Marlene

I have both. What does that make me?

Ah but it's not your ordinary cake mix It boasts: using Guitard's artisanal cocoa, Neilsen-Massey vanilla and Belgian chocolate chips. Inside the box is the cake mix, the sugar package and a small package of cocoa to dust your pan with. In addition to the box of stuff, the recipe calls for you to add: 250 gms butter (2 sticks), 4 eggs and 1 1/2 cups of milk. How do I know this? I'm not telling..

Balderson's aged cheddars are really some of the best

I'm still waiting for my order to arrive. Every day, I check the mailbox for a package slip....waiting is driving me crazy! Would you like me to bring you some on Thursday My hubby is from Saskatchewan, where Old Dutch rules. He gets his mom to send care packages of Old Dutch BBQ to us. For a while the major grocery stores in and around TO carried Old Dutch, until they became more popular than Lays and Hostess, and the big guys put the squeeze on the supermarkets. Then you could find them for a while in corner stores. Now they've just disappeared from sight for the most part

I hate to date myself, but my mother had one too.

Stilton with port, roquefort with ice wine or sherry.

Yeah I tend to do this as well!

I use both red wine and cream sherry in mine. Beef stock. I let it simmer for two or three hours to blend flavours, so I tend to just use spanish onions. Gryuere cheese over top, lots of croutons underneath

In theory it will stop snowing long enough for my flight to leave Thursday I just thought I'd bring this up again, in case I could talk anyone into having drinks on Thurs. I'll be at my hotel by 3:30 or so.

Tonight was a 1999 Dynamite Cabernet from the Carmenet wineries which I had with my lonely beef stir fry

There is only one airline in Canada Well, ok, there are a couple of smaller regional ones. Air Canada manages to put itself out when flying on an international flight. Some of that food isn't that bad. But on short hauls to the US, I'll just take the dry roasted cashews they offer rather than the "breakfast wrap" whatever that is Oh and they still use plastic knives in first class on Air Canada, although I did notice on my flight to Chicago, that the plastic knives were of a sturdier variety than the usual white plastic ones

I'll confess to using a salt mill. I have a Peugot that has an adjustable grind and I use rock sea salt in it. Finer grind for eating, coarser grind for cooking usually over a roast. I quite like it

Oh come on. Bourbon street is a must, if only for the scenic value Some of the best people watching takes place there. And it's one of the few places I've been where the bartender asks if you want your drink "to go", in which case he'll make it in a plastic cup and off you wander down the street

Absolutely never. Fortunately, it's very easy to clean by hand. Um, I've been putting my le cruset cast iron dutch oven in the dishwasher for 20 years now, and it doesn't seem to be a problem Edit to add: From Le Creuset: Le Creuset Cookware Pans are handcrafted in France of cast iron, which absorbs heat slowly and spreads it steadily. The cast iron is coated with porcelain enamel, which requires no seasoning and cleans easily. Dishwasher safe.

And they never close the cupboard doors either! Here it's not so much the leftovers they eat, it's the stuff I've got in the fridge to make dinner with. They eat it before I get home - we order pizza.

For a dutch oven, I agree, a cast iron like le cruset would be great. I have an all clad stainless steel dutch oven, but I only use it on the stovetop, for stews, chilli, and spagetti sauce mostly.All clad dutch oven For pot roasts, and other meats, I use this le cruset

It sounds like a great deal except for the non-stick exterior. Do anyone think that would hold up when making gravy on the stove-top? Jim I have never liked a non stick interior for making pan gravy. It just doesn't work well in my humble opinion

Varmint, I feel your pain. We're currently being hammered by a snow storm coming out of Oklahoma. It has snowed all day and is supposed to snow all day tomorrow. The wind isn't helping. And Don is in New York which is expecting the storm currently hitting the Carolinas to hit NY tomorrow sometime. Good thing I've got lots of food in the house. I won't be getting out till Wed sometime.

Nice pics! Ah warmth. Your pics look especially inviting as we are currently being buried in snow as I type. Looking forward to reading your foodblog this week

Thanks, Sistergirl, but you're wrong. Just think about all those bacon fetishists! And you really should write a love letter to Butter Tart Squares -- or I will! got a better idea. A battle for the heart shaping up. Let me sleep on it!

Maggie, I'm not sure anyone can beat this anyway

You forgot the "Tourist" stamp on the forehead. On a serious note, Marlene, despite our reputations for being rude and uncaring, we will give directions if asked. Plus, the hotel concierge can help with subway directions. I have never ever found NY'ers to be rude and uncaring! I'll be there.. with my tourist stamp

And you should be joining us Mr. tommy!

IN case there are any stalkers lurking, I've pm'd you tommy