prasantrin

Wow that's a cold kitchen. You could almost put stuff on the counter to freeze. ← I wear almost as much clothing inside my apartment as I do outside during winter. But it's only 5-10C at night. During the day it can range from 10-15C. And it really does take a long time to defrost things on my counter during winter!

One of the reasons I used a non-lidded garbage can was because the garbage can that was provided was broken, so the lid stayed open, anyway. My employers finally bought a new lidded garbage can for my apartment, and I noticed that the garbage was even stinkier when placed in the lidded garbage can. Everytime I opened the thing, I got a huge whiff of stink. I stopped using it after that, and went back to my non-lidded can. I don't get nearly as much stink from it, but my garbage gets picked up twice a week, so it doesn't sit out for long. Now my lidded garbage can only gets used for recycling, and as extra counter space.

...when you get excited because after a much-too-long absence, one of your favourite members is posting again! Nice to see you again SobaAddict!

What size pan did you use? She uses a sheet pan, but there's no way I could fit a sheet pan in my oven. Did you downsize the recipe at all? It does look delicious, though I probably won't be making anything like that till the fall. It's too hot, and I won't be in my own kitchen all summer!

...and??? So does practically everyone I know. How do you suggest we defrost it??? ← In the fridge... I defrost on the counter during winter, when it's only 5-10C inside my apartment. But during summer, when it's 30C+ inside and very humid, I defrost in my fridge. I think the kitty litter litter thing was far from picky, but I don't really understand some of the other things mentioned. I don't have lids on my garbage cans, and I prefer it that way. And in some parts of the world, recycling doesn't even exist. But agreed on the hair--I once found a pubic-looking hair in some French bread and I never ate bread from that place again. Euuuuuwww. That wasn't someone's home, though. Someone once used my Japanese carbon steel knife and didn't dry it right away, despite my mentioning earlier that if they cooked, they should dry the knives right away. That annoyed me. I also had a pan of oil on the stove, and the same people threw the oil down the sink. First, don't throw anything out in someone's home that doesn't belong to you, and second, what the hell are you doing throwing oil down the sink? That REALLY annoyed me. Oh, and the same people, even after I told them not to go through my kitchen cupboards (they were a mess, and I was embarrassed), went through all my cupboards to look for stuff, then didn't even put the stuff back when they were done (which is how I knew they went through the cupboards).

When snowangel posted your teaser pics, I knew I had seen them before, but I thought they were from a previous blog. But it was from your website! I browsed through your online store a couple of seeks ago when I found the link in one of your replies (I think in a topic having to do with France). I love the cutting boards! And the fake-flower garden is pretty original--something I could definitely do (I tend to kill all my plants). And of course, the cats are adorable. I know I shouldn't condone obesity in cats (my own cat was several pounds overweight until she went on a strict diet, and is now a svelte 8-ish pounds), but I love fat cats! Pele looks like a sweetheart, too, though Perdita looks a bit like a senorita (a cute one, though!).

She does have a lawyer, she just prefers not to use him. She's very stubborn, as I mentioned earlier, and prefers to take care of things herself or ask someone she trusts to take care of things for her. The other problem (not really a problem, but sort of a problem) is that she's Thai. She doesn't like confrontation, and "mai pen rai" ("nevermind") is her mantra. I think that's why the situation with the self-proclaimed chef has become what it is. He should most definitely be fired, but she sponsored him, as well, and although that sponsorship relationship officially ended last January, he applied for permanent residency so he needs a full-time job, and she was too kind not to comply with his request to stay on a little longer (and this even though he's planning on opening his own restaurant once he gets his residency). Her situation is very frustrating, but since we can't talk her into doing what we know is right, all we can do is help her in any way we can.

I couldn't find any other mention of this, but my latest edition of Time Magazine (Asian edition) has an article featuring Ed Hamilton, complete with a picture! For anyone interested, the article can be found online here, but there's not accompanying picture.

I think it's someone we've seen before. Some of those things look very familiar...if only I could remember who they belonged to. I think the blogger is female...that's all I can remember!

Having worked with young adults who grew up in similar (or worse) environments, and many of whom had their own children, it's not about laziness. It's more about fear, lack of confidence, and low self-esteem. It's not so easy to instill those things into people. Most of the students I worked with didn't have caring neighbours or friends or family. Or at least they had very few caring people in those lives, and those people generally knew little to nothing about nutrition. As part of the program, a dietician would come in and give a talk about proper nutrition, yet few if any of the students could understand the things she said. Sure there are TV programs, but if you can't afford a TV, you can't watch them. And if your reading skills are poor (like the skills of many who grew up in poverty), books aren't going to help much either. Depending on where you live, access to such things is not always as easy as you make it sound. I don't think you sounded harsh. You were speaking from your own experience, and it's wonderful that you were able to end your family's cycle of ignorance, poverty, etc. But it's important not to generalize to others. Just because others can't escape, doesn't mean they're lazy or stupid. And it doesn't mean those who tried to help them but didn't succeed are failures, or didn't try hard enough. It takes a hell of a lot more than "5 minutes to talk and listen." If only it were that easy.

Thanks. I've passed that info on to those trying to write the contract for her. Hmmm...this is going to be just as difficult as I imagined. That is really part of the problem--the good staff relations and team building. The reason she (the owner) wants to institute this contract is because one of the employees has gotten too big for his britches (she's the main cook, he's the secondary cook). He refuses to help with prep work or clean-up, insists that he's the "chef" and that all the recipes are his (they're hers, and she taught him how to make them), etc. He even yells at her and the other staff, a la Gordon Ramsay. She's in the process of hiring two new cooks, and wants them to understand We keep trying to drill into her that she needs a lawyer, but she's so stubborn! She thinks she can do everything on her own. We're also dealing with cultural issues, since the cooks she hires come from Thailand, and they often have limited English skills. I don't know how well a contract will go over with them... Thanks to all for the comments and advice. They have been passed on, and I hope they help!

Inventolux. Thanks. Found his posts about that under the Interlude topic. Interesting reading in that topic. Were you unionized? I wonder if there's a difference between unionized and non-unionized restaurants in regards to contracts. When I was searching, it seemed unionized shops were more likely to have contracts. Where you work now, is it possible to work without a contract? For example, let's say you have a 12-month contract which is expiring at the end of July, and both you and your employees know you're planning to leave the area, but not until September. Will they let you work off-contract for those last 2 months, or would you have to sign a full contract and then give notice 3 weeks before you want to leave?

A friend who owns a restaurant in Canada is thinking of having her employees sign contracts. These contracts would include their job duties, and possibly also something that prevents them from using her recipes elsewhere. Is this kind of thing actually done? She wants to do it herself (write the contract), though we're trying to convince her to see a lawyer to do it. Should she start writing it herself, other than salary, deductions, vacation time, etc., what else should one include in such a contract? For the recipe clause, what kind of wording would be appropriate? I've been looking for examples online, but I haven't found any specific to restaurants.

What a great website! My computer doesn't type Japanese characters (kana or kanji), but it was interesting browsing through the different categories. I'll definitely be using that site again, so thanks for the pointer! Do you think kuzu manju is similar to warabimochi? I've never had kuzu manju, so I don't even know what it looks like.

I've got a little take-out container of warabimochi--one of my favourite Japanese treats! Can anyone tell me the basic nutritional information on warabimochi? Just the usual..calorie, protein, carb, and fat content.

I know a bakery that sells pre-made vegetarian sandwiches that are quite good. They use house-made bread (they stone-grind their own flour, and most of their breads are whole wheat), and use freshly made fillings. Their only fault is that they're usually overstuffed, leading to leakage. Nothing's worse than a leaky sandwich (except maybe a leaky anus). Forgot to add, that while not in the middle of Manitoba, it is in the southern part (in Winnipeg).

Indeed! (Turns out that Philadelphia Inquirer food editor Rick Nichols had the same reaction to this product when he spied a box of it on the shelf of a Japanese grocery/eatery in the Main Line suburb of Narberth.) ← This may have already been mentioned elsewhere, but the "Vermont" of that curry refers to the apples used in the roux. Having lived in VT, I know it's definitely known for apples (I lived/studied right near the orchard where much of The Cider House Rules was filmed).

I use a pink tupperware-like container with tulips on the lid for my fine sea salt, a yellow tupperware-like container with tulips on the lid for coarse sea salt, and a red Hello Kitty tupperware-like container for my kosher salt (these were all purchased years ago when I was on a very tight budget, and even though I can afford better containers now, I quite like them!). I mostly just use the Hello Kitty kosher salt one for my neti pot, not for cooking, though.

Thanks! If all goes well, I'll be putting an order in next week! rona

I'm looking for an Okanagan source of fresh cherries that can be shipped to Winnipeg. I browsed online, but perhaps I'm using the wrong terms ("mail order" cherries bc). Anyone know of a good source?

I just got a huge box of JalPak Skookum Bing Cherries, complete with politically incorrect label... Three of my co-workers and I are gifted with a 1.5 kg box every summer which we have to share, but since my name is on the box, I get the extras. Oh, these babies come out to about $15/lb, but that includes shipping to Japan.

Thanks! I now have about 6 different recipes to chose from. What to do, what to do....They all look so good! I'll look for my dates, first, then decide, since if I can't find them, I won't be able to make them!

Hmmm...so it seems I have none of the above! Well, since it doesn't taste spoiled, I'll do as Smithy suggests and give it a go. I'll try it on an evening when I don't have to be anywhere the next day, just in case I have some unpleasant side effects...

If i try to think as a Frenchperson, I would narrow the gadget's uses as having to do with bread, cheese, wine, or cigarettes. My vote is as a cheesemold. Do you make your own cheese at all? I would use it as something from which to hang poultry when drying out the skin, making it extra crispy when roasted.

Someone here was concerned with her son's weight, and they started making changes in the family's diet (as in daily eating habits, not the 4-letter word) and routine. They became more active, and the children started contributing more to food choices. I wish I could remember who it was...they were quite successful, I think, with their changes, and I think the member might have started running, too. I found the topic Overweight Kids started by pamjsa. It shows that parental support is crucial, as is the involvement of the child. The more the child feels involved in the process, the more likely the changes are to stick. Maybe pamjsa will give us an update on her family.