Jean Blanchard

I'm wondering if anyone in the Chicagoland area knows where they sell guanciale? I've tried Fox and Obel and they don't carry it. It makes great Carbonara - or at least it did in Italy. Could have been the surroundings helped but I'd love to duplicate it here. jb

When I was 9, my mother made me in charge of dessert for our family of six. So the first thing I did was buy 10 Jiffy Mix cake mixes in all of their flavors. I believe they cost $.10 each. My father would take a bite and every single time, he'd close his eyes and say that this was the most delicious cake he had ever tasted. I was hooked! jb

I fortgot the chives, oregano, nasturtiums and pansies for salad and summer savory. Love this time of year! jb

So far - Eggplant, Jalapenos, Red Peppers, Cherry Cluster Tomatoes, Yellow Heirloom tomatoes(can't remember the name), Early Girls and my pride and joy - Italian Gnarly looking tomatoes that I grow from seeds that I brought back from a farmers tomatoes in Italy 4 years ago. I call them Guido's (the farmers name). Herbs: Rosemary, Sage, Thyme, Marjoram, Basil (two kinds), Parsley, Cilantro, Dill, Lemon Verbena, Tarragon, Lemon Mint, Spearmint, Chamomile, Chervil, Savory, Salad Burnett. Salad: 4 kinds, can't remember their names and Swiss Chard.

I can second Tra Vigne. It's also very pretty and a great place to sit in the courtyard and have a glass of wine before dinner. Don't forget about Mustards Grill. Not as prettty but the food was good two years ago. Heading out to Napa/Sonoma again in the fall so it's nice to get more restaurant ideas here.

Okay, I'm going to put this on my list of culinary driven weekends. Maybe I'll get another foodie to make the drive with me.

This really sounds tempting since I've always wanted to visit Zingermans. How long is the drive from Chicago area to Ann Arbor? I'm very new to this site but I sense that I'm very old compared to the rest of you. Will I be the only over 50 year old there and will that bother anybody?

At this point, we're flexible. Flying into Lisbon and moving on from there. We have about 9 days and we're trying to figure out if we should pick two areas to stay in (eliminating packing and unpacking constantly) and just see what's reasonable to see from each point. That's what we did in Tuscany and since we had a kitchen, we were also able to visit markets and cook. Is that a reasonable thing to do in Portugal? I love to go to the markets and hate it when I can't cook! jb

slathered on a graham cracker with a glass of cold milk. Dot some on a sectioned grapefruit half with a little brown sugar and put under the broiler. jb

Planning a trip to Portugal in September. Anyone ever been? Suggestions on restaurants, place to stay, etc. jb

You can get the tiles cut to the size of your oven rack at your local tile store. Once in a while they break when cleaning but they're so cheap that it's no big deal. I've used the Julia Child method for baking bread for years and it's the best. I find that even if I don't always create the steam, having the tiles and spraying bread with a fine mist of water several times at the beginning of the baking gives you a great product. If you do that, you won't need the expensive hearth oven. jb

Add 189 for me. Although I think I have two out on loan. jb

Definitely plant lemon verbena. The smell alone is worth it. Last year, I made lemon verbena ice cream, liquore, chicken and the list goes on. Rosemary, planted in a container, always survives for me all winter. Basil should be pinched back often and frozen if you can't use what you pinch so you'll have it all winter. You can make pesto and freeze in ice cube trays to use small amounts.

I'd go with lemon, maybe some mint. Fresh flowers are always a nice touch.

Mayhaw Man, I just found out that they are moving here from Lafayette, Louisiana. Maybe you're on to something? ←