Pierogi

OK, I'm intrigued. What, exactly is the rationale behind this? I cannot, for all the regulatory/quality/safety/biosafety/pseudo-science geek experience I've had in my career, for the life of me even begin to figure out why a straw is better than a bottle rim or an adult "sippy" cup lid. 'Splain, pleaze, Looooocy.

What do the assembled geeks....ermmmm...experts think about the idea of using a stick blender in a carafe (not thin crystal, obviously) or sturdy pitcher? Easier clean-up you know, for the more laid-back of us.

I agree with save the veal. I'd toss it in the freezer for a meatloaf mix later on. To my mind, the dominant flavor of ground meat in Greek cuisine is lamb. Maybe beef as a minor add-in, but the souvlaki and keftedes I've had in Greek restaurants, and seen in recipes, have all been ground lamb. Linda's recipe sounds outstanding. I'll remember it the next time I want Greek food !

Nuttin' wrong with that mix, nuttin' at all ! Reminds me I have a pretty full bottle of Kahlua left over from making truffles at Christmas.....

I liked the cookie challenge, although the pretense of having The Muppets (much as I love them, especially Coooooookie Monster) "judge" the challenge was annoying. I kept expecting the Muppeteers to come up and actually make themselves known. The Target challenge was just stupid. They should've given them more parameters than just "cook for 100 people". Make brunch for 100 people. Make breakfast for 100 people. Make after bar food for 100 people. Some sort of common ground. Even "make soup for 100 people" which is clearly what most cheftestants chose. But again, it was stupid, and lame challenge. But, I almost fell on the floor laughing when one of them, I think it was Mike Isabella, was looking for a fresh coconut. I was like..........."dude.....you ever actually *BEEN* in a Tar-jay food section????"

I would start with a thermonuclear strike, or an incidiary device, to obliterate the existing room, and then go from there . Seriously. The basic triangle is OK, and I really don't mind having that area as "compact" as it is. But I only have about 4 feet of useable counter space, and the top cabinets are hung way too low, so I can't tip up a 10 or 12 inch fry/saute pan into something on the counter without hitting the bottom of the upper cabinets. I've got a decent amount of cabinet space, but only 5 drawers, 2 of which are like 12 inches deep. One works for towels, the other is an untameable mess of a seldom-used and bulky utensils drawer. The other utensils are all in jars & mugs in an otherwise unuseable corner under the windows behind the sink, which is set on an angle, into the corner of the 2 counters. There is no other good use for that space, so aside from looking cluttered, that's actually an OK solution. And I am 6'3" tall, so my counters are way, way, WAY too low for me. They were obviously built for a far more petite person than I. They could be a good 6 inches higher without my complaining.

Unless you have an "on the hoof" or natural source for your sarsaparilla roots, you may have a hard time finding safrole or sassafras oil. It's a precursor to illicit methamphetamine production, and is heavily controlled by both State and Federal drug agencies.

What I really like is are dry sets that have the non-standard measures...in cups, 3/4 and 2/3 and in spoons, 1/8 tsp and 1/2 Tbls. I know I could probably easily guesstimate the 1/8 tsp, but I still like having the spoon. And since I routinely scale-down recipes, the 1/2 Tbls. comes in very handy. As do the 3/4 and 2/3 cups, saves time. ETA - I have one of those perfect beaker type creatures, but it's plastic and I'm hesitant to put it in the dishwasher for fear the printed measure markings will fade off from the detergent. So mostly for liquids, I use the old stand-by Pyrex, 1, 2 and 4 cups. I am learning to weigh, but so many of my existing recipes are in measures, not weights.

Nope ! Trader Joe's in SoCal carries it for about $10 a bottle, and yes, I like it too, when the Evan Williams isn't on special for less.

My friends and acquaintences regularly tell me I should go on cooking shows like "Top Chef" and "Chopped" et.al. I remind them, gently, while serving them a perfectly cooked stew, or roast chicken, or enchiladas, or gumbo, that I am not a great innovator when it comes to cooking, although I am getting better when I wing it on my own for just me and the fuzzy garbage disposals. My talent in cooking, I believe, and have always believed, lies in being able to read a recipe and determining a) if the flavors will work together and be interesting and good together, b) if the technique will cook the dish to a point where it will be cooked well and showcase whatever is the main ingredient and c) if it will suit my taste and the tastes of whoever I am cooking for. Those are the qualities I look for in a recipe. Plus, does it sound like something I can handle in my kitchen, or do I need a dewar of liquid nitrogen to make the ice cream? That, I'll probably skip on by, no matter how good the custard base sounds ! ETA---Basically, does the recipe make SENSE for me, my palate, my capabilities and my equipment?

I've thought about this, and my one or two other food obsessed friends have actually discussed this, but never gotten it together. Mostly for me, it again is having the discretionary money at the time they want to go to the warehouse stores or whatever. But I do need to persue this idea further, and exploit it, because I think it could be a good thing...as they say.... BTW, last trip to the MegaMart showed me that a 5-pound bag of sugar is now a *FOUR* pound bag of sugar. At a slightly higher price, of course....

Oh Lord, buy it ! I bought something similar about 5 years ago for a housewarming gift at Pier One, and paid almost a king's ransom. It didn't even have the canisters, 'though it did have more little drawers. I'm sure this one is much less pricey than the one I bought. It's just so cool. Even if you don't store anything in it ('though I'm thinkin' spices, salts, sugars, etc.) it just looks great.

Leslie, your peach dessert looks fabulous, as did that whole meal. I want those beans, badly. Again, I am in awe of your markets, but have to keep reminding myself that it technically is the *dead of winter* here (even though it was 80-plus degrees here today..oy...) and our spring and summer fruit and veg is coming soon. Well, as soon as we get through the never-ending supply of hearty greens that is.....chard tacos anyone?? I can't wait, as a fellow lover of gin, to see the distillery tour. But beat Bombay Sapphire.....reallllllllly? Howabout Tanquery #10.....?

Absolutely agree on the Evan Williams black label Bourbon. I can find it even cheaper, it's around $12 out here. I quite like the Jim Beam rye for around $10-15 (depending on where you can find it...). Don't neccessarily love Jim Beam Bourbon, but the rye is good, at least to my taste. Trader Joe's carries Zapopan Reposado tequila for less than $10 a bottle. Again, it's not an anejo, but in a margarita its fine. My palate is nowhere near refined or sensitive enough to taste the difference in a mixed drink, unless there's precious few other ingredients (a gin Martini comes to mind, where both the gin & vermouth should be top drawer). But to me, by the time you mix in fruit juices, other liqueurs, bitters, etc., the mid-range stuff does just fine. And has the added advantage of letting me experiment and indulge more !

I'd never use al. foil as a cartouche. I've only ever used a cartouche a couple of times, when a recipe called for it. I frankly couldn't tell much difference between the dishes I used one in, and similar ones I'd made without one. But never al. foil, because of the reactivity issues. Most braises I do use tomatoes of some form, or wine, or both, and I'd worry about the foil dissolving into my yummy broth.

Spoons bowl down, unless there's a ton of them and then I alternate so they don't nest. Dinner forks tines down, primarily for safety, but salad forks, alas, have to go tines up, since my flatware set has a small, square bottom that on the salad forks will slide through the grid in the basket. No sharp knives at all go in the dishwasher, so knives go however. Plates go in with dirty surfaces facing the center, so they get loaded on both sides of the bottom. Angled absolutely on things that have a depression on the bottom that collects water. The worst offender being my Cuisinart bowl, which due to its size, and the compact size of my machine, I can't angle. I always, always, ALWAYS dribble water over my floor unloading it, and it ALWAYS annoys me. Maybe in another 20 or 30 years I'll remember to be more careful. Other than that, its just a matter of how much I can cram in there in the most efficient manner to make sure it gets cleaned, and not coated with sterilized, baked on crud. And that varies from load to load.

Dayum. Oh Lord, those are gorgeous.

3T Champagne vinegar to 8T olive oil. Smashed, minced garlic clove, S&P, a dollop of Dijon and a larger (2-3x) dollop of mayo. Whisk the vinegar, garlic, S&P, mustard and mayo, then drizzle in the olive oil. I have used Sherry vinegar and white Balsamic as well, and it was fine. I think it would also work with rice wine vinegar. It's my "house" dressing.

Ann T - LOVED (and am so totally stealing...) the Tex Mex Layered Supreme. I have leftover pork shoulder roast that was slow cooked, covered, at 275° after being rubbed with chipotle chile powder and salt. That would be a great use for some of that porky goodness.

Over in the Recipes That Rock: 2011 thread, I posted a winter squash and red pepper/red chile soup that was totally stunning, and could be pureed down to complete smoothness if need be. It converted this former winter squash hater, it was that good.

Eat it and enjoy it. It'll be fine. But use it up in the requisite 3 days after you breech the vacuum seal.

Randi, thanks, its tempting, but I've never actually made bagels (yet). They're on my list of things to accomplish. I'll wait until I've mastered them on a small scale before I commit to anything larger. But I appreciate the offer for sure, and I'll keep it in mind.

This works great if one has room to store it and in conditions to keep it from being invaded by nasties. I simply don't have that kind of storage space nor could I handle moving flour in huge amounts. I solved the storage by using 2, 22quart plastic buckets, from the rest. equip place, I can get 50 pounds in each, by pouring the flour into the bucket to the top, and then picking it up by the handle, and bouncing it on the floor,and then adding more, and then doing it again until I get the whole bag in...It compresses and has an air tight top so it lasts a long time... Bud But those 50 pound containers still have to be MOVED from somewhere to somewhere else. There are those of us who simply cannot do that. There are also those of us for whom coming up with an extra $35 in the budget, in one place, at one time, is almost as impossible as moving that 50 pounds of flour from Point A to Point B.

Oh, I'm not sure I agree with that. To my mind, in steaming, the food shouldn't be in contact with the liquid, whereas in braising it is. I would say braising involves several different aspects: some heat transferring directly from the liquid to the meat, some through steam, and some through the condensation that collects on the lid and drips back down. Total agreement with Matthew. All classical references to brasing that I've seen are lid on, over (or in) low heat, so the condensation drips back down into the liquid to enhance the braising stock. Steaming is absolutely elevated above the liquid, so that the food only cooks from the steam generated (and trapped) by the pot and lid. I would never, ever, ever braise short ribs or brisket with the lid off. That's a sure ticket to tire treads, IMO.

Oh God (in a GOOD way)......the first time I stayed in New York, I stayed at The Roger Smith and LOVED IT ! It was so cool, and so just...unique and with such a good, funky, fun vibe. Lily's, at that point, was only open for breakfast and lunch, but I ate there a couple of times and was impressed. I check into their website periodically, just to wish I were there again, and it looks as though its only gotten funkier and cooler and funner in the intervening years. I think that's a great suggestion.