auds

Smiling in delight! Have you ever tried just plain whipped jello? You let it get semi-jelled, then whip it with a mixer for a l o n g time, maybe 5 minutes. It becomes a delightfully artificially flavored mousse. Almost but not quite Jello 1-2-3. No! I must try!

In the '70s, Jello made a fruit flavored product that once whipped for 5 minutes, separated into 3 layers: clear, mousse and fluff. Kids loved it. JELLO 1-2-3! I love love LOVED Jello 123 as a kid, and then one day it was just gone. My mom couldn't find it anywhere and the guy at the grocery store said they weren't making it any more. We theorized that they realized whatever magical chemical made the layers separate was like carcinogenic or something. I actually went as Jello 123 for Halloween one year, with bright pink tights, a pastel pink skirt, and a formerly-white shirt that had been accidentally washed with red stuff. Nobody had ever heard of it and nobody knew what I was supposed to be. I miss you, Jello 123.

Huh. I always plan on serving the meal at least a half hour after the guests arrive--usually more like 45 mins or an hour because I have late friends. I put out snacky stuff but I thought people like having a drink and a chat before the meal at a dinner party? I am a late eater by nature, but I specifically invite people to arrive a half hour before the normal person dinner hour. I think I would find it weird if I went to someone's house and they had me sit down at the table before I'd even had a cocktail and said hi to everyone. Maybe I'm being rude? I hope not...

Yes, that is similar to how this guy said it, very softly pronounced L. Okay I am going to consider that case closed then.

This is the perfect place for you smart people to help me with a question that I have been trying to get an authoritative answer on! So okay, paella: I grew up in S. Texas with Mexican Spanish speakers so I always heard it pronounced pieYAYya. When I moved up north, I heard people saying pieYELa, and I just assumed they were mispronouncing it. Then I visited Spain and ordered it as pieYAYya and the waiter VERY firmly corrected me, saying it's payYELa, because the word is Catalan\Valencian, not Castellano. So, okay, that guy seems like he knows what he's talking about, but now when I say it that way people who are smart about Spanish food correct me. Not like it comes up that often or anything, I'm just confused now. Help!

RRO aka Kate! Yay! I've been hoping you'd do a blog--your dinners always look so amazing. Looking forward to another great week. Food blogs are on fire lately.

I LOVE Aki and Alex's fresh polenta: http://blog.ideasinfood.com/ideas_in_food/2009/07/fresh-polenta.html I bought a cheap corn creamer just to make this every year, and I live in a tiny NYC apartment. It's wonderful with just about anything, but my favorite is a summer shrimp and grits. Fresh polenta, butter-poached shrimp, diced tomato, green herb of choice, Louisana hot sauce. Bacon eaters could add bacon but it's not really necessary.

My favorite favorite salad is fresh shell peas, just cooked; raw sugar snaps, sliced; pea shoots; sliced radishes; and goat or mild feta cheese. Either a light lemon vinaigrette or a honey cumin dressing. Picture TK when spring hurries up and gets here. I CAN'T WAIT FOR PEAS!

Speck's domain hasn't been renewed either: http://speckfoodandwine.com/

"Quick breakfast of frog in the hole. We never had this growing up. The first time I saw it was during the movie Moonstruck. They had a fantastic scene when the mother was cooking this while lecturing Cher. I thought, "Wow! That really looks good." She had some pancetta cooked and put on the top of it. " Oh that's so funny! My mom used to call toad in the hole "Moonstruck eggs" for just that reason. Great blog so far!

Biga on the Banks! On the Riverwalk, gorgeous, great food. I grew up in San Antonio and my sister even staged there before culinary school, so I've been many times and always come away happy. Too bad La Reve closed, not that it's in the right nabe but still: pretty great Dover sole for S. Texas. A lot of those Riverwalk restaurants are cheeseball but Biga's a winner. Try the fried oyster app or the game packets, if they're still on the menu. And be prepared for TX-sized portions. Even in fine dining you just get a ton of food down there.

Oh! Or limon/orange/bergamotcello. If everyone brings their own zester, you could make massive quantities without the usual wrinkled fingers at the end. Then in a few months when it's ready, you can get together and sample. Sorry if this veers too far from your original question. I should have a party, I guess.

Like you suggested, moles freeze well and have lots of jobs to do in their creation. Carnitas, like a whole huge bunch? Or even a selection of salsas. Kimchee is often a group project, though not freezable, really. I have also had much fun at canning parties--lots of folks are intimidated by the canner so it's nice for them to see someone else do it first. Not really farmers' market season in my hemisphere, but it's marmalade-making season and cutting up all the rind can be really fiddly.

And also, yes, FG, I think you are exactly right--what goes into the calculation, once you remove the love/leisure part, is what do you have more of: time or money?

Y'all, at Whole Foods over the holidays I saw bottled turkey brine for sale for I think around $12 for maybe a quart bottle? Now I know it's New York, but really.