Kouign Aman

I dont cook with this method, and I'm not advocating anyone ignore this advice. I personally don't understand the risk however. Waterbaths and circulators are tricky but not impossible to clean, and the food is cooked completed sealed into a leak-proof bag. Worst case, it seems to me, would mean being carefully to fully rinse or dry the bag prior to opening. That said, I'd still probably want to know what the lab was using the waterbath for, before I bought it. I know from nothing about organic/inorganic laboratory chemistry, and wouldn't want to risk nasties that bind themselves into the bag. It seems to me a bigger risk is from leaving the waterbath full of water day in and out, and watching it grow a biofilm aka pond scum. Some of the lab models hold a lot of water and I can see someone being reluctant to change it out. Smaller modules more suitable for personal use probably wouldnt be in that situation. My practical experience with heated circulating waterbaths is +/- 0.5C regardless of stated performance. These are large models, with large volumes of room temp stuff being added and warm stuff being removed fairly often. Its pretty amazing how well they work. Being left alone and covered, I expect there is much greater accuracy, such as other posters are describing.

I've got basil in 3 places right now, all the same age. Fullsun basil went 'off' first, then the lots-of-sun basil. The partial-sun basil is still sweet and good. The leaves change shape too - the 'off' tasting stuff has narrower pointier leaves. I'm thinking of moving it to more shade and seeing what happens with new growth. The weather here is nice enough to allow me to grow a giant basil shrub if I take care on cold winter nights, but if its going to taste bad, I'll put frequent reseedings into my trucs file!

When I was visiting with friends in Venezuela, I love thes arepas (big flat pan-fried ones and littler rounder deep-fried ones both). One day we stopped for something I think was called cachapas con queso mano. Fresh tangy cheese, layered with corn cakes similar but not identical to the pan-fried arepas. My friends apologized for the 'peasant food', but I'm a peasant from way back. I enjoyed them thoroughly. Has anyone else any familiarity with these? I'd love to recreate this meal.

My friend just returned from Brasil & Argentina. She brought me a jar of Mermelada de Rosella. The ever helpful free translator gives back the obvious "Rosella jam". The picture on the front looks like some kind of flower bud possibly. What is mermelada de rosella made of ? Thank you, no, there is no ingredient list on the jar . What other jams/jellies/preserves ardo you think are worth searching out on a visit south?

That sounds very good, nice and bright. I'm lousy at grilling chicken - how come the yogurt doesnt burn? You win my gracious host and the teamwork-with-partner award for the week, in making enough for everyone, under these particular circumstances. Cumin and coriander - if you can garnish with the tiny white flowers, the only part of the plant still to work in there are the roots.

Joe's StoneCrab - its traditional. The stonecrabs are good. So is the mustard sauce. The waiters have been there since gravity was invented. They dont take reservations. It pays to show up early (5:30) or for lunch. The sides ... have never been what I consider a strong point, but they do have their die-hard fans. I havent been in a decade, I doubt anything on the menu has changed however. But I could be wrong. They did remodel the front entrance while I was living near there. I've heard people swear the medium size claws are best both for taste and meat/$ ratio. I think it would be interesting to have all the folks at a table get a different size (jumbo, large, medium) and see. However, there are other places to get stonecrab if the Joe's menu doesnt appeal. Stonecrab is worth getting.

OMG! I once got given a great quantity of crab meat and had no idea how to turn it into crab cakes (pre internet access at chez KA). It certainly didnt go to waste, as I did know how to melt butter, but but but......oh my. Any chance that some of these recipes could go into RecipeGullet? Just in case I get that kind of lucky again one day?

Come the holidays, I'm going to be hunting for several of these 'most requested' recipes. Any chance of getting them into RecipeGullet?

I found this link to an old thread on cheap eats San Diego on a Student Budget 2004 Ichiban is still around, FINS I think is gone. Roberto's still going strong as well as its many flatterers (imitation being a form of flattery). I was searching Boll Weevil, because they seem to have shutdown en masse, up oars and away quite out of the blue. Its odd to think of San Diego absent 'the home of the 1/2 lb steerburger'. We dont know they are all closed, but we've checked three locations so far (Convoy, Mission Bay and Point Loma). Whats up with that?????

I saw this today and was intrigued by the beautiful presentations. Latte Foam Art I've never gotten so much as a decorative swirl on a purchased coffee, so clearly I over-spend for coffee at all the wrong places. (Or maybe its because I always get it to go, with that white plastic lid... ) I remember at least one foodblog in the eG Forums that showed foam art on the many daily cups of coffee - I think the shape being perfected was a heart. Does anyone get pretty coffee like this when they go out? Where do you go? What pretty pictures get drawn in the foam on your beverage of choice? I see some folks even make their own. (Does anyone do this with beer? I think I might like a foam leaf on my Guinness).

Like Mac ' n Cheese. I'm with Chris, tho I might skip the part about making chicken jerky. I would plate that 'guest''s portion in advance, so the others dont think I'm providing a choice of main courses. Maybe with a little toothpick flag in it & her name on it, like they do at workshops for people with various food restrictions. Ok - that's not nice. But seriously, I'd plate it in the kitchen and quietly bring it out after I'd put all the other food on the table, while the other guests are loading up their own plates.

Has anyone else here eaten at the Wine Sellar and Brasserie (sp?) on Mira Mesa? Somehow I never think to recommend it when people ask, but the times I've eaten there (6-9 years ago... ) it was a treat.

The bell peppers are starting to shape, the orange peppers are insanely productive, and the cilantro is self-seeding right now. It smells like summer when I water the rosemary, basil and cilantro. And the sage FINALLY got big enough to pinch off leaves for brown butter and sage. Ah. That was a delicious dinner.

The fat in a roux not only adds flavor but makes it much easier to stir in liquids, lump-free. I suspect that is its primary purpose. To use flour alone, it helps to have it in a separate bowl, and add a small amount of liquid, stirring madly, and increasing the liquid a little at a time. Like using cornstarch but even fussier.

Happy birthday! Here's my gift to you . I had never before heard of snails as breakfast food. Snails

My dad always did that by cooking the ground beef from a frozen block of it. He'd use a spatula to scrape away the cooked layer over and over. Probably took a lot longer than the masher method, but he didnt have to remember to thaw the meat in advance (pre microwave. No one has to remember anymore!).

So, am I understanding this correctly? Lea and Perrins invented Worchestershire sauce? Or were they the first to bottle it? It never occurred to me that it might be a product of fermentation - like soy sauce. Or that anyone would attempt to copy or reverse engineer it at home. Its always just been there, in the cupboard. A staple. What a fascinating project. Now I'm going to have to put in an order from my source across the pond. Can you imagine the havoc a bottle of that stuff could wreak on a suitcase? But I want to do a side-by-side taste test, both neat and used in cooking.

Rumor is you can prep 'our' common garden snail the same way the French prepare theirs : collect snails, feed em oatmeal or cornmeal for a week to clean them of any toxic-to-humans plants they might have eaten, then cook. I dont expect to be testing the truth behind this rumor anytime soon. Do tell if you do, please!

Oh! I havent seen purple stringbeans since we grew them when I was a child! What FUN! (small photos, middle shot.) That was a grand tour of the market. Thanks!

That is a stunning photograph. It actually got me wanting to make a cold noodle salad, something inconceivable as recently as last night. It also looks frame-worthy. Beautiful.

Suze, in the summers and spring, when its cool enough, do you guys eat in 'the back room' often? Are there special challenges to dining in your yard? (bugs, wind, heat, leafdrop, whatever?) Would you be able to post the teaser photo in this thread, to give some context to my babble in this post? My aunt does badger watches. Y'all are sooooo patient! I know that feeling about 'too hot to eat'. Especially if its humid.

Two months of raptor rapture. Oh my! Your yard is beautiful. What kind of lunches do you take with you when counting birds?

I dont know about a jar, but you can buy dry sun-dried tomatoes (in a plastic bag). If sealed well away from bugs etc, they last a very long time. FWIW, the weevils/foodmoths we've experienced can eat thru plastic bags in their search for food. As can mice (that was a camping experience). So you might seek out a tightly sealing box to keep your supplies in.

Just a thought - dont discount what you do do. Or you could get in the habit : I had a 12 course dinner party last night but it doesnt count because I didnt butcher the steer..... I'm exaggerating obviously, but what I'm trying to say is: give yourself credit. You're dealing with burnout and grief. I dont think it will help to go adding self deprecation to the mix. You made a sandwich. Full Stop. However it continues to go for you and for your sister, may the result be one that brings you both pleasure and peace.

We learned something about timing when visiting that group - I think we'll be able to avoid the total crunch next time. Besides, we cant be the only folks who use Amtrack for travel. I didnt realize Chinatown was so close. I have many fond memories of eating there, but not many since I moved south. Oh way cool. This sounds like an adventure waiting to be had.