Megan Blocker

Agreed on the photo - it seemed to me that it was definitely meant to catch her in a way that exaggerates her perky, loud-mouthed personality. Perhaps a bit of editorializing via photograph? Or something to spark conversation - I find it unflattering, but maybe other people like it? Kind of like the woman herself. I agree with the general sentiment of people who've replied so far - I am very impressed by Rachael Ray's business acumen, though a little tired of seeing her everywhere (over-exposure is always a danger of great success, no?). I have always said and will say again that she presents cooking in a way that is accessible to the masses, and I like that about her. For the most part, her food is healthy, solid, and relatively yummy - and affordable to make, which is important to the vast majority of people in this country (who don't want to spend money on, say, veal cheeks). Is she a little grating at times? Sure. But at least she advocates fresh herbs and cooking from scratch when possible.

Oh. My. God. I want that.

Daniel - That looks delicious. You've definitely helped me decide that I need that book as soon as humanly possible. Dinner tonight was, like Chufi's, comfort food. I had a leftover lamb chop in the fridge, and have been craving risotto ever since I had it a week or so ago. So....I decided to cut up the lamb chop and add it to a risotto with peas, rosemary and garlic. It was very yummy, if a little odd. After the risotto, I finished up with a tomato and onion salad. Risotto: Salad:

I'll add to the other endorsements here for made-at-home marshmallows! They really are the best, and so easy to make. They are excellent toasted as well as stirred into hot chocolate. Yum. Now I know what I'm making this weekend.

I second the request for a trip to Pegu! Would also love to hear your opinion of L'Impero, and, of course, I'm always up for hearing about Hearth. As M.X. Hassett mentioned a few posts back, it might be neat to see you do an old-time NY classic like La Grenouille, contrasted with a more modern spot like Hearth - or maybe with a more recent lunch hot spot, like Eleven Madison Park?

Wow, Daniel - that looks excellent. And how brave of you to tackle baked goods without a mixer. You are officially my hero. Nina Simone -

Wow, Melissa - that looks like quite a feast! Hope you had a lovely evening.

Thanks, M. Lucia - it's true, there's almost more mushroom than coq in my coq au vin - I just can't get enough fungi. Daniel - thank you! I don't really use a recipe (originally I based it on one Nigella Lawson had in the Times a while back), but it's pretty easy to do. Basically, I saute 1-inch pieces of bacon until they begin to release their fat, then add chopped onion and cook the mixture until the onions soften a bit. I remove that from the pan and then brown the chicken on both sides, using the rendered fat left behind from the bacon. Remove the chicken, add the mushrooms and some garlic, cook that until the mushrooms begin to cook down a bit, and then put everything back into the pan along with some wine (dry riesling works well for a lighter stew, a red Burgundy is traditional) and chicken stock, add some thyme, and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through. I pretty much eyeball the proportions at this point - tonight I cooked four pieces of chicken and used half a large onion, 3 slices of bacon, 8 oz. button mushrooms (quartered), 2 cloves of garlic, about 1/3 bottle of wine, and about 1 cup chicken stock. It's a quick-cooking version - takes about an hour, start to finish, and it's perfect for a weeknight. I usually make two or three dinners' worth at once and eat it over the course of the next week. It's even better a day or two later.

Brownie from the coffee house across the street, along with a cup of decaf.

Dinner tonight was coq au vin followed by a tossed green salad - the coq au vin photographed a little shiny, probably thanks to the copious amount of bacon fat I cooked it in. Yum. Might be a candidate for the other dinner thread - but it sure tasted good! Coq au vin: Salad:

I will never forget the first time I had rabbit - or, more accurately, lapin . I was in France for the summer, doing a brief home-stay with a family in Montpellier. We drove inland to visit the mother's extended family, who lived on a farm somewhere in the countryside (no town around - don't remember exactly which direction we headed in from Montpellier). The afternoon we got there, they took me on a tour of the farm - I saw the cherry orchard (fresh cherries warm from the sun - yum), the vegetable garden, and so on. Then I saw the bunny pen. It honestly did not even occur to me that we were going to eat rabbit for dinner, so when they asked me which one was my favorite, I picked the cutest one. Guess what ended up on the plate? And in what I discovered later was a civet sauce (I described it to my mom, and she told me what was in it). In all honesty, I have no problem with the fact that I picked my dinner (though had I known, I would have gone for an uglier, less friendly bunny) or that it was killed that day. But as a result of the weirdness of the experience (the family were very odd in many ways - not just culturally different - and I was pretty worn out by the strangeness of it all at that point), I've never been one for anything resembling that dish. I would be more likely to make a civet sauce (no real queasiness issues) than to eat it, but more because of its associations with that whole strange experience (I slept on a landing that weekend, for starters) than the dish itself. Edited to add: I will eat rabbit, though I rarely choose it off of a menu.

I assume you mean wool sweaters as opposed to cotton?

Another good Introduction to Lamb dish is Lamb a la Bedford (I only recently discovered that this is its name - I really just think of it as my mom's leg of lamb recipe). It's butterflied leg of lamb marinated in red wine vinegar, olive oil, basil, oregano, onions...and then grilled (I make mine in the oven, since I live in Manhattan and am sadly sans grill - but it's very good that way, too.). I can't find a copy of the recipe online, but have one at home. Anyone who's interested, just PM me! That is fascinating! Maybe that's why my mom's fiance's family doesn't eat lamb - they're all from Idaho and Texas.

My mother is getting re-married next month, and she wants the choices for dinner to be lamb and salmon. My mother's family are all lamb fiends, as are most of her friends. Her fiance thinks lamb is a bad idea - apparently his family and friends (about 15 of the 60 invited) do not like lamb. I say let them eat the salmon and bring on the rack o' goodness! Or, better yet, make them try it and realize how freakin' good it is! Perhaps his friends' issues with lamb stem from lack of exposure? After all, these are people who hunt and eat what they kill - it can't be an issue of gaminess if you're willing to eat rabbit and venison.

Mmmmmm, ditto.

LOVE! It's always been one of my favorite foods, and I know very few people who don't like it. Not everyone orders it or lists it as their first choice, but I can't think of a single friend of mind (foodie or otherwise) who wouldn't eat it (and enjoy it) if it were served.

That's right - don't yuck someone else's yum. Unless it's really nasty.

Is tiramisu a foodie thing? Tater tots ARE in vogue - anything that delicious never goes out of style.

I'm impressed by your restraint, Susan! I don't know if I could have left any behind - it all looks delicious! So many reasons to celebrate - yay for cooler weather AND stone crabs!

Ditto! Looks delish, Tracey. I'm salivating here!

I think it's "So much more than cooking." And I have to tell you - I heard it today, and I thought the exact same thing, Steven!

Mmmmm, Brianna's. I'm partial to the blush wine vinaigrette and the French vinaigrette. How about you, Bavila?

Was the recipe involving whipped creme in a can something like this? - Pop top - Spray onto spoon - Eat - Repeat Because I would eat that.

Looks like you had a FULL day, Chris - thanks for taking us with you. The cooking equipment is fascinating - I particularly like the temperature indicator on the oven that lists "Biscuit, Bread, Pastry, Meat, Cakes." Wish my oven did that.

Jennifer, I'm curious as to how your opinions of food writing vs. journalism differ from O'Neill's - would you mind elaborating? You always have such interesting ideas to share!