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lol, although dry sherry might be a better substitute than the 2$ salted stuff which doesn't have much flavor in any case.

Ya, you got the cheap stuff. Esp if it tastes like sake! It really should taste like sherry, with some funk to it. A lot of times the drinking stuff will come in what looks like ceramic bottles.

Probably not. I would do two pieces of the smaller size anyway myself, just for convenience sake. It going to be easier to handle the smaller pieces with out falling apart, depending on how tender it is.

Btw: Donna Ruhlman's has a lot of great pictures and advice on her blog http://ruhlman.com/food-photos

All of the serving pieces seem small. I think it is okay to have a bigger plate with more negative space around the plate. Maybe a dinner plate with a folded napkin on top with the cookies on top of that layering color and texture like you do with clothes. Be careful with the focus as well on the cookies the other elements can be slightly out of focus. My favorite shot is the last one, the napkin brings some nice color to the shot. I would just use a different bowl, maybe something wider and shallow? Just some thoughts and ideas.

Braising is combination cooking technique. First you sear (dry heat)and then cook in a flavorful liquid (moist heat). Often the item in partially covered in liquid. The textbook definition of poaching is cooking the item completely submerged in liquid between 160-180 (Although often times restaurants go lower). You can serve the poaching liquid fish poached and served a la nage (in a cort boullion) As an example with pork belly: Braising: I sear the belly, deglaze and cover 4/5th of the way with Coco Rico (coconut soda)and remove to oven until it becomes soft and tender and the soda has turned into a carmel. Poaching: Place pork belly in a dashi fortified with soy sauce and some sugar and cook at low temp until tender. cool and reserve pork flavored dashi. Slice cold and sear on pick up.. AFA cooking time is concerned I hate to do the chef thing, but cook it until it's done!

If you look at that outer skin in your pic. That can be removed (what you think of as a pea). Inside is pure pea meat and love. It's a very fine dining thing to do, but it's not actually that hard. just work. It's easier if you blanch/shock but you can do it from raw as well. If this makes sense. Try it, if not I'll see if i can show you but it may take a few days..

Then the taco truck is just down the street from you at PCH and Vermont Have you been to Carniceria Flores aka Flores meats on Anaheim by the 110? great burritos, very flavorful and in-expensive! La Epanola just down the way as well. Lots of great food in the area

It's been fun reading this. Although I grew up around Westwood, I do teach occasionally as an adjunct instructor in CA at LA Harbor college. One of the things I love about SoCal is that there is always somewhere else to explore and something new to eat

You can shuck peas twice, like you would favas. That really highlights the sweetness. Great with mushroom or lardons orecchiette, gorgonzola butter sauce.

Banchan or any pickled/fermented bites to cut through the fat

Seems expensive to me, but it might be your only option. It wasnt that hard to learn (I have done whole Veal, Pig, Lamb..) but it helps to work with someone who has done it before. Maybe you can find a good retired butcher in your area who might come in and help set you up and do some consulting.

I would puree it smooth, thicken with some set agar and xanthan gum. Use it on the bottom of the plate maybe some pickled heirloom carrots. My concern about putting anything wet on top is making the crust soggy.

I alway's use the lighted colored white or yellow leaves only. The green are too bitter for my taste. They are great chopped up in an Italian salsa verde to serve with fish or in a french style fine herbs mix. If you like to mix picked herbs in your salads this is a good place for them. Very refreshing fried in a light tempura batter.

When I assisted with some food styling Martha Stewart and Donna Hay were often used for inspiration. Maybe take a look at some of her photo's.. http://www.google.com/search?um=1&hl=en&safe=off&biw=1280&bih=709&site=search&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=donna+hay+food+photography&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=

Cinco de Mayo celebrates the battle of Puebla. Since Puebla is also an area well known in Mexico for good food why don't you don't make food from that region? Molotes, Chile en Nogada, Mole Poblano, Cemitas (Pueblan ver of the Torta). There is also a long tradion of pastry and candy making.

yep

The trick I use is to rub a bit of oil on the sticker, let it soak in for at least 15 min. or over night if you are patient. Usually that loosens them up.

Aging and Bleaching Any flour develops better baking qualities if allowed to rest for several weeks after milling. Freshly milled flour produces sticky doughs and products with less volume than those made with aged flour. While aging, flour turns white through a natural oxidation process referred to as bleaching. Natural aging and bleaching are somewhat unpredictable, time-consuming processes, however, so chemicals are now used to do both. Potassium bromate and chlorine dioxide gas rapidly age flour. Chlorine dioxide and other chemicals bleach flour by removing yellow pigments in order to obtain a uniform white color. Bleaching destroys small amounts of the flour's naturally occurring vitamin E, which is replaced in fortified or enriched products. http://www.victoriapacking.com/flourinfo.html I would say mill your flour and then hold on to it for a couple week. see if that helps

Where are you able to get unpasteurized milk? (I don't know what "CSA" stands for. (Cub Scouts of America? Caesar Said "Aaaaugh?") We don't seem to have any CSAs in Las Vegas, because nobody here knows where decent milk can be found.) I thought all milk in the US was pasteurized per federal regulations. Please correct me if I'm wrong. I hate US grocery store milk. Hate. Hate. Hate. Raw milk is legal in Sunny CA! You can smuggle some across the border ;^)

Really?! There is a lot of native California Sage, it should grow well. We grow several varieties.. Talk to Jimmy Williams at Hayground Organic gardening, he has great plants and good advice and experience. He's usually at Sunday Hollywood FM and Wed SMFM

Buena Suerte!

<3 Barsa! Gotta get back to Spain.. kitchen work there is hard though

I believe Paul Bertolli in Cooking by Hand suggests using tomato leaves in sauce to perk up that fresh tomato flavor. They do have an incredible smell

Wow. That would be a terrible loss.