M. Lucia

I adore roast vegetables, especially cubes of butternut squash with some cumin and coriander. I often do a big plate of roast veg. butternut sqush or carrots, green beans, parsnips, tomatoes, shallots, whatever is on hand. Even artichoke hearts are good, eggplant, zucchini. Asparagus is wonderful done with oil, salt and garlic. Roast tomato halves with thyme. Cauliflower, new potatoes, brussel sprouts. Roasted (and peeled) red peppers of course, though somewhat different. Sweet potato wedges, I even roasted baby bok choy once. I could go on and on...

homemade macaroni and cheese with lots of extra crunchy topping my friend's bourbon fudge cake (must get the recipe) tomorrow it's back to healthier fare (wait, didn't i say that yesterday? sigh)

Percy's photo inspired me to make buttermilk waffles. I was starving and they were so good (nice and fluffy thanks to whipped egg white). Cooked up some sausage for my brekkie companion. And snowangel, toast is my favorite too. My family has a slight obsession. I prefer it done in the toaster oven though, butter added before toasting and to medium color.

Thanks for the further info on dates (as I put my Saudi dates into the freezer). The safflower actually has very little taste from what I've noticed. Interestingly, it is the same plant safflower oil comes from. Camel milk- learn something new every day! Haloumi is great grilled, and I also love the really salty feta cheese. I've never heard of dried pomegranate seeds, they would probably be quite hard. Barberries are an excellent guess, they are frequently used in Iranian cooking under the name zereshk, and they are small and dark and color. Coincidentally, I just picked up some sweetened dried barberries from Aji Ichiban, the japanese munchie store, they are very good but bear little resemblance to their natural source.

I hope your stomach doesn't hate me! Oh, I am in date heaven! I've never seen a store just for dates. I love the really dark colored, soft, sweet ones. Are the sukery dates dry and chewy? And all those mamoul and date products... The sweets you got are regular baklava, finger-shaped baklava, and king's crown (taj al-mailk) baklava. I actually have some of that saffron/safflower in my cabinet. It behaves a bit differently than regular saffron, but I have found some things to do with it. You can make an infused oil by heating some oil in a pan and adding the asfar, let steep while you go do something else, then strain it. Keep in the fridge. You can also steep it in some water (make sure to strain the leaves out) and then use the water for cooking rice or couscous. Your kibbe looks lovely, and I think your little football shapes are great. The yogurt tempering takes a gentle hand, but the sauce is usually thick and flowing. I hope you enjoyed them. Nice banana bars. Have you had trouble finding dry ingredients (oats, flour, etc)? I remmeber having to figure out the different labels because they were often different names/translations. Is chile paste with labne a usual thing? I love my labne with a swirl of honey. Thanks for all the great pictures, too.

Karkade is indeed used for hibiscus drinks, and is popular in Sudan also. Koorka is a chinese potato, a root vegetable that can be served in a curry sauce. The super seeds (the arabic label says "excellent seeds") look like a relative of pumpkin seeds, the ubiquitious arab snack. Freekeh is a roasted Lebanese grain, green cracked wheat, similar to bulgur/wheat. It has a wonderful smoky texture and appealing color. To prepare it, melt some butter or oil in a pan and add the freekeh, stirring to lightly toast. Then add stock or water to cover and simmer for about 25 mins, until the liquid is absorbed. Often served with chicken and pearl onions. Because Dubai is 80% expat, I understand that Western traditions are prevalent. If you get a chance, you must go to a traditional family meal, not just for the food but for the social customs and traditions that you can share in. The experience as a whole is wonderful, and the courses just keep coming! Because it is rude to stop eating before other people are finished, take small bites and eat as slowly as possible. A lot of times our maid would offer to cook for us for a minimal price. Though I mostly cooked for myself (I was a little uncomfortable with having help to begin with), occaisionally she would bring us wonderful bowls of spreads, salads or pilafs to stock the fridge. I am glad you have such a good relationship with the Sri Lankan woman, and that you can have future exchanges.

Me too! I have such a sweet tooth... Sometimes I just order an appetizer to save room for dessert. In restaurants, I often opt for two appetizers instead of an entree, usually b/c the appetizer dishes look more interesting to me (and I am not a big meat eater).

Oh, I am so excited! If you need someone to read arabic, I will be happy to help, and I know there are many other arabic speakers on the forum also. The grocery store Goodies looks just like where I used to grocery shop in Beirut (Monoprix). It makes grocery shopping so much fun, all the produce is so beautiful, everything is made fresh, and there is nothing like Arab sweets! Some things I might hope to see: dates (which varieties are available?) dairy shop (different types of labne, cheeses, shanklish) sweets, foul, etc. what are the traditional foods of the area? and traditional eating customs? what is the indonesian/imported labor influence on the cuisine?

I can't remember if there are seeds- I don't think so. I never noticed too much salt, you shouldn't have told me, now I might imagine it. Does the yeast dough kind look similar to the cookie kind? I've only ever had the cookie kind, so I am looking forward to trying the softer ones.

I'm very curious. I don't quite understand how it is served or what it tastes like?

I just had to add that Moishe's hammentaschen on 2nd Ave led to some added pounds when I first moved to New York. I adore the pastries, and my friend's mom always makes me a batch every year. I like the big ones, not the minis, esp. poppy or raspberry, and I am so happy to find this thread. Do you think there are bakeries that sell more experimental ones (like the gingerbread I saw mentioned above)?

yesterday: when studying at one in the morning, take chocolate, chop into chunks, sprinkle into jar of peanut butter, attack with a spoon today: pistachio mousse cake from Blackhound in ny, so good!

I love breakfast treats. In my family, Sunday has always been the day for something special (the rest of the time it's oatmeal, yogurt, toast, grits, etc). I love a good croissant or pain au chocolat, also a brioche. The bakery near me makes the most sinful maple pecan sticky buns. Also coffee cakes and quick breads (pumpkin is a favorite). I used to love muffins (preferably bran), but you have to know where to get a good one. When I moved back to New York I remember the joy I felt when I was offered a low fat vegan muffin. As for scones, I find them dry and boring, but they are quite popular at my local coffee shop. At Cafe Sabarsky, in New York, they make the most wonderful Austrian breakfast pastries, including a sweet buttery bread that kind of looks like monkey bread but with prune jam inside of each little ball. Served with a creme.... While I make them every once in a while, breakfast pastries are things I usually purchase.

Patrick, lovely work as usual. My current spice cake recipe is similar to kit's. I prefer a darker colored spice cake, that stands on its own a bit more. This can be achieved, as is traditional in the south, with the addition of a bit of molasses. Maybe you could also try a French pain d'epices, which might be more of what you're looking for. I also have a recipe that FoodMan passed on to me, which includes jam in the batter, I can post some recipes later if desired.

I don't eat much fried food at all, but I do enjoy it occaisonally. I like vegetable tempura as an occaisonal appetizer (likewise, fritto misto). My mom makes the most amazing cauliflower fritters, with a light beer batter. Oh, I haven't had them in a while and they are so good. Deep fried things don't have to be greasy, and can even have less fat than something sauteed, when the technique is done properly. That's pretty much it, maybe turnip cakes and sesame balls in Chinatown, the occaisonal churro/donut, and frites to go with moules when in Brussels. The other day, my friend ordered "tempura coconut cheesecake," yes a cheesecake square crosted in coconut and lightly fried, with berry coulis. I had a bite and I like everything about it except for the fried part.

1 lb extra firm tofu $ 0.75 1 bunch snow peas $1.18 1 container mushrooms $1 a quick and satisfying dinner: priceless I marinated the tofu (from chinatown) in some soysauce, vinegar, ginger and garlic. Then I stir fryed the tofu, mushrooms and snowpeas over high heat and added the marinated the make a sauce. Fast and good. Dessert will be marble cheesecake.

My use of butter. My mom is from the south, so butter was used in everything growing up (toast, breads, baked potatoes, sauteeing). As I learned to cook for myself I started using more olive oil and understanding the different fats used for cooking (even experimenting with some vegan baking). Now, I keep butter in the freezer because I mainly use it when baking but rarely use it on a day to day basis. We always used salt. Stock was made on certain occaisons. Then again, I'm not really old enough to have been cooking for 10-15 years, so I can't imagine how my cooking will change over the coming years.

two days ago: the complimentary 44 North vodka my table got (nice huckleberry sweetness) yesterday: this wonderful eggplant miso appetizer I had at a place on Park Ave South eggplant steaks covered in a thick sweet miso glaze, and the inside of the eggplant was so startlingly white, like the color of white fish, and tender (how do they do this?) today: white lotus mooncake and mini eclair from Tan Dai bakery in Chinatown

Lovely blog, Therese. For those of us not to familiar with Korean cuisine, perhaps you could describe the dishes you had and what they consist of? One of my favorite lunches as a kid was mango with coconut rice and thai iced tea, my mom didn't realize that they were really dessert!

First, I have to take issue with the term "recovering" vegetarian, because it implies that there is something wrong with or abnormal about vegetarianism. Anyway, I was a vegetarian for two years in high school. I never had much appetite for meat, as a child my mother would force me to eat a tiny fillet mignon once a month. I was dedicated in my vegetarianism for those two years (no chicken broth, fake bacon BLT's, nothing with gelatin). I think the reason I stopped being vegetarian was that I didn't have a strong ideological commitment to vegetarianism. I have several friends who are vegetarian and they have strong feelings about treatment of animals. I am very conscious of where the meat/seafood I eat comes from, and in eating some animal products I wanted to expand my own eating experiences. I still rarely eat meat or cook it for myself. I can easily go several weeks without eating any meat or seafood (though I probably consume things with chicken broth, etc in them). I usually order seafood when I go out to eat, and I enjoy the occaisonal BLT or some sausage. I will eat any dish once (really, anything), and will eat meat if it's served to me. However, in daily life I still maintain predominantly vegetarian eating habits simply for matters of taste (a good plate a vegetables is much more interesting to me than a hunk of steak), and many of me friends would consider me vege, or flexitarian.

Inspired by Chufi's Belgian fries, I am making Cook's Illustrated oven fries (or a version thereof), a good dose of starch and salt. A big plate of pan-seared brussel sprouts and shallots alongside, some briny black olives and 2001 Powers Chardonnay. (I will have to look up Mr. Tanizaki)

For any kind of candy, and a huge variety of imported licorices, I would recommend Economy Candy on Rivington (near Orchard) on the LES.

finger food served as dinner: sage derby cheese steamed asparagus with lemon smoked tofu cubes mini walnut boule

I would say lemon squares are always a big seller (maybe this is just b/c I like them myself). You could do a special brownie, like rocky road (top w/ marshmallows, choc. chips) or mint (sandwhich andes mints or peppermint patties in the middle- looks nice when sliced). Also, loaf cakes are great in individually wrapped slices. I do a nice lemon loaf cake, recipe from my grandmother, that is amazing and easy. I also do a pumpkin loaf cake with a cream cheese swirl. Some other ideas are coconut cupcakes, chocolate dipped shortbreads, carrot cake cookies, oatmeal creme pies, and decorated sugar cookies.

There are certainly egg substitutes, but I would caution that they can have varying results. Having done a tiny bit of vegan baking myself, I would say it is better to stick to recipes that don't really heavily on eggs for their structure. Of course, try it out and I hope it comes out nicely. And thank you for sharing the recipe!