Suzanne F

Yes, very nice pictures. Almost made it worth being blinded by the flash every time. The fries look a lot better than they actually were; the burgers do, too, but maybe that's just a function of extra light. The ham/"Irish bacon" serving was for the lone Atkinsite in the group. (He did not eat the fries.) But my god, we all look so serious! You'd think we were really working hard on those forms. Wait -- has anyone mentioned that The Lurker and his friends came directly from eating at Daisy Mae's BBQ across the street? Fat guys in training (except they're all skinny ). Or that Mr. Cutlets kindly consented to let us taste his Someplace-Dry-Rub Ribs, which were rather disappointing? Quick precis: too much rub, unpleasantly on the (sugar) sweet side, and the soft consistency of parboiled meat. Oh dear.

Even though BC found Landmark Tavern wanting, it wasn't all that bad. (In fact, I rather enjoyed it, myself.) And it's not very far, if you exit the Javits at the north end.

Maybe we'll just have to revisit the earliest sites -- the way "real" reviewers do -- as our sensibilities develop more, and as we limit our own variables. Oh, the neverending challenge. BTW: elyse twisted my arm into being the keeper of the list of prospective sites. So pm me if you come up with a new place. I'll repost the list as it stands now in a day or 2, once I stop tasting the fries from last night. (I liked this burger A LOT, and stand by my burger grades, but marked it way too high on incidentals. Do-over??)

Packing over the cut with cornstarch works the same way, and it's cheaper. As I type this, I'm looking at a dark red streak where my arm hit the oven rack. Eh, it'll flake off in another couple of days.

Is anyone else thinking what I'm thinking?

"should have went?" Well, how's about Saturday, December 13th, at Blue Smoke?

badthings: The blast freezer end at Dufour was at 0ºF; I'm not sure what the fan speed was. But I never wanted to be in there more than a couple of minutes at a time when pulling ingredients from the locked cage there.

Bearnaise? How??

Landmark Tavern Eleventh Avenue and 46th Street 7:00 pm Tonight, November 25, 2003 See you all!

When I worked saute, I had oil splash back on me when I rushed to slide a piece of fish in the pan. I've had caramel drip from the paper cone onto my arm. What did I do then? Just run cold water on it or clamp ice to it ASAP; then cover it when it blistered, keep it clean, and leave it alone. (so I'm one macho broad, what can I say? ) I never burned a big enough patch to worry about it. At home, of course I've done the "grab the handle just out of the oven" bit. Again, cold water (I don't usually keep ice in my freezer). A few hours of pain is nothing against a whole lifetime. But the suggestion of Silver Sulfadiazine Cream is good; my doctor gave me some when she learned what I did for a living. To be honest, I rarely used it, but passed it along to co-workers who were grateful for it.

And in addition to what DtC so correctly said, there's really no need for a non-stick pan, BECAUSE of the fat that will be rendered. Think self-basting. But it's the lack of fond that says "NO!! Don't do it! Put aways that non-stick and use a real, gutsy pan."

How does it compare to Saga Blue? That was one of my favorites when I first found it. Uh, oh, I guess I AM fickle. Just give me real cheese, and I'm happy.

One other caveat: there are "black truffles" from China that have all the flavor of a pencil eraser. No, less, and no aroma. They look like real black truffles, but with less light-colored veining. Do not be fooled.

Of course we all know it's not only Chinese menus: see Pam Parseghian's 11/17/03 column in Nation's Restaurant News. Although I do miss the Sting Beans from Little Szechuan.

You don't even have to thaw them first; just pop them into the oven directly from the freezer. In fact, that's the best way to reheat almost any filled pastry item. Thawing first can make them soggy, and the reheat doesn't always recrisp. I wouldn't, if you mean rolled in nori. Just because the nori will sog. If you do them inside-out, though, that should be okay.To gild HdT's suggestion: top them with bacon and broil to cook? Or just cut up bacon slices into squares, cook until crisp, and top the pb-stuffed pepper with them.

And if I may take her lead (even though I already posted here): 1) Sheeps' milk 2) Goats' milk 3) Cows' milk

The late unlamented Nola had a pretty good Raspberry Mojito. And I had a very tasty drink called a Strawberry Mojito at Agozar. The only problem was that it wasn't really a mojito. Oh, it had the basic ingredients, but was buzzed in a blender to a sort of slush. I guess I'm just an old geezer, but I don't like it when drinks are so changed while being called by classic names. (No, I will not drink any martini other than one with gin and vermouth.)

Glad you liked it. "Jenny" is so many, many people! I finally made a decision about buying chefs' cookbooks: I will wait until I can find them on the remainders tables, VERY deeply discounted. I'm only buying them to read, not really to cook from, so it doesn't matter how long I have to wait.

The All-Clad Chef Pan is like a flat-bottomed wok, AND has a domed cover, to boot. That might be my choice, especially since I could get favors from others who needed a rain hat, too.

Damn, this is impossible. Especially because I try new cheeses (to me, anyway) every chance I get. Just had some Red Hawk, a washed rind cheese from Cowgirl Creamery, and oooooooh And then there was the Perail at Artisanal, and the 4-year-old stuff from Grafton, and and and . . . Does that make me fickle? Or just hungry?

AzRael, not to discourage you, but: A review of The Professional Chef with links to the ensuing discussion.

Oh yes someone did My feelings are hurt that you missed my post, but you can make it up by feeding me some truffles. One of the "problems" with truffles -- well, truffle oil, anyway -- is that there CAN be too much of a good thing. In truffle oil use, as in sex, subtlety is all.

At Dufour Pastry Kitchens, we made a (mostly) savory Chestnut Strudel: with onions, celery, thyme, etc. that was great as an appetizer or as an unusual side/starch. At home, I have used pureed chestnuts in place of mashed potatoes to make gnocchi. A bit drier and heavier, but very, very tasty.

When I worked at a manufacturer that made hors d'oeuvres, one of our best selling items was a "Truffled MushroomRisotto" in phyllo. It deserved to be; it was fabulous! Mixed wild mushrooms, heavy cream, butter, rice, etc., with black truffle oil mixed in after the filling was cold. I could not get my staff to do that final mix to save my life! "Eeew," they said, " it smells like farts." "Well," said I, "some people find that smell very sexy." "Yuck," said they. "Mmmm," said I. I actually don't think truffles have much flavor whatsoever. But the aroma: pure pheromones! Pant, pant.

Andrea, isn't the Forley book one of the best ever? I LOVE the approach!!!