Katie Meadow

@liuzhouIt wouldn't surprise me if they were served but not steamed in the bamboo basket. They seem pretty delicate, and a leak onto the next-down layer of dumplings would be a mess. Also the bottoms of a couple of dumplings can get sticky and make it a bit tricky to even maneuver them onto a spoon, so there's a good reason right there to steam them in something they might be less likely to stick to. And I hope you are on the mend. This probably sounds totally stupid, but I think I would rather have lousy Chinese hospital food than the lousy American hospital food we get.

I've had a bamboo steamer for about twenty years. I used it once! So not exactly a brilliant purchase. When we were in Asheville NC there were a couple of good restaurants within walking distance that served soup dumplings in the top basket. Enough room for 6 dumplings. Soup dumplings don't seem to be as common here in the Bay Area. Since we both had colds and were in an airbnb that wasn't well stocked, those two restaurants were life-savers.

Take care and get better fast, whatever it is.

Well, okay, I didn't read the intro, and I'm a teeny bit embarrassed. I may be a dope, but my critique of the Times food editors still stands: why not call it Cold Noodle Soup with Tomatoes? As a cold soup, constructed by dumping in a lot of water and ice, it doesn't sound very appealing and I most likely would not have made it. Lesson learned! But as a cold sauced noodle dish (not soup) it wasn't bad! My takeaway from this is twofold: 1) Read a recipe carefully before making it. 2) Trust your instincts. And many thanks to all of you for being better readers.

Sometimes I wonder if the NYT actually tests their recipes with wide awake experienced humans in a kitchen. This was a recent recipe of theirs that I made, and it was pretty good. However my adjustments almost read like a joke, since I made so many of them. A couple of days later I looked at the recipe again and noticed that a couple of savvy critics were also mystified by some of the steps. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1022543-cold-noodles-with-tomatoes I made this because we are having a very nasty heat wave here in the Bay Area and I really do like cold Asian style noodles. Changes I made, some also made by others, included cutting the amount of water added to the sauce by at least half, so the sauce still had some flavor. The other really weird instruction has to do with cooling down the cooked noodles: they specify adding a ridiculous amount of crushed ice to the sauced noodles. First of all that dilutes the sauce, and second of all why not just allow time for your noodles to get cold? After all it isn't supposed to a cold soup, which would happen if one used the amount of total water they suggest. I didn't have any nice fresh Chinese wheat noodles, so I used thin spaghetti, which was fine. I cut back the volume of cherry tomatoes, didn't use any sugar in the sauce because I just didn't see the need. I added cooked, cooled shelled edamame, and upped the sliced radishes and scallions. In the end it turned out to be quite good. I like the technique of mixing up all the sauce and vegetables and then spooning it over individual portions. That avoids the annoyance of trying to serve well balanced portions of slippery noodles and sauce.

I've made Atlantic Beach Pie a bunch of times. I liked it with the saltine crust but my husband did not. I found a recipe that used a lemon biscotti to make the crust and that pleased us both. I imagine you could use any number of biscotti flavors, but I think a softer biscotti may work better than a very hard crunchy one.

And then there's Bridge Mix, always a sign of disappointments to follow when you see them in a bowl. Like raisinettes. I have no memory of Passover candy. My concept of Israeli candy is still stuck with Hannukah gelt. Worse even than Hershey's milk chocolate. For dessert at Passover my favorite tradition was meringues and strawberries. And a gluten-free walnut cake that everyone loved except me.

Sorry, not good enough! I don't need pix. But I do want to know what it was, and most importantly, whether or not you made it

so funny! It's been so long since I had canned salmon that I forgot about that little bone. The few times in the last 40 years we have opened a can I don't believe my husband even knew that little bone existed. I got to it too fast. Same thing when we have sardines on toast. I confiscate this little spines at once. My justification is that I need the calcium more than he does.

I too am a big fan of the Nyakers tin. I have tried smaller packs of the same and they don't stay as crisp as the big tin ones. I look the other way and pretend that there isn't a enormous quantity of what the ingredients lists as "vegetable margarine." But let's face it, you couldn't make such an affordable cookie using real butter. But they aren't graham crackers.

My experience is like yours. Either Honey Maid has gone downhill or my taste buds are too fussy. They are bland and too sweet to my taste these days. Always surprised that no graham cracker alternatives exist. You would think the time has come for those of us who seek nostalgic foods. Just think what good s'mores could be made with better graham crackers and decent bittersweet chocolate I have made Alton Brown's recipe and they were good, but a lot of work for a few graham crackers. And I agree, Bob's graham flour is very nice..

The smoked trout I've had from TJ's is not canned. It's in the fridge section. It is very very salty. The last time I bought it I could barely eat it, even in small amounts. Of course YMMV, and it is also possible that the product varies as well.

Which place on Clement do you like best for your takeout? A million years ago I lived a couple of blocks from Clement.

Has anyone done a taste test to compare the Nuri vs the Pinhais? The cans of Nuri do say Pinhais in smallish print. On Amazon the 4-pack variety descriptions are just the same. Both are 4.4 oz per can. If they are in fact the same origin marketed differently then the Nuri are a much better deal. I haven't been to Cost Plus World Market in a zillion years, but as far as I know they still exist in Oakland. Only reason to go there is to go to Bev Mo on the same trip, a couple of blocks away.

At least half the ideas suggested here are not what I consider "I don't want to cook" dinners. If I don't want to cook or if I am hungry and cranky for one reason or another, and let's say for the sake of argument there are no appealing leftovers in the fridge, my desperation meals are sardines on toast, grilled cheese and tomato sandwich, or, if I am feeling sorry for myself and also have no bread i can toast, then ramen. Apple and cheese works too, provided we have crackers. If my husband is willing to take the time to cook pasta I can handle waiting, but ordinarily we don't keep store bought sauces, so it would most likely have to be topped with butter, garlic and hard grated cheese, and fresh raw tomatoes if in season. These are all basically baby food. When you have a tired toddler (meaning me in emergency situations) it has to be something that takes less than ten minutes and involves no recipes, little or no chopping, no baking and most importantly no thinking.

That's lovely.

Wasn't there a thread once about three ingredients that were horrible together? Peanut butter, celery and raisins belongs there. Throw it into the compost pile and you will get ants on a log.

That's the one. It's a little fussbudget, but that's GH for you. And I don't know what planet her cambazola comes from, but mine isn't easily "sliced." And she is also a fanatic about Pepperidge farm white bread, which must have been a staple when she was young. I'm less attached, and just use a any pullman like bread.

Another excellent winter salad, slightly Waldorfian, is simply apples, celery and walnuts. But no mayo, just a tangy dressing of olive oil, lemon, dijon mustard, a very cautious smidge of honey, and a little salt to taste. Ordinarily I stay clear of honey in dressing, but this works.

I'm in! Is there a recipe handy? I know there are people who hate celery, and I'm always amazed. It isn't like they have an allergy, they just claim to hate it. My fridge is never without it. Potato salad and tuna salad and shrimp salad depend on it. How could you make red beans and rice without the trinity? And you would miss out on Gabrielle Hamilton's celery toast with cambazola. So harmless, yet so essential. Of course I have no medical reason to hate broccoli, and yet I hate it.

When my daughter was little there was a great place in Berkeley called Le Cafe Crayon (pronounced the French way for extra credit, please.) They had a room full of wooden trains and toys for your kids. Moms or dads could order a latte or cap or macchiato and you could buy, for pennies, a bowl of goldfish for your kid. A brilliant idea! Play dates for everyone.

Another vote for cold beets with creme fraiche. Borsht minus time. I like the idea or serving beets with smoked fish. And I like the idea of adding a dab of horseradish to the creme fraiche.

Or they could go the extra mile and serve oyster crackers.

One of my most memorable meals ever happened in a bar/restaurant in Waitsburg WA (that's the next town over from Walla Walla.) The cook was working with a portable stove. She had just returned from a visit to her father. who grew lots of lovage. She managed to pan fry a fantastic steak and served it with a lovage pesto. It seemed otherworldly to me, never having had lovage before. I think it was just crushed lovage and oil and garlic, but in truth I have forgotten. Anyway her husband and co-owner was the mixologist. After dinner the adjacent space turned into a music venue. Topping off the evening was a gorgeous French woman who was part of a cheesemaking collective nearby. She played the saw... No hecklers there (that would be dangerous) just rapt locals. The cheese people had a great tasting room and you could play with baby goats. It was late spring.

I know I'm not. Yes, those red yolks are fabulous. @liamsauntyou must have boundless energy. I am endlessly envious of all the east coast seafood. We have an ocean over here but clam varieties are limited. What I wouldn't give for a bowl of steamers.