Lori in PA

Oh, boy -- conflicting opinions -- what's a gal to do? I'm with Miz Ducky about being concerned that the amount I'm doing is gonna take longer to bake. Unfortunately, I won't be here to zap them in the micro first or anything. I've got to prep them before I leave at 9 am and won't be home until about 12:30. I'd like them to be finished at 12:45. I'm thinking about setting the time bake to start at 10:45 or 11 am. It'll take 15 minutes or so for the oven to arrive at temperature and I don't think 1 1/2 hours at 350 will hurt them -- I hope. I'm assuming that when I get home, if they're done I can drop the temp to warm or if they're not I can crank it higher. I want to be offering thanks for the meal between 12:45 and 1 pm. I am gonna scrub, prick, rub with oil, salt, and bake directly on the racks -- no foil.

I don't have a convection oven. Is there going to be any problem with having them on two levels? I won't be home to do any switcheroo operations.

I've heard that American Heinz baked beans are very different than British Heinz baked beans, but I have no first hand knowledge. My (openly admitted) cheater baked bean recipe, technically for when I need to provide beans with little effort but actually what I always end up making, is a doctored version. I saute a chopped onion in bacon fat, stir in ketchup, mustard, and brown sugar "until it looks right," and then add a glug of cider vinegar (secret ingredient). Stir in beans, pour into casserole, top with bacon pieces, and bake until thick and unctuous. They get scarfed, even by the "must start with dried beans" folks.

I worship with a congregation that has several members who drive long distances each week to be with us -- over an hour in many cases. Some of us who are more local take turns each Sunday hosting what we've come to call "Open House": we open our home to give whoever wants to a place to spend the afternoon between morning and evening worship so they don't have to drive all the way home and back. Lunch is a potluck. For tomorrow's Open House at our home I've announced we'll do a baked potato bar. We're providing the baked potatoes, of course, and it occurred to me to ask here what is the very best method to get really good results. I own an average Kenmore range with a time bake feature. I expect to be baking around 25 potatoes, which means I'll probably have to use both racks. Potatoes are Green Giant russets, average size. About the baking, can anyone give me a step-by-step tutorial? Specifically, I'm wondering: --how to prep? Scrub, I know, but prick? In foil or out? I think out, because I'd like to rub them with some kind of fat and salt the skins. I think I should grease them before baking, but should I salt them before or after they're cooked? --Baking time and temp? With the time bake feature, I can do just about anything, so what is best?

For a party I attended last night I made mini quiches with cream cheese pastry. The filling was smoked salmon, shallot, and roasted asparagus. I had extra filling left, so added egg and bits of cream cheese to it this morning and am reading this thread while eating my breakfast of scrambled eggs deluxe. (Isn't it nice when one can read a thread on a particular topic while eating the very type of food being described?)

Thanks, Marlene -- it looks very good. This was one of the things I'd hoped to make before I had to return the book to the library, but regular life intervened and I didn't even get a chance to copy the couple of recipes I had particularly liked that I DID make. Ah well, I'll try to buy it soon.

Thank you, Jack. I kept thinking, "Where's the bechamel? I thought you had to make a bechamel?" So that's only for cheese versions?

[ Waiting for the obligatory pictures of your cats. ←

That's an easy question to answer -- weirdest thing to deep fry? Jello!

When you said the very nice stranger lady who homeschools will probably appreciate a Borders gift card, I concur, says this homeschool mom. For food: who has first-hand experience to compare Sam's Club with Costco? We've had a Sam's membership for several years, but all the Costco talk on egullet lately has me intrigued and now that dh is commuting 2 hours to Washington every day, we'll probably become more oriented in that direction for our occasional shopping anyway.

The big box store conflict gives me mixed feelings. I also live in a rural area. We don't even merit a Superwalmart, just a regular one! When the regular Walmart moved it, it did put some smaller stores out of business, but they were the ones with the lousy, lousy service. As far as food goes, one of the downtown buildings vacated by one of the above out-of-business stores has been replaced by a gourmet grocery and take-out. It's tiny, but it seems to be doing very well. Also, the Super Walmart 30 minutes away is my source for White Lily self-rising flour, so for that reason alone I'm thankful it's there.

No advice -- sorry -- but just had to thank you for the chuckle: "...when the wurst is too much..." Love it!

What an excellent idea for a get-together, Wendy! Id everyone prepare their recipes at one place or bring them ready to reheat or bake or what?

Sterling, VA (near Dulles Airport). My husband has a choir that rehearses near there every Sunday night, so I go with him periodically and shop at Wegman's. It's a wonderful shopping experience...I really love going there. The Trader Joe's I visited was in Centreville, VA, about 12 miles from said Wegman's. I'd forgotten that TJ's in Virginia carry beer and wine...the Maryland stores don't due to the liquor laws...and I stocked up on cheap bottles for cooking. Someday, I will be able to DRINK wine again. Sigh. ← Wow -- thanks! My dh just started working in downtown DC (we live in south central PA) and is driving to Shady Grove every day below Frederick and then taking the metro downtown. I don't suppose there's a metro station within walking distance of either Wegmans or Trader Joes? You see, I live in a tiny town of 1100 souls and all the other towns around us are tiny, too. Makes ingredient procurement challenging on a budget... I understand about the too tired to sleep well when pregnant thing. I was casually discussing it with my childless (and apparently clueless) dentist when I was a few weeks away from birthing my third child. He patted my arm and reassured me and said, "Oh well, after you have the baby you'll be sleeping much better." Um, no. Cheer up, though. That baby is 10 now and I've been sleeping pretty well for several years.

Where is the Wegmans you referred to?

Gorgeous, Lucy. They look like the kind of funky, retro patterns so in style right now in fabrics and papers, etc. Seasoning ends up being about the hardest part, doesn't it? Or, perhaps more correctly, it ends up being the most uncertain thing.

I'm looking forward to your blog, Rochelle. Could you do me a favor? I find it SOOO helpful when the folks who have previous blogs under their belts add a link to said blogs in their signature tags. I'm busier than busy most of the time, and always want to hunt up those old blogs when I hear about them, but usually can't at the moment and then forget...

Mine is the Better Homes and Garden cookbook I was given as a wedding shower gift. I've looked at the newest version and it's interesting to see how the types of appetizers (especially) have changed, but the basics are still there. Whereas I used to use mine for almost everything, now I refer to it most often for pie recipes, to remember what internal temp various cuts of meat should reach, and to when I can't remember how long to bake potatoes at different temps.

Oh, the book is on my list for sure. I just have to wait for the budget to allow it. I have this one out through interlibrary loan, so there is no renewing it -- just a $1 a day fine if I return it late, which is why I'm getting all I can out of it right now! :-) The frittata will be consumed -- no worries. Is there a food more universally liked? A good-sized wedge is accompanying some of the leftover rendang for dh's lunch at work tomorrow and I imagine the rest will be scarfed up at breakfast by the offspring.

Thanks, Susan. The chicken sounds good. The rendange took about an hour longer than the recipe states, but if I'd simmered a little "harder" it might have been faster. It actually worked out time-wise for us because our plans changed. Nobody thought is was too spicy. The bite I tasted an hour before we ate was VERY spicy. Weird -- I'd think the finished product would be worse -- more concentrated, but it wasn't. I loved the cabbage, but it did not convert my family of cabbage-haters, to my disappointment. So far, the only way they'll eat it with a minimum of pathetic expressions is sliced fine and quickly sauteed.

I have an emergency spinach and bacon frittata in the oven right now. I say emergency because I just tasted the beef rendang I spent the afternoon making and realized 1-2 of my 3 kids are going to find it FAR too spicy for dinner. The menu: Beef rendang basmati rice braised cabbage salad with mango, onion, and spiced pecans AND frittata I want to make a souffle -- looks like this is my big chance. Bring on the advice and recipes, please!

Well, after 2 1/2 hours, I think I have way too much liquid. I obeyed the instructions to use a gentle simmer, with occasional bubbles, but in spite of that...? I've turned the burner a little higher, because we need to eat before 8 pm.

About half-way into the rendang braise, it's looking a bit better, but I'm still hoping the kids get home near the end of the cooking instead of now. They aren't particularly picky, but somehow I don't picture them looking at the saute pan and saying, "Mmmm, that looks great!" Cabbage question: I've read a few times on this thread that the oven temps are on the high side. Has anyone found that to be true for the braised cabbage? The recipe states 325 degrees. I just retrieved the casserole from the oven to turn the cabbage wedges over at the half-way point. It seemed fine.

Thanks for the tips, Susan. Well, I have the beef rendang simmering on the stove right now. I have to say I don't think I've ever cooked anything like this before -- simmering first and frying second. It looks so RAW in the pan as it's just getting going. Also, just to keep me humble, I have to confess up front that I THOUGHT I had cardamon pods but I do not. After I searched for several minutes I remembered I gave them to a friend for a chai tea xmas gift project. I knew I had some ancient powdered cardamon in a plastic baggie from a bulk foods store. Unfortunately, my bulk food/baggie bin had 2 baggies of unidentified but identical powders. I smelled them and they had absolutely no smell -- did I mention the cardamon is ancient? I tasted and chose largely at random. I dumped in about a tablespoon. This means the finished rendang will either: --taste very strongly of cardamon (unlikely) --taste very strongly of some other spice (unlikely) --taste of cardamon not at all (likely) I'm also making the World's Best Braised Cabbage. I did have all the ingredients for that one. What I don't know is if braised cabbage and beef rendang go together at all. Somehow they seem like they might, but in any case I'm trying to sample as many recipes as I can this week before the book goes back to the library.

I plan to do the Beef Rendang today or tomorrow. I do have a chuck roast to cut up for it, but I was wondering how it would work with those thin chuck steaks like the Bisteccas Rancheros calls for?