Megan Blocker

For me, at least, it's a nostalgia thing: it tastes now the exact way it did when I was little - like a Friday night when Mom went out and we had a babysitter and got to watch lots and lots of trashy TV. On the rare occasion that I make Kraft mac and cheese, nostalgia is the primary motivating factor.

I find this sort of thing annoying, too, but it seems to me a symptom of corporate-ness rather than prentension. Think outsourcing, near-shoring, etc. I worked in HR and now am in vendor management for consulting services, and I hear these kinds of vocab words thrown around all day long. Annoying, yes. Foodie-ism? Not so much. ETA: Sometimes I find myself using these words, and my friend Nick calls me Catbert.

Beautiful pain au chocolat, Ling. Wow. I am SO coming to your house when I finally make it to Vancouver. I just stopped at a bakery near my apartment for a cup of coffee (I am home early because I had to go meet a friend on the West Side to retrieve my cell phone from her ), and they had the most delicious sample out - it was a sort of tea cake with a maple frosting. To DIE for.

Nope! Just the creme fraiche...though, come to think of it, butter would not be entirely lacking in deliciousness.

Bump! There's a piece in today's New York Times that made me think of this thread...it's a short one, but basically questions why people feel the need to bring their little ones into bars. Obviously, there are at least two (if not several) sides to every debate, so, please, tawk amongst yourselves!

Though I do live in the land of Starwich, the uptown branches are not yet open, which means that I'm out of luck on the weekends. That said, Eli's, a gourmet market (own by Eli Zabar) on Third Avenue at 80th Street, makes some damn good sandwiches for take away. My favorite may be the brisket with caramelized onions and homemade mayonnaise. Yum yum. They also have a fantastic salad bar (my favorite is the snap peas with garlic and sesame oil), and you can even grab a pickle from the pickle and olive section. I have made many a weeknight and weekend meal out of these...also really good for sneaking into a movie. Not that I would EVER do such a thing. I guess this is currently my "local" upscale and fast joint!

Ran across the street this morning first thing for a HUGE cafe au lait and a bagel. Ran home and topped the bagel with a schmear of creme fraiche (can you schmear anything but cream cheese? Hmmmm...). Divine. Utter divinity.

Yum. Go, guys! You're all doing a great job. Two steps forward, one step back - you're still ahead of the game.

Great post, Daniel! I used to live a block from Pampa, and it was the first place I ate dinner out after I made the move to the big city. Glad to hear it's still good! Also the first place I ate sweetbreads, and those look damn fine.

My parents separated when my brother was a year old, the summer before I turned four. A year earlier, in anticipation of going back to work relatively quickly after giving birth, my mother had hired an au pair to join us for a few months. Lori was a college and nursing student from North Dakota who ended up living with my family until I was thirteen. My mother offered to pay for the rest of nursing school, and so she stayed and became my mother's best friend, and a third parent to me and my brother. She eventually went to work as an RN, first part-time, and then eventually full-time, and then she finally left us for her own apartment when I was in eighth grade. Without her, my mother could never have continued to work the hours that she did, and would never have achieved in her professional life the kind of monetary and less tangible kind of success that she has (and I am thrilled that she never had to give up the job she loves), and my brother and I might never have been as well-adjusted (you know, within reason - we're not irritating or anything ) as we are. And, without Lori, I might never have developed the interest I have in cooking. My mother is an excellent, accomplished cook, but she didn't have a lot of time for it when I was little. To be fair, we had an early bedtime (8:00 till I was 13!), and I was at my father's house every other weekend, so I rarely got to spend time with her in the kitchen. My earliest, everyday cooking memories are therefore of Lori teaching me to make casseroles, salads, and to bake. I suppose this is very different from Tim's experience; Lori was never treated as the "help," something neither my mother (nor my father, when he was still in the house) would ever have been comfortable with, and even now, when people ask me what she is/was, I just say, "She's my Lori." Her place in my life defies description. She's now married to a wonderful man (who is an Iron Chef addict), and has a gorgeous son of her own, Liam, who is my mother's designated grandchild (I love Liam doubly for the pressure he takes off of me to procreate .). Sorry for the detour...my point being, yes, I think growing up with staff (we always had a once- or twice-a-week housekeeper who did the heavy cleaning and a landscaper who mowed the lawn and trimmed the hedges, though Mom did the flowers and the veggies herself), or experiencing institutional living at a young age innoculates you to the oddity of having people traipse through the house or perform chores you might otherwise do yourself. In ideal circumstances, it also teaches you that those performing the chores are as worthy of your respect as anyone else you encounter in this life. In my case, though, it gave me a whole lot more, especially when it comes to all things culinary. And, really, in every way possible.

Oh, exactly. I certainly met plenty of people at college who happened to have attended prep school, and were great people. It was the folks for whom having attended "the right prep schools" was not an academic brain-expanding thing but soley a class status thing, part of a whole way of categorizing the world into the worthy and the unwashed, who really got up my nose. ← Gee, I can't imagine why that would bother you! Perhaps they've never seen how unwashed many boys are throughout their prep school careers. That might set 'em straight.

Amen, Ellen. Though, if I may, I'd like to speak up on behalf of preppies everywhere: being from New England and attending prep school ain't what makes you turn bad. It starts way before that. I can say this with authority only because I turned to evil in elementary school. Prep school had nothing to with it. Seriously, though, I made some of the best friends of my life at prep school, and can honestly say that it was one of the more egalitarian, merit-based places I've had the pleasure of spending my time. Clothes didn't matter - smarts did, and compassion did, too. And a sense of humor was a huge asset. Done right, it's not all bad. As I meant to say before: chin up, Tim. Sounds like you're doing a good thing - providing for your family, living up to your job description, and enjoying your craft. Those are things that should make you very proud. And, who knows - maybe you'll help the kids in the family develop more sensibilities about food. Could be your best legacy, professionally, when you eventually move onward.

Indeed! Hmmm...when I've had a truly horrible day, I'm most likely to order in Vietnamese food and crack open a bottle of wine. Sometimes, though, I bake - chocolate chip cookies, most of the time, since I can do it with my eyes closed and won't mess up if I'm imbibing at the same time.

Yeah. What's the deal with that? Assholes. Want to come to my place for LOTS of wine and chocolate, Diva? ETA: You're invited, too, Danielle. It's a PARTY.

Plenty of people find cooking boring or just plain annoying. This is how I feel about football (), so I can relate. However... To say that cooking is pedestrian and belongs to "the lower masses" is to display one's own idiocy and complete lack of class, not to mention a glaring absence of insight into how many well-educated, interesting people choose to spend their leisure time. Not to mention the bright, fascinating folks who have chosen to make their careers of it. Snobbery for snobbery's sake, completely divorced from reality? Reeks of new money to me.

Yes, blue laws! How could I forget! I grew up in Connecticut and went to college in PA, so I'm still amazed by the fact that you can (a) buy wine in grocery stores in some states and (b) buy alcohol on SUNDAYS!!!! Thank goodness, New York passed a law recently allowing the sale of alcohol on Sundays - liquor stores have to close one day a week, but it can be any day they choose. Hallelujah!

In my opinion, the fact that you can be drafted, drive and vote before you can legally drink is one of the stupider things about the U.S. I mean, come on! If you can't be trusted to make good decisions about alcohol, can you really be trusted to operate a multi-ton vehicle, carry a gun, or make decisions that affect millions of others? I do not think so, though I'm sure many disagree with me. On a slightly less strident note, I think wine doggie bags are fabulous, and hope that they become legally widespread sooner rather than later. Don't understand why these would ever be considered verboten, as I would think they would significantly decrease the risk of drunk driving (no pressure to chug that last glass when you can just take it with you and quaff it at home).

And that makes him better than you, you kitchen-slaving fool! Oy.

This is a really interesting question. For me, it depends on what I'm making. For cooking, I'm probably somewhere in the moderate category. If I'm making something I've made a million times before, then it goes pretty quickly, though not through fault of my rushing. It's more like I don't have to stop to think, so things go faster. For a new dish, I take time, deliberately spending time reading and re-reading instructions. When I bake, though, I'm pretty speedy. Maybe because I've been baking for longer than I've been cooking (since I was about 6 or 7, I've been baking on my own - supervised only for those time when I was interacting with flame or heat), or maybe because baking is so precise and exact. Not sure why, but I really breeze through baking, whereas I tend to take my time with cooking. This could, however, have lots to do with my inferior knife skills.

Where's Percy, of the infinite knowledge of and talent for eggs?

I know that personally, I find errors all the time and don't always go back if the error is a small one ... but I should ... and I always check the bill in a restaurant before signing the receipt. Happening to anyone else? Personal worst example? Receipt showed $95 for a pack of chewing gum ... I stopped buying the stuff after that! those tiny decimals are actually essential .... Names of stores not required ... ← I made leg of lamb for a dinner party last spring, and thought that the total on my bill seemed a little high. Since I was laden with bags and since it was a crazed Saturday afternoon at one of the local gourmet markets, I just walked home and decided to deal with it later. Once safely back in my apartment, I pulled out the receipt and realized that they'd charged me twice for my $40 piece o' meat. Hmmm... I went back on Monday to get a refund, and the manager actually asked me, "Did you really only buy one?" No, sir - I bought two IDENTICAL legs of lamb for $40.27 each. They were really nice about it and gave me a complete refund - I just thought that question was hilarious. I mean, it wasn't a loaf of bread, where one costs the same as another - it was meat by the pound!

I used my grandmother's butter crust recipe. I thought all those pinenuts were a bit extravagant for the guests I was making this for. Is that ugly? ← Yes, Michelle - you're a TERRIBLE person! Hey, don't spend the money on those who will appreciate something cheaper. That's my philosophy! Thanks, Ling! You should - they're SO delicious and easy. I got the pan for about $10 at Bed Bath and Beyond, though I'm now lusting after a slightly more expensive one from Williams-Sonoma.

Orange Madeleines Serves 6 as Dessert. Madeleines are a classic French delight, hovering somewhere between cookie and cake. They are delicious right out of the oven - gently crisp on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside - or a day after baking, when they are best enjoyed with a mug of tea or hot chocolate, a la Proust. This recipe is based on the basic madeleine from The Martha Stewart Cookbook, but I've added some orange flavorings (zest and Grand Marnier), which I find play on the unique texture of the madeleines. The recipe halves and doubles very neatly; there's no need to re-grease the pan between batches. You will need a madeleine pan for this recipe; the deeper the ridges in the pan, the more defined your madeleines will be! 4 eggs 2/3 c sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp Grand Marnier (or other orange-flavored liqueur) 1 c all-purpose flour, sifted 1 T finely grated orange zest 1/4 c butter, melted and cooled Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Using a pastry brush and a few tablespoons of melted butter, grease the madeleine pans. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the eggs, sugar and salt on medium-high speed until thick. This should take between 5 and 10 minutes. Add the orange liqeur. Toss the orange zest with the sifted flour and gently mix the mixture into the eggs. Fold in the melted butter until well combined. Spoon the batter into the greased madeleine pans and place in the pre-heated oven. Bake for 6-8 minutes, until the edges turn golden brown and the cookies are spongy to the touch. Remove the cookies from the pan as soon as they come out the oven (you should be able to just turn the pan over some parchment paper and let the cookies drop out. Cool on parchment paper or a cooling rack. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for several days, but they will go stale quickly. Of course, some people love them stale, so use your own judgment! Keywords: Dessert, Easy, Cookie, French ( RG1610 )

I'm really into madeleines recently! Tonight I made just a half-recipe of the madeleines from The Martha Stewart Cookbook, which I've found to be a really easy, foolproof recipe. I subbed Grand Marnier in for the vanilla and tossed some orange zest into the sifted flour. Very good...and addictive as sin.

That I fear will be the biggest problem I tend to chain smoke when drinking WILLPOWER ← For me, this was the godsend of the smoking ban in NYC. Say what you will about it, but it got me to quit smoking by making me feel guilty for leaving my friends at the bar. Congrats, Matt! ETA: That dinner looks delicious, Marlene...hope you're enjoying that cocktail.