IowaDee

Our local Mexican restaurant offers it for those who can't/won't eat salsa with their chips. I don't think they like doing it because of the way they plop the bottle on the table. Almost as though they want to shame the customer by calling attention to the stuff.

Daughter had a friend over to spend the night. I fixed pancakes for breakfast. The guest piled up several pancakes in a bowl after sprinkling sugar on each of them. She than poured milk over them and ate them as if they were cereal. She said that's the way her family has always eaten them.

I pick up a copy of Edible Iowa River Valley every time I find a new issue. Always at least two or three interesting articles. Love learning about local producers that I can use. Discovered the Milton Creamery less than 15 miles from home. They have some world class cheese. It is strictly a family operation that uses milk from local Amish farms. Glad the magazine steered me to it!

I too have enjoyed this so much. Sad to say, it looks as if I won't be buying or tasting conch anytime soon at those prices. If I could get a pound, I'd jump at the chance in the hopes that I would love it. Your week stirred up a lot of happy memories for me. Thank You.

I'm about half way through The Spice Necklace. Now, in addition to tasting conch, I want to make a necklace! When I was a kid, our family went through a rough patch and skindiving friends would bring us abalone. Most of them were from the Santa Monica beach area. At the time, it was "poor food" but I sure would like to afford it today! I'm so enjoying your blog, it makes me homesick, but it is worth it for the enjoyment of seeing my favorite part of the country.

I just finished reading An Embarrassment of Mangoes in which the author talks about cooking conch. From her description it sounds a lot like abalone. She mentions needing to beat it with a mallet. Is conch similar in taste to abalone?

Why not airline food in honor of Kare's parents and their former professions?

Another offspring of terrible cooks here. However they made sure I could have a martini mixed and chilling in the refrigerator for them. Four to one with an olive please. Gently stirred of course, musn't bruise that damn gin. Too bad they didn't have a Girl Scout badge in bar tending.

I have enjoyed reading your blog so much. Like others here, I am inspired to give pierogis a try soon. Now if I could just claim to live in the Long Beach of Iowa! Nope, not a palm tree in sight. And even squinting won't turn snow into sand.

Wish I could "read" your refrigerator. Bet there are some good stories stuck on it. Other than an attack of homesickness, I'm so enjoying your blog. I grew up in the Mar Vista- Venice area. My folks both worked at McDonald Douglas in Long Beach. Hubby and I were back there on a trip and stayed on the Queen Mary. What fun. And your aquarium is world class!

I recently bought the new Sunset Cookbook. I'm anxious to see what you think of it. I would give up all my magazines before parting with my monthly issue of Sunset!

I loved Kelbos. I worked near-by and went there for lunch. Later, it was a special destination for my husband and me. The layout of the tables made you think you were the only patrons there. Remember that cool screen in the entry way. Lots of disks embedded with everything under the sun. I recently bought a box of tiny paper umbrellas at a yard sale with plans to hold a Kelbos party next summer. Another find was a old copy of Trader Vic's cookbook. Come on Spring!

Licking spoons is so ingrained in me that I fully expect to lick one that I've used to dole out dog or cat food. I really need to stop, look and sniff before licking!

Before moving to Iowa, I worried a lot about the cold winters. In a letter my mother-in-law mentioned growing mangoes in her garden. Well this California girl was no longer worried in the least about Iowa winters. How bad could it be if they could grow mangoes? Visions of avocado, mango and papaya trees danced in my head. What a rude awakening awaited me. I have seen mango pepper seeds listed in catalogs and it still makes me angry!

Cranberry sauce, both whole berry and jellied. Never could make it as good as the canned stuff

My father-in-law grew many acres of field corn. He discovered that he could plant a small plot of sweet corn in the middle of some field corn. It was a way to foil the raccoons. One year I planted Indian corn next to sweet corn. Had a lot of cross pollination and ended up with amazing looking sweet corn.

Probably way off base here but I thought maybe he was wanting to know what actual sweet corn was. Most of the corn crop is field corn which becomes animal feed and corn products. This type is often called dent corn. Sweet corn is what we eat right off the cob .........in Iowa, Roasting Ears. Pass the butter please.

A question of the usage of walnut as a material for cutting boards. Last year we hauled a walnut log to a local Amish sawmill and asked the owner to saw it into boards. He was willing to but not so happy about it. He told us that he used the sawdust from the sawmill as bedding for his horses. Sawdust from walnut wood would make the horses sick and was never used. He didn't supply any details. Before sawing our log, he swept an area clean so our "bad" sawdust could be isolated and disposed of. That makes me wonder what the sawdust has that would harm horses. I assume that the finished cutting boards no longer contain any of that mysterous substance.

As a young kid in So. Cal, I can remember my parents going through some lean times. They had a couple of friends who were skin divers. Many weekends they would drop off abalones for us. I can still "hear" the steaks being pounded into tenderness. As a kid, my favorite part of the whole deal was the beautiful abalone shells ringing the edges of our patio. I would love to be able to sit down to a meal of abalone now!

Going on a field trip to the Helms Bakery was part of my elementry school experience. The place was located in Culver City and was huge. After the tour, we were all given a mini loaf of bread and a little cardboard Helms truck filled with tiny chocolate chip cookies. I probably had all the cookies eaten before getting back on the school bus!

Another Iowan chiming in. There is a wonderful place in Des Moines called Gateway Market. Along with outstanding meat and seafood, the cheese and wine departments are great. The produce and bakery items are fresh and mouthwatering. We drive over 100 miles just to stock up on goodies. Remember there are no Whole Food or Trader Jo's in the state so Gateway Market really fills a void. There is also a fantastic cafe in the market. We gave our daughter a gc for her birthday and she was thrilled. Rick Bayless was there last year for a cooking demo but we had to miss it. Anyway, this might be another idea for your friend. Here's thee website for more info. www.gatewaymarket.com

I grew up in Los Angeles and never thought about the taste of the water. Tonight on Countdown, Keith Olberman said that the reason the water tasted so good was because it had bacon bits in it. Oh my I don't want to know any more....

Mr. Baggins is welcome to visit Iowa, the heart of the Midwest! He'd be a welcome change from the blandishments and constant phone calls from presidential candidates and accompanying minions! He could come in handy as headcover during a streak through a despised candidate's latest rally!

Hee is a link with lots of inifo on Mazatlan. You may have to dig for what you want but the forum moves pretty slowly. There are also photos, videos and info about most of the hotels and, better yet, the restaurants. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g1507...ific_Coast.html

I doubt if you will experience any safety issues while driving. I was thinking of the hazards of dealing with people on bikes after dark, kids darting into traffic almost like it was a sport and trying to find paking places. Also any time someone wants to grab a bus they just wave at it. No need for bus stops, the driver will veer across a lane of traffic to get to the curb. Another thought, Mexico still operates according to the Napolenic Code, quilty until proven innocent! Drive with care. Back to food! You didn't mention where you are staying but if you have a kitchen, don't miss the chance to buy and cook some fresh shrimp. Mazatlan is the shrimp capital of Mexico. If you like avocados, you can get a cheap fix too. It is great fun just to cruise the aisles of a big market. And of course Central Market is a whole other thing. My least favorite meals have been Asian ones. Somehow the two cultures seem to clash at the table! Had some strange Italian/Mexican hybred meals as well.