Genny

Thanks for the lead on the culinary tour Doc, I've saved the link for future reference. I look forward to the rest of your report. I love traveling in Mexico and have been jonesing for a return trip. Hopefully we'll be going to Monterrey before the summer is out to visit friends. The wife is the one that taught me how to make Tinga. I was surprised at the plantain. I didn't think they were that far west in Latin America. Do you know if it is another import or if it is indigenous? The vera cruz looks amazing. I've made the recipe from Bayless's cookbook using salmon and it was so good. I was actually thinking this morning that it is time to make it again! Since El Refugio was so unspectacular, was it mentioned if this place has a specific culinary "claim to fame" that made it part of the tour?

I propose that FabulousFoodBabe and I dress up as a butler and French Maid, respectively, to serve burgers, chicken wings, bleu cheese and other Man Food to the assembled Ladies of eGullet. I'll even help you with your cummerbund, Fabby. ← Hey Fress, mayby Fabby will let you borrow some hot manolo blaniks for the occasion? Like my husband, I go for the hot wings w/ blue cheese. HOOTERS! Hell, I really don't care how the girls are dressed. And really, if they have the right mind set, I think it is the men giving 50%-100%+ tips that are the ones being taken advantage of . My manly man loves his Cowboy Cut Steak, a double thick bone-in rib that he grills and eats with Bullseye BBQ sauce. I've seen him eat 2 lbs. of meat in a sitting! Other favorites: single malt scotch rum & diet coke corn/potatoes/peas/lima beans/asparagus onions- raw sandwich: roast beef w/ mustard & onion & swiss. meat, meat and extra meat. His seafood is generally shrimp cocktail or lobster. Me: blue cheese, stinky or otherwise wings I like red meat but can't eat it every day Amberbock or other dark beer: no pale ales please!

Wow JAZ, what an event! I love that you are doing them head-to-head though. I've never done that before. What in the world are you going to do with it all? Just freeze portions I suppose? Genny (There are only 2 of us here and I often make huge batches so that I can freeze and pull out later for a convenient meal.)

Oooh, that is an interesting question. They would certainly splatter something fierce unless they were patted dry and then maybe tossed with a little corn starch? Ah Dave, any excuse to plug those glasses They are sweet! JAZ-Thanks so much for the stories! I love the old barware also and have only recently started collecting. No heirlooms coming my way, my grandparents lost just about everything in a house fire many moons ago. I too love that hand held mandoline. Looks compact and convenient. Shoot, another thing to add to the wish list! I use my mandoline for cucumbers more than anything else and make a salad with a little rice wine vinegar and sesame seeds.

It looks like you have some antique glassware and shakers/pitchers there. Do any have a special story of aquisition? I think it was the very small ones on the bottom center that you said came from your mother, is that right? Those are adorable! They make martini glasses so big these days as a rule I'd love to find something petite.

JAZ, super blog! I've been lurking... Thanks for the tip on the braising the chicken to get the skin crispy. I've just dealt with the chewy meat in the past with it skinless so now I have a new method! I am loving your dishes! Do you get them at SLT or do you have other sources for your dishes? Where do you store them considering your kitchen is space challenged? Genny

I love the Oregon Vortex. I've been there several times (lived in the area for awhile). It is the classic tourist attraction and a treat for all hippee types, of which I was one. In fact, we went there once under the influence of a certain natural hallucinogen that seems to grow well in the damp pacific northwest... I was down there last summer, ate at New Sammy's (which was lovely, but the service was a bit odd) and seriously considered going to the Vortex. I should have. We did stop by the Weasku Inn, and I was very sorry to see that the restaurant is gone. ← It doesn't appear to have a restaurant! There is something similar to this in Santa Cruz, CA near where I grew up so I've experienced this phenomena before. I'll make sure my FIL knows about this for future visitors though! I too found the service at Sammy's "interesting" but I thought it fit in with the whole experience of being in a crappy looking shack with cow wallpaper - it was all very un-restaurant-ish coupled with the incredible food.

You work at Sur la Table? How lucky your customers are to have someone who is actually passionate about cooking to work with them! At my local Sur la Tables the women generally seem to work there as a hobby and my guess is that they like to have those "good looking" kitchens that don't get used a whole lot.

That is right, I forgot that y'all are getting hammered with the weather these days. I've no expectations of the city explorations thoug! We'll take what we can get and like it! Will you be sharing some of your favorite cocktail recipes with us for this blog? What do you do in the market? I think yo said something about cookware. That sounds fun! Can you show off some of your more unusual gadgets (bar & kitchen) or the ones that you use the most? The small dish for the kitties is a good one. I use a regular saucer but I think the smaller dish would help control portion size a little better. Although my kitty does tend to use the entire plate to push her food around. Do the boys make much mess with their eating? I also give my Ali a little wet food for breakfast and have dry food all day for grazing. However, this means she bugs me to get up in the morning to feed her. Since her clock isn't as accurate as my alarm, this means that she is a bit early some days. Do you experience the same?

Now you're going to make me homesick! I grew up in San Jose and loved visiting the city as much as possible. Little Italy, Chinatown, the warf, the garment district.(sigh) One of my favorite restaurants in college was The Stinking Rose, is it still around? Are you planning any excursions this week to surrounding areas like Sausalito or Oakland? Good one! I think that would mean Janet would have to sing tenor as well though. This is going to be a fun week!

I was hoping that the part of the episode where the cooks all critiqued each other's work was the actual challenge or at least an element of it. It is a test of whether or not you have a palette and if you are honest instead of holding back or being catty. The show for me was so-so. I'll give it another chance but I doubt I'll DVR it.

Thats a helluva mix, cool! Thanks for the link. It is our 10 year anniversary this year so we're looking at a big trip to take.

Nathan, one word describes your photolog: Enchanting. Thank you so much for sharing. Thanks to Pan, I'll have to go find that Japan link. Your travels inspire me to go to India as well. Did you have other travel companions or did you go it alone? Can you provide me the travel company info via PM. This is the kind of travel that interests me the most. It is nothing if you can't get in and interact and observe the daily culture. (Oh, BTW, no worries on the hairline dude! Lotsa girls luvs them that way: God covered up the imperfect domes! Its a sign of intellegence.)

Actually, while in Mexico we had a "shrimp mingnon" for dinner at one place. It was a riff off of filet mignon, wrapped with bacon and had a bernaise sauce on it. Don't knock it! My husband has been asking me how do do this application at home, now I know!

Pontormo, I'm certainly not perfect on the fridge thing yet, but am getting better. I *hate* the liquified veggies! Slimey green onions are so gross. Keep trying! I love the resolution to buy a new item each week. I saw an episode of Good Eats where AB said that people average something like 100 different items that they buy again and again, rarely straying into new items. I like to find new products and produce though, even if it doesn't become a staple. I recently purchased some silken tofu and had fruit smoothies from it. Not bad but I may wait until summer to redo it when smoothies seem a better choice to beat the heat. Your soup sounds fantastic. I'll have to give that a try. Always trying to find ways to get my DH to eat his veggies

In 2006, I will eat because I am hungry, not because I am bored/stressed I'm working on it. 2 chocolate biscotti yesterday after I got my annual review...not so good. I will make my friends and family know they are cherished via time spent and food lovingly prepared. Hey, I'll get another chance to feed the brood at the end of the month! 2 more weeks of them here...didn't I say no more after Thanksgiving??? I will find a use for all those interesting pantry items that were purchased many moons ago. Um, yeah, I guess I better get on that. I will learn how to bake a beautiful cake, how to make bread and candies not yet... I will teach my cat to make my morning coffee I'm still holding out but somehow she has conned her kitty daddy into buying her wet food... I will read. I always read, this one is easy. I'll not use reading so much as a procrastination tool. eh, doing OK This is the year I will try to learn to enjoy the process of cleaning my kitchen as I enjoy the process of cooking. I will taste foods at the restaurants I'm dying to go to. Yeah! I just went to Sushi on Shea this week. The hamachi was exquisite! I will use my leftovers in creative ways instead of using my refrigerator as a holding bay until garbage day. Doing much better here! I will give myself a break every now and again. This is a tough one. I am absolutely blessed with the best husband and family. I will be more thankful every day for the wonderful life I have to live. of course! We are going to lose some damn weight by moving more. Period. End of story! Joined a gym, working out 3x/week and not losing much but not gaining! My kids are my neices and nephew and I will try to be more involved with their lives. Yes, I'm doing this for 1/3 of them. Its kinda scary being in a 16-year-old's life.

Hehe, I lived in SoCal for a few years and always laughed at the "Storm Watch 2006" any time it threatened to sprinkle! (Full Disclosure: I'm a native to the San Francisco Bay Area, living in AZ now.) And fries Animal Style? Who knew! Once I was driving through In-N-Out and the kid standing outside to take the order (they do this when the car line is long, kinda cool) asked if I wanted fries. When I declined he scoffed! I explained that I wasn't a fan of their fries because they are somewhat dry and lacking in flavor. He suggested a "Light Fry" and so I tried them. Not crisp, but still much better than their regular fries. IF I get fries there, that is how I have them. I now have a new order though ETA: Oh! I was going to mention earlier about the house smells when showing... I have heard some people are put off by a strong curry smell (yes, yes it depends on who is walking through) and since -in my experience- it can linger for a few days, you may want to be careful about cooking curry and showing the house? FWIW

I think a succinct sound bit for the noobs is:"If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail." This applies to so many aspects in life but it applies beautifully to the whole cooking & entertaining concept. Also, please do not greet your guests at the door with drinks. This is off-putting and awkward. Let them get in the door first and put down coats, purses, etc. If you have a "signature drink" for the evening, you can offer it up once they are in. There are so many wonderful mentions in this thread. I think it is quite useful for anyone of any cooking level to brush up on if they are not frequent entertainers.

I've added orange oil to my marshmallows and they are fabulous. One of our favorites. I'm thinking I need to make another batch soon! I'm so impressed by all of your cut marshmallows! I have used a 12" knife and also my bench scraper but the marshmallows stick and I have to wash the cutting instrument throughout the process. Do you have the same experience or can anyone provide any tips for cutting these? Also, any tips for making them uniformly square? For shaping, I've also used mymini muffin pan, with the marshmallow piped in. These come out fairly easy when the pan is sprayed with Pam. I imagine you could use cookie cutters too, well oiled.

Hi Megan, I finally got a chance to pop back in and catch up on your blog. You are a wonderful ambassador for the city. Beautiful job on the blog! As a fellow petite flower (hehe) I can totally agree that size is irrelevant to quantity of food or drink consumability. My husband when we first started dating was always shocked at how much I could put away Unfortunately, once you hit your mid thirtys... ah, life is so very cruel. Just when I found the fabulous food and could afford the good stuff, I can't eat nearly so much...sigh... Thanks again for a wonderful week! Genny

Has anyone else had a chance to enjoy this program? This features Guy Rubino "culinary artist" and his brother Michael Rubino "master in hospitality" in a series of half hour shows featuring them and their Toronto restaurants Rain and Luce. This is the food I've been looking for! The episodes I've seen include a cook-off between the chefs of their two restaurants in which the brothers go select the secret ingredients including baby goat and live eel. Another was of them putting together a fundraiser evening for MS in which small plates of simple and inexpensive food was passed, but it was amazing food! Now this is *must see* TV. ETA: thanks for the correct link John!

Megan! Wonderful to see you blogging, you're off to a compelling start for sure. My alter ego is an urban girl living in the city...even though I've never been to NYC...yet. I'll get there some day. I'm in love with the idea of the little cheese shop and the Italian deli with the real Italian meats/cheeses/products. Are there any of these convenient to you that you can work in? Also, is frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity too "touristy" these days? Any chances of gaining kitchen tours of your favorite eateries? Feel better, have fun this week (when do you go back to work?) and keep up the good blog job! Genny PS: FFB- dreaming of Mario??? Ooh, do tell. I hope it was platonic Maybe you should sub in Jaques Torres?

Wow, thanks for all the responses! Keep them coming! There are 7 of us total in the group with varying cooking skills: 2 individuals appear to be absolute beginners (either that or they have a total lack of palette, I'm not sure which yet) and this is only our second real cooking meeting so we are still working out the kinks. We rotate homes for the meetings and whatever can be made ahead is. Since the dessert is set with the chocolate souffle, I don't think a heavy mole or chili would be a good lead-in. I'm trying to wrangle the group into some cohesive menu, we'll see what the results are! So far we have: *salad with baked goat cheese and chocolate nibs *butternut squash ravioli with a sprinkle of bittersweet chocolate (hmmm, fried would make this a good appy I think) *chocolate souffle (this will be the main Demo for the evening) * We'll also be doing a chocolate tasting for product learning. So we still need an appy, a starchy side (if the ravioli are an appy), and a main dish. Maybe a rub for pork tenderloin?

Hi All! I'm part of a cooking club and our upcoming theme is "Gourmet Chocolate." We are trying to put together a whole meal from appys, sides, veggies, protien, etc. all including some cocoa or chocolate. Dessert has already been decided as Chocolate Souffle. Any fun suggestions out there for what we can make? Stuff you've tried yourself or recipes you've earmarked to try soon? Also, are there any basic thoughts about using cocoa/chocolate in savory recipes in general? Thanking you in advance I remain.... Genny

OK, I'll try! Roasted Whole Chicken: stuff with lemon and onion Knife skills: Cutting miripoix for chicken thys, braised cacciatore Strawberries with Whipped Cream (do people really not know how to turn on a freaking hand mixer???) and possibly biscuits for shortcake. Hmmm, eggs. Just hard boiled eggs? (eta: whoops, fragement thought...fixed it!) Are you introducing fresh herbs?