ronnie_suburban

May 19, 2004... (unfortunately, a somewhat sparse week for locally-written material) From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: Patience pays off...a story about Blackbird's Paul Kahan winning Best Midwest Chef at last week's Beard awards. Party panache...How to be your own caterer--and still enjoy yourself...some useful notes and list of resources to help the host enjoy the hosting. When life's a 'Beach'...Bill Daley reviews The South Beach Diet Cookbook. Exploring the dark side of new foods...a story about Jeffrey M. Smith's new book Seeds of Deception which attempts to expose the dangers of GMO's in the food chain. A review of Calabria Imports Italian Foods & Deli...Cheap Eats in Beverly. From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food Eating section: Sweet Memories...Several contributors share their personal food memories inspired by summers and markets of the past. Farmers Market Time...the Sun Times' round up of the 2004 Chicago-area Farmers Markets. Food News Round-Up...including a blurb about Marcus Samuelsson's upcoming appearance at the Marshall Field's Culinary Studio. Tastings Around Town...Wine, Beer and Spirits too. Local Heroes...brief mentions of Chicago's recent Beard Award winners, Paul Kahan and Steve Dolinsky, whose Good Eating television program (CLTV) won the Best Local TV Cooking Show award but ironically, has been canceled. =R=

Outstanding! I'll look forward to your new installments. =R=

Oh.My.God. =R=

Hi Larry, Try these ongoing threads... Dining In St. Louis & Meet me in St. Louis! There are likely a few more (which you can access via the Search feature), but those threads were both appended very recently. =R=

Woo Hoo! Congratulations Nick I just assembled my new smoker last night (3x the capacity of my old one) and I'm really excited to fire it up. Have Fun! =R=

I used to live 1 short block from Piron and I really miss it =R=

Try this thread BuzzDraft, for some Kitchen Cam access... =R=

Buzz. Wrong answer, try again. Sorry this took so long, ronnie_suburban ... Here is your bone, enjoy. ...guess I had that coming. Thanks for the detailed write-up yellow truffle. I'm sorry it wasn't an unabashed hit for you. Is it possible that some of the missteps may have been attributable to their just having opened? =R=

Thanks for the reconnaissance Fresser. I've never been to Hema's but that's likely to change in the very near future. So many Heartanders speak very highly of it. =R=

Yeah, unless quantity to price ratio is your primary concern, Spice House, Penzey's, etc. are likely to be superior, for spices. Also, since we're setting a $50 spending threshold (pretty sure this is accurate), buying one canister of spice at a club will probably consume at least 10% of your budget. I don't think freshness/turnover is the issue at the clubs, just overall starting quality of the brands they carry. My experience with those brands hasn't been great but others may have had different experiences. Either way, I'm pretty sure that 1 quart packages (of spices) are the smallest available at the clubs. That'll leave most people with an indefinite surplus... =R=

Thanks very much chocartist, for joining in here. Your expertise is sincerely appreciated. It's wonderful to see how you've inspired others in your field. I also want to thank you for providing the list of additional titles. Wow! Thanks again. =R=

A friend of mine who shops the Evanston market brought me some asparagus from there on Saturday which I grilled last night and served with a roasted red pepper vinaigrette. It was fantastic--as good as any asparagus I've ever had. He also brought me some green garlic, but I haven't used it yet, so I can't provide any feedback on it...yet Cusina, my wife used to live in Oak Park and she always raves about the market there--especially the flowers (she's not much of a cook ). =R=

Bwah! I was actually thinking the same thing... =R=

Ha! A perfect plan. BTW, last time I was there I noticed a sign on the front door that read: "Please do not have your cell phone conversation in here" ...or something to that effect. They're doing everything they can to keep the place out of this century. So, on that note, the cell phone-guided personal shopper scheme is clearly out of the question. =R=

Seems like their web site would be the perfect conduit for you. =R=

I third (or fourth,) this. Oddly enough, I saw a copy yesterday at the Bookzeller in Naperville for five bucks. I also highly recommend the kinda related "Preserving" volume in the same series. Thanks Maggie. I found a couple of them on-line for about $6 and ordered one for myself and one for my friend. I do have most of that T/L series, but the Candy volume wasn't one of them. =R=

Thanks everyone, for the additional input. It's much appreciated =R=

Or give it to me =R=

That is a good book. covers most of what can be created. I think this would be exactly what she's seeking--a general overview with specific instructions for intermediate and advanced users. I'll definitely let her know about Skuse's. In the meantime, I ordered her a copy of the T/L Good Cook - Candy volume. Thanks for the tips Other suggestions still welcome. =R=

Thanks very much for that link edsel! Since I bought my Exquisite Sweet in their store, I'd never seen that web page. A portion of that passage does appear on the label of the pouch I bought at the store but not the whole thing. And you're right. There's no better potential market for this product than right here. If you can't interest this crowd in such a product, there is no interest. Period. =R=

Thanks Neil...that is a great series of books. I know they're out of print but still not too difficult to find. =R=

They may let you in to "check it out" but I think you will have to join before they will let you buy anything. Now that you mention it, that sounds familiar to me. Also, bringing cash is a good idea if you're going to attempt to use your mom's card. I don't think they always check the pictures on the back of the cards but they may. =R=

Because they are logistically-adept, Costco's fresh items tend to be...well, very fresh =R=

Pretty sure it is, but I'm not 100% on that. =R=

A friend asked me if I knew of a trusted cookbook for candy, which I do not. Are there some tried and true candy cookbooks out there? Thanks =R=