Katie Meadow

Could someone clarify a description of moules frites? I assume it is the mussels version of steak frites--that is, essentially two separate dishes served simultaneously: basically mussels in broth with a side of frites. We have a likeable bistro that serves a nice bowl of steamed mussels in a broth of (I think) white wine, herbs and a splash of pernod. The frites, ordered separately, are thin and crispy (if you ask for them well-done) and come with a yummy aioli for dipping. Our mussels in the Bay Area are not as plump or flavorful as ones I have eaten around Puget Sound (farmed Penn Cove) or those on the east coast (Prince Edward Is) or those in Venice (no side of frites there!) My husband waxes poetic about the mussels he had many years ago on the north coast of France. In my mind, if the quality of the mussels is tops and the broth fragrant and not too salty and the fries perfectly crispy and tasting like real potatoes and the aoili freshly made.....it's a perfect meal. Great with wine or brew. Aww, I'm making myself sad.

Paul, thanks for your considered response to this thread. Clearly these crackers have some dedicated fans, including myself. Unless the shelf supply of the bagged crackers is very low and the packages have obviously been tossed about I can usually find a pack that has minimal breakage. Just in case you want to make sure that I am as anal-retentive as you must imagine, here's why I prefer the bag to the box (which I haven't seen yet): I definitely want to know if the bag has crushed crackers, but I also want to avoid ones that have been over-baked. I like mine very pale. If a package has more than a couple of toasty looking crackers I won't buy it if I can help it. How picky is that? Well, I'm paying just upwards of 80 cents a cracker, so...pretty picky. Complaints aside, I love these crackers and it's rare that I don't have a back-up bag in the cupboard at all times.

I buy these crackers regularly and I haven't seen any boxes yet--but I am forewarned. I am buying the 8 oz. see-thru eminently crushable packages for $6.50, which is the same as I have been paying for a couple of years. When desperate I pay $6.95 for the same package at my other usual haunt. I've never seen them for less than $6.50 here, but I don't shop too many different places. I made crackers exactly once. They were really delicious but far more work than I ever want to spend on crackers. Especially when Panzanellas make me so happy. Except for the price and the packaging, of course.

Bananas are ubiquitous in smoothies because they are cheap, available all year long, and add nutrients and thickness. I hate them in a smoothie or in anything else, but they are very useful and healthy for those who like the taste. I think smoothies are best when they are very cold--hence the addition of frozen products like frozen fruit, ice cream or sorbet. My daughter, who needs a high-fat diet, adds vanilla ice cream to a drink that typically has banana, frozen berries and milk. She likes orange juice instead of milk sometimes, but still adds ice cream, creating a sort of creamsicle effect. I like a drink that's lower in fat and cholesterol. I'm not too interested in smoothies until the weather warms up, so I tend to use fresh fruit rather than frozen. I use 1 percent milk, berries or peaches, a little Fage yogurt and a scoop of sorbet if I feel like a dairy-type shake. I also really like just a fruit drink made with orange juice, grapefuit or pineapple sorbet and fresh fruit. If you can find a good coconut-pineapple sorbet you can make a yummy tropical smoothie with milk or juice and fresh mango or stone fruit. A few drops of vanilla or almond extract is nice in some drinks. Almond extract works well with a fresh apricot dairy shake.

Forgive me, but am I missing something here? Pansophia, your original post implies that you are often in the company of corporate elitists who might be judging you for your drinking habits. If that's the case, you need to turn the tables on these creeps! You could simply drink what you like, and the hell with them. Or you could be straighforward and honest and tell them you don't often drink mixed cocktails and would like to taste theirs to see what appeals to you. People who really enjoy alcohol, drink moderately and intelligently (and are not boorish jerks) will be happy to share their knowledge--or a sip, if you don't find that gross or tacky. Alcohol kills germs, right? Or tell them what you think you might like and have them make suggestions. They might take it as a challenge! And if you don't like what they suggest, they will be happy to finish it for you. You haven't said much about what you actually like outside of perhaps sweeter drinks. Experimenting at home can be prohibitively expensive if you don't know whether you prefer gin, vodka or whiskey based drinks. Better to experiment by the drink rather than by the bottle, and hopefully in the hands of a good bartender. There's nothing wrong with ordering wine instead of a mixed drink if you really enjoy wine. Sometimes a simple aperitif like Lillet with a twist of lemon or a vermouth hits the spot. In warm weather in southern France and Italy we discovered Martini & Rossi red vermouth over ice was delicious--a little sweet but more savory and herbal. I have a friend who prefers champagne when everyone else is having mixed drinks before dinner. Someone always says, "Oh, that looks great, why didn't I think of that?" Alcohol is supposed to be an acquired taste. Remember, anyone who enters this world with a taste for scotch has problems you don't want.

Thanks to all for great suggestions. A combination of wet weather and cranky family members resulted in a campaign against destination dining in favor of convenience, so we didn't get to have many food adventures. The place my mother and daughter intersect is Japanese, so I gave them a choice of Tsukushi or Shimizu. They were unnerved about the no-menu thing, so we opted for Shimizu. Delicious! Loved the ohitashi made with watercress (instead of the usual spinach) and was totally knocked out by the spring roll with duck and vegetables. The sushi was great; my mother loved both the sea and freshwater eel and I was in heaven with medium-fatty tuna. You are right, it ain't cheap. For the fattiest tuna it's $7 per order--and an order is one piece! We also made it down to the Chelsea Market, but only because I bribed my mother with the prospect of a lobster roll and, more importantly, volunteered to cook dinner. The Lobster Place has beautiful fish. We bought a huge haul of mussels (farmed, Prince Edward Is.) They were super fresh, tender and sweet.

I will second Bistrot du Paradou. Food and experience was lovely. The drive down from St Remy was magical countryside; narrow roads lined with plane trees, and the little town/s that merge into Paradou are beautiful. Reserve way ahead! I really wanted to eat there on a Friday when they have escargot and the aioli menu; my husband would have thought he had died and gone to heaven. But we ate midweek and it was delicious. Only two choices for entree, and the bottle of red was tasty and put on the table with no fanfare. I love not having to make lots of decisions. We didn't find great restaurant food in Aix, generally, and quickly learned that the food on the Cours is nothing to write home about. I had a fish soup (I believe it was at Bastide du Cours) that wasn't bad but my companions' food wasn't as good. There are great bakeries and charcuteries however, and a wonderful daily market where you can easily pick up the fixings for a super picnic. I had the best cookie I have ever eaten from a bakery within a few blocks of the Cours, but I can't remember the name. For street food one day as we walked down from the Cathedrale and Aix museum (very nice little museum) we stumbled on a pristine Vietnamese take-out storefont (no Vietnamese people in sight--only a hip young French woman behind the counter) that was very good. We did like La Chimere Cafe on Rue Brueys (Aix). Very cozy, dark red interior, atmospheric, friendly. Lots of locals came in starting at about 10. The escargot were tender and very yummy. I had a perfect piece of grilled fish. My husband had what the waiter translated as "Bambi." I remember a great dessert, but can't recall what it was! We liked L'Unic for cafe au lait in the morning. It's right on the square where the daily market happens; the croissants are okay but the action is tops. Part of vacations for me is not having to cook, but being at this market made me wish I had brought my kitchen. And my oyster knife.

There are two typical types of Earl Grey. One is flavored with bergamot, which is a fragrant citrus fruit, and the other is flavored with lavender. Bergamot is more common. Combined with chocolate, the bergamot flavor can be yummy. Dark chocolate infused with tea flavor isn't uncommon, and often it's Earl Grey. The Belgian Neuhaus brand makes a delicious one, and I've had others. Sounds like it would make a very nice layer in a chocolate cake.

I am not unfamiliar with violent or noisy endings when it comes to kitchen appliances. I'm sorry for your loss, and I'm sorry if anyone in your family suffered collateral damage as a result. I am a committed toaster person. I've never met a toaster oven that did anything well, didn't take up valuable space and wasn't aesthetically hideous. A polished toaster is a thing of beauty. My favorite was the Sunbeam Toastmaster, but given that those days are long gone, I have actually found the basic 2-slice Cuisinart to be fairly efficient and a better value than any of the high-power glitzy types that cost five times as much. I'm somewhere in the middle about the middle of the toast being crisp vs moist. I don't want a cracker, and that's why pre-sliced bread is usually sliced too thin. On the other hand I don't want anything flabby. I agree that toasters that toast too quickly are not good. In order to turn out lovely golden toast a toaster can't be too fast. You have to be patient for perfect toast. But if it's too slow, the toast gets sort of brown and never gets really hot. One issue with the Cuisinart is quality control. The one we gave my in-laws (identical model as ours) is just a little slower than the one we have, and it makes just slightly better toast. Outside of the by-gone Sunbeam silent rise toasters, no toaster I know of can really be counted on to pop the toast up at the right time (and I am sure the romance of that toaster has clouded my memory.) Even with the Cuisinart we have to monitor it on a second go-round. Yes, it's a sacrifice, but you can tell that I am fairly invested in morning toast. However, given the price, the fact that both of these toasters have lasted with no ill effects for over ten years each, they are easy to clean, shine up well with chrome polish and the fact that the end result is a pretty good piece of toast, I'd say it's a decent appliance. Buy another one.

Any recommendations for good seafood markets where I can buy fresh plump mussels, littlenecks, maybe steamers and maybe shad roe? These are the things that just don't measure up in CA and I am craving them! I will be staying in mid-town at 57th and 6th Ave. I will be walking distance from Whole Foods (not my favorite store.) I will also be making a Fairway run one day, so that's close to Citarella. Is there anywhere to buy fresh seafood where the prices and attitude are more humble than Citarella? I am not averse to traveling a bit for great mussels, but timing is unknown at this point. Thanks for any help!

Thanks! Any special dishes you recommend at Wu or Madangsui?

Thanks for all the good suggestions. My mother, at 90, is a little funny about food. When she's there and the food is good, she appreciates it, but getting her to go "out of her way" for food takes some manipulation. Don't ask why she thinks a three-mile cab ride is so much different than a two-mile ride. So, when I go back to NY to visit her I have to be clever. I checked out the Lupa site and indeed the prices seem really good! Now my mother says she might like to try Felidia. The Japanese suggestions above all sound good. Tsukushi sounds amazing. For steamers or soft-shells maybe my husband and I will sneak off for a downtown excursion of our own. Are any of you old enough to remember those seafood restaurants in NY with the sawdust on the floor? That would probably be considered a very high-maintenance floor now. I have no idea if the food was actually good. Maybe I'll just bite the bullet and cook for my relatives one night. We have to make a major Fairway run for a lox/bagels brunch, so maybe I should just buy some roe...where? At Citarella? That would eliminate my mother's taxi-cab freak-out. What retail markets have beautiful fresh seafood without the price/attitude of Citarella? Thanks again, I think I have a few excellent ideas now. FYI, I mentioned Mia Dona to my mother and she told me her good friend ate there a few nights ago and found a band-aid in her soup. If this friend follows through as she is threatening and calls in the soup police, the chances of this happening again at Mia Dona have just gone way down.

Yes, I too owe my newfound combo of rhubarb and coconut to this thread. I've been making a very simple compote using only rhubarb, sugar and creme de cassis. I imagine plenty of other liqueurs or eau de vie would be yummy too. I add no other liquid and simmer for about 12-15 minutes. I love it warm just by itself, or with lemon-buttermilk sorbet or Fage yogurt. I top it with toasted unsweetened flaked coconut and toasted nuts. I worship at the altar of rhubarb.

I'll be in town next week for my mother's 90th birthday. Part of the time we will be between 4 and 8 people. I have some ideas for one or two splurge dinners (my mother is fond of Lupa) when my family thins out, but I am looking for ideas for mid-price restaurants not too far from her apartment, which is 57th and 6th Ave. Walking distance would be fantastic, but a short bus or cab ride is okay too. Japanese would be good, since that's what my brother usually wants when he eats out, and all of us like it. I'm thinking my husband and I will sneak off and try Momofuku Noodle, but that's not my mother's style and sounds out of the question for a relaxed dinner with a party of six--not to mention the long ride. Toloache sounds fun, and relatively close; is most of the food very spicy? Won't work for my mom or my brother. Seafood is good. I'm thinking of dragging her to Mary's Fish Camp, but that's an excursion as well. I would be in heaven with a great bowl of steamers or plump mussels, since northern CA lacks both. Are there any good seafood places that aren't all the way downtown? If neighborhood was no object, where's the best lobster roll? That would make my brother and me AND my mother happy. Vietnamese would work well, or bistro-type fare. Chinese maybe. Just curious: is it still shad roe season and soft-shell crab season? My mother's a sucker for the first and I'm nostalgic for the latter. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

I never had great luck translating BTU's into guaranteed high flame/fast cooking. Some residential non-commercial stoves seemed to have better power than others regardless of BTU. Some have burners with a very small diameter, and that doesn't help. For years I was frustrated that I couldn't get my wok hot enough to stir-fry properly (and yes, I know there's a currently active thread about that.) When I finally had the opportunity to change some things in my kitchen I decided to spend money on two things: a stove and a ceramic tile floor. I kept my slightly funky 70's cabinets and instead of spending big bucks on a high-concept countertop I went with old-fashioned high gloss Formica. I wanted two things out of a stove: an oven that could get up to 500 degrees and burners that would heat water really quickly and have a high enough hot enough flame for wok cooking. I had space for only a 30" stove, so I chose the bottom-of-the-line Viking. It's 15,000 BTU and heats a large pot of water amazingly fast. The oven is convection with space enough for a 15" pizza stone, and when we looked at other similar quality products no other 30" units had an oven that big (As noted above, convection seriously decreases the oven space; we actually dragged that dopey pizza stone with us when we shopped for a stove--but we use it all the time.) Viking also makes an interchangeable wok burner grate that holds the wok perfectly. This has been one of the best purchases I ever made. It was totally worth scrimping on some other details. I don't remember the price, but the difference between a good quality residential stove and the lowest price Viking was far less than it would have cost for a stone countertop. If there's any other design element in the kitchen you can live without, consider spending more on a stove.

Ooh, I'm extremely envious. I had a Deschutes Black Butte tonight. Here in northern CA we've only found a few Deschutes brews; my favorite so far is Mirror Pond. I just love it, and I'm not really much of a beer drinker. We stumbled on Deschutes while driving through Fossil, OR in August. It was 100 degrees and I had my first Black Butte. Yummy. Clearly I'm due for another road trip.

There are glowing testimonials to the no-soak oven method upthread, so that would save a lot of time. Seems like the general consensus is that runner beans need some soaking. I can't recall if there is a recipe above anywhere for the old-fashioned stove-top method, but I pretty much follow Rancho Gordo's direx for that, with a coupla additions. Whether oven or stove-top, the pot is always covered tightly. I rinse beans and soak for 5-6 hours. Then I rinse again and drain them. In a heavy pot like a creuset I saute in olive oil one small minced onion a few minutes. Then I add about a cup total of finely minced carrot and celery, and then two or three minced garlic cloves and a sprig of fresh thyme. I add the beans to coat, then add water and broth to cover by 1 to 1.5 inches. Bring to a medium boil, cook 5 minutes uncovered. Then lower to a teensy flame, throw in a couple of small dried red chilis, cover, and simmer as gently as possible for about 2 hours or until almost just right. Then I add some salt, and finish another 15 minutes. This recipe works great for 2 cups of Rattlesnake beans. I think the amount of water and cooking time may vary a bit depending upon type of bean and quantity. If you find you don't have enough bean likker during the cooking you can add more liquid. The Rattlesnake is a smallish heirloom bean, a little bit like a pinto only way better; more tasty, creamy and holds its shape. I've cooked Anasazi beans recently and found they soak up considerably more liquid. I usually use about two cups of smoked ham broth and the rest water. That adds a little salt at the front end. I'm very into Rancho Gordo's very plain way of eating them, usually over rice with just a little sea salt, minced white onion and a sprinkle of lime juice. My husband always kicks it up with a squirt of Tapatia. A local veg market here now sells six or seven types of heirloom beans in bulk, but check out Rancho Gordo and Purcell Mountain Farms for an amazing selection of beans you can order on line. Purcell has a selection of organic beans as well.

Good maple syrup is gold. No need to be in a hurry--it's only 4 quarts! I find maple syrup keeps very well in the fridge. I shove the main bottle way in the back and decant as needed into a pint container for handy use on oatmeal, pancakes, etc.

No, I wish! Il Refolo was closed when we were in Venice. I think they close early for the season, but I am sure they will be open in June. That's a good suggestion--I've heard great things about it. I have one bit of advice for anyone visiting Venice. Get the Rough Guide Map, the one sold separately and printed on rain-resistant paper. It's better than the map that comes with the Rough Guide book Venice, because it actually has EVERY street on it! No other map I've seen has every little street with every street name. It was invaluable. I've never seen anywhere in the world where more people were consulting maps at every intersection. Sometimes we just gave up and wandered aimlessly; you get lost and found about two hundred times a day. If the kids don't like to eat fish but like to look at amazing sea creatures (albeit mostly on ice) take them to the Rialto fish market, which operates almost every morning. There was a whole swordfish (really big!), live eels, teensy weensy live crabs, and all manner of amazing things. If that's too gross, make it up to them by stopping (again) at one of the six thousand gelaterias. If you want to see their eyes pop (unless they are already too high on sugar) take them to Marchini, just a couple of blocks from San Marco. It's worth it for the visuals alone; pastries from out of a dream. But then Venice is a whole city that's like a giant beautiful confection.

Thanks for the suggestions above--and no, they weren't too late. Working with rice noodles has been a long learning curve. I had the feeling I could as easily as not ruin these noodles, so I did an experiment. I poured almost boiling water over just a few noodles. Within a few seconds they were softer than I like, so I decided not to parboil them at all. 2-5 seconds might be about right, but that seems pretty hard to control. Instead I simply added them to the stir fry after the flavoring sauce went in and by the time they were heated through and mixed with the vegetables--all of 30 seconds maybe--they were done. It was very good. I had carrots, kolrabi (kolrabi must be the new "it" vegetable in Chinatown--it's everywhere), cabbage and teeny weeny baby bok choy plus a little leftover duck. My flavoring or finishing sauce was simple Andrea Nyguyen formula: soy sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil and I subbed a little duck broth for the water. Yes, these noodles do look exactly like those pictured in the bowl of Bun Bo Hue on the dustjacket of "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen." I am thinking that you could just put them in a bowl as is and pour the hot broth over them and they would be just right. This is inspiring me to take a closer look at these fresh rice noodles and see what else I can do with them. Sorry, no pix!

I second Da Alberto, especially for lunch. We had a late lunch there, just walked in. The tables were well-spaced, and even tho no kids were with us I would definitely have been comfortable w/kids. The waitstaff was very sweet and relaxed. And the mussels were out of this world. I'm sure they would make your kids a simple plate of pasta. I looked in vain for good pizza in Venice. One place was okay, with nice outdoor tables next to a small canal (can't remember the name) but I would avoid Ae Oche, which for some reason is highly touted in the guide books. At night it was full of young noisy people (not that that's a bad thing), sevice was slow and we all thought the pizzas were dreadful.

Howdy, I have a noodle question. Typically when I buy rice noodles for Viet stir-fry or soups I buy dried. But today, on a whim, I bought fresh rice noodles in Chinatown. They are packaged in a styrofoam tray as always, looking beautiful. The label says Bahn Tam. Does Tam denote a thickness? They are round noodles, about the thickness of cooked regular spaghetti--not vermicelli. I want to make a stir-fry tomorrow night. I probably should use them asap--like tonight--but I can't do that. Do I need to drop these noodles in boiling water before I do anything else? Or can I add them to the wok toward the end (the way I would if I pre-cooked al dente fresh Chinese wheat noodles) just so they get heated thru and coated w/sauce for the finish?

Thank you Cakewalk and all others whose enthusiasm for Sephardic Charoset nudged me over the fence. I'm never going back. I made a hybrid that seems most like the recipes for Yemenite or Turkish Charoset, which use both fresh apple and dried fruit. And I basically used what I had in the house already. Approx 1+ cup of finely chopped dried figs and apricots was soaked in wine (not sweet wine) for an hour or so. Walnuts and pine nuts were briefly toasted and then chopped fine. I finely minced by hand 3 Braeburns and a green apple, sprinkling with lemon juice as I chopped, then added a lemon's worth of fine zest. I drizzled the apples with honey to taste--stopped at still tart. Then I mixed in the soaked fruits and added a little bit more wine, then the nuts, and finally a few shakes of toasted sesame seeds and a very modest sprinkle of salt. It was fabulous, got raves, and sadly, there wasn't a forkful left to take home. The pine nuts added a terrific flavor and just the small amount of sesame seeds was a great surprise. If I had had dates or pistachios around I think I would have tried to work them in too. Dates & walnuts is tried-and-true; apricots & pistachios is a divine intervention.

That sounds very yummy. I've never had onion marmalade. Anyone know how to make it? I think one could come up with a very nice low-brow version of this sandwich with some type of pate, onion marmalad and....what was the chocolate like? Dark or more like nutella? Nutella would be pretty much of a surprise paired with Foie Gras. Talk about high-low. When we in the south of France last fall we did a lot of picnicking. We would end up with the remains of Salade de Museau, various pates, various cheeses, etc. Salade de Museau, alone or in combo with other things, makes for a very satisfying sandwich.

Mine is very simple but it's all about texture. Also, I do not use sweet wine. I confess that the seder we attend is very lax, and everyone brings great wine and lots of it, most of it CA wine and there are usually a few bottles that are kosher. So, I've always used a red wine leftover from the night before, like a pinot or a light cab or a merlot or whatever's around. I don't go near a processor, so it's just a tad time-consuming. I slice my apples as thin as I can, then chop them carefully into tiny little dice. The walnuts are also chopped by hand, very fine as well. As the apples are chopped I spritz them with lemon juice to keep them from browning and to tarten them up. Then I add a little honey to taste, and then a generous sprinkling of wine. I use 3 apples (usually one of them green) to a 1/2 cup of walnuts, and the honey and wine I just do by taste/feel; I don't like it sweet. I save some at home and then bring back my friend's fabulous home-made horseradish just so I can have it the next day. There's someone else who comes to this seder who also brings charoset. It's very sweet and looks like cement. Not very appealing. Cakewalk: I would love to see those recipes, they sound very tempting. I might try incorporating soaked fruit into the apples just for a change.