Shel_B

Because I've never seen a definition for a coffee cake, and have seen several cakes so described, but all were different. Plus, I'm just a curious fellow ...

This looks very good. Pioneer Woman has provided a few very fine recipes for me. Thanks for the link!

In another thread it was suggested that dried Cherimoya seeds can be used as a roach repellant. Toots and I have used cinnamon powder to stop ants from invading. She also puts coffee grounds into her garden. And vinegar can be used to make a window cleaner. What uses for food items have you tried (other than eating and cooking), and what were the results?

Shel, this might be too late for this season's Chirimoyas, but they're flat out amazing when simply quartered and popped in the freezer for 20-30 minutes. The result is something like the finest ice-cream you've ever had, but with a fruity texture (and of course the seeds). A good friend in Loja introduced me to Chirimoya this way about 4 years ago, and I was hooked. Well, that's a nice, simple idea. Will definitely try it! Seems like an interesting idea as well, although the idea of adding additional sugar is something to which I'm resistant. No roach problems here, but we do get invaded by ants every now and then. Will this get rid of ants? We've used cinnamon with good results, and we're always loking for new ways to use leftover food scraps. Hmmm ....maybe that's an idea for a new thread.

What makes a cake a "coffee cake?" Any particular ingredient, baking technique, or ... ?

I once looked into liquid smoke and found that some of it was acceptable to me. The kind that Wild Planet uses is - to the best of my knowledge - a natural smoke infusion into a liquid carrier, not a chemical concoction. In any case, the sardines taste very good and we didn't find the ingredient to be unacceptable or impart any unacceptable taste. OTOH, I'd assume that "lightly smoked" might mean just what you suggest, but in todays marketing environment, who knows for sure what any claim means. I've found some restaurants here with "fresh squeezed OJ" on their menu only to see the staff pouring the juice from gallon plastic cartons. Their response to my question about the juice being fresh squeezed was that it was pressed from fresh oranges off premise. To me that means something less than fresh squeezed. This was at a restaurant that used to have a juicer on premise and every glass of juice was made fresh to order.

We recently discovered Wild Planet Sardines at Costco. They worked out to be $1.69 a can, a little more than Brunswick sardines. We like them much better than the Brunswick and other canned brands we've tried.

I like that idea. Been in a broccoli mood lately as well.

Won't anchovy paste in tubes do the trick for you?

Paprika ... I have two or three kinds on hand, but rarely use them. Can't say that I never use the stuff.

I didn't mean to suggest that I wanted to avoid carbs, rather, I found the recipes heavy with them. I'd like to reduce my carbo load, not eliminate it. Casseroles interest me because I've recently been going to family gatherings and pot lucks where, it seems, such dishes are welcome and enjoyed by many of the guests. Plus, as my schedule has gotten busier, it's nice to have something in the fridge that can be quickly warmed and reheated.

Thanks for the pointers. There are a few good ideas there, although so many of the recipes are very heavy on carbs and pretty light on vegetables. However, I am mostly interested in ideas, not specific recipes.

Bill Christopher, in an article written a few years ago, confessed to using Chinese garlic in those products using prepared garlic. He said that he could buy Chinese garlic cheaper than he could grow it himself. Here's the link.

What's with Thousand Island on a Reuben? I always thought Russian dressing was traditional.

I've never made a casserole and now it seems that they may be a good choice for a number of reasons. I'd like to get some ideas for vegetable or veg and meat dishes. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

I don't care for Starbucks coffee, and imagine the blonde roast would be most insipid. We have so many great coffee places in the San Francisco Bay Area, with so many wonderful and interesting options, Starbucks is a last choice.

I am making my sweetie a Moro orange panna cotta served in a heart shaped ramekin, and we will have a bottle of her favorite champagne.

Didn't know there was a cookbook. Was it mentioned in the documentary? I dozed off for a bit. What's the name of the book? Thanks!

It looks like this is the new place. The original joint is nothing like what is seen in the NYT pic.

Last night, quite by accident, I came across This movie - I Like Killing Flies on Netflix. I highly recommend it. It's a documentary about a real hole-in-the-wall greasy spoon in NYC and the quirky owner.

I've recently been bringing food to a few events. One is an annual "soup party" where the host specifically requests home made items and wheren the attendees often extend themselves to make something different. However, most other events the atendees want simple, basic fare that they are familiar with. I learned that the hard way. I made smoked salmon deviled eggs - pretty simple but a little different. My GF, whose family the eggs were for, strongly suggested I stick with the simple, traditional mayo-relish-paprika eggs. I knew that everyone would like the salmon eggs. Just a few were eaten, even though some of the guests were "foodies." Afterwards, my GF's daughter told me that next time I should make the plain deviled eggs. My GF usually makes them and they are devoured in a flash. At the next even I was to bring a potato dish. I thought of tartiflette, some interesting versions of scalloped or gratineed potatoes, but settled on the Morman dish, funeral, or Christmas, potatoes. I used cheap ingredients (Safeway frozen hash browns, Campbells Cream-of-Something soup, generic corn flakes for the topping, cheap, bland, shredded cheese). The dish was a BIG hit, and was finished in minutes, even before all the other dishes were served. Lesson learned: when it comes to potlucks, simple, lowest-common denominator food seems to work best. My GF has been making potluck dishes for years - decades! and always brings a toned-down or blander version of a dish she'd make at home. For some reason, that's what works.

I have heard that male and female eggplants taste different and have different chracteristics which migh be considered for different cooking methods. Is this correct? What are the different characteristcs? Yesterday a friend showed me a very simple method of preparing eggplant and it's perfect for some of our uses. The eggplant is sliced fairly thin lengthwise, cheese and thin-sliced tomato is put on it, sprinkled with herbs, and then baked. We can use this on sandwiches. Is there any type of eggplant that may be better for this technique? Thanks!

Hmmm ... interesting idea. Chervil is not an herb that comes to mind very often.

I was thinking of adding the herb during cooking, so whatever I use would not be raw.

We like this recipe from Molly Wisenberg quite a bit. I use a mild curry, and less of it, in defference to Toots' preference. I also prefer a nice, home made chicken stock, not too rich.