Genny

Hi all- posting from the beautiful Rogue Valley in Oregon, Mystic Ranch to be precise! I finally was able to get on the computer and the first thing to do was catch up on the Tag Team/Smackdown blog. Marlene: well, my guess is tonight you went for the warm goat cheese salad or the carpaccio starter. Since your DH doesn't eat lamb and you love it and it is not in tomorrow's basket, I think that will be tonight's Good Eats! On the Waring Pro blender: I've had mine for a few months now, I believe it is the same model. The lid on mine does fit snug and the center cap is actually somewhat difficult to unscrew if I've got wet hands. The base fitting does feel wobbly on the stand but it seems when in use it is just fine and perfectly sturdy. Let me know how you like yours, I like mine just fine, but then I've been without a blender for a few years so I am just so thankful! Sam: the bimibap was beautiful! I think I saw a thread on that not so long back, now I am inspired to read it and learn more! It surely looks like something our home will enjoy. I'm so glad that a night off for the cook was scheduled for you both tonight, you certainly deserve it!

You put knives in the dishwasher???? My Henkels (I know, too lazy to go check spelling) never go in the dishwasher: prep or steak knives.

Both meals were just gorgous! Sam that chicken was stunning and unique. And look at all those veggies!! Who needs veggie night when you have so many veggies on a chicken night? Again, I would have loved to taste both of them! Sam, what were the spices you used with your veggies and chicken? Just S/P? Also the veggies look wet, was there some chx stock there or were they just moist from the cooking? I can aspire to your level of cookery! (why don't we have a smilie with the 'licking its lips" expression???

A friend knows I like wine so she got me PLASTIC wine glasses. Not clear either, the color of baby poop, like a mustardy brown. God love her for the thought but the cups aren't good for anything really, certainly not wine. The thought was that they would go for picnicks. I'll drink out of a regular glass or the bottle first. I really don't like the taste of plastic much anyway. Really though, a sweet thought!

OMG Marlene, this is priceless. I'm seriously wiping the tears away as I type! For the trifle, just layer any flavors you and your family will like. Hell, serve the damn cake crumbs in a bowl with chocolate sauce, whipped cream and act like it's supposed to be that way. I'm sure Ryan will never know the difference. Hell, make up a cool name and he'll tell his friends about how his mom is so cool she made "Crumbled Cake" or "Skateboard Crash Cake" or something like that.

I hated GR on Beyond Boiling Point but was somewhat interested in last night's program. It wasn't all bad. Really I think that GR is like Coyote Ugly for foodies.

CLEARLY I'm doing something wrong here. How the hell does anyone get their 'other' to clean up after them???? I get all gushy if he drys and puts away! Oh well, I guess I'd rather take dishes than taxes, bills, the damn pool maintanence, the yard maintanence, what else....oh bringing home the bacon. Hmmm. I guess I'll have to keep dishes. Marlene, just be careful. We all care about your safety here. OTOH, you are taking one, I mean two (so far) for the team and that says something about your will to win! (And the crowd stands and cheers for Marlene, playing injured with the "Falling UP The Stairs Injury" and the "Exploding Hot Soup In The Blender Injury"...so far all Sam has is "Hangover" even though that can be serious too. I love that you are stretching your skills for this though, seriously. It is awesome to see you trying new recipes, tools, cooking methods, etc. Inspirational!

Chi-POAT-leh is the best I can do for phonetic. It's just the way it's spelled, in Spanish. The big problem with that one is that easily half the time, people (mis)spell it chipolte ← My DH has given up on this one and pronounces it "Cha-poodle". Dear me. (smacks head)

You are my new best friend, both for the compliment and the tofu. If you're rich, I'll even marry you. ← SHE SAID YES!! My husband will be so happy I found someone to clean the kitchen after I've cooked in it Oh, damn! Not rich yet, so I guess I'm jumping the gun. That and if you love NYC then you'd likely shoot yourself if you had to be stuck in suburbia. Hey Marlene, a quick suggestion: Perhaps someone else should put the chicken on the spit for you. You know, just in case. You do seem a bit accident prone. Just trying to help!

Good categorization Rebel Rose! I agree, eggs and ground beef are excellent ideas. Some kind of casserole maybe? (I don't make casseroles, growing up outside of the mid-west I think I am genetically handicapped in that arena ) Perhaps since it has/will be such an intensely rich cook-off something light and vegetarian, as previously suggested, does make sense. Perhaps our fearless bloggers would appreciate that? Or fruit. Eggs & Veggies. Not tofu since Kathleen doesn't like that and since she does dishes (my hero! will you marry me???) she gets a major say in what is cooked! BTW Marlene, thanks so much for including the mistakes as well! It helps to know we are all just human after all

Scotch & Brandy, ick. I love the booze, don't get me wrong. Vodka, tequilla, rum, whisky you name it I love it. But Scotch and Brandy are awful! My DH has a bottle of 35 year old single malt and even that is awful. I know it is all very fine quality but those 2 just don't get it for me. I wonder why???

Poor Snacky-Cat, You were just trying to share what you thought was a good find! I'm sure that Pan-o-Pan is a wonderful treat for those who love great looking food, neat flavors and may not have the time/skill/whatever to put it all together themselves. Since this was for your husband, and he seemed to really like it, the thought behind it was perfection. That is the only point that matters on the subject. Now, have you been back and tried other combos? What did you like or not like?

Isn't that funny, I love lamb and artichoke stew. I put cured black olives in mine to deepen the flavor. Oh my! I think I ate the left overs every day for a week! (And I don't usually like left overs!)

Oh Sam, I better not show those steaks to my DH! He'd try to eat one all by himself Those were gorgeous!! And the potatos and the mushrooms look beautiful! I'm not even hungry and I wanted a bite. The art of the true master: simplicity = amazing: your bread pudding only had a few ingredients but looked, well, good enough to bathe in...I mean eat! Nicely done!! So, with the garlic based soup tonight, what are you thinking in terms of type of soup and what to go with it? Can the soup be the main dish?

So the big question is this, are there foods that you buy that you know only you will eat? Do you hide the treats from your family so that they don't disappear in the blink of an eye? Do you get ice-cream that you know no one else will eat? Be honest...

Wow, we really have some NY night owls on tonight! Asparagus is a biggie. I used to fight my mom on that one. Coffee. Fish/Sushi. Lamb, it took a while to like it and sometimes now the smell is a little strong for me. It definitely has to be medium rare or stewed until falling apart!

What a wonderful story Racheld, thanks for sharing that. It obviously has great weight in your childhood memories. So many of my memories are food related, it is almost like the thread that holds chronology together for me. A couple of my major food first memories: When I was about 12 (early 80's) we went to Disneyland and had dinner at a place called The Orange or something. I ordered beef stroganoff and thought I went to heaven with the creamy mushroomy sauce, bites of beef, perfect pasta and sour cream. MMMMMMMM Food didn't get much more exotic than that until college (late 80's - early 90's). A friend introduced me to Japanese food in down town San Jose, CA: Japan Town. I didn't like fish at all at the time but was a sport and tried the tuna roll. Not bad. I fell in love with sticky rice and miso soup though. Miso soup became a comfort food, one which I crave when I don't feel well. And I have come to love sushi/sashimi and am quite adventurous at the sushi bar! About 4 years ago a friend from work was talking about this soup she had had and was dying to go back. Four of us went and I had pho for the first time. My very first Vietnamese food. Wow. I was tapping my toes the whole meal and couldn't believe my good fortune!

OMG Marlene, a perfect meal. How beautiful and tasty looking. The table setting was lovely. Is your china Noritake, Sterling Cove? It looks so similar to my china. I'll have to give the Rolling Estonian a try!

You my dear are sitting in my husband's seat! bwaa-haaa haaa. evil geniuses will prevail! edit to add: BUT, in my defense (after reading through all the posts) I only do this to my husband! And he's OK with it. If he really wants something else, he'll get it but we are often thinking on the same lines. And I do go to Outback with him whenever he wants even though I don't often get in the mood for a steak. (little too defensive? Also, it really does depend on the level of comfort on has with one's dining companions. Decorum really only allows this with close family and friends.

Not in any particular order... Miracle Whip: What the hell is this crap? Just give me Best Foods/Hellman's. And don't put it in my potato salad, cole slaw or deviled eggs either! Do you think I can't taste the difference? It is so sweet and tangy it just grosses me out. When my SIL comes for the holidays she has to buy a small jar of this stuff because I refuse to keep it in the house Pumpkin Pie & Mince Meat Pie: Sorry, I just don't get it. Thanksgiving is fun at my house: My husband's whole family loves these things. They are the favorites and must have for dessert. So I make my own apple pie or pecan pie instead. Candied Fruit: Being Italian this is kind of odd to my family. I don't eat the panetone because the candied fruit is just gross. I'm going to try to make my own this year with just raisins and maybe dried fruit instead so I don't look so wacko. (Like making panetone isn't a bit wacko if you are doing it for this purpose? ) Chicken Liver: Just ick, 'nuff said. (don't love beef liver but it doesn't make me gag) smoked oytsers: Just a whiff of these things gets my sense memory running and I just want to heave. I used to like them but when I was about 15 I tried to eat a whole can as an afternoon snack. Ooops. You guessed it! I've tried really hard to get past some of my aversions over the years and I have found that my tastes really changed in my mid-twenties. I also found out that my mom was a lousy cook and that there was stuff that tasted just fine when prepared properly! Past aversions: asparagus, green olives, any liver, any fish, raw onions, anything that wasn't familiar. The jury is still out on caviar, sweetbreads, oysters (sometimes OK, sometimes not). EDIT: Oh and papaya. Someone said it smelled like spit. Something like that, I always thought it left a moldy aftertaste that just lingers forever!

Wow, was anyone able to walk after that beautiful assortment of cocktails? How wonderful! The champagne cocktail looked like one to try for sure. What is in the Rolling Estonian? I've never heard of it. So far I think you are providing a great 'smackdown' Marlene! Keep it up, I'm rooting for you

Sam and Marlene, I do recall Sam saying that he has an open kitchen and can see the rest of the apartment while cooking but for entertaining, do you prefer to have guests hang around the kitchen while you do the last minute prep and plating or do you prefer them to be mingling with each other instead? Everything looks yummy. I'm off to cook my flank steak now!

Brownies are heavenly on their own. But then add some chocolate chips, rum in the batter & walnuts. Once cooled (if you can wait that long) proceed with the frosting! One of my favorites: "Hey, that looks like something a fat kid would eat." "If you haven't noticed, I am a fat kid."

So this morning I hauled my cookies over to Main Street to find the Farmers Market there. Guess what I found.... Um, driving by, on the sidewalk there were 2 or 3 tables. One with fruits, fresh peaches and one with fresh eggs. Neither of which were on the slate for what I needed. How depressing! I drove past this up a few blocks to see if maybe there was something more up the road. I found a tent sign pointing back the way I came that said Mesa Farmers Market on Main. I turned around and went back and there was a same sign right in front of these 2 or 3 tables. I drove around back to see if there was something more in the parking lot, maybe this was overflow. Um, a resounding no. The only thing in the parking lot was cars. So now I'm thinking if the couple people on Main put their tables together with the couple of tables on Gilbert, you still wouldn't have anything I would call a Farmer's Market. About 1/2 a mile away there was a truck in a parking lot with a sign that advertized avocados 8/$1. I thought about asking my DH to stop but since we were hoping for an actual Farmer's MARKET where we could sample some fruits and veggies and buy something to nosh on there, we were hungery and just in search of breakfast. Still looking for fresh locally grown produce. I guess I'll have to try the Dirt Patch afterall.

Wow, hats off to both of you! You sure do have lucky, not to mention grateful, family and friends this week! Will you be able to post recipes to RG or indicate the book the recipe is from for us? Sam, the gnocci looked fabulous, tender and mouthwatering. And your drink was beautiful and looks so refreshing! (BTW, Kathleen I love Fresca too, especially here in the AZ heat!) Marlene, OMG pulled pork is one of my favorites. I can't remember if you mentioned the spices that went into that...I'll have to go back and check. If not, can you list them? And the "strawberry shortcake" looked like summer! I use honey in my strawberry masceration as well, cool! I've never thought of the vodka for this too, I'll have to try it. Does Ryan like it? My guess is that there isn't enough vodka to actually give any kind of kick but I find sometimes the vodka flavor comes through strongly even in small doses. Mmmm coffee with Grand Marnier...my next stop tonight! Wonderful to both of you (And I thought I was going to have to wait until morning for tonights pix, what a treat!!)