NulloModo

It would go well with our recent efforts to gobble up every lamb on the planet...

What about smoking it? One of the best beers I have ever had was a german stout that was somehow smoked, I think it was called a 'Rauschbier' or something like that (not sure on the spelling).

Hehe, hey, I wasn't always low-carb ;) Though, I will concede that tastycakes far outperform any pre-made LC baked goods I have purchased.

The best pizza I think I have ever had is from a local brewery/restaurant called 'Iron Hill Brewery' (they also make incredible beer, which goes well with the pizza). It was basically shrimp lejon (a dish that should show up on far more menus) in pizza form, I might try my hand at creating something like that.

Absinthe is quite pricey yes, and I still haven't poneyed up for a bottle... but I will this summer when a friend who also really wants to try some is in town, that way we can split the cost. After all, what other beverage has the history, mythology, and romance of absinthe?

I am really curious about this one... not only to know what the aftermath was, but what you were trying to accomplish in the first place...

I have to disagree here. I've lived in tastycake-land for 14 or so years now, and while some are pretty decent (I've always thought the coffee cakes were way too dry, and the doughnuts had a weird artificial (yet appealing) taste to them) most of it is so-so. Now, I feel I am betraying neighboring Philly by saying it, but, really, I don't think Tastycakes rank up as a major culinary draw. Or it could just be me... but really, give me a little debbie oatmeal cream pie or nutty buddy anyday...

I do the bowl thing, but one big bowl. I tend to cook a lot of one-pot stuff, so this works, since it all gets mixed together anyway. In the rare event I am making something that is combined on the plate, I will use multiple big bowls, but still not that big of an issue, I just rinse them out and stick them back in the cupboard while the food cools enough to eat. If I was anal enough to actually toss everything that touched rawish food into the dishwasher, then, well, who knows, I would probably not have the motivation to actually cook.

Lately - Huy Fong brand (the people that make Srirachia) Chili Garlic Sauce (like Srirachia but much better, more garlic, no sugar, more burn) and that coriander chutney stuff, sometimes sour cream too.

Ah, Okra, I love it done int he Indian styles I ahve tried. Also, with summer on the way, soon there will be nice fresh Okra at the farmer's market, and not the sickly spotted stuff we have been seeing lately, I can't wait. Your Cilantro Chutney recipe sounds great. Cilantro Chutney was a condiment that mystified me for a couple years. While I was in London about three or four years back (doing a study abroud) I ended up eating dinner at this hole-in-the-wall Indian restaurant my professor recommended to me. Well, I can't remember exactly what my entree was (something with lamb, and a bit spicey) but in this silver condiment cart, next to my plate, was this wonderful vivid green substance with a tangy super fresh taste. I couldn't get enough of it, I could've eaten with a spoon had I not figure that might be a little gauche. However, my waiter seemed unable to translate exactly what the stuff was, so I was lost. Anyway, flash forward to last week, I was picking up some Djeep frozen Panak Paneer dinners at the Indian Grocers (one of the best frozen dinners I have ever had, of any kind) and as I am likely to do when in that store, I wandered over to the chutney/sauces wall and picked a couple jars that looked interesting. Well, one was Coriander chutney (Swad brand) and that little jar maybe lasted half a week. I put it on everything, and it really works on everything. So now I am going to have to try your recipe, as I'm sure fresh made can beat the Swad (though I do have to say in general I am happy with Swad products).

If I recall correctly the Soup Nazi recipe for Mullagatawny calls for cashews and Pistachios, but I bet it would be very good with cashews and pecans instead.

Monica - When you buy the big box of curry leaves, are they dried or fresh? I can only seem to find the fresh ones at the Indian grocery store which I frequent, and for some reason I never end up making the dish I bought them for that night, and then it turns into a week, and the darn things have gone bad before I get a chance to use them... I'm sure they will taste wonderful if I can ever get my timing together...

Absinthe isn't illegal per se in the US. Possessing it and drinking it are legal, it is just illegal to produce or sell, and buying it is a fuzzy matter.

What is a pork roll? Scrapple? ← For pork roll, think a tangier, more heavily processed version of Canadian Bacon. For scrapple: all of the bits of pig too undesirable for sausage making, ground up with corn meal, spiced, and pressed into a brick. It is usually fried up as a breakfast meat, and gets wonderfully crunchy on the outside, and soft, steamy, andmelty on the inside.

Possibly not a whole heck of a lot healthier in the grand scheme of things - but what about fried fruits/trail mix kind of things? Dried apricots/apples/etc retain the sort of fruit role-up texture without all of the dye and extra processing. Thin them out with some nuts or maybe a little granola to keep it from being all just a dehydrated sugar-rush.

Because if you toss on some candied pecans and lots of butter too, it makes it a lot more tasty.

I agree, the jarred pimentos (especially if packed in good oil and some herbs) have had more time for their flavor to develop, use them.

Wow, I always thought pork roll was a national product. Though it is hard to imagine life in a place without readily availible scrapple. The Broccoli Rabe is a good idea for a veggie, but I would also vote for sauteed escarole. I made up a big batch last week sometime after reading some recipes online supposedly from the Philly Red Gravey joints.

I'd say starch. Aside from the batter, which if of course pure starch, onions are a much more carb-laden vegetable than most people realize, though a lot of it is more from natural sugars than natural starches.

Garlic Powder. Onion Powder. Dried Parsley. Three substitions, if not ingredients, that I have immense problems with. ← True, they aren't good subs for the real thing, but they do have their place. You can't have onion dip without onion powder, and Pizza just isn't the same to me without garlic powder on top.

Oddly enough, when I was in London, I saw several places advertising 'NY Style Fried Chicken'. Seemed really out of place to me.

Mizducky - I'm sorry your red lobster experience was so bad. I honestly haven't had the lobster their in ages (I do like the catfish though) but the last time I did it was quite good, but that was back when they had the live lobster tanks out front and you could pick which one you wanted, cooked to order, not sure if they still do that...

Miami Danny - Speaking as someone who has lots both cash and been a victim of credit card fraud, I can tell you straight up that I would rather deal with the credit card fraud than the loss of cash anyday. If you lose cash, you are out the cash, sure you can file a police report, but the chances of anything actually happening are slim to none. On the other hand, the times I have been stricken with false CC charges, all it has taken was a quick call to Amex and they were removed either that day or the next, and I was out absolutely nothing. Heck, they even had the courtesy to send me a notice about a class action lawsuit against one of the companies that falsely charged me. That alone is a reason for me to not to want to carry cash, and a reason I don't frequent restaurants that take cash only. From a customers stand-point there are tons of reasons to pay with credit: you can get rewards points or cash back, you don't have to pay an extra $1.50 to draw money out of an ATM (honestly, there is never an ATM around for the bank you are with when you need one), and if you purchase something that is sub-par or were swindeled by the seller, you only have to dispute the charges and you are not forced to pay. Restaurants end up paying the extra money for CC transactions, true, but it is a customer service issue, and they are in the customer service industry. It goes hand in hand with lots of other disturbing restaurant trends, like raising prices due to momentary spikes in ingredient costs, or serving bottled water instead of tap and then charging for it. Customers do not want to be treated merely as potential for profit. Taking CCs makes life much easier on the customer, and restaurants are not running on 5% profit margins, they can take it, and should. EDIT: Just to say, if a restaurant is going to be backwards enough not to accept CCs, they need to make that policy abundantly clear with signage, notes on the menu, and preferably someone telling patrons in person when making reservations, or a note on the cash register/wall if it is that type of place. It is incredibly embarassing as a customer to order something and then to realize that one has no means to pay for it; an embarrasment such that I would make a point never to patronize that particular place again.

Andiesenji - How fast does that low-cost one heat up? I noticed on the link that Phaleon posted that they have a range of BTUs in their units, but they all have the same maximum temp. In my understanding though, all induction units heat up to full temperature virtually instantly. If this is true, why would you need a more powerful unit? Also, they seem to range from 400 to 500 degrees as maximum temp. How does this compare to what most electric/gas ranges can get up to?

I am also in the boat of people who will just not go to establishments that don't accept credit cards. Around here even the $5-$10 sandwhich shops all take them, and I generally always pay with my debit card, it is just much more convenient than having to hold cash all the time. The food-related type of places that I see often not taking them are the little ethnic grocery stores, especially the Hispanic ones. Then again, the ones that have been around for a while seem to have figured it out and are now accepting them. My favorite Indian grocer will only take them for purchases of over $10, and while that is a pain if I just want to pick up a jar of chutney, I can live with at this place, because it gives me an excuse to justify buying several more jars of chutney...