Suzanne F

I think there have been very mixed comments about I Trulli. But I've not been, so I can't add yay or nay. HOWEVER, I want to warn you that you will bust a gut at Urinetown. It is just great! Especially if 1. you know a lot of other musicals, and 2. you have a strong interest in socio-eco-political theory. (This is really all I wanted to post, but didn't want to go 100% OT )

The ones I had ranged from 1/2 inch to about 2 inches (body only, exclusive of tail and head). Most were at the smaller end of the range. I'm pretty sure now that these were just too early. I am positive that they were not frozen and thawed. I am grateful to everyone who has responded -- with advice, conjecture, and recipes. Next time I'm in the neighborhood of Grand Central Terminal, I'll ask more questions of the guys at Wild Edibles.

I'm not familiar with places in Jersey, but here in Manhattan some of the stands selling herbs at the Greenmarkets (definitely Union Square, maybe Downtown Brooklyn and some others) will have it. Dried, of course. Wherever you look, make sure it's organic; that is, not sprayed with any pesticides or growth potions. Once you find it, there are lots of other things you can do with it. I like to add a pinch to my version of Herbes de Provence. But be careful: it can be very, VERY strong.

Bad time to get them sounds more of a possibility than freezing/thawing/refreezing, etc. Especially since these were head-on, and not frozen; putting them through that treatment would have been easily identifiable by sight and smell. The folks I got them from -- Wild Edibles -- are not the type to do that or deal with anyone who would. But now you have me a little worried: since about half of the shrimp were loaded with roe, and it's still 2 months to the shrimping season, could there be a problem in the future with decreased stocks? Not just from my one little pound, but from an unknown amount of too-early catch?

Please be aware, though, that every time a new episode of Weebl and Bob comes out, I change my sig line to link to the new one. So the one in question is http://www.weebl.jolt.co.uk/tv.html. Just another reason I love eGullet: where I first met weebl and bob.

As I was re-filing the collection the other night, I found one I'd left off the list -- The African-American Heritage Cookbook by Carolyn Quick Tillery -- so I guess you have to add one more for me. That brings my total to an even 600. And I should soon be receiving a copy of another one I worked on: Throw Me a Bone, a charming book of recipes to cook for your dog. So I guess you could add that one, also (even though it's not yet in hand). And Suman, Oxford Companion definitely does count.

This past Friday, I bought some fresh, head-on Maine shrimp from a fishmonger I trust very highly. Incredibly inexpensive -- $6.95 a pound. I cooked them yesterday (Saturday), poaching them very, very gently in olive oil, never above 175 degrees, for about half an hour (so the shells would soften and be edible, which they were). The shrimp tasted fine, nice and sweet. The roe -- an unexpected bonus -- was pleasantly crunchy. The shells were easily bitten and chewed. But the texture of the flesh was kind of mushy. So: did I do something wrong, or is this just not a good time of year for the shrimp, since it seems to be mating season? Nick?? Anyone?

Marinated roast pork? Yes. Swiss cheese? Yes. Pickles? Yes; here but NO WHERE ELSE. Ham? Yes; I'm with you, Carolyn -- gotta have boiled ham. And not-so-crusty on the bread, please. Start soft, crisp up in the (absolutely imperative) grilling. BUT: No mustard? No mayonnaise? OOh, yes: one or the other or both; wars have been fought over this, but at least one. Wo/man cannot eat a sandwich by grease alone. Y nada mas.

Madame était servie at 7:30, and not even an hour and a half later, you're washing up? Jeez, you guys eat fast!

Keep it up, friends! Almost as good as live radio!!!

I can't wait to see how Jinmyo reacts.

I'm in. Once again, I'll bring the paraphenalia (gram scale, thermometers, etc. ) and forms for those who wish to use them. Is that mandatory? Probably not, but it actually makes it fun (all right, call me a sicko, or call me an SSB-wannabe). Picaman: I discovered that while I could saved the form in Word, when I opened it I got gobbledegook. Can you pm me with how to save an Adobe file so that I can print it out? TIA. And I'll bet Kirk made a gorgeous Hedwig!

It's got a great, great view. And a lot of now-famous chefs started out there.

Okay, lessee: we had 12 or 13 at Molly's, including Fat Guy, some relatively new members, and a couple of hangers-on who are welcome to join us anytime. We could barely see our burgers (dim lights), but had a very enlightening discussion. The burger ended up rating just under 70 out of 100. The evaluation is HERE. The form has since been changed. We're looking at Saturday 10/25 for the next official meeting, at a site yet to be determined. Welcome back. We missed you.

FM: that sounds like something that just might turn around the beet-haters here! YUM!!!!

Um, Toliver, you might have just taken on the role of eGullet Contributor.

Nay to Old Town. Just okay for a burger, not even up to Molly's, IMNSHO. I mean, a good enough lump of meat, but otherwise boring. But do put City Hall on the list as a possibility. Caveat: it's only open for lunch M-F. Maybe the downtown BC contingent can do a weekday tasting? JosephB? alacarte? I'm in. alanamoana: I think somebody mentioned "rare" a few pages back; Blondie, maybe? It was not a positive report.

Ask fresh a, who is a concierge in Paris.

Shaffer City was pretty good when I went there a few years ago. But I suspect it still is, because the owner is there all the time. And it's one of those lesser-known places that concentrates on doing a good job. Very nice no-nonsense feel to the place.

Okay then, no Better Burger. If the BC ever tries MJ Grill (casual sibling of Luger-knockoff MarkJoseph Steakhouse), you can do it at a time I can't attend. I had a bacon-cheeseburger there last night, and filled in the whole evaluation sheet. It's definitely worth checking out.

Pretty good, for canned fried onion rings.

Sticky rice for a T-day stuffing sounds great. Don't think I'll have to do it this year, but the next time, I will. YUM. The best food is when we accept all the different traditions and make them our own. While I hate the idea of "treats for good performance," you're right to tell Alex that he's got to do his homework first. Cute has nothing to do with it. Do the work, and you'll get paid. Don't do it, and you'll go hungry (so to speak).

Having "had greatness thrust upon me" -- that is, being a cook who was touched by the wand and turned into a "pastry chef" -- I have to say that you should learn the technical stuff first. As Chefette said, you MUST know conversions. Learn the chemistry of leaveners, and sugar, and gluten, and gelatin, and all those things that we lay people know nothing about. If you know the science behind baking and other aspects of desserts, then you have what you need to be a good pastry chef. Gisslen does not give you enough of that information; I don't know about the other books. Look at CookWise by Shirley Corriher; Harold McGee's books; Understanding Baking by Amendola and Rees. If you are already proficient at home with the "touch" then you need to learn how to deal with vast quantities of ingredients, and how to do perfect work when a zillion people are yelling at you. This cannot be learned from a book. If you read up on the chemistry, you will probably be way ahead of most school programs. But the advantage to going to school is the practice you get, and the contacts you make with the instructors. I firmly believe that the creative part is totally up to the practitioner, but without a good technical grounding and physical practice, you just can't do good work in pastry. I hope this doesn't discourage you. Doing pastry professionally is completely different from baking brownies at home; if you really want to do it, you can learn what you need to.

You probably want to leave the Theater District, since they'll be gearing up for the pre-theater dinner crush. Not that that makes your choice any easier.

Jinmyo: are whole Sichuan peppercorns available up there? Lucky you. I think we're not allowed to have them down here. I've been hoarding mine, I'm afraid to the point where they're useless.