crusts.

If the crusts are removed (optional in my world too) the overall look of
any crutons or whatever is considered more appealing. The bread
ingredient is all one colour give or take. If the crusts aren't removed
you'll get 2 tone crutons plus the ones with part of a crust on it will
have a differing texture. It is all in the look and mouthfeel. IMO

--

The house of the burning beet-Alan

It'll be a sunny day in August, when the Moon will shine that night-
Elbonian Folklore

Bread Crusts

Group: rec.food.cooking Date: Wed, Jan 9, 2008, 11:07pm (EST+5) From:
(Edwin*Pawlowski)

"Using bread crumbs instead of wet stale bread is just a substitute for
when you don't happen to have stale bread.
In our house the bread crumbs are made from whatever bread we have left
over, be it Italian, French, sourdough, or rye"
--------------------------
In our family we would save the ends of various loves of bread after
slicing,let them get stale and use in meatballs.My mother would leave a
loaf of italian bread out to harden if she planned on making
meatballs-------------------P


"Food, Art and Films,What else do you need?...Well.."Tyler Florence
reached out his hand and begged me to go with him ..Damn!..thats when I
woke up,T'was all a dream"

In article >,
Goomba38 > wrote:

> Why would you bother to
> take the crust off if you're going to grind it anyway? What is the
> problem with bread crusts anyway?
> Could someone please tell me why? 'splain Lucy?!

Snob appeal. Nothing more.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
Notes about our meals in Tuscany have been posted to
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; 10-16-2007

In article >,
"Edwin Pawlowski" > wrote:

> "Goomba38" > wrote in message
> . ..
> > So I'm sitting here watching Ina Garten make meatballs.
> > She's using fresh bread crumbs she's put through the Cuisinart. This is
> > what slays me though- she says she just takes the crust off of about x
> > amount of white bread and grinds it up. Huh!? Why would you bother to take
> > the crust off if you're going to grind it anyway? What is the problem with
> > bread crusts anyway? I think that might be my favorite part of bread.
> > Could someone please tell me why? 'splain Lucy?!
>
>
> First off, using white bread for meatballs is just plain wrong. Using bread
> crumbs instead of wet stale bread is just a substitute for when you don't
> happen to have stale bread.
>
> In our house the bread crumbs are made from whatever bread we have left
> over, be it Italian, French, sourdough, or rye and yes, the crust becomes
> part of it.

Enlighten me here, Mr. Ed. How is it that you use "wet stale bread" in
meat-a-balls? I mean *how* do you use it? Tear the bread into pieces
and soak it in some milk? Soak a hunk of stale bread in milk and moosh
it with a fork?

When i make meatloaf or meat-a-balls, I dump some breadcrumbs (from my
stash of fine dried crumbs made from dead bread) into a bowl, add some
milk and let it soak into the bread crumbs and maybe add some more milk
so I'm looking at something akin to the consistency of cooked oatmeal
maybe. Then I break an egg into it and mix with a large fork. Then I
add the ground meat maybe a quarter pound at a time, mixing it with the
big fork until the meat has all been mixed with the bread crumb mixture
incorporated into it. The onion and seasonings went into the wet bread
mix.

Sometimes I'll take a small gob (the culinary measure, not the
expectorant measure) and nuke it for about 7 seconds to taste it. If it
needs more of something I'll add that to the meat before shaping into
the meat-a-balls with my handydandy meatball maker.

So, what are you doing with your stale bread? Inquiring Mind Wants to
Know.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
Notes about our meals in Tuscany have been posted to
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; 10-16-2007

"Melba's Jammin'" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> "Edwin Pawlowski" > wrote:
>
>> "Goomba38" > wrote in message
>> . ..
>> > So I'm sitting here watching Ina Garten make meatballs.
>> > She's using fresh bread crumbs she's put through the Cuisinart. This
>> > is
>> > what slays me though- she says she just takes the crust off of about
>> > x
>> > amount of white bread and grinds it up. Huh!? Why would you bother
>> > to take
>> > the crust off if you're going to grind it anyway? What is the
>> > problem with
>> > bread crusts anyway? I think that might be my favorite part of
>> > bread.
>> > Could someone please tell me why? 'splain Lucy?!
>>
>>
>> First off, using white bread for meatballs is just plain wrong. Using
>> bread
>> crumbs instead of wet stale bread is just a substitute for when you
>> don't
>> happen to have stale bread.
>>
>> In our house the bread crumbs are made from whatever bread we have
>> left
>> over, be it Italian, French, sourdough, or rye and yes, the crust
>> becomes
>> part of it.
>
> Enlighten me here, Mr. Ed. How is it that you use "wet stale bread" in
> meat-a-balls? I mean *how* do you use it? Tear the bread into pieces
> and soak it in some milk? Soak a hunk of stale bread in milk and moosh
> it with a fork?
>
> When i make meatloaf or meat-a-balls, I dump some breadcrumbs (from my
> stash of fine dried crumbs made from dead bread) into a bowl, add some
> milk and let it soak into the bread crumbs and maybe add some more milk
> so I'm looking at something akin to the consistency of cooked oatmeal
> maybe. Then I break an egg into it and mix with a large fork. Then I
> add the ground meat maybe a quarter pound at a time, mixing it with the
> big fork until the meat has all been mixed with the bread crumb mixture
> incorporated into it. The onion and seasonings went into the wet bread
> mix.
>
> Sometimes I'll take a small gob (the culinary measure, not the
> expectorant measure) and nuke it for about 7 seconds to taste it. If
> it
> needs more of something I'll add that to the meat before shaping into
> the meat-a-balls with my handydandy meatball maker.
>
> So, what are you doing with your stale bread? Inquiring Mind Wants to
> Know.
> --
I'm not him, but I just rip it into some pieces and soak it in milk .
Then I can either mash it into the functional equivilent of crumbs in
milk, or let it get mashed as a side effect of being mixed into the meat.
But I am not organized enough to stash breadcrumbs and too lazy to make
them as needed.

del

Melba's Jammin' > wrote:

> Enlighten me here, Mr. Ed. How is it that you use "wet stale bread" in
> meat-a-balls? I mean *how* do you use it? Tear the bread into pieces
> and soak it in some milk? Soak a hunk of stale bread in milk and moosh
> it with a fork?

I am not Mr. Ed, but bread should be in pieces, usually. It is then
soaked in milk or water, depending on the recipe, and then squeezed out.

> When i make meatloaf or meat-a-balls, I dump some breadcrumbs (from my
> stash of fine dried crumbs made from dead bread) into a bowl, add some
> milk and let it soak into the bread crumbs and maybe add some more milk
> so I'm looking at something akin to the consistency of cooked oatmeal
> maybe. Then I break an egg into it and mix with a large fork.

The egg makes for the tougher texture of meatballs, rissoles, or
meatloaf. Might be your preference, though.

> Then I
> add the ground meat maybe a quarter pound at a time, mixing it with the
> big fork until the meat has all been mixed with the bread crumb mixture
> incorporated into it. The onion and seasonings went into the wet bread
> mix.

This sounds like a pain in the derrière. While grinding meat, just add
a bit of each of the other ingredients into the grinder every time, so
you won't have much mixing to do at all. Moreover, you won't have to
mince that onion separately, either, just chop it up very coarsely
instead.

Bubba

(Victor Sack) wrote in news:1ias635.wr3q061lfir28N%
:

> This sounds like a pain in the derriŠre. While grinding meat, just add
> a bit of each of the other ingredients into the grinder every time, so
> you won't have much mixing to do at all. Moreover, you won't have to
> mince that onion separately, either, just chop it up very coarsely
> instead.
>
> Bubba
>

And if you add the bread last it helps in cleaning the grinder.

--

The house of the burning beet-Alan

It'll be a sunny day in August, when the Moon will shine that night-
Elbonian Folklore

In article >,
(Victor Sack) wrote:

> Melba's Jammin' > wrote:
>
> > Enlighten me here, Mr. Ed. How is it that you use "wet stale bread" in
> > meat-a-balls? I mean *how* do you use it? Tear the bread into pieces
> > and soak it in some milk? Soak a hunk of stale bread in milk and moosh
> > it with a fork?
>
> I am not Mr. Ed, but bread should be in pieces, usually. It is then
> soaked in milk or water, depending on the recipe, and then squeezed out.

Ick.


> > maybe. Then I break an egg into it and mix with a large fork.
>
> The egg makes for the tougher texture of meatballs, rissoles, or
> meatloaf. Might be your preference, though.

Makes it all hold together better, too.
>
> > Then I
> > add the ground meat maybe a quarter pound at a time, mixing it with
> > the big fork until the meat has all been mixed with the bread crumb
> > mixture incorporated into it. The onion and seasonings went into
> > the wet bread mix.

>
> This sounds like a pain in the derrière.

Nah. It's painless.

> While grinding meat, just add
> a bit of each of the other ingredients into the grinder every time, so
> you won't have much mixing to do at all. Moreover, you won't have to
> mince that onion separately, either, just chop it up very coarsely
> instead.
>
> Bubba

You sly dog, you, Bubba Vic !! "When grinding meat. . . . " I keep
thinking I'll grind some for burger sometime. Hasn't happened yet.
Maybe next time chuck roasts are cheap. I can buy ground meat that's
been ground the same day I purchase. Good enough for our plebeian
palates.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
Notes about our meals in Tuscany have been posted to
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; 10-16-2007

"Victor Sack" > wrote in message
.. .
> Melba's Jammin' > wrote:
>
>> Enlighten me here, Mr. Ed. How is it that you use "wet stale bread" in
>> meat-a-balls? I mean *how* do you use it? Tear the bread into pieces
>> and soak it in some milk? Soak a hunk of stale bread in milk and moosh
>> it with a fork?
>
> I am not Mr. Ed, but bread should be in pieces, usually. It is then
> soaked in milk or water, depending on the recipe, and then squeezed out.
>

Exactly. If the bread is stale, it does not become the doughball that
Wonder bread would become. Tear it up and mix it in. I know man old
Italians that have done it that way for a couple of generations.

Melba's Jammin' > wrote:

> (Victor Sack) wrote:
>
> > I am not Mr. Ed, but bread should be in pieces, usually. It is then
> > soaked in milk or water, depending on the recipe, and then squeezed out.
>
> Ick.

Are you one of those who wear gloves to touch their food?

> > The egg makes for the tougher texture of meatballs, rissoles, or
> > meatloaf. Might be your preference, though.
>
> Makes it all hold together better, too.

The way you handle your meat, it doesn't need any help in this regard.
Mixing it interminably makes it warm and gluey. Ick.

> > This sounds like a pain in the derrière.
>
> Nah. It's painless.

It is the numbness settling into your hands that must be saving you.

> You sly dog, you, Bubba Vic !! "When grinding meat. . . . " I keep
> thinking I'll grind some for burger sometime. Hasn't happened yet.
> Maybe next time chuck roasts are cheap. I can buy ground meat that's
> been ground the same day I purchase. Good enough for our plebeian
> palates.

Grinding meat does not take much time at all. Grinding all the
ingredients together actually saves you time and quite a bit of separate
mincing and mixing.

Bubba Vic

In article >,
(Victor Sack) wrote:

> Melba's Jammin' > wrote:
>
> > (Victor Sack) wrote:
> >
> > > I am not Mr. Ed, but bread should be in pieces, usually. It is then
> > > soaked in milk or water, depending on the recipe, and then squeezed out.
> >
> > Ick.
>
> Are you one of those who wear gloves to touch their food?

Nope. But all I see is gooey gobs of white wet bread. It does not
appeal.
>
> > > The egg makes for the tougher texture of meatballs, rissoles, or
> > > meatloaf. Might be your preference, though.
> >
> > Makes it all hold together better, too.
>
> The way you handle your meat, it doesn't need any help in this regard.
> Mixing it interminably makes it warm and gluey. Ick.

Oh, please, Bubba Vic! My meatloaf meat is not warm and gluey, thank
you very much.
>
> > > This sounds like a pain in the derrière.
> >
> > Nah. It's painless.
>
> It is the numbness settling into your hands that must be saving you.

I do it with a fork, Bubba. It's a serving fork, four tines. Works
great.
>
> > You sly dog, you, Bubba Vic !! "When grinding meat. . . . " I keep
> > thinking I'll grind some for burger sometime. Hasn't happened yet.
> > Maybe next time chuck roasts are cheap. I can buy ground meat that's
> > been ground the same day I purchase. Good enough for our plebeian
> > palates.
>
> Grinding meat does not take much time at all. Grinding all the
> ingredients together actually saves you time and quite a bit of separate
> mincing and mixing.
>
> Bubba Vic

Sure. When we grind the pork for the tourtiere we grind the onion in
with it. And I always chuck in a cracker at the end as Ed suggested.
The tourtiere meat gets bread crumbs added to it but not until it's been
cooked. Interesting, huh?

--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
Notes about our meals in Tuscany have been posted to
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; 10-16-2007

Melba's Jammin' > wrote:

> (Victor Sack) wrote:

> Nope. But all I see is gooey gobs of white wet bread. It does not
> appeal.

Nothing compares in appeal to your beloved, dazzlingly purple beets!

"Dead beets should be served in summary manner. Winter beets in a
wintry manner. Boil them, and having obtained a supply of hearts, serve
two hearts but with a single beet".
--F.H. Curtis


Bubba