HungryC

Try an oil-less roux in the oven...yes, it's just browned flour. But it will provide nutty thickening to a gumbo or stew, without the fat. (Hey, it's the second day of Lent, I'm still thinking of ways to do without.)

Achieving a good ear--partially it's about a good slash, but also about catching the loaf at the right moment. If the bread is under-proofed, it will open up wide like the left hand loaf in the photo above. You want it to open up, but not so much as to wipe out the scoring. Only baking the same loaf, over and over, will give you enough "feel" to know exactly when to score it; you're baking in a home kitchen, so the ambient temp will vary according to the season, the exact spot where the loaf is rising, the temp of the dough, etc etc. I tend to be impatient during the final rise, and I usually end up with delicious, holey, loaves, but sadly, no grigne.

I agree wholeheartedly--but it's almost a defining national trait these days to be obsessed with some form of "denial" eating. First it was low/nonfat, then low/noncarb, now gluten-free is having its moment. Food marketing is increasingly like personal care product marketing (people can only use so much toothpaste or deodarant), with micro-specialization of products as a way to gain market share. Can't sell any more of your tough, refrigerated tortillas? Capture a little piece of the GF market and make more money.

Silly names for dishes, rather than simple, descriptive names. I don't care if they're named after your kids, your dog, or your best customer. Save me from the story. I don't care.

Butter. Crushed crumbs, a small amount of granulated sugar, and just enough melted butter to make the mixture cohesive. I prefer the tender, crumbly style crust; I've sampled a "sturdier" version that included a bit of egg white, but I found it too hard.

I find that the pre-crushed box crumbs are stale, so smashing the crackers yourself (food processor works well) is a good place to start. I like the crumbs a little irregular in shape, but that's a personal thing. A handful of pecans or walnuts crushed up with the crumbs is pretty good. The key, I think, is quality salted butter and a short run (10-12 minutes) in a 325-degree oven. Toasting adds to the flavor immensely. Vary crumb inclusions to complement the pie--a few gingersnaps (or a tiny bit of powdered ginger), chocolate grahams, dried coconut (esp good w/banana cream), or cacao nibs. Or you could make your own grahams. Here's a good KA recipe: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/graham-crackers-recipe

Don't soak them at all--just a quick dip in hot water is all you need. The rice paper will still be a bit stiff as you lay it on the cutting board, but it will soften as you arrange the filling. Another tip: add a row of filling near one edge, fold a rounded edge over it, then add more filling, fold it over, tuck the edges in, and finish rolling. The number of folds/layers of filling depends on the diameter of your rice papers. I watched a super-fast-fingered brigade of ladies crank out hundreds of spring rolls at a Tet festival--they made it look easy, and once I tried their techniques, it wasn't as hard as I tried to make it. Incidentally, they used a crock pot to keep the water at the correct temperature, and ladled it out into a pan as needed.

One perfectly poached egg, on brioche toast, w s&p. 'Course, the brioche is homemade, so that might disqualify it as simple.

Welcome to the wonderful world of hot-climate gardening....which means you have to disregard a huge percentage of generalist information on planting. I wouldn't bother to start parsley indoors, provided that the bed/planting area is undisturbed (ie, no pets, kids running through it to disturb the germinating seeds). My grandma just sprinkled the seeds directly on the ground in a cool, well-watered spot (near the hose bib, which always dripped a bit), and I've had luck direct-seeding it. If you allow some of your basil plants to flower, they'll set seeds & you'll never need to buy another basil seed. The seeds will germinate when watered & not too cold, and you can spade them up and put the tiny plants wherever you like (if you don't catch the seeds before they fall off the plant). A number of slow-bolting cilantros are available in seed form--I've had better luck with Baker Creek's slow-bolt variety rather than the Ferry-Morse generic cilantro sold at my local garden center (that stuff flowers in nanoseconds). But you do need to sow successive crops of cilantro throughout the hotter months if you want to assure a consistent supply.

From Baker Creek's website, on shipping internationally: "Orders for small seed packets are just charged $3.00 shipping. There is an extra shipping charge for heavy seeds and supplies: Beans, Peas, Soya, Sorghum, Corn, Legumes, Grains, Books and Supplies. We will bill your credit card for the actual shipping cost on bulk orders." So for a measly 3 US dollars, you can order any of Baker's herb seeds, shipped to you in the Canary Islands. (Incidentally, I have more than a few Canary Islanders in my family tree; a bunch of Islenos settled in Louisiana in the colonial period.)

Dill is super easy to grow--a packet of "Mammoth" dill seeds will keep you going for years, as the plant sets seed heavily if allowed to flower. I'm still planting seeds I saved three or four years ago. Certain species of butterfly love dill...and the sight of butterflies visiting a nearly 5' tall flowering dill is quite lovely. Baker Creek Heirloom seeds can provide you with a teriffic variety of culinary herbs: http://rareseeds.com/ Don't forget to grow some hot peppers, too...an essential part of a culinary "seasonings" garden, imho.

In NYC, sheer numbers mean you can run a business without a tremendous amount of repeat business. Whereas in a suburban or semi-rural area, it's the regulars who'll make your profit. You need the 8-and-under soccer team's parents to approve of your establishment, or they'll stop taking the whole team out for pizza/subs/fro-yo after the big tournament.

I dunno about "stewed for hours"....I cook frozen beans about 30-45 minutes. Fresh beans take just a bit longer, depending on whether you've bothered to french 'em or if you've left the beans in fairly large snaps.

But the sugary, overyeasted bread mush is downright gross! If I want a shovelful of sugar, I'll take a fountain drink. If forced by circumstances beyond my control to eat at a chain sandwich shop, I'll pick Quiznos by a mile. Here in the land of the poboy, it's damn sad that Subway has so many customers. I think they survive (around here) on coupon-clipping customers and those who don't plan ahead & find themselves in a bind at lunch.

I have no idea whether she's using fresh or frozen. I use frozen all the time; they're as good as fresh for smothering. The key is seasoning--without the judicious application of savory (tasso, andouille, smoked turkey wings, salted pork, or something similar) and salt, they're just mushy snap beans. My favorite version of the dish includes chunks of new potatoes simmered along with the beans; the potatoes get all creamy & soak up the smoked meat & vegetable flavors. The dish of green beans & potatoes is standard home cooking in this region.

I feel compelled to mount a defense of the meltingly tender, long-simmered, southern-style green bean. Seasoned properly (ie, with a good, smoky pork of some sort), those beans are a revelation. I wonder if Kerry is leaving out the meat in hopes of offering a vegetarian item? (pure speculation)

I'm not a germaphobe by a long stretch, but it is indeed completely gross when someone handles money then food without washing. Money is the dirtiest thing around, for pete's sake. If I really liked the establishment, I might politely inquire about money handling & food...make up some hook about "flu season" to ease into the conversation. (Though we all know proper sanitation is important year round.)

Check out the Breville countertop ovens. While it won't hold a sheet pan, it is pretty roomy. You can get baking stones to fit it, too. http://www.brevilleusa.com/baking/the-smart-oven-tm.html

Umm, they're like night and day. HCFS has a hard, bitter aftertaste and the sugary taste takes a brief instant to develop in the mouth. On the other hand, cane sugar is 99.9% sucrose; it is immediately sweet with no aftertaste. Less refined cane syrups are another creature entirely, with all sorts of secondary flavors depending on the syrup.

Reheated beignets are pretty bad. They tend to get heavier & greasier w/time. If you want to attempt a test batch of reheated beignets, you could try reheating the fried (but certainly not sugar coated) dough in a toaster oven or on a pizza stone. I'd ditch the beignets in favor of some easier-to-prepare-in-advance NOLA food...maybe a pot of red beans, or a king cake. Here's a good scratch king cake recipe from John Besh. Or a nice pot of jambalaya...

Fage is my standby; I have a carton in my lunchbag today. Best I ever tasted: the St. Benoit yogurtmade in Sonoma. Damn, that stuff is good.

We have a credenza nicknamed the "food altar" where snacks are laid out....assorted pastries on Tues/Thurs (a changing selection of doughnuts, croissants, filled danish, etc from the ) supplied by the office, plus frequent party leftovers, birthday cakes, and so on. This week alone, we've noshed on rice crackers (not so good, reminded everyone of Communion wafers), two king cakes (from different bakeries) on Monday alone, and cheese straws. Since Mardi Gras isn't until March 8th, we'll be eating beaucoup king cakes before the end of the season.

Check cajungrocer.com; I believe CG carries "Cajun Chef" brand file. It's a LA company, but I have no idea where the sassafras originates. But if you're looking for grown in south LA, processed by hand, you can try Uncle Bill's Spice, made by Lionel Key: http://unclebillspice.com/ (Coincidentally, I gave my niece two sassafras trees for Christmas...can't wait 'til they're large enough to make some file.)

Thanks for providing the scientific source...I'd read in multiple places that freezing was sufficient.

No. Freezing at very cold temperatures for an extended period of time will kill nematodes (regular freezing in a home unit might but might not) but a lot of dangerous stuff can survive freezing. I believe all the vibrio strains can survive freezing. Vibrio vulnificus (often found in warm-water oysters) is killed by freezing.