Milagai

many sabzis (veggie side dishes, north or south indian style) use a pinch of hing at the tarka stage. the dals also use it as a tarka ingredient. most south indian dishes use hing. dishes that use onions and garlic don't use hing, as it is seen as a substitute.... use up your stash fast or it will lose potency milagai

to JGM: your experiences reflect a particular era and society. when I grew up (60's and 70's, middle class India) all our moms cooked, dads mostly wouldn't dream of stepping into the kitchen. BUT all our moms had household help to do most of the cooking. Most Indian middle class moms learnt to cook because they *had* to when the help dried up.... My mother didn't enter the kitchen until after her marriage and there was no-one else to cook.... Then it became her job (she was home while my dad worked) and she's the best cook I know.... Milagai

Also to the point: Why do so many of these posts deplore that young *women* are missing out by not learning to cook? the same should go for young men too... or anyone of any age.... Somehow that goes unsaid, and the omission does leave an impression of lack of even-handedness.... I think that's the missing element in this whole kerfuffle: why single out women for not wanting to cook? They want the free time that their male counterparts have had for generations..... That's why I say let all the men who are complaining about women not cooking just step into the kitchen and begin feeding the family and we want it healthy, from-scratch, and tasty, if you please. For the other question of when people learn to cook, there is also a socioeconomic class element involved.... Maybe not so common in the West these days, but in many other regions, if you had household help (housekeeper, cook, whatever) you never had to learn how to cook before or after marriage, moving out of parents' house, whatever. Maybe only fancy party food to impress guests.... Milagai

Hmm.... I'm seeing that Fearrington may be a good choice, with Lantern a second. What kind of food does Lantern have and will they meet the veggie + non-bland criteria? Re He's not here and pre-kids romance, that line of approach got us into this sorry mess in the first place I'll report back if and when I ever succeed in this goal.. off to line up a babysitter... Milagai

An insight I'm rapidly developing: After 11 yrs of marriage and 2 kids, I've forgotten what 'romantic' is like; I'm immersed in the daily romance of paying thebills, fixing the leaks, getting homework done, chauffeuring, what-all, and having a rock solid spouse to rely on through all this.... So I'm seeing that a large part of the romance is attitude. And if and when I succeed in shanghai-ing said spouse for romantic dinner, I'll have to leave my mundane mindset behind, and try and think like I did 11 years ago (... or was that what got me into this mess in the first place?) Milagai

Hey! did you swipe this topic from my question on the US / Southeast forum? Milagai

well, it begins PRE dinner with someone taking thing1 and thing2 (the kids) off our hands for the evening. i'm still working on that part..... after that, i'm open to anything: noise level low, relaxed / dreamy ambience; good food (for me this means not bland); reasonable wine; someone ELSE doing the cooking and cleaning up (even mcD would make the grade for this); good desserts; i'd like to halfway dress up too but dh prob would not.... so let me turn the question around: what *is* romantic these days anyway? after 11 yrs marriage and 2 kids i'm horrified to say i have forgotten! back then, even looking at each other across the crowded student dining hall was great... milagai

if women can't cook, who cares? let the men take over. less work for us. it can be our turn to sit back and make demands. milagai

the olive is the best part of the martini for me, milagai

Hi Milagai yes I have been thinking about that... And I have to say that I am no expert on the history of Dutch Cooking or on the history of the spice trade.. so what follows is simply my own assumption about this matter. It is true that the Netherlands played a major role in the spice trade in the 17th and 18th centuries.. and recipes from those days show the use of mace, nutmeg, cloves, sugar and cinnamon in both sweet and savoury dishes. The spices were expensive though so it was only a certain part of society that could benefit from this. They used it as a way to express their wealth. The use of these spices in sweet dishes is still common (as you will see somewhere in the near future when I will start baking the December sweets, most of them are flavoured with a mixture of cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and pepper). There is, to this day, a modest use of spices in savoury dishes. For instance the famous Frisian cheese that is studded with cloves. Cloves and nutmeg are often used in meat dishes and with game. But it is all very subtle. I hope this answers your question. It is a very interesting topic, but it would require much more research on my part to give a full 'history of the spices in Dutch Cuisine' ← Thanks! question deriving from yr answer above: Is there some section of Dutch society (e.g. richer, with a mercantile history) that have evolved dishes with greater use of spices? Thanks again, in advance Milagai

Can anyone recommend a really romantic restaurant in Durham / Chapel Hill? (Should have at least *some* decent veggie options) Thanks Milagai

Well - it's whole raison d'etre is that it's a relic of the Raj. It was founded by homesick Brits... Delhi Gymkhana club is exactly the same way... Milagai

That eggplant thing looks to DIE for! I know what I'm making this weekend! Milagai must.... add..... panko..... to ..... shopping .... lust... i... mean..... list....

Hey Chufi: still awaiting the answer to my question on Dutch trading and where the spices went? Milagai

yay! another fan! the barley suggestion sounded great too and i'll try and remember next time i am shopping. milagai

chrisamirault: i am not sure my recipe can be called a "recipe": it's a suggested list of ingredients and you edit at will often i add bell peppers if i have any.... malawry: thanks for that bulgur wheat endorsement! i was pretty nervous sharing that secret as i was sure i'd get 'beaned' for it.... one can always leave it out, or there's the 'tvp crumbles' option......... milagai ps: i've heard of the term green chili but never had any... has 'cincinnati chili' been discussed upthread, and what do others think about this?

Count me in! As the temp has finally dipped in these parts (it was in the '80's F just last week and is in the 40's F now) we're suddenly getting a chili craving. I make a modified version of the Moosewood recipe; I modify it because their dishes are uniformly too bland; plus I use whatever ingredients I happen to have. This week it is: Throw into a stock pot: 2 tbsps olive oil: HEAT THIS. 1 large onion finely diced. 6-7 cloves garlic, finely chopped 2 tbsps chili powder (the mexican kind, not the Indian kind) 1 tbsp additional oregano 1 tbsp additional cumin powder 1 chipotle pepper finely chopped (a bit later, after the onions have softened). When the onions are soft, I will open the following cans, drain, rinse, and dump in: 2 cans dark red kidney beans 1 can black beans 1 can corn (hey, I like the colour contrast) 2 cans diced tomatoes 1 small can tomato puree Meanwhile I boil 3 cups water and pour it over 1 1/2 cups bulgur wheat (I don't have any frozen veg stock handy). When this softens up I will throw it into the chili. Nice taste, texture, and heartiness... When it is close to done (very quick, this version) I'll add: 1 1/2 tsp chocolate powder (though I may try the maple syrup trick I read here on eg). Salt to taste, and chopped cilantro in large quantities to garnish. Taste, and add this or that if anything seems missing.... That's done. Very quick. Vanishes equally quickly too... Milagai

Do you believe that this new approach, which emphasizes quality, will cause some naysayers to trust the McDonald's brand? HEH! I think the McD brand is now so fimrly synonymous with Yuk that it would be a hard one to change..... Would an emphasis on quality products and ingredients make you more inclined to try McDonald's over other outlets? I think variety would be better. I actually like McD in many international locations (e.g. UK, India) because they have a variety! US McD is so far below the mark in this regard... Will this still the "nattering nabobs of negativism?" Are you kidding? Someone will always complain about something, and take it to a professional level.... Your opinions? I hate the concept, but am guilty of getting convenience food as needed..... so what can I say...

that boterkoek looks divine! the richer the better, hmmmmmm! (again, i call for including a drool emoticon...) your description of traditional Dutch cooking was very itneresting. The Netherlands has always been a center of international trade and finance, no? (rivalled Venice historically?) So it's interesting that none of the spices that were imported / exported ever reached Dutch kitchens !! Where did they end up? Who used them? Looking fwd to more on Dutch food.. Milagai

Indian seafood dishes I can think of, (whether tandoori or amritsari maach of the North or seafood + coconut dishes of the South or similar dishes of the East) almost always include some souring agent, ranging from lemon juice to tomato to yogurt to tamarind to kokum. Ginger is a frequent addition... Milagai

I don't know if someone has added this already, but Ayurvedic concepts divide food into three classes: Just a few details of the myriad out there: Tamasic (promoting sloth and pessimism and other negative qualities). Examples include processed, canned, cold, stale, most non-vegetarian food, and food of opposing qualities taken together. Rajasic (promoting action and anger and other active, competitive, qualities). These foods are hot, salty, spicy, dry etc. Fodo that is fried and highly spiced is rajasic. They are said to increase the speed of the human organism. In excess, they create sorrow, pain, exhaustion, etc. Foods cooked in butter and ghee are rajasic, but cooked in oil become tamasic. Garlic is rajasic because of its medicinal qualities. Saatvic (promoting calm and thoughtfulness and other contemplative qualities). These foods are fresh, light, sweet, tasty, (intrinsically, not the result of spicing) etc. Mostly fresh fruits and vegetables and dairy products and coarse grain. Though most root veggies are tamasic, carrots, beets, turnips and sweet potatoes are considered satvic. http://www.beliefnet.com/story/48/story_4805_1.html Milagai

get yrself to indian store and get "makke ka atta" which is indeed flour made of corn, but not so refined as "cornflour". i don't know how it compares to mexican masa... milagai

have you experimented with ras el hanout or with garam masala + cumin-coriander powder ? milagai

That's what happened to me! I was skinny as a rail until we had the first one, and after that, well, it's been all downhill. ← more specifically known as the pounds that you put on after the Happy 10 which both men and women gain during the honeymoon period of a marriage/partnership. ← Is this supposed to be per year? When does it stop? ← I wish I knew! I was also one of those skinny and eats constantly people until I hit the big 4-oh and then like a switch, my metabolism has turned around! So it's not just having kids that does it. I am now consistently *gaining* 5 pounds a year much to my horror. I am still a slave to my constant eating habit and get symptoms of hypoglycemia if I don't eat that way. But clearly I am not burning off those calories... Milagai

any mustard in the recipe? mustard is an emulsifier, as far as i know. maybe one of the other ingredients in there is a hitherto unknown emulsifier... milagai