Shel_B

A Very Simple Dinner To my homemade vegetable stock I added some finely diced vegetables: leek, carrot, zucchini, yellow squash, orange bell pepper, bok choy, a small handful of frozen, mixed veggies, and a few scoops of leftover basmati rice along with some Korean pepper flakes.

Apart from having a very large volume that, like you, I have little need for (not no need), the heating is very uneven, at least on my stove. The outer area of the cooking surface on these large diameter pans is substantially cooler than the area closer to the center resulting in uneven heating and cooking. This means paying closer attention to the cooking process and sometimes moving items from the center to the outside of the pan. Such a pan would be fine when used in an oven.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/295798482109? Would this work? There are others on eBay .

Happy Passover!

Thanks for the info. Ortiz Ventresca is 3.88 ounces for bout $20.00. St Jude is, at least on the surface, a deal. I like the idea of mixing smoked and unsmoked. 👍

@blue_dolphin Hi ... I'm about to order some tuna from St. Jude. Quick question: is the smoked tuna strongly smoked or more subtle? Thanks. And thanks for the link. The price for the ventresca is pretty good compared to what's available in the local markets here, especially the Spanish ventresca. The South American tuna doesn't excite me that much, so I'm hoping St. Jude will provide better quality and value.

@FrogPrincesse Fwiw, the All Clad factory seconds sale ends tonight. Also, you may be able.to find good deals on MC2 pans on ebay or etsy.

Hi ... All-Clad's MC line was, for many uses, my go-to. I still have and use the original (well, early -1978-9) MC saucepans and a 3-quart sauté pan from that era as well. I later bought a couple of MC2 skillets which I love. A 1.5 quart saucepan practically lives on my stovetop. It's a great size for all the things you mention plus hot cereal, polenta, and reheating many items. The All-Clad D5 has been my choice, and I've been using it for years. Unfortunately, it's spendy, but it was the one that had similar cooking characteristis to the MC. That said, another good choice, on the opposite end of the price spectrum, and one which has served a relative well for several years, is the 1.5 quart Cuisinart: (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) Heck of a value for the price. HTH, good luck in your search.

Thanks for mentioning those cheeses. I'm not a cheese maven by any standard, but I enjoy experimenting. I'll look for these cheeses ... we have a couple of great cheese shops in the area and maybe I can find one or two locally, which would be ideal.

I'd include Velveeta as well, the cheese of my childhood. It has a definite place in any list of important cheeses. My earliest memory was that it came in a wooden box: California's Humboldt Fog is another great cheese ... my friend Schelly calls it swoon-worthy. It's a goat cheese that has an edible layer of ash through its middle, and which develops a wonderful, creamy texture as it ages. It's made in one of the northern-most counties of California by Cypress Grove Creamery. No list is worth anything without Reggiano, in all its iterations.

I made a paste from ground up Cheerios and used it to remove a stain from my entryway carpet.

I had but a vague recollection of it being used as a cleaning agent ... I guess we both learned something. That junk is in Cheerios which, sadly, my sister eats quite often ...

Tri Sodium Phosphate, perhaps.

Penne with Broccoli Sauce: Rancho Milagro olive oil, garlic, pepperoncini, and an anchovy contributed to the sauce of very finely minced broccoli. I used frozen, organic florets because I heard someone mention doing that for this dish, and I was curious to see the results. The broccoli was mashed up using my new masher, and it did a great job. I was impressed with how quickly it accomplished the task, which resulted in a very creamy and fairly smooth sauce, almost like having been done in a food processor. Overall, the dish turned out well.

You should be fine. FWIW, I once had a jar of Grey PooPoo in the fridge for almost three years, and suffered no ill effects when trying it before tossing it. There are some mustards in the fridge now that have been there for well over year and they are still acceptable for use.