Landru

Foreman grills are fantastic for Reubens. I have heard that the removable surface ones don't get quite as hot as the non-removable one. I feel the original poster's pain. Up here in Seattle the Reuben is just something to mess up and try to vary at the cook's whim. One brewpub has the audacity to say their "Reuben" is classic when it is 1) baked and 2) using pickled red cabbage slaw. This is not a Reuben. This is a baked corned beef sandwich with thousand island and picked red cabbage slaw. Hmmphh! I do find classic Reubens at little lunch grills downtown that are run by immigrants - they know what customers want and deliver!

I made a "Pod" cocktail last night: 1 part vanilla liqueur 1 part tamarind liqueur 1 part sage liqueur 1 part light rum All liqueurs were homemade. It was divine - the flavors all melded into a deep and rooty autumnal surprise.

I made paw paw liqueur from some frozen paw paws my Mother-in-law transported on a plane from Virginia - I wonder how the TSA dealt with that... In any case, since I had no idea what the taste would be like I infused it with vodka. It had a banana custard flavor and was naturally thick. I think rum would be a natural mixer or base for the liqueur. Bourbon would go very well too. I use the liqueur to make cocktails with my nutty liqueurs - hickory, black walnut, hazelnut etc. Since it also has a "tropical" side to it, I wondered if it would go well with citrus - from KatieLoeb's post - it sounds like it does, I'll try it with my citrus/tropical liqueurs and see what happens!

Last week at our house: Jug of Hot Brewed Tea with ice cubes in it (to make iced tea) was put next to a half gallon of milk. Half gallon of milk was ruined. Lesson was learned - didn't think it was really possible, but it is!

I've made a lot of raspberry (and black/blue berry as well) infusions. I'll give my thoughts on your numbered questions: 1. I have not run across any fermentation issues at all with my berries - I do use freshly picked as we have great sources in Seattle. The alcohol should stop any fermentation - I would stay away from Everclear though, it might be too harsh if you end up with subtle berries. 2. I have made cough syrup whilst thinking I was making liqueur. My Robitussin 2008 was famed for it's particular "robust" cough syrup taste. The problem was that I used a book's hint to add clove/cinnamon to my raspberry infusion. My advice is to stay away from adding spices to raspberry. I've never had the cough syrup thing happen on straight raspberry, blackberry or blueberry infusions - or with the berries infused with citrus peels. 3. Infusion time is so variable with the fruit - for raspberries I generally use at least a month and sometimes up to three (but three is more out of laziness than intent). Never had a problem. 4. As I said in no. 2 - I avoid spices! Citrus is always welcome in berry liqueurs - the lemon peel is probably more congenial than orange. Raspberry is very forward and sweet so to balance it you may want a "bitter" liquor to infuse it with - try tequila, brandy or gin! Vanilla goes very well with raspberry - split a vanilla bean or too and add to the infusion and it will round it out as well. Other ideas are grapefruit peels, rosemary, basil, or sage leaves. Think what you might like on a raspberry dessert!

Paul Masson Brandy - cheap and surprisingly useful as a brandy.

I agree, the Roundup/GM issue is enough to worry about Whole Foods doing business with Monsanto, but it's the ethos that Monsanto has consistently demonstrated that makes one want to run away as far as possible from them. Suing the farmer who had contaminated crops that weren't his fault is not a unfortunate incident - it is a cornerstone of their policy. You know Google's motto "Don't be evil"? Monsanto's is more like "Just be evil".

Fish lips. Don't know from what fish. All I know is that I was with my family in London's Chinatown and we couldn't agree on a place to eat. Touristy Chinese place beckoned. I like adventure so I got the Fish Lips. It was tasteless gelatinous goo. My brother and I both came down with violent food poisoning afterwards.

You are correct about wrapping fish in the leaves and baking/smoking them gives the fish a nice coconut flavor. Don't really need a recipe - just do it! I've also made a fig leaf liqueur which came out fabulous. Though I do wonder as well about the latex so I don't give it to my friends :0).

Yes, a vacuum sealer would work - at the expense of easy access though if you're using bags. When we've dried peels (orange and lemon) we have noticed some alteration of flavor - you get more "carmel" notes - which can be very attractive when making a Grand Marnier type of liqueur but maybe not want you want when making limoncello. That was from drying it in a dehydrator - maybe it wouldn't happen if air dried?@Rooftop: Simple syrup will round it out a bit. Also using a drop of orange bitters when making drinks might give it another dimension beyond Pledge.

Luke - Lemon zest does freeze well, but since it is kind of hard to get an airfree seal on a container suitable for the zest, it might pick up freezer odors if left in there too long. Ours also gets ice crystals from the residual moisture, but it doesn't harm it.

Tequila always seems to go well with citrus and maybe strawberries as well. My favorite tequila infusion is grapefruit. I've also done a cactus flower infusion in tequila - the taste for that batch was a little too subtle, but the bright red color was fantastic. Kent, I've had terrific batches of blackberry and boring batches of blackberry liqueurs. I wish I knew what made the difference, because I think I didn't really prepare them differently. My bet is the state of the fruit at the time - whether it was early or late in the season and therefore sourer or sweeter. Right now my favorite infusions are paw paw made with vodka, however bourbon would have made it a knockout; fennel seed in vodka, using fresh fennel seed gives it a sweet, piney taste - and as a mixer just adds so much dimension to a drink; bay leaf rum, again as a mixer; and finally hickory whiskey (try saying that after 3 or 4...). BTW: Paw paw is a fruit native to the Southern US, tastes a little like banana, but much more custardy and deep.

This definitely happens in office cultures. A box of donuts or bagels appear in the breakroom or kitchen. Soon thereafter there is a box of cut in half bagels and donuts. Then those bagels/donuts get cut into quarters (by the same people who did the original halving) and so on. Not being one of those halvers, I don't know the philosophy of it, but my suspicion is that it would be *too much* to take a whole one, therefore "I'll leave half". Of course, subsequent people don't want somebody's half donut, so they cut a new one...and so on. Of course, I also suspect that the halvers end up eating the whole donut/bagel over time. Me-I just brazenly take a whole one and don't shilly-shally about it.

For what it's worth - I did a pitch-perfect replication of Robitussin with my infusion of raspberries, vodka and a few whole cloves. I thought the cloves would add a "spice" to the mix. Nope, I got a liter of cough syrup...

Hey - that's also my go-to brandy for making liqueurs - it really has a perfect profile for a liqueur base. My favorite is a black walnut liqueur. And you can't beat it's price.