BeeZee

I have intense carb cravings...satisfied by: potato pierogies (melt some butter and sprinkle on chives) potato pizza - yep, for carb-o-holics, it is heaven on a slice. Nice thin crust white pizza with thin slices of roasted, brown at the edge potato slices...sigh, only Suvio's in Morristown makes it. And I'm really wanting to make a lasagne right now...

Aha, the weird sandwich combo's we devised as kids...I know many a lunchbox sandwich was enhanced by a layer of potato chips...especially good on a tuna-salad sandwich! And I remember the wide-eyed wonder of seeing a peanut butter and banana sandwich the first time (age 6).

That's always been one of my favorite daydreams, to think how cool it is to be the President because you have someone to cook anything you want at any time. That's really the only reason I'd want to be Prez If I'm paying a chef 6 figures to cook for me, you better believe I'm gonna have that meal served to me when it is done, not reheated 3 hours later. Some people really don't see the difference, too bad for them!

This is very useful, BeeZee. I have worried about precisely your first point here: a poorly planned space can make two (not just the one) rooms feel oddly constrained. It would be as if we're trying too hard, you know? (Here's the wall that would have the hole, btw; it'd be over by the white pantry door to the left of the white shelf.) ← OK, well the designer in me needs to see the whole floor plan (kitchen with the adjacent rooms) to figure out if you are better or worse off with/without the opening. I guess everyone has the vision of the "open" kitchen but sometimes the existing architecture doesn't want to cooperate My first instinct was "no" to the opening because of the other wall jutting out and you have a doorway to the right, correct? Unless you remove that doorway and make a counter that is kind of a peninsula?

I generally drink one of the blends (like orange/pineapple), as I find "straight" OJ too sweet. Also usually dilute it with a little seltzer.

In a former life I was an interior designer, so I can say there are often "visual tricks" to make spaces feel more open. Mirrors are problematic in the kitchen (constant cleaning from airborne grease), but keeping all the colors really light will make it feel more open. Also, depending on your budget, if you can raise the height of the ceiling (make a coffered ceiling, with cove lighting) that's a really nice effect. If the opening is going to be really small, it can make you feel boxed in, ironically. Oh, and I like the idea of an interesting shape to the opening, like a soft arch, if it works with the overall design.

Well, aside from the sugary "King Vitamin" cereal (like Capt Crunch) that I know I ate as a kindergardener... When I was around 6, we moved from an apt. to a house on Long Island. Our next door neighbors were avid gardeners and bee-keepers. I have a vivid memory of the taste of raspberries off the bush in their yard...pulling baby carrots and radishes out of the ground, washing off the dirt and eating them (so sweet!). Fresh honey from the comb. As a kid raised (thus far) on canned or frozen veg., I have those vivid tastes in my memory.

Well, I had a couple of clues: 1) Had a friend in elementary school who had some woods with a creek behind her house. We used to take old pots and pans and make fake food (you know, muddy water with leaves and stuff in it) for hours... 2) Ordered "exotic" foods in restaurants as a kid (pressed duck) and tried sushi before my parents did 3) Read all my mom's cookbooks, cover to cover 4) "Doctored" prepared foods to make them taste better (added spices and such)

Mozzarella (as mentioned before) and nuts.

I've taken out several cookbooks from my local library to see if they had anything interesting. If I read thru the whole book and find several recipes that I want to try and there's good info. in it, I'll buy it. I'll usually get them online (overstocks, used, etc.). If there's only a couple of recipes of interest, I'll just copy those. Saves a ton of money vs. buying a book that looks good and finding out that it's really nothing special.

I learned a new term, "food porn" !

Probably in the usual mega-grocery store you can find some fruit or veg which is good at some time of the year. In the fall I've had some spectacular apples, but those are the rare ones from NY state which don't sit around too long. I love crunching on a fresh, sweet carrot or radish (esp this time of the year when I feel like having something completely opposite all the rich foods which have been consumed since Thanksgiving). And we have a turkey farm which supplies the local market with fresh turkey "london broil" or tenderloin, no injected broth. Good clean turkey flavor without all that saltiness.

Had a friend in college who used to love those so much all her textbooks had orange stains on the pages (esp. during finals)! OK, I admit to bagged snack chips... totally unhealthy: Doritos nacho cheese fooling myself that it's not as bad: Lundbergs rice chips, seaweed flavor

Macaroni & cheese - the kind out of the blue box with the fluorescent orange powder...eat straight outta the pan with a spoon. Whipped topping out of the tub. Maraschino cherries.

"who p***ed in your Cheerios???" (to ask someone why they are in such a foul mood)

No doubt that carbs rule when it comes to comfort...that warm, fuzzy feeling you get from eating them...my fav's: 1) miso soup 2) chili 3) thai massaman curry If I need "serious" comfort, it's gonna be bland: mac-n-cheese !

My first post! Lovin' the posts with all of the initially icky, then strangely compelling combo's... As a poor 20-something, a coworker originally from Memphis introduced me to the wonder of Ro-Tel brand canned tomatoes (diced) with green chilis, microwaved with Velveeta. It was a feature at all of our work get-togethers. When I was a kid and went to visit great-grandmother with the family, the question was always what kind of yucky food would we have to eat to be polite. It was almost always some kind of dry cookies/cake with tea (leaves floating in the cup, natch)...one day, my sis and I were served the most delicious snack of cooked elbows in some tangy brownish sauce. When asked, great-grandmother proudly showed us the bottle of A-1 sauce!