Suzanne F

Sure; too bad we're getting rides from two different drivers.

With so many people, will it really be a problem if there are multiple potato salads, beans, or pies? I think not! I mean, who wants to schlep 25 pounds of perishable food for 75 people? However, as the day grows nearer, and the count gets higher, people can PM me for quantities to make if you really, really want to bring enough for EVERYONE. Thank you, Rachel, for keeping the list, the count, and the menu. You are beyond rubies (NO I DON'T MEAN HER!!! )

Well, yeah, but where the hell do you park it????? I'm with pattimw -- I've got so much stuff, bought when I thought I'd use it someday; well, that day hasn't come for quite a few items. but one thing I've learned to do is keep a list of smallwares to bring to the Broadway Panhandler Yard Sale each year -- stuff like tongs, silicon spatulas, etc. When I was young and had no money, I just waited and figured out how to do the same thing with what I had; now that I'm old and have no money, I've learned to want less, and to watch for super-sales.

Soak. Drain. Pipe. Eat. Swoon. In the D'Artagnan book that I mentioned, Ariane Daguin tells a story of preparing French Kisses for a dinner organized by Michel Richard to honor Julia Child on her 80th birthday. Many famous chefs, 500 guests. Very crowded kitchen. She concludes the report with:

It's only 11:00am, so I am trying to resist opening a bottle of Anchor Summer Beer. More body than most weissbiers, but not as much as regular Anchor Steam. Another vote also for Hoegaarden, although it seems a bit thin. Refreshing, though. And it goes nicely with steak tartare. And a vote for Bud. Yes. Because it's cheaper than bottled water, and readily available in places with unknown water quality (or worse yet, Philadelphia ). Plus it has the delightful effect of flushing one's system.

Sorrel Beverage This was served at the NYC Second Pot Luck on July 12, 2003. The recipe is an adaptation of one in Elisabeth Lambert Ortiz's The Complete Book of Caribbean Cooking. It is very sweet, very spicy, and very strongly flavored, so you might want to serve it over ice, or turn it into a spritzer with seltzer (we like 2/3 seltzer to 1/3 sorrel). You can add more or less of the spices, or leave some out entirely, as you prefer; this is just a guideline. You can also use ground spices, in which case you need to strain it through many, many layers of cheesecloth: it should be a clear liquid. Sorrel in this case is not the tart green herb, but the sepals of the Hibiscus sabdariffa, also known as Rosella. (If you've had Red Zinger tea, you've had this sorrel.) It's available dried in Caribbean groceries. This makes about 6 quarts -- plenty for a big, big party, and then some! 2-1/2 oz (1 package) dried sorrel sepals 2 cinnamon sticks 2 pieces dried orange peel, 3x1-inch each 15 whole cloves 2 T whole allspice berries 3 sliced ginger (fresh, candied, or dried) 3 whole dried chilis, whatever kind you have (I used Thai bird chilis) 1 pieces star anise 1 T unground fenugreek seeds 5 c sugar 5 qt boiling water Place the sorrel, spices, and sugar in a very large, heatproof crock or jar. One with a spigot at the bottom would be perfect (the kind used in bars to make infusions). Add the boiling water and stir until the sugar dissolves. Let cool to room temperature. Cover loosely. Let sit at room temperature for 2 to 4 days, stirring occasionally. (I've let it sit as long as a week and not had problems with fermentation; but I live in a temperate climate.) To serve: give one more stir. Strain as needed into a pitcher through a fine sieve lined with at least 6 to 8 layers of dampened cheesecloth. Chill if desired. Serve straight over ice or with seltzer as a spritzer. If you like, you can add rum, preferably from Trinidad (Appleton or Mount Gay), or a blend (Pusser's). Keywords: Non-Alcoholic Beverage, Carribean, Kosher, Vegan, Easy ( RG582 )

Oh no, you want a lesson? I was going to say something about how you already understand the principle. But right now I don't think I can do it without getting close to obscene.

Goats Do Roam, no? There are some terrific whites coming out of the North Fork of Long Island from Paumanok and Schneider, and some of the wineries are starting to work on Cabernet Franc. Ternhaven, based in what used to be a gas station in Greenport (hey, before that, the owner made the wines in his bathtub on the Upper West Side, but the neighbors complained too much about the infestation of fruit flies) makes a "claret" that's mostly Merlot (he says, "Hey, Petrus is mostly Merlot") and while it's no Petrus, it's damn good. In other words: HEY YOU GUYS, COME TO NEW YORK AND ACTUALLY TASTE WHAT'S AVAILABLE.

You naughty boy, you.

roflmao!!!!!!!

Hmmm. Figs. Are there any figs in season? Fresh, I mean. I suppose you'd just cut an X in them to halfway down, squeeze open, and pipe the mousse into the open space. I don't think it would work with dried figs -- too compact. But I could be wrong. In any case, the flavor combination would be fabulous. Come to think of it, we had fig chutney with the "Foie Gras Brulee" at Jean George last year.

You beat me to it. When I made that a couple of weeks ago, I used thick-sliced roast beef, bought at the deli. Talk about a perfect summer dinner! Also works well with cooked shrimp, squid rings, or cubed firm tofu. And I like to add bean sprouts and slivers of sweet onion.

It's easier than you think: According to D'Artagnan's Glorious Game Cookbook, the filling is foie gras mousse, which is good for you because 1. it's a lot less expensive, 2. you don't have to cook anything, just buy it ready-made (check out the retail counter at D'Artagnan on East 46th Street, or maybe even Food Emporium; they carry D'Artagnan products); and 3. all you have to do is soften it and pipe it in. They don't give an actual recipe for the things in the book, but it should be easy enough to wing it. My guess is how long to soak the fruit depends on how dry it is. When it's all nice and plump, drain off the liquid (I'll be happy to take it off your hands ), and use a very thin tip with the pastry bag to pipe in the softened mousse. Et voilà! A little messy, but pretty simple. Of course, the dates have to be pitted before you soak them.

Yes, there is a version of the Cubano, with a woman's name, Maria something? I think it has cream cheese, strawberry jam, and turkey. I was about to say it sounds ghastly, but then I remembered how much I love smoked turkey with lettuce on sourdough spread with a mix of mayo and cranberry chutney. Favorite cold vegetarian sandwich #1: fresh chickpeas; sprouted lentils; other sprouts (radish, alfalfa); chopped tomato, cucumber, and cheese (cheddar or blue); bound with blue cheese dressing; in a multigrain crusty roll. Favorite cold vegetarian sandwich #2: Swiss cheese and tomatoes on seeded rye with mustard. Favorite hot vegetarian sandwich: felafel from Alphanoose on Fulton Street, with lettuce, tomatoes, pickled turnip, pickled cucumber (Middle Eastern), onion, sesame sauce, and hot sauce, on pita. Never-again childhood favorite: peanut butter and banana slices on Pepperidge Farm white bread.

That depends, KateW. How much does SO put in? If the total is $20 and you alone tip $3, that's 15%; if the total is $30 and you alone tip $3, that's 10%. Draw your own conclusions. I tend to tip 20% on pre-tax, more if the service was truly excellent, less if truly awful. But I don't think it's an accepted norm anywhere; it's just the easiest way to figure out the tip. And I tend to give a little more because I'm in the industry. Besides, I have to make up for the misconception that women are lousy tippers (oh, to carry the burdens of one's gender!)

But if you could reheat it in a microwave, would that work?

No problem kicking in another couple of $ to cover the paper goods. Oh, and do we have to post a bond against any damage we might do to the property? Not that I expect we will, after all, we're such a dignified bunch . . . but. I mean, what if there's a pie fight?

Wait -- didn't Heyjude post a recipe for this a year or so ago? AHA! Found it! on the PacNW Cocktail Party thread: heyjude Posted: Nov 3 2002, 03:02 PM Group: Member Posts: 246 Member No.: 1041 Joined: 26-January 02 The Bacon Candy is a combination of recipes from several sources. They range from dredging the bacon in brown sugar on both sides and baking until crisp(with time ranges of 3 minutes to 35 minutes) to cooking the bacon first on one side and then pressing the brown sugar mixed with chopped walnuts and a teaspoon of flour on the uncooked side and cooking until bubbling and caramelized. I did a version of the latter, but(at least in this oven)will cook the bacon crisp, turning once, before topping with the brown sugar/nut mix in the future. And this recipe does have a future. -------------------- Judy Amster Cookbook Specialist and Consultant jramster@drizzle.com It is also discussed on another thread: Potluck Appetizers, which contains several links back to the cocktail party thread.

The wedding was at the City Clerk's office in the Municipal Building (NYC). On our way out, someone from the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (?) accosted us and asked if we had just gotten married, and would we like to have our picture taken? Sure, why not. So we climbed the stairs to the top of a (10-foot high?) plywood wedding cake in City Hall Park, they got their photo for "The Wedding Project" and we got a Polaroid -- the only commemoration of the event. Then we went home to pack, because we were leaving that afternoon for a conference on Livable Cities in Venice. Italy. Sigh. So: another vote for airline food. Can't remember which airline, though.

Confirming for 2. And I will commit to potato salad, so long as I can leave the ethnicity open

NYTexan: I disagree. The principles of making each ARE the same. Season and spice slab of meat, cook meat slowly and lovingly over low heat -- which does that describe? Different cuts, different animals, different spicing, yes. But same philosophy. Except that pastrami makers don't go through a couple of 6-packs during the process. maf: I disagree with you, too. Poverty? Uncleanliness? These do not good food make. And given the Jewish population of Savannah (and other highly traditional Southern trading towns), I'll be you COULD get decent pastrami if they would just forget that they've been there longer than most of the other folks. Oh, and the mashed potatoes at Blue Smoke/Jazz Standard DO have lumps.

This question reminds me of a ditz in my management class at restaurant school. We were discussing menus for different types of establishments; at one point, bar food. In all seriousness, she asked, "Well, Buffalo Wings are such a popular item. But what do you do with the rest of the chicken?"

If you can find Lingham's Chilli Sauce from Malaysia, try it! Hot, sweet, clingy -- so much easier than making one's own. At a restaurant where I worked, I made a sort of caramelized fish sauce/garlic/ground chili/lime sauce that was excellent; but Lingham's is so much easier!!!!!

Oh, my! I'm honored. Except that it's not really MINE, but Gary Robins's. However, I always thought it was delicious, really excellent, so I passed it along. Polly, I'd also be interested in the recipe you mentioned.

Just got word of this from the Director of Special Events at Beacon (home of the Flaming Orange Gully ® ): OH, man, is that tempting. I just hope they let you use utensils to eat the chowders! OTOH, slurping is grand fun.