Suzanne F

Was Sophia yours? She was the most adorable little thing! Even cuter than the pigs, and definitely cuter than the chickens. Let's face it, the whole event was just too short. Next time it's got to be from early morning until late night. That way we can talk more, and eat more. edited to add: and drink more, too.

I bought a little bottle of "citron" juice at Hong Kong Supermarket (E. Broadway and Allen St.) some months ago. It tasted kind of like yuzu, but not quite as flowery. They might still have it, or you could check Katagiri or one of the East Village Japanese markets for yuzu. Oh. It's probably too late now. Sorry.

Is your White Hen something like a 7-11 or Circle-K? Or a real local restaurant? I'm asking because the only place I've ever seen one is Gloucester, MA -- not exactly in Chicagoland.

I think it's silly to travel for a burger -- or much of anything, for that matter -- so I am very happy that the one at Le Zinc (Duane Street in Tribeca) is as good as it is: big, juicy, cooked perfectly, on a good onion roll, topped with terrific bacon and excellent cheddar, and accompanied with usually-perfect fries. (Oddly enough, I have never tried the burger at City Hall, which is a few steps closer. )

Looks as though HWOE will be able to come, too. Is that okay?

Oh, yeah!! Must . . . . . . get . . . . . . steak . . . . . .

You mean, there are different FLAVORS of red Jello? I thought it was all the same. I got to taste the cider because HWOE found it and had a glass, of which he kindly offered me a taste. It was indeed the essence of applehood. The next one of these will probably end up being a little more expensive -- because now we know what's important to rent -- but it will be worth it!! For a first-time, though, this was stupendous.

Well, elyse, that should be our community project, getting you capitalized so that the whole world can enjoy your baked goodies! For the record, one of the early pictures here shows elyse's pao de quejo little bitty puffs off the the left. Even cooled down from the trip, they were just as delicious as expected. I figure we're going to eat potatoes for the next week or two. But Rosie's health salad will be gone by tonight. Everything I tasted was a winner. Please, everyone, POST YOUR RECIPES!!!!!!!!!!!!! (I will if I can figure out what I put into the dressing )

Good planning, bux.

i was fascinated by this thing. i watched people cut it, as watching people cut is was even more fascinating. although i was afraid to eat it. although i wasn't afraid to drink some of sir-herb-alot's Jolly Rancher infused vodka. Fascinating is absolutely the right word. What vodka? Oh well, it's probably just as well I stuck to beer. Don't be jealous, bloviatrix. This is going to have to be more than a one-shot event. Next time you can bring the kosher pig.

This is not some exotic wild game. The Food Emporium carries D'Artagnan products, at least the one I go to does, and I'm pretty sure the others would, too. Or if you really want to go to a fancy butcher, try Giovanni Esposito on Ninth Avenue and 38th Street. (Get some of their sausage while you're at it. ) As for recipes, that will depend on what cut you get. Once you get it, tell us and we'll suggest what you can do with it.

I go to a steakhouse to eat STEAK, or prime rib. If the sides are edible or better, that's good enough for me. I go to eat a cut and quality of meat I cannot purchase, that has been stored under conditions and cooked at temperatures I cannot achieve. I sure as hell don't go to a steakhouse for the atmosphere. My favorite, The Old Homestead, as no atmosphere whatsoever. Nor do I go for the other clientele -- ????? I go to eat meat that I cannot possibly eat at home. It's that simple.

Today was the best. Jonathan and Nina and their kids and their animals and their farm are the best. Fink is the best. Kim WB and Rachel and jhlurie and Jason and Tommy are the best. Everyone else who came is the best, too. The pigs could make one rethink the need to turn them into bacon. They were the best. There was no best food after the pigs. Because everything else was equally, fabulously delicious -- at least, everything I tasted, which wasn't more then 1/2 of all the offerings. (If you count desserts and healthy stuff like fruit and salad. ) Oh, and the beverages were the best, too. Varmint may have a more traditional pig roast, but he won't have as many wonderful accompaniments. But his event will be the best, too. One last thought: maybe we should make a t-shirt with a picture of Rachel's Jello mold. It was beautiful beyond belief and should be memorialized.

Neat. Even though from personal observation I have problems with some of the statements. But please keep us informed. Related but not obviously part of this all: where does astringency fit in? Tannins, high-alcohol mouthwash, spinach, that sort of thing??

Gee, fifi, your Aunt Minnie sure sounds like a better cook than MY Aunt Minnie! And the instructions made perfect sense.

bocaraton, perhaps you can answer this for me: the cookbook I worked on had recipes for hogaos and guisas, usually within a larger recipe, which seemed very similar in their ingredients and in the ways they were used. The author never really explained the difference. Can you, please? Much obliged.

Thanks, timbo, for that background. This is much more interesting now that a perpetrator, um, I mean participating researcher, has chimed in. What got me initially, and still does, is the study's underlying assumption that liking salt = disliking bitter. Or that cream and sugar are not simply likable flavors when combined with coffee. Even if salty and bitter were the only two tastes we could experience, that still seems like fallacious reasoning to me. Or were there specific survey questions that offered those reasons as responses? As an N of 1, of course you can't draw any conclusions from my preferences. But you should know that almost every night I enjoy a salad with a high proportion of bitter ingredients (endive, radicchio, romaine), I drink espresso without sugar and American coffee with only milk (or black if it really good), AND I find that wines that have extremely high alcohol content (say, the 14.9% Zin we had the other night) are in fact bitter -- because alcohol is bitter. But I drink them anyway. Guess I'd better go back an read the actual article, eh? Edited to add: I tried but couldn't; it has expired. Is there anywhere we can read the article, or see a research report on the survey?

Just found this thread. sigh. Our favorite diner in Wilmington . . . VERMONT does a great "Sausage Gravy Biscuit." I suspect that they might actually add a bit of cream to the gravy. In any case, it's one of those things I'll have once a year when we're up there, and dream about all the rest of the year.

Tommy: you da man!!! Soba: Fuck them, come and join all of us! What can they do, fire you? NOT YOU -- the most loyal, trustworthy, honest, etc. etc. Aww, please????? Bloviatrix: I wanna meet you!!! And everyone else, see you Sunday!

I'm bringing my collection of take-out forks, spoons, knives, chopsticks, and 1 spork. Not quite enough for one for each person, but almost. 2 or more plastic serving implements (I share). A roll or two of paper towels, box of garbage bags. Oh, and the promised food and beverage.

Okay. Just about every place I worked did the mashed potatoes during prep time. I mean, really! Cook 'em, run them through the food mill, mix in the butter, cream/sour cream/whatever. Cram them into a bain. Cover them with the wrappers from pounds of butter. Place them on the shelf over the stoves (NOT cooling, but keeping hot). When the order comes in, scoop out what you need into a saute pan, add whatever you add, stir as you heat them. Plate. That's it. Is this the best way to do it? of course not! But then I never worked for Joel Robuchon. Or wherever Oreganought has been. I can't imagine doing it this way at home. Why would you want to do them hours ahead????? At work, it would be molto multi pounds of potatoes at one time. At home, how many servings -- and how many potatoes -- do you need to do? Even for a 12-person dinner party, that's still a small enough amount to do à la minute.

Deep breath, everybody. In with the good air, out with the bad air; in with the good air, out with the bad air. EVERYTHING IS GOING TO WORK OUT FINE. WHY DO YOU THINK WE WERE BUILT WITH OPPOSABLE THUMBS? THE BEST SERVING AND EATING INSTRUMENTS KNOWN TO MAN AND WOMAN.

Okay. I warned you.

Boo hiss. I feel your pain. No, really. But so much of the fun is in the planning; the execution is kind of anticlimactic. Wait -- you're having ANOTHER baby? Oh, forget cooking for friends; you'll have your hands full at home.

Oh, well then I guess I'll stay home so that I can spend all of Sunday on eGullet. NOT. (Sorry, tommy )