Philanthrophobe

This boobtastic example of network flatulence is going to be on all week?? The hell?? I can't believe they're preempting "The Office" on Thursday. It's seventy shades of wrong.

No kidding. It's especially obnoxious when you consider how so many people (not all, by any stretch) think of their pets as discardable as broken toasters. Which is one of the primary reasons for the existence of so many pet rescue organizations. That said, I think I'd prefer to avoid eating horsemeat. But I'd also prefer to avoid eating agribusiness livestock. Anyone seen the article in the current and always cheery Harper's about the pork business? Yeeeeeooooow. But really, it's nothing new.

Here's an excellent site with info on how to repair all sorts of large, expensive appliances. The forums are really helpful, and the guy who runs the site is a sweetheart. I utilized their collective expertise to help me repair our dryer last summer. I replaced the drum belt and something or other that had to do with the heating element that involved 1) disassembling the entire dryer, and 2) something like $65 for parts. And in addition, I felt quite proud of myself when, upon reassembly, it actually worked. Anyway, give the site a once-over. There's always a lot of discussion regarding refrigerators. Good luck!

I loved this episode. Absolutely best part: the seal feast. I want to know what it tasted like. And I didn't think they could top the Peru episode! Oh, and if anybody wants to know how Arctic indigenous people have adapted to subsistence foods like raw marine mammals, I can provide links....yes, I'm a geek, and I'm also researching Yup'ik clay cooking vessels. (Okay, I'll go away now.) Has he been to India yet? I watched PivenFest; it was a weird combo of host and destination. I took a drink every time he said "enlightenment;" needless to say, by the end of it I was watching from a horizontal position (and not in a good way).

And did you see them just about fall out of her dress when she leaned over to peer into the freezer??! Holy cats....

I love your blog! I grew up in Wilmington, swam on the Chester YWCA swim team, attended photography school at Race and something, and managed various bookstores in Wilmington and Philadelphia....your blog brings back SO many memories...thank you!!

I initially thought Gael Greene was Mo Gaffney--well, why not? Giant breasts of Cindy Margolis, Alan Thicke, Colin Cowie... Although once I figured out it was Gael Greene, I couldn't figure out WHY she was there.

Las Vegas: the buffet!! Hands-down. Washington D.C.: Senate bean soup Chesapeake Bay area in general: crab cakes Maine: lobster roll Nebraska (or maybe just Lincoln?): runza sandwiches Michigan: Cornish pasties Kentucky: burgoo Louisiana: muffaletta

I forgot to add that I aspire to get through college before I get my AARP membership card, which will arrive in two years. Then I aspire to get a job that pays more than $10/hour. And then I'll aspire to replace the 20-year-old car. Later, maybe, I'll aspire to acquire a filthy Viking as well, but he'll have to be over 4 feet tall, because one should have standards. Then a stove. And furthermore, regarding the Potlatch in Manhattan Salmon recipe, I aspire to eventually live someplace closer to fish!!! [off to wipe the drool from the keyboard]

I have been tempted by a tagine but have resisted so far as it seems like a gadget too far. I get excellent results from a slow cooker that cooks meats to perfection and lets out excess steam in the same way a tagine does. Tagines lack versatility and that is why so many end up unloved and unused in the back of the kitchen cupboard. Spend the money on an LC dutch oven that you will use time and time again, would be my advice. ← I'm with you. I completely heart gadgets, but I have used a giant Lodge cast iron dutch oven for ages and wouldn't trade it for anything. It's the workhorse of my kitchen.

Did you check out the barbequed salmon recipe? Dammit, I hate living so far inland!

Iced oolong tea, with lots and lots of ice! No sweetener. V8 with hot sauce. Hummus with nearly equal parts chickpeas and garlic and lots of lemon juice--not everyday, but I would if I could. Kirby cucumbers, skin on, and REAL tomatoes.

Aspirational eating/living style: low on the food and hype chains. I like eating at home, reading about what I eat, what other cultures eat, and why, and how. I like learning stuff; it's fun. I was a horrible match for my ex-husband, who lived to eat out as often as possible and loved lavishly-decorated restaurants. He also loved bright shiny objects.

My first exposure to "extreme cuisine" came by way of the Laura Ingalls Wilder books, in which, among other things, she described in detail the butchering of a hog and all the various ways that ALL parts of the animal were used, including Pa inflating the bladder, tying it, and giving it to the girls to play with. I figure that you're going to butcher an animal for the steak or roast, it seems just wrong to throw out the rest of it. Plenty of other cultures eat the whole hog. It ain't just the Chinese. And hey, the French eat horse, which I believe started during a famine during Napoleon's rule. (Or something.) People can be ingenious when they're hungry. If not, they buy a nice shiny shrinkwrapped styrofoam container of meat at the grocery store. Backhand the rude bastards! Just don't get caught.

They are not usually stuffed, but "loo'ed". If you look into the window of a Chinese BBQ place and see all the roasted meats hanging there, invariably, the will be an orangy coloured skein or two of what looks like intestines. Most time these are the uteri or oviducts of the pig, not intestines . Delicious. ← [gulp]...it is honorable to eat all parts of slaughtered animal...it is honorable to eat all parts of the slaughtered animal...it is honorable to eat all parts of the slaughtered animal.... Oh, and I forgot to mention the pig snouts shrink-wrapped in packs of four (rather than by weight). In doing a quick search, I found that the Athenians served them as appetizers, and African slaves in the southern US made hogshead "cheese" primarily from the pig's snout, ears, lips (curiously, tongue isn't mentioned, but maybe it's reserved for another use), and feet. Pig snouts and other bits are common in Mexican/Portuguese/Spanish cuisine as well, but curiously, although I see entire pigs' heads for sale at my favorite Latino market around Christmas/New Year, I've never seen packages of just snouts before. And stomachs and intestines and testicles of various animal origins, but never uteri. One of my Szechwan Chinese cookbooks displays illustrations for preparing "Intestine Rings on Green Onion Fingers," and it's pretty much what you'd expect: a bundle of scallions in a length of pig intestine, fried and sliced. Perusing unusual foodstuffs is more fun than going to the movies.

Having attempted flaming the wine and getting about as much flash as is omitted by the standard 4-watt nightlight, I think you're right on the money. I made this recipe in a giant cast-iron dutch oven for the heat retention capabilities, and the next time I try it, I'll cook the contents covered for a few minutes to gain a couple degrees before adding the wine...I think this is probably my only option. Still, it tasted great! (as your recipes always do!)

Oh, my god....this looks EXACTLY like a decayed tooth I found when going through grave goods from a early 20th century coffin last semester...if I can find the photo, I'll post it. [shudder]

Oooooh, I bet that would be GREAT. [hurries off to the kitchen to make some ghee] ← Made some usli ghee and popped some corn in it, and it was delicious. Delicate butter flavor without the greasiness--approx 1/3 cup kernels in approx 1T ghee--excellent fat to corn ratio makes for nearly guilt-free snacking. Thanks, sandercohan! [snackyface][/snackyface]

andiesenji, is it used to grate something over a bowl or pot with the legs resting on the rim? ...or a spaetzle maker? Hmmmmm....

It is! It's a bean slicer! (I, uh, have two. I'm not sure why.)

I saw pigs' uteruses (uteri?) earlier this week at one of the Asian markets, sorted by size. I assumed these would be stuffed--anyone have an idea? And the herbalist had a number of dried animal bits...seahorses and scorpions among the various teas.

When my sisters and I were growing up, eating watermelon made our voices drop an octave--think Bea Arthur in 70-pound bodies. It was part of the fun of fruit consumption, along with watermelon seed spitting contests.

I hear ya. And when I read your initial post, I just subbed "pasty and monolingual" for American! I haven't been to any other country either, and it's not for want of desire to do so--it's a matter of finances. But it doesn't mean I can't explore other cultures via their groceries. Additionally, I sort of hate eating in restaurants--I much prefer to read a few books and then forage for ingredients and make stuff at home. It's so much more satisfying, and on a number of levels. And I love that feeling of having "traveled" without even having to step outside the city limits! edited becawze o' baahd spellin

Thanks! The chicken is marinating as I type this! Yummmm...

Is there a way to "flame" the wine if you're stuck with an electric cooktop? (all manner of jokey answers come to mind, all of which would render the skillet contents inedible)