judiu

Melissa, you have my sympathy, and my kudos for wanting to keep the kids involved. How about cookies? 'Tis the season; all kids love to help with cookies and there's always something that "little" hands can do. Just don't try rolled cookies, the drop kind are great, or slice and bake, that can be kept in the fridge, and when the kids get bored and whiney (and it will happen) you can say, "Let's go bake some cookies for (add appropriate occasion here)!" HTH!

In a loaf, roasted on an upright spit to be gyros with TADZIKI(?) the cucumber youghert sauce!

My only problem is that my hobby happens to be sitting on my bum in an easy chair, chatting away online about FOOD! Not such a big help, after all!

Oh (burp) MY!

especially considering that in 1898, Key West was the largest city, population wise, in the state of Florida, followed by Jacksonville then Pensacola. But do you have to be a redneck if you consider yourself a Southerner? Or do you have to be a Southerner if you consider yourself a redneck? I find the figures for the coastal South interesting and revealing, in that it appears that area has a more distinct southern feel to those who live there than do the inland states. From my reading this thread, food as defined by southerners can vary from area to area with a few mainstays across the board. The food culture of the South has changed and evolved over time according to the availibility and the demands of the Flresidents of that particular region. ← Don't forget, Key West is the southernmost city in the US. The conch's have a very southern attitude, and will seceed at the drop of a hat. I know some conch's. I know how they self identify, and though they love the tourists, well... the tourists don't know everything. Self identify vs. outside identify. Our upstate NY neighbors immediately identified us as rednecks when we moved in and said so, until we got to know each other and each other's children, then we somehow became "Southern" - with a disticntly Italian (polite in this case) hand gesture to accentuate the word "southern" as opposed to redneck. And very kindly impart some respect, from her point of view I suppose. She thought she was being nice to us. Hey, she put rice in her chili. How southern can you get? I think the terms "redneck" and "southern" are all dependent upon intent and voice inflection. A southern person will know if you are insulting them when you call them a redneck, but at the same time understands that "redneck" is actually a noble tag, believe it or not - and more times than not when it is meant as an insult it does not hit the intended target. I guess I am giving away some inside secrets here, but seriously. The joke is ultimately on the person who refers to another person as a redneck in a derisive manner. In case you have not noticed, redneck jokes are funnier in the south than they are in the north, but yankees laugh and do not understand why the redneck sitting next to them finds it even funnier. You acquire a red neck by bending your head over a plow all day in the hot sun close to the equator, in order to feed yourself and those you love. Serious stuff, but at the end of the day, it is pretty funny. We love redneck jokes, but we love it even more in the company of yankees who are puzzled. Maybe the self deprecating sense of humor is uniquely southern? I don't know. Maybe that's it. But people who define others as southern, or alternately rednecks, can sometimes not appreciate what it takes to be southern. They should read Florence King, then followup with Flannery O'Conner, maybe see a Tennessee Wiliams play or two at the most, and finish up with M. Mitchell and "Gone with the Wind" then we can talk. And I do mean the book and not the movie, though it is a beautiful movie. The biggest thing here is, I think and this is my opinion only, southern food is not all that alien, strange or unusual. Looking at it from a global point of view, it is pretty common and this sort of food is enjoyed by more people in the world than it is not. It is very well prepared in the south, however, and thank you very much. ← It was interesting to read this, keeping in mind what a local radio station said a few years ago; are you a redneck ( a dispariging term) or a good ol' boy (girl). If on a Sunday you go to church and then wash the truck, you're considered to be a good ol' boy, and hence, righteous.

I have a tin of anchovies in my cupboard or fridge precisely for pasta puttanesca attacks. Olives, anchovies, salty, spicey STARCHY quick enough to cook between tricks --as legend has it --perfect PMS food. I'm not sure that the classic recipe calls for a shower of grated parm, but I do it anyway. As mentioned many, many posts ago, I'm all about unnatural acts with pasta. ← No, no, you don't cook it between tricks, you cook it to entice tricks!

And a beautiful, rich cup of coffee!

Great idea, but I wouldn't suggest using disposable diapers, they're all scented with a baby powder scent, and I don't think it would do much for the pumpkin!

How about quiche? If (gods forbid) you get in a crunch, Costco sells frozen mini quiche that are really quite good, also spanikopita. Little smokies in some kind of fruit-mustard sauce in a small crock pot, or meat balls ditto. If the crowd is more sophisticated, maybe some good cheese with quince paste or some such. Roasted garlic dip is good, too. Check out this recipe from About.com: http://busycooks.about.com/od/appetizerrec.../dragonsdip.htm HTH!

Pancakes with REAL maple syrup (grade B amber, please!) Real maple syrup

Amazing! Thanks so much for my first Christmas present, Ah Leung! S'beautiful!

Water chestnuts in my tuna fish salad for crunch! Tuna fish salad

Rachel, thank you SO much for sharing your wonderful holiday, brilliant poetry and magnificent illustations. You've turned what promised to be a rotten day into a lovely one!

Happy Turkey Day! Hope all is well, especially Chris. Great blog; thanks!

Whisky with soda on the rocks. Club soda!

Butter on my white toast, sandwiching a very rare hamburger with fried onions. Toast!

Newspapers or magazines with such a policy and journalists who agree to work under such conditions are known as "whores". ← Perhaps you're being a little harsh on the journalist in question, Daniel? The journalist might simply be in the condition known as "broke". Happy Turkey Day!

MOAN! (drool)

If you're throwing them out, remember to throw them my way!

Pineapple!

Italian San Marzano tomatoes. Yum!

I love honey fermented into mead!

Three more for me (slap my fingers; I'm outta work and DON'T need to be spending the money! ) The Recipe Hall of Fame Cookbook and Vol. 2 of the same and the Southern Living Annual 2006.

Cream!

I just PM'd you the recipe, as I have the book handy