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Fold in - to mix food without releasing air bubbles by lifting a part of the liquid from the very bottom of the bowl through the rest of the mixture to the top until the foods are blended.

Fondant - a sweet, thick opaque sugar paste commonly used for glazing pastries or making candies.

Fondue - a melted sauce, usually with cheese, served with crisp bread rounds or as a filling. These are sauces kept hot in a chaffing dish into which crisp chunks of bread, vegetables, meat, or fruits are dipped before eating. Chocolate fondue with fruit chunks and berries is a sweet fondue that is excellent. Fondue means melted.

Fontina Cheese - An Italian semifirm, yet creamy cheese made from cow's-milk. Its interior is pale yellow in color and is dotted with tiny holes and its rind is a dark yellowish brown. It has a mild, nutty flavor and melts easily and smoothly, making it a good choice for use in most cooking. Although fontina cheese (also called Fontina Val d'Aosta after the Italian valley from whence it came) is an Italian cheese, other countries including Denmark, France and the United States also make fontina cheese but they tend to be blander and softer (especially when younger) than the Italian original.

Food Chopper - a knife created for efficiency. It is double-handled and crescent-shaped, used with a rocking motion to rapidly chop and dice. In Italy it is known as a mezzaluna. Less useful today, since food processors do much of this work.

Food Mill - A kitchen utensil best described as a mechanical sieve. It has a hand-turned paddle that forces food through a strainer plate at the bottom, thereby removing skin, seeds and fiber. Some food mills come equipped with several interchangeable plates with small, medium and large holes.

Food Processor - This kitchen appliance was brought to the United States from France in the 1970s and has since revolutionized a majority of home kitchens. It consists of a sturdy plastic work bowl that sits on a motorized drive shaft. The cover of the bowl has a feed tube through which foods can be added. An expanded feed tube — large enough for some whole items such as a tomato or onion — is available with some machines. The food processor is efficient and speedy and can easily chop, dice, slice, shred, grind and purée most food. The larger machines can also knead dough. Most processors come with a standard set of attachments including an S-shaped chopping blade and several disks for slicing and shredding. There are special attachments including juicers and pasta makers, as well as accessories such as French-fry cutters, julienne disks and beaters. Food processors range from large to small in motor size and bowl capacity.

Fool - England is the home of this old-fashioned but delicious dessert made of cooked, puréed fruit that is strained, chilled and folded into whipped cream. The fruit mixture may be sweetened or not. Fool is traditionally made from gooseberries, though today any fruit may be substituted.

Forcemeat - finely ground meat often combined with ground vegetables to make a stuffing or combined with stiffly beaten egg whites to make delicate quenelles for poaching and serving with sauce. Also, combined with custard-like sauce to make soufflés.

Frangipani - a rich, sweet cream name for a tropical flower with a sweet scent.

Frappé - a drink whipped with ice to make a thick, frosty consistency.

Freeze - to subject food to a temperature below 32*F (0*C) so that the moisture in the food solidifies; used as a preservation method.

Freezer Paper - a plastic-coated Kraft paper used for wrapping foods for freezing and for general household purposes. The plastic coating provides a barrier to air and moisture to protect the quality, flavor and nutrition of foods during freezing; the paper provides strength and durability as well as an easy-to-write-on surface.

Fresh - 1. A food that has not been frozen. 2. A food that has been recently produced, such as a loaf of bread. 3. A food as grown or harvested; not canned, dried or processed and containing no preservatives.

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