daniellewiley

These sound FABULOUS. Can you share your recipe? Along the Polynesian line, I found some Tropical Spring Rolls with Chile Dipping Sauce on epicurious that looked fun (and can be prepared up to 6 hours ahead). I'm also thinking that a black bean, corn, and avocado salad with orange juice vinaigrette might work as well. This is fun! And, Therese, yes, I agree. I am all for showing off my maternity clothes, especially the ones that fit. I just had to move up a size and it was slightly traumatic, so any positive clothing experiences are welcomed.

Drinking is a good thing at Bunco. Well, not for me (pregnant), but for everyone else. Themed drinks are always a hit. At our Christmas bunco, everyone (again, not me) enjoyed peppermint martinis and egg nog. Polynesian is intriguing. I could wear my new maternity Hawaiian-style capris!

On the third Wednesday of every month, I participate in a Bunco club. For those not in the know, Bunco is a fun dice game that has become newly popular in recent years. I guess a lot of people played it in the 60s and 70s (in the midwest at least - none of my family in NY has ever heard of it). Here's a link: Bunco One of the best parts about Bunco is that it is so easy that you can chit chat and eat and drink the whole night without worrying about strategy. The hostess of Bunco night is responsible for providing food for everyone. We generally have between 9 and 12 women. Food needs to be enough to be a dinner, but it does not need to be a formal dinner. It is usually served buffet style and then eaten at tables prior to game play begins. We've had everything from an 18 pound turkey to corned beef and cabbage to pumpkin soup. I last hosted in July, and did a Tapas theme. The menu was as follows: Warm Marinated Olives Manchego with Membrillo Spiced Almonds Sherried Mushroom Empanadas Meatballs in Tomato Garlic Sauce Roasted Potatoes with Alioli Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Squares Sangria Everything was a hit except for the Membrillo. Well, I liked it. I'm hostess again this month, on May 18, and I can't figure out what I want to serve. I, of course, want to do something impressive. I liked the tapas thing - it was fun having such a large variety of food. I don't want to do Middle Eastern. We have a huge Lebanese population here in Toledo, so it's an everyday meal around here. Any other ideas? Themes are a good thing. I'm taking the day off to cook and clean, so I do have some time on my side. Also, I have a very small oven, so I can usually fit only one item in there at a time. This might come into play when it comes time to heat up for serving. I do have two crockpots available.

I'm addicted to roasted vegetables as well. Last week we had roasted broccoli with baby carrots. Delicious. I visited a good friend 2 months ago, and for Shabbat dinner she told me that she was going to be steaming broccoli and cauliflower. Huh??? Not allowed. No steaming on my watch. I showed her how to roast them, and they were the hit of the meal. Everyone demanded the recipe. We do replace some of our roasting with grilling, come summer. For example, I'm just as happy with grilled asparagus as I am with roasted asparagus.

Kathy, Did you broil it as well, or, were you lucky enough to have grilling weather? I'd love to see a pic of a grilled version - the broiled looked phenomenal. Monica - I bought Everything Indian last night - I'm excited to try some recipes!

Thanks Tepee! That gives me even MORE time to locate a source.

Because it was HIS floor? Spitting is only illegal in the street isn't it? ← I suppose it was probably OK (though not appetizing) for this vendor, but we actually witnessed farmer blows throughout Singapore, in public places.

I'd love to get one to make some soup, since I'm pregnant. When we were in Singapore in the late 90s, they told us that it's great for pregnant women, and I've wanted to try it ever since. I was going to try it then, even though I wasn't pregnant, and at one of the hawker courts, we got in line at one of the stalls. Alas, as soon as it was our turn, the vendor turned around and did a farmer blow right onto the floor behind him. I just couldn't do it after that, and we didn't run into another black chicken soup stall again before we left. OT Question: Why is it illegal to spit in Singapore, yet legal to blow one's nose onto the floor?? I would personally rather see spit.

My husband is unfortunately insisting on spaghetti night, but I'd love to make this next week. This will work with natural peanut butter, correct?

It just happened... and then it took forever to happen.. I guess the answer changes depending on the day you ask me. My story "The Color of your dreams" on how I became a food writer and what it has taken over the year was on the cover of the IACP magazine this quarter. I am attaching the file here for you to see. ← OK, I'm really embarrassed now. I have a copy of that in my living room, and I have an article in there myself. I think I was so enamored of the fact that I had a nationally published article that I forgot anyone else had written in the issue. (heading downstairs to fetch the magazine and read the rest of the articles in there, starting with yours)

Monica, Thanks for blogging this week! I know how difficult it can be to juggle the blogging and photography with an active kid running around. You are doing a wonderful job, and I'm looking forward to getting your cookbook and trying some of these recipes for myself. I was wondering if you'd have some time to chat a bit about how you made the transition to full time writing. I think I remember reading that you attended Toni's Greenbrier Symposium. Was that a turning point for you? Before you left your tech job, how did you juggle family, work and pitching articles? (I struggle with this!) Thanks in advance! Danielle

Can I come?? Sounds wonderful.

I always put in a fresh fruit - or if I'm short on time, a small applesauce or some canned pineapple chunks - she doesn't always eat it, but I can't reconcile not having it available to her. I also used to include fruit snacks (the kind where the first ingredient is fruit juice), but she decided they're gross, so now she just gets fruits. We also do little baggies of crackers, baggies of cut-up veggies, yogurt tubes (I store them in the freezer), or if I'm feeling European, olives, cornichons, cheese. Morning snack is supplied by a "mom of the week" - so I'm just responsible for afternoon snack.

That's what I do EVERY single night - my poor husband.

This is amazing, just amazing. Your photos are breathtaking. I was just showing my husband, and he refused to believe that they are actually your photos!! He kept saying, "no way, those are stock photos. no way. no way." He has no idea of the talent we have here on eGullet. I'm in awe...

Mayhaw Man, I just found out that they are moving here from Lafayette, Louisiana. Maybe you're on to something? ← My realtor emailed me, and said she'd like to leave them a traditional drink (non-alcoholic, unfortunately) from Louisiana. Or maybe a Louisiana flower arrangment. Any ideas? Apparently, they fell in love with a house in another neighborhood that was just taken off the market. They want a beautiful entryway (which we have - tons of carved wood and a completely circular room with a full window seat and rounded windows - it's the first floor of a turret) and a house that is great for entertaining (which ours is - circular first floor plan and two and a half lots). I think she wants them to see all of the entertaining possibilities when they walk in.

Mayhaw Man, I just found out that they are moving here from Lafayette, Louisiana. Maybe you're on to something?

We've been trying to sell our 115-year-old Victorian for about a year, now. We've just listed with a new realtor, and have some very promising showings coming up, the first of which is this coming Saturday. House smells are so important, and I'm wondering what you all cook when you show your house? Or want it to smell good? I know lots of people do apple pie, or simmer spices, but Saturday's weather is breezy and spring-like, and I don't really want to have autumnal smells going on. I was thinking maybe chocolate chip cookies? And then maybe I could leave some out for them? Can you all think of something else that is more springlike? These will be frequent entertainers, and one of them will be headmaster of the chi chi private school here. That's really all I know. Thanks!

We did some cruise research a couple of months ago when we were trying to find a family trip with kid care built in. Norwegian has something called Freestyle Dining, which offers multiple higher end restaurants for an added fee. Our favorite bartender is becoming a cruise afficionado. He did Norwegian last year, and thought that the Freestyle Dining wasn't necessarily worth the cost. He said the food still wasn't as good as the food at his restaurant (high end seafood joint in Toledo), and that he preferred to spend his money on alcohol. Did I mention that he's young? Anyway, I came away from the conversation thinking that the Freestyle Dining was probably not worth the bucks.

I've always been under the impression that the parsnips are what make a chicken soup taste like a classic Jewish soup. I think the celery tops will also help, as they add a similar herbal component.

Didn't he say "never been fucked properly"? I bet he meant it.

I have this idea in my head for a spicy tofu dish, and I just can't put it all together. At my favorite Japanese restaurant, I always get Spicy Tofu Maki (I'm allergic to tuna). It has tofu, the spicy sauce (sriracha and mayo, I presume), avocado and rice, of course. I was thinking that it would be fun to somehow throw together a lunch dish that is eaten in a bowl, kind of like bibimbab. I'm picturing rice, cucumber, avocado, tofu chunks, lots of the spicy sauce, and.... Any ideas? I'm just wondering if that would all come together well. It's all I can think about since this thread started, and I have a perfectly ripe avocado sitting on my counter.

Dylie also has become more picky lately. She used to love oatmeal. Now, "I hate it." Same goes for milk (except chocolate). "This is disGUSTing." Even when we make dinners she likes, it's a struggle to get her to eat much. She'll put stuff in her mouth and then spit it out. I'm also sure she'll outgrow it, but boy is it frustrating! Good to hear this is a global issue.

Well, Ducky, hummm, I don't know, but I suspect that we may be referring to two different types of Magic Bullets!!! I could be wrong, though LOL!!! ← The "other" magic bullet is what I thought when I saw the topic name.

For a fun look at contrasts, a friend emailed this to me, after I sent him the above link: