hathor

Is this about some sort of real 'eel'...or is he using the word eel instead of mother??

Meat hangovers...or meat comas really DO exist! See this about the restaurant Carnivore.

We have a family story about a great aunt who made the best turkey stuffing on the planet. Only one day, she dumped some Ivory soap flakes in by mistake, and thought no one would notice.

Grazie mille Divinia!!! For some reason, I've been obsessing over this since yesterday... will try the spaghetti method and report back! (Oh, a vinegar blog...how stimulating!) We may be in Florence in the next couple of weeks...I'll let you know. ciao e grazie!

The protagonist in Alexander McCall-Smith's "#1 Ladies Detective Agency" series of novels refers to herself as "traditionally built." Works for me. Not to go completely off topic: but I LOVE the #1 Ladies Detective Agency series! Precious Ramotswe is traditional in many ways, including her penchant for fried mealy bugs. And Bleu:you were not long winded. You are amazingly honest and strong. Its all about feeling healthy, strong and happy. If you don't exactly fit in with what the media pushes as desirable....too bad. You have an international fan club that loves you for your mind!!

Can you describe a mango proseco cocktail?? Sounds fabulous, two of my favorite things! And a mango 'bath' would not sting at all, it would be deluxe! ohhh...the mango preseco cocktail was sooo good. perfect..shaken and served with shards of ice floating in the preseco float...yum. a fresh mango flavor cut with a bit of lemon so it wasn't sweet a shot of vodka and a float of proseco..perfect, dry, so refreshing with a beautiful light mango flavour. I actually replicated this drink over the weekend for a friends bbq so you are in luck! 1 oz (or 1 1/2 oz if you want a stronger mango flavour) mango juice splash fresh lemon juice (about half a lemon) 1 oz vodka (i was using absolute citron because that's what we had...) put in shaker with ice, shake as hard as possible (try to get the shards of ice to come out) strain into martini glass fill to top of glass with chilled proseco they were a huge hit! i made a big pitcher of the juice and vodka, and finished them off individually in the shaker... oh and mango bath would be good, but habenero bath would SUCK That sounds amazing!! Thanks for sharing the recipe!

Me, me! (waves hand, jumps up & down, eager to showcase ignorance) I think I actually know the answer to this one. Lentils (of all kinds) are a subset; it also means other dried legumes - peas, certain beans, etc. Thanks... that would explain this 'dahl' that I bought that had small yellow things in it that looked like the inside of a kernel of corn. The label was not much help in identifying the ingredients.

That's why I wanted to find the article! I had very mixed feelings while reading it and thought some other views on the subject would be good. I also subscribe to the if the clothes fit and I feel good method of weight management!

Completely wanting a mother of my own. How is it possible to acquire a mother, French or otherwise? I would love to make my own vinegar...not to mention find a home for that last bit of wine in the bottle.

I ate un-ripe grapes from my fathers vine when I was little. Do not recommend it... I got really sick. I just thought they would be a little tarter than a ripe grape.

Can I ask a really basic, I should-already-know-this question? Does 'dahl' just mean lentils? Mixed, different types of lentils that are then cooked with whatever spices, onions etc you want?

Try roasting the cauliflower longer than 35 minutes. You'll get more 'carmelized' parts. I don't think you'll ever achieve the fried crunch of a french fry, but this is just as addicitive. In my house, the crumbled up parts disappear as quickly as the nice slices. Extra sharp knives help alot.

I don't know how I missed this thread until now! I just read the whole blog through, and although I now have a bunch of work to catch up on...it was certainly well worth it. We are so having lentils for dinner tonight! All teasing aside: you go girl! I'm so impressed with your food, your photos, your writing and your will power. As usual, there is a lot of good info to be found on this thread. The bit about alcohol was very interesting, and the part about ketosis was certainly scary. And I thought andouilette was just tripe. There was an article in the NY Times awhile ago, sometime this month, that I just tried to search but I couldn't find. Seems some researcher has found that people have a 'natural weight', and although you can tweak it by 5-10 pounds in either direction ultimately you are genetically disposed to be a certain weight. I wish I could find it because it ties in with some of the discussions upthread: like 51% of over weight people eat less than average. Although this argument could be used to 'validate' a person being overweight, it still is 'food for thought'. I try to eat sensibly, and my weight has remained somewhat constant, the distribution of the weight is different! I'm getting my mother's body.... Keep at it Bleu! Only you could make us all want to go on a diet...that could be your new career. Open up a diet hotel, and you be the chef. What do you think??

To add to its miracle properties: lavender oil is also much loathed by cats. They just won't quit whizzin' on the hall rug? Spritz it with a solution of lavender. Not only does it smell better than the chemical soup of Febreze, but the Evil Beasts will give it a wide berth until the scent fades. (Which doesn't mean that they won't prowl the abode for some other exciting new location.) As a corollary to that, don't use it as first aid for pets, at least not cats. Good to know. thanks!

What is a rommertopf? And why did you find it in your car boot??? hehe, rommertopf heaven! I might find one in our car boot, goodness knows it needs a clean, lol, I found it (and a very nice spice grinder) at a car boot sale, kind of a big garage sale, last week and have been itching for a chance to play with it! it makes the chicken incredibly tender and, chickeny, also you get lots of lovely stock, wierdly without adding any liquid to it OH... a clay casserole!! rommertof has a much better sound to it! I am a huge believer in cooking in clay!! (not to mention being an aficionado of exclamation points....)

What is a rommertopf? And why did you find it in your car boot???

What about those bugs that you posted a link to last week? silvery somethings? What's the update on those? Geez...it's always something! But, its lovely to see the grapes getting bigger.

Ohh.... rare vegetarians at the Jones tonight. I detest well done vegetarians. Please, please post those pics!

What a lovely article, and I'm glad to see that it looks like your Mom is ok and the wife and kids should be home be now. You are a lucky guy to have the memories and the recipes in that cookbook..but, you know that. For whatever reason, my mother-in-law gave me a Sephardic cookbook that was compiled by the New Lots Brooklyn Sephardic community, there are lots of penciled in, barely legible notes by my husband's grandmother who was a legendary cook. As the token 'shiksa' in the family, its an awesome responsibilty to have this cookbook in my possession. I have literally felt this woman's hand on my shoulder as I learned how to make walnut matza ball soup, although she long ago passed away. We just watched the movie Big Fish, and after some debate, decided the movie was about, if the stories live on, the person lives on. Obviously we are all expressing that people live on in their recipes. Thanks for saying it so well. Best wishes for a speedy and full recovery for your Mom!!

What Indian Food Means to Me: spices, fragrant, mysterious spices sauces with names I have trouble remembering breads that are so good I fill up on those first blistering hot balanced with cooling raiti (spelling?) the 'bird seed' that's in little dishes that you eat on the way out of a restaurant an amazing store on Lexington Ave with an unbelievable variety of spices and spice blends, breads, dahl and an entire wall of 'cow ghee'

Fortunately we don't believe everything you write. I'm confident we will have full prep disclosure in the week ahead! And I'm so happy you've overcome your shyness and agreed to blog!! Back to the food: mackerel is under-appreciated. Yours looks delicious! My father used to make it for us for Sunday breakfast, steamed and then served with butter and vinegar. Which sounds really strange, but I loved it...I remember the smell so clearly.

I just tasted that corn thing on Friday... I wound up with sauce all over my face..it was fantastic! No one else at the table even wanted a bite. Fools.

It was a great blog! Many thanks! Cheese balls, corn dogs and catfish in Chicago and beyond. But...what about the Bill's Toasty t-shirt??? Excellent week!

Here is cuisine and culture in today's news. From the Salon article about Bush and the G-8 summit: "When his turn came to speak, Chirac did not mention the dispute over Iraq but spoke instead of how much he had enjoyed the G-8 summit, particularly the food. "Over the last few days, this cuisine here in America was certainly on a par with French cuisine," he said. "He particularly liked the cheeseburger he had yesterday," Bush quipped. Chirac responded: "Excellent."

Pan roasted salmon over a chopped baby spinach and lentil salad. The lentils were this beautiful orange and yellow color, some sort of Indian dahl (spelling?) mix, with the green spinach, lots of garlic. Yum. The 'wild' salmon tasted..well...like...water. Completely tasteless, what a disappointment. Dispersed my sorrows with some cherries.