Chris Amirault

Funnel cake? Oh yeah: the apotheosis, perhaps.

Sam (and anyone else who's tried them), how does the Angostura compare to other existing bitters? I'm familiar with the Fee's and the Regan's, myself.

In some ways that makes sense, but in others it still lacks. Why one kind of Montecristo and not another? Why allow a few hundred single malt scotches but only a handful of rums?

This chipotle ancho rub, revised from a recipe by Reed Hearon, is our go-to rub for grilling in the summer. Finish chicken, lamb, beef, pork, fish -- whatever -- with a bit of olive oil or butter and lots of lime.

Update. Yesterday, I unwrapped the bacon, dried it off, and set it in the fridge develop a pellicle for a day. It's now in the Bradley with apple pucks; the first three hours were cold, and now I'm bringing it up to 150F. Two concerns: the lack of skin, which saddens me, collagen-in-my-beans-wise, and a butcher who clearly thought that fat was a bad thing. I'm estimating an 80:20 meat:fat ratio, which is way off....

I'd go with Julia's "never let 'em see you sweat" principle: in a proud, authoritative voice, tell your guests that the chardonnay is prized for being "extraordinarily oaky," and quaff with gusto. That should work for a few months if you vary guests sufficiently.

I won't repeat the complaints about bagging here, but suffice it to say that I've a reputation for staring smileless into adolescent faces and declaring, "Do. Not. Touch. My. Stuff." As for bags: We recently got three of these titanic Ikea sacks that are made of some recycled blue plastic somethingorother, and the trio can hold an entire overflowing cart of goods in them. Being the lazy-man's load champion (a pathetic title, I know), I appreciate them deeply.

Just to clarify: you don't mean "favorite book to use to cook." You mean "prized object." Yes?

I was down at Joyal's today stocking up on a few things that I can't get up in Providence, and I happened to spy a bottle of 12 year old Montecristo dark rum -- the first Montecristo rum I've seen in RI. I got quickly excited, not for that rum but for another. When I had been in NYC and stopped at Astor a while back, a pal stuck a bottle of their Premium Blend white rum in my cart, and I found it was a great mixer when I got it back home. So, given that one Montecristo rum was on the shelf, I figured that the other could be had. Makes sense, right? Alas, when asking the shopkeeper about it, he told me that only that 12 year Montecristo was available in RI; the other was not. Today's experience prompts me to ask if anyone can understand, in broad strokes, the ways that state laws regulate access to liquor down to these astonishingly picayune and bewildering levels. I can certainly accept that there's a perverse logic behind these statutes -- and also that there is no logic at all -- but I'm having a hard time even comprehending the basics here. Can any one enlighten? Why can't you just get any bottle of X in state Y?

I imagine it'd help to keep the cabinets open for a good while to air them out. You could also pull out the glasses you'll be using ahead of time while keeping the rest in the bar. Good luck.

May, you've got it: I mean fried dough and sugar, the elemental duality.

This will be very interesting indeed. Available through every location doesn't mean available at every location, of course, so we should start bugging the stores now. I somehow managed to convince a small place here that they needed Regan's orange bitters last year, so that's where I'm heading first.

Here in Rhode Island, if you go to the right sorts of banquets and events, you're likely to encounter a two-foot stack of fried dough and sugar known as wandies. They're utterly unremarkable -- though some Rhode Islanders swear by these quasi-Italian-American treats because, well... you know. Because. It seems to me that fried-dough-and-sugar treats are a staple item in many celebrations that I've witnessed both here in the US and elsewhere. Is dough, deep fried, with sweet on top one of the few truly universal food items? What do you think? What's your family's or culture's version?

After a lengthy period of service as host in Italy, Robert Brown has stepped down. We thank him for that service and look forward to his continued participation as emeritus staff. To honor Robert's service, we've started a topic in the Member News forum here.

As we announced here, Robert Brown has ended his lengthy service as host of Italy. Please share your thoughts on his tenure here. Thanks, Robert!

Dave, my heart sinks. Sorry, man. As noted above, I have the Kenmore Seal-n-Save, but from the Sears website it appears that those are no longer available. I've been happy with mine -- though the few boil-in-bag excursions haven't been entirely successful -- and have accumulated a few tips: I can't tell any difference between the Kenmore and Tilia bags, but I've never used the Tilia, just compared them in the box. I've also been happy with the Kenmore bags consistently. Has anyone got experience with both? Anyone want to trade a few Tilia bags for my Kenmore bags so that we can do a side-by-side? The distance from the face of the machine to the vacuum well in which the front edge of the bag sits is crucial, because that distance determines how much extra space you need at the top of the bag so that the vacuum works. On my machine, you can't get the item being sealed right up to the sealing line either, which creates more wasted bag. The distance on the Kenmore creates about 3-4" of extra bag above the seal, which can be pretty annoying when you're sealing 4 oz of bacon. Moisture in the seal is clearly for me the main culprit behind lost seals. Freezing the item a bit helps, but that added step and it's associated time can be a pita. My MIL suggested something that I've done that works well: fold up a piece of paper towel between the item and the seal. When the vacuum sucks some moisture out, it is absorbed by the towel and doesn't get into the seal. Ours lives in a cabinet with the bags, btw, as we have zero counter space and use them only now and then.

Thought of two more. Ginger beer and bourbon (add lime juice, gingered simple syrup and mint for a Gingered Gentleman). Grapefruit soda, or what in New England is known as Half n Half, and tequila (add lime juice and salt and it's a version of a Salty Dog).

Did you heat it or just mix it?

There was a previous discussion of this in the general truffle oil topic here. My little bottle makes things taste good, but, well, I can't vouch.

Fenway is the most expensive park in terms of both ticket prices and seats, and the food has forever been mediocre at best, particularly inside the park. We went last summer for the first time in years, and dropped something like $30 on beers and dogs for two. But aren't there parks with fantastic cuisine nowadays? Or is that just an MLB marketing gimmick?

Bitters and soda, specifically Campari or Fernet Branca in our house, hit the spot, especially with a squeeze of lime or orange, respectively.

The Wolfert recipe is great, and Anthony Bourdain has one in The Les Halles Cookbook, I believe. ETA: Sift the juniper -- or anything else -- if you use it. Grainy is a real distraction from the porky wonderfulness.

Back at Rasoi tonight and enjoyed it a great deal. Chicken Chettinad was very good, though the white meat was a bit dry, and the kofta were again great. Not sure what's going on with the mango curry vegetables, though.

I didn't fry it up, but I'm not too worried about that at this stage.

And here it is:). http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18925343.700 ← Just in case the link dies: And this sentence, which any self-respecting writer can admire: