Suzanne F

I've seen fresh durian for sale in New York many times, though I've seen fresh mangosteen for sale here only rarely. Most likely the "fresh" durian you saw was actually frozen -- in fact, often you can still see the frost on it. If you saw fresh mangosteens, they must have been smuggled in.

Fred Plotkin's The Authentic Pasta Book has some pastas filled with fruit, in the shape of wrapped candies, and so on. Don't be put off by a guy named Plotkin writing about "authentic" pasta; he's done some really good work in this and other books.

our peaches were disappointing too. could the season already be over? If you're willing to eat nectarines instead, Kernan farms had good ones last friday. I know they have a stand at Union Square on wednesday at the south end of the broadway side. No, the problem was that HWOE bought the peaches from someone OTHER THAN Kernans. Theirs are consistently wonderful. I made a crisp with the yechy ones (sliced, mixed with sugar, a little flour, almond extract; topped with streusel of oatmeal, flour, butter, white and demarara sugars, and some hazelnut praline paste) that turned out pretty well. Except for the peaches. This week we'll get from Kernan again, Thursday at WTC.

Pan, I believe that fresh mangosteen, like fresh durian, are not allowed into the US. The ones I saw recently were in Canada. (Thank you for the picture, though, Spaghetttti!) However, on the weekend I saw fresh lychee (where from? the season used to be so short!), longan, and rambutan, in addition to the dragon fruit. NYC is really getting to be a cosmopolitan place.

Reference to another Timothy C. Davis opus: Black Magic, in Gastronomica. I guess Co-Cola as a breakfast is not as prevalent as we (elsewhere) have been led to believe. BTW: Gastronomica is pretty slow about getting their TOC up online; guess you'll have to go find a copy.

Patience. Remember that this is a University publication, after all. Maybe I got my copy because I just re-upped, finally, actually paying for it

Forgive me if you don't want my opinions (since I am in NYC and have never lived in the Southeast). But here is my list: grits okra a vegetable-based kitchen that uses meat as a condiment or flavoring agent more varieties of barbecue than in any other region fried green tomatoes sugarless (or at least nonsweet) cornbread frying anything, to make it taste better and have a contrast in textures between the outside and the inside summer kitchens usable year-round (try THAT in the Northeast or Midwest) a coastline that yields creatures not found elsewhere and although it is not important to me, a sweet tooth that rivals the British and South Asian To put it another way: a great variety of top-notch ingredients, treated in ways not applied elsewhere.

Walking through NYC's Chinatown yesterday, I saw dragonfruit for the first time! And maybe snakefruit (or cheremoya, which is not so unusual here)? In any case, so exciting! I wonder where these come from -- we still can't get fresh mangosteen, iirc.

The oldest restaurant guide I have (NY Convention and Visitors Bureau, 1986) lists: Brasil Brasil, 50 W 77 Cafe des Artistes, 1 W 67 Caramba, Bway & 96th Centre Court, 61 w 62 The Conservatory, 15 CPW Eclair, 141 W 72 Ginger Man 51 W 64 "Oldest restaurant in Lincoln Center area." Hatch II, 380 Amsterdam Houlihan's, Bway & 63rd Indian Oven, 285 Columbus Martin's Restaurant & Pub, Bway betw. 60th and 61st Metropolis, 444 Columbus (80 - 81) Mrs. J's Sacred Cow, 228 W 72 O'Neals Baloon, 48 W 63 Prime Time, 355 Amsterdam Ruppert's, 269 Columbus Tavern on the Green Terrace, 400 W 119 Tuba City Truck Stop, Bway & 77th Of course, these are only places that paid $$ to NYC&VB Stone: I think Ernie's has been gone for a few years; the space became some sort of Latin American place that didn't last long (UWSers, correct me if I'm wrong).

Before the space has SQC, it had Peretti's for many years (back into the 1980s); in the early 1970s I believe it had a version of O'Neal's (used to have my Sunday Harvey Wallbangers there ). Not sure what might have been there in the interim. Al Buon Gusto was there? Could be; I was away during that time. The steakhouse Irwin refers to was Mrs. J.'s Sacred Cow. And yes, Victor's (Cuban) was somewhere up there, before it opened on 52nd Street. Diane's had BIG (7-ounce) burgers with all sorts of toppings. And let us not forget Tip Toe Inn, beloved by my grandfather and his wife when they moved to the UWS in the 1970s. They were not alone; I think the average age of the customers was about 75. Dosanko? You're welcome. (sorry) I LOVED that chain; they were all over, until when? late 1980s? And Zum Zum, which has been discussed before -- was there a branch on the UWS? edited after reading MHesse's superior information.

Smoki O's Barbecue from St. Louis, MO had some women working the BABBP in NYC in June. Were they staff, or did they ever control the pit? (The pitmaster is listed as Otis Walker).

When I get a good deal on baby artichokes (usually in the spring, here in NYC, from my Pathmark), I trim them down and stew them in white wine, olive oil, and water, with chopped onion and sometimes garlic. Then I pack them into canning jars and keep them in the fridge. Have not had luck yet getting favas.

You got a problem with that, lady?

Well, one more Made in Marseille by Daniel Young.

YES! that sounds great (although not as good as mine ). Given that there are a zillion ethnicities in your area, that could work for quite a long run. Are you talking about round robin or single elimination? (RR would result in a longer series )

The reasons for the precision is: you don't want to poison people, or have your food go bad. I've never yet had either happen (at least the food hasn't gone bad while the jar was still sealed; only after it's been opened and got contaminated with other stuff.) You see, there's canning and there's CANNING. The first -- what I do -- is just packing stuff in the jars, letting it cool so the lids seal, and then storing the jars in the fridge; I do this with jams, chutneys, caramelized onions, etc. CANNING involves packing the jars, putting on the lids, and then processing the filled jars in a boiling-water bath or in a pressure cooker to kill any unwanted organisms; then you can store the stuff in the cupboard. How long you process the jar depends on what's in it, especially how acidic the food is. In both cases, the jars and lids should be sterilized in boiling water before you fill them with the food. Many all-purpose cookbooks have instructions for canning; Joy of Cooking, Fannie Farmer and such. (edited because I finally read the actual question asked. )

Bawarchi.com has an English/Hindi glossary that includes the botanical names of plants.

Uh, I noticed something like that on TV in Vancouver, BC a few weeks ago, while channel surfing: a very studly guy in just a little half-apron, and a terribly perky, overly-made-up woman in a tiny bib apron, talking about food. Inserted clips had them more or less fully-clothed, asking people about sexy foods. Well at least there's no need for a costume budget.

HWOE decided to try a different vendor for peaches at our tiny (4-vendor) market at the WTC. Big mistake. He should have stuck with the one we know and love. No, it's not against us personally; it's just that some folks have lower standards. Let's see: yesterday we bought: yechy peaches tomatoes (to ripen, for eating starting tomorrow) kirbies chard -- it was soooooooooo beautiful and seductive! red and green bell peppers arugula, lolla rosa, cilantro, and escarole from the Migliorellis ginger gold apples hot peppers So now I have to make something with these lesser peaches -- probably a crumble or crisp, I guess, even though we are not much on dessert. (They are too mealy and lack flavor, otherwise I'd try to use them raw.)

Cooking show: Call it "Transformational Cooking." For each episode, I'd have people bring me their leftovers, which I would then re-combine into a fabulous new dish and feed back to them. Or to some other poor bastards, who would then have to guess what went into it. I'll PM you my address so you can send the check.

That's an interesting point. Why do you think that is? Seems kind of counter-intuitive to me, but if you have experience, I'd love to hear about it.

On the savory side: puree vegetable(s) of choice, mix with grated cheese, fold into beaten egg whites, bake as an almost fat-free souffle.

Well, someone has to say it: Does Peter Pan know that Japan is nebaneba land? Sorry. On the brighter side: I had natto in sushi while on vacation, and I kind of liked it!

Cupcake250: Date? Location? I saw that article this morning at my dentist's. Interesting. Our favorites include Schneider, yes, their Cab Franc, and Paumanok Chardonnay (Barrel Select and the lesser but excellent Festival) and Chenin Blanc. The Macari Brut is as good as they say, too. The article mentioned Vintage New York -- what a great store! You can taste everything in the store, and while the tastings cost, they apply it against your purchase. They've got Long Island, Hudson Valley, Finger Lakes -- and a kosher wine from "the Western end of Long Island" (aka Brooklyn) that was actually drinkable. BTW: one of the owners of Vintage New York is the former wife of the guy from Quilted Giraffe: her name is Susan Wine. No kidding.

No, Rosie, you're just a "little lady." I met him at a Culinary Historians meeting -- what a mensch! Very open, very nice guy. I wish him well.