Megan Blocker

True, true...but good PR does help you get small but effective placements in major magazines. It's actually amazing how much of what we consider news and journalism is really PR in disguise... In this case, though, it makes me happy! Plus, i learned all about ice and which kind to use for which drink. Very exciting stuff.

My goodness! I'm tired just thinking about that post. Bravo! What wine did you serve with that meal, Percyn? ← Thanks Chris. I served a 2000 Siegerrebe Beerenauslese (German Icewine style) with the foie. I was about to open a Pinot Noir for the duck salad, but decided against it...saving it for tomorrow... ← Icewine, Eiswein - however you spell it - YUM!!!! Gorgeous duck, Percy. Can't wait to see what tomorrow holds!

Tonight was penne with sausage and broccoli rabe. Not bad - I think it had a little too much broccoli rabe, which made the whole thing overly bitter. On the side, a small salad (tomatoes, cukes, onions and yellow pepper), and in the glass, a single-serving bottle of Cava. Yum!

And don't forget Jacques Pepin! **Oops, apparently Megan and I were thinking the same thing. ← Great minds, peppyre!

Jacques Pepin! Fast Food My Way is fabulous! Need we go on?

Katie, if you can't find the shows on TV, try checking out PBS websites. If you like going totally nerdy, you can probably get some of them on DVD!

I was going to say the same thing! I've never been a huge Sara Moulton fan, but for a long time I've sensed that the Food Network was not the place for her to shine her brightest. I think that, as part of PBS' food line-up (including my fave, America's Test Kitchen), she will draw more of an audience suited to her approach and personality.

Sorry to hear about your divorce, Gary. But at least you have baking to see you through, right? My advice on those three things would be - don't use margarine instead of butter. The flavor and consistency sacrifices aren't worth it. That said, nothing wrong with using a cheaper butter - I recently switched from Land o' Lakes to Cabot, which is about $1.50 less, at least at my supermarket. I haven't noticed a difference at all! Again, on the vanilla - don't go imitation, but do go down a notch. Switch from Nielsen-Massey to McCormack's or a store brand - but make sure it's real vanilla extract. Chocolate chips are the biggest screw in the world - I can never believe how expensive they are. Sometimes I buy a semisweet chocolate bar or two from a high-end gourmet store (say, Dean and Deluca) for $1.50 each and just chop them up. I get fun, different-sized chips, and for about half the price of a bag of Nestle. I feel your pain - I live on a pretty tight budget, since most of my money goes to rent (aaaah, Manhattan), and also have a massive baking addiction. I also conserve by buying lower-end brands of baking chocolate (Baker's rather than, say, Scharffen Berger).

Thanks, Pan! Those shrimp look AMAZING, Jason - I can almost taste them just gazing at the picture. And monavano - what beautiful flowers and tomatoes - I can't decide which are more photogenic!

Yay, Percy! I'm so psyched to follow your blog - your posts are always top-notch! My votes are: * Tour of Philadelphia's Reading Terminal Market * Special "Parsi dishes" like Dhansak or Sali Gosht or Machi (Fish) nu Sauce * Visit to an Amish farm Best of luck this week!

24 so far...but it's my birthday this weekend, so hopefully I'll be adding to that tally!

Ling, I think you may be the only person I've ever met who can match my best friend in sweets consumption. I am duly impressed, as is she! She said to tell you that she recognizes a true master when she sees one.

Leftover brownie (ok, brownies) from the freezer. I'm taking the rest into work tomorrow - too dangerous to have that stuff haning around!

Klary, brava - as always! This looks amazing!

I pan-roasted a split chicken leg and used the drippings and some chicken stock to make a sauce with onions, garlic, parsley, lemon juice and toasted pine nuts. It was unexpectedly delicious - way beyond my expectations. Yay - nice way to end an exhausting Monday!

Here's hoping that my habit of starting early pays off! Some more Pegu news...I'm just getting to reading my October issue of Gourmet, and who should be mentioned in an article about the perfect ice cube than Audrey Saunders! Cheers for subtle PR!

Wow! I go away for one weekend and come back to some amazing dinners! This thread is so inspiring. I was at a wedding this weekend (just down in Midtown, but it felt like a world away), and the dinner was amazing - butternut squash soup with bleu cheese, watercress and walnuts; poached lobster on a bed of parsley risotto with a blood orange sauce; lime sorbet with green melon liqueur; filet mignon with bearnaise and port sauces; Waldorf salad (updated with truffle oil and creme fraiche). Had to have a Waldorf salad, since the wedding was held at the Starlight Roof! Here's a pic of the salad - gorgeous, and pretty tasty, too.

Here's the final product! Thanks again to you all for your help and suggestions...the final choice was vanilla and hazlenut cake with cinnamon buttercream and a layer of caramel. Delicious! There was also an adorable groom's cake (in the Southern tradition - the bride is from Virginia) in the shape of a sailboat (chocolate with raspberry buttcream), since the groom is learning to sail. For some reason, though, the photo of that one won't upload!

Gorgeous dinners, all! I think the chicken and bread salad look gorgeous, liamsaunt! And that dinner, noambenami - I hope your friends appreciate you!

Exactly! Now, thanks to Frank Bruni, I can't get into a neigborhood Italian joint (Spigolo), and, perhaps soon, my new favorite bar. Grrrrrrrr.

To be fair, this first blog really takes him to town on his language and his pretentions, not so much on the stars themselves. To me, there are two separate issues - and I am far more entertained by the former, I have to admit.

You know what's weird? I just read through the recipe, and though the peppercorns are listed as an ingredient, I don't see them being used in the body of the recipe. My guess is that this is a typo in one of two ways: either the peppercorns do not belong here or you're supposed to remove them before serving, like the cinnamon stick and the star anise - like a bouquet garni of sorts. Come to think of it, he never mentions the salt and freshly ground pepper in the actual recipe, either, though I assume they're meant to season the chicken before cooking... Like origamicrane, I would sub in red peppercorns.

Ooooh, today it was sliced grilled chicken with sprouts, tomatoes, carmelized onions and pesto on an eight-grain baguette. Watermelon and honeydew for dessert, courtesy of some more office catering.

Susan, that pizza looks ridiculously good. Nice work! Plus, cucumbers are my all-time favorite food (odd, I know). You've won my stomach!

Exactly - crepes Nutella! Heavenly. When I was in Paris and poor, I would eat one of these, and it was a day's worth of meals.