baroness

This gadget earns its kitchen real estate for me: Nut Chopper.

Here's a very old Italian-American recipe....though it calls for fresh beans, they are cooked very thoroughly--therefore, canned beans could be added near the end of the cooking time. Potato & String Bean One Dish "Wet Meal" 6 to 8 med. size potatoes 1 pound fresh string beans 4 cloves garlic 1/4 cup olive oil 1 large can whole peeled tomatoes salt and pepper to taste Peel and quarter potatoes and boil until fork tender. Snap off beans' ends and parboil them, saving half the liquid. Saute garlic in oil, and before garlic browns, add tomatoes, salt, and pepper. Allow to simmer on low flame "until the aroma tells you it is ready". Add potatoes and beans, cover and simmer another 45 minutes.

Not to people. We used to make jam from them. The first time, we didn't realize how much natural pectin they contained -- and ended up with chokecherry fruit jellies/gumdrops!

A local Chinese restaurant serves Chicken in Spicy Tea Sauce -- delicious, but not spicy to my taste.

Try New York Cake & Baking Distributors 56 W 22nd St (between 5th Ave & Avenue Of The Americas) New York, NY 10010 (212) 675-2253

Caramelized onions, herbs, and goat cheese. Thinly sliced tomatoes, olives, and cheese. Tomatoes and olivada. There's a tofu spread for which I've misplaced the recipe that was delicious--what I do remember is well mashed firm tofu, soy sauce, and rice or cider vinegar...maybe sesame oil and a bit of garlic?

Perhaps Mark Bittman's spin on tomato jam will help: article here!

When you fix your lunch, put YOUR KEYS in the bag/lunch box. (Sorry, dog!)

There is a lot of wisdom above! Brian Wansink's book, "Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think" the book! is an enjoyable read with many insights. Here are my Four Be's: BE ACTIVE -- Cardio exercise will give you energy, as well as burn calories. If you don't have a NordicTrack or treadmill, get some exercise DVDs, or dance to fast music for at least 30 minutes per day. Wear a step counter and aim for 10K/ about 4 miles per day. Walk or bike instead of driving or taking public transportation when you can. BE PARTICULAR -- All food is not worth eating! Stop after 2 bites and ask yourself if this item is really "worth the calories" involved. Share your baking and cooking with others. Don't hesitate to throw food away. Be careful to buy delicious healthy food, not 'questionable' items that you have little power to resist. BE ATTENTIVE -- Eat only when you are truly hungry, not when you are thirsty, sad, tired, bored, etc. Pay attention to and enjoy every bite; don't read, drive, watch television or otherwise divert yourself. Write down *everything* you consume in a notebook. STOP EATING when you are 70 to 80 percent full. BE POSITIVE -- Remember that you are worth the effort, and that you can do it!

My bottle from Taiwan lists fennel seed, star anise, ginger, cloves, and cinnamon. There are obviously many recipes for this seasoning blend.

At the Elizabeth (NJ) Ikea, the 5 qt. was priced at 39.99 today, and I don't think the skillets were reduced. I liked the green, but couldn't justify yet another pot.

One more thing to consider: as the variety/number of choices offered is increased, so is the number of pieces taken/consumed by the average guest.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "Sichuan pepper Traditional Chinese: 花椒 Simplified Chinese: 花椒 Hanyu Pinyin: huājiāo [show]Transliterations Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin: huājiāo Sichuan pepper (or Szechuan pepper) is the outer pod of the tiny fruit of a number of species in the genus Zanthoxylum (most commonly Z. piperitum, Z. simulans, Z. sancho and Z. schinifolium), widely grown and consumed in Asia as a spice. Despite the name, it is not related to black pepper or to chili peppers. It is widely used in the cuisine of Sichuan, China, from which it takes its name, as well as Tibetan, Bhutanese, Nepalese, Japanese and Konkani and Batak Toba cuisines, among others. It is known in Chinese as huājiāo (花椒; literally "flower pepper"); a lesser-used name is shānjiāo (山椒; literally "mountain pepper"; not to be confused with Tasmanian mountain pepper). In Japanese, it is 山椒 sanshō, using the same Chinese characters as shanjiao. In Tibetan, it is known as g.yer ma. In Konkani it is known as tepal or tirphal [1]. In Indonesia's North Sumatra province, around Lake Toba, it is known as andaliman in the Batak Toba language and tuba in the Batak Karo language. In America, it is sold as fagara or flower pepper as well as Sichuan pepper..." White peppercorn is NOT a reasonable substitute.

i) Dorie's recipe probably states how far in advance the bars can be made. iii) I would do a flourless chocolate cake, as it is less sweet and does not require frosting...it's also good with fruit. v) Sables can *definitely* be made ahead, and taste better with age!

I bought a 6-bottle size from Sharper Image; it had both wavy racks and flat racks included. It was rather noisy, turning on very frequently with a loud fan-like hum. It did not last very long -- maybe 18 months total, and some of that time turned off -- before it expired. I do not plan to replace it.

I do hope that you are not running the thing empty. Dougal, Most microwaves (here in the US) have electronic controls, so the timer can be used independently from the oven itself. Thanks for your concern, though.

Yes, indeed, the Whirley Pop rules! (and no mystery shortening, preservatives, flavorings, etc. as in the microwave packets) My favorite and most common use of the microwave is its timer -- to time OTHER things.

maybe you could have a chute from the kitchen down to the compost bin (like a laundry chute)

Another book that you will find helpful is Mollie Katzen's newest, The Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without.

Sanyo has a number of 3.5 cup cookers, as well as 5, 5.5, and 10 cup models available in the U.S. I don't know if their IH models are sold here, but the micom (fuzzy logic) are great! I have both a 5 and a 10 cup, even though I frequently "fly solo". As a general rule, if you wish to cook only one (180ml) cup, use a 5 cup or smaller cooker for best results. That being said, the micom models can slow cook soups/stews and steam eggs and vegetables; some even make soft tofu, dol sot bi bim bap, or bake bread...and there isn't much overall size increase from the 5 to the 10 cup machine.

CWYC, Thanks for sharing your experiences. Their freezer design is very appealing to me as well. Most of what migrates to the back of my current top freezer ends up being discarded. I'm not as happy with ALL of the shelves being full width, but that's something I can't change--are the shelves fairly easy to remove if one needs extra height sometimes? Do you like the wine rack? Helenjp, Thank you as well. I first became aware of F & P about 8 years ago due to their drawer-style dishwashers (I don't have one). One thing that does concern me is reliability. The few refrigerator reviews I've found fall almost into the same pattern as the reviews of their dishwashers -- love 'em/no problems OR hate 'em/defective/many service calls. The split is about 69% good for refrigerators and maybe 31% good on the dishwasher. Granted, it's human nature to complain rather than praise...

Do you have small appliances such as an electric teakettle and a (micom/fuzzy) rice cooker? I can't imagine surviving a remodel without proper tea! Many things can be prepared in the latter (main dishes, whole grains, soups, desserts such as bread pudding) and, being compact, could even be temporarily set up in the bathroom, hall, or whatever.

Particularly the food processor blade -- once cut, twice shy!

I'm in the market for a new refrigerator that measures 32.5 by 67 inches, or as close as possible. The 67" height is the maximum available, which knocks out most bottom-freezer and french door designs. I definitely do not want a side by side and/or water and ice through the door. Yes, I could get another Whirlpool top-freezer (21 cubic feet)...but I spotted Fisher & Paykel bottom-freezers F & P page at the store that are very appealing, particularly in terms of drawers to organize the freezer. Its capacity, however, is stated at only 17.6 cubic feet--and it costs 47% more! As I ponder whether 17+ cubic feet of well organized space and better ergonomics is worth the extra money and 17% less room -- does anyone have experience with F & P products to offer?

Works like a charm. A few months ago I splurged and bought the fancy pants induction heating Zojirushi , and just made a perfect batch of sticky rice. Just as good as the soak/steam method. I don't know if this is common to other rice cookers (it wasn't in my last one), but I like how you set the timer for when you want the rice to be finished, rather than a start time. Edit: Deleted a superfluous comma. ← Both of my Sanyo cookers use the same timer method, setting the done time. They make great sticky rice on the 'Sweet" setting.