Shel_B

Do you use "bad" wine? I pretty much agree with you (considering I don't know what you mean by "good" wine) as I generally use some acceptable table wine when wanting wine in a dish. Often I'll use a wine that a guest has brought to dinner that I didn't want to serve with the meal and which has been sitting in my wine cellar (bottom drawer of the filing cabinet) waiting to be used. I've had good results with TJ's 2-buck Chuck merlot in some spaghetti sauces. Not going to use the 84 Martha's Vineyard for that <LOL>

Indeed! A couple of years ago I was drafted to make deviled eggs for a family get together. It was Toots' family, and I wanted to make something nice. I dug into my deviled egg recipe collection and chose smoked salmon deviled eggs. Toots told me not to get fancy, although I didn't consider that recipe to be particularly fancy. One of Toots' sons has owned restaurants and has been involved in one aspect or another of the food business for 30+ years, and I was sure he'd like them. His wife loves salmon, so that seemed like another hit. As it turned out, there were a lot of deviled eggs left over - I should mention that when Toots makes the eggs they are gone in a heartbeat. When we were leaving, Toots' daughter whispered in my ear, "Don't get so fancy again." Some time later I was in charge of making a potato dish, and I had lots of great ideas, but daughter's words kept echoing in my mind. So I made Funeral Potatoes, used cheap, generic, frozen hash browns, some store brand potato chips for the topping, a can of store-brand cream-of-something soup, and some Safeway brand grated cheddar cheese. Oh my, what a hit that dish was. Gone in a heartbeat and with ingredients I'd generally never look twice at. So there you have it, my little story about using ingredients that are too good, if not for the dish than at least for guests.

While I sometimes use Bay Laurel leaves, I am comparing the leaves I received to the Mediterranean leaves I've purchased from various sources, including ethnic markets, commercially packaged from several sources and suppliers, bulk bins and jarred. I don't buy California leaves. I harvest them from nearby trees.

Yesterday I was gifted with a package of organic Greek oregano. Compared to the oregano I've been using these past years, this stuff is amazing. The fragrance and taste is outstanding, and I can't wait to try it in some pasta sauce that I'll be making tonight or tomorrow. In addition, I received some outstanding organic Turkish bay leaves, also superior in fragrance (and, I assume, taste) compared to what I've been buying locally. I've purchased bay leaves from many sources over the years, but nothing has come close to the wonderful fragrance of these leaves. Just leaving a few on the dining-area table has infused the apartment with a wonderful, outdoorsy smell. Also included in the gift package was a bag of Szechuan peppers. I'm not sure if these are the best and most flavorful that I've had, but the timing of their arrival is perfect as I've been experimenting with, and developing a recipe for, peanut-sesame sauce. Lastly was a bag of Urfa Biber chile flakes. I've not opened the package yet, so I cannot speak to their fragrance, flavor, or freshness, but if they compare well with the other spices and herbs, I'm going to be a happy camper and be motivated to experiment a little more in the kitchen.

And just today I received a package of exquisitely aromatic organic Greek oregano. I see Greek Roasted Potatoes in our future!

That sounds very nice ... thanks!

Yes! Once I read the article, I called Toots to see if she had a waffle iron. I also found this link in the article: http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2011/03/best-way-to-reheat-pizza-science-griddle-method-how-to-reheat-a-slice-of-pizza.html which is, IMO, a worthwhile read. It's good to Understand a bit of why things happen when pizza is reheated.

We once made that recipe, which was found on a box of Ritz crackers, back around 1977 or so. It would be nice to see it again. BTW, does anyone here still eat Ritz crackers? Perhaps they're a little "unfashionable" themselves, these days.

Here's a pastry I never heard of: Kouign Amann which, it seems, TJ's is carrying in their frozen case. I've not tried them yet, nor have I seen them at our local TJ's, but I'll definitely look for them on my next visit. Has anyone tried them? http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/04/trader-joes-kouign-amann-is-almost-as-good-as.html

<LOL> Your comment brought back a memory of my childhood. In grade school, we had to wear dog tags due, of course, to the perceived threats of attack by our cold war enemies. I used my tags as you did yours - it was as much for identification as it was a simple tool. http://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/that-time-american-school-kids-were-given-dog-tags-beca-508802138

I have been using the same technique for decades. Sometimes, if a knife isn't handy, I may use a coin. Also, gently tapping the rim of a jar against the counter can help break the seal. As noted, it's helpful to really clean the lids well.

I use them in peanut sauce and in sesame sauce, both of which I use frequently on cold noodle dishes. I sometimes use them in lieu of cayenne pepper, and have used them mixed with black, green, and white peppercorns to give an added dimensionality to a number of dishes.

I just had to Google leftover pizza ... http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2014/01/leftover-pizza-waffle-iron-delicious-crispy-gooey-cheese-stuffed-snack.html http://allrecipes.com/recipe/leftover-pizza-breakfast-casserole/

Chocolate coated Havanna alfajores from Argentina. Mmmmm!

Found this thread while looking for something else ginger related. I've been making peanut sauce with fresh ginger. I buy it fresh and keep it in a sealed zip bag in the fridge. I don't keep it a very long time before it gets used up. I grate it with one of two Microplanes that I have, and the results are just perfect. First, I peel the skin exposing as much ginger as needed and then just grate away. I cannot image grating frozen ginger and getting a better result. Rotuts, and others, what do you experience when grating fresh ginger that makes it inferior to frozen?

Agreed. Much prefer the HTML page, for several reasons ...

I don't mind seeing pics of the restaurant - it's sometimes helpful if you've not been to the place before. And it's definitely helpful to have a page for the address, phone, hours of operation, and maybe directions or a map. The directions and map came in handy when Toots and I went to a new place up in Lake Tahoe last month on our vacation. Pictures of the place were also welcome as I was looking for a certain atmosphere and setting, as well as good food and service.

I agree with your comments about this site. Irritating ... the music is distracting as are the images moving around the page. I like a simple, direct site, easy to read, and with nice sized, contrasty type. However, there is a direct link to the dinner menu: www.morimotorestaurant.com/dinner.pdf

What constitutes "occasional use?" Once a week, once a month ....?

What machines have a blade that falls off into the food?

In the past, I had a small Cuisinart and a small Kitchenaid, neither of which lasted very long. However, I was using them for grinding/chopping small amounts of meat, and I suppose that taxed their motors and construction. So I understand your concern. My needs now are less strenuous, and use would not be as frequent (I was grinding meat every day), so maybe these smaller machines would suffice. Should I decide on one of these, the question is which brand and model would be best, would be the most durable. I hadn't thought about using an immersion blender for the tasks mentioned in my original post, so maybe that's a better way to go <shrug>

http://www.costco.com/.product.100082950.html?cm_sp=RichRelevance-_-itempageVerticalRight-_-ClickEV&cm_vc=itempageVerticalRight

I never said anything about making peanut butter.

I put together what I called a Mid-America Salad. Maybe it's a little too fancy for what you're doing, but I'll include the recipe and technique here on the chance it might be "inspirational." I wrote this recipe up for a dear friend of mine, so the instructions and commentary were for her - and now they're for you. I also remember salads with Green Goddess dressing. Back around 1980, I made a dinner for some friends and the theme, such as it was, was to use as much canned food as possible - canned, condensed soup, canned ravioli, bottled salad dressing, etc. Shel’s Mid-America Salad with Chunky Blue Cheese Dressing Some iceberg lettuce wedges fresh tomato wedges rinsed, drained, and dried red kidney beans (optional) thin slices of red onion (optional) a few thick sliced bacon slices (optional) 1 Tbs best quality mayonnaise 1 Tbs good quality sour cream 1 Tbs fresh lemon juice or about 1 Tbs lemon zest, or combination About 1 cup or more rich buttermilk 4 ounces Maytag or similar blue cheese (Maytag Blue is a Mid-American blue cheese) ½ tsp Diamond Crystal Kosher salt dash or two of dry mustard (optional) Divide the blue cheese into three pieces. Take one piece and chop it very fine. Take another piece and chop it medium fine, and chop or crumble the third piece in larger chunks. If using bacon, lay the bacon strips on a roasting rack over a cookie sheet and bake in a 350-degree oven until crisp, about 20-25 minutes. Remove when cooked to your liking, and set on several layers of paper towels to compete draining and to cool further. Cover with a few more layers of paper towels, and pat bacon dry, letting the towels absorb as much grease as possible. You can also put the bacon into a cold oven, and the slower heating will render a little more fat. Put the mayo, sour cream, and the very fine pieces of blue cheese together, along with the salt, into an appropriately sized glass or stainless steel bowl (preferably one that comes with a tight fitting lid, but you can use plastic wrap to cover - try not to use plastic bowls as plastic can sometimes impart a taste to whatever has been stored in it, especially if you’re going to be storing the dressing overnight or for a couple of days) Using a fork or small whisk, mix together well. If you like you can put the mixture and about ½ cup of buttermilk in a blender or food processor for a few twirls or pulses to incorporate and smooth the mixture, but it’s not really necessary to do that, plus it makes more mess to clean up. When all of the above is nicely combined (don’t over mix) add the rest of the blue cheese and optional dry mustard (start with just a pinch or two) and gently mix together very well by hand. Add more buttermilk a little at a time, mixing well with each addition. When you get the taste and texture to your liking (you may want to add a little more salt, a pinch or two more of dry mustard) cover the bowl and refrigerate at least four hours or, better yet, over night or a couple of days to let the flavors meld. The mixture may thicken up a bit when refrigerated, especially over night, so don’t be afraid to make it a little thinner than you may ultimately prefer. Before using, let the dressing warm a little, stir the mixture, adjust seasoning, maybe add more buttermilk, mayo, or sour cream to adjust taste/texture, and dollop on the wedges of iceberg lettuce with nicely sized wedges of fresh tomatoes and the optional drained and dried canned kidney beans and a few slices of red onion. If using, break up and crumble some bacon over the salad. When eating the salad, close your eyes and it will be easy to imagine that you’re in a diner in Omaha, Nebraska <LOL> Notes: You might want to seed the tomato wedges depending on how moist and runny the tomatoes are. My preference is for thick sliced bacon. Niman Ranch bacon can be had in 1/8-inch or so slices. You can sometimes find slab bacon which you or the butcher can cut for you to whatever thickness you like. The Niman Ranch product is fine.

Based on what I've been playing around with in the kitchen these days, I think my next purchase will be a mini food processor. I'm mostly looking to make some sauces (like peanut sauce) and dressings using fruits and vegetables, maybe chopping and pureeing garlic .... essentially, simple little tasks. I understand that most of these are not very powerful, but for my purposes such a processor should be fine. What do the cognoscenti recommend?