Mudpuppie

Ha! Next time, I'll let you know. I spent today on the Great Curd Hunt and just came home with some. Here's the scoop. Dean and Deluca don't carry it. Oakville Grocery doesn't carry it. Cowgirl Creamery, ditto. GB Ratto's and the Cheese Board (Oakland, Berkeley) were both closed today, but I suspect they would have been good bets. Three out of the five Berkeley Andronico's don't carry it. The fourth (Emeryville, actually) is closed on Sundays. The fifth, the Shattuck location, lo and behold, had some on the shelves. The grand irony is that it cost $6.99, quite a bit more than fresh mozzarella. I sure hope it tastes better than the other, because if it doesn't.... Well, let's just say this: 1.25 hour drive + $2 toll + 1/2 day wasted + $6.99 > ((effort x tastebud output) x last day of vacation).

That was plan B, but would you believe I haven't been able to find rennet anywhere? I've scoured all my local grocery stores -- upscale, low scale, no scale. No one has it.

Yeah, I have to admit that I'm a little hesitant to shop the NapaStyle store. I haven't been in, but the store itself doesn't seem very user-friendly. From the highway it always seems half-vacant. I guess this is an unfair unfavorable impression, but it's the reason I've never shopped there. Also, I expect they're more into selling overpriced olive oils and spice mixes -- not fresh cheese curd. Again, an unfair assumption. Will try the nearby Dean and Deluca, unless anyone has a better suggestion. thanks, all!

Does anyone know a market that sells fresh mozzarella curd in the Napa area? I've scoured Sacramento and, surprise, have found none. Napa is my next best guess. Thanks!

Sorry, can't help myself. Does anyone know why pickled ginger turns pink? I know it's a chemical reaction between the ginger and the vinegar. And I vaguely remember something from high school chemistry about basic and acidic solutions mixing and changing colors. (Distilled water turns grape juice blue, right?) But I can't figure the ginger thing out. Vinegar is obviously acidic. I would guess that ginger is too, but don't know for sure. Can any chemistry experts help with this?

Even though the conversation has veered somewhat, I want to weigh in on whether or not you can build up a tolerance to spicy food. This answer, in my humble opinion, is almost a universal, scientifically justifiable yes. We have neurological receptors specifically designed to react to capsaicin. (Not all of them are in the mouth or on the skin. There are some on the outer part of the heart.) Like other neurological stimuli, we can get to the point of feeling that sensation without considering it to be painful. My friend the neurologist could explain this, but I can't and won't attempt it. Working chefs talk about "asbestos hands"; it's pretty much the same thing. So, I think that people who claim that they can't build up a tolerance either a) have some sort of neurological quirk, or b) are just afraid to try. Here's an article about some of the research that's taken place: http://www.citybeat.com/2000-05-11/scitech.shtml Oh, and incidentally, it's only mammals who have these receptors. Birds don't, which is why lots of birds love peppers that would floor most of us -- and why they steal them from my garden.

Might you have in-laws who are hard to buy for?

Please don't hurt me. My all time favorite cheesecake is Central Market's chocolate mousse cheesecake. It makes me very happy. It's so good, it takes me about three days to finish a whole piece. (And I mean that as a compliment.) There's just one small hitch.... It's embarrassing.... On my last trip to Austin I asked the CM folks about the source of the cheesecake. I shouldn't have. It's, um, it's made by Cheesecake Factory. Four out of five tasters agree. The fifth one dissents on principle.

It's about time someone did!!! You know how your grandma, or someone, made some really disgusting jello salad with cool whip and fruit cocktail and nuts and celery and mayo and chipped beef? And it was really gross -- no question -- but it was always served at family functions when everyone was at least pretending to be happy? And even though you know this jello concotion is terrifying, you get kind of warm and fuzzy thinking about it, and sometimes even wish you had some in front of you? That's how Pancho's is for me. I can't defend it. What's that part of the brain that controls emotion and memory? It's in there.

Oh yeah, I remember that place. There was one in the Dallas area when I was growing up. But my parents didn't like it. Their idea of Mexican food was Pancho's buffet. Remember that place?!? Anyway, I only got to eat there when friends' parents let me sleep over. I always thought the candy were pralines. Have you searched for mexican pralines? Here's a link that sounds kind of right to me. I think the brown sugar might make it crumbly. http://www.recipegoldmine.com/candyboiled/candyboil57.html My teeth ache just thinking about those things.

One thing child psychologists say is that food should never be used as punishment or reward. I agree. Further, eating is a basic human right by virtue of the fact that it’s a human need. My feeling is that, contrary to what a lot of people believe, inmates shouldn’t be stripped of basic rights or needs. That said, while eating is a right, eating well isn’t necessarily. Eating well is something we’ve evolved into, though, and it’s something we take for granted. (No more acorns or carrion. Now we have BK and El Bulli!!) (I’m proud that those two institutions will probably never again show up in the same sentence.) So has eating well become a basic human right? I think so. Would supplying prisoners with mo’ betta food contribute to, or constitute, prison reform? Nah…. The system’s broke, broke, broke. The food’s just a small part of it.

Now that's inventive. Was it a one-time thing, or did you like it enough to make again?

I think the end of the road should be Taylor's Refresher in St. Helena, just a few miles north of Napa proper. Forget the French Laundry -- roadtrips are about drive-ins and burgers!

Thanks so much for that link. What a sad story.

Sorry, I've been away for Austin for a while and only get back a couple times a year. What happened to Star Canyon? Is Roaring Fork a Stephen Pyles restaurant too, or did he just bail? When I left Austin, Stephen Pyles' coming to town was the big buzz. I'm interested in what happened. My foodie friends have obviously been less than forthcoming.

Sounds like one of those myths that just got debunked. katherine claims it works for her. although i can help but think there's something else to that. Perhaps we've just hit on the crux of the definition of "myth"? Something works for (or is true for) one person. It seems reasonable that it is also true for everyone else. Other people assume it must be true for them too and accept it without question or experiment. Sometimes it is true for other people, so it is proven after the fact. Bingo. A myth is born.

In other words: Southern cooked vegetables = (Green vegetable x Time) x Time. (My heritage allows me to say that without malice or prejudice. )

Didn't this result in... red goo?

I've always wanted to try McElrath's chocolate for grownups. He's in Minneapolis, I think, but I found this mail order link: http://www.cocoaplanet.com/all.McElrath.html

That's The Tides. In was in Hitchcock's "The Birds." Luccas is better, IMO, but the Tides does have a great view... That's the one. Thanks! I was going to mention The Birds, but then couldn't remember if I'd made that part up. Incidentally, a ~10 mile trip inland takes you to the town of Bodega (sans Bay), where some of infamous buildings from The Birds' still stand. It's definitely worth watching the movie before you head that way. Haven't tried Luccas, but will check it out next time I'm out there.

Yessss! Another sucker suckered into doing my experiments.... Forgot to mention you can grow enokis too.

This is true. The log kits claim that they'll produce for 2-3 years if you "force" the mushrooms every couple of months. Eventually, though, the log runs out of fuel for the mushrooms. Also, if you don't get a successful crop at first, you might not get any subsequent crops. The shiitake kits may be worth the $40+, or they may not. Mileage may vary. Another way to go is growing shrooms on hanging burlap bags filled with some kind of organic material. (Buckwheat hulls are common.) A lot of commercial growers do this now, and it's a process that's easy enough to scale down to one corner of your garage, or maybe even an extra closet. A guy at my local farmer's market grows oyster mushrooms, shiitake (two i's, by the way), hedgehogs, and lots of other interesting stuff. A big plus is that when they're grown like this, they're entirely clean when harvested. Anyone who really wants to grow mushrooms at home should skip the kits and gow to the real source -- mycology supply catalogs. Google "mycology supplies" and you're in business.

I'd definitely second (or third) the motion of Cowgirl Creamery and Pt. Reyes Station Cafe. In Bodega Bay proper, there's a big, sort of touristy place right on the water. Can't for the life of me remember the name, but it's pretty much the biggest place in "downtown" Bodega Bay. They have decent food and a great view.

The thread on Recipe Etiquette made me wonder about your favorite (or least favorite) proprietary recipe. Have you invented an especially great dish? An especially bad one? Did people love/hate it? Has making it become a tradition for you? (My proudest moment of culinary creativity: Pea shoot ravioli with a green tomato cream sauce.)

One of the most commonest myths, I think, is about all the things that are supposed to keep you from crying when cutting onions. Matches (lit/unlit), apples, candles, boiling water, etc., etc., etc. One thing that does work: Chop them as quickly as you can without losing a digit, then cover them with a paper towel. (Plastic wrap or foil would work too.) This keeps the nasties from floating up to your eyes. It works for me.