Mabelline

What, rats do get to be six feet tall? It's a mouse. A huge, mutant mouse who, like the mice in all the old nursery rhymes, loves cheese. Hell yes there are six foot rats. Witness my exhusband. Edit to add, I'm with fifi. My sprouts were brought up on a real pizza place after movies or roller skating. If I were coerced into C.E.C. by some evil plot, I would even consider drinking ratwine! You all have my dearest sympathies!!Thank God for menopause!!

For the smaller Texas towns, especially like Abilene, Midland, Odessa: Chicken Fried steaks. And for Amarillo, got to be the 72 oz Big Texan! But for chili, man the chiliqueens of San Antone will haunt your bones if they don't get the credit! And New Mexico-Hatch chiles rellenos,POSOLE, Taos Horno bread.Also New Mexico, the stacked enchilada. Tucson- the world's finest cartwheel flour tortillas.

If I thought about Washington, D.C., and food as a complete outsider to that area, what about that senate bean soup? It may not be real popular with that ol' boy that slid on a bean and busted his arm, but it is always mentioned...

Beans, dear girl, I've a question. Bear with me. The Hendrick's sounds intriguing, and reading the threads trillium put up, someone, I think Sazerac, mentioned Magellan, with iris root and flowers infused. I enjoy a very small flavored liquor as a digestive, and I have always loved iris, and wished I could eat the scent. But does anyone know of a lilac infusion in any liquor? Because lilacs, purple violets, iris, rose,they all sound just heavenly.

Yep, back to topic: Thunder Road: Moonshine Night of the Hunter: Stuffed Cabbage Cape Fear: Young bird

Carolyn, YOU ROCK, gal!! Between your encyclopedic knowledge of ancient food, your excellent photojournalism. I am privileged to know you, even vicariously. Edit to add: duh, and thorough film appreciation.

I have a 1950's recipe from a famous foodie of that era, General Frank Dorn.It came from China and is exquisitely simple. Celery, beefmarrow, sherry, soy,salt, pepper.Umm.

Did anyone see her pitiful chocolate things? I saw that and switched to the cartoon network for some reality television

I am 50/50 on the garlic and the lemon. But then I adore green thai curry smeared on a standing roast. I guess I'm really like bloviatrix-a different child for a different mood. But to anyone who has not tried the garlic chicken please do-THAT is alchemy!! Edit to say that sounds better than alkemy? Hukd on faniks werkd fer me!

Nope.

For Cinncinnati, don't you all put the chili on spaghetti, too? And what about those deepfried ravioli? Or do I have it all wrong?

To me one of the most fabulous and under-appreciated actors was Robert Mitchum!!!!Cape Fear! Night of the Hunter! Thunder Road! He made the goose bumps get goose bumps!

No Toliver, the limit for me was a few weeks ago when they had a Paula Deen marathon---ran screaming from the room and tried to hide under the bed with the cat; but you know of course that means when they have enuff of them there will be a Sandra Lee marathon. That's when I predict a national outbreak of Elvis TV cures. Does anybody else get an earworm of "I'm a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world" when they see her? Or is it my meds?

That's exactly what I did, too. But I had a lot of time on my hands and watched one, and---ack!--liked it. She's definitely the antithesis of Rachel Ray, and she made goodies with her nieces one episode which I liked, and cooked with her Italian mama which I loved, and actually, on the show she doesn't come across as a bomb, but as a serious food luvur.

Steebles-- that mole description is one of the most inventive I've heard! That also makes me think of how often the food you're eating does taste like copper, iron, dirt, etc.

Mayhaw Man, I ain't scared of that shit! I just ain't putting it in my mouth.

Did anyone ever see the Gordon Elliot show Doorknock Dinners or whatever where he would invade some yuppie house with a renowned chef and they took over the poor slob's kitchen and said victim chef prepared a meal from what was in the larder? That being said, one time I was watching and the Iron Chefs were in New York, so G.E. loads them all up in a motorhome and Sakai and Michiba end up in a suburban house somewhere takin' over someone's totally unfamiliar kitchen. Talk about surreal!

PBS, TRAVEL, and does anyone else watch DISC-H&L ? We (By that I mean this area-not trying to talk like royalty) are not "allowed" FINE LIVING yet by our cable guy, but I've been catching some good stuff on DHL. Other than that, Iron Chef, Cook's Tour, Tyler Florence, and even Giada deLaurentiis lately.Wine TV is pretty cool, and last night I caught Cookin' in Brooklyn and The Best, which was intriguing. And I've never heard anyone mention Pete Luckett, the Greengrocer guy, but I get a hoot out of him in foreign countries, and when he was in Nottingham and did pork pies, it was freaking great!Toodily-ooh, or whatever he says! Edit to add the necessary "i"

Yep, I reckon.Slimy okra is evil. Natto looks bad enough to make my skin crawl, and one time I was prevailed upon to eat some kind of an aloe thing that oozed.I'm also with whoever gets creeped by snails. They're just a slug with a house.

Soda pop. Canteloupes. Red beets. Rubber cheese. Margarine. Fake baked goods.Slimy stuff. Soysauce made from hair. Wine made from rats. And guinea pigs.

I've always started beans in just enough water to cover. And I don't adhere to that old bring the water to a boil,blah blah blah because I think that was only a time saver. I don't mess with them. Add water as required, hot with a dipper from another pan. Old beans are hard to detect nowadays. My favorite for absolute dependability beside Camellia, which I love, is the Anazasi bean, which is purple and white to begin, but cooks up a beautiful beanish equivalent to a San Tropez tan. They are never hard upon completion, and have a wonderful flavor entirely on their own. But of course most times I cook beans is to use another ingredient, so I've got to say I rarely add salt, because it'll be there.

Find a way to sneak some cumin on it. And I really love a tender amount of five-spice powder in any pork. For leftovers, I love pork dumplings in a broth with shreds of green onions almost as delicious as fresh corn tortillas filled with the pork menchaca-style, good mex cheese oozing all over, and little diced up fried papas. Oh god, I'm hungry.

I just came to a very thoroughly deserved rough awakening. For I really had no idea that ground meat products were that adulterated. I certainly don't suggest trying to buy untouched wholesome meat by only overpriced name shops, but is there really such a dearth of smallholders that a person can't access them where they live? I have lived in very large cities, and after a thorough rooting- have found requisite provender, but it always took a lot of want-to to obtain it. If a person is on a slim time or money scale, can they not buy a product they're aware is not brined as an alternative to something they know is? But to begin back at the beginning-I 've always had my unpredictable results with a given food whenever I am using a lot of canned goods. That's salt I can't control. With regards to the cryovac-packaged meat, it does make a headfuzz trying to allow for previous brining while still making essentially your rub. If you rinse it thoroughly you gotta let it rest another day to dry back up, and that can be a pain in the back, especially for large getdowns.

A big ole sign in front of the bowl proclaiming to everyone it's a genuwine underwear-melting bowl of red is the best I can think of. Then they are properly warned.

gperls- You can not possibly imagine how good some of these recipes are getting , But I have to tell you that yours sounds GOOOOd! I think I'll try it Monday, as my little fishmonger is MT because of the Superbowl, and he had had no advance warning I would be home to mess with everybody for the Super-Party-Bowl- no matter what people are doing on Super Bowl Sunday, we will be American and eating all the foods we now call AMERICAN.