Home Sweet Home

I am back in Harrisburg, PA this weekend visiting family and friends. I thought I'd snap a quick photo of the freezer at my Dad's house...Lots of Vaccum Seal Bags! :) Have a great weekend!!

Dirty, Tarnished Silverware??

Yes, it's true...polishing Grandma's hand-me-down, precious silver can be very tedious. In fact, that used to be one of my chores at my Grandma's house before Thanksgiving. We would break out all the silverware and I'd sit in the formal living room with a bottle of polish...all the while complaining that it just didn't make sense!! Plastic forks would be fine, nobody would notice...!

Fact of the matter is, there's something special about commemorating certain events with antique heirlooms...that being said, I shut my mouth and got back to polishing.

A few years ago, a customer of mine asked me if she could use the bags to vacuum seal her silver (would the bag be strong enough). It took me a while to realize what a great idea that was! Why hadn't I thought of that...ugh! So, I ran an "experiment" and it definitely works. In fact, I highly recommend storing anything that tarnishes in vacuum seal bags.

Quest for the Perfect Cookie!

Vacuum Sealed Cookie Dough

In the Quest for the Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie, one of the main tricks from the article is to rest your dough for 36 hours before baking the cookies in order to improve the flavor. Many chefs make cookie dough in advance and bake to order. I know that refrigeration has beneficial effects although I had never tested the theory to the extent that David Leite did for the article. I just knew that well rested and chilled cookie dough made better cookies.

When the craving hits I look for immediate satisfaction. The article succeeded in awakening my craving for warm, soft cookies, I just wasn't entirely sure I wanted to go through the process of making the dough and then have to wait 36 hours to bake off the cookies. Fortunately, I remembered the vacuum sealer in our kitchen. In the past we had used the vacuum sealer for pasta doughs. The process sped up the process of moisture absorption, allowing us to create silky doughs with less liquid. This seemed similar to the process described in the article of allowing the flour to fully absorb the liquid from the eggs during it's resting period. Perhaps if I vacuum sealed the cookie dough I could speed up the entire process and end up with better cookies in less time.

I used my standard chocolate chip recipe. I did not make a test batch of cookies with unprocessed dough so this was an entirely unscientific experiment! What I can tell you is that the dough darkened and became fully saturated, similar to the way that the dough usually looks after a couple of days in the refrigerator. It also changed the texture of the dough, making it a bit more elastic to the touch. The just made dough was too soft to shape and needed to chill, so I left in the fridge for about three hours before baking.

The resulting cookies were pretty darn good! They had a slightly cakey texture in the center with chewy yet crisp edges and rich buttery, caramel flavors. It was impossible to eat just one and I was thankful that I had not baked off the entire batch :) Were they better than David Leite's? I really couldn't say. On the other hand I think it was clear that vacuum sealing did have a positive effect on the process, and from now on plastic wrap is out and vacuum bags are definitely in.

This technique opens doors for other dough preparations from pie to biscuit to cracker to puff dough bases which would be able to be made and formed with very little working of the dough, just compression and nearly instant hydration. In fact, in looking just at the process of hydration perhaps compression can and should be applied from nuts to legumes.

Tuesday Tip of the Day!

Icy Relief for Injuries - Gel Packs

Instead of expensive frozen gel ice packs, I fill small Vacuum Sealer Bags (cut and made to my preferred size) with ice cubes then pour in enough rubbing alcohol (or dish soap) to cover the ice. I vacuum seal the bags with my FoodSaver machine, allow the ice to melt and then refreeze. The alcohol prevents the mixture from freezing hard and it stays pliable. These ice packs are easily refrozen for another use and I keep several in the freezer so they are always on hand. - Frawn G.

Maybe even throw in a splash of food coloring for little kids!!

Customer Photos

This photo was submitted by Kandi Mejia...She has been quite busy w/ the Foodsaver!

August Newsletter

Hi Vak Packers!

As much as I love summer, I’m definitely anticipating the arrival of some cooler weather (and football season…)! I hope ya’ll have been enjoying yours! I’ve been keeping busy here at the office…especially since so many of you are such excellent fishermen :)

Instead of my usual survey and PROMO code, this month I am going to try something a little different. I have been working hard creating a Facebook, Blog, and Twitter. However, all of that is useless to me if I don’t have any feedback or interaction!

So here’s what I’m thinking…

On my website www.thevakshack.com you can find a link to all of those pages. I encourage you to find whichever medium you prefer…and write! It doesn’t have to be long. Perhaps a testimonial, question, a great idea, recipe, solution, article, suggestions…anything relevant to your vacuum packaging experiences!

I promise y’all, it won’t take but a few minutes and for every comment, I will send you a PROMO code for a certain percentage off of your next order! This is a great chance to learn and interact with others who might just have that “tip” you never knew you never knew!

AND I’ll also do a drawing in September (before the next newsletter) and select a few “best of the best” and I will send them free samples of the new Flavor Wraps. I just tried them out on BBQ Chicken and they are fantastic!

Amanda M. Crum
(717) 512-6899
thevakshack@gmail.com
www.thevakshack.com

“I have not failed. I just know 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas Edison

What is FreezerBurn?

Freezer burn is the dehydration of the surface of frozen foods that results in a dried and leathery appearance. Freezer burn can degrade the flavor and texture of meat, poultry and other food stored in the freezer, leaving it discolored, unappetizing and even inedible.

Freezer burn appears as grayish-brown leathery spots on frozen food. It occurs when air reaches the food's surface and dries out the product. This can happen when food is not wrapped securely in air-tight packaging. Color changes result from chemical changes in the food's pigment.