blue_dolphin

Sorry for not describing the cookies! They are little shortbread nuggets coated in a layer of confectioner's sugar. Given their small size, that's a lot of sugar for a small volume of cookie so they are quite sweet. But that layer of sugar also has a good bit of tartness. Not sure if that's just citric acid or if there are other "natural key lime flavors" in the sugar layer but the overall taste is sweet-sour, tempered by a bit of buttery cookie. For me, the sweetness of these guys is sort of a good thing as it limits my consumption. They are a nice sweet treat but I'm happy to stop after 2 or 3. I've made some lemon-rosemary pressed cookies that are much less sweet but I could nibble away a whole plateful over the course of a few hours! Also, an update on that TJ's pinot rosé. I just made a TJ's run to restock and learned that it's no longer available for reorder so whatever is in your local stores is it. I bought a case of it and then picked out a few bottles of other rosés to audition for my next "house rosé." Sorry for recommending something that won't be available for long but such is the nature of Trader Joes!

I'd say it's on the drier side of the rosé spectrum. Not bone-dry, just enough sweetness to balance the acidity. To my tastebuds, anyway. Edited to add: It's the kind of rosé that would pair well with a roasted chicken or grilled sausages. Maybe not so much with the most delicately prepared white fish.

Two things. Key Lime Tea Cookies: I like them with a little glass of my homemade limecello: I enjoy rosé anytime, but it is especially nice in summer. This TJ's pinot noir rosé from California central coast is fruity with a bit of crisp acidity. It has enough flavor that I can add a splash of sparkling water on a hot day and still taste the wine. $7.99 I have also used this to make a very pretty methode rotuts.

I am sipping one of these now and it is very nice. My first thought was, "I don't want no strawberries in my gin & tonic!" But I've got a tub of berries destined to become strawberry, lime and black pepper popsicles and recognizing the similarity, I went ahead and gave this a try. I skipped the sugar and threw in an extra berry. Edited to fix link

According to this NPR story, a bit of folklore from a family that had been saving the seeds for years indicated that they originally received the seeds from the Cherokees. Edited to add my thanks to Shelby for sharing all of this bounty with us!

My favorite way to serve these beans is with some bitter greeens, as in this recipe for pasta with cranberry beans and greens from Deborah Madison's Savory Way cookbook. I also love just the beans and greens together. Maybe topped with a poached egg. Mmmmm.

I love this quote from you, lesliec! I think it belongs on some Anne Taintor cocktail napkins or coasters. Something along these lines:

That sounds really good. After re-reading the spiralizer thread the other day, I'm expecting mine to arrive tomorrow and am looking forward to my first zoodles shortly!

I do believe gfweb and Toliver have addressed your concern. I love this stuff. When fresh out of the oven, there is a tiny bit of crispness in the darkest bits while the middles are meltingly tender and tasty. After sitting a bit, that little bit of crispness is gone but the flavor is still good. Here, I have absent mindedly eaten half a cauliflower at its best:

I forgot to comment on the rosemary. Yes, I tasted a bit of bright, fresh rosemary that stood out above the overall herbal flavors of the chartreuse. I suspect the source of that flavor was more the second sprig of rosemary that got whacked around with the ice and other ingredients in the shaker rather than the one that was flamed. But the fireworks were fun and I thought the rosemary flavor intensified a bit over time in the glass, so that singed sprig may have played a role as well. At least in my glass !

Very nice! I love rosemary and gave this a try today. The rosemary added to the lovely pale green color of the chartreuse and the added ice gave a nice bit of dilution that I liked on a warm summer evening. Should have used prettier ice!

Resurrecting an old thread here. Last week, Anna mentioned the pickled red onions from this cookbook. It's a much praised recipe that I've never tried, because it seemed rather bothersome but I had some nice sweet onions from my CSA box and based on Anna's feedback, I decided to give it a go. The process involves dividing the sliced onions into 3 groups. Each group gets 3 separate baths in the boiling sugar:vinegar brine followed by draining and cooling steps. This provided me ample opportunity to distribute droplets of sticky liquid throughout my kitchen. The end result is indeed a lovely pickled onion. Almost 2 quart jars full of lovely pickled onion. And much kitchen cleaning, surely due to my own ineptness. I may change my mind if they become even more marvelous over time but at this point, I would not follow the recipe exactly as written again. I would probably make a smaller batch and increase the volume of the brine if necessary so everyone could swim together rather than in separate sessions. Or I could become a more tidy cook ! Looking further into the book and based on an earlier comment from trillium in this thread, I tried the pasta wth preserved lemon and tuna as adapted for canned tuna since I didn't preserve my own but used some lovely canned tuna belly. Starting by gently warming olive oil to infuse it with garlic and other seasonings makes it my kind of recipe but it just gets better with the preserved lemon, capers and tuna. Most excellent! I will certainly make this again and again.

TJ's soft & juicy dried mandarins are not a new item but I had not tried them and don't recall seeing them mentioned here. Ingredients are mandarin orange segments, sugar, sulfur dioxide. Product of Thailand. They are very sweet but have a fresh tart orange flavor as well. They would be nice dipped in very dark chocolate but some of them are sort of stuck together so it would be a pain to separate them out for dipping. I've been enjoying a few for dessert with a handful of walnuts, some dark chocolate and um, a Manhattan.

That sounds really good! The last of my blanco tequila went into a batch of tequila por mi amante just yesterday so I'll need to restock. I'll look for the Dulce Vida as I have not tried it.

This has piqued my curiosity. I've never heard of it so I picked this up today: I'm heading out of town tomorrow but looking forward to trying it in a couple of weeks.

Mmmmmm. Two of my favorite combos in the last meals: Beets and their greens - I love how the slight bitterness of the greens contrasts with the sweetness of the beets. Beets and orange in salad - I like to marinate the beets in 1:1 OJ and rice vinegar and serve with fresh sliced oranges Thanks for taking us along!

I like a splash of ginger beer and a squeeze of lime in a tall glass of sparkling water. You could probably use half ginger beer and half club soda or sparkling water if the ginger is too much.

Resurrecting this to report my recent batch of Dark & Stormy popsicles. Very refreshing with a spicy little aftertaste. One 12 oz bottle of ginger beer (Trader Joe's) 3 oz Gosling's Black Seal ~ 1oz homemade lime cordial Yield = 7 small popsicles I filtered the mixture to remove sediment in the ginger beer that I thought might settle in the molds and give an unpleasant texture. I might dial back the lime cordial and use straight lime juice instead but they were good as is.

Anna, I'm curious how you liked the pickled onions? How does the simpler recipe compare to the Zuni Café version? I've been tempted to try that one but it seems so fiddly with the multiple blanching and drying steps. I'm wondering if you think the texture of the finished product is worth the effort? I've got some sweet onions from my CSA box and you've given me the idea to pickle some. Mine are white rather than red but when sliced, they have a blush of purple inside and might make a pretty pickle.

This is not near Old Forge, but depending on your route to get there, you might pass through Lake George and stop off at one of the last orange-roofed Howard Johnson's around. I'm hoping to make a pilgramage there to revisit my childhood with a clam roll and ice cream when I'm in northern NY later this month. It closed in 2012 but reopened in Jan 2015. Not fabulous food but it will be a trip down memory lane for me!

Thanks everyone, for taking the time to share your treasures and memories! Braun drip coffee maker - made in Germany (Braun AG Frankfurt) National Rice-O-Mat rice cooker - made in Japan (Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.)

Per the USDA here: "The legal status of using the organic label in the United States for aquatic species, and the future of developing U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) certification standards for organic aquaculture products and aquatic species, are under review. Internationally, several certifying bodies have developed organic aquaculture standards." The USDA page provides links to more info on EU certifications for organic aquaculture.

This question got me thinking back to my first college and post-grad apartments and the items that I purchased then and am still using. I started another thread, Best investments from your first kitchen, to ask folks which items from your first kitchens you still use and consider good investments. Did you make good investments with your first kitchen purchases?

An egulleter equiping a kitchen for the first time recently asked, "How much did you spend on your kitchen?" In my case, it's been around 35 years since those days but I took a quick browse through the kitchen cabinets and spotted a few old timers that I still use regularly. I remember carefully considering and shopping for each of these items: Clockwise from lower right: 3 qt stainless Revere ware pan with steamer and double boiler inserts. This was the first new pan I purchased and I used it for almost everything in the beginning. I still use it and the steamer insert often. The double boiler doesn't get much use and is out in the garage.Mouli julienne grater/shredder. Still my go-to for shredding cheese. I recently repaired the knob with Sugru and need to watch eBay more carefully for a replacement.Wooden rolling pin. Nothing special but I remember picking it out and feeling like a real baker after making due with a broom handle or canned goods! I have others that I use for certain purposes, but I still reach for this one first.Braun drip coffee maker. I remember researching this purchase carefully and remembering my dad questioning why I'd spent $40 on this brand when he'd just replaced his for $15. It looks pretty ratty so I won't mind replacing it when it gives up the ghost but until then, I'm using it almost every day.National one-button rice cooker. I remember shopping for this in LA's Chinatown. I know I could get more functionality by replacing this guy but it still works. I use it once or twice a week for rice or other grains. I have other, older items that I received as gifts, inherited or purchased at thrifts or garage sales at various times but I remember choosing and investing in these items for my earliest cooking needs. And after this many years of service, I'm calling them good investments. Which of your first purchases are you still using and would consider good investments? Any dearly departed items from your first kitchen - things that you replaced, left behind or lost and now wish you could find again?

I really liked this one of JP's home kitchen design tips from that article, "there should be good light, good music and a good view, if possible, and a place for your guests to perch to drink wine and watch you work." Unfortunately, I've only got the music part sorted out thus far !