Kim Shook

I think the right person went home, based on just that episode, but I can't wait for Lisa to GO! And Spike managed to ooze out of responsibility by doing FOH and, to be fair, seemed to do a very good job of it. But he didn't fool Bourdain one bit. Did you see the look he gave Spike right at the end of B's comments?

OK - I went to your blog and OMG, that Carrot Cake cheesecake is STUCK IN MY HEAD. I really want to make that. I must come up with an excuse to make it soon! Might make a good Father's day dessert.

Maggie - I agree with you completely about It's All American Food! Everything I've ever made from it has been successful. I love the "classic" recipes - they are recipes I remember from my childhood - both at restaurants and homes, but they aren't studiedly 'retro' - just good food.

If it's the letter I am thinking of, it was hilarious, too! I think that might help a letter of complaint stand out and get a response.

Lisa - applause, applause, applause!!! Just beautiful lasagna! I almost never make it because it's a PITA and it's hard to find thin pasta sheets (I hate fat sheets) and I don't make my own pasta (one of my life list of things to do when I retire), but you've inspired me! Maybe I'll find some thin pasta sheets at the fresh pasta store and do that soon! One question: no ricotta? or was it in the bechamel?

Rachel, that is just the way that I love my dogs - blackened and crispy. Our friends joke that my designated hot dogs go on the grill with the hamburgers instead of later with the other dogs !

Like Daniel mentions in the dinner thread, we are making some changes in our eating/cooking habits so Mother’s day was my last blast, so to speak. I cooked what I liked. Everyone asked why I was cooking on Mother’s day and I said that it was my treat to myself! I cooked a lot ahead and then spent most of the day in the kitchen with lots of help from my mom and Mr. Kim. It was fun and exhausting and we’ve got plenty of leftovers to finish before we start the new habits . I did both brunch and dinner. Ted Fairhead and my mom are up and my dad and his wife were on their way back to FL from Northern VA. Mr. Kim’s parents are here in Richmond, so we had a houseful. I love the sounds of a full house! I had a few crazy moments (I always do – one Christmas I sent all the children back to school with some new vocabulary words!), but I had a lot of help! Before the invasion: I served shrimp salad and mini croissants: Breakfast Strudel: Sausage & Grits Casserole: Benton’s Bacon: Fruit Salad: With Momma and Ted’s Taz policing the buffet! Dessert: That’s coconut cupcakes with lemon curd filling and a purchased fruit tart. Dinner was much simpler. Predinner nibbles included fried haloumi cheese w/ pita and some really good olives I found: For dinner I served James Beard’s pastitsio and French bread: I don’t have a picture of the salad – I did one of our favorites. It is the one of the simplest and also one of the most delicious salads that I make. It’s just really crunchy, fresh iceberg with a dressing made of equal parts light cream, sugar and white vinegar. Everyone always loves it, but it’s one of those things that you don’t tell people the ingredients until they’ve tasted it! Everything turned out really well. But best of all, we all set around and talked and laughed and told stories. I served brunch at 1pm and we were still around the table at 3. Dinner was at 7 and the last one left after 11. I call that a success – no matter what the food tasted like! I hope all the mom’s at eG had a wonderful day, filled with what makes you happy!

Some amazing food folks! Bruce – the chicken with chilies looks so great. I’m sure it would be too hot for me, but the color is so gorgeous! Maybe I could make it and tone down the heat a bit! Susan – I love the idea of Buffalo duck wings – the chicken flavor tends to get lost in the intense flavor of the sauce, so duck is a great idea! And the fries look perfect! Ted Fairhead and my mom are up here for a Mother’s day visit. Friday night’s dinner will look familiar: It is the pasta and Sunday gravy that I served to my friend a couple a weeks ago. I had some of the sauce left over in the freezer and just served it with some bread and salad. It was even better leftover! I forgot to take pictures of Saturday night’s dinner, which is a good thing, because no one but Mr. Kim and I liked it . It was a chicken cordon bleu casserole. I’d made it before and we really like it, but no one else did! I served it with braised cabbage and roasted baby potatoes – everyone liked them !

Rob, will you please let me know if this works? I make a wonderful roasted strawberry cheesecake that I've enrobed in white chocolate, but it's a mess and doesn't look very pretty: I tarted it up with white jimmies, chocolate shards (I still can't make nice curls) and strawberries to cover up my ugly white chocolate coating!

I made a version of Brigid Mary’s Kit Kat cake. I, like Brigid, made it for a friend’s birthday celebration and it was a great success! I used the CI recipe for German chocolate cake for the cake and CakeLove chocolate Italian Meringue Buttercream for the filling and frosting (I put chopped Kit Kat bars in the filling, too, like Brigid). Thanks so much for posting that cake, Brigid – this was a fun cake to make and to serve – everyone was impressed:

Today I made the CI German chocolate cake. I frosted it with Italian Meringue Buttercream, not the regular frosting. The cake was just a perfect chocolate cake - great crumb, intense chocolate flavor. Everyone loved it: My go-to sandwich bread is CI's American Sandwich bread. I've never had it not turn out perfectly - and I am not an expert baker: I don't think that I've ever had a CI recipe 'fail' me. Usually I make slight adjustments, but not enough to fundamentally change the basic recipe.

Uh-oh... I never went to Reidsville! You'll have to tell me what I missed out on! ← Reidsville has Short Sugar's which has been around forever. It's being run by the son-in-law of the original owners and the bbq itself isn't as good as it once was. But the sauce is truly amazing - nothing I have ever tasted anywhere comes close. If they ever close, I might swear off NC bbq for life ! I bring both bbq and sauce home when I visit and once I run out of bbq, the sauce is so good that it makes even ordinary local bbq something special. You can see a plate of the bbq that I served last night here!

David - I love garlic custards. Everyone is so impressed with them, but they are so easy. Glad to know about the asparagus idea! Lisa - thank you so much for posting the bun recipe! nakji - that salad looks great. I can see that as a frequent meal at our house this summer. Daniel - I'd love to pull my chair up to that table! It all sounds fantastic! Dinner on Monday night started with a romaine and frisee salad with some kind of vinaigrette (I have a half a dozen leftover from the blog, but I have no idea which is which - so we just tasted them and put the one that appealed on the salad: I made Grilled Five-Spice chicken from Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table. This was recommended by Bruce and I had intended to make it for my blog, but somehow I ran out of time . All three of us loved it. It is so fragrant and subtly spicy. You also make a Soy-Lime dipping sauce which was awesome! I served it with Coconut Orzo (like rice, but made with orzo) - it was good, but not quite what I expected. It didn't taste that much different from regular orzo. The chicken and sauce: Plated with the orzo: Last night, inspired by this thread,I thawed some Short Sugar's (a Reidsville, NC bbq joint) that I had gotten when I last visited my grandmother. I also got a gallon of their sauce and canned it - heaven on a plate! I also had some leftover baked potatoes from work, which I fried with onions and some corn, mustard slaw and Campari tomatoes:

Am I the only one who, roasting vegetables at 450 degrees, always opens the oven and immediately sticks my head way down to see how things are going? My mascara instantly melts forming my eyelashes into 4 distinct little clumps, my eyeballs dry up and threaten to melt down my face and my skin turns red and itchy. This happens every single time I roast something.

This is wonderful! Thank you so much for posting this. I am waiting with bated breath for your next report and hoping that you've visited my favorite spot. From my last visit to my grandmother in Reidsville, I have 3 lbs. of good NC bbq residing in the freezer and I canned a gallon of sauce from the same place. I love all bbq, from Korea to Texas to South Carolina, but having been fed, body and soul, from babyhood on NC bbq, that is my sine qua non of pork. The pork I grew up on is neither East nor West, but it's own smoky, sweet, haunting and unique 'que!

I love the weekend - breakfast is probably my favorite meal and I get to have two ! This morning was leftovers - I had some really good, but stale bread from Friday night's dinner and a couple of less-than-crisp apples. I did cinnamon French toast with maple fried apples and some of the Neuske's pepper bacon on the side:

Wow! Some amazing looking breakfasts lately! This thread is heating up! Percyn – your breakfast for dinner is just what I like for dinner and while the egg may be egg porn, that steak is protein porn – gorgeous! Marcia – I love them, too! And your scrambled eggs are just perfect. I love properly cooked (i.e. – still moist) scrambled eggs! Tupac – OMG – what a great picture! I just finished breakfast and if that was in front of me right now, I’d be digging in. Doddie - ??? how did you get your lovely omlette so perfectly square ? Daniel – chorizo, eggs and potatoes! Sounds wonderful and perfect! Breakfast this morning was baked eggs w/ ham, chives and cheese, Burnt Neuske’s pepper bacon (not really, it just always looks that way in pictures ), Campari tomatoes and store bought croissants:

Lisa2K – your pork buns are beautiful. Could you give us a recipe or some directions please? I’d love to make them! I can vouch for that meat pie of Ted’s! Meat pie is one of my favorite comfort foods and I was so glad that Ted made it! It sent me back to VA very happy! I also have one of those little blackbird fellows. Mine doesn’t get the workout that Ted’s does, though! Prawn – the monkfish is gorgeous! I am determined to try it sometime. I know that I will love it from the descriptions that I’ve heard of the taste and texture. David – we, too, remember Green Goddess fondly. No homemade, perfectly seasoned sauce will do so well for our annual decorate the tree crudités in December. Walmart still carries Seven Seas Green Goddess – we get one bottle every year and savor it! Bruce – I wish that I could get my roasted cauliflower that dark without being mushy. What temperature do you cook it at and do you start from raw? Last night I made a big pot of ‘Sunday Gravy’ – a meaty, rich spaghetti sauce with pork, beef and Italian sausage. I served it over some really wonderful pappardelle – not fresh, but it tasted like it. The brand name is Cipriani – has anyone ever tried it? I also roasted some garlic and spread it over some good locally baked crusty bread, topped it with some fresh mozzarella and broiled it: For those of you who visited my blog, please notice the sunshine that accompanies my dinner plate. I served supper before sundown. Proof that we don't always eat at 10!

Everything is so beautiful. I was excited to see you blogging, because I have wanted to visit Prague for awhile. Now it's a real craving! The architecture, signs, food, passageways! Yet another city that I have fallen in love with long distance and probably won't ever see. Thanks so much for the glimpse!!

How I would love to imagine I was Sophia Loren while cooking breakfast! Thank you all for your wonderful, kind words. I'm going to come back here and read all of your responses anytime I'm feeling down, or sad, or insignificant! Bless you all!

I thought so, from one of your PM's, so I didn't use it in the beef. Luckily, when I went to Penzey's on Saturday, they had the dried orange peel. I used that in the sauce and fresh orange zest in the marinade. I'm glad you approve of the scallion addition !! It really was delicious, Dejah - thank you for all your help and encouragement. I felt like I really made something authentic for once!

Erin, I'm so glad it's you! I am very excited to see this! Prague is somewhere I'd like to go sometime. Don't forget my neighborhood shots ! Have fun. I hope you sleep sometime this week !

I know exactly what you mean. 30 miles or so north we have been getting the same thing. No power surge things happening, thank goodness. Did see my first hummingbird today though so I am feeling happy in spite of the rain. BTW, made the recipe for your "ET" Bacon Crescent Rolls (from your website) this morning. My husband and brother loved them....as did I. Thanks again. ← I'm so glad you liked them! They are a favorite here, too - even with those that stick up their noses at 'whomp' biscuits! Lunch today was a Chicken Waldorf Salad from Bon Appetit magazine and White Cheddar Muffins from Paula Deen. Chicken Salad Dressing mise: pineapple juice, apple cider, mayo, honey whole grain Dijon, turmeric, olive oil Dressing: Salad mise: chicken, Granny Smith apple, red grapes, celery, red onion, walnuts and lettuce Before the dressing: Finished salad: Muffin mise: Muffin batter: In the pan: Finished muffins: Great lunch! We decided that the salad would be wonderful made with tuna or swordfish, as well as the chicken. The muffins got the best recommendation – Jessica said they were even better than Red Lobster’s garlic biscuits! Dinner was my version of Dejah’s Tangerine Beef (actually orange, since that was the only dried peel I could find!) – I have to say ‘my version’ because I’m sure mine was very different – it didn’t look the same, for one thing and I couldn’t find all of her ingredients, but she very nicely gave me some pointers! I also made Fried Orzo (like fried rice, but with orzo) and Stir Fried Baby Bok Choy w/ Garlic (a Gourmet magazine recipe). Tangerine Beef mise: beef , egg, ginger, orange zest, orange extract, bread crumbs, peanut oil, rice vinegar, sugar, dehydrated orange peel, red pepper flakes, flour, cornstarch, green onions, 5-spice powder The beef was from the Belmont Butchery. Dejah recommended bottom sirloin tip, which they didn’t have. The butcher recommended skirt steak instead. I was afraid that it might end up too tough, but it was perfect. He offered to cut it for me, but I think next time I will cut it myself. I’d rather have wide strips than the squared off pieces that I ended up with. The marinating beef strips: Breaded beef: Frying the green onions: Done: These were my own idea. They made a nice addition – crunchy and sweet. Frying the meat: All crunchy and good: I didn’t bother posting any pictures of the orange sauce because they all just looked like an empty pan, but here is the finished dish: This was fantastic. Of course, I have no idea what it is really supposed to taste like, but we loved it. Crisp and spicy and sweet and intensely orange all at once. Really special and I am so glad that I noticed it all those months ago when Dejah posted it in the dinner thread. Thanks for your help with it, Dejah! Fried Orzo mise: Orzo, shrimp, egg, soy sauce, green onion, red onion The egg: Hot enough?: The onions: Adding the shrimp and egg: Tossing: Finished dish: This was the first time that I did this, so I had the proportions a little off. Next time I’ll increase the add-ins. But it tasted really good and even if it wasn’t exactly like fried rice, it was close enough to satisfy my craving! Bok choy mise: chicken broth, soy sauce, cornstarch, oil, garlic, Shanghai bok choy, sesame oil Aren’t they cute?: In the pan: Finished dish: These were delicious. Ted had made baby bok choy for me one time and I really liked it, but hadn’t ever made it myself. Mr. Kim liked it a lot, too. Plated Meal: Yes, I do have pink chopsticks. This is a picture that I insisted upon tonight: This is the most normal time I’ve served a meal all week. Even lunches were staggeringly late. Poor Mr. Kim must have felt like he was suffering from jetlag with the time differences! Well that’s it. You would not believe how many leftovers we have. Our refrigerator is just bulging. Mr. Kim and I will be popular at our offices next week. No one will have to buy lunch for days! My last day! I can’t believe it. This has been an exhilarating, exhausting and incredibly fulfilling week. Thank you all for sharing this week with me. I’ve been touched, laughed in a most unladylike manner and learned a lot. I ran out of time every day – I guess that’s par for the course! I planned, but didn’t make a few things – I did no desserts/sweets. I was going to make cookies, Dorie’s chocolate pound cake and Ann T’s scones. I’ll do those soon! I was also going to make Bruce’s Grilled 5 Spice chicken last night and just ran out of energy. I am going to be out of town most of next week, so I’ll be making that the next week, Bruce! I hope I’ve answered all the questions, that I’ve interested and entertained everyone. This is the first time I’ve ever written for an audience and you’ve all been so kind. Thank you again!

Thanks, Margo! I guess that I didn't need to simmer them after all! Yep, that's it! Let me know the next time you come to Richmond! Maybe we could 'do' Tan A and the market together! ← Thanks for the offer. Our Trip in May will be shorter than usual. Hopefully I'll be out again around September. ← Wonderful - just PM me and we'll try to work something out! That strudel looks incredible. Did a google search and it looks like someone posted the recipe on REcipZaar. Will definitely be making that in my future! What great ideas you are giving all the rest of us, Kim. Thank you. ← Thank you! It was really good - it's easier than it looks, which is always nice! The recipes will all eventually be on my webpage, I promise! I've been trying to get on all day, but we have been having band after band of thunderstorms today and we've lost 3 computers in the last 2 years to lightning and we're not taking any chances. I'm uploading pictures now and I'll try to get everything posted as soon as possible!

Thanks, Margo! I guess that I didn't need to simmer them after all! Yep, that's it! Let me know the next time you come to Richmond! Maybe we could 'do' Tan A and the market together! Breakfast this morning was a breakfast strudel with eggs, ham, cream cheese and potatoes. Mise for strudel: puff pastry, butter, frozen hash browns, onion, ham, eggs, chives, cream cheese, OJ (it's supposed to preserve the color of the egg), parmesan cheese Rolling out the puff pastry: It was just 10”x12”, but it photographs like an acre! The cooked egg mixture on the pastry: My egg mummy: Finished: This was a Cuisine at Home magazine recipe. I think that my mom sent me the recipe. I don’t think that I managed the braiding quite that way that they wanted me to, but I think it turned out pretty. It tasted great and you can put this together way ahead of time (even the night before) which is something that appeals to me, especially with breakfast/brunch dishes. I also had some house made sage sausage that we got from the Belmont Butchery: They were so delicious! What a difference from the usual supermarket packaged stuff! I also served some of that good bacon, Campari tomatoes and some sweet bagels from Panera: Plate: Crap – it’s almost 1pm. Time to make lunch!