helenas

Jinmyo, Please, help me to deconstruct your dish: It sounds so simple, but... Do you put all the ingredients together from start, although they have different cooking times? I know that mushrooms being cooked for a long at low temperature become truly delicious, but what about spinach? Is it to melt down completely? And potatoes, are they smashed as in mashed, or kind of cracked? Thanks!

Jinmyo, Can i beg you for more details? Please?

i'm a regular in Manalapan Wegmans, since i live 5 minutes from it. After reading the Herme's discussion on France board, i specifically checked for pastries; unfortunately, our Wegmans carries only chocolates

This reminds me that somewhere i've read about cooking pasta in water and when it's half-done you finish it in red wine. Was it Bittman? Anybody tried this?

Ron, i did try the pasta risotto, and it was good. The only problem was that i used a canned stock (College Inn?), and it somehow overwhelmed pasta. The texture was great though, and i plan to experiment with more risotto recipes, using different pasta shapes.

I guess, it depends on the temperament of your dog. I had an airedale-terrier, and she was just impossible to travel with; never calmed down, always full of energy. Since i couldn't trust her to any kennel, my husband and i always took vacations separately...

Remember we had a thread on pasta risotto by Ducasse? There i mentioned that Patricia Wells had a similar recipe in her provence book (great minds think alike...). When i finally checked the book, actually it's the same recipe, where she mentioned her visit to Ducasse restaurant and how she was watching the chef in the kitchen (i think it was not Ducasse) preparing pasta using risotto technique. What's more interesting, in the same book she has a recipe for fried noodles (spanish?), where you just toast fideo-like pasta coated in olive oil in the oven, and then boil it in chicken stock. So i tried it yesterday and it came very tasty. So what other interesting techniques can be applied to pasta beyond usual boiling?

Do you use any cookbooks, professional or others? What are your favorites? And what about food magazines? Thank you.

some nice trick for roasted veggies: sprinkle them with some vermouth or white wine. I tried it the other day on melange of red peppers, shallots and shiitakes. vermouth definitely adds a flavor, but since the roasting is done on hign temperature, it's not overwhelming as vermouth can be

As you decide on the place, the date is still per original post? :confused:

Adam, are you using a pasta machine? If yes, what kind?

thanks guys, but now i'm even more confused. Should we come for morels/tulips in spring or for berries in summer? Do you have any time that there are still morels, but some berries start to appear? I agree that Herfarm is too expensive, let the book be my consolation, but what about Dahlia Lounge? Is it wothwhile? - hs

We're planning a trip for this spring. The idea is to fly to Seattle ( maybe), and from there have a road trip. The trip itself was inspired by the last Gourmet editorial about all these berries and mushrooms, and other incredible edibles. Please, can you help me with time and must-visit places. And what about Herbfarm? thanks, hs

Thanks for all your replies. I succeeded to find a lot of recommended wines, even in my local stores. Also thanks to Ron, who pointed to the Wine Lovers Page, where i found the following list of 2002 best QPRs: http://www.wineloverspage.com/qpr/index.shtml Since i tried and liked some of their selections, i tend to trust them. Last night, for example, we had the Taurino 1998 Salice Salentino Rosso, which was excellent and different http://www.winebow.com/shortdet.asp?ID=317

Steve, Is this offer valid only for tommy and ๠ burgundy? What about other egulleters in need of guidance? Could you take a look at our beloved NJ winestore http://www.winelibrary.com/ Are there any attractive reds in ุ-โ price range ( i don't have a gift certificate), something that will be a revelation for a budding wine lover? Thanks, helena

My quest for this sausage started, when recently i found the site with a recipe for sausage gratin, (second link in Robert's post). I just liked the idea of smoked sausage, being simmered for 30 minutes or so. I remember this technique was used by my mom for cooking the thick smoked sausages whole, and then serving them as a main course. The interesting think about morteau sausage, that it's smoked in juniper and pine, which probably a reason for specific flavour. I'll try to experiment with several different smoked sausage brands. We''ll see what happens.

Wow, this stuff is a real find. i just took the plum cake, that had two spoons of lemon oil in it, out of oven. The smell is divine. Angels, forget this philadelphia cream cheese: your real food is served.

Is this french sausage available in US? Or can be substituted by some other sausage?

Let's see. 7.5 oz bottle: Rustichella Olive Oil Cake takes 6oz, and leaves me enough for couple of pastas or salads. So we're talking about a week at most. I leave the spout.

Finally got my first bottle of Agrumato olive oil. It tasted very close to Zingerman's description as olive oil used by angels in heaven. (www.zingermans.com, search for agrumato) Anyway, the bottle came supplied with a cork stopper with a spout. I uncorked it and put the cork spout instead. After tasting the oil, i tried to remove the spouted cork to no avail. So is it OK to store it like this, but won't this precious aroma escape? Should i just remove this spout and put a vacu vin stopper, or maybe normal cork? Thanks for help.

Any cote du rhone in particular? I love zins, but as you mentioned, they're hard to match with food, since out weeknight dinners are usually on lighter side. And we also have a tendency to finish the bottle, so with Rancho Zabaco for two, consumed around 11pm, i end up having a headache next morning

What are you drinking with your weeknight dinner? Our criteria for selection are: Cheap, around บ Red, since my husband cannot drink white ( don't ask why); Food-friendly; Carried by our local wine stores; Here is my current list: Pepperwood Pinot Noir or Syrah 1999, 2000; Yangarra Valley Merlot 2000; La Cuvee Mythique 1998/99; Please, help me to diversify it.

always in search for interesting things to do with apples: here is the swedish apple cake: http://www.santesson.com/recept/skappel.htm Has anybody tried something like this?

Mark You scared me so much, that i cancelled my reservation with Il Cortile, and made a new one for Babbo.

This cauliflower recipe is a real find. Yesterday i made it into salmon and roasted cauliflower lasagna. It was a small miracle.