FauxPas

Spring rolls or summer rolls - some vegetarian, some with shrimp. The rolls don't even have to be cooked, and can be served with a few different dipping sauces. Maybe some Asian lettuce wraps - with ground pork or chicken and a nice sauce. Here's a starting point for recipes, many more out there of course and you can always tweak them. Lettuce wraps http://www.food.com/recipe/p-f-changs-chicken-lettuce-wraps-15865 Spring/summer rolls: http://whatscookingamerica.net/Appetizers/SpringRolls.htm

Popular Photography magazine has a short article on the photography and some of the techniques. If you click on the photo gallery, there are some explanations of how the shots were achieved. http://www.popphoto.com/photos/2013/09/behind-scenes-photography-modernist-cuisine

I always love reading these adventures! It's partly the food - the cooking and the experimentation you do - and also the quirky location. But more than anything, I love the sense of camaraderie and fun that you folks have!

I like making pickles and relishes with summer squash.

Shelby, maybe you could grate up some of that squash and mix it in with the cat food. Your kitty certainly looks like he would give it a go!

That's probably the only time that the 'sides' matter! :-)

I was told that the shiny side should always be toward the food, but I can't remember where I heard (or read) this, so not sure if it has a lot of validity. :-)

Ha, if someone were to wander in to your condo and see that varied equipment, they might think you were working on a meth lab or something! Ha. I love it that you two share details on the failures as well as the successes. You give some very useful info for others trying to work with those recipes or those (like me) who are just thinking of venturing further in terms of equipment and approaches. And I love your sense of humour!

I absolutely LURVE reading your posts! Happy Belated Birthday, Kerry! How long are the two of you in Manitoulin this time? I hope the weather improves for you. Looking forward to reading your adventures - how do you find so much time in the day? - you seem to accomplish so much in the time you are there, and with being on call, etc. Wow. The locals must look forward to your visits, knowing that you will be bringing goodies to the rounds, etc.

I thought it might be for crepes, also! Dave, do you pureé that cucumber/avocado soup? Looking forward to reading more, and I love your kitchens!

Here's a recipe for Thai Sweet Potato and Pumpkin Curry (with optional chickpeas). It ticks all the restricted food boxes - vegan and gluten-free: Thai Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Curry

With lots of sweet potatoes and pumpkin, you can also look to Caribbean cooking for cooking ideas and recipes for soups, stews, casseroles, salads, etc. I think a sweet potato or pumpkin casserole along with a bit of Jamaican Jerk chicken thighs for the meat-eaters would be pretty awesome. But I realize Jerk chicken has a fairly lengthy list of ingredients and you may not have a ready-made Jerk mix. And it can be made a bit too spicy/hot for some tastes. Still, I think having an Island Dinner night would be fun, if you were up to it. One of many possibilities for a sweet potato and bean soup: http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/caribbean-sweet-potato-bean-stew-recipe.htm here's a Trinidadian corn pie recipe: http://latinfood.about.com/od/salsassaucesdips/r/trinidadian-corn-pie.htm (If you have vegans, maybe sub rice or soy milk or coconut milk and use soy-based cheese?) A Jamaican stew with sweet potato and black beans (I wonder if you could add or sub pumpkin?): http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/jamaican-black-bean-stew-recipe.htm

I think the reason you aren’t getting a lot of response on the black bean chili request is that many of us don’t really follow a recipe to make dishes like chili. Everyone has their fave variations, but I tend to use the following, and some folks will think what I do is sacrilege: Black beans – cooked from dry beans, as I don’t like the texture and amount of salt in most of the canned stuff Mix of sweet peppers, diced (I am especially fond of red, yellow and orange peppers with black beans, but I know green peppers are often the least expensive) Canned diced tomatoes Frozen corn – I love corn with black beans, though I wouldn’t put it in ‘regular’ chili Diced onion and maybe onion powder as well Fresh garlic and/or garlic powder (I like to use both!) I’d use a garlic press for large batches Fresh mixed hot peppers, very finely diced – last time I made chili, I used part of both a hot red pepper and a jalapeno (if you don’t have time/energy to do all the chopping/dicing, maybe some canned diced jalapenos could substitute – plain is better and again, I’d avoid any with too much salt) Tomato sauce or paste + water sufficient to make the mix liquid Chili powder blend if you have one on hand that you like, or make your own – it’s usually cayenne, cumin, garlic powder, oregano (I think Mexican oregano is best), and maybe paprika. Sometimes salt, which I think is just wrong. Or you can just wing it with the spices you have on hand, I always use onion powder and garlic powder, even though I am using diced onions and garlic. I am currently using up some El Gaupo Ground Tepin chile powder, which has a nice kick to it. http://www.amazon.com/El-Guapo-Chiltepin-Chili-Ground/dp/B00346UZ7K I didn’t bother with cumin or oregano in the last chili because I loved the taste of the tepin chile. And because it was quite hot already with the fresh chiles and the ground tepin, I didn't need cayenne. But you can try different ground chiles or mix a couple, one for taste and one for heat. Or use cayenne for your heat. Because I tend to make my chilis fairly hot, I usually use something a little bit sweet to balance the flavour – grated carrot, some beer, a bit of brown sugar or a splash of cider vinegar. Sometimes I’ll use a couple of those, but just add a very small amount to start and then taste. If you do use a commercial chili powder blend for seasoning, I’d probably want to add a bit of something else to perk it up unless it’s a really good blend. A bit of hot sauce if you have some and it needs more heat. I don’t think salt is ever necessary in good chilis – there should be lots of flavour from the other seasonings. Serve with sour cream and shredded cheese and yes, your cornbread would be divine with it! With all that sour cream, you could maybe blow your budget on a bit of beef and do Beef Stroganoff on pasta? Or do a veggie one with just onions/shallots, mushrooms, sour cream and maybe some white wine? You'd want some veggies or salad for colour and added nutrition though. Also thinking chicken cacciatore might be a good use of the chicken, depending on the produce you have on hand and if you have canned tomatoes.

Oh that's too bad. Whatcha got to work with in the fridge/freezer/pantry? Maybe you could make hubby a couple of heart-shaped boiled eggs, just use string instead of rubber bands.

I also use bamboo spoons. I specifically bought them because they can be washed in the dishwasher. They hold up pretty well.

There are bootleggers around. If I find some at the liquor store then yes, FauxPas. Oysters for sure. Prince Edward Distillery (near Souris?) makes potato vodka, I wanted to visit them but didn't make it! http://www.princeedwarddistillery.com/home.php?page=home

Ooohhhh, love PEI! Will there be Malpeque oysters? Island-made potato vodka? I know there will be lobster! Such lovely beaches in that area. I was in Atlantic Canada for a couple of months last Summer/Fall. A month of that was on PEI (in Cumberland, just south of Charlottetown) but I wish it could have been longer.

As jrshaul says, ceramic and silicon seem to be the basis for the newer cookware. I found an article at How Things Work that gave a decent little overview of the history of nonstick cookware: http://home.howstuffworks.com/nonstick-cookware.htm I've heard all the worries about Teflon-type products and the toxic fumes they can release at higher temps, so wouldn't mind getting away from them, but the newer products are a bit confusing. The brands mentioned in the link include Thermolon, ScanPan and Ceramica. The little bit of research I have done (searching Amazon, for example) seem to suggest limited satisfaction with the quality of the newer nonstick cookware. I'd love to know if there is anything really new that satisfies discriminating cooks.

Paper-based egg cartons! Made from recycled materials and can be re-used several times for safe egg storage and transport. Or can be used to store or transport other items - golf balls, figs, apricots, etc. Excellent for seed-starting as they are compostable. Also useful for organizing and storing craft items such as beads. Apparently developed in BC, Canada (I didn't know this): http://www.bcnorth.ca/magazine/pages/jim/egg/egg1.htm

Frimousse does indeed have a sweet face! Your kitchen remodel stayed so true to the original style of the house and yet gave it a whole new contemporary look. Love what you did, and I can see it was not a simple little makeover! I would love to do Pupus and Mai Tais like yours! This might be a silly question, but does your profession (Chemistry) influence your cooking, or no?

So, will you ladies have time to do some "fishing" while you are there on the Island? What's in season, what's the local seafood like?

You're a woman of many islands, so to speak. Heh. I love Cow Bay, there are some great food shops there. Seafood, bakery, cheesemaker, wineries, etc. Have you been there recently?

Near Comox/Courtenay.

Poultry, eggs and dairy products are all very pricey here in Canada due to the existing Supply Management and "quota" system (which personally I think should gradually be dissolved, kind of a pet peeve of mine, actually). I'm sure you are familiar with the results of this system, but not sure that all your readers are. When I am living in the US (usually in AZ), I usually buy a whole chicken for less than $1/lb, sometimes around 69 cents per pound. Looking at the store flyer where I am now (Vancouver Island), whole chickens are on sale for $2.69/lb. Drumsticks here are on sale for $2.29/lb, the Fry's store in AZ has them for 88 cents per pound. A rotisserie chicken here is $8.49 or so, $4.99 in AZ. The same management system also makes cheese and milk very expensive in Canada, I'm guessing about 2 to 3 times more in Canada for many products. On a lighter note, I truly enjoy reading about your cooking adventures on your island! Looking forward to lots more details and pics!!!

I love the contrast of the "Hawaiiana" items with the ultra-clean lines of your kitchen. Beautiful kitchen and home. Also, love the way your cat is starting to work his/her way into the pics. I don't suppose you have any "Before" pics of your kitchen, do you? Would be interesting to see what you started from. Hope that isn't too much of a tangent... I don't want to take away from the cooking!!!