jsmeeker

I add in some red onion, jalapeno pepper, maybe some cilantro and a bit of garlic. salt. pepper. also, a bit of cayanne pepper and some cumin. And then lime juice. I'll then transfer it to a serving container and put plastic wrap directly in contact with the guac until I'm actually ready to eat it. (which may not be for an hour or so) Even with the lime juice, it eventually turns brown after sitting out for a few hours. I'll have to give bryanz's trick a try next time. I wonder is this is what gets done in a restaurant like Chipotle? I know they make it fresh several tiems a day.. But I would imagine even then, it must sit a few hours between re-freshes. I've also seen local grocery stores sell it in their fresh bulk sections (with olives and salsas and the like). I've never seen it brown. Maybe they add some sort of color preservative??

food has been a huge element of the show from the start. It really seems that at least half the scenes involve food. Eating Sunday dinner. Tony having a snack. The gang at a restautant. Someone bringing something from a bakery to Uncle Junior. etc. etc. I'm not Italian-American and haven't lived in New Jersey in years and years. Can someone give a rundown on all of the "nicknames" they have for various foods.

You don't get PBS from your cable TV system?? That's odd. Get that antenna back up there!!

I added this show to my slew of TiVo season passes for Saturday afternoon on PBS. It was good. I enjoyed it. I've been to Burger Bar in Las Vegas. Tasty burger. But not plated/presented as fancy as I expected. (what was shown on TV)

I've seen it at sports bars. Can work well there. I've all seen it (not in person, but pictures) at the Grand Hyatt at DFW Airport. Not at booths, but at the counter/"bar". Each little station is separated and has a TV. Ideal for the solo travelling buisiness person.

now that's a cake!!

Brad, Can you recommend a good Rose from a major producer? I ask for a "major producer" moslty because I know I'll be able to find it easily. It seems thats pretty much the only thing anyone carries. Edit to add: Just a general recommendation. Not limited to pairing with an egg dish.

I'll keep my eye out for these. I assume this is a price from an on-line retailer/mail order place? The nice thing about the Reidels from Target is that I didn't have to worry about shipping and breakage.

markk, Thanks. You did answer my question. Shame that they do it that way. I appreciate the rest of the advice as well. Johnb's too.

Probably not. But one thing that really strikes me is the variability one sees in drink prices when made from identical ingredients (i.e. the same premium vodkas or whatever). Hotel A sells it for $15 while a simlar hotel in the same town sells it for $10. Or something like that.

while the article may omit some things, there certainly is a lot of validity. There *are* a lot of drinks out that that have excessive markups over the cost of the ingredients that are hard to justify. You're example of some trendy club or mega restaurant is good. If I order a magartia at $12 bucks and get something made with a commerical mix and Jose Cuervo Gold, I'm getting ripped off no matter where it is, no matter how nice the glass is, no matter how fancy the room is. But in many cases, yes, a $12 drink is not totally outrageous. First of all, it must be well prepared and served properly. If it's done in an elegant/refined atmosphere, you have to pay for that too.

I'm not sure which of the Orlando restaurant threads to bump, but since this one has 2007 in the title, I'll go with this one. I plan to be in Orlando with a group of friends Labor Day weekend timeframe. We'll be staying very near Disney (but not in an actual Disney resort property). I'm not totally sure on the transportation situation, so I would prefer something nearby (or within) to the general Disney area. I'm looking for fine dining. Reading through some of these threads on the Florida board, it seems that there may be slim pickings, especially in the Disney area. Some people are going to Vito's. I normally shy away from steak houses when I travel since we have tons of them in Dallas. But I am a little curious about the comment markk made about Vito's when he says What does that mean exactly? I've also seen the suggestion for Texas de Brazil. But I'm not interested in that. Been there, done that. It's tasty and all, but again, we have many of those types of places in Dallas. So, where does this leave me? Is Victoria's and Alberts the clear winner? Foodwise, it seems to be for me. Setting wise, it seems to be geared towards couples on honeymoons, anniversaries, etc. The decor may be a bit "old fashioned" for me for this meal, but I can look past that. Is there another Disney restaurant that is similair, but maybe a bit more modern in atmosphere? I know Disneyland in California has a really nice place at one of their hotels. Is there a comparable place in Orlando? Going away from Disney, but nearby, what are the other options? I've seen suggestions for some of the Emeril places. I've dined at his Fish House in Vegas at the MGM Grand (chef's table with tasting menu), and it was really good. Finding a place that isn't packed with typical tourist "riff-raff" may be a next to imposible order (and really, I'm a tourist too), but it would be preferable for the setting to be "refined".

for sheet pans, I just get the generic, restaurant supply store brand from my local restaurant supply store. For load pans and muffin tins, I like the "Bakers Secret" brand. Most typically, these are found at grocery stores. That's where I get mine. They are nice and cheap and work well.

I wanted to check back in and give a report on my mint julep making the other weekend. This was happening at a hotel, prior to a party at a ballroom at the hotel. I wound up not having time to infuse syrup or bourbon with mint leaves. But I don't think that wound up being a problem. I bought a ton of mint, a bottle of Jim Beam, and made some simple syrup. I put a lot of mint to the bottom of the glasses. Added a nice squirt of syrup. Muddled a bit, but NOT into a paste like I had done previously. The leaves stayed intact and where just a little crushed/bruised. I then packed it with ice (from the hotel ice maker), poured in bourbon, then gave it a quick "stir" with the end of a spoon. Garnished with a few sprigs of mint, then served. I think they turned out well. Maybe they were a bit TOO minty, and possibly a tad sweet. Most people liked them, but some didn't. I suspect those thta didn't just don't like bourbon or like really sweet mixed drinks and cocktails and stuff made with commercial mixes. The element that I missed the most was the ice. It just wasn't practical for me to try to convert the ice from the ice maker into actual crushed ice. If I had, I think they would have been better. More "proper", for sure. Instead, I got a glass full of very icy bourbon with mint and a bit of sweetness. I say close enough given the situation. We had them in hand as the horses came out of the gate.

Okay, see, I need a lot more help. I've never heard of "Diary of a Foodie" (or many of these other shows), I don't know what channel it's on or when, I don't know what it's about, I'm very suspicious of any show that makes "foodie" claims, etc. Can you help me out here? ← "Diary of a Foodie" is a "brand" of Gourmet magazine. There is some general theme for the show. There will be some travel to various parts of the world to talk about the theme, profiles on chefs or restaurants. Maybe people cooking at home. There is a segment at the Gourmet test kitchens with usually either Ruth Reichel or John "Doc" Willoughby. http://www.diaryofafoodie.org/ Sadly, I'm not getting it on my PBS station anymore, TiVo is not picking up any episodes. Thanks to a previous poster who mentioned Mark Bittman's new show. I need to setup a Season Pass for that on the TiVo.

I think the best quality COOKING shows are on PBS. There can be a lot of variability in what you get in your particular market, but if there is a place to look, that's it.

glad you had good service at breaksfast there. Last summer, I went there for breakfast one morning, and the service was a bit off. Things like one person in out party not havign a spoon to difficulty in getting refills on coffee marred the expereince slightly. But we did sit outside, which was nice. And the food was good.

I went there in 2004. It was my first experience with a high end restaurant in Las Vegas. Since then, I've had several more (Michael Mina, L'Atelier Rubochon, Bouchon, etc.). I think it's worth it if you like a very formal meal with formal (if a bit cool) service. The room is beautiful with all of the art and the fountains outside add an interesting touch. Only in Las Vegas, baby!! Food was very good too. We all enjoyed it.

A couple of friends and I hit Taylor's back in January when we were in town for Macworld. For them, it was the most "normal" food in the Ferry Building, so that's why we went there. They really liked it. I thought it was pretty good, too. Yeah, it was a pretty pricey fast food counter service burger. But it's in the Ferry Building, so I expect stuff to be a bit more there just because of the location.

I bought a set of the Red Wine glasses. They are pretty nice for the price ($10 a stem) More than adequate for my day to day needs in my humble apartment. I also bought a set as a Christmas gift.

Strange. I haven't found any references to muddling mint into a paste on the internet. Perhaps you are assuming that "muddling" a cocktail is the same thing as using a pestle and mortar, whereby you reduce the ingredients into a paste. This exposes the flaw in most recipes, people try to be concise, and not over complicate, but it is times like this when exactness is needed. The best methods, that I recommend, to get the best of your mint into your juleps, are as follows (use just one method): 1. soak some mint leaves in the bourbon you will be using for the Juleps. Remove the mint once the bourbon is really (24 hours, or less). 2. soak some mint leaves into some freshly prepared sugar syrup (if there is still some warmth in the syrup, then I find this is better than cold syrup). 3. Slight bruising of the mint using a muddler, gentle tapping with the implement will be enough. Do not let the mint leaves tear or become disfigured, usually caused by grinding with the wood. 4. Just place the mint in the glass, and add all other ingredients, along with the crushed ice. Then mix the concoction, either by shaking it, or by churning with the flatend of a professional barspoon (the one with the flat disc on one end, and a rifled shaft). Some Julep recipes list granulated sugar, but surely it has to be syrup for a Julep. Has anyone tried blending bourbon, homemade mint syrup, and crushed ice? It would still be a Julep right? Decorate with mint sprig. Hell you could even throw in some fruit before blending. It could be bigger than the Banana Daiquiri or Strawberry Margarita? Papaya Juleps? Durian Juleps? the possibilities are endless ← Thanks for the added insight. I think maybe since I have limited experience with muddling thigns for drinks, I thought something approaching paste was the goal. This thread has been very helpful. I now know how to handle it with using mint leaves in the glass. I'll also try some of the infusing methods this weekend.

I'm really glad you enjoyed it.

An average* tip will work in an average bag length of 10 inches, 12 inches 14 inches, even larger bags. Some tips are place over couplers that are explained in that pictorial I linked to up thread. But I mean you can place the **largest tip that I measured into a 10 or 12 inch bag and pipe with it. It's more efficient to use a larger bag so you don't have to refill as often but it will fit. Are you dropping the tip inside the bag?? The bag might be cut for a coupler. Or it might have accidently been cut too big but couplers come in varying sizes too. Does this explain your question? And yes there usually are numbers on the tips and the length of the bag is it's measurement. *An average tip is 1 1/4 inches long and has an opening of 5/8 inch. Bit larger tips are about 1 5/8 inch long and have an opening of 1 inch. **Larger still tips are 2 inces tall and have an opening of 1 1/4 inch. Really what I suggest is tossing this stuff in your car and when you find yourself with some time on your hands, drop by a little bakery on a Tuesday and see what they can advise you. It's kinda hard to say exactly what's going on with the different sizes & variety of stuff out there. ← Thanks. This helps a lot. When I get home, I'll measure the length of the bag. How do I tell if it was cut for a coupler?

I'd like to see what you come up with here. I LOVE Cooks Illustrated's chocolate cream pie recipe too. It's awesome. So rich and loaded with chocolate. But something a little lighter and fluffier in texture, while keeping some serious chocolate flavor, would be nice. For the crust, use Oreos. That's what the CI recipe calls for in their chocoalte cream pie. Works out great.

how do I know what tips will work with what bags?? That's the problem I have. I have a lined canvas bag and some tips that "inherited". But the tips don't really fit properly. They are too big for the bag. Aren't these numbered in some way? both tips and bag??