Rehovot

blue cheese + softened cream cheese + s&p + herbs? You could add milk/cream to thin it to dippable consistency...maybe. A thinned creamed spinach recipe might work...but far be it for me to introduce a vegetable into the snack-fest. Or do you mean a non-dairy dip? How about mayo doctored with chipotle, wasabi, etc., or just spices/fresh herbs? Good luck--

Great topic. I love this kind of food history... My maternal grandparents were of Irish and Italian stock. On this side of the family, the Northern Italian influence dominated. While my grandmother didn't like to cook, my grandfather's mother *loved* to. Her risotto recipe, passed down to her by her mother from Cuggione, is the first page in my cookbook. Family legend recounts her using every pot and utensil available to make Sunday lunches. I never knew her, but I do feel license to use every pot when I cook. My grandfather died when I was young, but I associate him with the proverbial glass jar of jellybeans on their coffeetable. My paternal grandparents were New York Irish-American, legendary party hosts. Even when they retired to the west, the giant lemonade pitchers of martinis in the fridge never struck me as odd, even as a kid... My grandmother loved all things Irish, and reveled in serving corned beef and cabbage whenever the entire extended family gathered. Here, cooking and storytelling are closely linked, since there was never just one person in the kitchen, but at least twelve, all talking at the same time. I'm lucky to still have my paternal grandfather around. At 96, his recipe for stuffed mushrooms is as good as it was twenty years ago. He loves great food, but his lesson to the younger generation is probably that the food is great insofar as it creates an opportunity to linger over excellent conversation and family history.

We're finishing up the last (sob) of a Lemon Chiffon Cake with Herme's Lemon Cream recipe, inspired by this thread. The cake has terrific flavor, but was probably denser than it should have been, since the egg whites weren't that stiff, and they all rose to the top and created this odd egg-white layer on top. But I beat the egg whites by hand, got more of an arm workout than I expected to, and gave up too soon, I guess. Topped with mascarpone and lemon cream, it still tasted lovely... Thanks to you all for delivering inspiring pics..... Wow, the Burdick chocolates look excellent! Are those mice in the middle?

The lipstick problem perplexes me... Aren't these girls biting with their teeth?? I found myself snapping off bits of a cookie and nibbling on it for an hour--whether I'm just too cheap to buy more than one cookie, or because I was at a fancy cafe, I'm not sure.

The Ha'aretz article highlights a significant increase in investment, especially foreign investment, in restaurants in Israel. The variety of cuisines represented in this list is nothing new; Israelis and tourists have known about the diverse offerings around the country for some time.... I consider Catit a destination restaurant...even though I live about ten minutes away from it. By the way, These people are talking about more than just raw ingredients...

This is a browned-butter topping that's fantastic... Happy crumb and cake testing. 1 c. flour 1/2 c. brown sugar 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/4 tsp. salt 5 tablespoons butter Combine the first four ingredients in a mixing bowl, and stir together well. Melt butter over medium heat in a small saute pan. Cook until the butter foams and begins to turn light brown. When it smells nutty, take the pan off the heat and cool slightly. Stir the browned butter into the reserved dry ingredients for the streusel topping.

In 2006, I will eat under trees, on a blanket, more often. I will make croquettes. I will find a way to get my forty spice jars out of the country when we move. I will learn how to cook for others without having a panic attack. I will teach egg whites a thing or two. I will read all of Kafka. This is the year I will try to make my great-grandmother's risotto recipe from scratch, no cheating. I will taste with all my senses. I will use my mandoline without fear. I will give up on the fantasy of having a dishwasher. I willnever, ever eat lima beans. We do not discuss peanut butter with each other. (I love it, he despises it.) My kids will have a genetic predisposition for peanut butter and kolachy.

Change the Euros for Czech crowns, as the Czech Republic is not on the Euro (yet).

Huh. I had Sacher Torte at the Hotel Sacher this summer, and didn't find it dry at all, but dense and moist, so you can add my vote to the small but happy minority. Viennese pastry is my downfall....Demel, Cafe Oberlaa, the pink Cafes Aida. Mmmm.

Good news...must not have been the dough, then. That means I can make chocolate chip cookies this week with no impunity! Edited to attempt to fix the spaces...

Eating spiced plum cake and "crisp" toffee bars... Not so crisp, and not so tasty. Mr. R. loves them because they don't have a lot of sugar, but I think they're blahhhnd and could use a lot *more* sugar.... I think my cookie-dough eating days are over... (Is it possible to get something awful from eating raw dough, or is that just a myth?)

Happy Birthday! My family tends to give me cookbooks; my mom started giving me great zesters and other gadgets as stocking stuffers... Mr. R. doesn't have a clue as to why I like to cook/bake....doesn't really see it as a hobby...but appreciates the results. We move a lot, and haven't "settled down" anywhere, but I'm picking up pieces on the sly... a glass tart dish here, a silpat there....

Wow, that goat is cuter than a puppy. The granola looks great....so it's peanut oil, honey, cinammon, oats, and... Could you share the recipe (please)? Have fun in the rain! (I miss it!)

Prague: Kavarna Lucerna. Tel Aviv: Press Cafe. Denver: The Market. Oops...the "best" espresso, or favorites?

How about these savory mini muffins? Both the red onion-Gruyere and sage kinds are terrific. Found them on this thread; lots of tasty ideas in there!

Here's a good cornbread and cornbread stuffing recipe, taken from Cook's Illustrated, I think. (The directions are reworded per eG guidelines.) I didn't use it as stuffing, but as dressing, so I added some chicken stock and baked the whole mess. The toasted pecans are a great detail. Golden Cornbread Makes about 16 cups crumbled cornbread. (The stuffing recipe requires about 3/4 of this cornbread recipe.) 4 large eggs 1 1/3 cups buttermilk 1 1/3 cups milk 2 cups yellow cornmeal, preferably stone-ground 2 cups (10 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour 4 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 tablespoons sugar 1 teaspoon salt 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing baking dish Preheat oven to 375F, with the rack in the middle position. Butter a 9x13 inch dish. In a bowl, beat the eggs. Add the buttermilk and milk with a whisk. In another (large) bowl, stir together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt. Make a well in the these ingredients, then add the egg and milk mixture. Whisk until just mixed. Then stir in the melted butter. Pour into the prepared dish. Bake until golden, about 30-40 minutes. (Make sure the edges of the cornbread have separated from the sides of the dish.) Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour before using in the following recipe. Cornbread Stuffing 1 c. minced onion 2 c. chopped celery (stalks and leaves) 1 1/3 c. butter or margarine 12 c. coarse cornbread crumbs 2 2/3 tsp. salt 2 tsp. crushed sage leaves or poultry seasoning 1 1/3 tsp. thyme leaves 1/2 tsp. pepper 1/2 c. pecan pieces, lightly toasted 1/4 c. golden raisins Stir onion and celery in butter, in a large frying pan, until tender. Add 1/3 of the cornbread crumbs, and stir. Transfer to a large bowl, add the rest of the ingredients, and toss together. Makes 12 cups of stuffing.

I am a lady (when I'm not cursing at bugs). And I eat lunch. Therefore, I am a Lady Who Lunches. Party of one. Yes, bring me the wine menu! Occasionally, when I was little, my mother would take me to lunch at Neiman Marcus, in Fashion Island, where I learned how difficult it was, socially, to butter a popover. These lunches, more frequent before my brother came along, taught me manners and the value of conversation with one's mom. The most recent meeting of LWL in my family was last summer, when my two aunts took me to lunch at a golf course in Wailea. A breezy lanai, a view of the ocean, tropical cocktails, and conversation with women I admire and can learn volumes from--not bad for an afternoon. Did I mention we had salads? Now that I eat leftovers for lunch in between stints at the computer, I spend a lot of time reminiscing about what I learned from the women I lunched with.

Hot Tamales candies got me through many all-nighters.

I'm curious why... Did you find flaws in the Penzey's recipe, or another one? I'm dying to try it, but I was hoping this thread would determine a clear winner before I had to go restock on home baking supplies...

Krušovice Černé / Dark. Great stuff for a cold (um, in the 60's?) winter's night. I can't decide if I like this dark or Staropramen's better.

Artichoke heart, ham, and mushroom quiche. Parmesan crust....yum. Cherry tomatoes with garlic vinaigrette. Camembert and rolls. Coffee! Apple pie! Best of all....most of it was reheated via toaster oven in about 20 minutes.

This is a highly entertaining thread... I was taught to switch, growing up; then I grew up and stopped switching. Now I'm married to a European who doesn't switch--or ever put the knife down while eating-- which has made me become contrary, so I've switched back, just to be different. And am now switching. I fear we may have to equip any future kids with a spork to avoid confusion... Carry on!

If my head is stuffed, I make roasted salsa. Even if I can't taste it, I can feel it working. I don't mind making chicken soup when I'm sick...it's the crawling out to the store and shopping for the ingredients that I mind... Soup and hot buttered toast. Maybe, on the 3rd day, some pasta. All interspersed with gallons of water and juice.

I used to nosh on HotPockets for breakfast, as a teacher due in the classroom at 7:45 am. Leftover Chicken-Leek-Oat soup, bag o' Doritos, and Lemon Coke, today. Sometimes, I need my dose of Americana.

Please post, Kay; it sounds great!