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llc45

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Everything posted by llc45

  1. llc45

    Dinner! 2010

    Dcarch - What is the stuffing in the tofu? Looks amazing.
  2. OMG -I vow if I ever move - this will now be my strategy for finding a home. Nearest Wegmans to me is about an hour. I am in serious envy!
  3. I so agree with you on the Marcella Hazan sauce. I recently had to make a big batch of meatballs for a party and saw this on epicurious, I had no fear scaling up the sauce to feed 50 people. It was so easy to throw a bunch of San Marzanos in two big crock pots, throw in a few unchopped onions and some butter and know that it would turn out well. Thanks for a great blog!
  4. I just wanted to add the fact that some people can handle lack of sleep way better than others. I know that if I was up all night, I don't think that I could punch my way out of a paper bag the next day. Wouldn't have missed the flashlight tour though!
  5. llc45

    Christmas 2010 Menus

    That was pretty much my Thanksgiving this year. My mom cooked because I had three papers due and was already throwing a 50th anniv party for my parents that weekend. It will be back to me for xmas but am not going to even think about what to make until I am done on the 20th.
  6. Andie - have you tried the white ones? Do you know where they're from? The New Jersey ones were a first for me, but boy were they good. I guess that's why they call it the Garden State, eh? I've even asked at the produce departments here in Texas, but no luck. eta--satsumaimo flesh isn't really white, but is more yellowish. It's just whiter than the orange sweet potato. Have you tried your local Asian supermarkets? It might be different, but when I think of "white sweet potatoes" I think of satsumaimo (purple-ish skin, white flesh). Even if they're not the same, it might be worth a try to get the Asian ones. They might suit your needs or cravings until you can find the ones you're looking for. I have not tried the Asian supermarkets, but Houston has an enormous Asian population, and many large Asian supermarkets, including 99 Ranch among others. I do buy produce from them from time to time but, for some reason, hadn't thought about looking for those white sweet potatoes there. I guess because I keep thinking about them being a New Jersey thing. And Andie, I don't think the ones we had are the same variety you're getting. You said that the white sweet potatoes you buy are not as sweet as the orange. We were camping down in Cape May, and bought those white sweet potatoes from a roadside stand several times. We all agreed that we thought they were considerably sweeter than the orange and yellow varieties that we had had in the past. Maybe I should post my query in the New Jersey forum. I live in northwestern New Jersey and have never seen them in our farmers market. It's funny you brought this up - I just bought a 5-lb bag in the supermarket and there was one white one mixed in with all of the oranges ones. I had always heard that white ones had a better flavor but was in such a hurry to finish the puree I was making I didn't take the time to compare the flavor of the two. Now I wish I had.
  7. Food with a little I Love Lucy mixed in - you have a great sense of humor!! Thanks for the blog and the giggles.
  8. No - I was home in NJ working on my three papers that are due this week for the Harvard Graduate program I am in and sneeking peaks at egullet and various other food related sites as a distraction . As of 10 minutes ago, finished last paper due, now onto the presentation/documentary thingie that I am quite sure I lack the technical skills to accomplish (my daughter still has to upload pictures for me). When done, I will be cooking up a feast caused by my attention deficit web surfing for food porn! Guess I'll watch the Ferran Adria posted videos too!
  9. Ditto on grating cheese, especially parmesan because it is so difficult. I have gone thru many a food processor trying to use them for grating parmsan regianno - now husband performs the task. Add to that juicing lemons and limes. One or two, no problem. Beyond that, my husband gets recruited just like the cheese grating task. Otherwise, prepping anything besides raw meat is my form of meditation. I could spend hrs chopping vegetables, spinning salads, and prepping herbs. Neither of likes cleanup but we have worked out a system that generally makes it pretty efficient most of the time.
  10. Thank you! I wish I could say we always eat so well - there are too many nights when we end up having toast or oatmeal in winter - but it's a lot easier when I've not got study hanging over my head. The last couple of years I have been making a real effort to simplify my cooking while still keeping it flavourful. There was a time when I would have tried to put a sauce of some kind on everything and have 3 sides, but these days I am focussing on cleaner and fresher flavours (and hoping my waistline responds as well). That doesn't mean it's not fun to go all out sometimes, but when it's mostly just the two of us eating I'm finding I waste less and we eat less too. Although all the press is about Christmas seafood (and the Sydney Fish Market says that Christmas Eve is the busiest day of the year), you would be amazed at how much meat still gets eaten. A friend of mine was telling me that her family will be having ham, roast beef, turkey and seafood, but it will all be cold. My husband has less than fond childhood memories of hot Christmas lunches, with flaming puddings and all. When we have a choice we wait until evening to eat our celebratory meal, as we often find it too hot during the day (I think I am allergic to humidity ). Mind you, nothing beats the oddity of melting in the heat while hearing the 'the weather outside is frightful...' Thank you so much for a wonderful blog. I am back in grad school myself and also switched to healthier simpler meals focusing on better quality ingredients. My husband and I both have benefited by some weight loss although my daughter really minds the lack of the more plentiful meals of the old days. Really enjoyed learning a little about down under - it's on my bucket list to visit.
  11. I have tried several of the no-cook lasagna noodles and I agree that the Barilla brand is the only way to go if you are going that route. Many of the others are thick but the Barilla ones turn out really well. The ones to try are the non-curly edge ones. In your time limit, it would really reduce your stress level.
  12. I am in the same boat as you. Unless specifically asked, I now save my gushing, opinions, and recommendations for the few friends who actually care and want to know about the latest "grass fed beef" I found or "restaurant" to die for. Not fair to bore or bully friends and family who are perfectly content with chain pizza or Olive Garden (rut-roh - there I go again!!). My friends love coming over for some surprising foods that they didn't know that they might like and they know that I enjoy going to dinner at their houses with no judgement. I can't stand it when people start proselytizing on the boards - everyone has different tastes and budgets, are on different points of the learning curve and in their lives, and have competing time commitments. Bullying takes away the enjoyment that is the whole point of food. Now, a good food debate with someone who gets it and can handle their end of the argument, that's a whole other ballgame.
  13. Mine varies alot also. Back when more family lived within a few hours and many had to work on Friday, we generally had the meal around 2-3 pm so people could get home at a reasonable time. As more of my family moved too far to drive and started flying in for the weekend, the meal started to get later. When many of our companies started giving Fridays off, the meal moved to around 7 pm. But, now that my parents are getting older and like to be in bed early, the pendulum has started to go in reverse again. At my Dad's pleading, we will be having Thanksgiving tomorrow between 2-3 pm. He is getting so insistent about getting home early that he starts demanding pie before we have even have a chance to clean up the dishes from the meal . Happy Thanksgiving!
  14. Wow - I have a bunch of leftover baked sweet potatos in fridge I was going to turn into a puree. I am definitely going to try the lime, butter and seasonings - that sound really good. I grew up in a household of candied sweet potatoes - in fact, my mom is cooking tomorrow for Thanksgiving so I am sure they will be on they menu. While I am sure there are variations that are good if you like sweeter things, my mom uses canned sweet potatoes and then,in addition to the marshmallow topping, adds so much sugar to the already sweet potatoes that I thought sweet potatoes were gross when I was a kid. Unfortunately, she is so proud of them, my entire family to this day eats them and tells her how good they are .
  15. I live near the farm and learned about it from a NY Times article when Mosefund Farm first got the pigs. At that time, they only had a cross between the Mangalista and Bershire (I think) for sale. The piece I bought was so large I could barely fit it in the oven - I had no idea how to butcher it . My husband said it was like an I Love Lucy show watching me try to configure three pans to try to hold the piece of meat and figure out what angle to put it at so I could close the door I thought that was wonderful and meant to go back once their little piggies grew to maturity. Unfortunately I have been working and in grad school and have not had the time. But I will be back as soon as I have some free time on my hands again. Hopefully I can buy a slightly smaller piece this time.
  16. I can't imagine the time and effort that it takes to put together a dinner like that. Your guests are very lucky! thanks for a great blog
  17. llc45

    Costco

    Ha - I go through a whole case every 1-2 weeks. I especially like that I can use a little and then seal it up and put it in the fridge till I need more.
  18. llc45

    Costco

    I just tried the Costco organic chicken stock. It's really good for a commercial stock. They used to carry Pacific Natural organic stock. While it gets good reviews (like on Amazon), I thought it was really bland. Since I am mostly too busy to make my own stock and I use a lot of stock in a week, I am thrilled with the new Costco stock.
  19. I made too much oatmeal this week as I forgot my husband would be away Mon-Weds so had a bunch to use up. I normally will throw into a baked good or a meatloaf but also had some leftover asian chicken to use up. So I made a really quick "asian" soup (almost a porridge) with chicken stock, onion, broccoli, carrot, sesame oil, the leftover chicken and the steel cut oats, with ginger, garlic, and crushed pepper. Never tried to use it like this before but it was actually very good. It really worked the same way as leftover rice. Wondering if anyone else has ideas for savory recipes as I probably make too much at least once a month.
  20. Yes - I tend to slightly undercook them so that they don't get lose that when rewarming
  21. I have used this method and the crockpot method. Now I just make a couple days worth and reheat them in the microwave in the morning. (So I can wash the pot before I go to bed!) Also, eat them for a quick treat if I feel like something sweet and don't have anything in the house. Just a little brown sugar and cinnamin and my sweet tooth is satified.
  22. Thanks so much - I was so inspired by your charcuterie. My family loves spicy but I can never find good chilis out in the country where I live - maybe occasionally a habenero but never thai chilis or similiar. Now I am going to grow them thanks to your blog. You certainly have very lucky friends.
  23. llc45

    Quinoa

    Thanks Andie - I will definitely give that a try.
  24. llc45

    Quinoa

    Grace - Good to know that I can start looking for prewashed. I know there are times that I've cooked it without rinsing that it hasn't been bitter. But, lately, I have been buying in bulk from costco and that definitely needs to be rinsed well.
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