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Heidi the Pilgrim

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Everything posted by Heidi the Pilgrim

  1. I think Virginia would have been doomed no matter who she picked, the "girls" would have done their best to sandbag her, and the boys would at least not be as vindictive - stupid, but not vindictive enough to sabotage her. K-Greasy and Tom? What repugnant little toads. Tom has an ex-girlfriend like I'm an ex-astronaut - he's so revolting no one could be in the same room with him for longer than it took to feel nauseous. "Good lookin' guy'? In what prison would that be? He'll never work for a woman - he'll never WORK. PERIOD. He's screwed himself there, and he doesn't even get it yet. I don't think either girl was mature enough to handle the job, it was a tossup, IMO. Virginia was at least honest enough to know she wasn't up to the task. Heather, had she lost, probably would have offed herself in one of the ovens. Gordon Ramsay is really growing on me - whether the show comped the tickets or not, I thought it was incredibly generous of him to give them both tickets to London to eat at his restaurant, and he was actually very sweet to them in the end. Well, except for the "F*ck you all" comment...LOL
  2. That's good to know - I am concerned about substituting anything because I don't want the acid balance to be off and kill people, y'know, but I wanted them to be a little different from the average pickle. I did make bread and butter pickles with lemon cucumbers a few years back and they were delish.
  3. Is that the Zuni Cafe cookbook? I found that recipe online but was concerned that there was no water bath processing and they would only keep for a few months. Is it possible to water bath them for 10 minutes and get good results?
  4. Thank you Katie - I'm most happy about the bottles, I found them at a store called Kitchen & Company. Of course, my happiness was dashed when I tried to mail some and found that it was illegal to do so, in just about any way, so only my 'in person' friends will be enjoying it. I did make a swell little card, found a nice botanical drawing of lemons that I printed on business cards, and put a label on the back saying 'store in the freezer and enjoy very cold!' The recipes are a great idea though. I happen to like mine straight *hic*...
  5. Finally - the finished limoncello from the last batch, bottled up for holiday treats. This was filtered with a fine mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth - I tried it with coffee filters but it just plain didn't work. Does everyone else's look cloudy like this when they make it? IIRC I did let the sugar syrup cool before I added it. I don't mind the way it looks, I'm used to seeing it in frosted bottles.
  6. I am about to be overrun with tromboncino zucchini. I started growing them on a six foot bean tower, but the recent heat wave caused them to explode out the top like a fountain and they are now threatenting to eat my house. Only after I planted them did I read that the vines can get to 25 feet. Oh. DE-AH. They're really a lovely veg, nice long seedless neck, not watery, not bitter. I think they'd make great pickles. Can I substitute them in any pickle recipe, or is there something special I need to do so as not to kill all my friends with botulism? I'm thinking of something sweet and hot, anyone have advice or good recipes? Here's my little beauty... (a picture should follow...if not, I still haven't figured out how to post a photo).
  7. I have never had luck with the big heirlooms, never got even one Cherokee the year I tried them. The smaller ones and cherries are on fire - and they never took off until we had a heat wave - go figure.
  8. LOL...IIRC "Plonker" was one of his favorites in his other shows.
  9. I don't think he was shellshocked thinking someone stood up to him (and I fully believe that Ramsay wouldn't respect anyone who didn't have the cojones to stand up to him) as much as he was totally gobsmacked at the stupidity and childishness of the comments from such a loser - when he said "you've just confirmed that I made the correct decision", to me that pretty much said what he was thinking. I give Ramsay a lot of credit, he was extremely restrained in his criticism of Keith, when he could have been downright lethal - and Keith could have used a good arse-kicking.
  10. Hey - nice eggs - I want THOSE kind of chickens. Heirloom seems to be trendy these days, and it sounds like the salad you got was nothing of the kind. Ripe tomatoes are a dime a dozen at this time of year, no need for crispy, or even pink. I grew 12 different varieties of tomato this year, all but one "heirloom", and they are far superior to anything I've had from a store. Then again, they're picked ripe, and not gassed. And mine are way prettier colors.
  11. I think geez Louise, advertising goons, leave me alone! I hate going to the theater now because you get blasted with 20 minutes worth of commercials at a painfully high volume before a movie - now it's going to be on my eggs? What's next, sound chips that play commercials when you open the box?
  12. Where on Route 66 do they serve snake hearts? Less'n' of course you runs over it yerself.....
  13. Do you know what I loved most about the El Bulli show? I loved Ferran Adriia's almost childlike glee watching his guests eat every mouthful and waiting for their reaction. There was no pretense, just the joy of creating something extraordinary and watching other people appreciate it. That's passion for food.
  14. Dang it, I knew I should have just posted the link JAMA Smoking effects on olfactory What that says is that smokers are twice as likely to experience olfactory deficits as nonsmokers, but that it's reversible proportionate to the length of time since they've stopped. Their taste buds "adjust", because they're damaged. I should preface this by saying I'm highly allergic to smoke, so the slightest whiff of it closes my nose and throat. That said, I can't imagine how anyone who is a chef, for a living, respected or not, can smoke and still think he can taste what he's serving - I don't buy it. I think anyone who's smoked and quit will tell you that they taste more and need less salt on their food. And having seen the PSA's showing an autopsy of a 32 yo smoker having plaque squeezed like cheese from his aorta is enough to make me believe if it can do THAT to your insides, what it does to your mouth and nose can be no better. I digress.... I think Virginia's palate will win over Heather's competence - discerning taste is not something anyone can teach. And let's remember, none of them could discern spray cheese! My god, the salt alone in that will burn your tongue off.
  15. He smokes like a chimney and eats everything in sight, but you can't ever convince me that smoking doesn't destroy at least part of your olfactory system - JAMA says so! It's one of the reasons that people gain weight when they quit, they say they can finally taste what their eating. Anyway..... Well, the show is in trouble! None of the contestants seem to be at all empathetic with their patrons, sending out half cooked spaghetti to famous chefs? Rubbing red sauce on overcooked lamb so Ramsay might be fooled into thinking it was rare? Also none of them are self-aware enough to be humble and contrite when they need to be, they've all been bellowing ego but I haven't seen one bit of humility, save Virginia when she declared she really didn't belong there. She at least has some cognizance of her own qualifications. Nail on the head - innate talents - if indeed Virgina nailed his dish just by tasting, then he might be able to whip her into shape. But damn, she's got some growing up to do. What person past the age of ten would show up at your possible future place of employment with pants hanging off his ass and a baseball cap sideways? There's Gordo, looking all classy and spiffy in his jeans and leather jacket, and then there's "K-Grease" (the fact that he named himself that speaks volumes), looking like a severely overgrown, mentally challenged child.....the word 'professional' isn't in his vocabulary, but that's the way he 'rocks it'.... Heather might be able to haul ass and get stuff out, but her bipolar mood swings are scary, one minute barking and bossing and the next sobbing like a baby because the construction workers thought she was 'worst'. It's just a damn chicken sandwich with fries! Get over it.... I laughed out loud when it came down to either eliminating herself or Sara- Sara thought she was going to fall on her sword, but noooooooooo......good for her for not being vindictive when she could have been, and for not giving up the opportunity when she had the chance. Sara had to go, evil wench! I think she needs confidence in her skills and her work ethic, but should Ramsay offer her an internship, that will either make her or break her. Sanitized and scripted for your viewing pleasure!
  16. I think that depends on where you're from!
  17. URGH.......quelle horreur! Many pardons for my lack of attention to detail, and it was, like, right there in front of me. I detest liver in any form, foie, fois, faux, French or chicken - all bad.
  18. No I haven't, and if this is any indication of how it's done I don't want to. Fois gras farm
  19. If I recall correctly, she was one of the only ones who didn't smoke - or at least I never saw her smoke - that alone could account for the ability to taste food. The fact that she nailed his dish either says she has a great palate or that she saw the recipe in his book - that would require reading, however. I wonder how long she'd last at Chez Gordon.
  20. That's what I'm sayin'.......although to be honest it doesn't look like there's a whole lot of 'sucking up and bracing himself' going on - if there is he covers it well. That's one fearless eater having a great time from what I can see. Me, I'm still all weepy over the Chupacabra puppy.....
  21. In my squeamish food world, there is a very blurred line between "delicacy" and 'what's the most disgusting part of the animal and how can we eat it raw?" Seal eyeballs? I call it "stunt eating", yet the Inuit who need it to survive call it delicious.
  22. Brain sandwich anyone? *retch*
  23. May I ask if the same people who are concerned with how chickens are treated are equally as upset about the origins of fois gras? I understand the argument that banning fois gras is one more sign of eroding personal liberties in this country, (another conversation entirely!) but it strikes me as a bit hypocrital to insist on buying only free range organic meat and eggs while enjoying fois gras. I don't see any outrage by 'foodies' where the treatment of ducks and geese is concerned in the threads I've read. Just curious. Loved the article - I think the people he was describing were pretentious, not snobs, I don't consider "food snobs" a bad thing. I've been accused of being a 'food snob' because I won't touch Cool Whip with a barge pole..imagine.
  24. I've got nothing for respect for Anthony and I love NR - he always treats his hosts and their culture with honor and respect, no matter what is being offered up. Fascinating bit of history there with the Inuit and the seal - I could never have imagined it would be eaten the way the way it was. He's fearless. The Korea episode was something else altogether. I fully admit to being the world's most squeamish eater, the still wiggling octopus that was suckering itself to the inside of their mouths put me right over the edge. If I put anything in my mouth that was still moving, projectile vomiting would ensue immediately. I don't know how he does it.....but I admire him for it.
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