mukki

I will concur - the best bolognese - a couple of weeks ago I quadrupled the recipe just so I could freeze it - and trust me it's better re-heated!!! T ← Question -- do you make the homemade tomato paste that this dish calls for? Do you think it's necessary for a fabulous dish (similar to the difference between homemade chicken stock and canned broth)? I ask because the tomato crop this year has been dismal and there has not been many good tomatoes to be found. Thanks! ← I did not make the homemade tomato paste and don't think it's necessary for a fabulous dish.

A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes by David Tanis -- From the cover: Jamie At Home: Cook Your Way to the Good Life by Jamie Oliver -- I've enjoyed his new show so much and luckily all the recipes that I failed to write down are in here.

We had lunch at Charlie Palmer's today and thought it was fairly mediocre. I much prefer Marche Moderne. I might go back to try the cocktail menu, which looks interesting, but I don't have high hopes. (By the way, I have yet to get a good cocktail in OC). Anyway, onto the food... I had the prix fixe -- tomato gazpacho (really nothing special), pan roasted rainbow trout (not as crispy as I would have liked it and a bit overpowered by the capers, some boring boiled potatoes were included on the plate) and a praline tart (which turned out to be a chunk of chocolate ganache "cake" with some praline hidden under a piece of pastry). Cost = $26. It would have been a good deal if I'd enjoyed the food more. SO had the hamachi to start, which was serviceable. Definitely not a noteworthy rendition of hamachi. Went on to the "chicken fried chicken sliders" which was a terrible choice; these tasted no better than some sort of frozen mini chicken sliders from Costco or whatnot that you would never buy again. I'm not sure how they could possibly let these onto the menu and out of the kitchen. He also tried the farro risotto with morels, which was recommended by a few people, and was merely ok. The farro risotto I tried at Mesa was much better.

Looking forward to Ottolenghi -- I really enjoyed what I ate at their London food shops. Also -- Heirloom Beans: Great Recipes for Dips and Spreads, Soups and Stews, Salads and Salsas, and Much More from Rancho Gordo. I'm always interested in new bean recipes.

Anna Nanni's Ragu alla Bolognese, courtesy of Saveur, is the Bolognese recipe I've been looking for. It tasted like I was back in Italy. Rich, meaty, with a nice acidity. I thought it was even better than the ragu I had at Batali's B&B Ristorante and I enjoyed that very much. I also made the accompanying Baked Spinach Lasagne, using the ragu. It was very good, but the spinach lasagne sheets were a pain to make -- some fell apart while cooking and they were almost impossible to spread out on a towel after cooking. The ragu is already very rich, so adding cheese and bechamel sauce is a bit overwhelming.

I just ordered a Naturemill composter (automatic, indoor composting). I don't have space for the traditional method and wasn't sure if I'd ever get into the whole worm thing. The Naturemill seems to have gotten good reviews and looks very easy to do. I'll be putting it in the garage, though, not the kitchen.

How were the Pichet Ong cookies? Could you taste the coconut?

Like chrisamirault, I was disappointed in Mangoes; I think that is the only one of their books I don't own. It just wasn't inspiring compared to the Indian cookbooks I have and the one recipe I tried was the nail in the coffin. I've only skimmed through this latest one, but it looks good. I forgot to check to see if they've got a recipe for da bing (the layered spring onion bread served in Chinese Muslim restaurants) -- I haven't seen one in print yet. There's a blurb on Jeffrey & Naomi's website that gives some interesting info about the book.

I made a great B&W cookies out of Rosie's Chocolate-Packed Jam-Filled Butter Rich No-Holds-Barred Cookie Book that was cakey and soft. She calls them Half Moons.

Geezo Pete! Since you posted this suggestion, I've been intrigued, and went to the MSL site to see the video wherein she shows the Sarah (not so) Brightman how to make them. I happened to have all the ingredients and an an hour on my hands, fresh sage from the garden, and with much trepidation, I made them. The "dough" seemed way too soft, and I expected these dumplings to fall apart in the boiling water. Har. Why should I doubt Martha? These were light, cheesy, spinachey. I used a few new techniques, had that cool suspense -- it wouldn't work, and -- it did! Don't be afraid, as I was, that the gnudi are too soft when you form them. Give them the flour dust, the refrigeration, and watch them bob from the bottom of the stock pot ready to be sauced. Mukki, U rock. Thanks. ← I'm glad you liked them! I usually pass on Martha's recipes, but I'll be more inclined to try them after this one.

OMG, yes. Those are like crack !!! I have THREE boxes of them in my freezer right now, since I'm paranoid they'll stop carrying them. ← I'm paranoid, too, and always buy a few boxes at a time. I fear that one of these days they just won't be there anymore!

I forgot one of my favorites: the chocolate croissants. Made by Galaxy Desserts and also sold at Williams Sonoma (for a LOT more $!). You have to thaw & let them rise overnight and then bake them off in the morning. Delicious! The mini plain croissants are good, too, though I'd prefer full size. And I just saw that they're now carrying pecan sticky buns which I'll have to search for next time I'm in the store (again, sold unbaked & frozen).

I can totally relate -- we have a powder room *very* near our kitchen. I just love it when guests are hanging out in the kitchen and one of them goes to take a leak without turning on the fan.

Couldn't help but chime in, too -- those PB&Js are GORGEOUS!

I had a subscription for over year, but ended up canceling. I enjoyed it for a while, but 1) it became annoying and 2) I just wasn't interested in most of the things he was touting. I'd still read it if it were lying around, though. I've ordered a few of his products, as well. The Kurobuta ham I found to be less expensive ordered directly from the source (Snake River Farms) and it was hands-down the best ham I've ever had (especially the bone-in). The olive oils were ok -- I bought better ones in Tuscany and his end up being fairly expensive over time. I asked for a refund on the turkey -- definitely not worth the $100 cost, though my cat really enjoyed eating the leftovers.

Like another poster, I had problems with the chocolate peanut butter freezing too hard. I did use natural PB and I'm not sure if that had an impact. I like HD's chocolate PB a lot more -- it has a ribbon of soft peanut butter running through chocolate ice cream that's more to my liking. Right now I have the Fleur de Lait base chilling in the fridge. After that I might go with the Oatmeal Ice Cream -- man, that sounds so good! Oatmeal praline mixed into a brown sugar base (I'll be skipping the raisins).

They've got a great collection of tomato plants -- maybe 50+ varieties? I've been buying mine there for a couple of years now. This year includes Momotaro, Abraham Lincoln, Black Krim and Brandywine. Laguna Hills Nursery is a great resource for fruit trees -- they know which ones grow best in this area and the owner always has a spot-on recommendation. He suggested I grow boysenberries and now we look forward to boysenberry pie every June!

MSL's Spinach and Ricotta Gnudi with Sage Butter. Absolutely delicious!

Love the story and pictures of Ernie's bath time. Particularly the part about him offering up his feet to be cleaned by you! It looks like you keep your vinegar (& molasses) in the fridge. I've never seen this before. Any particular reason you do so?

Nope, I just saw them in the Seeds of Change catalog and thought they sounded good!

My grapevine has just started going crazy. I swear that if you stood there and watched it long enough, you might be able to see it grow. Last year, it grew about 12" a week. Not terribly noteworthy, but I just can't help but get excited watching things grow. Boysenberries are busy leafing out. Peach tree is blossoming. Mulberry is early this year and is leafing out. My lemon verbena is back. I already posted in another thread, but I've got a spot in a community garden that's very nearby. Woohoo! I can plant to my heart's content this year and have full sun. I'm hoping I can grow watermelon. I'm tired of trying to find seeded, flavorful watermelons which seem to have all but disappeared. I wanted to try the Ali Baba varietal (favorite of Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds but out of stock), but will instead plant Moon & Stars and Wilson's Sweet. Not sure how well they'll do in SoCal.

I've really enjoyed reading through A Baker's Odyssey: Celebrating Time-Honored Recipes from America's Rich Immigrant Heritage by Greg Patent, though I haven't baked anything from it yet. He covers recipes from a wide-range of countries, including Norway, Italy, Iraq, Hungary, Syria, Germany, Poland and more. Here's a small sampling of recipes: Calas, Lefse, Potato Porcini Strudel, Pasteis de Nata, Assyrian Spinach Pies, Bienenstich, Turkish Semolina Sponge Cake, Beef Piroshki, Melomakarona and Lamingtons. Lots of good stuff!

Has anyone ordered a 1/4 pig from Heritage Foods? Comments on quality? I'm not even sure I could fit all that meat in my freezer, so I'm a bit apprehensive about trying it.

I was lucky enough to get a plot in a nearby community garden which has been hiding from me for years. It's actually within walking distance which is, quite frankly, amazing. My yard is limited, though I've got a peach tree, blueberries (in pots), herbs, boysenberries, a lime tree and a Persian mulberry. The plot is about 12'x12'. I'm planning: Tomatoes (will decide at the nursery on what varieties; between Roger's Gardens and Laguna Hills Nursery, I've got about 100 to choose from) Corn (Bantam and Country Gentleman) Melons (Charentais and Crane) Mexican Sour Gherkins Zucchini Lima Beans Peppers Rice Beans Watermelon (Moon & Stars) Ground Cherries & Giant Cape Gooseberry

I'll be the lone dissenter and say that these doughnuts really don't do anything for me. I've tried them twice at Dean & Deluca (which I figured wasn't representative since they're probably not very fresh) and then once at the Doughnut Plant. I bought 3, but found them all a bit heavy and greasy. Still, I wouldn't mind trying the PB&J.