bavila

The way Chris feels about lobster is the way I feel about crabs, which is sort of blasphemous in the Chesapeake Bay area -- at least to those who don't know what it is to catch their own. I understand that this mindset could be judged as being "spoiled". I suppose I was "spoiled" to grow up in south Louisiana where there isn't really any crab season because you can get them year round. And you don't see boiled/steamed crabs in restaurants often because if you don't have a boat, you know someone who does, and you go and set your traps and get your own crabs. Then you take them home and cook them yourself, along with the bonus mac-daddy catfish you caught, fried up in corn meal, thank you very much. So for me to pay $75 for a dozen steamed crabs here in Maryland, knowing that more than likely they came from Louisiana or somewhere else other than the Bay (we've done a good job of depleting this treasure), is really just hard to stomach. As for lobster, unless you live in an area where they're caught easily, I don't have a problem with restaurant consumption. In fact, I have fond memories of a Thanksgiving dinner in Costa Rica with grilled langosta in a beachside restaurant. Worse things have happened.

I'll be there, probably just on April 30. Hoping for a dinner at Upperline Friday, breakfast at Elizabeth's and dinner at Liborio's (or something easy) on Saturday, and Sunday brunch at Cafe Marigny -- based on the entries from Maggie the Cat. We'll also be hitting some serious crawfish and other local specialties while visiting my parents in Lafayette. Gotta fit beignets into the plan somehow...

Mmmmm.... Tyler Florence.... yummy. I mean the food of course. I also like Ina Garten and the trailer guy (have only seen him once or twice, is he still on the air?). Oh, and Jamie Oliver. I think it's important to remember that hosts are not necessarily chefs (NOT that I encourage opening THAT semantic can of worms), and wouldn't call themselves such. The network reaches a broad audience with diverse tastes, and I think they do a pretty good job of covering the bases. So even though I think some of shows might provide recipes that I wouldn't prepare (or care to eat), I don't have a problem with them being there. Considering this is an entertainment medium, I know I'm heavily influenced by personality. Besides liking the food styles of Tyler, Ina, trailer guy, and Jamie, they all seem like pretty laid back individuals who do what they enjoy. Conversely, my least favorites are Bourdain -- a bit self-destructive for my taste, and Babbo -- I know he's knowledgeable and creative, but so does he. Did anyone see the show (or maybe it was a series) when culinary students worked in his restaurants and competed their dishes against his with NY food critics? He was SOOOO condescending. Perhaps he forgot that he was once a nub too. On the other hand, I really liked his Mario Eats Italy programs - he and his friend were the right brand of nutty. Edited to add: I like the old Galloping Gourmet with Graham Kerr (sp?) shows -- I think I've seen them on PBS?

So how does Rachel Ray prep greens? Sounds like I might want to do the same. ← She orders her millions of minions to wash, chop, wrap and store her groceries. Seriously though. She claims to wash and sort and chop and store all her fresh produce as soon as she brings it home so it's ready for her 30 min meals. ← I still would like to see RR prepare a meal in 30 minutes with a toddler (or two) at her knee. Anyone notice that rock of an engagement ring she's been wearing lately? Maybe in a couple of years she'll have a new show -- 30 Interruption Meals: How to Get Dinner on the Table Between Diaper Changes and Cub Scout Meetings.

Oh, you're funny . Of course, you also leave me without my kids-preclude-organization argument. I'm modified in organization -- occasionally I write up a weekly menu and accompanying grocery list (typed? ha!). I definitely don't do a full out mis en place prep, but generally read through my recipe to gauge whether some prep is a must before I start. On the stovetop, I don't get into much trouble, but when I'm baking... Oh boy. I could never be a professional pastry chef. I would get fired in a heartbeat. This weekend I made a frittata. Recipe called for a broiler-safe nonstick skillet. Not knowing if mine was broiler safe, I thought I'd just go for the indestructible cast iron. When I tried to take it out of the skillet, it peeled off in about three pieces. The frittata quickly became frittata bites cut around the rough edges. For the same event (a picnic), I made a chocolate hazelnut tart, and I suppose I just flaked -- used unsweetened chocolate instead of the called for semi-sweet. Even though I discovered the error before pouring the filling into the shell, I just couldn't salvage it with added sugar. Had to throw the whole thing away. Maybe all the cheerleading for tiny glass dishes will convince me that they're worth all the cleanup later...

Well, we couldn't have asked for better weather yesterday -- 70 degrees, sunny, and only a slight breeze -- a gorgeous Maryland spring day. I changed my menu as I was crawfished-out. I brought a frittata, veggie antipasto, guacamole, grapes, cheese, and crackers. Friends contributed wine, an arugula and strawberry salad, and chocolate cake. We hardly ate a thing considering all we brought. I think we were all just drunk on sunshine. I was somewhat disappointed in the food the tailgaters had, though I didn't check everyone out. I think there are a core of foodies who go all out, and others just bring fried chicken and such. I was most impressed by one group who had beautiful copper bar bins and pitchers of cosmos. This was a very kid-friendly event, and my two-year-old had a blast just running around us on the hill and pointing out the horses as they ran by.

Oh Toasted, I will be in your sleep-deprived Manolos later this fall. My two-year-old isn't completely picky -- yet -- so I haven't quite faced the battles you have. However, I would say : #1-Let your kids know that it is unacceptable to treat you like crap. A simple "I don't care for any" gets their message across without being rude. My sister never pushed this issue with my 15 year-old niece, and it's always driven me nuts! #2-I second the advice that you must remain in control of the menu, but perhaps incorporate input from the kids. Maybe throw in favorite fruits along with the black-bean cakes? #3-Our pediatrician stresses that mealtime is as much about social interaction as it is about nutrition. He also advises not to get into food choice battles as this sets the ground for poor eating habits (or even eating disorders) later; it also undermines the social aspect. Take care of yourself! If it's hard to believe right now, remember, sleep-blessed-sleep will be here soon, and your baby will soon be a toddler climbing on top of the dinner table to empty the contents of the salt shaker.

This Sunday, April 10, I'll be attending my first steeplechase event after covering the tailgating competitors for the Annapolis Capital (see article). My group will bring some basic goodies (wine, cheese, crawfish remoulade -- yes I'm from Louisiana), but I can't wait to check out the serious tailgaters. Who's going? What will you bring -- chips and dip or haute cuisine? How does tailgating at Roedown compare to other regional horse events (Preakness, Gold Cup)?

Perhaps this will be evident at a later date, but will the Daily Gullet entertain queries from writers? If so, how?

Oh dear. I'm loving this thread. MTC, thank your daughter for her eloquent journal entries. And after reading Mayhaw Man's description of the sweet olive and banana scent, I'm more homesick than ever. Can't wait to return for jazzfest. Oh, and I also have some fond (if margarita-blurred) memories of Cuco's on Carrollton.

My favorites in Balto are Helmand (Afghan, owned by the family of Hamid Karzai, incidentally) and Petit Louis(can't swear to the veg options, though). You would definitely need reservations at either one.

Well, my daughter's name is a food -- Madeleine. We served madeleines at her baptism celebration. I also at various times have called her: sweetpea sugar or sugar plum Madeleine sandwich (as in she's so cute and yummy I could have a...) bean (short for Mexican jumping bean when she was in utero) A Mexican friend calls her kids piglets in Spanish -- can't find the actual word right now.

Homemade flour tortilla wrapped around slow-simmered pork, pinto beans, and a tad of avocado, all prepared by my Maryland-native neighbor. It reminded me of my hubby's Mexican grandmother's cooking.

Count me in the camp of lose-the-friends-or-deal-with-them-being-late. My issue is a mother-in-law who is habitually late, usually leaving for an event at or after the time she's supposed to arrive. It annoys me but enrages my husband. I've encouraged him to just expect it and not let it upset him too much. She's not going to change, and he's not going to tell her to get lost, so there it is.

If they go to Commander's, they must also get the turtle soup. Great values for "true New Orleans experience" include the muffuletta at Central Grocery on Decatur, and varies items (po boys, red beans, etc.) at Mother's on Poydras. It's also crawfish season, so they should get some boiled while in town. There are a few threads in the Louisiana forum with lots of NO recommendations.

mmmm...GRITS!!!! Just out of curiousity Jaymes what is "that way" of having grits that would be cut not so fine? How exactly were they served? As a Louisiana native, I grew up with plenty of grits. Amazingly enough, my parents ate (and still eat) instant grits. Ick. I thought they were good at the time until I tasted the creamy comforting texture of slow-cooked grits. For anyone out there wary of grits, think of them as the low-brow cousin of polenta. They're great for breakfast. I like mine with a bit of butter, salt, and pepper. And I've been known to mix them up with scrambled eggs and eat it all with a spoon (this is when my husband calls me a campesino or peasant, to which I reply ). They're also great as a savory side done up any number of ways. (Here's a hint: if you're in low country and someone reccomends the shrimp and grits, get it. You won't be disappointed.) I was pleasantly surprised to see a lengthy sidebar devoted to grits in a Moosewood cookbook (from Ithaca, New York), extolling the versatility and agreeability of grits. I think it was Moosewood Restaurant New Classics.

I'd say the dates vary depending on weather (crawfish will go dormant in winter temps), but in Louisiana, the peak is generally March-June time frame for live or boiled crawfish. In stores in Maryland, frozen tail meat (generally from China) is usually available for a longer period of time, but not year round.

No food suggestions here, I personally believe that's just wishful thinking. I know it's hard to be patient. Every child in my family was 2-4 weeks early, so I thought my daughter's due date of Nov 27 would mean a Halloween baby for me. Her birthday's Dec 5! Just keep repeating to yourself "I won't be pregnant forever!" And do what you can to keep comfortable, including eating yummy food.

So, today is the big day, right? My birthday as well. St. Paddy's Day is a great birthday because there is always a party. Good luck to the new family! Maybe some nice colcannon or bangers & mash would be a nice treat with a nod to the Irish. Or for that matter, a pint of Guinness? Champagne sounds more appetizing to me though...

I'm so glad to not be alone in disliking seared tuna. The first time I ordered it (early in my ongoing food education) I didn't know that I should expect the bright red center, and the waiter tried to argue with me when I sent it back to be butterflied and cooked a bit more. It is never cool for restaurant staff to act haughty with customers (ie throwing dictionaries at them) for being less knowledgeable about food. And now that I know I don't like it, I order accordingly!

Well... since I never heard back from Mayhaw Man (did my 2 email attempts get through?), I called the alumni office at Tulane since I knew that they organized shipments to some alumni chapters that would then be cooked by alums. (My local chapter crawfish boil is usually catered by a NO restaurant that drives up with staff and equipment for the event.) Anyway, they suggested Mr. Mudbug(504-465-9770) in Metairie. Mr. Mudbug is the catering arm of the King Creole restaurant in Metairie, which is a great place to go for happy hour beer and crawfish, by the way. For my tentative guest list of 10 adults, Mr. Mudbug estimated the following costs: $60=30 pounds of crawfish at $2 per pound $4=seasoning $50=handling (appropriate packaging, etc. I'm not sure if this varies by size of order) $100=shipping by FedEx for overnight Saturday delivery, Louisiana to Maryland Total of $214, not too bad, especially since I have a FedEx friend who will cover the shipping for me. Interestingly, they recommend 3 pounds per person for non-Louisianians and 5 pounds per person for natives. They also asked for a week lead time to fill the order. I plan to post again after the boil (April 2) to let you all know how it went, but I thought I'd get this info up in case anyone else wanted to place an order themselves.

Not hungry during labor here, either -- mainly thirsty. Spend some time stocking up meals in the freezer at home for baby and mom's return. You'll be so sleep deprived (don't let the first few days of baby sleeping almost non-stop fool you) that you won't have much energy to prepare yummy healthy meals. Good luck!

Michelle, The Jazz Fest Food History thread lead me to something that might be helpful for you. On the Jazz Fest food, Ten Talents Catering, Mandeville, LA lists spinach artichoke casserole as an offering. maybe you can contact them for the recipe. I asked a friend the other day if she remembered this casserole, because I didn't, and she said, "They have vegetables at Jazz Fest?" Good luck! Bridget

You guys...oops, I mean Y'ALL... are a hoot. Can someone provide a link to the Corporate Food thread? I love EGullet, but it's still a bit tedious to search though. As for gumbo talk, I appreciate all shades of roux, though lean toward medium-dark for my own. Here's my pet peeve gumbo ingredient -- tomatoes. I know, this is a creole thing, and I have seen it in restaurants in NO, BUT! As a Cajun (by blood, not just geography) who grew up in Lafayette, I have to say that NO home cooks I knew ever put tomatoes in their gumbo. So now that I live in Yankeeland (you know, north of Alexandria, Louisiana), whenever I see "gumbo" on the menu somewhere, I ask what color it is -- brown, or red. The answer is almost invariably "red" giving away the toms. I then tell the waiter or chef or whoever will listen why I think the tomatoes don't belong there. All that soap box blathering aside, I have tasted "gumbos" with tomatoes and found them tasty concoctions, but I just won't call them "gumbo". The worst, though, was when the cafeteria at my former workplace served "gumbo" served on a plate with a fork!?!

I've rounded up a decent posse of friends willing to pitch in for a boil here in Maryland. I even have a friend who works for FedEx who will take care of overnight shipping. Now the question is, where should I turn for someone who will package the stuff for me and have it ready for the FedEx guy? I'm thinking somewhere in New Orleans will be a good choice so that the crawdads can get to the airport ASAP. But I'm open to all suggestions. Oh, and what's the going price for live ones these days? Merci beaucoups, Bridget PS Just booked flights for the second week of Jazz Fest and I'm psyched!