Hello everyone!

[ralphinlaos]

I am an American, originally from Upper Michigan, and presently living in Laos (you know, the very small country surrounded by Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam and China). I live in a small town (Thakhek), just across the Mekong River from Nakhon Phanom, Thailand.

I just opened a small restaurant here in Thakhek four months ago and I need all the advice and help I can get. That's why I joined this site; everything I cook in the restaurant has to be made from scratch - we have no box mixes or jars of anything here - and it's a constant challenge to come up with something which will sell to the locals. We get very few tourists here - just a few every week - but they do seem to all come to my place, so I have to keep some western foods on the menu, and the Laos people are quite accepting and adventurous of new foods, so if I an get them to try something once, they usually come back.

I sell a lot of steaks (both beef and pork), hamburgers and french fries, sweet and sour pork or fish, lots of chef's salads - a little bit of everything (in addition to Laos food).

I just bought a convection oven (had to take a five hour bus trip in Thailand to find one, put it on the bus and hauled it back - across the river - to Thakhek). I haven't used it yet, but wonder what are the biggest differences between a convection and a regular oven.

I want to make a good meatloaf (not too difficult) to sell with mashed potatoes and gravy. But I know the area in which I will have the most difficulty is baking breads, pies and cakes. I'm going to try some homemade biscuits (to use for "biscuits and gravy" and for strawberry shortcake - can I use the same biscuits for both)? I'd also like to have ideas for pies and cakes - starting with making my own pie crust and using cocoa for chocolate (we have no dark chocolate or chocolate bits here, so I use regular cocoa). And substitutions - I am always having to substitute something. We have no sour cream, whipping cream, molasses, Karo-type syrup, no good cheeses (just the Velveeta processed type), so many things we don't have.

But what we do have is great. Lovely people, great fruits and vegetables, fresh all year round, good beef and pork and fish. Chicken I have to buy in Thailand (on my monthly trip for supplies).

I have a friend - a German lady - who just recently left (back to Germany with her husband) and she gave me some cookies from Germany just before she left. They were the best cookies I ever ate in my life - and I've eaten lots of cookies! They were big, cake-like things, firm but soft, and I know they had molasses and maybe dried fruits in them. I can't find any molasses here, but there must be some wonderful cookies I can make which don't call for molasses. Or, can I make molasses myself?

It is incredibly hot here - and the hot season is just beginning (April is the hottest month). My idea is to display all my baked goods in glass containers on the counter - if they can't see them, they won't buy them. But, will they last. I can just see myself baking a couple of pies and dozens of cookies and a couple of cakes - and them just sitting on the counter for a week - getting staler and staler - or spoiling. How can I prevent this? I have an extra refrigerator, but if I put the baked goods in the refrigerator, won't they get all soggy? Maybe in airtight plastic bags? Does anyone have any ideas?

I know this is already far too long, but I need all the help I can get. I'll probably end up eating lots of pies and cakes and cookies myself. Not to speak of the bread problem - fried bread dough, cinnamon rolls, hamburger buns . . . Does anyone know how to make what we in Michigan used to call "bismarcks?" The jelly-filled (or cream filled) things I used to get at Duncan Donuts? Are those things baked or fried? How do you get the hole in them to put the jelly in?

Enough already.

I have three children, two in Florida and one in New York. No wife.

I hope someone responds to this epistle. Thanks a lot - and nice to be here.

Ralph

[Debbie-cat]

First Hi and Welcome Ralph...I am from Minnesota!
Convection oven....do NOT use tinfoil....food also cooks alot faster...remember that and check your food often until you get use to your oven.

I would freeze cookies rather than putting them in the fridge...if you have a freezer.

The jelly in bismarks were 'shot' in the donut with a type of appartatus. Maybe you could use a baster?

I am sure you will find all the answers to your questions on this site. It is wonderful and so are the people.

What made you move there? It seems a little far to me, especially when your children are here in the States.

[PennyG]

Hi there and Welcome,.

Its nice to meet you

[angelbumpkin]

Hi and Welcome.

[onencgirl]

Welcome to the village. Lots of good advice here.

[rainbowgc]

Welcome to the Village from Florida. Try "Growlies for groups" for recipes and tips for large amount cooking. Also there are a lot of chefs that visit there. :http://members.tripod.com/~lotsofinfo/

[brycespeed]

Hi, Nice to meet you!.I am new here too. Sounds like you have a very interesting life in Laos.also, glad to see some men folk on here as well...no offense ladies

[lovestoread]

Welcome to the village......

[Michelle]

to Frugal Village

[Darlene]

:welcometofv: Make yourself at home!

[ameytwist]

Hello. Where in Upper Michigan are you from. I'm also from Upper Michigan (although not currently there).

[QM]

Hi and welcome to Frugal Village from Ontario!

[Sara Noel]

to frugal village.

[Momto2Boyz]

Bismarks are fried donuts (any type of yeast donut would work), then you could use a turkey baster to shoot jelly in (don't use commercial jelly, it would be too thick...you can make your own with equal parts fruit and sugar). But to do the cream filling type, you'd have to have an actual "gun" (at least that is what I call it). It's almost like a caulk gun!

I hope you enjoy the site!

[IntlMom]

Welcome to the Village


really nice to have you here