Emily_R

Hi Joni -- I used black raspberries from our property, so no store to send you to I'm afraid... Do try dipping in chocolate though -- now that I've had them that way I can't imagine them any other! The chocolate is key! Emily

Hi all -- Am about to make a chocolate souffle for the first time... The recipe calls for unsalted butter. I regularly substitute salted for unsalted butter with lots of cookie and cake recipes... But without knowing souffle chemistry -- is unsalted butter a must? Or can I skip it and use salted. Thanks in advance! Emily

Hi all! Ok, I apologize for my sucky picture taking skills, but wanted to post a picture of the black raspberry marshmallows dipped in Callebaut I made... They were amazing, and just as folks here have said before, people's eyes opened very wide when they saw them... Now I've started thinking obsessively about frangelico marshmallows... Only question is -- if I replaced the fruit puree with frangelico, which is sweet itself, do you think that would make the finished product sickly sweet? Any way around that? Many thanks to all of you for this fabulous post that expanded my culinary horizons... Emily

Mine would probably be the 50's classic The I Hate to Cook Book. Hysterical. Was shown it by an aunt who indeed did hate to cook... I wouldn't actually make anything from the book (hello jello moulds!) but read it for the very droll commentary.

Ok, at the risk of sounding crabby, I have to say that I don't think Le Creuset is making them like they used to. I have a number of my mom's old Le Creusets (now 30+ years old) and the only chips they have are along the rim where the lid rubs up against them. I also have several newer Le Creusets, and have recently had chipping problems right in the heart of the pots, despite the fact that I use no metal utensils on them. I contacted Le Creuset when a chip (about 1/3 inch in diameter) came out of the bottom of one of my new (maybe 6 months old) large dutch ovens... Sent it back to them and they replaced it free of charge... However when the replacement arrived I noticed it had a small chip / blemish in the side wall of the pot (leading me to wonder if they replaced my pot with one of their "seconds." I really wonder if the enamel coating they are using now is thinner than it used to be... The next pot I get may be a batali or a staub... Emily

In my opinion, hands down, the best pan fried noodles I've ever had are at Sammys on 6th Ave right around 10th street. They call them their lo mein noodles, but they are not like any lo mein noodles I've had anywhere else... Handmade, almost 1/4 inch thick, toothsome, charred, and delicious. I'm drooling now.... Emily

Thanks for that mini-batch breakdown McAuliflower! I am going to try making these for the first time tonight -- with black raspberries picked from our property. Will let you know how they turn out! Emily

Hi all -- Well I am feeling adventurous, and have never cooked squid or octopus... I'd like to try, and was wondering what your favorite recipes are... I am grill-less right now, so I have a preference for slow cooked recipes, rather than quickly-sear-squid-on-grill-and-dress-with-vinaigrette type recipes... Thanks in advance! Emily

Hi all! Just made the Best Eggplant Dish Ever recipe tonight, many thanks to onehsancare for sending along the recipe. It was quite good, and seemed to taste better the more I ate of it! I can see it being best the next day, after the flavors have had a chance to sit... My only thoughts for next time are 1) double the pork, which I thought was a critical piece of the dish and 2) that it needed a little something tart -- maybe a squeeze of lime. Also, Octaveman, I noticed when I was at the asian grocery, that maesri makes a chuu chii (spelling? sorry!) curry paste... Ooof. Very full now, as I kept picking at the eggplant left in the pot long after I was full... Emily

Very sorry to hear about what sounds like a miserable experience... But I must say I agree with gfron1 -- I was dismayed to see the "who do we sue" in the headline... Alert the restaurant, as they should know that they may have a bad batch... Perhaps ask for a comped meal, but other wise, that's life. There doesn't have to be anyone "to blame" -- even the scottish scallop supplier was quite likely fishing exactly where they were supposed to, when some scallops that ate something they shouldn't have were scooped up by the boat. Again, very sorry you had to go through that, and on a vacation no less, but that just doesn't mean someone has to "pay" through a lawsuit!

Just a few days ago I bought a few thick, heavy slate tiles at a hardware store, and they seemed to work quite nicely. If you go the unglazed quarry tile route, I have read that you want to make sure that it says "lead free" on the box... Emily

Hi all -- Well I just gave this a try with some cannellini beans, and overall am impressed. I like my beans a little past al dente, and felt they were still a little too firm for me after 90 minutes in the oven. I took them out and let them sit in their hot water for another half hour, and that got them pretty well to where I like them... Just dressed them with some olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, lots of cracked pepper, and a little feta, and they are delicious! All without soaking! Next time I will probably leave them in the oven for an hour and forty-five minutes, but all and all, definitely a success. Also, I agree with someone else who mentioned that they seemed to keep their shape a little better than when I soak and boil them. Emily

Help! I've been searching but can't seem to find the recipe for the Best Eggplant Dish Ever referenced here... Could someone either post it or email it to me? Many thanks -- looking forward to trying it!

Lucky you!! What about cooking it in a salt-crust? Never done it, but have heard good things...

I've heard good things -- I think it was maybe Cooks Illustrated that rated them highly -- but am very curious! Let us know how it turns out! Emily

Hi all -- Wanted to add my favorite recipe for Chicken Pozole Verde... Would comment about the other posts on this thread, but this is the first time I haven't had technical difficulties posting, so I want to get this up before my good luck changes! Appologies that this recipe is rather rough, but here it is... The Chicken Part I start out by poaching 5 or 6 skinless chicken thighs in water to cover, with an onion, a few celery stalks, and some bay leaves added to the water for flavor. After the chicken is cooked, strain the resulting broth and set aside, and shred the chicken off of the bones and set aside. The Salsa Verde Part 1/3 cup hulled pumpkin seeds, toasted one small onion, cut into big chunks one bunch of cilantro, including most of the stems half a chipotle a little over a cup of salsa verde -- I use the Goya Salsa Verde that I find in the mexican food aisle. Note that this Salsa Verde is quite spicy, which is why I don't add more chipotles... If you have a milder salsa verde more chipotles would be great. Puree all of the above together in the blender. The Putting it All Together Part In a heavy pot, add some olive oil, then lightly brown a few cloves worth of minced garlic. Add the mix from the blender in, and cook for a few minutes until it starts to brown slightly. Add to the pot: The reserved chicken broth (should be maybe 3 cups worth?) The diced chicken One large can of hominy, that has been rinsed and drained about 1 tsp cumin about 1 Tbs mexican oregano 1 bay leaf I usually add a little chicken base to up the flavor of the stock Cook this for maybe 10 minutes more to let the flavors combine. It should be quite thick, but if it is too thick, add a little more chicken broth (or in my case more water and chicken base). At the last minute add juice of half a lime. Serve with shreddded monterrey jack cheese and more chopped fresh cilantro... YUM! Emily