FistFullaRoux

OK, so it seems the turkey leg is a good idea. To make up for the fat difference, you could use olive oil, or schmaltz. Turkey and schmaltz should go together, right?

Being there are so many options, it would be like telling an assistant to "cook an egg", without specifying. The "standard" as I know it is 50/50 sugar and water, heated until the sugar dissolves. It's what I would make if asked for a simple syrup.

FEBS - (stands for flour, eggs, butter, and sugar) Toot Sweet (I know, a bit cheesy, but fun) Katie's Dream Cakes (instead of using "custom", which always makes me think of a pickup truck)

Sure. Just buy a smoked turkey leg or two and drop them in there. Check the turkey smoked sausage as well. I've had good luck with that. Or if you are willing to experiment, could someone actually smoke the greens? Wilt them down, then finish cooking them low and slow in an actual smoker. Just use an oven safe pan, and stick them on the rack. Wonder if that would work?

Not that my family are not giving people. They are generous and caring individually and as a family. But only when it's convenient.

I've always wanted to put together this huge spread, sit everyone down at the table, say grace, then (without warning) pack the whole thing up and take it to a shelter. And drag the entire clan along just to see the look on my families faces.

If you can wait just a bit, you may see the prices on some decent appliances go down because of the K-Mart/Sears merger. They will be selling Whirlpool and Kenmore at K-Mart. Keep your eyes peeled...

What's with the ketchup haters? I like the stuff. The only brand I've found that I didn't like was Hunt's. Just wrong for some reason. Heinz out of the little foil packs. Perfections. I double dip my fries. First in mayo, then a touch of ketchup. One of my favorite fry tricks is to use the crinkle cut frozen ones (yeah, whatever), seasoned with butter flavor popcorn salt after frying.

I've had some luck freezing them. Peel, pull apart the sections and remove as much of the pith as possible. Line a baking pan with wax paper, line the sections up, and freeze. Once they are frozen, they can be moved to a Ziplock bag, and stored in the freezer. Obviously, the texture loses some of it's charm once you thaw them, but they still taste good. If you remove the skin on the sections before freezing, you can use them in smoothies, garnishes for desserts, sorbets and sherbets. And charge the little freaks a dollar for each one they throw. That'll keep them from lobbing them at each other...

I've eaten at a German place - Ol' Heildelberg (256) 922-0556, but that's about it. Usually, when I'm in Huntsville, meals are hotel convention type stuff. The infamous "fist of beef"...

There is a considerable amount of shortening in the filling of those cookies. When you bake them, the shortening obviously melts and adds to the liquid content. You may be able to counteract that with some flour in the mixture, but it would affect the overall color of the crust. Maybe some other kind of dry agent to absorb the extra fat would work. Another option for the hardcore is to buy the regular Oreos, and twist each one open - discarding the filling (sacrelidge!)... Unless you can get the cookies seperately in bulk, without the filling.

Bring some milk to temp in the pot first, then add the M&C. The hot milk will help distribute the heat more effectively, and the cheese goes into solution, without breaking. After a few minutes of cooking, you can have something that is just a bit looser than the original. Reseason and serve. Or just fry that bad boy.

Stews always seem to be better the next day. Maybe just try that. Triple check the salt level. A very small amount can make the difference between "eh" and "wow"... When all else fails, saute some more aromatics in a seperate pan with some olive oil, then add it to the stew, simmer 20 minutes, and reseason.

I like to cube a sweet potato (about 3/4 inch), toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, and a little minced garlic. Place a single layer of potatoes on a baking sheet, and roast at 300 for about 25 minutes, or until done to your taste. Serve with a dipping sauce made of sour cream, ground cumin, paprika, and cayenne. Or whatever kind of sauce like this you wish. A little horseradish works as well... Good with beef and chicken. It's a little overbearing on pork though.

My wife almost fell over the first I took her home to Louisiana for Thanksgiving. My step-dad does a turkey on the rotissierie, no cornbread or cranberries to be found - but plenty of rice dressing. When the food is ready (after he carves the turkey), you grab a plate from the cabinet serve yourself, then afind a place to sit. The kitchen table usualy sits in two shifts. If it's not too cold, there's the picnic table outside. Very casual. No grace, and while my step-grandmother puts a couple more ice cubes in her glass of wine, my mom and brother argue over how long to microwave the butter to soften it up. Unconventional, but you won't eat better anywhere.

The old doc I went to for my entire childhood perscribed saltines and Coca Cola along with any needed medicine for a stomach ailment. The saltines absorb the stomach contents and neutralize them, and the Coke raises the blood sugar and creates a sense of fullness. It has always worked for me. I'm guessing Diet Coke would work for those with blood sugar issues, but I'm no doctor... If you are taking a medicine that has potential stomach effects, you should eat something either absorbent (bread or crackers) or liquid (soups or stews) to dilute the concentration. Both will reduce the effects on the stomach. The medicine will get absorbed a little more slowly, but it will still get there. But, in most cases (at least for me) dairy is out. And lastly, I've also found that if I eat half of whatever I am eating, then take the medicine, then finish the food, I have far fewer issues.

Maybe coating it in a bit of oil first, before adding it may help...

Since I've started actually doing mise-en-place, I'm finding that I use fewer measuring devices. I made a trip to Goodwill, and picked up a bunch of old coffee cups and small bowls to make my life easier. i found several of the smaller bowls to equal a specific measure. So those became multitaskers, with the measurements on the bottom written with a big Sharpie. At least this way, I don't have to measure and dump into another container. And I have 2 of the plunger measuring cups. They are a wonderful addition, and are vying with the Pyrex as most used. Pyrex wins because it can be nuked or hold hot ingredients with no problems.

And I buy a box of the malted milk balls in the express hope that I will get at least one chewy one in each batch. Rarely happens, but I love when it does. I've gone as far as to try to recreate them, by removing a bit of chocolate, then letting them sit, hoping they would absorb the moisure in the air. Haven't had satisfactory results though.... And McDonalds basically piles eveything on top of the patty. Unless you have something with more than one cheese slice, then you have a cheese slice between the meat and the bottom bun. The cheese always touches the meat. The top bun is dressed sauces first, then onions, tomato and then lettuce. The top bun is inverted on top of the meat patty, which was already on the bottom half of the bun.

That finally came to me as I was cooking dinner tonight. I'd forgotten the Germanic influence, but the Scots-Irish (and, as you note, English) who make up most of my stock were no great shakes either. Mind you, I love visiting those countries, but I don't think they spent much time - at least not a couple of centuries ago - trying to make fancy meals. (The other thing that came to me, between posting that last post and dinner, was, "Why didn't I change the darned light switch before I logged on last time?" I remembered the job as the sun was going down. I finally ended the job 'hot' so the adjacent room's lights, on the same circuit, were available. Dumb, dumb, dumb. Got away unscathed, but still dumb. Y'all are a wonderful resource and terrible distraction! ) ← Well, I meant British as that sort of general area - More the British Isles is what I meant... But you get what I mean. The Germanic influence was actually felt more out west. I had an epiphany on this as soon as I realized the connection between weinerschnitzel and chicken fried steak....

You have to look at the ancestry of the people involved. In the 1700's, the French had a pretty good culinary background. Those first families were French via Canada, and they worked with the Native Americans that were there. The Native Americans taught them what they could eat, and the French history took over. As far as Oklahoma and Tennessee, as I know it, it's more of an English and Germanic influence. In the past, not known so much for their culinary adventures. Which pretty much is the basis for old West type cooking, with the addition of the influences of Native Americans and Mexico.

Yup, syrup in every waffle square is a requirement. As I get older though, I find that I have more of a tendency to dip foods. Like a plain hot dog, just dipped in mustard at each bite. Grilled cheese dipped in marinara. Cookies and milk.

Jeez, I have walked right past that place once or twice a week. Usually on my way to Subway right next door. Guess which hospital I work at? I gonna have to check it out.

Right. Potatoes don't do so well in Louisiana, not that the Acadians had any when they landed there anyway. Rice grew wild. There's your new starch.

I know they are based in Abbeville (my home town ), but I'm not sure if they do tours there. I seem to remember them haing a store front where they obviously carry all of their products. Call 1-877-U POUR IT Also in Abbeville is the Steens Syrup Mill. They used to do tours, but you will have to contact them for the schedule. Lots of cane trucks around there as well. (800)725-1654 And Abbeville also has a Riviana rice mill. Not sure about tours through there.