presto

Like phaelon56, my mom brought hers out every fall for applesauce - for years it never even occurred to me that you could use it for anything else!

mmmm...a ton of butter, and Gouda cheese sliced precisely 1/8" thick - thin enough to get soft and melty, thick enough to still be "bite-able" - precious childhood memories of Opa and Oma, that! i'm also getting into making my own pate - I'm doing a fine chicken liver pate with apples & onions that works very nicely on toast; being as I'm the only one in the house who will eat the stuff it's good to have a way of having lots at once!

another thought for fruit in waffles...a ripe (to the point of slimy) banana can be subbed for some of the butter/liquid in a baking powder recipe - I'll also throw in a little vanilla to improve the flavour. Spread some peanut butter over and voila!

I once dated a guy who dipped his McDonald's fries in the chocolate sauce of his McDonald's sundae...I married him anyway. as for me...ketchup with a dash of Tobasco is a thing of beauty on occasion...but I do agree with the posters who say it depends on the fries, to a great extent. If I have flabby fast food fries I'll empty them into the paper bag the meal came in, squeeze the ketchup packet in, and give it a good shake - evenly coats the fries and makes them (somewhat) edible.

from the hinterlands of Thunder Bay...we actually do have some pretty good sushi here! If anyone's in town (yes, people sometimes come here, it's not all one-way migration to Toronto!) make sure to check out the "Sushi Bowl" - it's a combo sushi-Vietnamese-Korean place with a nice variety of rolls and sashimi, as well as some interesting V&K dishes. No, it's not Chinatown in TO, but it's a damn sight better than the stuff at the supermarket! (getting off regional soapbox now)

I'd go further...bake for 2-3 hours at 200, turn off the oven, and leave them in there overnight. When I make meringes to eat I don't cook them that far...I do like that touch of goo in the middle. If your mushrooms are mainly for decoration, though...dry those suckers right out.

Chufi...this thread has given me back my childhood. My Oma and Opa came over "straight off the boat" in 1952 and lived at the end of our long farm driveway. Every day after school the bus would drop me off at their house and I'd stop in for a snack before walking home... I managed to get Oma's roggebrood recipe, but never got the proper technique for buttermilk porridge before the Alzheimer's kicked in...and she's gone now, so this thread is really getting emotional for me! Thanks so much...I'll be making a big pot of that (with the pot barley, because that's what she used) and raising a spoon to my Oma. I can post the roggebrood tomorrow, if anyone's interested...it's a very heavy molasses and whole grain loaf, great with butter and sugar or butter and Gouda!

Not that I want to open a can of worms...but consider what "volunteering" in a kitchen will do for those people who are trying to make a living there. You'd be taking a space, if not a wage, that someone else who depends on the income could have, and giving management excuses for paying lousy wages. I don't want to discourage you from pursuing something you love to do, but if you can't committ to it wholeheartedly, including the crappy pay...leave it for those who can. Not an expert, just the wife of a musician who runs into this kind of thing all the time - people offering to play for less or for free take work from the professionals and make it harder for everyone to make a living.

aaaannnd back to the scatological: "Chunks'n'Sauce" - ie the unfortunate result of a bucket of KFC and about a liter of 50/50 peach schnapps/OJ mixed. Nasty hangover, too... ah, high school.

Sounds similar to Wondra, which is pre-gelatinized flour that comes in a 13.5 oz shaker can. ← In Canada, we've got Knorr brand "Veloutine" sauce thickener (potato starch), comes in white and brown for light and dark sauces - just sprinkle over the simmering liquid, no lumps, no fuss, no muss...

Dahling, champagne goes well with EVERYTHING! except Pop Rocks. Don't ask me how I know.

while the bread's in the toaster, thinly slice (as in transparent) some mild or medium Gouda...when the toast pops, place the cheese on top and let it melt for a moment before enjoying. It's still good if the toast cools off, but melty cheesy goodness - that's a great way to get the motor running!

Has no one tried Japango - on Elizabeth just off Dundas? It's not much to look at, grant you, and the place is tiny, but the food - wonderful! I was there in May and had a gorgeous soft-shell crab roll - the crab lightly tempura-d - so good. The rice is impeccable, the sashimi so fresh you expect it to be wiggling - the food is so not what you'd expect in the tiny little slightly run-down storefront across from a construction site - but well worth the trip!

While I have to applaud Ally's initiative and creative spirit, all I could think while reading the article is that prisoners have been doing this in odd corners of correctional facilities for many years...

I posted this in another discussion, but it sure applies here! Old Dutch Ripple would be the quintessential expression of the potato chip. These are a staple chip in Western Canada - they come two sealed bags to a box with a red-and-white windmill theme...so crispy, fresh and yummy! When I first moved from Thunder Bay to TO (Toronto, for all you 'merkins) in the early 90s I was devasted to find that Old Dutch potato chips weren't available....but you learn to make do, right? I thought I'd moved on and was content with the Hostess, etc. Until the day I was driving eastbound on the 401 and an Old Dutch truck went by in the westbound collectors - almost gave myself whiplash and nearly smacked the guy in front of me as I watched the truck go past... After that I made it my mission to find the stores that stocked OD - finally found a little shop in Yorkville - that charged 7$ a box!!!