Jaymes

I have always been a big fan of toaster ovens. A really big fan. Wouldn't be without one. My former husband and I used to go 'round and 'round about it because he said it took too long to make toast and the toast was never as evenly toasted as in a real toaster. And although I agree with that, that just wasn't a huge hardship in my view. The toaster ovens do make toast, and it's not so much a step down from an actual toaster that it's worthy of bitching and moaning about it. Or even, in my view, worthy of moving a toaster around on the countertop and keeping it clean, etc. I sure didn't like having both appliances taking up space on my countertop, so one had to go. No contest - the toaster. That was only a one-function appliance (and you couldn't even make butterscotch toast or cinnamon toast or honey toast or toast a slice of pound cake, or heat up iced rolls or anything else at all in it, certainly nothing drippy, or too fat, and if you tried, it got stuck and you wound up with smoke in the kitchen and the smoke alarm going off and you had to unplug the thing and go after it with a knife, making a big mess and how on earth is that worth it) taking up limited space, so byebye. I did keep his precious toaster under the counter for a while, but he had to actually bend over and retrieve it when he wanted to use it, which he was the only one that ever did. So he didn't do that more than a couple of times. After I realized that months had passed since he used it, and we were all using the toaster oven, I got rid of it and he never said a word more about it. But those toaster ovens! So quick and easy to use to heat up things, bake smaller items, melt cheese over things, brown things, crisp up things, whatever. And, especially if you live in a hot-weather climate, as I have fairly often during my life, a toaster oven has a huge advantage in that you don't have to heat up that big oven, which heats up your kitchen, when it's 110 degrees outside. Not to mention that it costs a lot more money to heat up that big oven if all you want to bake is six cookies, or four biscuits, or re-heat and re-crisp some fried chicken from last night's dinner. For about the last five years, I've been living with my daughter, her husband, and their four kids, and doing all the babysitting and most of the cooking. They didn't have a toaster oven when I moved in so, of course, I immediately bought one. Now, my daughter says, they can't live without it. I'm going to be moving into a small apartment over the next few weeks and had planned to take it with me. But Daughter has been begging me to leave it. It's an Oster and I bought it at Sam's for $40 and it's certainly not perfect but we like it fine. I know that living by myself with a small kitchen, I'll use that toaster oven many times every day, so I was extremely reluctant to leave it. But, after reading this thread, I am going to leave it. And take myself and my nifty 20% off coupon over to BB&B and get that large Breville Smart Oven. I'll bet I don't turn on the big oven for months. Hey, I can use it for storage!

Well, like I said, I just want to go to Korea with Kristen.

Well, it certainly didn't work that way with my kids. I only tried it a very few times, when I had a particularly stressful week coming up, and didn't want to deal with my usual method of having imaginative, tasty, nutrituous lunch stuff at the ready: ( http://forums.egullet.org/topic/72760-brown-baglunchbox-meals-for-kids-adults/?hl=%2Bthermos#entry110447 ) In fact, I got the "really, Mother?" eyeroll.

Yep. I think there's no doubt that Kristen learned from her mistakes at managing a team. And, while I liked the format in so far as the "audience" went, I still wish that they had prepared all of their dishes for everyone to sample. And I'll bet that the "audience" did, too.

Cute. But that was not my question. At all. My question was "do you think responsible parents would GIVE cigarettes or heroine to their children." And, if not, why not?

Yet, when I have hundreds of pounds of surplus from a market garden......carrots, green beans, squash, tomatoes, beets, radishes, etc. etc. etc. and FREELY offer it to those who are "in need" it's usually turned down!!!! It has become very difficult for me to sympathize. Do you think if you offered that same stuff to someone looking for a cigarette, or a heroin addict, they'd be rushing over to grab it? Do you think that responsible parents would give their children cigarettes or heroine?

AND Kristen really claimed the high ground until the end, didn't she. Still saying that the Restaurant War failure happened on her watch so it was her responsibility. And even giving Josie some kudos. I hope Bravo takes us all along on Kristen's trip to Korea.

Boy I agree about that "first chef to 3" thing. I really wanted to see all the dishes being prepared and eaten and discussed. Not to mention that the lesson here might be that, if you get into the finals, concentrate far more on your first three or four dishes, and you likely won't even have to make anything else. Hate it. But I'm happy that Kristen won. I got a little choked up watching her talk about going to Korea so that she could see people with faces that look like hers. And her adopted family seemed so happy and proud of her. Really nice stuff.

Right. Witness the recent demise of Hostess. Sure, the intrasigence of the Baker's Union hammered the last nail into the coffin but, according to what I read anyway, the problem initially stemmed from revenues dropping precipitously due to the public's decreasing appetite for junk products, like Twinkies and Ding Dongs.

As far as I'm concerned, Annabelle is dead right to "bring city government and mayors into this thread." To leave them out would completely negate whatever points have been argued regarding culpability. I'm sorry, but if you've identified a problem, and a culprit, and you want a solution, I see no way to enforce it other than with the full strength of the law. How would you suggest we do it? If your argument is, as it seems to me to be, that the fault lies not with the parents, but rather with those evil corporations, and you want it changed, how would you recommend we do that, except for passing laws and punishing companies that defy those laws? Leaving that out of the equation is just like the ol' who's going to bell the cat. And I'm also with her on who is to blame here. The parents. Period. That's it. The parents. I suppose you could advance an argument that schools that have eliminated P.E. are adding to the problem but again, if parents demanded more physical activity in their local schools, they'd get it. But unless someone can prove that the food companies are putting addictive heroine into the food and not mentioning that on their labeling, that's not where the blame should be placed. It is absolutely incumbent upon parents to absolutely refuse to let their children do anything that the parent believes has the potential to harm them. I just do not get how any intelligent person that has raised kids would not understand that. Every single day when raising children, those children are going to want to do something that is not good for them. And they're going to want to not do something that is good for them. Every single damn day. That's the nature of children. The parent is supposed to be in charge. So if they're not, you're saying that the nanny government should do the raisin'? Well, I raised three kids. All are happy, healthy, college graduates with good eating habits, and children of their own that they are raising. I even sent them off from time to time with a Luncheable, although the money and all that extra packaging irritated me enough that it was only a once-a-month thing, and probably not even that often. But if you nice folks do manage to figure out some way to abrogate the parents' responsibilities to the government, will you please include a total ban on Coca Cola, and all other soda pops? I hate that crap. Speaking of advertising. And of junk food consisting of water and chemicals and syrup. And large culpable corporations. And stuff that is of absolutely no redeeming nutritional value whatsoever. My kids didn't even know it existed until they were well into elementary school and drank it somewhere besides my home. So let's ban that crap entirely. After all, it fits all of your parameters. And soft drinks are way more responsible for obesity in this country than Lunchables.

This conversation (or at least the more tedious and annnoying aspects of it) reminded me of a conversation I recently had with a close friend. He's Chinese, 70 years old, came to the US back when he was a teenager to work in the kitchen of a Chinese restaurant in Springfield, Mo. He rose up through the restaurant ranks to eventually own and operate some 20 restaurants throughout the years, and is a Chinese master chef. He married a Western woman and they had two sons. Those sons also married and now have kids, and friends from several cultures. So we were all visiting northern California a few months back, and that day had just gone to see a little town called Locke, which was founded and run entirely by Chinese back in the early 1900's. We were sitting around the dinner table with about twelve other friends and family members and one of them asked my friend how he liked Locke. My friend said, "It was interesting, but there aren't very many Orientals living there any more." Whereupon his white neice immediately dressed him down: "You can't say 'Orientals,' Uncle. An 'Oriental' is a rug. You should say, 'Asian.'" Uncle Asian's face turned nearly purple with anger. "I don't mean Asian. I mean Oriental. Us. The Orientals. The Chinese. The Japanese. The Koreans. The Vietnamese. Us. Not the Asians. That's everybody. That's the Filipinos, the Indonesians, the Thai, everybody. I don't mean the god-damn everybody-Asians. I mean us, just us, the Orientals. What the hell is wrong with saying 'the Orient.' It's a perfectly good word. I'm sick and tired of all of the white do-gooders trying to tell me what I can and what I can't call myself. "So as I was saying, it's a damn shame there aren't very many Orientals in Locke anymore." .

I've got a friend that always sets some sort of bowl (or cup or whatever she has handy) on the burner of her coffee maker. She's in a small apt with not a lot of room and often uses that burner to slow-warm things.

And even cheaper in the markets in Mexico. Especially in the number-one vanilla-growing state of Veracruz, where the Totonacs are credited as the world's first cultivators. I always bring back several small sacks full.

I buy vanilla bean paste at my local grocery store, although admittedly, it's a wonderful store with many difficult-to-find, upscale items. When I've lived places that didn't carry vanilla bean paste in my local market, I ordered it online. Here's a good description: http://www.thekitchn.com/whats-the-difference-vanilla-extract-vanilla-bean-vanilla-paste-169336 ETA: And, Huiray, I've already noticed a small bit of that vague ambiguity that you mention in the Brown Butter Cake recipe. It calls for "flour" - doesn't mention what kind - cake flour, all-purpose, self-rising, etc.? Of course that's not too big a deal, but still, a very well-thought-out recipe is a little more definitive.

Actually, that's not entirely right. One other way to judge the various cheftestants and their skills is to go to the Bravo site, find their recipes, and try them out. I've already bought the stuff for Brooke's Brown Butter Cake, and I can't wait to try it. http://www.bravotv.com/foodies/recipes/search?st=brooke+williamson&cost=&skl=&tot=&ftr=1&page=1

Yes. And of course at some point, something with the theme of Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil.

Ah well... Didn't watch the third season. Too bad they didn't take full advantage of all that region has to offer.

Actually, it's seemed to me that Sheldon has been hanging on by a thread. Several times, I thought he was done for. I think there's no doubt that the two best chefs are in the finale. I picked those two as best way back weeks ago, gender be damned, and I'm thrilled. As far as good southern cities to film in, I think Miami would be great. They wouldn't have to focus on the obvious spring-break-type partying and bikinis and South Beach, etc. Miami has a great food heritage to explore. In addition to the obvious Cuban & Caribbean, there are strong influences from the rest of Latin America - Colombian and Peruvian, etc. Just north of Miamia, there is a huge swamp to cruise, and a Native American history. A drive down the keys would be fun and would sure film well. The chefs could whip up dishes with conch and key limes and myriad other local fruit and seafood. Also, I've lived in Florida - both the panhandle, and in central Florida - and when you get away from the main tourist locales, you're basically in south Georgia, so Florida also has what we think of as typical southern comfort food. But my first choice for a southern city to visit would be Charleston SC. Such wonderful food and rich heritage...Low Country, Gullah. The first thing I'd do is to give all of the prospective cheftestants a copy of Charleston Receipts to peruse. Just thinking about it makes me hungry. In fact, I think I'm going to go peruse my copy right now.

Houston is the 4th-largest city in the US, and all the "experts" seem to be in agreement that it's one of the best food towns in the country. It's an immigrant city, with folks arriving from all over the planet. This has resulted in a lively and rapidly-growing number of businesses, including restaurants & food markets, catering to this international community. In addition, many top "celebrity chefs" have chosen to locate businesses in Houston because of the large population of potential customers, and the relatively low costs of living and doing business here. So, a great many in the Houston food community were perplexed as to why, when Top Chef came to Texas a short while back, they left out the state's largest and most vibrant food city. Immediately following the article to which I've linked below, there's an interesting discussion that, if true (and who knows), might shed some light on that mystery; and might help explain Top Chef's other location decisions that you are discussing: http://www.29-95.com...od-cities-south .

I'm just guessing, but I'd say "borracho" (drunken) beans are probably the second most-popular type of beans cooked in the US southwest - second only to just plain ol' boiled beans. They are ubiquitous. You should do a little googling to find a more detailed recipe/method than just the "by the seat of my pants" description I've given. But I think you can't go wrong.

Well, basically that's just exactly what you would be doing with flan recipes that don't call for condensed milk. You pour milk into a saucepan and cook it, thereby reducing or "condensing" it. And, by the way, since you mentioned it, regarding bacon in refried beans... Although sometimes I do that, most of the time, I don't. Bacon, at least American-style bacon, is heavily smoked and, although I do love that smokey flavor, it is strong enough to overwhelm many things and the mild flavor of beans is pretty-easily overwhelmed. That's not a flavor I've found often in Mexican refried beans, so it's not something our family is accustomed to. I do, however, usually put a little lard into my refried beans. If bacon is the only pork fat I've got, I'll parboil it a couple of seconds to remove that smoke flavor. Can you get any pork products where you are? If you either can't get it, or don't want to add pork, you can make a just-fine skillet of refried beans using seasonings and a little butter. Or even Crisco shortening, or another non-animal fat.

I was on his side a lot more until he was asked something about preferring to be home and he said nope. I noticed that. And I'll bet his wife will, too.

Interesting, to me anyway, that you've had a bit of trouble finding a flan recipe that does not contain condensed milk. I've been making flan for some 50+ years as, even as a child, custard was always my favorite treat. And none of the recipes called for condensed milk. I even remember the first time I had a flan made with it - dessert in the home of a Mexican friend - about, and I'm guessing here, 35 years or so ago. Her flan had a heavier, richer taste than mine. It really did taste "condensed" - kind of like evaporated milk. It wasn't really unpleasant, but I didn't like it as well, and I couldn't put my finger on exactly what was different, so I complimented her on it, so that I could ask for her recipe. "Oh," she said, "it's just 'gringo flan.'" "Gringo flan?" "Yes," she said. "A lot of gringos don't like taking the time to make flan from scratch, so they just use a can of Eagle brand. I wanted to make my abuelita's flan, but I ran out of time." Over the years, basically everyone has converted to the much quicker sweetened condensed milk version, probably even her abuelita. And I haven't heard that derisive name, "gringo flan," in a very long time. But when you think about it, there has got to be many, many recipes without condensed milk because custards have been a popular sweet for several centuries, long before canned milk was even a gleam on the horizon. Here's a very basic recipe, similar to the ones I began with so long ago: http://recipes.stevex.net/recipe/diana_kennedys_flan_recipe

I'll be interested as well. Although, since I've been putting booze into my beans at the very beginning of cooking for several decades with no ill effect, doubt anyone could convince me otherwise. My standard recipe for borracho beans (that I've been making for some 40 years) begins with me rinsing pintos or flor de mayo or something similar, putting them into a big pot, pouring in a bottle of Dos Equis lager or Shiner Bach or other full-flavored beer, adding chicken broth (or water if I have no good broth) to cover beans well, dropping in a few cloves of garlic, sometimes a splash or two of tequila, or maybe a bay leaf, and then simmering until the beans are done. When the beans are tender, I fry up the "seasonings," as the Mexicans call them - any or all of the following: tomatoes, chiles, onions, cilantro, oregano, bacon, pork, chorizo, hamburger meat, lard, etc. - or whatever I'm in the mood for, and adding it all to the tender beans. Baked beans - have also added booze - rum, sherry, beer - to dry beans as they cook, and then boiled down the liquid, poured it over, added brown sugar or molasses or Steen's or maple syrup or other sweetener, and then baked. Here's a recipe for Baked Beans using Sam Adams: http://www.samueladams.com/recipes/samuel-adams-boston-lager-baked-beans I had a good friend born and raised in Bermuda and she always laced her beans with black rum while they were cooking, and then put a small pitcher of it on the table so you could add more if you wanted. She also was big on Sherry Peppers, and Rum Peppers, often shaking some into the bean pot. Thus far, anyway, things have always worked out fine. But maybe I've just been lucky.

Peruvian maybe? Big elsewhere in the Americas. Has its time come here?