blue_dolphin

After a while of not sharing, I've been giving out popsicles again. I ask in advance and say that I completely understand if they'd rather take a rain check on a future batch. I'll usually text a photo of the pops and ask if they'd like some. We coordinate a masked hand-off via text. I wouldn't surprise anyone by showing up at their door or dropping off an unexpected package. A lot of my friends are scientists and understand this is a respiratory virus so contracting it through food isn't an enormous risk. They've all eaten my food before so they trust that I'm using appropriate kitchen hygiene. I've been sticking to cooking my own food and haven't done any take-out either, saving my splurges for indulgent ingredients. I wouldn't hesitate to accept reciprocal offers of food from friends. Especially peach ice cream! Bottom line: If the choice you offer is now or later rather than yes or no, I think you'll avoid having anyone accept and toss.

Yeah, if I were to try this again, I’d go the savory route - add Gorgonzola, goat cheese or Parm to the ricotta, maybe a hint of garlic or some green onions. Diana Henry has a version with zucchini that I’d consider trying.

Ricotta Pancakes with Gooseberry Relish from Ottolenghi's Plenty More I'm sure that this relish is to be made with proper gooseberries, not the cape gooseberry/ground cherry/goldenberry that I used but I had these in hand so I ran with it. The header notes caution that these are not light, fluffy pancakes but more eggy and cheesy and describes them like as a cross between cheesecake and clafoutis. Their flavor is quite mild, I think I'd like some lemon or orange zest added to the batter but the mildness made for a nice contrast to the relish, almost a jam, which has a tart, bright flavor. I subbed yogurt for the crème fraîche the recipe calls for. Also, those are slices of satsuma plum on the plate - not beets! Both the satsumas and the leftover gooseberry relish will be making an appearance in popsicles sometime soon!

I bought some fresh, locally caught black cod at the farmers market this afternoon and decided I should make an evening meal of it, cooked as simply as possible. Crispy-skinned fish per Eric Ripert (also here) with lemony orzo and sugar snap peas.

Yes, absolutely! Thanks for sharing it. It gave me a lot of ideas for other things to try but was also an excellent reminder that perfect summer fruit doesn't need to be gussied up. I used a late harvest Sauvignon blanc vinegar from Katz that's delicious, so that helped, too. I spooned it over greens (baby kale, chard & spinach) in part because I figured it would look pretty but I very much enjoyed the slight bitterness they added. Very enjoyable. I'll make it or some variation again and wouldn't hesitate to serve it to guests.

At your service....nothing like a little anchovy to wake up the tastebuds in the morning! Beautifully ripe Z Lady Peaches from Tenerelli Orchards at my local farmers market. If one wishes to pay the premium, Tenerelli is now shipping their peaches. Seems pricey, but their peaches are stellar

I'm interested in playing along! I missed the spring wine tasting trip to Santa Ynez or Paso that I usually do with friends and it doesn't look like the fall trip will happen either. I sometimes follow along with the NYT Wine School articles, but I don't always stay on top of it - like I search out some wines and try them but forget to go back for the follow-up article. I check in with eG pretty regularly so that won't happen and I'd love an opportunity to taste with my virtual friends!

Love the bug plate - I have to admit that it gave me a start 🐜!

I don't think it's universal, although perhaps it's become more so as this article suggests it's easier for national chains to standardize: Are mid-week circulars better for supermarkets? I always figured the mid-week sale starts were to draw shoppers away from the crowded weekends to even out their business but I have nothing to back that up. The LATimes print food section ran on Thursdays for many years and sometimes included a casual restaurant review. Most restaurant reviews were in the Sunday Calendar section, so more under "entertainment." Then both were reduced to a page in the Saturday section. Now, a full print section is back with both restaurant news and reviews and cooking/recipes and it's in the Sunday paper.

I made some lemon pepper pasta dough the other day and it was resting in the fridge. Last night, I happened to watch this on YouTube: so I had to try Eva's recipe for Pasta all'Alfredo that appears below the video if you follow this link to watch on YouTube. Basically just fresh pasta tossed with butter and Parmigiano Reggiano. Eva described it as something one would eat if you were sick, not entirely appealing but their reactions sold me anyway so I cooked up a portion this morning. My portion of lemon pepper fettuccine, before: And after: So good. I can't tell you how close I came to cooking up another portion. I am equally proud and saddened by my restraint.

Thanks for the tips, @Toliver! Previously, I would try lots of flavors, out of curiousity. After sampling one, I'd usually leave the rest in the break room at work but I would try both of these if I spot them. The dark chocolate is my only repeat purchase. And my annual purchase of TJ's peppermint Jo Jo's

I borrowed France is a Feast: The Photographic Journey of Paul and Julia Child, the book referenced in the New Yorker article, from the library and mentioned it very briefly over in the "food-related reading" thread. Great photos and well worth a look for anyone who enjoyed the sampling in the article.

From the same sort of place you bought the seeds or transplants for the first generation. Seeds for growing seedless watermelon plants are triploid (meaning they have an extra set of chromosomes) and if you grow seedless watermelons, you also need to have to grow some normal diploid watermelons to produce the pollen necessary to fertilize the seedless watermelon flowers so they will set fruit. Thanks for asking that. I knew that seedless watermelons were hybrids and that hybrids generally don't breed true, requiring purchase of new seeds each season but I didn't know that the seedless watermelon plants were incapable of setting fruit on their own. The hybrid watermelon seeds are also apparently more difficult to germinate but their popularity must make them worth all the effort! Edited to add: I see your question was already answered while I was down the seedless watermelon hole!

I know I’m late on this but have you tried Book Depository?

How heavy is it? Most crocks of that sort could do the job, particularly if aimed carefully from a significant height.

Ooooh! You guys are so creative. This should be fun. I've been missing the annual Manitoulin trek, too. While I can't say that idea of a mushy pea pie sends me into raptures, I'm looking forward to hearing more as I do love savory pastries! I'll have to check what might be available from bakeries in my area. I have been hoarding one last Pastel de Carne (meat pie) in my freezer from Portos, a local Cuban bakery. I purchased a small stash from them back at the beginning of the pandemic. Photo and description from their website: A light and flaky puff pastry filled with picadillo (ground beef, onions, peppers, and Spanish seasonings). In honor of this thread, maybe I'll place another order and get some of their chicken empanadas while I'm at it!

I reheated this slice of last night's fig, caramelized onion and goat cheese pizza (thank you, @shain) on the steel a tiny bit too long but topped with a drizzle of Mike's hot honey, it was still a very fine breakfast.

A big thank you to @shain for the fig pizza idea! Figs, goat cheese and roasted balsamic onions with sage, black pepper Just a little mozzarella on the bottom to glue things in place!

They look like what I buy to give out for Halloween....hoping in part that I won't get many kids so I can eat them myself 🙄

I don't usually eat in the evening so rarely post in this thread but it happened today. Scallop Aguachile with tomato-habanero water and pickled gooseberries from Josef Centeno's Amá. Recipe available online here. Scallops were very big - 8 of them weighed a little over a pound - so I should have sliced them into thinner slices. Still tongue-tinglingly delicious. Edited to add that the tomato-habanero water this recipe uses is basically a drained pico de gallo. The recipe says not to press on the solids to avoid turning the water cloudy and to discard the solids. Since there was plenty of flavor there and because it used pineapple vinegar, I added chopped pineapple to the drained solids to make a pineapple salsa. Fried up some tortilla chips to complete the meal.

GNS Foods sells the mixed nuts American Airlines offers in their premium cabins and reportedly, Covid-19 caused American to take the warm nuts off the first class tray tables. The company has quite a surplus and is selling them online where one can choose the traditional 'First Class' mix, or an Aloha Mix that is a combination of almonds, cashews, piña colada-flavored pecans, and dried pineapple. I could heat them up in little ramekins, crank the AC so it's really cold and loud, grab a ratty blanket and settle in on my chaise with my Bose noise-cancelling headphones to watch a movie on my iPad.

I like them, too! These are some country-style ribs that I bought at Sprouts a while back. The top 2 pieces were ~12 oz each, the bottom one, with the bone was 16 oz. I often see them thinner but like these meaty ones. I cook them fairly low and slow, as I would a piece of pork shoulder. They're actually a pretty good sub for that cut when cooking for 1 or 2. I believe these guys got browned, then went into the oven at 350°F to braise with some liquid for 90 minutes covered, then another 30 min uncovered. At that point, they were quite tender. Possibly more tender than you'd prefer so maybe something in between?

Honestly, the Vegemite bothers me more than the squareness of the crumpets. I bear it no ill will but don't have a taste for it as a breakfast spread. That said, I'm sure many more might take exception to my choice of breakfast spread today - pesto! Pasta with pesto and broccoli, zucchini, sugar snap peas, carrots, red bell pepper and feta

May I ask what info was a disappointment for you? I lost my sense of smell a while back so I'm always intrigued by the topic. It lasted a long, long time and has never returned to normal, hence my interest. Anything in particular about this book that puts you off?

I've been using the shelf position that puts the surface of the steel just a bit over 5 inches below the broiler element. Any big crust bubbles char quickly so I'm wondering if that is too close.