SobaAddict70

Thanks, folks. Been battling a cold all week but that hasn't stopped this hobbit from cooking. Linguine with asparagus, fromage blanc and lemon

I may be in the minority here, but I actually like the Ko rezzie system. At some point, rezzies are likely to be a lot easier. They're now open seven days, and lunch service is coming soon. Ko may be one of those rare restaurants where the demand won't subside in the foreseeable future, but at most places it eventually does. ← They're open seven days? Huh. Lunch is impossible for me since I work in midtown. Weekends though....hmmm.

Having been to Ko, it is indeed very, very good (which is as it should be given that the rezzie system is insane). That said, I think I would be better served were I to return five months down the road once the hoopla has died down. The rezzies won't be any easier to obtain but at least the psychological feeling of failure will have been alleviated. The extended absence also allows for radical changes in menu composition.

Spring vegetable stew with a poached farm egg, sourdough baguette

I will second the recommendation of DM's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. I myself am not a vegetarian although I do love vegetable cookery. I look forward to cooking my way through her book. ETA that I'm posting from work so I might have some more titles to add later on.

nakji -- just toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. leave them unpeeled. roast in a 350 F oven for 10 to 15 minutes. they should have just started to soften but still have some bite left to them. recipe for the salad is here I prefer to treat them in as uncomplicated a manner as possible, in order to let their flavor shine.

Sucrine salad with roasted asparagus, Japanese turnips and poached egg Heirloom potato and turnip green soup

When exactly did she convey this? The whole idea behind her show is weekday cooking. I'll also spend hours in the kitchen on weekends, but during the week with kids to feed? Not gonna happen. ← It's pretty apparent to me. Her whole schtick is "30 minute meals using five ingredients or less". Well, yeah, you can do that if you use convenience products to cut corners. And for the record, I'm a single gay guy with lots and lots of free time. To me, cooking is more than a way to provide sustenance. I value it immensely. I'm not in her target market. There's no way you could ever convince me that her style of cooking would have a place in my reality.

Tell us how you really feel. Okay, well I'm probably not going to give this a try based on this and other reports made elsewhere. I generally am a fan of Chef Lo -- the foie soup dumplings and skate in beet emulsion from Annisa are a very pleasant memory. More's the pity.

What do you do with the mint vinegar? I like the sorbet idea. I'm imagining lemon-mint sorbet on a hot summer day... ← With lamb and similar preparations where you would use mint jelly.

I think what really galls me so much about Rachael is that she makes it seem as if recipes that take over an hour to accomplish are an arduous task best reserved for people who don't live in the real world. A friend of mine once remarked to me that he couldn't imagine making pasta sauce for over an hour when jarred would be so much simpler. [M. Hazan's tomato sauce with butter was the object of discussion.] He said, "That's 60 minutes of my life I'm never going to get back. Where do you find the time?" *sigh*

I do love their cookbook "How to Cook Meat". Worth an investment.

Make mint vinegar: mint leaves, a pinch of sugar, malt or wine vinegar. Another idea is mint sorbet. Mint, water, sugar, sweet wine, some kind of acid like lemon juice to brighten flavors.

Linguine primavera -- in this case, asparagus and ramps sauteed in unsalted butter and garnished with shaved Parmesan and chive blossoms This may be the last weekend that ramps are available. I intend to make the most of it.

Late dinner tonight: linguine with sauteed asparagus and ramps. Pix later, but 5 ingredients: linguine, ramps, asparagus, unsalted butter, chives with blossoms. Salt and pepper don't count. It's spring on a plate. Cheese optional of course.

So in other words, it's trying to be Spice Market. Oh well, better luck next time.

New Year's resolution is to cook more locally/seasonally. 90% of all my meals are from farmer's markets, Union Square Greenmarket (henceforth "USGM") primarily. I'm limited by availability at work, plus I eat out from time to time. I eat very little junk food, my one vice being a tub of Haagen-Dasz. I'll probably get an ice cream maker for my birthday after which the circle will be complete. Left to right: Dandelion greens, garlic, turnip greens Sauteed spring greens with garlic, served with polenta Polenta is 1 cup cornmeal to 3 1/2 cups water, 1 T. salt; as much unsalted butter as it can hold and a fist of grated parm-reg cheese

or at least until the reviewers have weighed in. there needs to be the equivalent of CLE for restaurants. lawyers will know what I'm referring to. I'll put it on my "to-do" list.

At some point I'm going to have to upgrade my camera to something more technologically advanced. The one I have now is a Nikon Coolpix L3. It's barely passable when I use it in a low-light setting. Take Tailor for example. Given Chef Mason's insistence that flash photography not be used, I had to request an early seating in order to take advantage of the natural light that was still available when the restaurant opened last autumn. There's no way I'd be able to go past a 7 pm one top. Lighting is everything. edit: not sure about the actual ISO speed. great. one more thing to educate myself regarding digital photography.

Welcome to eGullet, isomer! Glad to have you. Leftover pasta from last night Roasted asparagus, poached farm egg and shaved parmesan Mint tea

You could tell us what's in your refrigerator and pantry and let us give you some ideas. The problem with 3-5 ingredient meals from a cookbook is that's that much additional stuff you need to buy. There's no guarantee that the final product will come out to your liking, so then you'll need to use all that extra stuff you bought in the first place!

Do they like avocado? You could always do an avocado shake. One avocado Milk Sugar Crushed ice Pit and peel avocado. Combine all ingredients in a blender. Puree until smooth. Proportions are up to you; figure 1/2 cup milk, 3 T. sugar. I sometimes substitute condensed milk for the sugar. I don't know if avocadoes are available in Japan but I thought it might be a good contribution.

I'm going to have to try that. Hm....

Ramps. They smell like onions steeped in deer piss and mothballed socks. I adore them. They're only available for four weeks a year. I expect they'll be gone by next weekend. Clockwise from top left: toasted bread crumbs (use as you would regular breadcrumbs or in place of grated cheese), onion, ramp leaves, anchovies, ramp stalks Fusilli with caramelized onion, ramps and anchovies. Onions are briefly fried in olive oil with a pinch of salt along with minced ramp stalks. Anchovies are added towards the end of the cooking process. Fold in ramp leaves 1-2 minutes before service. Check seasoning, drizzle with EVOO, add cooked pasta, toss. Add a pinch of toasted breadcrumbs, some chopped herbs if you like (I used sage) and serve immediately.

You might also want to consider that salted butter contains a higher level of water content than unsalted, particularly if baking figures in your repertoire. As Anna and others have pointed out, not all salted butters are created equal. You'll likely need to adjust your recipe. For something as precise as say, a beurre blanc, that could lead to disastrous results. Also heat reduces/evaporates liquid, thereby concentrating flavor which in turn will significantly affect the final product particularly if salted butter is used.