annecros

No no no. If it is hard to quantify then isn't it merely a subjective opinion?** (My emphasis in the original.) How is it honest to point out that X is better than Y in matters of subjective opinion?**I am pretty sure Heidegger would have something to say to me about that statement, but I can't objectively say what it might be. ← So, anything that can't be easily be quantified is subjective? Truth, beauty (beauty, truth), Shakespeare's talent relative to John Grisham, the dinner you had last night versus the one you'll have tomorrow; justice, culture and "progress?" ← Um, yeah. After reading it three times, I think those are all subjective judgements. Unless you can give me an objective measure for them, such as distance - I think you are absolutely correct.

I see you have other responses, but I would steep the bananas in a bit in the rum. Banana pudding is intended for overripe bananas, so I wouldn't worry TOO much about the browning on the bananas. You know, some cream of coconut subbed in just might make the whole thing go over the top with bananas and rum, with some grated coconut on top, and maybe some chocolate microplaned on the hot meringue while it is cooling... Edit to add: Thanks highchef. I think I will be blowing my family away here pretty soon. I have pictures of this dessert in my head now. I like the wafers crisp. Telltale sign of a fresh pudding.

Yeah, I thought that myself after I turned the computer off last night. I too thought the challenges were quite creative. For a self-declared Deadly Sins aficianado, Cliff didn't seem to know that "Greed" is really a poor synonym for "Avarice". It would have been neat to see some sort of dessert involving edible gold leaf for that sin. Sloth? a slow braise, I think. Lust...oyster bisque. Or a pasta with a puttanesca sauce. Gluttony...well, what (edible) animal do most English speakers associated with gluttony if not the pig? Pork, three (or four!) ways. Wrath...I liked the spicy theme of Sam's dish. No brilliant alternatives from me! Envy...again, Michael's idea was brilliant. Pride...something very showy. I'm still thinking about that one. ← The whole quick fire whiny white thing killed me. Vanilla, cold, cream - a nice plate with fish or pork? Maybe even chicken if you want to keep it a little tame? White is cold and rich to me. Sheesh, even a salad could have communicated the color and emotions in very interesting ways. And isn't she pastry? Surely she has been up to her elbows in white chocolate? That is not even falling back on potatoes and stuff that got Mike in trouble earlier for serving an all white plate at Thanksgiving. Cliff could have done much better with his task, agreed. Chocolate makes me greedy! Gold leaf would have been really cool though, and communicated the concept effectively. Lust just has to be Lobster or Crab for me. Oysters just don't ring my bell. Maybe because I am a girl? Pork is right there. The whole freaking suckling pig if you can get it cooked in time! Pride should be dessert, maybe? Michael really impressed me with the envy. Lovely. I would have never thought of it, and it was so perfect. Sam is no slouch either.

Someone share a recipe? -Mike ← Somehow, I just knew when I saw the topic, that you would be the topic bouncer NYCMike! Banana pudding? No problem. There are quite a few who would testify to the fact that Mama used cook and serve jello vanilla, but mine didn't. It does require the Nabisco 'Nilla Wafers, and you beat up all the egg whites you didn't use for the pudding for the meringue, and sometimes one or two extra. Our Texas friends provide exactly the recipe I love: http://www.texascooking.com/features/apr99bestbanana.htm The kids will love it!

As the previous poster is asking, are they hocks, shanks or feet? Remember, it is all ham (except probably the feet). Think about what you do with fresh ham vs. smoked ham. Fresh, I love to make a broth with them. Fine flavor, and you can use it in lighter applications such as soup or pick the meat off for inclusion in a rice dish prepared with the broth. Fresh hocks and rice is one of my favorites, and one of the few items I have prepared when my husband and I see eye to eye on generous salt inclusion. They may also be dredged in flour and fried. Actually can be better than a pork chop. They are great for seasoning and contain all that wonderful fat, but a lighter seasoning than you would be used to with the results from rendering smoked hocks in water. They really are not what you want to simmer beans with, unless you are VERY genourous with other seasonings, BUT you can make a very nice soup that will make you second guess applications for chicken broth you have heard in the past. A braise really is not out of the question. Another alternative would be to render them for lard for other applications, but there is too much meat there. I would feel like it was a waste.

LOL, I guess you know better now! Great post. You raised some issues that made people think and respond. Good job.

I think so as well. It never went "out" in the South, AFAIK, and I could relate to the ladies on Sex in the City squealing over cupcakes with firsthand memories and experience. Dainty, foils, doilies, individual portions...

In Aberdeenshire and Angus. The pigs are in Glouchestershire, Berkshire, Oxford and Tamworth. As far as I can determine, and I may be entirely wrong, cattle are very dairy focused in Southern Europe, more so in higher elevations. Makes sense.

A "Peanut" is, evidently, I think. I know peas when I see them and they are shelled except for the "snaps" that are immature peas cooked and served in the pod to accompany the shelled mature peas, and beans are almost always served in the pods, except for that butterbean/limabean thing which is the only colloquially referred to thing as bean that isn't served in the pod fresh - I am pretty sure. Now I am speaking of fresh peas and beans in the above paragraph. Dried peanuts are still beans, but referred to as nuts, just as dried beans are beans. I kind of use English peas, normally shelled fresh or otherwise, as a sort of dividing line. Coconuts make my head hurt if I try to think it all out, and they grow in my yard. Now did you see why I sat back awaiting answers with you breathing heavily and looking to the EGullet Gods for enlightenment? Great, fun topic. Edit to add: OMG - I overlooked "Snowpeas" - which are definitely cooked fresh in the pod and are beans, though they are called peas.

Interesting. I wonder how many nuts are beans?

Hey, better to freeze than waste that great cut. I would stick it in the fridge now. Beef usually has a 30 day shelf life from the slaughterhouse, and you will probably still have ice crystals 72 hours later as long as the fridge is cold and relatively undisturbed. Glad your parents are better. I spent a holiday with Mom in MICU and Dad in CICU about 10 years ago. Best wishes to you and your family. Edit: I better qualify that shelf life. Beef has a 30 day shelf life from slaughter if it is stored and handled properly (cryovacced with an unbroken seal). It sounds like your meat market is fairly responsible in regards to fresh meat handling.

The challenges were more interesting tonight, and I saw a lot more creativity. Just when I was about to give up on the series - they are showing improvment. The "Seven Deadly Sins" was a fun idea. I liked it. Betty's attitude seemed to show in her food. I think the kitchen will be a better place to work without her - provided that Ilan can quit stirring the emotional pot and please stop whining Elia! She could have done a great deal with white, but spent too much time agonzing over the injustice of it all. Martyr syndrome. Marcel seems to have been transformed from obnoxious to underdog. I still find Cliff quite likable and he is my favorite overall, although he got on my nerves a couple of episodes ago. Funny - Here I am going on about personalities and it is supposed to be about the food! I was proud of Michael for sobering up and demonstrating that he is a contender. I bet Betty was shocked that Michael outlasted her. I think she wrote him off on Day One. Oh well, I guess I am back on the train for this season.

Yep. wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_edible_seeds http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peanut Even when you feel like a nut, they aren't.

I've noticed mention on some of the other boards, Japan and finding a decent pizza comes to mind, that American food culture seems to be rather diverse on the whole. I wouldn't expect to find especially appealing Jamaican meat pies or a good jerk chicken in France, unless someone makes it at home. I don't think Mexico is particularly well known for its fine Chinese food either. I think this reflects market demand rather than Xenophobia. However, in most parts of the United States I have traveled in - there is almost always reasonably good hispanic, mediterranean, asian and more recently middle eastern options readily available - if that's what you are hungry for and are looking. Sure, the bagels are best in NY (I've always heard it was the water) - enchiladas are outstanding in the Southwest - Cuban in Miami, etc. The hispanic market within walking distance of my house here was doing Peking Duck for the holidays. I kid you not. About a third of the market includes Asian specility items and ingredients, but the staff is entirely Spanish speaking. Plenty of people shopping across the spectrum there as well, mostly because they offer a pretty good deal and interesting ingredients.

I wonder, though, if British country cooking *might* just be as wonderful as French country cooking. Seriously. I wonder. As have been, and as are often, many of our own. . and that extends out into the world of haute entertaining for business too, though that is changing at a rapid pace now in both areas from what I've noticed, which is pleasant to see. P.S. That "mutton bandwagon" thing you describe sounds like quite a rollicking good time, Anne. ← Hey, there's got to be somthing good about any parading meat! It is actually a "Mutton Appreciation Society" and I am quite impressed. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml...xportaltop.html

Mmm hmm. But we're always talking about two different things when we talk about the food that the "usual" people eat and the food that the aristocrats eat, even in the US, no, Doc? Oh, plus I thought that the British aristocracy used to eat French food in public. . . and nursery food, large joints, and puddings in private when they "let their hair down" so to speak. But that could be another one of my fantasies. ← I've been under that impression as well. Wasn't there something recently in the UK press concerning Her Majesty's Tupperware at the breakfast table, and penchant for leftover beef prepared in pies? I like what Prince Charles has done recently for Farmer's and local foodstuffs in the UK. Seems like I remember him launching a mutton bandwagon recently. The banqueting menus I have seen in the past for UK State Dinners are decidedly French influenced, though.

Yep, small game birds, all dark meat, prepare like you would fried chicken, and that thick brown gravy is exactly what you are looking for. I prefer quail to dove in this prep though. Milder and less gamey. Dove tastes like liver to me, and I just fry up liver and onions with my grits when I want this sort of taste. If you are feeding a crowd, you will need a lot of birds. I have been known to put away four whole quail in this preparation back in my heyday.

I've been around chickens when they go "broody" and they do seem to like close quarters and quiet dark. Got pecked often enough. They are great pest control, but boy, they can clean out your seedlings in an hour as well! I've seen them move mulch very efficiently, as the earlier poster noted. Mom and Dad kept Gunea's free roaming for pest control, and kept the chickens cooped for the most part. Dad did keep the coop clean. There were a few small bantams Dad kept for entertainment that were allowed to roam, but they didn't seem as interested in decimating the vegetable garden like the layers and the eating chickens.

This one is on the nightstand now: http://www.amazon.com/Lee-Bros-Southern-Co...ie=UTF8&s=books The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook: Stories and Recipes for Southerners and Would-be Southerners Real page turner, and familiar recipes with great twists. Sentimental favorites are Julia Child and the Gourmet Magazine compilations.

Oh Gosh Robyn, the bagged stuff does reduce prep time a great deal, and if washing and cutting the greens is a deal breaker, then by all means buy the bagged stuff. I agree with you that the bagged greens are better than no greens at all. You really should try the Kale. My hubby's favorite mix of greens is turnip greens, mustard and kale. Glory Foods is a great line, and the bagged greens in particular were bought out from the Roberson family in Tift County Georgia. My dad did the books for them for years, and Edith Roberson was a wonderful lady. Originally peanut farmers, I think one of the sons later figured out how to mass produce greens efficiently and bring them to market without the spoilage that comes with the fresh product. Southern greens bagged predate salad greens bagged. Now, somebody needs to do that with peas! I like dried peas in their place, but the summer peas fresh shelled are like nothing else in the world. I like the leatherlike mature leaves on collards. They add great crunch and flavor. But it does take about an hour and a half in a pressure cooker to make everything happy. 30 minutes under pressure, then an hour simmer. I also add a smoked hock, and actually if you dump a Goya ham bullion cube into the pot it is pretty good. Two tablespoons of butter at the very end really sends things over the top. I eat collards and cornbread for breakfast. My kids look at me weird. My favorite cornbread, and hubby's, is simple old hoecake. Water, salt and cornmeal. Fried crispy. Publix has rapidly overcome Winn Dixie and Piggly Wiggly as the southern supermarket chain of choice. I love some of their house brands. Good stuff. Your milage may vary, of course.

Salami and cheddar, out of hand.

Come on down. Had one for lunch today. ← It really is good, isn't it?

Very nice of you. Sounds like the poster will be in your back yard. Is the Raintree still open in St. Augustine? I knew the owners once upon a time, and it was a fine place to have a nice meal.

They can take my cheese, and make me believe it is "junk" - when they can pry it from my cold dead hands.

Oh wow, your partner and I may have gone to high school together. There are only four High Schools total in Albany, Georgia. I went to DHS, a "river rat." I would suggest hitting Jacksonville. Lady and Sons is great for the tourists, but home folks don't go there cause we can prepare it ourselves. Mullet and oysters, you need to drive to the panhandle of Florida. It doesn't get better than that. If you feel like taking a little drive - then Thomasville has a great farmer's market that has a great pile of food prepared homestyle. There is another place up the road in Montezuma Georgia that is oh so good. Southern cooking skillfully prepared by Mennonites. Fantastic and fresh. Otherwise, I am sure others will chime in here... I need to make a couple of calls to see what is new and jumping in that part of the country. Take care and have fun!