Gifted Gourmet

Decided to skip the DSLR cameras and was thrilled with Canon's newest camera which came out in October of this year: the Powershot G9 ... Small enough to carry into restaurants, unobtrusive, no batteries to buy (rechargable one now), anti-shake, and 12 megapixels ... the G9 some of my better food photos can be seen here

but wait! not so fast! there's more! beetroot cured gravlax photos which look simply divine!

voila!

scroll up a bit ...more variations Cured Snapper Maple Cured Trout Tasso Cured Red Snapper

Interestingly, Newsweek reports that the top tasting turkey was a bird by Rubashkin and, coming in fifth, was an Empire bird ... I know the salting helped the flavor but that is true of both kosher birds ... is there something else involved? Your thoughts? article here

No point in buying ready made when it is so simple to create your own unique variation ... I make a black olive - garlic butter spread .. and an ersatz Liptauer cheese spread with paprika, anchovies, capers, caraway seeds, etc ....

The obit in the NYT listed her death directly above the man who invented Rice a Roni ... The juxtaposition of these two obits ....

Nu? so what could be bad? Off to Whole Foods to see what the local purveyors have stocked ... Did someone say "healthy"?

Not about value at all ... it is easy to pack in a lunch box, to take on a picnic, etc etc ... Why buy bottled water for heaven's sake? It is just water! which you can carry in your own containers, or thermos, or ...

scroll down to the caviar citron ...

SNL The Anal Retentive Chef That could be me!

Only when looking for causes ... this became one consideration ... perhaps, when coupled with frustrations of food service, it became more salient than it should have ... still, the jury is out on this one ...

So let's see now ... hard, repetitive work .. low pay ... not much chance of advancement ... lack of formal education and/or skills ... Yeah, easier to see why depression results but the question still persists: is that why these people wound up in food service in the first place? Chicken or egg came first? Does that really matter? and now for some insight on this topic: CBS News: Early Show Bingo .. pretty much echoes our discussion here ... res ipsa loquitur .. the facts speak for themselves ...

Among the 21 major occupational categories, the highest rates of past year major depressive episode among full time employed workers aged 18 to 64 were found in the personal care and service occupations (10.8%) and the food preparation and service related occupations (10.3%). The occupational categories with the lowest rates of major depressive episode were engineering, architecture and surveying (4.3%); life, physical, and social science (4.4%), and installation, maintenance, and repair (4.4%). Skilled, better educated people, fall into the latter group ... perhaps because in the food service field, there is much job changing among unskilled, less well educated people? just thinking aloud here ... a bit more elucidation on the topic can be read about: WebMD and maybe the income situation is also involved .. people in this field, food service, don't get paid a lot for the hours of sheer hard work involved ....and how much opportunity for individual job growth is there in food service??

I always buy: fresh Costco salmon filets, colossal green stuffed olives in glass jars, skinless, boneless salmon in cans (packed 6 each), hearts of palm in glass jars, and roses @ $15 for 2 dozen ... the rest of what I bring home depends upon my needs and what looks nice that day ...

I expect the classic formal dinner to consist of seven, possibly eight courses, in this order: amuse soup fish sorbet (or other palate cleanser) a meat or fowl dish salad (often served with cheese) dessert and coffee and/or tea

Sure helped me when I want something fast and comforting! probably better than a scotch on the rocks! Thanks, Andie!

I use boiling water in a large pot to peel off the exterior leaves of the cabbage ... that softens them .. then back in the pot and boil til a few more are softened .. repeat ... I don't tie them but put the filling in the center of the leaf and fold in the sides and roll up ... End product? my own sweet and sour stuffed cabbage ... The tomato sauce: yes to raisins and brown sugar and lemon juice and a bit of sweet red wine ... onions added to the final baking ... another version of my stuffed cabbage

Big Tray.com is an online supplier that I have used for pots and pans ... very prompt and the supplies they carry are varied and numerous ...

Without a doubt, Bekki is the most organized, most detailed person whom I have ever seen here ... you have made a science of list making! Bravo!

There are two new recipes for gravlax that I am anxious to try: Asian gravlax Thai gravlax

cold soups ... discussion cold soups revisited ... discussions on Sukkot foods ... a little of something for everyone here!

The weighting is essential ... or should I say "the waiting is essential"? When my husband sees the foil-covered brick come out and the vodka, salt, pepper, and dill fronds, he begins his Pavlovian drooling ...and hovers around the refrigerator for the three days in rapt anticipation ... The brick perched precariously atop the filet: http://www.flickr.com/photos/96683394@N00/...57600229165920/

If you use a thick piece of fish, and it cures for the three days, it will be soft and pliable ... Yours is hard because of its size and thinness ... If, after all is said and done, you find it to be delicious, do try it next time with the weight and make this with a thick salmon filet .. you'll see the difference ... This is how I make my gravlax: http://www.flickr.com/photos/96683394@N00/...157600229165920

I think that weighing it down is essential because it forces the cure into the flesh of the fish ... and I use vodka when I begin the cure ..on the fish, not in my mouth! I wrapped a brick in tinfoil and that is my weight .. works fine ... but I cure several pounds of salmon at a time ...