Gifted Gourmet

Boyfriends have a tendency to come and go (no double entendre here ... or just possibly there is ) but the Hitachi Magic Wand keeps going and going and going ... Of course, this is not what it is all about anyway .... there are many guys out there who will make you feel loved and cherished and special in their lives ... In the interim, take care of yourself .. it is what is left after the dust settles, so to speak ... and eat when and if you feel like it ... why not? You're worth it!!

This probably ought to have been near the top of this thread .. by the time Ondine gets to this, she'll be completely bloated from the tons of comfort food we have recommended that she stuff herself with!!

You've effectively shot the year to hell. (I do the same thing to.) I don't hate Pesach, but then, I go to my in-laws. Now it's true that I do most of the cooking, but I don't have to clean. (YEAH!!) But it looks like we're going away next year. You know what they say..."L'shanna habah b'Miami Beach" This entire thing finally hit me like a ton of bricks when my closest friend called me in January to announce gleefully, "we are going to spend Pesach at a glatt kosher hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona this year! Want to join us?" After some 15 years of enjoying the second night sedarim at their home, it was over, just like that, poof! So I began to feel the pain of preparing the house and seders myself even more intensely ... and you are correct in your "L'shanah haba b'Miami Beach" .. or some other catered weeklong respite ... but why spend thousands of dollars to spend a week somewhere else? Oh yeah, the pain ... Thanks for sharing your pain, bloviatrix! No one makes more sense of this than you! Wait a minute, wasn't the theme of this thread merely apricot hamantashen?

I'm going to come out of the closet here. I HATE Pesach. I hate it more than you can imagine. It's a shitload of work, all of it thankless, and I end up putting my nicest stuff away for two weeks. I hate covering things in foil. I hate cleaning -- I always thought I was alone in this type of thinking.. and, after the house is actually cleaned, the shopping is done, and the foods are cooked, I actually breathe a sigh of relief and relax and enjoy the holiday, albeit briefly ... but, in truth, my daughter said it best of all when she reminded me that it is the ultimate "labor intensive" holiday .. and I hate being on "a virtual umbilical cord" running back and forth between sink and table .. endlessly ... Shortly thereafter, I realize that the week becomes endless somewhere about day #4 and I am sick of macaroons and the crumbs on the floor and ... well, you know this only too well .. I hated covering the counters most of all, then, by some miracle, I found a guy who cut lucite counter covers for me... and now am considering Corian which I hear needs no covering ... Mercifully, it does end and then I enjoy the preparation for Shavuout because it affords me a more than ample way to do my favorite dairy dishes .... then, all is calm and collected until Rosh Hashonah which is a long break ... (except for boiling the egg and making ashes to dip it in for Tisha b'Av) ...

Aaaagggghhh! Why is the imminent approach of Purim making me crazy so early in the year? "I am packaging hamentaschen in Chinese food containers and adding a bit of curling ribbon. That's as good as I can get. " Why are you so apologetic? You know about pikuach nefesh .. take care of your health first ... Comfort Me, you still must think of your own energy levels and strength first ... after all, as you so correctly note, bedikas chametz follows those hamantashen waaaaay too closely for comfort ... why didn't someone put a label on holidays and their attendant food prep ... simply warning: "Jewish holidays may be closer than they actually appear on your calendar" ... seems only sensible ....

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=37859&hl= Here is an apricot hamantashen lead .. but one has to subscribe to the publication to read it, it seems ...

Much as I would have loved to read this recipe, I note that one must subscribe to access it .. and Purim is fast approaching ...

http://www.recipe-ideas.co.uk/recipes-7/Po...ese%20Paska.htm

Actually, we here at atlantacuisine are a most photogenic bunch! even with our mouths full of incredible Blais' tasting menu delights ... Do I know you, Cool Papa Bell? and what did you mean by Gifted Gourmet "got funky"?? Isn't that my normal state of being?

Dave the Cook shared the exact same meal as our group from AtlantaCuisine did last evening ... and his impressions are very close to what we, too, perceived. Blais is a unique dining experience which we will long remember for many of the same reasons: the wit, the creative passion, the culinary abilities of Richard Blais, all combine to give the diner an experience rarely so thoroughly enjoyed ... we all left satiated, both physically as well as sensually! Bravo to Chef Blais and his entire staff who provided such a unique experience!

There are, of course, a virtual plethora of extremely interesting recipes geared specifically to Passover ... many of which can be used by even the most scrupulously observant Jews ... I will hunt around for some of my favorites and share them with anyone who wishes by PM .... The lack of certain ingredients only serves to intensify my desire to experiment and seek new alternatives .. some daringly different and some quite acceptably traditional ... and it is still six looooong weeks away! But who's counting?

and after you consume the comfort foods which feel really good at such a time, try to remember my favorite saying: "living well is the best revenge"... I am apt to lauch into a butter-dipped lobster with all the trimmings on that theory alone! after all, why should you suffer, right?

With no particular double entendre in mind, Al, you said a mouthful!

Apocalypse, huh? Perhaps the Four Horsemen would be Bobby Flay, Ming Tsai, Emeril, and Wolfgang? Now there is a frightening visual! sorry, vision!

Wikipedia doesn't have a Jewish slant, as Pan correctly notes, so you may just want to look at this link to see a more uniquely Jewish approach to the subject: http://kabbalahclub.com/prevarticles/EvilEye.html Jewish karma actually ...

Then Mr. Glustein's purpose has (inadvertently!) been fulfilled .... We, who could not discern the true message, are now duly experiencing deep inner satisfaction .. we have learned even more than we had set out to discover .... and, yet another bonus: the page had as one of the two sponsors: http://www.socialanxiety.com/

There are no restrictions on who may attend, if you are speaking of a temple or synagogue there ... go and enjoy! and learn! No better way to do that short of "up close and personal" .. and it won't resemble "Blazing Saddles", I can assure you!

When I looked back at the photograph, I can see why you have come to this conclusion ... well put, SML ....

The very best shrimp and grits I have had, and this item appears on many restaurant menus there, was in Charleston, S.C.

A very interesting question, bloviatrix ....

That would also be my conclusion, cakewalk, that She does! Fantasy scenario: Currently "on hold" waiting for Howard Kaplan to return from lunch in his favorite restaurant ... no doubt, not the one mentioned in the article .. but, as comedian Dennis Miller often reminds us, "I could be wrong" .... Reality scenario: Update on contacting Howard Kaplan, this was the response I received: "If the person you want to reach is not listed, he or she either does not have e-mail or does not make the address public." so it looks dubious that I can locate him ... but then neither can the evil eye!

Pan, you and I have drawn precisely the same conclusion .. after all, it is his lifeswork and is it also not an obligation to inform other Jews of the performing of this mitzvah? or, rather, the din? Only Rabbi Ribeye will know where the truth lies ...

Yes, that's quite puzzling, isn't it. Why did he agree? I guess everyone (EVERYONE) really does want his 15 minutes, evil eye be damned. But you can e-mail the interviewer, and please keep us posted. I have a feeling you'll do a better job of it than I will. He has a suspicion that the evil eye (and therein lies yet another tale, even lengthier still!) or Einhoreh - The evil eye will not recognize him if his name is misspelled, as he requests ... I'll try to find out the answers to our "and your point is?" questions, cakewalk, and get back to you should there be a forthcoming response ...

and don't some people in the bayous of Louisiana eat nutria? does it taste like otters? or just chicken?

It's not that. I'm a daily Times reader (and crossword puzzle doer). I am not amongst those who insist that the NY Times in an anti-semitic paper (it definitely is not, IMO). But this article irks me, mostly because it seems to have no real point but leads the reader to make all sorts of faulty conclusions. About Jews. And that does bother me. Can anyone come up with a reasonable idea of what this article is trying to say, if anything? Actually, cakewalk, I do agree most heartily with you on the possible drawing of erroneous conclusions about Jews ... and the well-disguised true intent of the article as well ... and, I have a sneaking suspicion, that if you were to make just such a request of the interviewer by email, there might be some forthcoming answers ... shall I do this? or would you prefer to ask? and I also concur, leave Glustein alone .. yet he did not need to sit for the interview ....