Chris Amirault

Judging from the pitch of the article, aimed at the G&T crowd, I guess Fabricant wanted to avoid the inevitable cocktail party faux pas. Missed opportunity for education, though. And given that one of the best cocktails I've ever had is posted here, her implication that there aren't many good cocktail options is odd. I can imagine that Wondrich was talking about the gin/genever comparison when he said, but harder don't mean impossible. And you don't need blueberry syrup, either.

$26 and $28 for Boomsma? I can get both oude and jonge for $14 here.

Is it liquor or a lamp?

Carlo Middione's Traditional Pasta has been a great find. I got it for free from a cookbook club, and everything I've tried has been great. Plus what cookbook can you get from Amazon for less than a buck?

Blood and Sand, of course, but I think that the less complicated Master of the Hounds would afford easier comparisons: 1 3/4 oz rye 3/4 oz cherry brandy 2 dashes Angostura

Blech. That sounds suspiciously like a shortcut devised to replace a long, flavor-developing simmer.

Well that helps explain the mystery. Those sorts of details haven't been translated for the US audience at all.

We talked that one through a bit over here.

Yup: lard is good, and having extra back fat around for sausages is a great thing.

It seems to me that there are at least a couple of moral levels here. One is the "money is its own justification" angle, wherein a chef, mixologist, or other culinary professional cashes out because the profession itself eats the young. Few pensions, little to no health care in a punishing work environment, and lousy pay make cashing out legitimate to many (including me). Then there's the integrity piece, which introduces another layer. It's notoriously difficult to define "integrity," and I'd want to get your own definition (and not your, or Applebee's, publicist's definition). But it seems to me pretty easy to make solid arguments founded on reaching larger numbers of people with higher quality food, whether it's at Applebee's or in the frozen food section. I always wonder about the basis for sell-out criticism. After all, the biz is serving food and drink in a hospitable manner in our imperfect world, and not the performance of pure, true, and good art. Given that, I have a hard time understanding how any culinary professional would be morally culpable simply trying to provide more of those things to more people at broader price points (and accepting a necessary reduction in quality and control). Marco Pierre White and a few others may be able to claim that high horse with some justification, but to me it's pretty hard for the rest of the world to pull off legitimately.

Can you say a bit more what you mean by "fat meat"? Is it the fat cap from a butt or shoulder? Or belly? Or...?

Which recipe do you use?

I wonder how many haters have had brown rice made in a fuzzy logic rice cooker. It's not sticky or gummy, and the nuttiness comes to the fore. We make it regularly -- especially when we have a savory sauce that plays well with it.

I can't find any, I'm afraid. The nuttiness of the orgeat probably wouldn't play very well with the tequila's spicy, astringent edge -- though I'm happy to be proven wrong.

I'm not sure, but I think that the alcohol makes it all more complicated. Perhaps Jane or Avery will weigh in. Meanwhile: in this post, I mention a burnt toast puree that amazed me at my dinner at Alinea last year. The bitterness of the puree played so well with the sweetbreads that I retained that memory vividly enough to take advantage of this weekend's mishap. Drying thin slices of a durum in a low oven with the door open, I left the room when my wife turned the oven up to make biscuits. I didn't realize what had happened until the bread slices filled the room with the smell of nearly burnt bread. Got it out, and had an idea. I did an impromptu 24-hour steep with some rye (Rittenhouse) and bourbon (Wild Turkey 101), and it produced a remarkably bitter potion with yeasty, dark caramel edges. I'm steeping it with some standard spices (clove, allspice, cinnamon, cardamom, mahlab, white pepper, a few other things), so I'll have something to report in a while. But I'm hoping that I've found an interesting bittering agent.

So fantastic, and so many questions. I assume that the almonds are roasted for the orgeat, yes? What vermouth for the Manhattan? Is the hibiscus syrup hibiscus tea simple with sugar? Or some other method? Care to share the proportions for the Art of Choke variation (specifically the falernum)?

Give it a name. I'm putting it on my list.

There's also the daube eG Cook-Off, where you can see me crow about Paula Wolfert's version. That may be more work than you want, but it certainly fits the bill.

I think a mucked-up signed copy is the best testament to the book you can have.

Nope. As Avery Glasser (BittermensAG) explained here, you have to get federal approval, and it's a laborious, item-by-item process.

I don't think it's a stupid topic at all. I had a subscription to Nation's Restaurant News for a while, which indicated that this question is pretty much the #1 question of the hospitality industry. Menu descriptions (use "crispy," "crunchy," etc. to boost sales), food aromas, perceived value, server suggestions, "specials"... they all have their place. And don't forget market share: was anyone else serving bibimbap in Silver City that day, Rob?

My standard grenadine is a 1:1 Pom:sugar version, no heat and a lot of shaking. As for proportions, I've tried 1:1 juice:gin, with dashes of the grenadine and pastis/absinthe, upped the juice, lowered the grenadine, ... The blood orange idea is worth trying; I've always used fresh valencias. Toby, the issue for me always is balance. I made a Blood and Sand afterwards (Punt e Mes and sale Duggan's) that was terrific, lots of interplay, the sort of complex and interesting drink I enjoy. It made the sloppy, off-kilter dorkiness of the Monkey Gland even more apparent. What drives me nuts is that I can taste the promise of a fantastic drink in there, but it always turns out mediocre to awful, mocking that promise. Hoping for "Annie Hall," and instead I get "Deconstructing Harry."

I confess that I cannot make a decent Monkey Gland, and it's not for lack of trying. I've fiddled with ratios of gin to juice, changed oranges, gin, and pastis/absinthe, and done all I can. It should be a fine drink, right? I just can't get it right. Who has a perfect receipt for the Gland? I have Plymouth, Tanqueray, and Aviation on hand, plus Herbsaint, Pernod, and Kubler, so if you can use one or two of them, all the better.

Great piece, Maggie. I remember the desire that overtook me when my mom's sour cream coffee cake came out of the oven; I succumbed a few times, shaved the topping off with a butter knife, and ran when my mom discovered the top-down convertible. Indeed. Entemann's? Might as well spit in the half-n-half.

If they can be freezed, they need to be cryovaced. Will you be doing that? Or hoping that they do? Around here, the gourmet to-go packages of choice are coated paper boxes, flatter versions of the sorts you get from Chinese restaurants and sans the metal handle (not good for the microwave).