Chris Amirault

One ep in and I'm hooked on HBO's new "Boardwalk Empire." Being a Scorcese joint and following in the tradition of such HBO classics as "The Sopranos," "Deadwood," and more, it's no surprise that booze and grub have already made major cameos. Case in point: we've learned that, in the basement of a funeral home, bootleggers made ersatz bourbon, rum, and scotch by adding some caramel color and other flavorings to formaldehyde. Meanwhile, the Canadian Club "imports" are starting in earnest. Anyone else watching Nucky & Co?

Rittenhouse has had an opportunity to bump the price for the last several years and hasn't. Fingers crossed.

Jeepers: no OFs since July? Gotta rectify that. 2 1/2 oz Inner Circle red 1/2 oz Cointreau 1/4 oz Cruzan blackstrap 2 dashes Regan's orange bitters 2 dashes Bittermens Xocolatl Mole bitters I am in love with these Xocolatl Mole bitters....

Maybe the complainers should put names where their mouths are so we can get to 100 or more. I'll start. Portland OR should be included for Teardrop Lounge, Clyde Common, and Beaker & Flask.

As is often the case, Harold McGee is, um, on the case. From his blog: For now, McGee says, stick to European, American, or Korean sources.

Two useful bits of information for McGee fans. First, if you haven't already seen it, check out his blog, The Curious Cook. Not the most prolific blog, but the content tends to be golden. Reading about pine nuts today, I noticed something else. In the right column of the page, you'll find a search box for On Food & Cooking itself. That's right: type in "lard," say, and you'll be directed to the google book pages where lard is discussed. Wicked cool.

Very interesting review from Erik Ellestad (eje here) on his blog: In particular, Erik wonders whether or not it's possible to get "back to basics" with the book: Very interesting review that's worth the clickthrough to the full piece (as Erik's blog usually is).

I have no more of them, but they were bought at a farm and I had prepared several other batches without SV that didn't produce these effects. Still, way to many variables to conclude anything.

This is...disheartening. They can't even keep lunches upright? I guess they have other priorities, but still. I'm not sure "other priorities" would explain the massive pile of backpacks to which Bebe adds hers by throwing it, rather ceremoniously I'll add, atop the table, lunchbox inside. But a massive pile it is.

Does iodine limit oxidation? ETA: It was Hawaiian pink salt, btw, not iodized.

I intentionally avoided acid in the bag for flavor reasons, trying to replicate a roasted potato dish we have here often. I wish I had been more attentive and knew whether they were blotchy in the bag or immediately after the cut faces being exposed to the air. I also wonder how deep the blotches go....

Smoking them first and then finishing on a grill works really well, btw. I've done it a few times now and the results are excellent: some char, rendered fat, and meat just the way you like it (whatever that means). Wanted to report on a few vegetable projects following Keller's Under Pressure 85C advice. Pumpkin fans should take note that SV is, far and away, the best way to prepare this finicky squash. I put ~3/4" cleaned, skin-on pieces into a bag with nothing else, and after 60m they were tender and bright, bright orange. After testing it out of the freezer, I'm planning to do several more so that we have a store of pumpkin for the fall. Also at 85C, I SVed small red potatoes with rosemary, pepper, and smoked salt for 90m and finished them on the grill for some smoke and char. I think 120m would have been a better time if I wasn't finishing on the grill, as they were a bit too toothy out of the bag. One note about these potatoes: they were somewhat grey and splotchy out of the bag. I'm not sure if they were that way in the bag or if something happened when they hit the air. Anyone got an opinion?

Not trying to advocate here, just provide information: Same situation here, including the big pile o' bags that leave the lunchbox in any which way. We've never had leaks. Having said that, I'm wondering what Erin is wondering: what's so wet?

Here are two shots of the box. Each of the components with their lids on: Opened up. You can see the sliding wall in the large container, and the chopstick holder in the lid: The lids are easy for Bebe to open and seem more or less water-tight. I think it'd fit the bill.

Yes. And I am not sure what to make of the fact that you made, and I got, that reference. Pix tonight.

The Street is reporting on sandwiches, and their piece includes the following jaw-dropping stat: The 81% in two months figure makes sense to me. But 93% of US consumers eat at least one sandwich per week? It's a bit less surprising when you realize that burgers count as sandwiches (go to the last page of the article), but, still... that's a lot of bread. So I tried to remember the last week of eating and, sure enough, I had a Filet o Fish last Friday and grilled cheese last Sunday. If you throw in breakfast sandwhiches, well, there's another one or two. Today I would have had a banh mi if not for a work issue that kept me behind this desk. Who'd a thunk it. Perhaps that the US is, indeed, a sandwich culture at its roots. Easy to prepare, easy to eat, easy to clean up: great for cars, commuting, kids. What about you? You eating at least a sandwich a week? Every week?

My Rival Ice-O-Matic just died, and I grabbed one on eBay for six bucks -- but an 810A, not an 800A, which I've always had in the past. This thing is a beast, a bit slower but much more powerful. The ice is all one consistency (but, frankly, the adjustments on the 800A were always finicky to me), but it's less powdery than the 800A results. I love it.

I had a terrific Test Pilot last night with a friend, and I must say that it's one of my favorite two or three tiki drinks, especially using Herbsaint in for the Pernod.

Nice article in the NY Times this morning:

GQ just announced their list of the 25 best cocktails bars in the US, with Zig Zag in Seattle coming out at #1. Here's the rest of the list: 2: Angel's Share ­ New York 3: The Violet Hour ­ Chicago 4: Clover Club ­ Brooklyn 5: The Alembic ­ San Francisco 6: Death & Co ­ New York 7: PDT ­ New York 8: PX ­ Alexandria, VA 9: Comstock Saloon ­ San Francisco 10: Holeman & Finch ­ Atlanta 11: Tiki-ti ­ Los Angeles 12: The Patterson House ­ Nashville 13: Eastern Standard ­ Boston 14: Rickhouse ­ San Francisco 15: Anvil ­ Houston 16: Arnaud's French 75 ­ New Orleans 17: Elixir ­ San Francisco 18: Columbia Room ­ Washington, D.C. 19: Cole's ­ Los Angeles 20: The Whistler ­ Chicago 21: Drink ­ Boston 22: Pegu Club ­ New York 23: The Edison ­ Los Angeles 24: The Franklin Mortgage & Investment Co. ­ Philadelphia 25: Needle and Thread ­ Seattle Comments, rants, etc. invited. I'll start: NO Portland OR bars?!? That is insane.

Good topic on butchering books here.

I haven't fiddled around with it (mkayahara??), but my guess is that you need some time for it to settle post-infusion anyway. It's pretty raw right after you add the simple syrup to the infusion, and only rounds out after maybe a month or so from the start of the infusion. There's one way to find out, Tammy: give it a whirl!

We got this Hello Kitty set in Tokyo and Bebe uses it every day for school now. I don't know why it costs so much -- it's about double what we paid -- but the features are great. The clear plastic cover holds the chopsticks, spork, etc., and the largest container has a sliding plastic wall that allows you to adjust the capacity of either side of it. If that doesn't make sense, I can take photos tonight.

I liked it as well when I tried it at Junior Merino's Liquid Lab and made the following with it: 2 oz Ilegal reposada tequila 3/4 oz Royal Combier 3/4 oz lemon juice peel of 1/2 lemon (no pith) 2" cuke, diced BT grapefruit bitters Muddle the lemon peel with the liquids, then muddle the cuke with the mess. Shake; fine strain.

Seems like that'd help with, um, several things.