Special K

I know. I posted from work (don't tell anybody).

Just the other day, reading the minimalist kitchen thread here, I learned that when you're camping/fishing, the boat's paddle makes a fine cutting board! Not that I can foresee using this bit of info any time soon, but it's good to know.

My husband and I just had that discussion this morning. He asked why I let the eggs sit out until they've warmed up just a bit. I do it when I'm frying them because I think a cold egg would have to cook longer and maybe over-cook. For baking, I think cold eggs are probably better.

AKA Rinderbraten (sp?) It's a spiced, larded and corned whole beef round, boiled and then you wrap it in cheesecloth and simmer it until it's tender. What got us was the spices - things like allspice and cloves and cinnamon. Introduced to middle Tennessee by German immigrants. I'm not sure Dad really liked it, either. I think it just reminded him of his childhood.

Likes (in no particular order): Early Alton Brown, not so much the motorcycle persona and I don't much like the new longer hair (but he didn't ask me). I liked Geeky Alton a lot better. Early Emeril Legasse, without the audience (but I do agree that he is to be commended for his response to Katrina, and I do like Emeril Green). He seems like a nice guy, and I'm worried about his health. Poor guy looks like a walking heart attack these days. Jamie Oliver, especially now that the camera work is so wonderful, as opposed to the Naked Chef, where the constant jumping around made me dizzy. The show and Jamie seem to have calmed down quite a bit, and I'm glad. Mario Batali, especially Molto Mario, not so much the Iron Chef shows - I'm just not into watching chefs compete - I think cooking should be an act of creation, of giving, not of trying to beat out someone else. I know this is Food Network's way of bringing in new, younger, male audience members, but I don't like it. Sara Moulton, love her. Ina Garten, love her too. Nigella Lawson, in small doses. Early Michael Chiarello, not so much the current show on FLN where he rants - I don't want to see him rant, I want nice, easygoing smiling Michael, not frowny, griping Michael. Tyler Florence. I want to adopt him. Ming Tsai, although my enjoyment was somewhat ruined by a report from a local food writer that he was inexplicably very rude to her when she interviewed him. I've never glimpsed any sign of rudeness on his shows, but I can't stop thinking about it when I see him. Anthony Bourdain, loveable bad boy. Not so much: Bobby Flay (the competition thing again). And I don't think playing tricks on people is nice. Rachel Ray, although I have to say I know lots of young people who started cooking with her, and anything that gets young 'uns in the kitchen is good. Her voice always bothered me, but it turns out she just had throat surgery for a nodule or something. Sandra Lee. Skin-crawling aversion to the woman for reasons I can't really define. I can't turn the channel fast enough when her show comes on. But I do want her kitchen. Paula Deen. Now, I'm a Southerner myself, and I just don't buy it. I think it's all an act. Plus, it seems obvious to me that she's trying to kill us all. Martha Stewart. Now that she's come down off her pedestal I think I understand why everyone hated her before. Still, I feel sorry for her about the "Whatever, Martha" show, although I've read that it was her idea. I actually liked her more when she was perfect. I didn't believe it, but for some reason I liked it. I guess we want our teachers to be paragons (or I do). Really Dislike: The whole crop of new shows on Food Network which have replaced the educational, informative ethic with testosterone.

Have I mentioned the mud hens Dad shot and Mom dutifully cooked? The horrible sulphur taste was bad enough, but the pieces of lead shot she missed were really something! Dad was so proud of himself when we sat down to dinner that nobody had the heart to tell him the ducks were inedible. We rarely all sat at the "company" table for family meals, so this was a big deal (thank goodness there was no company!). We all tried to hide the meat under the potatoes . . . even Dad, I think. Come to think of it, he switched from hunting to wildlife photography shortly thereafter. But he had to have his spice round every Christmas. Apologies to those of you (probably Tennesseeans) who love it, but we couldn't stand it (couldn't figure out what the heck it was!), and every year he ordered a huge one. Maybe the problem was the way he prepared it; I don't know. Again, not wanting to hurt his feelings, we choked as much of it down as we could. Poor Dad. Whenever he got the chance to cook he'd always go for something weird, or burn something normal to a crisp. But it was always offered with such love and pride! I miss him.

Okay . . . let's see. I'm going to take you literally and post the entire contents of my fridge/freezer. There's milk, heavy cream, some kind of fruit juice, usually some buttermilk, and always a bottle of club soda on the top shelf on the right. On the left are all my various and sundry mustards and mayos. Next shelf down is for eggs and leftovers/sack lunches on the right; the cheese bin is on the left - always has cheddar, goat cheese, a big hunk o' Parmesan, and some gorgonzola. Bottom shelf holds all the meats, bacon, sausages, whatever's thawing for dinner. Below that are two more bins; on the right are the veggies, on the left, all my baking bits and bobs (dried cherries, nuts, candied ginger, butter, etc.) I probably should put the meat in that bin, but there are so many little packages and things that I use for baking that it's easier to corral all of that stuff there. The shelves are glass so there's no problem with meat drippage (and anyway I'm scrupulous about keeping things clean and tidy). In the doors are various condiments that don't really need refrigerating. In fact, I realized when we got the new fridge and I was transferring stuff that a good portion of the refrigerator's contents probably don't need to be in there at all. But where else would I put it? In the big bottom drawer freezer are the martini makings - two glasses, the shaker and a small bottle of Tanqueray (gin) - in their own handy little box which I think is supposed to hold extra ice. There's a pull-out top shelf, which is where the frozen vegetables live. In the big bin, on the right I keep the roasts, chickens, steaks, etc., and on the left are the other frozen stuff, small things, little those tiny little containers of coffee ice cream that I try to forget about so that when I have a craving I can forage and there they are!, and things like turkey pot pie made from the Christmas turkey, usually a big container of spaghetti sauce and another of beef stew. In a little basket thing along the front of the drawer, I keep things like yeast and wheat germ and extra butter and nuts. O/T, I love my new side-by-side-with-freezer-drawer-on-the-bottom-and-ice-maker-in-the-door-as-opposed-to-taking-up-valuable-freezer-space refrigerator, but I wish I'd noticed how easily dented the front of it is! My 'fridge is tucked back into its own little box, which looks nice and saves floor space in my relatively small kitchen. But this means I can only open the doors straight out, not wide, or they'll hit the walls on either side of the box. (There is no center divide, though, so I can open both doors and fit in big trays and things.) I'm not normally a magnet-on-the-fridge person, but now I have to have a bunch of stuff on it now to cover those dents. Oh, well. There are worse catastrophes! Edited because gorgonzola IS blue. Doh!

Great idea! Thanks.

Whenever I make spaghetti sauce I make a huge batch. Half goes directly to the freezer, 1/4 is dinner that night, and later in the week the remaining 1/4 gets dosed with cumin and beans are added to turn it into chili. (The miracle stretchy ingredient is tomatoes.)

I like the kind that you just tap lightly on the counter to open in a hurry -- I like them to lock because they hang off the side of my utensil crock (actually an old silver loving cup) and they keep a lower profile if they lock. A locking ring would be a PIA. I have two pairs of regular-length tongs - one with silicone tips and one plain stainless. I also have a really long (like two-foot) pair that I use all the time to grab stuff my husband keeps putting on the upper shelves (cuz I'm too lazy to drag out the step-stool). Couldn't do without any of them.

May I suggest a little jar of truffle salt? It costs about $25 and will last for a very long time. I bet they'd both like it.

Found it today at QFC in Ballard. The website has a whole bunch of recipes, but first it's going on a turkey sandwich! May I say, LB, that your comment strikes me as . . . not exactly in the eGullet spirit? Lots of people like the taste of bacon but can't or won't eat the real thing. If you find this product repulsive, don't buy it. But don't judge those of us who are interested in trying it, please.

In all the confusion, I didn't notice that my recipe for Parker House rolls would have fed an army. After baking two half-sheet pans full (for four people!) I realized my mistake. The next day I just baked the rest of the dough in a loaf pan. DH said, "You've made Wonder Bread!" It was perfect for the day-after sandwiches.

"Get out the nested bowls, everybody gets one, including the bird. The bird doesn't get seasonings, but he likes to stand on the side of the bowl and loves popcorn." One of my Abys (cats), Nora, loves popcorn. I believe that's because she thinks it's styrofoam, which she would eat by the bucketload if we didn't watch her. (The other Aby, Nick, prefers gel shoe inserts.) Oooh, duck fat, bacon fat! Nora and I are about to enter a whole new phase of good livin'! ETA a comma.

Actually, what I'd like to get rid of is the "Preheat" setting on my oven. Either that or I'd like to get a better memory . . .

Actually, it's multiplication AND addition: multiply by 1.8 and add 32. Sorry, couldn't resist!

Holy cow. Now I know why my English teachers always stressed good paragraphing!

Well, I can't taste much of a difference, maybe a little less fizz, BUT since the can liners are made of polycarbonate plastic, which contains bisphenol-A, which mimics estrogen and can leach into the soda, I for one am stickin' with glass. I've pretty much eliminated all canned items from my pantry, and I make sure that things like water bottles, storage containers, etc., are not polycarbonate plastic. Yes, the jury is still out on BPA (FDA says it's harmless, but in the face of a very critical panel of scientists who beg to differ, it will re-investigate the issue), but why take the risk if I don't have to?

She is now!

So, 27 bar books, and 22 from the travel section that are definitely all about food (mostly French).

Four more from Value Village on Wednesday, plus one (a thin little quiche and savory tart cookbook) I found stuck inside Alton Brown's "I Just Came Here to Cook." And I just re-read the beginning of this thread and found out that the books in the bar section count, too, so I'll get those counted this weekend (I think there are about 30). What about travel memoirs that contain recipes and loving descriptions of meals?

403, and yet somehow there are still a bunch more on my wishlist!

Dang it! What a time to be reminded of this - just as school lets out for the day! Oh, well, Doc (the high school chemistry teacher) and I (his volunteer assistant) will just have to celebrate at home. Salute!

Thanks, Bob. That makes sense. My magnetic strip is on a wall at an angle to the microwave, at the same height as the handle on the door (the only wall space available). Because of that, I'd be more likely to accidentally slice my hand reaching for the microwave door if I stored my knives points up. So that's why I feel more comfortable with the points down . . . I thought it was probably due to where the strip is. As for the knife block getting dirty, I think the real culprit is the ambient grease in all kitchens. You can wipe down the block all you want, but some of that grease is going to get into those slots no matter how neat you are. But in fact the real reason I got the magnetic strip is that the block my knives came with (they're the Henkels Twin Telects with the stainless steel handles - I like 'em but my husband hates 'em) - well, that block was just too tippy!

Agreed about the unhygenic blocks. And blocks take up counter space! I bet they got the idea from the bamboo skewers in the cannister method (pretty smart, that). Again, agreed about the magnetic strips. My question is, which way do you store the knives, business end down or up? I always see them stored pointing up, but I find it easier to grab the handle if the point is down. Maybe that's just because of where the strip is located in my kitchen. I always, always wear hard-topped shoes in the kitchen (since my husband had the unfortunate incident which involved several stitches), but I have never accidentally knocked a knife off the strip, and if I did, I don't think it would fall straight down, anyway. I think I'd be more likely to knock one off if I were trying to grab the handle from below the strip. Just askin' outta curiosity.