Shel_B

I've been making variations on zucchini pasta for years. I most often just make the ribbons using the grating disk on the Cuisinart. One dish that I make frequently is "Zucchini Puttanesca," and whenever possible I use the Costata Romanesco squash. Mmmmm! If you've not tried the Romanesco, give it a whirl. You might come to like its flavor and texture more than the typical zucchini. It has less water and holds up better in many types of cooking.

These guys make some great Prosciutto ... try it if you can. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/07/dining/some-prosciutto-fans-turn-to-iowa.html?_r=0

This is a soup that I want to include in my regular repertoire, and have played around with it some more since my first post. I agree that some starch is needed, but your idea of boiling the potatoes separately might be a good idea. Perhaps you could add some of the starchy water back into the soup in degrees, thereby controlling the amount of starch. Right now, I'm beginning to play around with different potato varieties, although I do like the flavor of good, organic, Yukon Gold potatoes. Perhaps using a blend of red an YG potatoes might be nice.

Lots of places have dress and appearance codes.

Thanks for all the suggestions. There are a few that I know Toots will like, and that would also satisfy me. Got another couple of pounds of beans this afternoon, so tomorrow, while Toots is away, I'll whip up something from the ideas presented here. Looking forward to cooking something new!

Yes. That model is sold in a variety of cases and brands. I got mine years ago at the business costco in Hayward. These days I mostly use this one: http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-Wireless-BBQ-Thermometer-Set/dp/B004IMA718/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375301427&sr=8-1&keywords=maverick+et732It can monitor the oven temp and the meat temp and I primarily use it for smoking or grilling. I also like the fact that I can take the receiver with me throughout the house. Being able to take the receiver throughout the house seems like a great idea! Thanks! From what I read, it seems that this unit can monitor both meat temp (doneness) and oven temp simultaneously. Is that correct?

I thought I'd just piggy-back on this thread. Can a meat thermometer be used in an oven, i.e., stuck in the meat while the meat's cooking and then viewed through the oven window? Is that even a good idea? Also, are there meat thermometers that could be run to the outside and hung on the oven door, like this item: http://www.chefscatalog.com/product/25312-oven-chek-digital-bakers-oven-thermometer-ot-3.aspx

I just received more than a pound of garden fresh green beans. I don't care much for them, and have never prepared them. However, Toots likes 'em, and since I'll be getting more pounds of these beans as the summer progresses, I want to make at least a few dishes using them. Any ideas for preparing and cooking them would be welcome. Thanks!

How is "commercial" OJ manipulated. I've not bought any for years, but recall that ingredient list was pretty simple - just pasteurized OJ. What am I missing?

Looks good! I've been playing around with zucchini-leek-potato soup using costata romanesco squash, one of my favorite summer squashes. We've plenty growing in our garden, so they are fresh and yummy, and seem to be a nice adjunct to the leeks.

That's a nice presentation ... are the croutons homemade?

http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-masterclass-20130727,0,2303030.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fmostviewed+%28L.A.+Times+-+Most+Viewed+Stories%29

Well, that coincides with something I was thinking about. I thought it might be interesting to see what happens if I soaked the diced potatoes in water for a while, perhaps while the leeks were cooking, and then rinse them before putting them into the pot to cook. Perhaps that would reduce the starch somewhat and lessen the slight gumminess I experienced.

I made some leek potato soup last night, and it was pretty good. Toots liked it, and that's paramount, but I think the results could have been improved. First, my leek/potato balance might have been improved with a greater proportion of leeks, which I'll try next time. But the biggest concern I had was the texture. I blended about 75% of the soup, which was made with Yukon Gold potatoes and water, not stock, before putting it back into the pot, adjusted the consistency with water and a little kefir (which added a nice background note). Still, there was a slight, residual gumminess to the soup. How might I reduce or eliminate that slight gumminess? A different type of potato? Not use the blender (but then how would I make a smooth soup)? Thanks!

Mine does... and it's not a the small size Cuisinart.

I purchased a set of those four or five years ago, and have been very happy with them, so much so that I am going to buy another set as I gave the 12-inch skillet to a friend and I'd like Toots to have a better quality skillet. The pan that I kept has behaved very well and is still in good shape, even after abusive handling by an inept housekeeper/cook.

I've seen the video, but hadn't noticed that the beans were not rinsed. Thanks for pointing that out.

How is the foil made to be nonstick? Are coatings or chemicals used? Is the foil rolled in some way to make it nonstick?

This evening I'm cooking a lasagna and have covered the dish with aluminum foil. While covering the dish, it occurred to me that I wasn't sure if the shiny side should be up, facing away from the lasagna, or down. And what about with other dishes, assorted casseroles, or just reheating leftovers in the oven? Is there a correct way of using the foil? Does it make much difference? I seem to recall some recipes which were specific. So, what's the story?

Interesting assumption. Not something I'd assume. Thanks for your comments.

I've no objection to adding egg ... might add a little more nutrition.

That's a good point and should be noted for those wanting to make the burgers truly vegetarian, and some people might say that using dairy would remove the burgers from the realm of "true" vegetarian fare. For Toots and me, it's not an issue on a couple of levels. The sour cream we'd use contains no gelatin and we're not ardent vegetarians. We just eat very little meat and enjoy fresh vegetables and fruits quite a bit.

Lisa: The nonfat sour cream I use contains no gelatin or other additives, such as thickeners, flavor enhancers, gums, etc. It's pure dairy. I think I'll use the sour cream instead of the yogurt in the first batch, but maybe not fat free sour cream. I'll use panko bread crumbs as that's what I have and they work well in my zucchini burgers. One thing about the recipe that has ne curious is that it doesn't say to drain and rinse the beans, which is what most recipes using canned beans suggest. Would not draining the beans add to the "binding factor?" rotuts: I made a quick and dirty version of the burgers a couple-three days ago using mashed butternut squash and TJ's canned corn. I forgot the bread crumbs and didn't use sour cream or yogurt. The burgers didn't hold together very well, but the flavor profile was quite good. I think using squash or red sweet potatoes will work out very well. Of course, a little more experimentation is in order. Although Toots doesn't care for spicy foods, I may try adding some chipotle to the burgers I make for myself with the sweet potatoes. Chipotle is a nice partner to red sweet potatoes and to black beans (at least I think so). Thanks for everyone's help and suggestions.

That looks good, also. It's interesting the egg and flour are used as a binder for the red bean burger but not the black bean burger, which leads me to think that the sour cream and potatoes act as the binding agents for the black bean burgers. I'm going to experiment more with the black bean burgers before moving to the red bean burgers. I want to try the black bean burgers with whole kernel corn in place of some beans and sweet potatoes in place of the red potatoes.

I want to play around with this recipe: http://www.ciaprochef.com/northarvest/recipe10.html I'm wondering what the purpose of the sour cream is? Is it a binding agent? How does this burger hold together if the sour cream isn't a binding agent? Can I use yogurt in place of the sour cream? Would a nonfat yogurt or sour cream work? Are the potatoes a binder? Would sweet potatoes or butternut, acorn or other similar squash work? Thanks!