Rehovot

Lunch was Sara Moulton's Creamy Baked Polenta, from recipeGullet, topped with chicken, mushrooms, tomatoes and garlic. So good!

Congratulations! For my regional two cents... I think the Heartland and the Southwest get overlooked, too often. My recommendation is to fly into Denver, and take a bus to Federal Ave., where you could eat in bliss for a week--Vietnamese, Indian, Mexican--and don't forget the markets. Way to go!

I'm guilty... Kinder chocolate eggs! (The kind with the toy inside. I swear we have 50 of these toys, by now.) Elite chocolate bars! (They introduced one with pretzel bits a month ago, and I had to switch stores, to one where they weren't displayed at the checkout stand.) Tostitos. For pre-chocolate snacking, you know.

Hey, mizducky, your first blog was great fun to read; I'm looking forward to this one, and all its fabulous variety! You mentioned periwinkle meats in the first post... What are these? (I love the name.)

Water. Lots of it. Candied ginger (ostensibly for motion sickness). Sesame energy bars. Chocolate (only in winter; now, it just melts). Dried fruits or fresh fruit. Nuts! (Or coated peanuts, to which I'm addicted...) I'm a walking snack kiosk.

I grew up going here. Glad to hear it's still good.

How about some kind of Italian ice (drink)? Or a citron presse? Other ideas-- Cocktails without Alcohol (from Daniel Rogov); also courtesey of Rogov: Frappes and Granitas .

Surprise, the section on Czech cuisine is just as inflammatory and ignorant as the other rants. Well, it's a pity he only ate in train stations...if he even ate in CZ, at all... Traditional Czech cuisine, done well, is the antithesis of his description.

Doing an eG search for Vienna will turn up a bunch of threads. Here's a sample: Cheap Eats in Vienna, Prague, and Budapest Vienna, Sacher torte, Demel, etc. Vienna Dining I'll mention two at the extreme ends of the spectrum: Zum Drei Husarein (lovely and elegant) and Trezsniewski (off of Graben, a sandwich buffet, cheap and tasty!).

Carlos Brazilian used to be on the market in Roanoke, and was great; I guess they've moved, since their new address is 4167 Electric Rd., Roanoke -- 540/345-7661. More on their move. Awful Arthur's seafood, at the end of the market, used to be good... Roanoke Times dining guide (short). I'm also a big fan of Mill Mountain Coffee and Tea. And the Waffle House in Troutville.

A pity, since Rancho de Chimayo used to be quite good. What kind of regional spin were you hoping for, overall?

MEP=mise en place. Everything chopped/diced/julienned, etc., lined up. Preferably in little bowls. Anyway, that's my guess.

Hmm, I grew up in an Italian-American family, and breaking spaghetti was something you never did; I was taught (or maybe just intuited) that it was a superstition, and that it was bad luck to break spaghetti in half. My mom just took a handful of spaghetti, with one hand near the top and one near the middle and twisted while pushing down to get something that looked like a bound sheaf of corn. She did this in over and in the pot, by the way, so the pasta softens and you can eventually squeeze the strands in without breaking any. Try it. It works. My Irish-American dad used to cut his spaghetti with a knife and fork, which my mom overlooked out of love, but there was no question that, at least in the kitchen, no pasta was going to get snapped.

Exciting! I really enjoyed your last blog. And the photography in your posts is lovely. Is there a particular food that signals the arrival of spring to people in Amsterdam? Just wondering. Happy Birthday! (Mine is this week, too.) Have fun celebrating!

I despise my kitchen. It was built by misogynistic, color-blind dwarves who evidently had never cooked in their lives. The only creatures that seem to really like the kitchen are the ants. I don't mind cooking in the kitchen, because it's small, galley-style, and I can get to everything quickly. But it does not make me--or anyone else--want to spend a great deal of time in it. Luckily, I'm leaving it in two months... and moving to a place with a smaller kitchen, most likely.

The broiler on my oven is like the one shown in the diagram, here. Part of me thinks, Cool! Bruleed stuff! The other part thinks, Hmm, I usually prefer to see my food much farther away from the floor... And I've discovered that the door is stuck. So I might not leap into the world of broiling so soon, after all.

A fascinating thread, but I need Basic Broiling Help. I've never used the one on the bottom of the oven. I'm not even sure what might be lurking in there. Is a bottom-pan broiler good for anything (besides gratins, mentioned upthread--I can't produce a respectable/edible one)? I'm curious if it's more than just a bunch of wasted space.

The tone of the second website you mentioned, FFB--that of the "fan club"--is hysterical. With fans like those, who needs enemies? Edited to clarify which site

Bailoni: apricot (and other) liqueur from the Wachau Valley...Austria's Napa. But locals will tell you that local, homemade versions are much better! They also make cherry and pear liqueur.

I guess it might be like living in the Bible Belt and not celebrating Christmas... But Israeli friends seem happy to explain holidays and traditions, and one copied down a series of treasured family recipes. Living here is an education in cultural exchange. And food. So many diverse foods, so little time.... Yes. But we usually end up at kosher cafes, anyway, when we go out...Thanks for blogging, and have a good holiday! For what Passover dish or baked item do you receive the most orders?

I was totally prepared this year and started stocking up on bread three weeks ago. Now my (atheist/secular/high-holiday Catholic) household has 3 loaves in the freezer and two in the fridge. But as an outsider, I do love a holiday that involves so many macaroons! Your menu looks fabulously tasty, Pam. Good luck!

We used to buy the cabanos sausages, here, in Israel, until my husband muttered that they taste remarkably like the horse salami he's familiar with from the Czech Republic. I think his words were, in best Jack Nicholson fashion, "You can't handle the truth!" He's right.

Here ya go. (I think.) Peter freakin' cottontail. Good luck with the little buggers!

Like any major U.S. city, Denver has many places where you can find specialty foodstuffs. You could kick a stone and hit about 5 Whole Foods in the metro area. If you're looking for smaller, independent stores, people are bound to have their neighborhood favorites, but here are some of mine... Federal Ave. is packed with Mexican places and tiendas... The Highland Gardens area (West 32nd Ave.) has great places like this -- St. Patrick's Cheese Shop is brilliant..... The highest-end vinegars and oils are probably hidden somewhere in Cherry Creek / Lodo, but I'm not sure... Oh...you mean wholesale, rather than retail? Maybe call 5280 or Westwordfor tips... Or the Post / Rocky Mtn. News. Hope some of this helps...

Here's the recipe. And now, if you'll pardon me, I have to go buy almond paste.