Genny

I've watched a few of the "How to Cook Everything" programs. My local PBS channel is showing 2 shows back-to-back once a week. I really enjoy these. I get to see some fabulous chefs in their element with their own dishes demonstrated and then Mark Bittman takes the main ingredient or concept of the dish and creates his own simplified version. This is sooooooo much better than the FN shows that are supposed to entertain/teach cooking. Two thumbs up!

I must agree Melissa, the cover is unappetizing! How can they do this to us? Not good at all. And increasingly it is more about food travel than cooking! rrrrrrrr, I'm likely to not renew this subscription.

You know, when I finished watching AB:NR last night I was thinking about how tired I am of the Asia travel shows and that I would love to see him in Sicily! Ha! I sure hope this one gets made. I'd also love to see him in some places in South America like Costa Rica, or how about Africa? These are cultures I've not seen much of. Regarding the "vision" of AB:NR. I really think that he does a great job of showing a slice of the real life and the culture of the places he visits. Are these your standard travel destinations? Nope. I'm sure we wouldn't have the same opportunities he gets but it is interesting to me to see the local food, entertainment and values that he gets to experience and share. It could be more in-depth but I think that you don't want to lose too much of the Bourdainesque view and commentary since that quirky irreverence juxtaposed by his absolute respect for the experience is what sells the show. FWIW. IMHO

If you are cutting the cholesterol and fat, just egg whites will do the job nicely...depending on the application.

We've had our Jura Capresso for about a year now and are so thrilled with it. It does everything: grinds, brews regular coffee, espresso, capuccino, whatever you want to set it to and also had a hot water spout for tea and a steamer for the lattes. We call it the best waste of money we've spent! I purchased some disposable thermal to-go cups and now we never need Starbucks either!

Thank you Thank you Trishiad for responding! And for the encouragement. I did order a polycarbonate mold online. It is beautiful! Perhaps I need to be patient (not a long suit) and let the mold 'season' with a few uses to build up a better shine. Hmmmm. I think I'll have to break down and schill out the $17/bottle for the colored cocoa butter from Chef Rubber website. I'll do the spin trick to empty out the molds of more chocolate the next time around. That will likey work. I'll keep you posted of my results!

LCS, I'm just a novice here, but could you do a mixed media for the topper and surrounding decoration? Glass shards which are shiney and clear mixed with some pastillage sugar that is colored and solid. It could tie in the solid colored shapes from the cake and make the clear sugar shards bursting from the cake make the original shapes take on a new dimension. Sounds neat, but I have no idea if this would work in the real world. FWIW.

Sounds like the place to go after a nice blues set!

I'm not sure what the burger is but there is an ad here that has people drinking from the hose, the toilet, taking flowers out of a vase to drink that water, all because their burger is so HOT. Ewwwwww.

The brand I use is Fancy Foods and its pretty tasty. Alas, I only use it on my homemade fish and chips as well.

Oh, Diva! I could just cry for you, how heartbreaking. If it is any consolation... these are still absolutely lovely and I'm sure no one else in the church could have done better! Looking forward to the rest of the story....

Well, once again my fellow eGers have influenced my shopping and eating habits... I saw the packages of the new Mega M&Ms and so I had to buy a small package of each, plain and peanut (for scientific purposes). I've tried only the peanut so far but my experience was this: The size was almost too big for me. I do like the smaller size better I think. The flavor was better though. It may just be psychological but I thought the chocolate tasted richer and of a better quality than the regular M&Ms. Oh, and the display for these said "For a limited time only" so I wondered if these were really here to stay?

I've enjoyed the Paris and Iceland shows. I think that Bourdain is someone who's persona and humor are either liked or disliked without much middle ground. As my husband said, "You find him far more amusing than I do." Well, so be it. I like the irreverent, and Bourdain is that! I'll keep my DVR set for No Reservations. Hell, I've not been to any of these places so I am learning a little something while having fun! Like, I don't think Iceland is for me and I may enjoy Paris someday, but it is still lower on my list of places to go than others. Oh, and the French accent on the Iceland show cracked me up!

Chorizo and eggs. Lots of spicy chorizo. Scrambled together. Good enough alone but over the top is to add Jack cheese, sliced avocado and wrap in a warmed flour tortilla. I also just love egg salad. Warmed, just cooked eggs. I just add some mayo, s/p and a pinch of dry mustard. Straight out of the bowl, not on a sandwich, is good enough for me! Question though. why do eggs just not smell appetizing? Surprizing that they are so popular on taste and texture. I just don't dig on the smell. Some great ideas on this thread though!

I can't believe no one has mentioned the English favourite: Spotted Dick...just where the heck did this name come from??? Sounds awful.

You can find a grocer near you....Smart Chicken clicken...

AmberBock beer (2) edit: dang, can't even spell one word right!!!!

OK, I absolutely must object here... this woman looked like the quintessencial mafia hooker! No class at all...gimme a break! Piece of a$$, yeah, probably and also probably not too hard to get either. I agree, Michael was the rightful winner. I loved how he exposed Ralph's superficial 'pro' crap. Wiley, like a fox! Oh, and I'm sorry, who says 'smooth' and 'good with people' is what is needed to be a chef? Ever heard of Bourdain or Keller? Neither of which are exactly people persons by reputation.

Food Tutor: Sounds like my idea of hell! That kind of closed mindedness would drive me up a wall! My dad isn't particularly adventurous, but I still love him! And he does have an appreciation for Morton's so if he won't try sushi, eh, I'll live with it Sweet Danielle, you only want what is best for your brother. That is endearing and I'm sure he appreciates your sisterly devotion and concern. I lived in LA and there are far more superficial qualities that people judge each other by than their lack of adventure nature. I think what your original post really was addressing was the fear that this person is potentially closed-minded and lacks an adventuring spirit which it appears is the opposite of your brother. I wish you and him the best of luck! By the way FWIW, I thought the interpretations everyone brought to this discussion enlightening. We all have our 'filters' and look at a given statement through them. They may not always be as the original message sender intended but this sure makes for lively discussion! Oh, and I've eaten at the OG and would choose it over Applebees any day of the week!

Wow Dave, this vacation looks so much fun! And to have such a competent sous as Caitie! Caitie, very nice write up! And a beautiful cake too! The bananas on top suggest this was a chocolate banana cake, is that correct? Was this completely from scratch or did you get an assist from Betty Crocker? Great Job!

I agree with you 100%! Different judges please!!!!! Unfortunately this competition didn't hold my attention nearly as well as the past 3.

Hi, I'm not a professional baker... I've made this type of "galette" with just blueberries and with this and in my pies I've used corn starch as a thickener and also have thickened with tapioca. These have been big helps especially with peach pies that can give off a LOT of juice. Also, I wanted to contribute the FLC's definition of Galette just to muddy the waters some on the subject: galette {gah-LEHT} Hailing from france, a galette is a round, rather flat cake made of flaky-pastry dough, yeast dough or sometimes unleavened dough. The term also applies to a variety of tarts both savory and sweet, and there are as many variations as there are French regions. They may be topped with fruit, jam, nuts, meat, cheese etc. Happy cooking!

Welcome Jen! Good story and a good lesson!

My DH and I like to explore the area and find something new. One night we were driving around for about 45 minutes and couldn't agree on a thing. Finally, I was just too hungry to care. We stopped at this place called Sam's ________ (something) and figured we'd been by it often enough and there were always cars there... We walked in the door and it was filled with smoke from the bar. We asked if there was a non-smoking section and we were brought to a glassed in room about 1/4 the size of the entire place. We were annexed for being non-smokers! Well we ate, I don't remember what and we've never been back!

Does this mean that not only to you have to add those ruffly panties, but a tightly-buttoned dress as well? Sorry---I've been proofreading for DAYS and my mind is rebelling. ←