aliénor

twice i went with low cost faucets and both had to be replaced. this last time i went with a franke faucet with a pull out spout and i have very satisfied with it. yes, it was costly but think of all the use you give it. my feelig is buy cheap and replace, so go with the best you can afford- it is realy worth it in the long run. the same goes for countertops we used to have formica beacaues my husband always said it was easy and cheap to replace, so we replaced it four times. now the last replacement is granite and it really is great. it doesnt stain, nothing burns it and so far nothing scratches it. again if you can afford it go for it

when we lived in berlin (for 3 months) we started a life list of german cakes found in the "konditerei". it was a great adventure and we got tried over a dozen different cakes. and then we had to leave...... we still have the list somewhere and if we ever go back to berlin we will continue with this catalog

when we lived in barcelona we had the most marvelous hot chocolate drink. it was so thick that our churros could stand upright in the cup. does anyone know how it is done? i would love to know surprise my husband with this tasty drink

well, we have been going to nice for the last 9 years and still can't do la merenda. maybe we will try it on our next visit. but i will tell you our nicoise relatives think that its reputation is overblown. we have gone to a wonderful for eating and comfortable for sitting restaurant in fallicon,which is north of the city. it is not too well known outside of the native folks but well worth the visit. also,there are a few morevery good places but at present i can't remember their names, but all are native favorites...

we are in nice every year visiting our son and his family and we have never eaten at la merenda. our reason is--the chairs have no backs. they are just stools. i can't see sitting, eating and enjoying a meal with no back support. does anyone have a comment about this quirk of mine

Tofu brains? What an excellent name, I can't wait to see how you make it. Is it a Japanese of Chinese dish? i am also waiting to see and read about "tofu brains". i really enjoy sauteed brains but can't have them in the house because my husband freaks out if he sees them. this sounds as tho it might be a good substitute. looking forward to the recipe thanks

a local diner in our new england area will sometimes serve "vinegar pie". i think that is unusual and also tasty and different. i don't have any specific recipe but you can google it to find some recipes if you are interested

last year we also rented an apartment in the same area and we would heartily agree to the two suggestions mentioned in the above post. definitely worth the visit quote: <We liked Breizh Cafe for delicious crepes (109, rue Vielle du Temple) and Le Cafe des Musees (49, rue de Turenne) for dinner on Sunday. These are within a ten minute walk.> alienor now in freezing n.h can't wait till we are back in france in april-,but i will have to....

i don't know where in vt you live, but if you are within a decent driving distance from the hanover coop in hanover nh you could find them there. i have seen them there, but to be sure give them a call to find out if they are there that day or even have them put away for you. the coop is very helpful

my son who lives in southern france, is making a thanksgiving dinner next weekend for expat friends and their spouses. i have sent him lots of ideas and urls but now he is asking the following, < do you know any recipes (good ones) for a turkey done japanese style? is there such a thing? or maybe cantonese turkey?????> can anyone help him or is he just a few degrees off center. seriously, he would love some ideas to work with. it has been a tradition, for many years, for him to do an american t-day dinner, but obviously he is tired of the usual and traditional and wants to break out of the mold. how about it- any suggestions.......

can you explain or talk a bit more about these techniques. what does it all mean? i haven't a clue to what you are referring

thanks for all the suggestions. they have helped me to rethink my menus. he was only told to stay away from onions-not garlic, scallions or shallots:it is a bit strange. so the idea of this diet is to get him away from acidic foods and the other irritants such as coffee, tea, alcohol, soda, most fruit juices, chocolate-all the good things one egulleter helped me out with a personal message referring me to a special website dealing with a variation of his problem, and at this site i found lots of info. ' thanks for all the help so i'll be working on this for a while.

my husband has been having bladder problems and he has been told to stay away from, coffee, chocolate, tomatoes, vinegar, onions and several other ingredients. this regime is supposed to be remove bladder muscle irritants. but it is hard to think of much food- except meat and potatoes and that is too boring-without those ingredients- it means no ratatouile, no marinara sauce, etc., fortunately garlic is ok. but i always make stir fries with lots of onions ...so i am in need of ideas, recipes and help in general. hoping i can get some good ideas from the group tia

i will be in the meredith, wolfeboro area in new hamphire and would like recs for a decent lunch place. not too pricey, good food and it can even be ethnic if that exists in that area. i have been to the "turkey farm" near meredith and will not go again. please give me some suggestions. eating well on a business trip is a like a good dessert after a long workout tia

i have kept flour-types such as rice, wheat, etc- in my freezer, but i am not sure how long they can be kept. also i would like to know if it is okay to take out the 5 lb bag of flour that has been in the freezer for over a year and now leave it in the pantry to use daily or weekly. would any moisture in the thawed bag cause damage to the product. i feel quite unsure about this and would love to hear what people have to say about this practice. my preference is to now take out some of this frozen flour and start using it and freeing up freezer space thanks for all your input

i bought a standing rib roast from a locally raised grass fed beef. now i am wondering how to properly cook it. the reason that i am hesitant to commit to cooking this piece of meat is that i have already grilled a steak from this animal and we found it very chewy, hard to slice and were disappointed at the lack of juiciness. we had hoped to get a succulent flavorful piece and instead found it lacking in most of the aspects we desire in a steak. so rather than do up the standing rib roast i will put it to you egulleters to help me make the most of this piece of meat. i know you can help me to enjoy this locally raised meat. thanks

i was just visiting in paris and went into a tea room with my husband. not a fancy place, just a small neighborhood place in either the third or fourth arrond. my husband ordered an espresso-price 2 euro 50. i ordered tea with milk. i received a small pitcher of of water a small pitcher of cold milk and a teacup with a bag of tea-no special brand on the tag. the cost of this service for me was -get this!-4 euro 50 . absolutely outrageous. and this wasn't unusual, most places were i had tea whether in the airport or a cafe overcharged for the tea. why are we, the tea drinkers of the world, so discriminated against. regards from france.

in march we are headed to paris for a four day vacation on the way to our son and daughter-in law's house in nice. we have rented an aartment in the marais area and hope to move about paris to take in the museums, parc, etc. i hope the weather will be better than three years ago when we were there in december. but now i would love to hear from you where to eat without breaking the bank. we may concentrate on lunch and eat supper chez nous. i am mostly looking for 30 euro prix fixe of good quality. any suggestions? also will love to do one place for around 100 euro for two. i hope this price is not too constraining. we do love ethnic food and know that sometimes the least expensive restos are ethnic. so, we are open to all suggestions. btw, to john talbot -the link for cheap eats does not work. a few of the other links on the compendium are also not functioning a bientot alienor

<I also happen to have an incurable addiction to buying food magazines, most of which end up browsed through once and then sitting on a shelf.> i am also addicted and in the past bought several food magazines and stored the all over the house. now i have solved that problem. i have given my local library several subscriptions to my favorites and thus can read them and have them stored away from home. in the meantime i am beginning to rid the house of years and years of these old magazines. i need more shelf space for books and cookbooks. don't know how to deal with thiis problem....

i spent the weekend with my grandchildren and after making loads of pancakes in a 9 inch skillet i have decided that i need a stovetop griddle, but can't decide what type-cast iron or non-sttick. in the non-stick variety there are many different choices of brands. my stove is a kitchen-aid with a high output burner and a low output directly behind it. so i was hoping that there may be someone out there who can help me with the decision. thanks in advance for your help

i spent the weekend with my grandchildren and after making loads of pancakes in a 9 inch skillet i have decided that i need a stovetop griddle, but can't decide what type-cast iron or non-ststick. in the non-stick variety there are many different choices of brands. my stove is a kitchen-aid with a high output burner and a low output directly behind it. so i was hoping that there may be someone out there who can help me with the decision. thanks in advance for your help

i am headed into logan tomorrow to pick up some family at the airport. i hope to get in early enough to go into chinatown. i am looking to buy one to two dozed char siu bao (steamed pork dumplings) to take home and freeze. does anyone have any recommendation where i could buy these bao. i live two and half hours away and this is my time to load up on chinese ingredients, meat, etc. thanks for all your help

my husband is fishing again after a 20 year break. he has caught several small mouth bass and we are eating well. but i would like to filet the fish and my chef's knife and vegetable knives are to big and broad to do an adequate job. can anyone recommend a good knife to help me with fileting. i am willing to spend a good amount to get a good knife. it is just the beginning of the summer and i can see many more days of fresh fish coming. yummy

we are considering the purchase of a new automatic espresso machine. i was wondering if anyone had any opinions on the saeco talea giro. it aint cheap and it seems to do everything. we have used our son's saeco magic comfort many times and found it to give a good cup of espresso,but now it seems to be supplanted by a newer model. would like to hear from anyone about their experiences with saeco and in particular the new talea model. btw, we are coming off a $150 krups model and looking forward to the upgrade.