NulloModo

I definately always check eggs, and I often pick up produce to examine it. I would never open a sealed package, but anything that is just laying out there or can easily be flipped (like eggs) is open for manipulation. I have also been known to smell meat through the plastic. I thought everyone did this...

Yes, onions are fine.... hmmm, like those they supposedly sell at Asian grocery stores? I am wondering what type of dish one would make though. With poached eggs, liverwurst, and the crispy onions...

The liverwurst with eggs on something crispy is a great texture/flavor combo, I have really started to love it. When the runny yolks bust open on the liverwurst and combine with that subtle crunch in my mouth it is just pure heaven for me. I recently picked up a bottle of low-carb honey (well honey flavored malitol syrup to be precise) I plan on combining it with liverwurst sometime soon to see if the salty/sweet combo comes off well.

I also often go to the grocery store after midnight when the bargain meat stickers start to appear, and stuff lots of cheap marked down cuts into the freezer. These later become great additions to stir frys, chilis, stews, etc.

I would think an alcohol based solution would likely last longer than a water based one. Then, not only do you get to drink mint, but alcohol as well ;).

Hmm, cheap and low-carb don't seem to go too well together ;). Are vegetables in general still relatively inexpensive in Japan? I have to plead ignorance towards knowing what prices are like for most items over there. When I really want to stretch the budget I tend to make a lot of big pot stews/psuedo-gumbos/chilies. I tend to just take a protein source, some vegetables I like, lots of spices, toss it together, cook till the flavor blends, and serve it up with either more veggies or with some sour cream or a bit of cheese on top. Just good old fashioned stick to the ribs one pot cooking. I was really impressed with Black Soy Beans for use in chili, but if you are allergic I guess that wouldn't work for you. There are other low-carb legumes you could easily try though, and a nice white chicken chili is always tasty.

Still though, if it was an honest mistake, i.e., the waiter thought the cocktail was called a hair lip because of the exchange and wasn't trying to insult the diner, he shouldn't have been fired for it.

I am often mesmerized by the smell of a good jar of chiba. I have been known to simply take the lid off of a friends stash and inhale the fragrance happily for time unending. With a smell that nice there has to be some useful culinary application.

Pork chili comes to mind, take any white chicken chili recipe and sub the pork in.

Lots of cooks use lots of would ;). It is the ones who use lots of do that really get the job done though, and it certainly looks like you did.

I have checked out lowcarbfriends before, there are some decent recipes in that forum. I will also take the moment to plug the Atkins forum I help moderate: www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com. Since another major site, www.atkinsbythebook.com just shut down its forums it is getting even busier than normal over there, but it is fairly Atkins-centric, so if you are on another plan it might not be exactly what you are looking for. The other food/cooking moderator on that site, Naja, is a real guru when it comes to lots of stuff, check out her posts in the low-carb cooking lessons if you really want some great ideas.

Sausages are always quick and easy. I always keep a stock of various ones frozen in my freezer, and if I need a quick meal, I just open one up, toss it in a skillet with some onions, garlic, peppers, mushrooms, whatever, fry it up till the juices all mingle, cut it up into bits, and serve.

Hmm, I stick corningware in the oven all the time. I love to be able to just toss a plate of leftovers under the broiler for a bit and have it ready to eat again without having to dirty dishes or steaming it in the microwave.

Hmmm, last night one struck, and had to be satiated: The craving was for oatmeal, it was satisfied with Flax/Bran/Soy Hot Spiced Cereal (that was truly dreadful, but at least texturally correct. I gues I will have to figure out things to add to it, or add it to, to make it palatable).

The peppers are super easy: Take a Jalepeno, remove most of the seeds/ribs, stuff with cream cheese, wrap in raw bacon, and bake at 375 for like 45 minutes, salt, pepper, and voila. I do stir-fry sometimes, but just use whatever I have, a couple dashes of soy sauce is pretty low-carb, so is sesame oil, a dash of lemon juice for acid, sometimes some wasabi or fish sauce.

Actually, thanks for reminding me, I have a bag of Trader Joe's Hazlenuts that need to be turned into something, that Nusstorte sounds like the perfect option, should happen this weekend.

Yesterday I dropped by an Ollie's Bargain Outlet (think flea market meets scratch and dent meets wal-mart meets Oddjob/Big-lots) and was delighted to discover they had a ton of low-carb baking supplies on sale super cheap (almost the entire MiniCarb line, plus a number of Atkins branded products, all for 1.99 a box, huge deal). Now, a lot of it I had no interest in, such as the Atkins pasta (Blech), or the Atkins Crunchers chips (double blech), but there were definately some good deals to be had. I picked up a number of hot and cold cereals, and so far have tried the MiniCarb Carbsense Country Spice Flax Cereal (and won't be using it again as cereal, it totally blows, but it might be a useful baking aid) and the Atkins Morning Essentials or whatever Almong cereal, which is actually very, very good. I picked up lots of protein isolates/mixes/etc there as well, so, I plan on playing around a lot in the kitchen in the coming week to see what I can come up with from it all.

I think that you sound perfectly reasonable, and I'm sure that there would be far less people making up allergies if all servers were as dedicated to their profession.

My claim to fame for this thread: Resurrection Punch 1 can of Diet Sprite couple ice cubes couple shots of gin couple shots of vermouth Grenadine Dash of tabasco (for heat) whipped cream Mix everything except for the whipped cream in a blender till it gets sorta slushy, top with whipped cream, and serve. This was the product of a party taking place the night before Easter (hence the name, and the fact that you feel like you have just risen from the dead the next morning after slamming a number of these). The drink was designed based on extreme inebriation at that point, and the fact that that was all that was to be had in the fridge.

I know a number of people who say they are allergic to things simply because if they don't their requests will not be taken seriously. It is not uncommon at all amongst the low-carb community for them to claim to be diabetic in order to insure sugar isn't in something, because many servers will just say there is none in a dish, or guess incorrectly, or never relay the message to the kitchen if they think it is just for a diet. It is a shame it has to go to fibbing, but at the same time, many restaurants/servers need to be much more attentive of customer requests, and take them all seriously, no matter what the motivation.

This sounds really tasty, and like it would be very easy to lo-carbify without losing much of anything from the original. Does anyone have a good recipe for a nusstorte, or a set of guidelines then?

That is the way I see it. When pizza/subs/pasta suddenly pretty much leave your menu, you have to get creative. Starches and sugars are the most boring foods on earth, and those are all that you are eliminating. Were it not for jumping onto Atkins I would have never gained an interest in Indian cuisine, nor making my own sashimi, nor lots of cool thai dishes, brasies, and great composed salads. It may just be my personality, but I find it far easier to be creative and to get a little crazy with ideas when I have some limitations imposed. If I have given total free reign I tend to gravitate back to my boring comfort zone, so, the restrictions in the Atkins plan actually serve to make what I cook and eat more interesting, and not less. Speaking of which, I need to come up with some ideas for creative football food for tomorrow night. First official game of the NFL season calls for good eats.

Helen those sound good, I can't even remember the last time I've had marinated grilled veggies, definately something to toss onto the list now. I actually tend to eat less vegetables at home as the week goes on. I am spoiled by my farmer's market, and since it is only open on weekends, I tend to eat tons of vegetables during the couple days I canbring them home, and then work my way through the rest until it opens again. I always find it hard to bring myself to buy most grocery store produce however, unless it is something that is pretty much tasteless to begin with (like celery, gotta have that around for the wings...).

Dinner was 'leftovers soup' Shredded a smoked chicken leg/thigh quarter, added a chopped up chile of unknown variety, also a shallot, some chives, black pepper, crushed red pepper, some chicken broth, some fish sauce, and swirled in an egg at the last moment. Pretty tasty, if a bit salty.

That sounds good. Tonight I am going to make a leftover soup with some smoked chicken parts my father pawned off on me the last time I dropped by. I'm thinking of shredding a thigh/leg quarter, using a can of chicken broth, some chives, a bit of crushed red pepper, maybe some onion, and a dash or two or fish sauce. MAybe I will do a little egg drop in there too, anything else that might be good in this?