annabelle

If I can take the falafel out of the pita bread and eat the fixings, then sure. I also don't like Indian food. At all. The mains are too saucy and spicy. The condiments are too hard to source. There are a million and one spices to dry roast and grind up. Everything is served with rice and flat bread. The desserts are way too sweet. Other than that, there's nothing bad to say about it.

Falafels. Yuck.

Mrs. Charles seems to have enjoyed a number of perks and bonuses throughout her years of friendship and employ with Mrs. Deen. She also seems to have some unrealistic expectations about what is owed to her by PD. It appears to this reader that Mrs. Charles rather limited education and lack of worldly ways have been exploited by the writer at the NYTimes. A writer who seems to see all Southern whites as bigoty bigots who are bigoted.

Well, problem solved!

Turned her back? I don't get that from the story. I'm more inclined to throw shade at the male chefs who ditch their wives (who bore them children and worked like dogs) for a trophy wife once they're in the money.

Oh, I can imagine being kitchenless in winter, Melissa. We lost our power for 14 days in the middle of January five years ago following a hellacious ice storm. Thank God we have a wood burning fireplace and a generator. I also cooked exclusively on our gas grill and kept frozen items on the porch and chilled items in the greenhouse. Dishwashing was in the utility sink in the laundry room in cold water since we are all electric out here in the boondocks. I have new appreciation for my pioneering foremothers.

Are you suggesting people should feel guilty about not supporting or enriching those whose behavior absolutely disgusts them? I don't know why anyone would. If she is down now, it is all her own doing. No. I am saying there is a double standard about what is "absolutely disgusting" and it is defined by who is saying it. Clearly, PD is not "one of us".

It's not pot-stirring, FeChef. It's just a difference of opinion. I let the leftover steak sit out (wrapped) at room temp for about 30 minutes before slicing and tossing in a salad. That way it is cool, but not cold and the change in temp from cold to cool enhances the charred flavor of the meat. Fresh tomatoes and a sturdy green or combination of greens (even better!) make a refreshing salad on a hot summer night. Beware, if you should ever order a steak salad in Pittsburgh, PA it will be served with a handful of French fries on top. Don't ask me why, it's just the way they do it there.

I love steak salad and rib-eye is just the ticket for that job.

Bobby Deen will be a challenger, not an Iron Chef. Iron Chef has done this before and been beaten by some young'uns.

By all means, continue to kick Paula Deen while she's down. Force her to shutter her restaurants and hold massive burnings of her cookbooks, DVDs and beat her pots and pans into shards. Untold numbers of people are going to find themselves out of work in a tough economy. But, it's all for a greater good, amiright?

I just read that Gail Simmons is expecting! I hope she has a sharper fashion sense in maternity wear than did Padma. Wear those heels, girl!

The Goopster? Ick! I read that Stacy Kubler (sp?), George Clooney's ex-girlfriend is free, as well. She also has a cookbook in the works so she could add a dash of expertise or just youthful good looks and prize-pointing. I've never been a Padma fan and it's time for her to pack her knives and go.

I have only ever seen oenophile.

Oops, it was Zatarain's you suggested, but I had Old Bay and figured "close enough". Mighty tasty!

Jaymes, I don't know why I never thought to cook my salad potatoes with Old Bay until you mentioned it. They are fantastic! Thank you so much for the tip!

I don't understand the trend. Both the not ordering and the loud noise, one may as well be eating at Cracker Barrel's buffet.

Actually, as I recall, the knife had never gone missing at all. One warden just couldn't count past 10. Ramsey was, justifiably, furious. Thank you! I remember they were stuck in the kitchen for hours and Ramsay was about to blow a gasket. Lisa, my sympathies on that "dining" experience.

I get a bit tired of the constant swearing, too. He's still doing the Kitchen Nightmares show in the US, Masterchef with Graham Elliot and Joe Bastianich (no cussing). He also did a short series for the BBC where he went to one of the prisons in the UK and taught some toughs to cook. They baked a number of breads and tea cakes and sold them in a storefront in the village. He had them come up with a name, a business concept, showed them how to do pricing, how to treat customers, to make proper change and generally get them used to what it is like to make an honest living. There was some pushback from the warden about the program and the filming and a knife went missing during one cooking session causing a lockdown. It was interesting to see the project from Ramsay's POV (his brother is a heroin addict and has been imprisoned) and the frustrations and triumphs of the prisoners. The acceptance of many of the villagers as well a the distaste many of them had for the cons was also interesting. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see the whole series. Perhaps someone else had a chance to see it all and can fill in the rest.

I like Ramsay. He's always enthusiastic and has a great work ethic.

That's beautiful, PanaCana!

I wouldn't be surprised, rotuts. She has an open-ended book deal along with her cooking show, her branded products, her talk show and hosting gigs on FN.

Ina Garten is the real unsung genius. She got people to pay $15 a pound for potato salad in the 80s. That's some kind of marketing!

Aha! Thanks. Have you tried spraying the half-sheet or whatever (metal) surface you are using with Pam cooking spray? It is tasteless and sticks to baking sheets and pans easily. It even holds parchment to non-stick surfaces, in my experience.

Maybe I'm not understanding what you are trying to stick the parchment to. It sounds like you want it to stay rolled in the box? Try clipping the ends with paperclips if that's what it is. Or roll some rubber bands around it.