Kim Shook

This is exactly what I was going to ask. I bake a LOT - cookies, cakes, etc. I've only ever bought fake vanilla to make white frosting - McCormick or Sauers. I wasn't crazy about the flavor. But, of course, it wasn't cooked. What brand should I look for?

Gorgeous lunch! And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

The Biscoff spread and bananas are inside the sliced croissant. Then it is buttered and grilled. The dulce de leche goes on top after. Does that make sense?

@Shelby – those strawberries look remarkable! How I miss the strawberry farm that used to operate near us. They had a few bad years and now only do pumpkins and plants. Every single meal looked wonderful, but I especially loved the ‘welcome’ snacks! They reminded me of when we’d arrive at my grandparents’ farm late at night and my dad and grandfather would go right to bed after hellos. My mom, my grandmother and I would stay up talking with a block of rat cheese, a sleeve of Ritz and slivers of chess pie! @kayb – I know you are a good Southern girl, but do you have British relatives? You said something “worked a treat”. That was a phrase I’ve only ever heard from my English stepdad. @liuzhou – I had to giggle at your horrible “Western” meal. It just reinforces what I’ve always believed – that you NEVER try to serve someone their ‘home’ food. My poor mom would always try to cook something vaguely ‘French’ for my English uncle and his French wife. I used to tell her to make crabcakes, sliced tomatoes and corn on the cob in summer and chicken and dumplings in winter. @Okanagancook – Happy Birthday! Those shrimp are just amazing! @scubadoo97 – I had to Google ‘Lahamagine ‘. Looks and sounds delicious! I was interested in the vegetarian talk – I adore meat and could never be one, but my biggest problem is that I don’t care for many vegetables. I hardly think a plate of mashed potatoes, butter beans and corn would be healthy. There ARE some green vegetables that I eat, but not many. Still not doing a lot of cooking – but I am getting ready for a nice dinner with my in laws tomorrow. I’ve already made the gravy for my roast beef. One dinner was salad and soup. The same chicken noodle that I served a few days back, so no picture. The only reason that I took a picture of the salad was the amazing looking watermelon radishes I found at Kroger: They were beautiful and crisp, but tasteless. I also started my summer cucumbers: Cukes, onions, vinegar, Splenda and pepper. We had my MIL over for dinner since we didn’t get to see her for Mother’s Day. Started with some snacks: Gougeres and crab meltaways. Dinner was Tequila shrimp, Rice, Snow peas, Bread and Geoffrey Zacharian’s Caesar Salad. Flaming the shrimp: Finished: Rice: Is there a duller looking dish than white rice in a white bowl? Snow peas: Steamed and sautéed with ponzu and soy. Salad: This is my favorite Caesar – it is made with white anchovies and torn-bread pan fried croutons. So good. Dessert was Croissant Panini w/ Biscoff Spread and bananas: A friend had a bad fall and ended up in the hospital for a day, so I made some vegetable beef soup to take to them. Kept some back for us: Served with halloumi and pita: Dinner tonight – ham and cheese (Cheddar and aged Gouda) quiche:

We had brunch on Mother’s Day at Spoonbread Bistro in Richmond. 1st Course: This was mine – Short Rib Bruschetta w/ poached egg and Mornay sauce topped with tomato fondue on a baguette. This was remarkable. Incredibly tender – the sauce was perfect and those bits of parsley were FRIED! The egg was perfect for me: I was sad to see it gone: Mr. Kim had the Flash Grilled Sea Scallop with Lobster Avocado Mousse and Tomato Vinaigrette: Very good. But the best dish on the table all afternoon was what my mother and Jessica had: Crab Cake Napoleon w/ Fried Green Tomatoes and Lobster Hollandaise. The crabcakes were amazingly sweet. No bread filler at ALL – they only use scallop mousse to hold it together. And the tomatoes were the best I’ve ever had. My main course: Scallop, Leek and Bacon Deep Dish Quiche with Potatoes Anna. Very good – but unfortunately not served hot. The entire plate was just below room temperature. I didn’t send it back because I was full and after a couple of bites I was ready to have it packed up anyway. I did let the server know, though. Momma had the Steak and Crab – marinated and seared beef tenderloin topped with blue Lump Crab sauce in Port Demi Glace and Meyers Lemon Hollandaise with Potatoes and Brussels sprouts: Fabulous. The potatoes look so ordinary, but they were so flavorful – a really deep, full potato-y taste. Jessica had the Chicken Waffle with country fried chicken, Belgian waffle, fried egg, Applewood smoked bacon and topped with country style sausage gravy: Really good (especially that chicken), but enormous. Mr. Kim got the Mimosa Sea Bass seared in Orange Zest and Champagne with the same great potatoes as Momma got and asparagus: Wonderful fish – and the sauce was fantastic. I only got a picture of one dessert – we got 3 of them packed up to take home – a lemon chess pie w/ pecan brittle and lemon zest cream, a bourbon bread pudding and for Momma, the “chocolate destruction”. Jessica ordered the same thing and very nicely shared a few bites with us: Chocolate cake with coconut walnuts and white chocolate topped with a 7 layer cookie, salted caramel and butterscotch. Saturday lunch at Carytown Burger & Fries: This Sunday after church we had brunch at the Bosna Market & Deli. This business has a special place in my heart, not just for the wonderful things they sell in the market and the good food they serve, but for the sign on the door that reads: "Attention! If you are hungry and don’t have money, we will give you free lunch and you can pay us back whenever you can, if you want. We believe that in the 21st century no one should be hungry!” Mr. Kim had the meat burek and I had the gyro: Excellent tzatziki

Croissant Panini w/ Biscoff Spread and bananas:

A couple of recent breakfasts: I bought a big batch of mini croissants to make a dessert the other night and wake up every morning thinking about them. I even love supermarket croissants!

After thawing as instructed on the package, and unrolling THIS is what my TJ's pie crust looked like: An email was sent to them, but I haven't heard back yet.

@Kasia – your asparagus pastry is just gorgeous and I don’t even LIKE asparagus! @robirdstx – is your taco shell homemade? It looks so good! @Norm Matthews – your bread is beautiful! What did you brush it with for such a nice sheen? Dinner last night included every cheese in the house and chicken noodle soup: From 12 o’clock – pimento cheese, aged Gouda, Asiago, Cheddar, pepperjack and some sheep’s milk cheese. This was mostly a freezer gift – I had some Xmas turkey, chicken stock and veggies in the freezer. Just added some noodles and it made surprisingly good, fast soup!

Yep! Maple syrup! Pancakes, French toast, waffles or not, I've gotta have syrup for my sausage!

@Norm Matthews – I love the look of that Pineapple Upside Down Bundt cake! I’ve made not of your directions and will be giving that a try. Looks perfect for a church supper! @Shelby – Yay for the angel food cake success. It is one of my favorite cakes and Michael’s is a great recipe. Mr. Kim’s family tradition is angel food cake with caramel sauce, (really just melted Kraft caramels – but try it with dulce de leche. Heavenly. I always wonder if anyone else is weird like me – when I hit the ‘like’ button, I often wish I could add a comment – “well, except for those…”. For me it is mostly vegetables, spicy stuff and any and all fungi. I’ll see a delicious looking pizza and then notice that it has mushrooms, or an otherwise great meal served with asparagus or zucchini or beets – do I hit ‘like’ or not? It’s a dilemma! I’ve been dealing with family health issues in the last couple of months, so I haven’t been cooking much less posting, but I’m hoping to get caught up and KEEP UP! Some recent meals: Brunswick stew and BBQ – all from Short Sugar’s in Reidsville, NC: Mr. Kim made some sauce - spaghetti sauce w/ bucatini: Chili dogs w/ tots: Easter dinner – started with Gougeres and crab meltaways: Cook’s Country Cider-Glazed Ham: Chicken-Pineapple Pasta Salad : St. Paul’s Cheese Souffle: Green Beans: Sweet Potato Souffle: Southern Creamed corn: Devilled eggs: Paula Deen’s Strawberry Mold: Creamy Fruit Salad: This was brought by a friend. Another meal was salad and a use-up-the-Easter-eggs sandwich: That is sliced hard boiled egg, ham and egg salad. This is a combination that I became enamored of when we were in England. I got it at a convenience store and it was incredibly (and surprisingly) good and I’ve made them ever since. Salad and chicken Marsala: This was actually a Trisha Yearwood recipe. We saw her make this on TV and it looked really good. Mr. Kim was in the mood for something chicken-y and saucy and this fit the bill. Very easy and it reheats very well. I served it with rice. Mr. Kim smoked a couple of butts to put in the freezer for his sister to serve a our niece’s Suzanne’s graduation party: Maybe his best yet! More chili dogs: Carolina style this time. Roasted shrimp cocktail and some of Mr. Kim’s BBQ: Along with my slaw and some of my favorite Wegman’s pasta salad. My sister and her husband visited from Florida. Colleyberry’s Shepherd’s Pie for dinner: This is a recipe that I got years ago from Marlene. It is better than any other I’ve ever made. I made some gravy to go with it because everything is better with extra gravy: Plated: Is there any way to serve Shepherd’s Pie that doesn’t look like the dog’s dinner? It was delicious, though! Served with a green salad w/ strawberries and pineapple and strawberry vinaigrette: And Billy bread: Local baker. Dinner tonight: Bangers from Wegman’s, fixed up mac n cheese and broccoli. We really liked the sausages, but not a clue whether they are authentic or not.

Breakfast this morning: Toast, sausage and soft boiled eggs. These are done by the Cooks Illustrated method, which works best of anything I've tried before. You bring 1/2-inch of water to a boil in a saucepan over med-high heat and put the eggs in. Put the cover on and continue to boil for 6 1/2 - 7 minutes.

@Anna N – I have to agree with @Shelby – your photographs are getting amazingly good. Now, I want an Iphone! Breakfast this morning – we just got our Benton’s bacon delivery, so: Nothing better than a bacon butty on white bread.

Some recent lunches with my honorary “Lady Friend”, Mr. Kim. Late lunch at Tip Top in Charlottesville VA – a Greek/diner kind of place I’d been wanting to stop at for ages. Started with calamari: Pretty ordinary. Mr. Kim had the baked spaghetti w/ pepperoni – his go-to dish at any place that serves it: This was very good – definitely Greek tomato sauce. It tasted like the sauce I make for pastitsio. I got the gyro dinner: This was pretty good – even though the meat was obviously machine sliced – probably Sysco or something like that. The flavor was very nice, the salad was really good and the fries were great. Why do Greek restaurants have such great fries? Came with good tzatziki. For my mother’s birthday, we took her to Dot’s Back Inn in Richmond VA (a great neighborhood joint that has been around forever). My mother had a softshell and potatoes: Jessica and I had the softshell Benedict: Mr. Kim had the Antony’s burger (very spicy): After church brunch on Sunday was at a new ramen place we’ve been wanting to try – Takara Ramen. We shared some wonderful pork gyoza – fantastically thin wrappers and perfectly crisped – and a charcoal grilled pork belly skewer (not pictured). I had the miso ramen: Curly noodles, pork broth, miso garlic, chasu (braised pork belly), soft boiled egg, spinach, corn, green onion, roasted sprouts, fish cake and nori. Mr. Kim had the Tonkotsu Ramen: Straight noodles, pork broth, chashu, egg, spinach, menma (condiment made from fermented bamboo shoots), kikuage mushrooms, green onions, roasted sprouts, garlic chips, black garlic oil, fish cake and nori. Everything was delicious, but what really grabbed me was the egg. The combination of the soft-cooked egg and the pork broth was fantastic.

@Kasia – your fluffy pancakes look EXACTLY how I want my pancakes to look. I got the recipe from your blog and will be making them! @Shelby – your oatmeal cookies sound and look delicious. Have you ever tried using Raisinets in place of the raisins? It’s really, really good! Just a couple of recent desserts – life has been complicated lately, so my cakes were of the cake mix fix up variety. For Easter I did a coconut cake with white chocolate icing: Also served was my MIL’s Hot Cross Buns (we ALWAYS forget to eat these on Good Friday, so I served them with Easter dinner): My daughter made those Gooey Butter Bars: Incredibly rich. Had some family come into town unexpectedly for a night. I did another cake mix fix up – this one was Strawberry Yogurt cake:

Fantastic news! I'm so thrilled for you, @Franci!

Breakfast yesterday: Wegman's has pretty good croissants - nothing like the ones that I got last week at the bakery in Charlottesville, but good. This morning was the same.

As a southerner, I can say that "Bless her/his heart" can be meant in a couple of ways. "Bless YOUR heart" said TO a person never implies criticism. There is more grey area in "Bless her/his heart". It CAN mean just that. Or there can be an implied criticism. Often, it means "Well, we all know she's dumb as a sack of rocks, but she means well". My BIL and I said it at exactly the same time last night in a conversation about a family member and that is exactly what we both meant.

@Shelby – your biscuits are gorgeous. You’ve inspired me to try again! I’ve been using frozen ones for a while because I was frustrated with my flattish biscuits. I’ll be trying @Ann_T's! Dinner with our dear friends and next door neighbors. Cheeses, meats and various accoutrements. Bread and crackers: Cheeses: From 12 o’clock – something called Italian sharp cheese, Asiago, aged Gouda, Cheddar, Cremeux de Bourgogne, Cypress Grove Lamb Chopper. A lovely salad that they brought: Mixed greens, pears, pecans and goat cheese with a citrus dressing. Olives and pickle-y stuff: Dried fruit: Meats: From the top – Fiorucci hard salami, serrano ham and Soppressata. The little log is just a beef summer sausage.

@andiesenji – I loved the idea of the peach cream pie, but that strawberry version is spectacular! Strawberries are my favorite fruit. I’m going to give that a try when we get some good ones. Thank you! @Kasia – the chocolate mousse looks lovely! I am intrigued by the idea of mascarpone and yogurt instead of cream! I’ve copied the recipe to try. We LOVE chocolate mousse. Do you think that the same method would work with a fruit mousse instead of chocolate? This was just a cake mix fix-up idea that I got from the Food Network show “The Kitchen”. They did a chocolate cake mix banana bread with peanut butter chips and a peanut butter glaze. I’ll be trying that one, too, but this time decided to do Strawberry-Bananan bread with a strawberry glaze:

Well, after that story (above), Wegman's was sampling their Irish Bangers today (as was Costco, but, as always, they were seemingly shocked by the number of customers in the store and didn't have any ready when we walked by - are we the only people this happens to at Costco?). So, of course, I had to taste them. Absolutely delicious. Mr. Kim agreed. They were light, but NOT fluffy and perfectly seasoned. The packet says they are 8% bread crumbs, so that may explain it. They may not be AUTHENTIC, but they are GOOD, so I got a packet!

Dinner tonight was Caesar salad: and roasted chicken thighs with BBQ sauce, asparagus, corn muffins and creamed corn:

Welcome, @Kasia! I'm always so thrilled to see someone new from somewhere other than the US! Hope you post in the Dinner thread - that is always a good one. We have lots of very talented folks here and they really show off on the threads about breakfast, lunch, dinner and desserts! I've bookmarked your blog and I'll be looking at it as soon as I have more time! It looks wonderful.

I had a craving for Caesar salad, so that and a single serving frozen pizza: Those little frozen pizzas embarrass me a little, but they aren't really bad if you don't expect them to actually be PIZZA. They are very crispy and it is almost impossible not to overcook the cheese, so they are really more like a tomato/cheesy flat bread. I actually use them a lot as a side to a meal sized salad.

I think you are absolutely right about not using too much. For something so mild, it packs a LOT of flavor - I think it must be the sweetness - really easy to overdo. My mother was THRILLED when my sisters accidentally discovered the similarity. Salad cream was almost impossible to find here in the 70's and really expensive to ship over from relatives in England and it was the ONLY salad dressing they would use!