LindaK

Though I live alone I don't cook solo as much as I would like--a quiet evening trying a new and complex recipe with some good music and wine is a great thing. When I have the chance, it's mostly after coming home late from work, the gym, etc. My standby is generally some broiled fish and fresh veggies. Delicious and very quick. Toppings vary, from simple oil and garlic, to something asian with soy, ginger, etc., or more french with wine, butter, and fresh herbs. Roasted veggies are also a standby. If I have an extra hour during the weekend, I'll make a small batch of soup, that's good for a meal or two. During the summer months, I become completely greedy with all the fresh veggies from the farmers markets. Beans and tomatoes are my obsessions. When they're both in season, a bean and tomato salad with lots of fresh basil, lemon juice, and olive oil is what crave, and eat for days on end. Sadly, still far away here for those of us here in New England.

Sorry, but it's so. I grew up here in MA, so I know a good fried clam. When I found myself in the D.C. and Baltimore area for 8 yrs, I tried many of the local offerings but finally gave up. If it's any consolation, I can't get a decent crab cake around here. They're my indulgence when I'm back in Baltimore. Oddly enough, I take some comfort in knowing that some foods will always be truly regional, even if misguided folks elsewhere put them on their menus.

I'll have to recruit a friend who owns a digital camera (I don't) but it shouldn't be hard to organize a "clam crawl" among my friends and report back here. Great idea and a good excuse for overindulging in fried clams! Anyone know of any reputable places along Boston's south shore towns?

This is embarrassing. I love fried clams and eat them whenever the opportunity arises but apparently never paid enough attention to remember where I experienced those fried clam nirvana moments. Can I still keep my membership on eGullet?? Now that we're nearing the end of winter (hey, I saw snow flurries two days ago) and the summer shack season approaches (not only Jasper's), maybe we can collectively design a fried clam pilgrimage route--not only for us but for folks who visit N.E. this summer. God knows it would give me a good excuse to take a few days off from work for some fried clam road trips. Thoughts, suggestions?

Envy is a great motivator--thank you! Your reports and pictures are an inspiration for finally summoning the courage to move ahead with my kitchen renovation plans. Please report back on appliances, esp. the range, once you've had a chance to play. note--edited for hasty spelling mistakes.

Both of these posts remind me of a surreal experience not long after arriving at college (Syracuse NY) from small town MA. After several hours of hunching over books in the library, I wandered unsuccessfully in search of some water--and finally inquired at the info desk after the location of a "bubbler." Blank stares. After a few exchanges, I resorted to sign language to make myself understood. Finally a light bulb went off over someone's head and with appropriate hand gestures she blurted out "aah..a WATER FOUNTAIN!!" Grinder, tonic, packie...too many examples of a different language in such a small geographic area... More on topic, I have fond memories of the delicious homemade birch beer that an uncle of mine made every spring, as well as the mass-produced cream soda that I adored as a kid (odd, since other carbonated beverages were 'tonic'). Other childhood favorites that seemed peculiar to New England once I left the area--anything with salt cod especially--now I know to be derivative of varous european culinary traditions.

Thanks so much for this piece, so many ideas in one narrative. You really brought back the joys of using Cuiz for the first time (mine was a wedding gift--and when the marriage failed, the Cuiz came with me, despite having been a gift from my ex-MIL). That was 1985 and it's still going strong. Just yesterday 5 lbs of potatoes were transformed within minutes into a perfect gratin dauphinois thanks to that fabulous machine. While I'm sure it functions beautifully, I loathe the design of the current Cuisinart, I hope mine lasts another 20 years. As others have noted too, it does make one think about the sources of culinary inspiration. How did I miss The Pleasures of Cooking? I used to find Gourmet to be an inspiration (1985-early 90's) but it morphed into boring and repetitive and now seems to be more about product placement than anything else (it's my nephew's school fundraising that keeps it in my house). I love to troll used bookstores--this is something to look for. Thanks again!

what's the filling in the summer roll? they look delicious.

it's an essential ingredient in any type of glaze I throw together to brush on simple broiled fish or chicken. a mix of mayo, dijon mustard, sriracha, and lemon juice makes a great topping to dab on crab cakes or to spread lightly on thin bread and top with smoked fish (trout, bluefish, etc.) as an appetizer. sometimes, just seeing the bottle sitting there in the 'fridge, I squeeze a bit on my finger and lick it off.

Ditto MarketStEl re: contributions. I can hardly answer my own e-mails in a semi-timely way, much less put something like this together as a volunteer in my spare time. Becoming a supporting member is the least I can do for a site I enjoy so much. Everything I see here looks great, I can't wait to see how eG evolves in the new format. Felicitations!

The lemongrass chicken I had was a whole bone-in chicken breast that had been marinated and probably baked (not sure) and served--sliced--over a bed of rice noodles with vegetables and herbs, sprinkled with ground peanuts. delicious. thank you for the picture of the shrimp paste, I'll look for it.

The shrimp paste that I used is store in a glass jar, around 8 oz and with the brand Lee Kum Kee, it has purle color. I have run out of it if not I could have taken a picture of this jar for you. Maybe later in the weekend when I get another one. What are you trying to make with the shrimp paste ? ← I wanted to try some of your soup recipes, some of which have some shrimp paste in the broth. I'll have to keep looking for the brand you describe, the one I found is a dark brick red color. I had some delicious lemongrass chicken for lunch yesterday in Chinatown. Do you have any recipes for that? thanks for the video clip of your new years eve party, it looks like fun. and the table full of food looks fabulous!

In between all the college basketball games this past weekend, I found time for only one of your recipes, the one that was probably the easiest--Ga Xe Phay (chicken salad). It was delicious and very simple. The rice crackers for scooping were tasty and fun! I think I will use this recipe often when the weather gets warm, it would be perfect on a picnic or outside with drinks waiting for the grill to get hot. Also thank you for posting pictures of some of your ingredients--for those of us with language barriers at the local chinatown grocery store, it was helpful to be able to recognize some ingredients when I couldn't read the signs. A question about the dried shrimp paste you call for in some of your soup recipes. I saw many shrimp pastes at the Super 88 (local market) but most were already mixed with oil or other ingredients. The only one I could find without was from Thailand. Will that work?

In case you need an excuse to play with that range, some reports back on how well it works with specific recipes or techniques would be appreciated. Think of it as a public service for those of us who are contemplating similar extravagant purchases...

Sorry. Let's see if this works. I'm looking at it in another window so I know it's there... http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...ndpost&p=848787

A reference yet unmentioned: A decade ago when i was just beginning to learn French (the language) the mother of a French friend gave me her copy of La Cuisine de Madame Saint-Ange. It's perhaps the equivalent of the Joy of Cooking so for recipes probably not for most of us reading this. It's incredibly comprehensive so long as you're content with la cuisine traditionelle sans "twists". The explanations are simple and easy to follow. I like it especially for the early chapters with basic vocabulary and definitions as well as explanations of basic techniques--excellent for beginner cooks and linguists alike. But basic as it is, as a reference source I still find it useful. Until I read the instructions for preparing snails, for example, I had no idea what went into getting those little guys ready for the butter and parsley--ugh. I'll stick to eating them in restaurants.

The topic of clafoutis came up in a gratin thread elsewhere, including this beautiful picture of a cherry clafouti posted by Paula Wolfert. I made a version with pitted cherries a few days after seeing it--even with frozen pitted cherries it was delicious. Can't wait until the fresh fruit season to make another.

okay, it should be the sushi or coffee descriptions that catch my attention but i see this photo and i see FLOWERS. You mean to tell me that you're further north than I am (Boston MA) and you have daffodils already? Where's the snow? I have plenty in my front yard if you need some.

Varmint, your cabinets are gorgeous--the descriptions and web links you provided earlier did not prepare me for these pictures. I'm going to go back and find that lengthy budget you posted a while ago and figure out whether I can afford something like that in my (hopefully near) future kitchen renovations. Not to distract but jphilg, what are your countertops? equally beautiful!

I'm revisiting this thread after some time away and have decided that this weekend i must try one of your recipes, Guppymo. The hard part will be deciding between one of the soups (always a weakness) or the "Com Suong Bi Cha" grilled lemongrass pork or the "Ga Xe Phay" chicken salad. I'm especially excited because they all look relatively simple and I'll get some practice in experimenting with fish sauce.

Hi, stupid question perhaps, but I assume you're talking about removing the membrane pre-cooking, n'est-ce pas? I've found that with short ribs for example that the deboning, prep time, etc. takes much longer than expected. I can imagine that pulling the membrane off after cooking would be fairly easy though much messier.

You are making me weep. I moved to Boston from St. Louis, MO 6 yrs ago and no one here believes me when I tell them that this time in MO I was getting in some herbs and cool weather crops in my backyard kitchen garden by the end of March. Today was relatively warm in Boston so the pile of snow in my front (postage stamp size) yard has shrunk to 8 feet tall. I grit my teeth during the worst of winter but this time of year I miss the St. Louis climate so much. I'll trade tornado warnings for 5 months of winter any day. I have a plot in a local community garden (city living, for those of you with real estate) and can't wait to start digging. May at the earliest here. I've only just now stumbled upon this thread but will read through the backlog and add my thoughts later. sparrowgrass, I hope you're feeling better.

Take a look at Flor modular floor coverings. It's a type of carpeting "tile" that can be easily put down anywhere and can be custom cut with a regular carpet knife. There are lots of different styles, from traditional to funky-mod patterns, even one that looks like poured concrete. I imagine it would be practical for a kitchen because you can remove an individual tile if necesary and (according to the catalogue) wash it in the sink or replace the one and not the whole room. I'm thinking of using some in the eat-in area of my kitchen to cover some wood flooring that's not in great condition. I've seen some samples in a local high-end interior design shop, the quality is really good.

thanks for posting pictures of your progress. I'm just beginning to plan my own renovation and have never been through one. I'll have good advice on the design from architect friends but there's no substitute for the experiencing the actual process, even if it's vicarious. please keep posting. ps--i love your plan, esp. the access to courtyard--a connection to the outdoors when you live in an urban area is such a bonus!

True. Sadly, the Haymarket is a shadow of it's former self. Boston has some great farmers markets May-November where one can get amazing produce, cheese, honey, herbs, etc. but March feels like the depth of deprivation. I enjoy Addis a lot, there are few Ethiopian places in Boston and this one is good. And though I like B&G Oysters, I find the Butcher Shop high on atmosphere but also pretension. If you are in the mood for a decadent picnic back in your hotel room (come back in the summer for a picnic on the river or harbor!), a short walk to Formaggio Kitchen on Shawmut Ave. will have you in heaven. It's a small outpost of the well-known Formaggio Kitchen in Cambridge. They have their own cheese aging cellars and the selection is fabulous. They also carry a small but excellent selection of breads, charcuterie, prepared foods, wines, and chocolates. Can you tell that I love this place? There is a Tosci's in Central Square (maybe Harvard too, could have missed it), almost directly across the street from Salts. Also in Central Square is another of my favorites, Central Kitchen, right on Mass Ave., close to the T. I almost hesitate to post it. It's very small with a limited menu to boot, no reservations. But the food and atmosphere are great, it serves dinner until late, and has a very reasonably priced wine list. The wait at the bar for a table can be a while but once seated, no rush at all.