Carrot Top

Agree with you about the Caramel Chicken and also think the eGullet 'TV' idea is sort of technically possible also....isn't there a way to link to a 'live streaming' video cam?

Speaking of salt, any restaurant WORTH its salt is going to have a sanitation and/or operations checklist in place that must be used daily and/or (life is full of and/or's, isn't it....) between each shift....that should be the daily litany for all employees to read/follow and for someone (usually the manager) to inspect and sign off on. In some states these are even required by law...at least as far as BOH goes...to assess adherence to health code when the inspectors visit. When I see a sloppy looking place to eat it just shouts 'Bad Management'. Won't eat there. (Clumpy salt could be the very least of the problems there...I am imagining food deliveries sitting out not checked into walk-in boxes....and oooooh...imagining the state of those walk-in boxes themselves...! )

That really is a funny contrast, Cusina. I can visualize it.... I'm glad Food TV exists...it is not something I routinely watch but then I don't routinely watch any TV. But television is, at its best, both a form of education and entertainment. Food TV has exposed many people that otherwise would not have had that exposure (or even any interest in finding that exposure) to such a variety of ideas about food...different 'ethnic' sorts of food, different ways of preparing food, both upscale and down home. That sort of education, available to 'the masses', in a palatable form...seems a great idea, to me. There are many people who do not pick up books to read...but who do watch TV....

Two yellows, a green and a white with orange dot so far. Goodness...where WAS I that I saw that terrible pigtongue pink one?

Well. Toliver...as you said before, I am not sure whether to laugh here or not....

What intelligent people you all are! We now have fifteen ways to open a jar, plus the ideas of getting a doorman, doing yoga, squeezing rubber balls in my hands, becoming a lady bodybuilder and flying Toliver around the country to help. Keep the ideas coming. I think we need to write The Compleat Compendium of Jar Openings....

Personally I'm not sure about the bacon in the layered-up dish...I might instead use it when (I mean 'if'... I sort of feel like I am going to cook this myself...I love using what is 'available' and in the house!) making the beans to go with the rice for the arroz con pollo...dice it and cook it slowly to brown, with onions and seasonings (no salt, it will toughen the beans...add that at the end if you need to) before adding the beans and liquids...and I also worry about the cream cheese in the recipe. How about making some sort of little 'canape' thingie with the cream cheese on some sort of bread with a topping? The green peppers I would roast under the broiler in the oven (if your summer grill is not available), rub off skins, cut into strips, toss generously with garlic and oregano...pack into a jar, cover with olive oil and put in fridge. They will keep at least two weeks if you use lots of olive oil. I should say, they will keep two weeks if you don't nibble them up before them. Even people who are not green pepper likers often like them this way. Great on a toasted bagette as a snack...nice as part of a 'salad bar' sort of dinner (oh let me instead say 'tapas' to sound sophisticate) or as a side with a sandwich. Freezing changes the texture...they can become watery and soft... The meal you made with the veggies sounds delicious and easy. Weeknight meals are always a challenge for busy people, aren't they..

All successful businesses run on feedback...whether restaurants or any other business. If service has been poor, they need to know. If service has been great, or if there is something that is particularly wonderful that has been done or made or offered...they need to know. Customers/clients/guests are the defining makers of success or lack of it for any business. It is both kind and smart (for you will henceforth get better service if the place is at run at all in a caring manner) to pass on what your thoughts are...whether good or bad. We all run on carrots and sticks. P.S. Even a corporate chain or a McDonald's deserves an occasional 'thank you that was good'...for good service. The people that work there are human too, and they have the ability to do well or do poorly. Motivation goes a looooong way in making things work well...and the customer can provide that.

I second what she said. Please. But with the understanding that the place you have been dining is the sort of place that you feel will address the problem. If you are getting a feeling of total....nothingness...from the place, then I would not bother.

And thank you for posting...it is giving me a good excuse to avoid going outside to mow the lawn. The 'second' meal I see in your batch of stuff is another simple one...Arroz con Pollo. You could use the chicken thigh/leg combos, the ham, the tomatoes, and some peppers and scallions. Rice and beans on the side. Coconut milk? Pina colada for the cook, of course!

Yes...when I used the word 'gratin' it was very loosely worded. What I first wrote but then erased was 'lasagne'. Sort of think of the thing as a lasagne recipe but with the potatoes being used instead of pasta layers... I would just layer up an additional layer of...very well chopped and drained Italian tomatoes...or...if you are like me, there is likely to be half a jar of salsa hanging around the fridge...that would work, too. It will not 'hold together' when you cut and remove it from the baking dish, but the flavors should have melded nicely. Just taste in your mind as you go along...if one of the types of peppers seems wrong to you in your mind, it probably will be wrong also in the recipe. Here is another addition you could add that, if you like a firmer dish that will hold together better...this will do that. It is really the topping for a Pastisio...(a Greek meat and pasta casserole). 3 T butter 3 T flour 3 C milk 3/4 C heavy cream 2 large egg yolks 3/4 C grated Parmesan cheese Melt butter, add flour, whisk for several minutes on low heat but do not allow to brown. Whisk in milk and cook till thickened and smooth (low to medium heat...depending how comfortable you are with the stove and the pot). Meanwhile whisk heavy cream with egg yolks to blend. Stir into sauce and heat till thick but do not boil. Stir in Parmesan. Pour over casserole and bake at 375 F for 35 to 45 minutes. Note: If you don't have heavy cream handy just use milk and add 2 more egg yolks. This is yummy.

And it would be a better world too, if there were more Jinmyos. But they are difficult to make and hard to find. But much appreciated by those who read them...

Oh I doubt if they will vanish. Likely just housecleaning the books and gathering themselves into stronger better pap-makers. Love the title of your thread...it could lead to all sorts of nonsensical responses. But we don't do that here, do we now. But seriously, thanks for the info. Probably in two months time the Twinkies packages will be smaller and the price tag higher...and I am stuck, for I've allowed my children to become pleasantly addicted to them. That's how I get them to clean their rooms....promises of Twinkies.

Yes, that was a nice thing for her to do. Absolutely in agreement.

I am considering a trip to Rome during the week following Christmas, and am seeking information, advice, recommendations...of any sort that anyone would like to give! My desire would be to spend the time exploring. It would be great to hear of any street fairs, entertainments, markets, and anything that comes to mind that is a natural and integral part of Roman life in all its variety. I am not specifically looking for 'restaurant' recomendations (I'd rather wander around and hit some maybe bad and maybe good ones but all a surprise) unless there are any I need to be particularly warned to stay away from! (Is that possible in Rome?!) Unusual sites or shops or foodmarkets would be great to hear about....please do not restrict any suggestions to the central area of the city for I am willing to travel around a bit. What's 'new' in Rome? And what is so traditional that it is always done around Christmastime...so traditional that you might not even think of suggesting it? Another question...Vatican City. Tell me, where does the Pope eat? Obviously it is all 'in-house'...does anyone know anything about that? And what about the lesser dignitaries? Is there a, uh...Papal Cafeteria of sorts? Would love to know.... Thanks for any suggestions!

Will do, seahawg. Though my favorite dose of local culture available on CD is always the latest by Bill Lepp, the five time Champion of the West Virginia Liar's Contest. His latest CD is called ' Mayhem Dressed as an Eight Point Buck'. Wonder if he'll be at the festival....

For some bizarre reason I promised to give a simple cooking/history lesson to the sixth graders at the middle school who are now studying Native Americans (in 'Colonial' times)...the date for this is growing close and am just starting to put together bits and pieces of research...so if anyone has any ideas, or Heather if you do go to the Museum and like the menu...I would love to have some additional input...would you post? Thanks! FunJohnny: Nice quickly made recipe...might add it to the menu...I know for sure the kids would love fry bread...am unsure about pemmican, but it certainly would 'wow' them and give them something to think about. Most of the focus for the lesson so far has been on the importance of corn and all that it signified....

Phew. Thought for a moment you wrote 'sharp wench'.

This has been an ardent and marvellous foodblog, jackal10. Whomever follows will be a brave soul. Thank you for the incredible effort that went into putting this together for our pleasure.

Yes, you do have the makings of lots of good stuff there! The first thing I see at a quick look-through as a possibility would be a layered Mexican-themed sort of gratin. You could use up...the chorizo, lots of peppers, leeks/scallions/garlic,potatoes, parmesan and squash. Brown chorizo....roast peppers...saute the onion family...slice the potatoes very very thinly....grate parmesan...slice squash very thinly or grate. Layer up...add some sort of tomato-y base somewhere in there if you have it on hand....any herbs you like...season and cook in a slow oven till potatoes are tender. The rice could be made into round little balls...bound with beaten egg (and parmesan if you would rather use it here than in the other recipe) rolled in breadcrumbs and gently sauteed to brown. Nice collection of stuff, rsincere. Must go investigate my own fridge, too, now!

I think a tiny smidgeon of good-quality tomato paste (be very very careful with the amount...the slightest bit too much will head into overkill) will pump up the intensity of flavor.

Thank goodness for small touches of style in our daily lives. You are giving me hope, bloviatrix. But I am still hoping that some enterprising eGulleter will decide to manufacture these (very inexpensively made!) items in bright colors and market them to fancy food stores at some exorbitant price. I'd buy it!

'Nice' is a definite understatement. How long did it take you to drink it? (I had the same bottle once...and if I'd had more, I am sure they would have been calling me to drink them up one per day right in a row till done. Glorious taste.)

Small pieces of meat are difficult to roast well, I've found. I don't have a 'scientific' reason to give you....someone else probably can put it into words. I would rather pan-roast a small piece of meat or grill it.... Sad, to have it overdone. My sympathies...

Oh I doubt if you are delusional, Cusina. But you are a nice person, and that might make people think you are! I dunno....it might take me awhile to decide to open this book...and I might need to buy some new outfits first just to feel right about myself as I skim the pages, you know. I have no problem with that. Can't wait to see what you'll report on next. Hey, who needs to read when you provide such a good summary!