haresfur

The couta bones are a bit much to deal with, although they are large enough you can't miss them! Came as a total surprise. I'd probably go for something else most of the time. FWIW, this came from the ethnic Chinese shop a few doors down from the ethnic Greek, I think. It's too bad that the menu is pretty much the same everywhere. Some day I need to find out what a Pluto Pup is.

How does My First Vegemite compare to regular Vegemite in terms of flavor? Is it just less salty or actually has a different taste to it? I find it a bit hard to say because I find the salt so overwhelming in regular Vegemite. I have MightyMite at home because it is a bit less salty. To me, My First tastes quite malty and maybe not so "dark".

I've been playing with Vegemite in sauces like chili or spaghetti. It certainly can't hurt if used judiciously. Recently, I've used My First Vegemite, which gives you greater control on the salt. I wonder if the Danes are worried about the folate - as was falsely rumored to be a concern in the US. Folate can mask a serious deficiency in B-12. I can't believe that's a huge issue, except in rare cases and the benefits IMO would outweigh the problems. Marmite has heaps of B-12, anyway. Kraft's website doesn't list B-12 in vegemite but do for My First.

Is the Powell's cookbook store the one on Hawthorne? Bread and Ink Cafe was a favorite brunch spot of mine when visiting Portland. Uwajimaya looks amazing. I didn't know about it. How's the asparagus this year? I'm guessing it's too early for cherries. Do you ever get over to the dry side? Looking forward to more baking tips.

Last night I went to a different F&C shop from my usual and ordered Couta (Thyrsites atun). After I ordered the owner said he really liked it, and they gave me 2 large pieces. I didn't know a fish could have so many bones! Big ones through all the flesh. I basically had to deconstruct it to eat, which sort of negates the point of the batter, I guess. But the flesh was very firm and the taste not bad. I think if I were to get it again, I'd pay the extra to get it grilled since you have to mince it apart to get the bones out of the middle. Any one else tried it and have opinions?

I don't use a lot of milk so UHT is great IMO. Much better than about-to-turn regular milk. Milk around here doesn't seem to keep well - particularly the stuff in plastic bottles. When I worked in northern Canada, we would get milk frozen before it was flown in. Lasted longer and kept the food cool, too but didn't taste so great. I suppose you could freeze UHT just to use as ice blocks, too. That being said, one time when I was cycling in England I asked for UHT milk in a small town and got a whithering reply about fresh milk. And that was the freshest, best, milk I have ever tasted. Felt kind of sick after quaffing a liter, though.

Ok, but if it's not boiling, why is it bubbling? Where you don't have a mixture of different boiling-point liquids, the bubbles would indicate localised attainment of boiling temperature. This would be where there is not enough energy input to raise the temperature of the entire system to boiling point, the heat losses from top and sides making them cooler, while the heat input at the base will make it hotter than the average of the whole panful. I think 'Simmering' describes the (near steady-state) condition where heat transport away from the base is not always fast enough to prevent hot spots (and/or nucleation sites) from reaching the liquid's boiling point. Ok. This makes sense. But it does point out the limitation of trying to define "simmer" as a specific temperature. The temperature at the base is just at the boiling temperature but the surface of the liquid will be a little below. And the boiling temperature (temperature at which the liquid becomes a vapour) depends on the composition (e.g. salt content) and the pressure (altitude).

A strap wrench for opening jars. Dirt cheap at Harbor Freight in the USA. I keep 2 sizes in the kitchen.

Ok, but if it's not boiling, why is it bubbling?

Yeah, Multnomah Falls in Oregon unless you believe the Twilight movie where it is just outside Forks, Washington. Need another clue to narrow down the guesses, though.

Shhh! They might start calling the bitters "potable" and taxing them as such.

I'll never buy the pet mince at Aldi again. Twice I've got bad bags and you know it's really bad when the dog can't hold it down.

I don't think this is correct. At boiling the amount of heat in the water is essentially constant so any additional heat from the burner either goes into boiling the water faster or is lost out the sides or top of the pot. When you add a given amount of pasta it takes a fixed amount of heat to bring it up to boiling temperature (or if you prefer it saps a fixed amount of heat) no matter how much water. So no matter how much water, the stove has to add the same amount of heat to bring it back to boil except for the fact that a larger pot will be losing more heat to the environment. It seems to me the smaller pot will drop to a lower temperature but return to boiling faster. I suppose the temperature drop could have an effect on how well the pasta cooks - particularly for pasta that cooks quickly but I'm skeptical. I think the biggest problem of a small pot is crowding increasing the chance of the pasta sticking to the bottom of the pot and to each other. That can be addressed through stirring so it really depends on how much you are willing to baby-sit.

Yes, the plate needs to be bigger or the cup smaller Actually, I quite like this one because it has a good sense of movement, like someone was hurrying to get their coffee and cookies. The top cookie needs to be in focus and I'd reduce the other side to only one or two. With some fill light I think it would tell a good story. A bigger plate might not work as well because it seems like there is tension in the cookies and the cup competing for space on the saucer. ... I suppose I'm anthropomorphizing a bit much

Makes sense to me. I've used Ikea elderflower syrup instead of sugar in an "Old Fashioned" with good results. In fact, that sounds like a good plan for the evening.

I'll suggest a contrary approach: if you don't relish the prospect of all that brewing hassle, find some more interesting tea bags. There are actually some teas that I (shame) like better in tea bags than loose. Rather than reverting to Lipton's, run through some small packs of different varieties. When you find something you want to come back to, then maybe try the loose leaf to compare. Then try to optimize the brewing parameters.

Oh, I so miss the lunchera trucks! Do yours sell tortas, too?

Ok David, I guess I can't argue with any of that. ... But I'm not about to feel guilty about any tastes I don't manage to acquire...

Wasn't "Dr. Fernet" supposedly Swedish or Finnish?

Good idea Dan. Actually, last night I went with gin:amero:maraschino 2:1:1. The ratios could use a little fiddling and maybe a slightly softer gin than Tanq. But overall it was darn tasty.

Is English the only language where it is seen as pretentious to use pronunciation that sounds "foreign"? I think it would be reasonable to list Anglicized and French pronunciation as correct.

Thanks for the tour. It's been a long time since I was in Saskatoon and it looks like the food only gets better.

Picked up a new-to-me Lazzaroni Amaro today. Pretty sweet, tastes basically like a non-fizzy chinotto. Not unpleasant but not sure what I will do with it aside from maybe drinking straight or topped with soda water or tonic. Anyone run into this one?

Awesome. Do you put the chocolate syrup on the glass before or after you build the drink?

That sounds great. I bet the chocolate goes well. I've mixed Campari with lemon sorbet. Looks nice swirled in with straight lemon but I've had problems getting the swirl right.