Marlene

Rocketman has provided his real name, address and phone number to eGullet Society management, as all members are required to do. We don't require anyone to post under their own name and there may be many reasons why people do so. It is not only inappropriate to badger them into revealing their personal information, but it's irrelevant to the topic of this thread. Let's stick to the arguments, not the personalities. There have now been several posts from moderators asking for civility on this topic. From now on, we will simply delete posts that cross the line and, if we don't get to them immediately, we'll also remove all posts that respond to them. There won't be any more announcements like this, and if the administrative burden continues to grow we'll close the discussion. As Dave said above if you have new information regarding the book which is the subject of this thread, then by all means post it. Thanks.

On my countertops electrical and non: toaster, electric can opener, breadbox, coffee maker, knife block, upright paper towel holder. A lazy suzan that hold my napkin holder, salt and pepper mills and butter dish. Although that's really more in the middle of the breakfast bar area. On a corner counter are my canisters. On the back counter (which I suppose should be the desk area) cookbook stand, scale, phone, marble rolling pin, magazine stand to hold my fine cooking, cook's illustrated and bon appetite magazines and various pages of recipes I've torn out of other magazines. Everything else is put away.

During the week, it's pretty haphazard since no one here seems to eat at the same time. Weekends are different and we make more of an effort to set the table, use the china and cloth napkins. However, I always serve family style, even when entertaining. Probably because I suck at plating and presentation.

I'm glad you liked the cake! Now, for Saturday, although they are calling for flurries here today, it is supposed to be a beautiful day on Saturday which of course turns my mind to the BBQ. So I'm tempted again to go with a Prime rib done on the spit, twice baked potatoes, either a tossed salad or butter browned beans with toasted pine nuts and the apple charlottes for dessert. Of course, I've done prime rib to death, but hey, (said with all modesty) I do it well. Risotto is out because I've never made it before, and i'd like to give it a practice run before trying it on guests. There are some guests I wouldn't hesitate to experiment with, but not this Saturday Decisions, decisions. Prime rib is a no brainer. Short ribs a little more adventerous. For nibbles, certainly the cheddar cheese tartlets. I'm open on one or two other things. The apple charlottes will be dependent on me being able to find some 8 oz ramekins today, otherwise, possibly creme brulee, which I've gotten much better at thanks to some terrific help from the pastry forum. Votes?

Well, with my mandoline at least there is a guard so it offers protection. With a box grater your fingers and knuckles are wide open. Having said that, just about any sharp object in a kitchen is dangerous for me.

Well at least I was using mine when I grated my knuckle off tonight.

While I think it's admirable to want to suceed by word of mouth, I think he could be missing out on a whole segment of potential customers. When we travel, I use the web all the time to search for restaurants in an area I'm not familiar with. And, if we travel back to the same place as we do often, if I liked the place, I'm liable to return there whenever I can. I agree that websites need to be kept updated, be easy to navigate and lose the flash. But a sample of the menus, philosophy and even a few pictures etc is something I would be interested in seeing.

Um, well I didn't actually serve the baked beans with the pork. But yes, I suppose you could. They were part of sunday's dinner of BBQ ribs. I just wanted to share my new discovery.

Exactly. Since we have the beans as a side dish, a half pound of beans is just right for the three of us! Snowangel pointed me in the direction of this recipe and I've made it twice in two weeks now! I just cut the recipe in half and it's perfect. Baked Beans Oh, and for the pork, it really needs to be a boneless shoulder. I tried this once with a bone in shoulder and it wasn't nearly as nice.

You had a recipe for everything else, so I assumed we used one!

Ok, before I get to dinner tonight, I have to say, I finally found a use for my little 2.5 quart Le Creuset. Well, it's long and slow, so it's technically a braise I guess. Baked beans about to go into the oven. I forgot to take a picture of them coming out but they were awesome. Tonight we did the Caribbean Pork Shoulder. I know gourmande isn't fond of this one, but we really like it. One of the nicest things about this braise is it's simplicity. No browing of meat, no chopping of aromatics etc. The spice rub is simple and quick to put together and then you just let it sit for 12 to 24 hours. Score the pork fat (should I mention that a cleaver is a marvelous knife for scoring fat?) and rub the spice mixture all over. Be sure to get a nice fat cap on the pork shoulder. You'll need it for the finishing touch. when you're ready to braise, set the oven temp. I use 245 (sorry Molly but 300 is just too high!) and add a 1/4 cup of water. I actually use a 1/4 cup of pork stock instead. When it's done, take it out and turn the oven to 475. In the meantime, degrease the juices in the pan, but I don't strain them. At least not yet. One of the twists I do with this is to add a cup of pork stock to the degreased juices and reduce the sauce by about half. While the sauce is reducing, slide the pork (that you've transferred to a baking sheet) into the heated oven. Bake it until the fat layer is crispy and sizzling. When the sauce is reduced, strain it. And the finished product. This is so tender it is pretty much pull apart. And very juicy.

Yes it probably is heavy on the red meat. (is there such a thing?). Maybe I'll keep the beef rolls and sausages for the cocktail party for the council. Risotto! Now there's a thought. Simple, like the one we made for the Pig Pickin. Now where is that recipe?

I have both. A cordless electric kettle and a nice stainless steel stove top kettle that matches my stainless steel decor. If I need hot water quickly (like for a water bath) I'll use the electric kettle, which yes, shuts off automatically. When I'm not in a hurry, like when I'm making my brother a pot of tea (I don't drink tea unless I'm sick, so it's a sisterly sort of torture to watch him suffer waiting for his caffine while I sip my coffee), I use the stove top one.

I'm very pleased to announce the first specialist in the Toronto area forum. Barbara Laidlaw, aka "jake" will be working to develop new and interesting content in the Toronto area forum with a focus on reporting on ethnic restaurants in Toronto and developing and maintaining a list of events that are happening in and around the area. Jake will work closely with me to develop new and interesting content and I do hope you will all participate in sharing your knowledge and questions about the area. Jake's recent "where to find stuff" thread is a perfect example of how we can all contribute great information. Please join me in welcoming Barbara to her new postition!

I should mention that some of the nibbles I plan to make for Saturday include: jgm's cheddar cheese tartlets From Martha Stewart's Hors D'oeuvres handbook: grilled beef rolls with soy scallion dipping sauce bleu cheese popovers sweet peppered bacon bite. I'm really tempted to try the carmel brie as well but probably not! I'd like to perhaps do a mini platter of grilled brat slices etc with various mustards. Any thoughts?

Damn. She figured it out. ← Then polenta is not likely going to make it to my table. So I'm back to maybe soup and sides etc.

I do have Russ' book, but not Paula's yet. I've just read over Russ' recipe, which he admits to getting from Paula, and (please forgive me) but it sort of sounds like grits. If I do polenta, then definately no soup. It would be too much, particularly as I'm planning to go heavier on the nibbles before. Perhaps just a tossed salad would work in this case. I'm thinking of making individual apple charlottes from this month's issue of Fine Cooking for desserts.

I like to do this too on occassion. We eat out often enough that it's not terribly romantic anymore, and a dinner like the one Lucy describes above is perfect for reminding us of why we are together. A little extra thought and special touches tells your loved one that you care enough to take the time. Often though, our most romantic moments come from the spur of the moment "snacks" we make up for ourselves when we (all too rarely) find ourselves alone in the house. Friday was such an occassion. Neither of us was particularly hungry for a big meal, so we fixed a plate of triple creme soft cheese, crackers, and honey, poured two glasses of champagne, and took them into the family room where we turned on the fireplace and lowered the lights. Converstation ranged from the ordinary "how was your day" to the companionable silence one can only achieve with those closest to you when you know words are not always necessary. The phone rang, we ignored it. We both put work away for the night. At some point we looked at each other, extended our hands, interwined our fingers and just smiled at each other. At about the same time, we both said, "This is perfect".

Eric, I'm really glad you and your friends enjoyed your dinner there!

In addition to some suggestions for Saturday night's dinner, I'd be very interested in suggestions for nibbles that can be made ahead and frozen for at least a week. I have now committed to holding a cocktail party for my school council. The only problem is, I'll be travelling the week before and won't be back until the night before the cocktail party. That means I won't have much prep time for this the day of, so as much as I can make ahead before I leave, the better.

I have an immersion blender, (Bamix) and two regular blenders, the Waring Pro and the Breville. I use all three a lot depending on what I'm doing. I looked at the KA and I think it's one of the few appliances that they don't make well. I use the Waring Pro for certain dressings and purees and the Breville mostly gets used for bar drinks, the immersion blender for soups and sauces. The stainless steel container for your blender is probably intended for chilled blended bar drinks. The Breville came with both a glass jar and a stainless steel one.

I don't think I've ever made polenta. And sorry, no mushrooms!

See that's the advantage to having Canadian Thanksgiving. Anything christmasy is fair game after Oct 10th, although my rule is right after Halloween. From mid October to January first, we average one dinner party at home per weekend and one event outside that we have to attend. It's not unusual for us to attend a formal night on Friday and host a dinner on Saturday. Or attend a formal event on Sat and host dinner on Sunday. By the time December comes, that also includes at least one dinner out during the week with guests. After the first of January, things start to slow down as it's full audit season and I become an audit widow. Most of our dinner parties are small usually from 4-8 people with the exception of our upcoming seasonal celebration, which gets catered, and Christmas Eve and New Year's eve, both of which are usually an open house here for neighbours and friends and I usually make the nibbles for those myself. Some of our dinner parties are for close friends and others for various clients and/or partners at Don's firm. Oh and I'm going to throw in a cocktail party for my School council members this year as well. I have been chair or vice chair of this council for almost 10 years and this is my last year, (well, as long as Ryan passes it will be. ) so I'll be looking for nibbles to do for that as well. That will be in the first week of December. We do get a one week break this year as we are cruising at the end of Nov to celebrate both Don and Ryan's birthday, which fall on the same day and both are milestone birthdays this year.

It's been rather unseasonably warm here the past little while. I must admit though to turning to more and more braises as the days pass. Right now, I've got baked beans going in the oven, and a pork shoulder marinating for a braise tomorrow. French Onion soup starts to make a regular appearance in my cooking repetoire this time of year as well. I tend to do roasts all year, the only difference being that I'll start doing them in the oven instead of outdoors on the spit.

My cats would eat your dogs for lunch I have to have the decorations up in time for the party and since we have company this weekend, we had to get it done yesterday. I promise not to turn them on though until the night of the party. I know Don really liked those short ribs and the ribs I got from Whole Foods are spectacular. So maybe: French Onion soup (I'm going to start an onion confit tonight or tomorrow) Braised Short ribs with what? Rice Pilaf maybe? Tossed salad Are the ribs and the soup too much? Maybe just a salad and a rice Pilaf? I'm open for suggestions for dessert. I'd like something light but tasty. I always serve a cheese course after the meal as well. I'll list proposed nibbles in a bit.