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purplewiz

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  1. It's a question I asked myself just tonight, because right now I'm in another "I'm completely burned out on cooking and I don't ever want to chop another vegetable in my life" phase. I generally cook because it is cheaper (although nowhere near as cheap as it used to be now that we're eating "healthier"), and it's the only way I can have food prepared exactly the way I like it best. Come to think of it, this is why I learned to cook in the first place: I was poor, just-out-of-college, couldn't afford to eat out very much - and I realized that if I had to eat what I made, it was darned well going to taste good. But there are still some days that I still wonder why. Not that Perkins is any kind of viable alternative. Marcia.
  2. Two things I miss: Ben and Jerry's Cranberry Orange Sorbet. It was so good, and so refreshing. Mint Royals from M&Ms. I don't think these ever made it to a national market, but I lived in the test market area when I was in college. They were M&Ms, green and dark brown colors only, with mint flavoring. The mint M&Ms come close, but they only sell those around the holidays. Heck, I still have a coupon from the back of one of the Mint Royals bags just to prove they DID exist, since no one else seems to have heard of them. (And it has no expiration date, just in case they ever come back.) Marcia.
  3. I love kale, it's laden with nutrients, and it's got this great chewy texture even when cooked. I second (or third, or seventh, whatever we're up to) the idea to use it in soup. I've made potato/chorizo/kale soup, and it's wonderful, but it works just as well in beef barley or chicken vegetable. Adds an almost noodle-like texture. My favorite way is a variation on a recipe I found somewhere on the net: Take a bunch of kale, destem, chop roughly into large pieces, and simmer in water until mostly cooked. Drain well. Meanwhile, rehydrate some sundried tomatoes in about a cup of chicken broth. Chop the tomatoes and return to the broth. Heat up some olive oil over medium heat, add some red pepper flakes and garlic, and saute until garlic is starting to turn gold and fragrant. Add the drained kale and sautee a minute or so. Add the chicken broth/tomatoes mixture, and let steam if you need to cook the kale some more. If it doesn't, or when the kale is tender to your liking, remove the lid and reduce the liquid down, tossing once in awhile. Add feta cheese crumbles, toss well, serve. This stuff is even better the next day (if there's any left). Sorry about no measurements, but at this point, I don't measure, I just throw things in. It's also really good sauteed (after parboiling/draining) with some garlic, and then a squeeze of lemon juice at the end. Maybe a sprinkle of sea salt. Marcia.
  4. Wonder Bread. I've always wanted to see that...it's my dream trash ingredient. I mean, would someone come up with a gourmet take on the classic fluffernutter? Marcia.
  5. My preferred breakfast depends on the time of morning I'm eating. If it's early, before work, like 7am, the most I can stomach is cold cereal (preferably pre-sweetened, the more sugar the better) and a banana. My stomach simply does not like accepting food at that hour. Especially not coffee. But if breakfast is later, almost to the point of lunch, I love eggs, bacon, waffles, and coffee. Nice soft Belgian style waffles - I really don't like crisp waffles - soft bacon (yes, I'm a heretic), and eggs over medium or scrambled dry/well. That probably makes me doubly a heretic, but I really don't like runny scrambled eggs, I want them COOKED. My husband thinks I'm nuts, but I just take his eggs off earlier than mine, and we're both happy. (And don't even start with runny omelets. I don't care if it's the classic way, it's undercooked to me.) However, my favorite breakfast of all is the Dutch Baby Pancake at The Original Pancake House chain. It's like a huge popover that you make your own "syrup" over from butter, lemon wedges, and powdered sugar. Even though I cook them myself on occasion, I still like theirs the best, even if their coffee is the absolute worst. Marcia.
  6. I love peeps. Even though I know better, the yellow ones still taste better than the other colors. And leftover peeps make really good rice krispie squares. Just substitute them for the regular marshmallows. Marcia.
  7. I'm a little late to this thread, but I want to say congratulations on your interview. It sounds like it went well, and even if it isn't a match between you and the position, there's a great deal of confidence in having a success under your belt to take to the next one. I used to be a hiring manager in a computer company, and I personally hired over 40 people in my time there, and aided in hiring/was on the interview teams for several times that many filled positions, so I have some experience in talking to candidates. The advice I have is pretty general, but I've run it past friends in other industries, including food/restaurants, and they agreed it's pretty sound. This is in addition to the usual advice to be neat, clean, courteous, etc. 1. Don't lie. Ever. There's a huge difference between presenting yourself in the best light and lying about your qualifications. There's no quicker way to lose the chance than lying, and you may be fired for it later (most places I've worked have a clause in the offer letter/employment agreement that states if you lied, you may be fired immediately). Just don't. 2. Don't be late. Leave in plenty of time, and add some time to that. The only acceptable excuses for being late are death, serious illness, or the kind of traffic pile up that makes the 6 o'clock news. "Traffic was bad" doesn't cut it. Plan for traffic being bad/public transportation being late/you getting lost/whatever. I believe this was one factor in my not being offered a job at one point - even though it was not my fault, it was still my responsibility to deal with it. 3. More important than just being prepared for the "usual questions", have concrete stories or incidents to back them up. Don't just say "I'm good at working with difficult people", go on to discuss a time when you solved a problem with a difficult person. It's the details and examples that will set you apart. (And always have a couple of your successes in past jobs fresh in your mind when you walk into an interview. They can be used as examples for many of the usual questions.) 4. Listen to the interviewer. I once asked a candidate to give me a very high level overview of a project he had worked on, and he started diagramming details on a white board. Worse, when I asked him to cut to the end, he told me to wait, because he wasn't done. Oh yes he was, he just didn't know it. 5. Ask questions. This is often the "make or break" part of the interview. It's the time when you get to show them that you are interested and that you were listening to the interviewer when they told you about the position. It's been my experience that you can train technical skills and particular methods, but you cannot teach initiative and enthusiasm. And bringing this back around to food, one of my favorite parts of the interview process was always taking the candidate to lunch. Not just to see their reaction to the local eateries, but many seemed to think because it was more casual that it wasn't part of the process. Sometimes their conversation over lunch would help them, but a lot of times, let's just say it didn't. Marcia.
  8. I never used to mention problems, just suffered in silence....until a friend of mine who used to be a line cook said that I *should* say something or they may never know. So I have . A restaurant we eat at somewhat regularly had a real timing problem on Friday and Saturday nights - other nights, everything was fine, but Fridays and Saturdays our entrees would come out approximately 30 seconds after the appetizer. One night I'd finally had it and quietly asked to speak to a manager - which terrified our server. After reassuring her she was doing a great job, I explained to the manager that we ate here a lot, and saw the same pattern, and he might want to check out some issues with the kitchen. I also mentioned the server was doing a great job, and we liked the food, so the problem was put in perspective. Sure enough, that was the LAST time we had that problem. I never found out what the problem was exactly, but I'm happy they solved it. I still don't like to complain, but as another person said, if you don't tell them something is wrong, they don't have the chance to fix it. If I do have an issue, I try to decide who is the person who can do something about it, and speak to them directly. And if I have praise, I make sure everyone hears it! Marcia.
  9. purplewiz

    Pizza Sauce

    I almost hate to mention it, since everyone else seems to have these really great sounding recipes....but the pizza sauce that I made with a friend of mine for a "top your own pizza" party was made with stuff we got from Price Club/Costco. It was simply a large can of crushed tomatoes, dried oregano, garlic, and salt. I'm pretty sure the garlic was garlic powder, too. We just put it all in a large stock pot, guessed at the amounts, heated it through to simmering, and let it sit to let the flavors do their things. The guests raved about it - and we didn't exactly have a recipe to give them. Oops. We just added things until it "tasted right". I guess this just echoes the "keep it simple" messages. Marcia.
  10. I try new recipes on most guests for one very practical reason: there are only two of us, and most recipes make enough for 6-8. I need help finishing it off! If it's really good, I'll make it again for us and not mind the leftovers. Marcia.
  11. I also made Jaymes' fabulous salsa tonight, and it was perfect. Even though, like most folks, I'm a recipe tinkerer, I followed it to the letter, and it was amazing. And it did take more garlic salt than I would have supposed. I served it over simple broiled chicken breasts, and it was so good, we just had a late night snack of quesadillas with a healthy dollop. I keep sneaking back into the kitchen to have another spoonful, just to see how sitting in the fridge is affecting the flavors. (Or so I tell myself.) Thank you SO much for this recipe/set of instructions! Marcia.
  12. I love it when a meal comes together . My most recent success was at our Christmas dinner, which was held on the 21st due to some scheduling difficulties (LONG story!). I was cooking a standing rib roast, which I'd never done before. I researched cooking methods, ended up deciding to do it high heat first, lower later, and decided to rely on my trusty probe thermometer. What made it all nerve wracking is that in addition to the in laws, I was cooking for my ex brother in law (another long story), who is a former restaurant cook. He knows food. The roast turned out perfectly, the roasted potatoes along side were delicious, and the red wine pan sauce came together perfectly. Judging from the reactions of the guests, or rather, the clean plates left behind, it tasted good, too. And they kept asking what I'd done to the roast to make it taste so good! Marcia.
  13. Thanks very much for pointing this out - I shop there often enough, and I'll look forward to trying it! And as for the pouches, I found them to have a very metallic taste. I know they're not supposed to, but I didn't care for it. Marcia.
  14. Oh boy, I am SO glad I'm reading this AFTER dinner . I'm pretty much a purist: chunk light tuna in water, dash of lemon juice, very finely diced celery and onion, Best Foods mayonnaise (what Hellman's is called west of some arbitrary dividing line), salt, and pepper. Spread on buttered white bread, preferably Wonder. It's still my favorite sandwich of all time. Having said that, I admit to being a bit adventurous: I've made tuna salad with sour cream instead of mayo, or added horseradish (a little goes a long way and is delicious) or curry powder, or garlic powder. I often swap green onions in, and I've used finely chopped water chestnuts, or walnuts, or a dash of dill and yogurt. Another comfort variation is tuna burgers: add about half a cup of shredded or finely chopped cheese to the basic recipe, spread on hamburger buns, wrap in foil, and bake for about 25 minutes at 350. The buns get crisp, the cheese melts, and the mayo goes all oozy. But never, ever, EVER any pickles. I don't like most sweet pickles to begin with, and I hate the interaction between the flavors of the pickles and the tuna. I know that the solid white/albacore is supposed to be "better", but since I was raised on chunk light, anything else just doesn't taste right. Same with the oil packed - it tastes oily to me. I suppose it's just what you're used to. The quality of chunk light has gone down dramatically in recent years - I don't even have to "flake" most of the major brands anymore. Because it's so water soaked I can't drain it in the can, I have to put it in a sieve and weight it down for awhile. However, there is some light: I've discovered Wild Oats' own brand of chunk light in water (and it comes with or without added salt), which is much more like I remember. I also seem to remember an ad from Chicken of the Sea stating that they're going back to something chunkier, too. I adore canned tuna. I make tuna cakes (like crab cakes, except with tuna) every couple of weeks, and I even have the Tuna Fish Gourmet cookbook, with recipes like Creamy Tuna Dip with Crunchy Onions. I can't imagine being without a couple of cans in the cupboard. Marcia.
  15. Breaking up just sucks. After I broke up with my ex, I lived on Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup and small salads. Campbell's is the soup that my mother used to feed us when we were sick as kids; it still maintains an air of comfort. Echoing a theme in this thread, I also ate a lot of eggs and noodles. Eggs and noodles is just what it sounds like: cooked, drained noodles (elbows or flat wides preferred), thrown in a pot with some butter. When the butter is melted and the noodles are warm, pour a couple of beaten eggs over it all, stir a couple of times, put a lid on the pot, and let it sit off heat until the eggs are cooked. Salt, pepper, eat. More comfort food from when I was a child. My best friend helped me through it by feeding me lots of "finger food". There's something elemental about eating with your hands, and it's a very comforting feeling. Ok, I was also very grateful that Ben and Jerry's came in the convenient 1 pint single serving size. Fortunately, that was all a long time ago. Marcia.
  16. This is why I have a special place in my heart for buffets. For our wedding nearly 10 years ago, we had guests who ran the gamut from strict low-fat vegetarians to folks for whom it's not a party unless there's red meat and potatoes on the menu. The only solution available without breaking the budget was a buffet - which all enjoyed, thank goodness. I like the all you can eat salad bars, since they neatly answer the question "what do you do when you want a really large, interesting salad with lots of different things on it and there are only two of you?" Sure, I could buy all the ingredients, but then I'd have at least a week's worth of leftovers to deal with. For a very reasonable fee, someone else has prepared everything, and I need only select the items and the quantity I want. Not to mention the really good chicken noodle soup. Marcia.
  17. I imagine most people did. Sadly, I remembered every last thing. Just like you'd make a strawberry daiquiri, except substitute broccoli for strawberries. Blender, sugar (we weren't refined enough to have simply syrup), rum, ice, give it a whirl, end up with something truly bilious. Marcia.
  18. Broccoli Daiquiri. The crowning "accomplishment" of a party I'd really rather forget. Marcia.
  19. Self-decluttering. All that stuff that magically appears on all my countertops, leaving a 2" x 3" space for me to cook in, would simply disappear off to the places it should be. I'd also like a year 'round farmer's market to stock my fridge. I'd just wake up in the morning and have all the fresh veggies I wanted for dinner. And a private chef on call for those nights when it's 5:45pm and I just don't feel like cooking. If not that, I'd like a new range with a gas cooktop, better lighting, a greenhouse window for my plants, and some kind of solid surface countertops in some color other than the mauve that the house came with (What WERE they thinking?). Unfortunately, kitchen remodeling is not at the top of the home renovation list just yet. Marcia.
  20. Ainsley Harriott's "Superb Lemon Herb Chicken" from Gourmet Express 2. The cavity is stuffed with lemon, sage, and rosemary, butter and garlic is stuffed under the skin, and the bird is surrounded with roast potatoes. I discovered this recipe after an ex-winemaker friend in Australia sent me this book with instructions to "make the chicken. Then make anything else, but Make The Chicken". He was right. Marcia.
  21. Almost 20 years ago, I used to work for a large computer software/hardware company, which will not be named since it was a long time ago. Since they knew that programmers run on caffeine, they did their best to provide us with a steady supply of coffee, but being cheap SOBs, how they did it meant they provided us with the absolute worst sludge I've ever experienced. About 6 am every day, they would start boiling huge vats of coffee. (Yes, I do mean boiling.) When it was good and ready, about 8 am, they would fill up smaller metal dispensers, each holding about 5 gallons or so, and place them around at "coffee stations" throughout the campus. This coffee would then sit there all morning, until the dispensers were collected about 11:30 am. The dispensers would be refilled and set out again for the afternoon coffee rush, starting at about 1:00 pm. What were they filled with? The rest of the batch of "coffee" that they had started boiling at 6am, and which had been simmering ever since. The first distribution was awful. The second was beyond words. People cut the stuff with powdered hot cocoa mix about 50/50 to be able to swallow it. Yet we did drink it - we were programmers and it was free coffee. Marcia.
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