heidih

@HungryChris Your daily inclusion of vegetables at breakfast delights me. I have been trying to channel that. I am not a fruity person but happily eat veggies at any time. Keeping more quick pickled things around and making my salsa is good start. I'd love fried zucchini at breakfast but frying & I are not friends.

And that is the biological imperative for us gals to have a bit more "padding" - lean & mean is NOT biologically adaptive for females

For my taste the bonus part about cuts like short ribs is the lip smacky gelatinous nature of the resultant braising liquid. A 2'fer.

Ha - that phrase Dorothy used to Toto in the W of Oz "we're not in Kansas anymore" has a reverse application. Yes we are in Kansas! Life is REAL

Imagine you will braise? Same process just check them occasinally to test done-ness

That is what I like so much about the simple no-knead bread. I usually let it sit for well over 12 hours in a cool place (no fridge) and it sort of sours itself and then fridge rests for for a few days before baking. Don't mess with success I grew up on San Frabcisco style sourdough but I like what I produce perhaps even more because it is intuitive and natural versus agonized and studied over. Taste trumphs in the end. And I am more than odd - I like the inconsistancy...

Oh ours were the drop ones. I like the different textures they provide from crispy edge to sometimes fluffy "Pavlova type" innards. I do mini chocolate chips and crushed candycanes when I venture into meringue. Spoiled by the ease of the inexpensive big tub from Trader Joes but home made are better.

Hhmmm now that I think about it we did do a meringue cookie with coursely ground walnuts. A plan is forming.... I think we didn't do meringue often because few of our recipes used just yolks and eggs were seen as precious. (Ya know the fun of cleaning the hen house, getting them in at night, avoiding the ridiculous ginormous rooster).

Cinnamon stars? Description?

@HungryChris Tempting meal as usual. You use alot of asparagus. Do you know where it is sourced from? I am just overly curious about food sourcing

@liuzhou Living in avacado land I am curious, Do you know where your region of China sources the "alligator pears" ?

Our local Farmers Market crepe vendor uses a flat metal tool that works similarly. See woman on right. The flat griddle is typical . It is lovely to watch the deft hand movement that spreads the batter on the hot surface.

My first thought was meringues as well and crushed peppermints this time of year is a fine addition. Sometimes I go crazy and do chocolate chips + crushed candycanes

Well I think that is a given with the okonomiyaki along with that thick sweet and Worcestershire driven dark sauce. I am not a fan.

I grew up with vinegar on the table (industrial white) to dribble into soups. Perhaps doubling down - the squash vinegar - to diner tate - dribbld into a squash based soup over over roasted squash "salad"

In my experience fresh pasta makes a difference in more delicate preps where the pasta is the star but otherwise just don't mush up the dry stiff. Bread looks llike I would want to wolf it down. You have always made your hunter happy - don't stress

As always, Serious Eats generally hits the mark. I like this piece on Goober Peas. My Farmers Market fave vendor sells fresh peanuts in shell and I've done them this way. I gotta say it is just a different animal than roasted and I am a lover of "well done" with crunchy roasty flavor. Boiled really brings out the legume aspect . My peanut roaster guy always has a bag of the well done for me unless I arrive too early. It is just a different animal when boiled. https://www.seriouseats.com/2015/08/history-southern-boiled-peanuts.html

http://www.grubstreet.com/2018/11/jose-andres-nobel-peace-prize-nomination.html

Chalkboard works for me! I can relate to "tire whisperer". I am the pinhole leak indoor copper piping whisperer. "You hear what?" - but they have learned to trust me. Beats ripping up whole walls when "the gifted one" can hone in ')

On the egg roll wrapping: maybe cuz I live in burrito-land - tight wrapping skills are learned through watching abuelas and practice. Your whole hand works and it is a back and forth (in my experience) - a dance between the longitudinal wrap and the end tucking with a slight pull all the time. Not the greatest explanation but maybe gives you a visual to try

Well we have come a long way with our extensive local farmers market system. .What we have in place now is extraordinary. World renowned local chefs prowl the locl FMs esp Santa Monica and Hollywood. But back in the day, yes, bought my first (maybe only) pheasant there https://www.smgov.net/Portals/Farmers_Market/About_Us/History.aspx

I used to treat myself to the macaroons at the iconic Farmers Market in Los Angeles and they had that same deeper color which to me indicated an enhanced coconut flavor. I need to find some. I don't want to make them cuz I will eat them all https://www.farmersmarketla.com/history

@Toliver Thanks for the Hickory Farms memory. In the 70's it was SO much the only readily accessible place to get different cheeses. A dear friend worked at the one in Ports O' Call Village (San Pedro, California) during high school where she learned the correct pronounciation of gouda (hint it is not goo-da). https://www.dailybreeze.com/2016/08/20/even-when-its-gone-ports-o-call-will-live-on-in-san-pedros-collective-psyche/ The one at the giant local mall always had sample servers walking the adjacent area. It was my "cheese-ucation" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Del_Amo_Fashion_Center

Yes I lerned the Viet fried rolls with the dried rice papers. Requires a swift deft hand and the roll needs to be tighter than your egg rolls to avoid greasiness. Rasamalaysia does a decent description in this link (annoying ad heavy format but she knows what she is doing) https://rasamalaysia.com/vietnamese-spring-rolls-cha-gio-recipe/

Oh! I had been concerned the blizzard you mentioned would keep your hunter away!!! Beautiful property. Cool appropriate door handle, and of course a hard working dog like Chum deserved those steps. I tend to favor hot mustard with some added vinegar fo the American-Chinese egg rolls. I have a take-out place that maks them with cabbage, leek, and minced pork. When I make my own I lean to the Vietnamese style of fried spring roll (Cha Gio). I use the dried rice papers wetted and filling includes mung bean noodles, ground pork, shrimp, and tree ear mushroom. I could drink the dipping sauce nuoc mam cham (fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, garlic, hot chile).