blue_dolphin

I thought the same thing when I read the article. But perhaps I travel in the wrong circles as I know many who expect a BIG drink of ...well....whatever. The glassware pictured in the article is lovely and made me want to go and mix something up even though I read it on Friday AM before work! Edited to add that I tried the Neon yesterday, despite lacking the so-named Waterford crystal coupes. I think it would have tasted better from the fancy glass

If it tastes unbearably sweet, I think I'd toss it. Otherwise, some spicy muffins or bar cookies with that ginger would be nice. Peanut butter and pumpkin soup from Serious Eats. Pumpkin Pie-Criossant Pudding from Food and Wine

I've made half a dozen or so batches and all have looked like yours. Some have been more bright and yellow, others more golden. I've used lemons from the farmer's market, from the grocery store and, most recently, from my own tree. Never a cloudy batch yet but they have all been very tasty!

After a very looooooong drought, Rittenhouse Rye has been back in stock at my local Total Wine & More @ 22.99, at least for the last month or two. That doesn't help you, FrogPrincesse, as I don't think they have any SD locations but maybe a re-check of your local sources could turn something up even if they've been out of stock for some some. Or maybe not...just my 2 cents!

Bruce Cost's Asian Ingredients is some years old now but that book, he highly recommends Ma Ling and recommends Koon Chun and Wei-Chuan.

FrogPrincesse mentioned quiche, my most customary pot-luck contribution. They're suitable for any meal, can be substantially prepped in advance (cook filling, grate cheese, make pie crust) the day before or even earlier and they stay warm for an amazingly long time when insulated in some combination of towels, newspaper and grocery bags so no fridge or microwaving required. I've baked quiche in the early AM here in So Cal and brought it to a pot-luck in Seattle - TSA only asked what smelled so good. Much like the your previous experience, I've found a salad with bagged baby spinach, dried cranberries or cherries, etc., candied walnuts or pecans, feta and some sort of balsamic vinaigrette is usually very well received and just requires grabbing a big bowl and serving utensils before a pit stop at the market. Of course, I usually do more prep at home and package everything up (red onion, orange segments, homemade spiced nuts and dressing, etc.) separately but it can be done straight from the grocery. My third option is a cold noodle dish with a spicy peanut sauce (Yank Sing chili pepper sauce being the secret ingredient), julienned carrot, cucumber, egg and green onion. Everything can be packed up separately and tossed just before serving. I love my work pot-lucks. There are always a few people who buy KFC or something but most people really put some effort into it. Maybe a bunch of scientists are accustomed to perfecting their own protocols but everything is usually very good.

LindaK, your photos and description make that warming fare appealing even on today's 100 deg day! Can't remember if I've posted this here before but salt cod formed the base of my most hated childhood meal: salt cod in a cream sauce, served over boiled potatoes - white on white on white- with canned peas the only contrast! I've read along and been tempted by various recipes but this one comes full circle for me wth the potatoes and cream sauce - what an elevation of my old memories! It's way too hot at the moment but this is absolutely going on the list for my mom's next visit.

Those Rosemary Raisin Crisps are very nice with the spreadable goat cheese mentioned upthread. I try to keep some on hand for impromptu guests but it's a struggle not to snarf them up myself!

Good idea to start thinking about this now. I might just resurrect my long abandoned fruitcake tradition. It could happen. They were very popular but I got embarrassed by all the fruitcake jokes and stopped. For a group of 9 friends, I'm thinking to give each a bottle of limoncello from my backyard lemon tree and a packet of lemon-rosemary pressed cookies in holiday shapes. I'll tie on a card with the recipe for Tuscan Rosemary Lemondrop cocktails and a few sprigs of fresh rosemary The limoncello is made but I need to get bottles, cellophane packets for the cookies and make up some labels

Thanks for that info, Refined Vintage! I thought the design was some sort of stylized atomic starburst but I can certainly see the pine motif now that you've mentioned it.

I can't believe you found an instructional video on that garnish, FrogPrincesse! I'll have to find myself some fancy picks and try that next time.

I picked up 4 of these dainty little glasses at the Salvation Army shop yesterday for 75 cents each. They're by Fostoria, 4.25" tall and hold 3 oz, filled to the very brim.

Beautiful job with the garnish! I love figs too and had wondered about infusing dried figs into brandy or something but I've never tried them in a cocktail. After seeing your post yesterday, I gave it a whirl this evening with the Trader Joe's Fig Butter that I picked up the other day. I'm enjoying the flavors of this drink but it's a swampy brown color - rather unappetizing. Not surprising either, as the fig butter is an almost black paste. I love your idea of muddling a fresh fig with a bit of sugar.

Excellent. Sounds like you've covered that variable by cooking them all to death first. I hadn't considered that option but you clearly put more thought into it than I did!

I would imagine that one variable between the "cooled in water" and "cooled in air" eggs would be the more rapid cooling in water (conduction) than in air (convection) so the air-cooled eggs may have cooked a tiny bit more, resulting in a slightly more sturdy white that was easier to peel. Particularly if ice-water was used for cooling but even if the water was at ambient temp, there would still be a difference in cooling rate.

I saw those. They look pretty nice. I may bid on one. I have picked them up for $2.50 - $3 in thrift shops and for less at garage sales.

I like these vintage pyrex pie plates with the fluted edges. I keep an eye out for them at thrift shops and garage sales and have amassed enough of them that I don't need to worry if I don't get one back after gifting a quiche or pie. Edited to add that I follow the usual cautions for glass bakeware and have avoided explosions.

I like cottage cheese with fresh, ripe melon and have been having it for breakfast and lunch a lot lately since my CSA has been loading me up with melons. I like it to have a tangy flavor that contrasts with the melon.

I've tried Two Buck Chuck and I can't call it the worst wine I've ever tasted. It's innocuous, boring, soul-less and entirely uninteresting. I have no desire to drink it again but "worst-tasting?" No. That honor (horror?) goes to something that tasted like a watered down blend of kerosene and vinegar. It was about 20 years ago at a tourist trap "farmhouse" cafe outside Athens on a cruise tour and had the same lingering, oily mouthfeel that Panaderia Canadiense describes above. Awful, awful, awful. Two Buck Chuck could never be so memorable !

Excellent idea, judiu! Serious Eats had a recipe for a fig and goat cheese puff pastry tart last week that I'd love to try as a quesadilla.

I usually use various leftovers but I liked both of the recipes I tried from an LA Times article that Russ Parsons wrote a while back. The article, The California Cook: Quick and Delicious Quesadillas included recipes for: Quesadillas stuffed with mushrooms and goat cheese Quesadillas stuffed with greens and feta

This probably falls into the boring vodka-lemon category but I really like the combination of rosemary and lemon in the Tuscan Rosemary Lemon Drop, particularly the bright rosemary note released when the the fresh rosemary gets shaken with the cocktail. Maybe you could make less boring in some way?

Years ago, I had an Oster blender and loved how well the mini blend jars (or Mason jars) worked for blending small amounts. I've got a Blendtec but keep thinking of picking up an old Oster for this purpose.

Not sure if these guys are thinking about actual peach-bourbon combos or just want to drink bourbon at this time of year but I tried this peach and rosemary bourbon cocktail from Serious Eats this evening. A lovely, lovely flavor combination. The recipe calls for muddling 4 ripe peach slices with 1/2 ounce rosemary simple syrup and then shaking with: 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice 1 1/2 ounces bourbon The peaches from my tree ripened a few weeks back and are no more so I used some slices that I'd frozen and they pretty much disintegrated during the muddling process. They were dead ripe when picked so they contributed great flavor but the result did NOT flow easily through a strainer. Also I prefer the bright flavor that results from shaking fresh, tender sprigs of rosemary with ice to that of a cooked rosemary simple so I used 1/2 ounce of vanilla simple and added several sprigs of fresh rosemary to the shaker instead of making the rosemary simple. Very, very nice. I'll try again with some fresh peaches but I'm not sure they'll approach the flavor of my frozen, but home grown, perfectly ripe fruit.

I know that feeling of drowning in greens – my winter time CSA boxes are stuffed with greens! Sounds like you’ve got lots of good uses for them already but here are a couple of my standbys. This recipe from Deborah Madison’s Savory Way: Pasta with Cranberry Beans and Greens is one of my regulars. The leftovers get parceled out into single serving containers and frozen for lunches during the week. I also love a simpler spaghetti with greens, garlic, red chili flakes and toasted pine nuts. I love the Swiss Chard and Smoked Trout Bruschetta that I mentioned above and posted over in the appetizer thread. When I’m prepping chard for the bruschetta or something else, I often take an extra bunch (or 2 or 3) of greens through the wash, blanch, chill, squeeze and chop routine. Then either package up portions directly or sauté with a little garlic. Keeps for several days in the fridge or longer in the freezer. For the freezer, I smush it out flat in a ziplock bag so I can break off what I need. When the greens are really overflowing, that means I have to start eating them for breakfast so I’ll use some of those prepared greens to scramble with eggs (or tofu), fill an omelet or make a nest for a poached egg. I also use any and all greens in quiche. At the moment, I’m awash in melons - I’ve gotten Galia, Saticoy, Ambrosia and both pink and yellow seedless watermelon in recent CSA boxes. I’ve been eating melon and cottage cheese for breakfast and lunch and I put some cubes in the freezer to try a frozen melon margarita but I swear, they’re multiplying in my fridge!