Shel_B

Has anyone had any experience with this product? Any thoughts about it's efficacy? Thanks! http://smile.amazon.com/Hudson-Cleaner-Stainless-Chainmail-Scrubber/dp/B00KQCJ0CG/ref=sr_1_8?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1410247357&sr=1-8&keywords=cast+iron+grill

With all that you've said, it's certainly worth looking into. I'd love to grow a delicious, cool, refreshing watermelon Thanks for the encouragement!

So sorry for the delay in replying. We were on vacation and, although we returned around 9/1, I've been busy catching up on things here at the house. Thanks for the pics and the information. Clearly I will not have room to grow a watermelon. A shame ... it would have been a nice experiment. I envy you your wide open spaces. Signed, Constrained City Boy

This weekend I was gifted two serving platters by one of Toots' friends. I helped her at a garage sale a few weeks ago and this was, I suppose, a nice thank you. Toots mentioned to her that I was interested in buying them, but we thought they had been sold. Nothing special or fancy, but just exactly what I needed and wanted.

Having explored cooking with acorns, my understanding is that acorns need to be rinsed well, preferably in running water, to release the tannins that make them bitter and unpleasant to eat. Would roasting them in a fire make them more palatable without a need for rinsing?

I have a bag in my freezer right now ... I use the product every now and then.

I have TJ's 21 Salute Seasoning in both houses. Good stuff. Never thought to use it in a dressing, and now I'm thinking of other uses for it as well. Your simple comment may have opened the door to some new ideas. I may try it in my baked wild and brown rice dish the next time I make it, and maybe use it in my next batch of spaghetti sauce, or maybe as a dry rub ... Thanks!

Really not interested at this time ... good suggestion, though.

If the oven's going anyway, it may be worth a try. I like experimenting ....

OK, I see what you mean ... we were talking about different things.

Looks interesting ... the notes mentioned in the recipe didn't get posted for some reason. Would you be kind enough to post them?

That may be, but the question, as I understood it, was whether fire-roasting added carcinogens.

More than likely (but just guessing), the tomatoes were fire-roasted using gas heat. Might that not reduce the potential carcinogens?

Having thought about it a while, I'm tending to agree with you about the broiler.

That assumes I have a torch ...

There's a recipe that I'd like to make that calls for charring ears of corn and then cutting the kernels from the cob http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/chile-pork-tenderloin-50400000137205/. I don't have a grill at home, so I need to find another way to char the kernels. This time of year, frozen corn kernels may be the easiest and best choice. So, what may be the best way to char these prepared kernels in my apartment kitchen? I was thinking about heating the cast iron skillet, very hot, and adding the frozen (or fresh if I can find 'em) kernels until they blister and char a bit. Might that work? Or what about under the broiler? FWIW, TJ's carries frozen, charred corn kernels, and I may try using them, but I would rather do the charring myself. Thanks!

This morning I was cleaning out and reorganizing Toots' spice cabinet and came across a small jar of McCormick Italian Seasoning. I thought of this thread, and decided to post the ingredients here, FWIW: Marjoram, Thyme, Rosemary, Savory, Sage, Oregano, and Basil I may try this in an Italian dressing of my own, just to see what it's like.

This morning I surfed around looking for some decent cooking shows that are available on the internet. I found a few sites that looked interesting, such as: http://www.tv.com/web/category/food-and-cooking/ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/07/online-food-shows_n_4045927.html In the Huffington Post list of shows I came across this one which had some resonance as I'm trying to teach myself some Indian recipes: http://showmethecurry.com/ What shows do you watch or recommend that can be found on the 'net? Any favorites?

Well, Toots used the baking soda / vinegar technique and, according to her, it worked very well. I'm going to her place in a while with instructions to "put [my] nose into the cupboard to see if agree with [her] nose." Thanks to all for your help!

This is just the sort of thing I'm looking for. Poking around, I found the Frieling, which is similar http://frieling.com/product/french-presses#.VAoXgGd0yDM One of these will be my next purchase. Right now I'm leaning towards one of the Frieling models, but it will be a while before I make the final decision. Thanks for posting the info.

Toots mentioned that she used shellac to solve an odor/mildew problem, so if Leslie's solution doesn't work - and she's trying that now - shellac may be next up.

This thread got me thinking about what I like and dislike about making my morning cuppa joe, and I started Googling around to see if I could find a solution to my main concern, that being the coffee getting cold in my French press and in the cup while I'm working at my desk in the morning. This article turned up in my search, and it seemed appropriate to link it here: http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/03/java-script/357562/ So, what solutions do you use to keep your coffee warm? I like the idea of the Soft Brew, BTW. What else that may be similar is available? I'd like to be able to brew in the carafe and then pour from the carafe to the cup, and hopefully the coffee remaining in the carafe would stay warm. I don't want a coffee maker with a carafe attached, and I don't want electronic stuff, either.

Thanks so much for your help and suggestion. Toots now has everyone's ideas thus far, and she's started working on the problem. We'll see how it all comes out.

How does it work with smells?

Thanks, Edward. I sent your reply to Toots. Most likely she'll try Leslie's technique first as the ingredients are already at hand. However, the shellac option does sound reasonable. Appreciate your helping out.