prasantrin

I must stand up for the slow cooker. It's a huge help for the vegetarian cook, and anyone interested in frugal foods. I use mine primarily to cook dry beans, which is something I do once or twice a week. I also occasionally use it for New Mexico style flat enchiladas, and for root vegetable stews. I especially like using it in the summertime, because it doesn't seem to heat up my kitchen as much as simmering beans on the stovetop does. I like the fact that it is self-contained and safe to run while we're asleep or not at home -something I would never, ever do with my stove. ← I hate beans in anything but small doses (and even then I just tolerate them), so that's still something other people make that I'd never cook. And I would never leave a slow-cooker on when out of the house. Ever. To me, in terms of safety there's not much difference between leaving a slow-cooker on and leaving the stove on low. I do have a slow-cooker, and I tried to make slow-cooker caramelized onions. They sucked. I also did corned beef in it, and it ended up far over-done. That was my fault, I think, because I left it overnight on high rather than low (my intent was to start it on high, then turn it to low, but I forgot).

The maid of course. ← That sounds like something my mother would say!

"On", "warm", and "timer" are most important in a rice cooker (commercial rice cookers don't need a timer, but for home use, it's a really nice feature if you eat a lot of rice). Slow-cookers are a waste for me. I've had one for 5 years, and have used it twice. I know they have their place other people's kitchens, but most things that I've seen people make in the them ("Hawaiian chicken" and the like) aren't things I want to cook.

Perhaps your inability to empathize ("understand") is why you feel so affronted by the restaurant's actions (or non-actions, as the case may be). It seems most people who have replied can empathize with the restaurant whether those people are in the business or not. I don't recall you mentioning why you did not ask the restaurant to box up your meal. I remember you writing they should have, but then I also remember you writing that the weather was so bad you could not possibly have left the restaurant without getting soaked, so what would have been the point of having them box it up? But then you also wrote that you got soaked by staying, so I'm not sure what the difference would have been had you taken out your food, or stayed and eaten it. I don't think you're at fault for any of what happened, although you were responsible for your dog and for accepting the conditions of eating at a restaurant with a dog. Had you just written your story as an anecdote and ended with the question "Is there anything they could have done for me?" you probably would have gotten more sympathy.

I eat cereal any time of day. My mother's favourite bedtime snack is a cereal with a little bit of Bailey's Irish Cream instead of milk. When she doesn't have Bailey's, she uses sweet vermouth.

With diabetes, it's because sugar is a carb that it needs to be limited, not just because it's sugar. As I said earlier, angel food cakes are pretty diabetic-friendly as they are. According to the endocrineweb.com website, "A 1/12 slice of angel food cake has less than 1 gram of fat and only 30 carb." You could even cut the cake into 16 pieces (small, but enough to satisfy), and you get about 23 grams of carbs. Why not just go with sugar?

"Sam Choy's Polynesian Kitchen: More than 150 Authentic Dishes from one of the World's Most Delicious and Overlooked Cuisines" includes a chapter on Tahiti (as well as Samoa, Fiji, Hawaii, New Zealand, etc.). It was published in 2002. http://www.tahiticuisine.com/ refers to a cookbook to be published in 2009, but there are no clickable links on the webpage and no additional information. ETA: http://www.tahitienterprises.com/ is where you can find contact information for the cookbook mentioned above. They also have a book about Tahitian cocktails that looks interesting. EATA: Here's the ToC for the Tahitian chapter of the Sam Choy book

A friend of mine used to go through periods when she wouldn't be able to eat. She'd take a few bites of something and then she'd feel like throwing up, so she'd stop eating. I told her it was probably stress-related, but she said she didn't feel stressed at all. Months later, she finally figured it out. Her husband, who was self-employed and worked out of their home, had filled the kitchen table with clutter from his work. Growing up, the kitchen table provided a feeling of stability and comfort for her, and when she no longer had that symbol, it stressed her out. From then, her husband left at least part of the table clear so they could have their meals at the table, and she could finally eat again. As for my kitchen table, an easier question to answer would be, "What's not on your kitchen table?"

I'm having trouble imagining what they would sell during the winter months. One of the highlights of a farmer's market (any farmer's market) is the fresh locally grown vegetables and fruits. Without those, how different would a year-round farmer's market be from, say, The Forks? And if you want to see the future of a year-round farmer's market, just take a look at The Forks. Sad sad sad.

It could also be that many of those who commented in the past are not as active (or active at all) on these boards.

And remember that while mayonnaise itself is acidic enough to inhibit bacterial growth, once you mix it with other foods, the ability to do so lessens. To say that "dishes made with [mayo] stay safe to eat longer than those without it" is not quite accurate. It depends on the other ingredients as well as how those ingredients are prepared. To be safe, if you really want a salad with a mayonnaise-based dressing, add the dressing at the last minute and if the salad will sit out for a while, keep it on ice or cool-packs if you can.

There's a drink one can buy at Asian grocery stores consisting of coconut water and pieces of young coconut. There are canned versions, but there's another version that's often sold frozen. http://www.evertake.com/pdDrink_coconut.html is one example (Rooster/Cock makes a really good version). It's supposed to be defrosted, but we also eat it like a coconut slush. Anyway, if you can get young coconut, save the water and scrape out all the meat. Then freeze it. You can add sugar syrup if you want. Or just buy canned coconut water (with or without meat) and freeze it. For daily eating, I like it better than coconut-milk versions because it's so light and refreshing.

Thanks! Do you know how long the offer is good for? I tried to purchase it, but kept getting an error code on the payment page. I sent an e-mail to them about it, but I don't want to miss it! Not buying a Vitamix at Costco several years ago has always been one of my regrets! (We saw it, put it in our cart, then put it back. )

Angel food cake is pretty diabetic-friendly to begin with. If you really want to make it friendlier, just cut it into smaller servings. That being said, take a look at this topic from the Cooks Illustrated BB http://www.americastestkitchen.com/ibb/pos...x?postID=198498 The woman used agave nectar successfully (though she says the cake was a bit dense). She posts the recipe at the bottom of the thread. Someone else in the thread mentions 100% Splenda didn't work.

Is anyone familiar with Caffarel? I've read about them, but I'm wondering if their chocolates are really that good. I found a Caffarel store, and wanted to try some of their chocolates, but at almost Y200 per piece (small foil-wrapped Gianduja-based chocolates), I didn't want to risk buying crappy chocolate. They've also got a nutella-like spread that I'm tempted to get, but it's about Y2000 for a small jar. Anyone ever try their spread? Is it better than nutella?

Assuming you're from the US, your best bet is to get someone to send you some. Not a lot of home dry-curing going on in Japan, so there's really no demand for it. ETA: The price for 500g of saltpetre on the website you posted is comparable to what you pay in the US (at least prices I saw). The shipping is a bit high, but I don't know that it would be so much more than if you shipped from the US or elsewhere.

I once asked a Bernard Callebaut staff member about the couverture--if it was just Barry-Callebaut or some other kind. She said it was manufactured by Barry-Callebaut but it was a special blend made for BC. I'd ask again, though. His couverture is quite expensive retail. If it is indeed a special blend for him, or even if he makes it himself, I can't imagine wholesale would be that much cheaper than his retail prices.

Where'd you find that? I think I need some, and I've got just 10 more months in Japan to get some!!

Makes sense. I make very good Neapolitan-style pizza in my oven (small Japanese gas convection oven) at 300C. I get nice puffing of the rim of the crust, and bubbles just like my favourite Neapolitan-style pizza place. But I think the secret is more in the dough than the oven (an oven helps, of course). I wish I could make grilled pizza. It would certainly help keep the temperature of my apartment down, but my teeny tiny balcony won't accommodate a grill! (In my opinion, that's really the only benefit to grilling pizza--it doesn't heat up the room/house/apartment like a hot oven does.)

If you're doing it on a stone and finishing it in the oven, anyway, then what's the point of doing it on the grill at all? Do you still get a smoky or "grilled" flavour if the pizza isn't cooked directly on the grill?

To me, once you start adding all those extras to the beef, it ceases to be a burger and become a hamburger steak (aka salisbury steak). It doesn't matter if it's eaten in a bun or shaped like a hamburger, it's a different beast.

Thanks Hiroyuki. Armed with the name you gave, I found the only solution is to pick off the damaged leaves and try to destroy all the bugs (unless you want to use a strong pesticide, but I only had one little plant). I think I managed to get rid of all the bugs, but then I forgot to water it for several days and it died! I definitely don't have a green thumb!

I tried Izze's blueberry soda for the first time. I had never seen it in Japan before, but it looked interesting. Wish it tasted more interesting, too. It's rather weak in blueberry flavour (in my opinion), and after looking at the ingredients, I understand why. I should have checked out the ingredients before I spent Y315 (that's about US$3.25) on my single bottle. Had I done that, I'd never have bought it. Still, I'll probably try the pomegranate one, and if the lemon or grapefruit ones showed up (there were none at the store I visited), I'd try them too.

What's the best thing to do with overcooked overly-salted corned beef? Make corned beef hash! Except I don't really know what corned beef hash is supposed to be like, so I sauteed some shallots in bacon fat until a little on the crispy side, then added cubed potatoes. I added a bit of water, and covered the pan to steam-cook the potatoes. Then I uncovered the pan and let the potatoes crisp up a little longer and added the shredded corned beef (shredded because my overcooked corned beef is too tender to slice). Finally, I cracked an egg on top! Mmmmmm. . . . I'm making this again!

I'd only be serving me! It's a bit of a hassle to make gravy for one every time I want a few meatballs, so I was hoping to be able to be able to pull out what I need, nuke it, and eat. I'm lazy that way. I think I might be able to cope with "fluffy", so I may try a batch and see how it goes. Then if it sucks, I'll either skip the gravy whenever I eat it, or make a small batch. Thanks!