heidih

Just back from the $1 store - 1 pound bag of Mexican key limes for a dollar. Bit scabby looking but not shrivelly. Juicy - who knows?

I have enjoyed these pods so much in various ways. Our weather is horrid with the drought and I fear the blow & go gardener ripping them out when I am not around because they are yelllowing in spots so I harvested all the nice green seed pods. Half of the harvest rinsed and the rest to be cleaned The batch in brine

What are you planning to use it for? That might affect granulated versus dried minced.

I am with Beebs on preferring granulated garlic versus the powder that is almost like flour. I don't use it often but do keep a bottle in the pantry. I have been buying the Olde Thompson California granulated garlic from Smart & Final.

Looks like Serious Eats will be cooking with the book this week. Here is the link to the first sampled recipe. http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/04/leeks-with-mustard-bacon-vinaigrette-from-my.html?ref=title I am following along with your recipes tries as this is a book I am thinking of springing for. I enjoy cookbooks that tell food stories and it sounds like this one fits the bill on that front as well.

You are referring to fresh Atlantic cod versus salt cod? If so why are you trying for a huge flavor punch? The fish is known for its mild sweetness and firm yet flaky texture. Light complimentary seasonal sauces if going the sauce route and of course the traditional fried prep are what I have always seen employed. No point in trying to turn a steady sweety into a shock-punk queen? I have seen it occasionally employed in fish tacos with a range of flavorful hot sauces- but it is more a flavor vehicle/protein heft carrier.

On the other hand there is the whole word of e-cookbooks that many bloggers are putting out. Wait - sooo - maybe a blog is the first step?

By definition - locally sourced - it seems the recipes would be an issue as there are so many different types of things available at different times across just the US; unless you are just going to paint broad strokes and idea pallettes and that concept does not seem solid enough. If you have not read David Lebovitz's recent blog post about the making of his new book I urge you to do so The complexity and attention to detail is staggering; and he is a seasoned and highly regarded cookbook writer (well he is overall a fantastic guy). http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2014/04/the-making-of-my-paris-kitchen-cookbook/

The only brilliant words that come out of my mouth or keyboard since I heard the sad news are "damn, crap, and no". When I first poked my nose into this site Steven made it feel comfortable and accessible and at the same time full of passion. It changed my life in a positive way and he was a great part of that. When my son first went to Manhattan I showed him a picture of Steven in his infamous fish pants and told him to be sure and say hello should he spot him. He didn't catch him, but I know that Steven would have been kind to him. Words fail in expressing condolences to his wife and son.

I found this interesting/helpful http://letspreserve.blogspot.com/2010/08/blanching-vegetables-is-must-before.html I was always told that you needed to blanch to avoid mush

As soba's link notes, the completely encasing in salt is a lovely steaming method. I have only done it with whole fish. So it would seem not to yield what we think of as a "baked potato" as the skin would be soft? On the other hand a method like this sounds like it results in a well executed "baked potato" http://www.ourbestbites.com/2013/02/salt-baked-potatoes-with-roasted-garlic-rosemary/

I used to be able to find a mellow one - can not remember where- but the current ones in the local markets are not anywhere close -too harsh and boring. Look forward to input as well as it is a lovely ingredient.

I think you will have a textural issue with the dried cherries as they are pretty chewy and brownies are quite soft. Without adding other flavors from booze, you could hydrate in warm water and dry well before incorporating. Maraschino and glace (fruitcake style) cherries don't sound like your style at all. When you think about it though, have you ever seen a raisin in a brownie? Maybe failed experiments are the basis for that gap. I do recall my mother making a brownie type of sweet with canned cherries but that is an old vague memory without details.

I think chocolate chip cookie variants really touch home and give most/many people a smile. Quick breads sliced so they are 2 to 3 bite friendly also come to mind - I love a pumpkin bread in a loaf pan and have served it in that sort of setting with the slices in 4's. Goes great with coffee. Banana bread is in the same vein but I have found more and more folks that recoil from nanas

Back to powerdog's question - have you cooked lamb before and what sort of recipe were you intending for the leg? We can talk about supermarket, versus local farms and all agree on certain points, but if you just want to try out some lamb and not break the bank - perhaps a frozen NZ leg in a marinated prep might fit your experiment?

powerdog - where are you? - helps us to know

torolover - I recently discovered that my Whole Foods will sell you the backs and necks (organic). Reasonable price. You have to check on availability as they only have them when they have broken down a bunch of chickens.

Chicken breasts and flavor in the same sentence versus dark meat? My every instinct says NO! I find the most flavor from dark meat on the bone like legs and becks (backs are fine if you clean them well as noted) along with a handful of feet to amp up the gelatin.

Do you have Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking - I have made all the baked goods (and other deserts) by hand - no mixer - just t give you a perspective.

Along the lines of what FauxPas mentions above I often do very small batches when there some excellent fruit. These have very minimal sugar - just enough to bring up and brighten the flavor and if a non citrus some lemon juice is added. Here is a example I previously posted with kumquat http://forums.egullet.org/topic/104742-kumquats-any-ideas/#entry1875730

Alex - I always roast vegetables on parchment (on a sturdy half sheet pan). How is this product better than parchment? I couldn't tuck mine under because I ran the piece the long way and there was not enough width to tuck. Also when I took the paper off the pan and put it on my slate table to cool the foil kept it from breathing so I got condensation under my food. Edited to add: I did another pan of baked tofu and had success with folding the piece in four against the way it wants to curl and then folding it in a broad fan shape (like we made paper fans as kids) - all those creases helped it lie flatter - but PITA

Since it appears to be a bit nippy in Norman, you may want to bring a little springy brightness to the table. My first thoughts were a slaw with a tamarind dressing and rice in the tahdig style with raisins/currant/ dried cranberry to echo the mole, but accented with citrus zest. Edited to note that I have not made a tamarind dressing for slaw but the idea in this other topic has been on my mind: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/147257-cabbage/page-2#entry1956760

I unfortunately purchased this miserable product today (the Reynolds version) because the local stores are stocking it INSTEAD of good old parchment. It is more expensive, but was on sale so I bought it. Reynolds is marketing it for lining things like a lasagna pan. Well no wonder since it curls up and over the food in the pan apparently unless something heavy like lasagna completely fills the pan. I put my no knead dough on it and in the oven it was even worse. It completely curled up and over the dough. Before it went in the oven I saw the curling start and tried to wrap it over the side of the sheet pan but it is too stiff and won't stay put. Quite irritated in this kitchen.........

Eons ago, before freezer packs, I used to freeze my fruit at the bottom yogurt and take it in my lunchbag. I don't recall any problems.

My last two batches were untraditional but so good that I am keeping the method. Canned chickpeas with just a bit of their liquid, onions not quite caramelized, roasted garlic oil, lemon juice and ..........crushed well roasted almonds - in the FP til wonderfully creamy.