JudyG

So is Esperanza THE place to stay? I've heard it's toss-up between here and Las Ventanas. How was your room at Esperanza? Anything else to share? Thanks! ← I can only say that we loved Las Ventanas! In fact we are going back there in Feb. for two weeks! Their dining room is excellent! We ate at several places - including the main dining room which has one of the best views in Cabos - and is very good indeed. I can't speak for the rooms but have heard nothing but good reviews of the hotel

We went to Cabos last winter and will be going back in Feb. Ate at the Charlie Trotter restaurant at Palmilla and can truthfully say I would NEVER recc. it! Our meal for two - cocktails no wine - was $300 - which is absolutely ridiculous; they tried to seat us indoors when I said we wanted to be outside on arrival; and the overly fancy presentation is just plain silly and over the top - for example silver covers over the dessert, pulled off with a flourish. This may be fine in Chicago or NYC at a high end restaurant but in Mexico? The food was good - but far from spetacular. If you want to eat at the hotel - stick with Aqua - their beach restaurant. Judy

I sincerely hope for the latter. By buying from supermarkets, we are already so estranged from the food we eat that I refuse to take another step away. I've never ordered from Fresh Direct, but would like to hear what everyone who has ordered from them thinks about their produce. I wonder whether their business increases substantially during the winter, when lugging groceries home is such a chore that even I have considered engaging in mail-order shopping. ← I'm a Fresh Direct fan although I dont purchase on weekly basis. Their organic poultry and fresh pasta is simply the best Ive ever had - I tend to buy in mini-bulk and freeze- that is, I will buy a couple of chickens, chicken parts, etc. and linguine, fettucine and tortellini to have on hand. I put the bags of pasta in another plastic bag - and it stays as fresh as the day I buy it. I have a vacuum sealer and seal meats and poultry. We also purchase steaks from Fresh Direct, and for a party I had a perfectly lovely breast of veal As for the produce, Ive never had bad - and it is far better than any I can find at my local supermarkets Judy

You could put them in a glass or plastic container and keep the balance for a while in your fridge - but personally I would suggest making a great tomato sauce and freezing it.

Try using a serrated vegetable peeler, such as the one from Messermeister or Oxo

This is a recipe from Lynne Kasper that I have made several times this summer for guests - always drawing raves! You will see that she says to serve the beans at room temp. - and while they are VERY good that way, I simply reheat them before serving in a bit of olive oil. I make these early in the day - strain - salt after cooking GENEROUSLY - and then let them sit in a bowl on the counter all day if neccessary! Dont be afraid to use a lot of salt - by time you eat the beans, you will taste only a delicious vegetable, not salt. Even my husband, who really doesnt like green vegetables, loves these! Tuscan Family Green Beans 3 qrt boiling water in a 6-qt. pot 3 Tab. salt plus more to taste 1 1/4-1 1/2 lb green beans, trimmed Freshly ground black pepper Fruity extra virgin olive oil -(opt.) adapted from the Italian Country Table: Home Cooking from Italy's Farmhouse Kitchens" by Lynne Rosetto Kasper These are the beans I ate one September, night after night on my cousin's farm in Tuscany, beans so good you will want to eat them with your fingers, one by one. I never tired of them. Salt, pepper and olive oil were always on the table to dress the beans. To taste their full sweetness, cook the beans a few min. beyond the tender-crisp stage we've become accustomed to. Salting the water and salting the beans while they're still hot are essential for opening up their flavors. Good olive oil. tasting of fruit and nuts makes a lovely finish, but the beans are superb without it too. On our family table in Tuscany, they're served at room temp. I've come to like them this way. Cook to Cook: Of course the beans must be good to begin with and garden-fresh are best.But this recipe works with the sturdier beans shipped long distances in winter and taste flavorful, with a hint of sweetness. Don't buy beans that are dull and flat tasting, wilted, puckery or limp. Serve these beans with almost anything. They freshen mellow roasted or braised dishes, foil hot and spicy ones, tone down tart ones and are just right with grilled fish or meat. 1. Add the 3 Tab. salt to the boiling water. Taste for appealing saltiness. Drop in the beans and boil uncovered 5-10 minutes, until tender, but with no hint of mushiness. Timing varies greatly according to the age, size and freshness of the beans. Taste for doneness and trust your judgement, not the clock. Drain immediately in a colander and turn into a bowl. Most important is to season the hot beans right away with salt and pepper. Then taste again, adding more seasoning if necessary. Serves 4-6 Class Notes: 1. use Kosher Salt in the water but when salting cooked beans, use any kind you like, e.g. sea salt, etc. 2. As Ive said, Lynne says to serve at room temp.

I have the FoodSaver Professional II model - two of them - one at our apt. and one at our beach house - and think it is very good! I got one of them via Ebay. I forget how much it was - but they have various models - you can see them online at foodsaver There are various accessories that come you can get - including a marinating cannister. Costco and BJ's carry the 1050 model I believe

I think All clad is terrific - but I never buy sets as they invariably include a piece or two you don't want or won't use. I have the LTD. pots and pans- stainless on the interior, dark aluminum on the exterior. Is it the best you can get? I honestly think that is subjective - as is the decision to buy the all stainless or Ltd. As I never - well, almost never - put my pots and pans in the dishwasher, that wasn't a question for me. Another good stainless line is Sitram - expensive but tops imho for all stainless.

Use it for any kind of puree - do you make applesauce? It would be great for applesauce - peeled or unpeeled apples!

You are lucky to have bay leaves! Mine never last and the poor little trees always end up with bugs and I end up giving the bay leaf tree up! Try the rosemary in rosemary oil or vinegar. Almost any herb can be used this way - in the past Ive made basil oil. Havent done this with opal basil - but why not? What can you loose? Judy

Try this web site: http://www.rancherschoicenaturalmeats.com/index.htm Ive ordered steaks in the past - outrageously expensive but delicious! Judy

I use both a slow cooker and a pressure cooker. In my working days, I love the slow cooker because I could get everything ready the night before, put it in the pot and leave it overnight in the fridge - pullout in the a.m. and put it up just before leaving the apt. I still like to make stock in it- though I often cook it down a bit after 12 hours or so. The PC is wonderful for hurry up or cooking something fast when Im just not in the mood to let it go forever. Example: Ive cooked osso bucco in the pc - moved it to another pan for reheating later and then done a risotto in the pc! Lorna Sass has two great books out for the PC -Cooking Under Pressure and The Pressured Cookbook. Crockpot - It is best to just browse - I have some books in the city (at the moment Im at the beach) - if I recall, the best are by mabel Hoffman Jacqueline Heritau - both old paperbacks. I honestly have a bunch of recipes I got from another Internet site where Im on the Staff. Judy

We have eaten at Esca several times - usually before going to the theatre in that area. As Mao has told you, the menu comes in various sections - and you could easily share foods. One of our favorites is the salt encrusted fish. It is crowded and noisy and we usually have had good service - but at least once it was not so hot and I found a waitress a bit to casual. But this happened only once and I dont hold that against it.

My Pleasure. As Im new here, Im still feeling my away through threads myself!

I have a Mac computer and have used Mastercook a bit in the past although it wasn't my program of choice. I no longer use it as it is not compatible with the latest mac software. Mastercook comes with several 'cookbooks' but you can easily create your own just for recipes you want. You can input recipes - once you enter an ingredient or measurement it can be selected automatically another time -create meal and market lists, scale recipes. People love it in another area in which Im active. I believe you can download it and maybe try before buying. Not sure of the web site - just put 'mastercook' into Google or any search engine and you should find it.