Priscilla

Mixmaster B, I have read that some people run their regular granulated through the food processor to achieve superfine sugar. I've never done it, but seems sensible enough--would take advantage of the lower price and greater freshness of regular granulated.

White anchovies, yeah yeah yeah. God nothing against 'em (happy to report Trader JOE's has them now, in refrigerated conserve). Zabar's, however... Trolling the entire WORLD, it seemed at the time, for a certain electric kettle several years ago, Zabar's, beautiful lovely Zabar's, had just the one I wanted at an incredible price, and they were nice enough to send it to me, no muss, no fuss, which is just the way I like things.

Visitors from Hawaii. Tostadas, either or both flour & corn fried tortillas. Dressed as desired. Carnitas (which I've been working on). Refried beans. Chopped tomato-jalapeno-onion-cilantro, an approximation of what my fave taqueria calls salsa Mexicana. Also Victoria's Green Sauce, a pureed tomatillo-based salsa. Finely shredded cabbage. Guacamole. Cheese, sour cream. Jicama dusted with ground pasilla, sprinkled with lime juice.

Priscilla, please note that what I wrote applied to refined white sugar. If you were also referring to white sugar, I am very dubious of your claim. Yes by granulated I meant white. And I make no claim of scientific certainty for what I indicated were personal observations. Seems to me I have read somewhere, do not at the moment remember where, although it could well have been here on eGullet, mention of cane sugar being preferred by at least some pastry chefs. I wonder if that is so and if so why.

The properties of sugar are fascinating. I understand the chemical makeup of refined sugar whether from cane or beet might be identical, but they do not taste or perform identically in my experience. As Nightscotman said, here on the West Coast C&H, a cane sugar, is the familiar brand-name. Having grown up with it, and my cooking grown up with it, buying a bag of store-brand granulated sugar in an effort to economize years ago was a shock. Not indicated to be cane on the label and therefore probably beet, the flavor was terrible! And the texture was slightly gummy, compared to C&H. And there was no lovely C&H almost-vanilla aroma, neither. Yuckers. Never again--ever since I economize in other ways.

Only God can make rice. Late supper for two under the only-what's-on-scene gauntlet: Omelette with a load of softly-cooked onions, a few ribbons of ham, and hilariously-named very good-tasting soi-disant Irish Swiss cheese. (I used to work with an Italian man who found this cheese's name truly disturbing, not in the LEAST amusing. He couldn't understand for the life of him why I thought it was so funny, even when I would explain, "IRISH SWISS cheese, it makes no sense!" His attitude was more like, "Irish Swiss cheese, this is just wrong.") And leftover broccoli sauteed in butter. Little nutmeg and s & p and then some heavy cream reduced among. Cuban-type bread made by me the other day. Argentinian Malbec.

Wow this is exciting! What a worthwhile endeavor.

Open-faced steak sandwiches on grilled Portuguese-type bread, topped with thinly sliced stunted very flavorful Brandywines, the last, the very last--ripped out the moribund vines on the weekend. Sweet potato fries. Very nice broccoli with hollandaise.

I've cooked expensive organic free-rangers and less-expensive "fresh" California brand-namers and artisanal family-farmers like Pomona's own Shelton Poultry, and some have been good and some not as good. (Shelton's ducks are ceaselessly superior specimens, while we're on poultry, however.) Kitchen ovens, and in-the-garden Webers and New Braunsfelds and briquettes and mesquite and so on. Unbrined, and, also, brined. However last year for some reason we brined and cooked a big old cheap-ass supermarket turkey, Honeysuckle White brand, at whatever superlow pre-Thanksgiving loss-leader sale price it was, and it was the Best Turkey Ever. Lemons and oranges and a hit of brandy in the brine, after I think a suggestion by Mr. Emeril Legasse. And I am taking to heart the letting-it-dry overnight before cooking, and gladly, because slightly flaccid skin, even after the requisite long long cooking, was the one slight drawback to brinage, I thought. But there's THAT little problem corrected, then.

Larb is commonly made with Chicken, Beef or Pork. In the Pork version, little cubed peices of pork liver are also added. Thank you for that, Jason. I am pretty sure, peering back, back, back, through the mists of history, that this was beef. And so so so good.

Chicken thighs cooked a long time, after a David Rosengarten I saw once years ago, and roasted potatoes after Heston Blumenthal's method, which even though I tried and tried not to over par-boil them fell apart too much in my opinion but were well-received, served with E. David's green tomato chutney I'd made the other week. Nice collard greens braised with onion, garlic, bacon, and a little chicken broth until way way way done.

Linguine carbonara, salad of nice Romaine lettuce, Argentinian Malbec. Had to be TV-dinnerable, on account of the historic baseball game.

Wandering around Berkeley with friends, visiting iconic locations, we opted for this Thai place, for some reason I can't recall at the moment, but boy was I glad we did, had larb for the first time...just so delicious, and well, I thought (at the time) wow one is supposed to come to Berkeley to eat other stuff besides THIS but we had clearly stumbled, as sometimes happens, into the best possible option. Open-air second-story patio affair, as I recall, put one in mind of the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse at Disneyland, in fact, well-known, as we heard later, I recall, too, although just now I cannot remember the name but I'm sure it's very very famous and respected. I feel certain. (However, near the Seattle area airport, SeaTac, there is a restaurant, Bai Tong, which--according to my sister the Seattle-area airline employee, and regular patron--was started largely to serve Thai Airways personnel, which has delicious Thai food, and while I'm not an expert by any means, to paraphrase former Chief Justice Warren Burger, one knows it when one sees it, wow is the food delicious. Nott sure I've had larb there however, now that I remind myself of the topic.)

Tonkatsu, (fried pork cutlet), mirin-simmered cabbage, seasoned spinach, rice. Kikkoman tonkatsu sauce continues to beat all comers, unlike the Angels last evening.

JD, the topic is good, but, better than that, the writing laying it out is fantastic. What a treat. How one chooses to eat is one of the most revealing and important expressions of Self (I assume we're assuming above-subsistence-level, of course) in the cultural lexicon. It's an I'm-the-kind-of-person-who. This model is in continual application while I read eGullet. Something about the solitude of sitting before a computer monitor makes for great transparency. (And, contributing no little bit to eGullet's absorbing quality.) So I immediately thought I'm-the-kind-of-person-who when I was reading the restaurant profiles. A restaurant says to a customer, YOU-are-the-kind-of-person-who. And the establishment best at conveying the intended message, (and what makes best?), will be lauded as Best, within its category.

Roast chicken (sage spring inside), frites, zucchini gratineed with Pecorino Romano and a little bit of sage-infused tomato sauce from the last, the very last, of the Romas.

What do you object to Wilfrid.

Helena, thank you for posting the Guardian link. I share the unease about par-cooked potatoes falling apart, but maybe this is the means of combatting same? I aim to attempt.

Yes, I too have recently made lasagna on account of this discussion, more or less. A veg version with roasted red bell peppers and caramelized onion that I hadn't made in a while...nice tomato sauce and lots of bechamel, some smoked mozzarella, Pecorino Romano. Lots of layers, using a no-boil Italian noodle from Audisio, I think the company is, very nice and thin, although homemade is always superior but these ain't bad. More lasagna in my future, I predict.

Thank you, Gavin. Would vastly prefer non-unnaturally flavored pastis. An educated consumer is a...is a...is a consumer who continues to drink pastis. Never heard of Henri Baudouin. Will look for. And, drinking, OK, but what about cooking? Last night steak frites small pan sauce creamed spinach Black Mountain Zinfandel 2000 not bad.

Pjs, 51 is an anise liqueur like Pernod and Ricard, and I believe all three are made by the same company. I don't know the differences, if any. Probably somebody here does, and I hope he or she will weigh in. I have a soft spot for 51 because, among other reasons, the domestic French bottle is an ultracool rectangular shape, like Boodles gin bottles. But, sadly, in duty-free and in the U.S., 51 bottles look quite like all the other bottles on the shelf. At least it's still 51 inside! But 51 or Ricard or Pernod would be welcome in my liquor cab. Plus Marie Brizard, too, which is anise + vanilla, isn't it, which I haven't tapped for seafood use but now I'm giving myself ideas...hmmm.

Thank you for the mousse information, mousse users. Will be availing self at earliest opportunity. Last evening another go-round with the Italianate boiled Arborio Helena Sarin's always on about, and, as I again hasten to add, with good reason. This time seafood, because for some reason there appeared at my local supermarket fish counter lovely little black mussels, and the guy was so nice, didn't whinge at all, in fact, about going through the ENTIRE PILE and picking only the decent ones for me, and so I also bought a little bit of shrimp, and a little bit of snow crab. Small bulb of fennel, finely diced, same with onion, also garlic, flat-leaf parsley, bay leaf, pinch of red pepper flakes, s & p, slug of Sauvignon Blanc and olive oil and a little Lurpak. Seafood removed, a little heavy cream reduced in the accumulation, the whole lot (mussels and their pesky shells added back later) folded with the aforementioned Arborio. Nice foccacia with Pecorino Romano baked on top. Salad of Hass avocado (hybridized but a stone's throw--or an avocado's throw, they make a chucking weapon like no stone God ever created--from where I grew up) and OK-this-time-I'm-serious thinly sliced end-of-the-line Brandywine tomato. I mean, I'm DARING the remaining green ones to ripen, DOUBLE daring. Slices of tomato and avocado alternated, sort of a reassembled avocado half face-down, see, and dressed with a little red-wine vinegar and olive oil and s & p. Remembered collaterally, as happens, that I am out of Pernod, 51, anise liqueur whatever, so it was very lucky I picked up the little fennel bulb. Did miss the hit of 51 in the mussels. Must remedy this little, ah, problem. Can it be that I spent the whole summer without ever once looking for a nice tall skinny glass of viscous opalescent evocative 51 and water? Must get back on track.

Yeah yeah yeah, in the immortal words of David Johansen. Chicken with FWAgrah mousse. Can I get a witness? Is the essential mousse procurable? A D'Artagnan product, e.g., or summat?

Wow Colonel Klink, sounds good. Lamb, smoked, + heavy cream-enriched intensely flavored sauce...sounds good. Do you sear the outside of your albacore as for tataki? Last evening late pickup dinner for two I made a cheese souffle with the end of a piece of soft blue and some Parmagiano Reggiano. Also Trader Joe's little French green beans with a last few Roma tomatoes, diced, and a peeled garlic clove and butter and s & p, cooked through and through. Baguette from the Vietnamese bakery.

Cut up a nice tri-tip into big old pieces, browned in rendered trimmed fat, (in a vintage oval Descoware, Belgian product which I believe preceded Le Creuset into the American market--those interested in integral handles on pot AND lid might consider same), few T. of red vermouth to empty the bottle deglazement, bunged in sliced onion, few garlic cloves, handful of sage leaves, a bay leaf, two nice strips of de-pithed orange peel, s & p, meat returned, lid clapped on, cook cook cook. Beef stew. Sauce eventually to be reduced and enriched with a little butter. Mashed potatoes with a dose of heavy cream, broccoli with Mornay, again, special request. Nice Frenchy-French baguette from the Vietnamese bakery.