Fat Guy

That never occurred to me.

I've made the hotel reservation. We are driving and making a family vacation of it, visiting friends in Canton for the first part of the week and heading to the gathering in Cleveland on Thursday. Ellen and PJ are probably not coming to most things. They may hang with us during the day on Saturday while the shopping and cooking happen, and then split before dinner. Depending on what happens Friday day, maybe they'll make an appearance. I think their plan is mostly to hang at the hotel pool while we're in Cleveland. Maybe they'll do the Sunday lunch; I don't know. I'll get the RSVPs organized tomorrow. Perhaps they can get some direction from locals on amusing things to do in the area on Friday and Saturday. We're also taking suggestions for interesting stops en route from Cleveland to New York City for the Sunday of our return, so we can sit out rush hour on I-80. In terms of the Saturday meal, I'm happy to volunteer Kris Yamaguchi (aka torakris) to do a course with me based on what we find at the market. It would be good to have a third person to help with that. I can also help with expediting overall, especially in the absence of Tammy. I'd still love a full schedule for the weekend all in one place, so I can coordinate with the family.

I recently used a strawberry huller and found it lacking. Hulling strawberries with a paring knife is the best method I've found but it sure does take time to do any significant quantity of strawberries. Is there a better way? Or is it just that my technique stinks?

Thanks Janet. Would it be possible to get a full schedule with times and locations?

1. Which post contains the full weekend schedule? 2. Are there still rooms available at the Marriott?

Very close to being able to lock this in. Is it still possible to get a room at the Marriott? Posted from my handheld using the Tapatalk app. Want to use eG Forums on your iPhone, Android or Blackberry? Get started at http://egullet.org/tapatalk

Received culinary wisdom says never refrigerate a tomato. But with the weather in New York hitting nearly 100 degrees several days in a row, any produce left on the counter is doomed. For now, I'm refrigerating my tomatoes. Incidentally, I had a couple tonight and didn't think they were affected by the chill.

Here's a history: http://www.meatlessmonday.com/history/ It was a campaign in WWI and WWII, and in 2003 it "was recreated as public health awareness program in association with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for a Livable Future."

I believe the Meatless Monday and Wheatless Wednesday campaigns date back to World War I.

I can't imagine this body giving any useful information about anything.

Health: While I think animal protein is beneficial for growing children, I'm not convinced that it has any health upside for a 42-year-old man. I also have spoken to several people who, after eliminating meat, have had improved health. It's hard for me to ignore that. Ethical: At this point in history it seems unnecessary for animals to die to feed me. Environmental: Meat production is a huge waste of energy. Whatever the impacts are of using more energy -- there are a few -- producing meat amplifies them. That being said, I have not done that well with sticking to a vegetarian diet even for a week.

Last night I was at a deli and couldn't control myself. I'm hoping to claw my way back on to the wagon today.

We had some of the first local corn in Connecticut over the weekend. It was quite good, but will be better in August.

Last night I had bratwurst. I have to look back at the timeline, but I'm pretty sure I have not successfully gone seven days without eating animal flesh, although I have done many more than seven days. I still intend to shoot for a seven-day stretch, though I already see problems with accomplishing that this coming week.

Spun sugar. Edible.

Back in April we got a Sub-Zero side-by-side unit. I'm quite pleased with it. There are some aspects of the technology that make a lot of sense, for example the compressors on top -- and separate compressors for refrigerator and freezer. The thing is hardly a bargain, though.

This all seems pretty daunting.

What's the deal with soft-serve ice cream? It seems to be looked down upon by connoisseurs, except for some who say a given place in the Midwest makes stuff worth eating. I had some Dairy Queen soft serve yesterday and thought it was pretty delicious. Where's the flaw in my taste on this issue?

I'd really like to try my hand at making macarons. As an absolute beginner, what would be a good procedure to follow?

Thai vegetarian lunch combo today at the Rice Pot in New Haven, CT

Astounding.

I'd most like to hear about your experience at sushi school. What you've learned and what we can learn from it.

I would love to hear more specifics about learning to make sushi.

Today for lunch I had a Subway "veggie delight" sub. It was actually pretty tasty. Although the ingredients at Subway are at the low end of the quality spectrum, the sheer variety of vegetables and the baked-on-premises breads make for a good sandwich. For dinner I made salads (and a vegetable plate for PJ), the rice cooker made brown rice, and I reheated some of the white bean soup from the other day. It was pretty good. I ate enough of it to feel stuffed.

Often, when I stay in hotels, there are shower caps offered as part of the toiletry assortment. I suppose there are people who use shower caps for showering, but I use them in the kitchen. If you were to visit my rice cooker on any given day, you'd find it wearing a shower cap as a dust cover. Indeed, this is how I protect almost all my countertop appliances from dust. Please tell me I'm not alone.