nibor

My mom made a horrible baked casserole of noodles, canned tuna, whole asparagus, with some type of white sauce goo to hold it all together. The recipe was either from a school PTA or church collection, and was named Seafood Delight. Based on the appearance of the limp stringy asparagus that twined its way through the goo, we called it Seaweed Delight. After a while she called it that too. The only thing she made that was worse was La Choy canned chop suey. I finally put an end to that one by running away from home over it. I didn't get far - I was at the end of the driveway when she counter-offered with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. My mom was really tough, so for me to win ( I was probably 7) was a major coup. We called it Chopped Gooey.

I thought of the dog poop analogy but decided not to use it......

Here is an idea. I recently saw a man solve the problem with slimy/bloody packages of meat. He took a plastic bag off the roll, and stuck his hand in it, like it was a glove. He used this "gloved" hand to select the package of chicken he wanted, and then turned the bag inside out over that package, thus enclosing the meat and any accompanying slime. His hand, the cart, etc, remained clean and dry. He didn't touch anything in the display case with his hand. I now do this too, and I watch the people who watch me. Some follow suit. I just started using this technique when selecting vegetables in situations where my hands would have to touch veggies that I didn't purchase. Like when green beans are just set out en masse without any tongs. People look at me strangely but I think it is a good idea. I am not particularly germ-phobic but watching people snack their way through the grapes and then lick their fingers on their way to the bin of green beans grosses me out.

My food "issue" is minor compared to most: eating plants in the red (as opposed to black) pepper family gives me horrible diarrhea. Chili, cayenne, paprika, which are of course ingredients in curry powders, bbq sauces, etc. It is surprising where you will find cayenne - I was once fooled by a piece of chocolate cake. Delicious! I love this stuff, but it has gotten to the point where even small amounts will leave me spending the night in the bathroom, and quite exhausted the next day. My lips peel. The stomach ache can last for days. This means I have to be careful in restaurants, particularly because I spend part of the year in Santa Fe. But it isn't just Southwest/Mexican. Also Asian, and because most red sauces have some cayenne/paprika, Italian can be a problem too. I try to order something that will be obviously ok, but when in doubt I ask - sometimes a plate of food will be totally fine as long as they don't sprinkle red pepper flakes on as garnish, etc. Nonetheless, I often find myself being handed a plate covered with chili. Discussing it with the waitstaff beforehand is really hit or miss, and seems to depend more on the restaurant than the server.

I hate to cook. My husband likes to eat. eGullet helped make cooking interesting to me. If not fun.

I go with DanM re: sealed food items. Then there is no need for the teacher to answer questions about her personal life. As for the school supplies - maybe some teachers could pipe up? We hear that they need money for such items. But do they need them more than chocolate? Might be a tough call!

Raoul Duke (upthread) makes a mighty fine California olive oil himself. When I move back to CA I am going to ask him to ship me some more. It is so good I sometimes drink it out of the bottle. Really!

Bumping up an old thread: Has the restaurant situation improved at all in Gainesville?

Oh jeez.....

My parents used to live in Eugene. Your water is wonderful. One shower at their house and my hair would be soft again. I loved to drink it. We would also get very good milk from the DairyMart on Cal Young. Another complaint about the water in Orange County, CA, is that about 2 years ago our tap water started to come, in great part, from our sewage treatment plant. Really. This is supposed to be very futuristic! But I am not keen on the concept. I have not noticed any difference in the taste of the tap/sewage water because I wasn't drinking it in the first place. But you don't hear about this on the Housewives of Orange County, do you. Nobody asked us if we wanted to drink sewage water. It was announced. This may be something the rest of the country can look forward to.

I also wonder how it is going for Saara. Her original post bothered me - I was worried about her being so personally invested in a family business that was not owned by her own family. Devoted girlfriends are so expendable.....

The tap water in Orange County CA eats the pipes and faucets. It tastes horrible. So I never use tap water when I cook. I don't put it in the cat bowl. I don't brush my teeth with it. I recently installed a filter on my shower head to protect my hair.

Chocolate chip cookies.

Sage fried in butter until it is brittle.

I stack wet dishes on top of dry ones instead of putting the dry ones away first.

A couple of days ago I mistakenly put small (thumb-sized) whole okras into an overheated frying pan containing a little olive oil. They got torched, and even though I hurried they were pretty brown by the time I got them out. I added halved cherry tomatoes, drizzled on some balsamic vinegar, and served them whole. Delicious. No slime. We devoured them.

I clip. I leave the clipping on the counter next to the grocery list. If I don't buy what I need and try the recipe the next time I go to the store, I throw the clipping out. Use it or lose it.

I am 54 years old. I have lived in various places in the US. I have never seen a butcher shop.

Apples, tomatoes & peaches, that tasted like apples, tomatoes & peaches.

This brings up an issue in my house. I'm pretty sure the Dalmatian has learned to equate late night activity with food and has been waking me up in hopes of getting her midnight snack. I tend to go for sweet and easy. Pie is perfect but lacking that (dog gets crust), fruit jelly candy does ok (dog gets a biscuit). Our pets definitely manipulate us to get food, but that is fodder for another thread perhaps. My cat is 19 and in renal failure; on an empty stomach he starts barfing towards morning as a consequence of his disease. I am happy to get up and have eggs with him. A pleasure soon to be only a memory.

Maggie - Let me know how it works out.

I don't have trouble falling asleep, but sometimes find myself awake again, say at 2. Time for Egg in the Hole. Giving some of the runny part to the cat helps get everyone settled back down.

On buttered toast?

Trail mix. Butter. Little ziplocs each containing a handful of chopped up sesame chicken thighs, to throw in our lunch salads. Frozen peas for sports mishaps.

Break off the little nubs, then rinse it off, so you don't feel guilty about not peeling. Then freeze it whole. When you need ginger, go at it with the microplane. Then just stick it back in the freezer. So easy, so perfect.