DanM

Does anyone have a reliable formula for Arrowroot cookies? Thanks! Dan

Pan Can... I found this recipe and guide for scallion pancakes, which will be served orange tofu and sauteed bok choy (also from the farmer's market). http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/04/the-food-lab-how-to-make-scallion-pancakes-chinese-appetizers.html Does that look about right to you?

I bought a massive bunch of large, thick scallions at the farmer's market today. Any suggestions on scallion happy dishes, especially if they are vegetarian? Thanks! Dan

If you don't mind an elcectic dining room, I would recommend visiting yard sales for tables, chairs, and if you are daring... dishware and silverware! You can even claim that you are being sustainable by reusing old furniture. Dan

If you need fiber, then to quote Frank Zappa, "Call any vegetable..." Do we know for a fact that they use trees as the source for cellulose?

I remember Anchorage Brew House to be spectacular. If you need another drink and willing to go on an adventure, check out the Midnight Sun Brewery for tour times. Dan

Rick Bayless has a great, simple recipe in his Mexican Everyday cookbook for chicken cooked in a banana leaf lined crockpot. IIRC, the chicken was coated with achiote paste and root veg was thrown in as well.

Todd English... but was he ever all that great? Tom Colicchio? I have never been to any of his restaurants, but I am wondering if he is more than a popular face on Top Chef. Is he cashing in on his fame, or is he really that talented?

Today I picked up two bunches of ramps, cooking spinach, and a bundle of chives with blossoms. I love this time of year. Dan

Thanks for the input!! All of their coffees, including African varieties have best from dates. This coffee shop knows the art of a good cup of coffee, so this would make sense.

I decided to try a new local roaster today and picked up a bag of Carlos Ernesto Guerrero Lara Apaneca El Salvadoran coffee... whatever that means. What caught my eye about the bag is that they note the roast date (4/22), best from (4/25) and to (5/9) dates. I am confused about the from date. Why would I wait 3 days after roasting before drinking? Thanks! Dan

I have been happy with Rishi Tea. You can see their selection at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=bl_sr_grocery?_encoding=UTF8&node=16310101&field-brandtextbin=Rishi%20Tea. Dan

Are there any good bakeries or markets near the Mass Pike that would be good for a pit stop and a quick snack? What about coffee in Worcester? Thanks! Dan

Sultan's kitchen looks perfect!! She loves this type of food. I think we have a possible winner.

JP Licks is quite popular with Boston's massive college crowd. Hemp seeds is a hippy ingredient that is experiencing a fad as of late. My favorite flavor of theirs is oatmeal cookie frozen yogurt. Dan

My daughter's friend was over for dinner, so I made some cauliflower cheese using purple cauliflower. The picture does not do the striking final colour justice. Dan

The Summer Shack looks like fun, but may be a cruel trick after taking her to the aquarium. We never let her run around, but like all healthy 2 year olds, she gets bored easily and makes her presence known. An afternoon trip to JP Licks may be in order... If she behaves herself.

Are there any good kid friendly or kid centric restaurants around Boston? We have an adventurous 2 year old foodie in need of a good lunch. We are not sure what we will be doing while we are in town, so we do not have a specific part of town in mind. thanks! Dan

The Francis Francis uses grounds or pods. I have a Bodum Bistro grinder, which seems to do a pretty good job at grinding beans to a fine powder. I put some old beans through at the finest setting and it was like talc powder. Tikidoc... thanks for the offer, but with a 2 year old and a 2 month old, I don't have any time to spare for tinkering. I will look into the complexity of changing the gasket and will let you know if I change my mind. Dan

My mother-in-law has a Francis Francis X1 sitting on her counter as "counter art" and is only used when I am there... to the annoyance of my father in law. Apparently, art is not supposed to have any intrinsic function. We have been saving up for a Rancillio Sylvia, based on recommendations written here. Now they are tired of the art piece and want are offering it to us. My experiencce with it has been limited, but it does not seem like the most accurate machine. The big question... don't argue with free, or will I get what I pay for and am better off buying a good one. Dan

My daughter has a set of Tomy magnetic gears for the fridge that are pretty cool and fun to play with.

I have found 18 lbs bags of Royal Oak at Wal-Mart. Dan

Cold, leftover tartiflette with a poached egg. I also mashed up some potato kugel and fried it for a poor man's hash brown.

What exactly is your experience? Professional or perhaps as a customer? I should have said that many are established... But a mixture of both. I have been to quite a few lousy kosher places in my life. I am also prodded regularly to open a kosher bakery. I have some training, but almost no professional experience in a bakery or knowledge of how to run a business. I keep pushing back... family comes first.

In my experience, kosher restaurants are established by people with no restaurant or culinary knowledge. They are typically set up by folks to provide something for the local community. Quality falls by the wayside. IMHO, the better kosher restuarants are the vegetarian places that happen to be kosher to bring in a larger audience. Regarding pricing. Kosher meat is more expensive to begin with. Add to that the need for supervision from the local Kosher Supervision board. Meat restaurants typically have a person on staff full time making sure all kosher rules are followed. Dairy restaurants have less supervision. It is nearly impossible to run a kosher restaurant that serves both meat and dairy. Typically, they will serve one or the other. Dan