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I'm not an expert on the cooking oil markets, but in Italy the ready availability of olive oil could help to constrain the price of peanut oil, although I doubt if it would be a significant amount. Also, do we have current Italian pricing, or are we maybe comparing last year's price in Italy to current prices elsewhere? More likely the US has controls on peanut/peanut oil imports. (the peanut lobby is pretty strong) In years of tight supply this would tend to exaggerate price discrepencies. Goverments can screw up supply and demand pretty badly, ie: this SB (sugar is a good example)

supply & demand

If you ever heard the expression, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't true."? Well, it also follows that "If it sounds too bad to be true, it probably isn't either." I've seen other coverage of this matter, and I'm not sure it's quite as outrageous as it seems. First read this, and maybe follow some of the links provided. Then, I'd suggest you contact your representatives in Congress for information. SB (just saying ....

Q: How can you spot Ms Canada at the Ms Universe competition? A: By her plaid flannel swimsuit! SB (alternately, you might catch het putting vinegar or gravy on her french fries)

Add a healthy (sic) shot of Ketchup to provide the sweetness, which is really a counter to the bitterness cooked tomatoes can aquire. This should still qualify as "home made". SB (or, make your own ketchup)

My grandson Zach, like most three year old boys, is an expert when it comes to playing with food! He considers the tactile, aerodynamic and adhesive properties of his meal just as important as the flavor. While experimenting he's come up with some interesting combinations, like paper towel and ketchup in milk, or pairing Hot Wheels Hum-Vee with mashed potatoes. In order to entice him into actually eating more food than he drops to our pack of miniature canine, who circle below him like vultures soaring above a dying steer, I resort to a bit of food play myself. One of my tactics is using cookie cutters to make his food into interesting shapes. One favorite is using my bone shaped dog biscuit cutter with cheese slices, (aka: "dog cheese"). Another shaping trick I learned from my Mother. She used to make us Toast Boxes, which we thought were something real special, and I'll be damned but the trick still works! Sometimes his meal will have a theme. When we have rotelle, (choo-choo wheels), I'll slice carrots/pickles/olives etc into rounds, and make circular toast boxes. (well, maybe they're hat boxes?) Other themes involve colors or other shapes. Anything that's long, thin and pliable so it resembles a "snake" is always popular. Giving a dish a funny name works too! Another childhood memory was elbow macaroni and tomato soup with sliced wieners, which was for some odd reason known as "Mixed Ghetti Soup"? My famous Tickle Me Cake also falls into this category I was afraid I'd really miss this when he outgrows food games. But last month Zach became Big Brother to Baby Jenna! SB (Advocate of fun with EVERYTHING!)

While it's hard to argue with safety concerns, I feel the amount of time, energy, and associated cost that must be devoted to going from 99.9% to 99.91% safe renders such arguments moot? SB (although I wouldn't accept my employees being rude to a cusotmer)

I'm confused - it sounds like the dried egg mix could be called powdered eggs - what is the difference? ← "USDA Dried Egg Mix is a blend of dried whole eggs, nonfat dry milk, soybean oil, and a small amount of salt. There is very little moisture in it. To reconstitute, blend 2 tablespoons of Dried Egg Mix with ¼ cup water to make the equivalent of one large whole egg." Dried egg by and of itself doesn't reconstitute to anything resembling or reacting like normal eggs. The added ingredients somehow do the trick. While I won't claim that scrambled Dried Egg Mix is as good as regular scrambled eggs, they do work great for baking, and are very convenient to store and use. SB (I was surprised too! )

Most quickbreads improve upon being tightly wrapped and given a day or two of aging, and by that time they'll be at least half way there! SB (unless you're shipping to someplace like Uzhbekistan)

USDA Dried Egg Mix (NOT powdered eggs) work great in baking and make it easy to measure fractions. SB

Just for the record, I've had my problems with some of Bernard Clayton's recipes too. But, enough dwelling on the negative .... I actually made it through English Bread and Yeast Cookery, by Elizabeth David, surprising even myself. It's not exactly great literature, but any serious bread baker will most likely find it interesting. My default bread baking book is the original edition of King Arthur Flour's 200th Anniversary Cook Book. It's simple, basic and, well, that's why I like it. Then, of course, there's Baking With Julia (Child, need I add?), partly because of the gorgeous photos and partly because .... it's Julia! SB

Use of the word "steal" in this contaxt is misleading. Theft is against the law. If my car is stolen, I call the cops and they (hopefully) recover it, arrest the thieves, try and incarcerate them, at no expense to me. A copyright, (or patent/trademark etc), merely establishes my claim. I have the right to give notice that the property is "protected", but enforcement is up to me. It's very complicated, and a very specialized area of legal practice. SB (NOT an intellectual property lawyer, but has one on retainer)

Most Eastern European ethnic groups make a variation of crepe called "palacinka". Here's a Serbo-Croation recipe for Prokulika Palacinka, a broccoli crepe. I'm thinking it would be good baked with a cheese filling? SB

Dice them up and throw them into tossed salad! SB (sounds messy doesn't it?)

I just mentioned in a post on another thread that pine nuts work real well with apples. SB

Pine nuts go great with apples. I use them in apple/applesauce quickbreads and in place of other nuts in any baked goods featuring apples. SB (from the lush and willowy North Woods?)

Actually, Aretha "stole" it from Otis Redding. Um, and Otis' band was Booker T and the MGs, and their big hit was Green Onions, which are edible, which makes this music trivia interruption food-related. Sorry - resume copyright discourse. ← But Otis stole "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" from Merriam Webster! BTW: I think Booker T & the MG's was technically the Stax Records house band. Otis's first recording was with Otis and the Shooters, and he later toured both with Booker T and The Bar-Keys.

NOLO Books are always a good place to start. SB (has this one)

The concept of copyright is simple, but usually misunderstood. The enforcement is complicated. Intellectual property law is having a hard time keeping up with the digital world. Lawyers are expensive. It's best to familiarize yourself with the basics. Just enter [copyright law] into Amazons Search Box. SB

If you're feeling a little retro, a quiche is always nice. SB (good for using up left-overs too)

I'll give you $13.96 for it! SB (a nice profit?)

Hi! I'm from the government, and I'm here to use my taxing authority not only to tell you what fuel to burn in your car, but also what to eat." SB (thanks government, but no thanks)

Oven Roasted Spuds!

I've been killing some time Googling around for unusual peanut butter recipes. I was going tell you about the Peanut Butter & Jelly Pizza until I came across this thread about odd food combinations on a site called lavamind : "My husband grosses the rest of us out with his famous Peanut butter sandwiches...it can be anything from Peanut Butter and Eggs on toast, to Peanut Butter and Mashed Potatoe sandwiches...but the very worst of them is Peanut Butter and Fish, YUCK! and maybe with a layer of soda crackers in there as well. Pam, Ont. Canada" SB (Note: another Canadian. )

I tried Marlene's late Father Paul's recipe for Peanut Butter Burgers last night and all I can say is they were great! SB (except that; I usually mix ground meat with my hands, but in this case you may wish to use something else. )