SobaAddict70

Moving on ... I took a look at my food blog (the one in my signature, not the one I just did last week) and did a search for "omelette". It seems that most of the ones I've posted over the years have either been pure yellow or yellow with a little bit of browning. Huh. I wonder if I've been doing it subconsciously without realizing it. This is somewhat weird to me because I seem to recall having made omelettes with significantly more browning than the ones pictured below. Maybe I'm getting old. Yes, that must be it. ps. the "white" in the last pic is fromage blanc, not because the eggs weren't beaten.

But why would he need to? I just find it odd that the STANDARD that you (and others) seem to promote (from other posts elsewhere) is NO BROWNING, which is not universally held. I'm with you. I've never been one much to only go with one style of anything. Or to follow any other hard and fast rules of so-called "right" and "wrong" way, either, for that matter. So I like both, depending upon what else I'm working with in said omelette. For example, with Shel_B's blueberries and cream cheese...no browning. Would have ruined the smooth, silky texture and subtle flavors. But with "Western Omelettes" (which are very popular here where I live, in the, um, West) I like a bit of browning to go with the various crunchy and full-flavored ingredients, like peppers, onions, sausage, cheese, avocados, ham, tomatoes, etc. two observations I'd like to make: 1. à chacun son goût. 2. someone has a lot of assumptions about me, and other people.

A travesty if ever there was one! those can be remarkably tasty, if you're into ascetism as a food trend. /snark ps. I've had them before. the five things I don't like aren't things you'd find in most refrigerators anyway.

currently my favorite way is: everything bagel, sliced in half and toasted, smeared with a thick spread of unsalted butter, with a fried egg and a couple of slices of cheddar. paired with an OJ and a banana, that'll last me through second breakfast and elevenses. hobbits are eating machines, remember?

grapes can last two weeks. how do I know? I finished the last of a bag of red seedless grapes two days ago while I was waiting for plumbers to fix my bathroom pipes. the bag had been in my fridge for AT LEAST two weeks, and were just as tasty as the day I bought them.

and Keith, you could probably pump those one-egg wonders for a dinner party. someone who cooks with the amount of attention to detail that you demonstrate can probably do it in his sleep. I have faith in you.

looks good.

Was my pleasure. Shelby -- thanks!

I guess I just try to make the most of things given what I have. Space is not an issue -- a while ago, I was contemplating making cocido madrileño as well as a bollito misto -- just to see if I could do it. But then I realized that leftovers would have been an issue, so that will have to wait until I move to San Francisco. The guy I'm long-distance dating has already expressed an interest in trying my cooking. ambra/rotuts -- thanks!

nope. if I eat carbs too early in the day (it's 7 pm now but it's 2 pm for me, body-clock wise), I fall asleep. oddly enough, I get more energetic as the day goes on, which is why during the weekend, my schedule is inverted. you and my husband!! on the weekend he turns into a vampire. showed him your food pix and now he wants me to recreate some of your more vege-centric dishes. No good farmers markets around here yet but we are off to Poughkeepsie so I can stop at Quattro's store and use some of my gift certificates. Nice work, Stash. LOL. thanks suzi. YAY!!!

Don't reduce the amount of liquid. You are not baking in a hermetically controlled environment therefore humididity affects how much flour will be required. Trust your hands. well, it WAS 89 F+ that day, so that might have had something to do with it. hmmmm.... I was wondering why the yeast didn't turn foamy too.

Strawberries, with orange juice and vanilla sugar. "My lord of Ely, when I was last in Holborn I saw good strawberries in your garden there; I do beseech you send for some of them." --from Richard III (Act 3, Scene 4) by William Shakespeare. Alas, all good things must come to an end. Until next time. Soba

I think the next time I do one of these Foodblogs, that it will be in the late summer so I can REALLY show you the glories of working with vegetables such as zucchini, tomatoes and squash. Especially zucchini -- because there will arise the inevitable thread in the Cooking subforum that so-and-so is experiencing the invasion of the triffid-people, and do folks have any ideas? I can think of five recipes off the bat, none of which are the typical "zucchini bread"/zucchini fritters that seem to pop up occasionally. So, Heidi, are you listening? We'll have to do this again next year.

Gamberetti all'olio e limone (Poached shrimp with olive oil and lemon juice), cime di rapa fritte, homemade bread Cime di rapa fritte (broccoli rabe stewed in olive oil with garlic and peperoncini): http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Cime-di-Rapa-Fritte In the end, I decided not to alter Marcella's recipe -- hence the presentation in the pic. Was a nice idea while it lasted though.

Anytime, Susie. My pleasure.

Room temperature.

So this next dish adapted is from "Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking" by Marcella Hazan and can be found on pages 65-66 (2012 edition). I say 'adapted' because I'm changing it so that it will be accompanied by some broccoli rabe. Its prep will not seem intuitive for those of you who don't have the book. Marcella specifies that the poaching liquid shall consist of three quarts of water, and be prepped by adding 1 celery stalk, 1 peeled and trimmed carrot, a healthy pinch of sea salt and a couple of tablespoons of red wine vinegar. (I'll be sizing the recipe for one person so I'll be reducing quantities specified by a little over half.) You're to let that mixture simmer for 10 minutes at a gentle boil, then add the shrimp in their shells and poach for up to 3 minutes. Smaller-sized shrimp will take less time to cook. Then, once the shrimp are cooked, shell them and marinate in a 1:1 mixture of olive oil and lemon juice, seasoned with salt and pepper. Marinate for one hour, and serve with lots of bread to soak up the juices. (Now you understand why I baked that loaf of bread last night. ) I've made this dish many times before and it is always a winner. This is what the original recipe looks like, without any broccoli rabe:

BTW Deborah's recipe calls for 2 teaspoons black pepper and 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes. I cut the amount of black pepper in half. Came out peppery but not as spicy as I had feared. There's a nice hint of pecorino in there, but now I think I should have just added cheddar instead.

Room temperature. I have to use willpower or I can just sit there and eat the whole thing in one sitting. Cut off two slices, spread one with butter, then ate the other one dipped in olive oil. A friend on Facebook just reminded me that fresh baked bread also goes with duck fat and sea salt. Mmm, duck fat. Lately, I've been dreaming of savory French toast too...

Same thing. A while ago, I did lobster with vanilla butter and used only 1/2 a bean for the sauce. I saved the unused portion of the bean and added it to a canister of granulated white sugar. Presto chango! Vanilla sugar.

Hard-cooked farm eggs, with Red Russian kale, shoulder bacon and morels. Misjudged the eggs by about 3 minutes, otherwise it turned out ok. No real recipe for this -- render bacon over medium heat, fry until it browns, then set aside. Fry morels and kale in bacon drippings (or you can gild the lily like I did with a little unsalted butter), return bacon to pan. Stir, then taste for salt and pepper. Serve with a soft-cooked or hard-cooked egg.

I'm also snacking on a piece of pepper-cheese bread spread with sweet cream butter as I do vegetable prep. While baking your own bread in this modern day and age may seem like a luxury to some, there are certain tangible benefits to be had which make a project like that worthwhile, in my opinion. But I digress.

I'm starting tonight's extravaganza by prepping the dessert first. Take a bunch of strawberries, trim them of their hulls, slice them in half or quarter them depending on size. Macerate in 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice and 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar. Doesn't have to be strawberries - can be blackberries, blueberries or other kinds of fruit like nectarines, peaches, plums or pluots. Place in the refrigerator and chill for one hour or until ready to eat.

huiray -- that's what the vendor at USGM sold it as. if you'd like to take issue with that, perhaps you should hie thyself there the first chance you can. re bread-making, total food cost is about $10 and an hour of your time. dear me, the other day I cooked an omelette -- with brown spots -- in 10 minutes. I think that ship has sailed, don't you? There's a time and a place for this discussion, and this thread isn't it.

scamhi -- thanks. mitch -- of course, but I shouldn't have to pay for something that costs pennies to make. there's also the satisfaction that I made something from scratch, and learned something if not about food, perhaps about myself. is that not of worth? I think most of us have forgotten those lessons.