quattroporte

Halve some red bell peppers and remove seeds - lay them on their sides. Add roughly-chopped ripe tomatoes, thinly-sliced garlic and a couple of anchovies in each. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake about 45 minutes until lucious and soft. Don't let the anochovies scare you - there is barely a hint of the sea left after cooking. Devour, preferrably with some good bread.

I gotta tell you, I actually like this show. Americans know how to do down and dirty diner food real good, y'all! Too bad we can't get more stuff like that in Canada (can't believe I'm saying that..) I loathe Restaurant Makeover, which always seems to be on as I settle into bed....

I love the wild sockey salmon....no bones, no skin, no cutting.... Our Costco (in Vancouver) stocks indivdually cryovac portions of tuna...albacore, I believe- about 8 pieces per bag. I threw it on the grill after a quick marinade and it was very good. It was about twice the size of the salmon fillets, and cost about $5.00 less.

I thought Figmint was closed?

If they are cerignola's, then yes, they are dyed. Even the green ones. The red and green combination usually comes out at Christmas, and lately I've spotted purple ones. Like, grape purple. Weird.

I scored Parkside on a Saturday night.......I kinda feel like I won the lottery!

Hey - I had lunch at Chow yesterday.....1 pm, two gals sitting by the front window. The meal was great - shared the pulled pork croquettes with vegetable ketchup, marinated olives, for my main I had the mushroom soup with truffle oil. First rate all the way. The waitress mentioned their Sunday December special.....3 courses, $38, and wine at cost.....yes, you read right......cost. Just call first to confirm (in case my ears weren't working after the two glasses of Meyer Family Chardonnay...)

To my horror, I opened my Wolf 36" gas oven the other day to discover what looks like large burn marks on the bottom of the oven. It looks like someone took hydrochloric acid and a metal scub brush and scratched through the enamel coating right down to the metal, in a perfect square, over what must be the heating element. I've only had the range for 5 months, and have never cleaned the oven - it just isn't dirty enough to warrant a cleaning. I did put foil on the bottom for Thanksgiving, but from what I understand, the problem with using foil (which you should never do, I discovered) is that it can melt on to the porcelain and can't be removed. Can anyone enlighten me? I'm having a technician come in to evaluate it, and would feel much better if someone else out there could comment on the problem. I would hate to know that I ruined my dream oven Thanks!!

I understood the same about Milan.....but for those of you still yearning for those vine-ripened tomatoes, go to Riley Park Farmers Market and look for the Klipper Farm stand- last week they had a great selection - perhaps 20 different varieties, all vine-ripened. I dropped $41 just on tomatoes......they were fantastic! I've almost had my fill of tomato/bocconcini....almost.

Freshly-steamed dungeoness crab

I may get blasted for this, but my choice for a girl's night out would be Cactus Club on Dunsmuir and Burrard, not so much for the food (although I think there's something on the menu to please everyone) but for the "fun" aspect - from what I hear, it's packed most nights and it would be a great place to have some fun and people watch. It also has a great patio.

I suspect the blackberry bushes at Home Depot were the thornless variety. We have one, and it's quite different than the wild ones - our berries are larger, firmer and sweeter. And if you've got little kids, the thornless ones are a blessing.

I'm not an expert, but I am Italian, and Gnudi means "naked" - I take that to mean without a sauce, and Gnocchi, I assume, are usually sauced. Either way, I love 'em!

In Vancouver (Oakridge) - would Granville Island have it? By the way, I must have cooked it properly last night - tender as can be!

Does anyone know where I can find skirtsteak? I picked up a flank steak instead, but don't really know the difference between the two. Thanks.