slbunge

In the early 1990s Atlas Deli in Madison, WI had a fabulous cheese counter. There I discovered my very favorite Cabrales. I don't remember the name of the producer but the veining was so dense that there looked more vein than cream-colored cheese. Also, the veins were absolutely ink black. The cheese was wrapped in chestnut leaves. Simply beautiful stuff. I've had many delicious Cabrales since but none has captured me like the one from Atlas. <sigh>

It's not my favorite but my mother-in-law and brother-in-law like lard and radish sandwiches.

Tomatoes

A thread about tres leches cake got me thinking that I should have mentioned 100% Taquito on SW Freeway. (Buffalo Speedway exit? Sorry can't remember.) If you are in the area, it is worth stopping in for their tres leches cake. Large piece of well soaked cake topped with whipped cream. Not overly sweet (my biggest complaint with other versions) and a really subtle carmel flavor in the soaked cake. The cake definitely outshines the other food on their menu.

Godfather 1 and Godfather 2 do a very good job of weaving food or meals into the story. The viewer is left very aware of how important food and drink were to that family. The contrast of the civil ceremony of meals against the not-so-civil family business is one of the things that keeps me watching them every couple of years. Godfather 3? Not so much.

As a New Englander, definately think MA for cranberries; found out though from a WI friend that they grow lots of cranberries there also--on the edges of Lake Michigan I think; up north! Slight correction: cranberry country in Wisconsin is in about the center of the state where the soil is sandy and there is plenty of available below-ground water to pump in and flood the fields during harvest. Now, back to the discussion about New Jersey...

'Fingers' of polenta baked in a casserole dish with homemade tomato sauce and topped with a crumble of a sharp blue cheese.

You took the words right out of my mouth! Of course I'm only a semi-frequent Houston visitor so what I recommend should be regarded with some suspicion.

Another bock that I used to enjoy in returnable bottles is Point Bock from the Stevens Point Brewery, another Prohibition survivor. Not quite as deep or smokey in flavor as Huber but still a nice bottle of beer for the money. I think I saw returnable cases of Point and Point Bock at Ray's Liquor in Wauwatosa (I love Ray's) last weekend. Should be able to find this beer in Chicago and maybe Minneapolis but I don't know how far and wide their distribution network extends. Has anyone had Leinenkugel's Bock recently? I'm not sure I have seen it in the last few years. Perhaps it is overshadowed by their other offerings.

Just my two cents: I have two good friends who used cork floors. One had terrible staining of the floor post installation and it seems that they were not properly sealed. Moisture (either ambient or from cleaning) penetrated the cork and changed the color making it appear muddy. This household were not heavy users of their kitchen so I can't comment about wear. Their floor went in about 10 years ago. Second friend has had a cork floor for about three years and loves it. The floor was laid as square tiles (similar to denise_jer's) by a professional and then sealed with two coats of specially formulated sealant. Again, this woman is not a heavy user of her kitchen, but there has not been a stain to speak of and she commented about how many fewer things have broken on the cork floor (she used to have ceramic tile). I'm left thinking that cork is a reasonable choice and very comfortable but be sure to do your homework about getting the proper sealant. Have you thought of using real, old-school linoleum? I would think it would have similar resiliancy to cork but may not be as susceptible to moisture absorption (less movement and less chance of staining). (Nice blog by the way. Vicarious living for all of us.)

The caterpillar roll at sushi restaurants is a decent first introduction to eel. The eels is usually 'barbecued' which means it is cooked with a sweet sauce. The avocado is often (always?) on the outside of the roll. When I get one, it is usually the last of the evening because the sweetness competes with the flavors of the more delicate items. After that, keep moving through the sushi selections until you make it to uni. I'm sure you'll never look back.

I'm not sure. I think the owners of the store I go to in Houston are from Houston but I don't know if they have branched out to Austin. I'll ask around and let you know if I find anything.

You should look here. Of course at the time I write this, the auction has quite a few days left which won't provide the instant satisfaction you crave.

Where is Droubi? Sounds like a place I should visit. I checked the cupboard and have a bag of porcini from Phoenicia but there is no price on it. I bought the 100g celophane bag with 'Funghi Porcini Secchi' on the front. I've found the quality to be quite good. Actually, it was great to look for the bag of porcini because I found that I had one can of amazing tuna left from on my last trip. A's Do Mar Tonno Trancio Intero is the stuff I get and it blows away virtually any canned tuna I have eaten. Really nice chunks of flesh with very deep flavors of salt, olive oil, and meaty tuna. I like it virtually unadorned served on a bed of pasta.

Often when I'm in Houston (about 3 to 6 times per year) I end up at Phoenicia on Westheimer, west of the beltway (can't remember the cross street) to bring home some staples. They have tinned, Portuguese style sardines that I can't find here, nice sized bags of dried porcini, and all sorts of other good stuff that I can throw in a suitcase. A local Iranian friend tipped me off to the place because it is one of his favorites. Not sure how it compares other Houston offerings.

Hopefully you cashed in your $50 off promotion and bought another grinder.

If you want a patina, you need to avoid anything with plasticizers in it (polyurethane, etc.). Real, old-school shellac would patina nicely but it is sort of finicky to apply properly. Right now, I'd lean toward recommending penetrating oil and routine coats of wax. Butchers wax is regularly available at hardware stores and restoration hardware and is probably the most durable of the commercial waxes that comes in small quatities. Edited to add: By the way, nice looking kitchen.

Interesting. About a month ago I heard a radio essay on NPR about roasting coffee in a cast iron skillet. Then, a couple of weeks ago I ran into some descriptions of how to use a Whirley Pop popcorn maker to roast coffee on the stovetop (the website I was reading was here). Since I have a Whirley Pop I might have to give it a try after all the holiday hoopla settles down. Any suggestions to source green coffee in small quatities?

Several years ago, my wife and I went to Cozumel for a week with another couple. The best restaurant food we had was at a place called La Choza in San Miguel. Attentive preparation of straightforward food with good service. Actually, if the stars are aligned and the restaurant is still there and the avocado pie is still on the menu, you must try it. Sublime baked-custard-style pie of avocado flavored with lime (and possibly lemon). We have tried to recreate it at home and haven't come close to the smooth as silk texture. It was far enough inland that the throngs of cruise ship patrons didn't make it to the restaurant. Hopefully the place is still there. Edited to add: Google search turned up a few recent reviews of the place by visitors so it should still be open. Also, people still seem to like it. Here is the address: La Choza Calle Rosada Salas 198 At Avenue 10 A Sur Cozumel, Q.Roo Phone: 987-20958

We are intending to serve Tom and Jerrys (ies?) for family on Christmas Eve. I have a few recipes that will likely be merged but if anyone has a favorite, please post. Mostly, though, I'm curious about how long the base mixture (eggs and spices) keeps. Specifically, can I mix up a batch in the morning for use in the afternoon?

My wife's ancestors came from Poland (she's three generations away from the old country) and their tradition is to share 'oplatek' (the plural is 'oplatki') before the meal. It is a large flat wafer similar to communion host but bigger. Prior to the start of the Christmas Eve meal, you break off a reasonable size chunk from the main wafer supply. Then, you go to each person at the table, wish them a Merry Christmas and each break off and eat a small piece of the other's oplatek. Sort of clunky to describe in text but it is a simple way to wish each other well. Oh, and you also offer oplatek to your pets to commemorate the kindness of animals at the nativity.

I wouldn't be surprised if you came home to see a bunch of varmints (racoons, squirrels, mice) trying to figure out how to jimmy the lock.

In Nava Atlas' cookbook Vegetarian Celebrations, one of the main dishes she uses for a vegetarian Thanksgiving is 'Corn, Squash, and Rice Loaves'. Essentially herbs, cooked brown rice, corn, summer squash, and brussels sprouts (or broccoli) molded in a loaf pan and bound with breadcrumb, eggs, buttermilk and cheese. I've made them and they are quited good. They unmold fairly easily and are then sliced for serving. If you're interested, let me know and I'll send you the entire recipe.

Could it be 'rombo' which is what the Italians call turbot? Just curious. (Rombo/turbot is a reasonably ugly flatfish with very tasty flesh.) I visited SF earlier this year and just loved the Ferry Plaza Market. I still think about the little tub of Cowgirl Creamery Clabbered Cottage Cheese that I devoured while sitting on the curb in the spring sun. Yum. Keep up the posts, it's been fun to read. Edit: can't spell 'clabbered'.

Perhaps this is obvious but make sure you have a fire extinguisher in easy distance and make sure it is appropriate for a grease fire. You certainly don't want to have to run into the kitchen if you've got a fireball on your hands. Also, pull the propane bottle away from burner as far as is practical with the hose that you have. That way, if you need to get to the valve it will be out of the way of any overflowing oil. In fact, though the cooker I have has a valve at the burner for control, I've found that it is very touchy and gets hot to the touch. I usually set it partially open but such that it can give a reasonably strong flame. I then modulate the flame with the valve on the propane bottle. A decent regulator would be better but this method gets the job done. Setting up in a sandbox or on a decent layer of sand is a great idea because it will help soak up any dripping oil. Also, you can put the legs of the cooker slightly depressed into the sand to give a very solid and level surface (some driveways aren't level).