heidih

Oh gosh - maybe some MSG involved? I am not opposed.

Definitely. I only have tangerine/orange left here. Use them all the time.An underutilized flavor punch

@Anna N I can't see the actual name. Some kind of squid?

Sometims "store-bought" with lovely freshly whipped cream hits the mark

Yes citrus is a winter fruit - odd as it seems. Mine are green now Of oourse we are in drought and odd warm weather so who knows... Expect youur usual expectations to be shatttered.

Free form no=knead. Well developed flavor.

Oh yes I use Asian sauce with tomato all the time. Magical.

Yes I agree. I did mine with Madeira and some glugs of Maraska cherry wine. I saved the liquid and used as part of the after drench

I always was told they need to be cooked. They get that lovely peach/pink blush color. Honestly, I've never bothered. I'll pick one and just admire its odd shape.3

Wow maybe it is the lighting but the quince look dark. There is an old tree at the local landfill and I am often tempted. Landfill has been closed for at least 40 years It is now an open space area, I thought they were way way puckery if eaten raw.

@Paul Bacino Looks good. Are those mung bean noodes or?

Yes locally the Korean markets' dried seaweed aisles are vast and the regular cold cases as well as the panchan cold cases have a nice assortment. Many years ago I remember being intrigued by the pickled kelp in Alaska in one of the Time Life Foods of the World books. We can't harvest seaweed here - water too polluted Our local kelp beds have made a comeback at least for the sake of the marine critters.

Yes Farmers Markets can be enablers... I have arrived at a 4 day rule. If I took the time to buy great produce - hello - don't waste it. So I cook it! Not for a dish per se but it is ready to go. Zukes get an olive oil rub and a broil for example. Those green onions (which are not cheap unless you are in a Korean market) - get grilled/broiled as well. It opens up possibilities AND worst case hello freezer which does not work for raw.

Pintos are my favorite bean. I love the earthiness. I simply stove top slow simmer (no soak). I may add a pasilla which is a dry smoky sweet chile and some smashed garlic cloves. Maybe a pinch of Mexican oregano. I cover with about 2 inches of water. I do salt. I know, I know - but it works for me. I just keep checking back and adding more water if needed. When they are edible but too firm for my taste I take the potato masher like kayb and bounce it around a bit in the pot and continue at low simmer until "perfection" achieved. Never had a fail.

Thanks Norm - stuffed 'shrooms are going to be on deck - it been too long

Yup! In my German dialect we called the little "wheel" - "God's bread".

I was shocked when I spied a bright green patch under some old orange trees. Our current lanscape is parched and barren. My dad must have watered the trees heavily before he left town for the winter. It is young but a bit too tough for raw eating so I'll probably use in a soup or sauteed/steamed.

I agrree with Kayb. I don't car for ham but did them when I entertained alot and quite a few of my guests enjoyed ham. We have tasted them "un-baked" and in our family we didn't bake. To me it had a kind of flaccid bologna texture

Can you elaborate on "magical"? I don't see it.

I only did a form of the black cake once for my Panamanian. It was less dense. You could slice it. Heavenly thinly sliced. Honestly after wallowing in booze for months the generic stuff is pretty tasty. I did hike over to Grand Central Market to get citron separately. It has been 40 years and I still think about it!

The Burmese do a fermentd tea leaf salad - lahpet thoke. Jitlada, a Los Angeles restaurant specializing in southern Thai food, often written up by the late, great Jonathan Gold, uses tea leaves in a number of dishes. Perhaps in tea producing countries the use of tea leaves, as with other bounty in a region, is used in many ways.

Or if you do a fresh cranberry relish hold out some berries so they can see and explain that they grow in bogs in cooler climates. When I have people over for holidays who are newly from other cultures they are gernerally fascinated to be eposed to different things.

Also I would keep in mind that they are probably interested in American traditions so trying to tailor the meal to their cuisine defeats the point. A classic is the green bean casserole which can be made ahead and reheated in MW adding the crispy onions at the end. I agree on the cranberry sauce though it might amuse them to do the canned one where you leave the can ridges - show them the can. Classic dinner rolls - even the Pillsbury type would be another amusement. Show them how it works. I see it as an educational fun experience. Love the truck guy!

OK so this from wiki makes sense "They are typically seen served by street vendors in a plastic bag and topped with salsa and chili, lime, salt, mixed in soda water or with hot sauce and lemon juice that is sprayed into the bag, then finished with chili powder.[4]"

Yes, street vendors sell them here in large plastic bags. I don't get them either but maybe eaten alongside those great fruit (including cucumber) cups they also sell along with the chili-lime salt they provide a textural contrast? Plus that wagon wheel shape is kinda fun