birder53

I agree with the sours! These are all on our list. Also, Stiletto, Between the Sheets and the Classic Cocktail.

Nice menu. Our current menu lists ingredients for 24 drinks but no descriptions. It's been a big hit with guests and gotten folks to try something new. It is grouped by the primary spirit, with a few vodka drinks way, way down at the bottom. If we ever get a digital camera, I'd like to expand the menu to include photos as well as some descriptive/historical comments. Bourbon Crustas and Yellow Birds have been the most frequently requested drinks. It would be great to get folks to go for a Last Word or a Little Italy, but it's encouraging that no one has requested a vodka drink yet.

You done good! I'm a fan of the Jack Rose myself. You guys had a lot of guts to refuse to serve vodka. Good job.

Don, How did the cocktail party work out? Did the guests take to "real" cocktails? What was the favorite drink of the night?

Duckfat is a very tiny place with limited seating at a counter and some bar tables. There is no waiter service and the menu is limited. It's a great spot for lunch, but not really what I would consider a replacement for the type of meal you would have at Hugo's. We have had dinner there and it was great, but it isn't fine dining.

I had the same feeling about the store in Marlton. It seemed very spacious and bright - a bit too bright for me. The store in Albuquerque, NM was very large and bright. That was the first TJs I had been in outside of NJ. The ABQ store seemed new, but the space didn't seem too large. It felt comfortable as oppossed to the Marlton store which seemed unfinished. Maybe they've filled it in a bit since my visit in December of 2004.

I think that's a great idea. It gives your guests some idea of what to expect or to avoid.

We've only had one instance where a guest hated the cocktail we decided to serve and asked for a sour apple martini instead. Most folks are willing to try something new and seem to like knowing we will always be ready to serve something they haven't tried before.

According to my husband, Dreamery spoiled him and the other Edy's vanillas just aren't good enough. I can't feel his pain because I'm not an ice cream fan. When I do crave ice cream it isn't vanilla. He suffers alone.

Sometimes we choose a drink and just ask guests if they'd like one of the "whatever" we are serving this evening. A lot of friends love this and look forward to seeing what the special of the night will be when we entertain. If a guest tastes and doesn't like, we quickly remove the offending libation and whip up the drink of their choice. We also have a house drink menu to help and inspire those who might just need a good suggestion. It lists 20 drinks and the ingredients. It's been a big hit and includes gin, vodka, bourbon, brandy and rum drinks. When a guest enjoyed their Bourbon Crusta and was trying to pick another bourbon drink, we suggested a Stiletto. People really seem to enjoy trying something new and a lot a our friends are becoming gin and bourbon fans.

I contacted Edy's hoping to find a local shop carrying their vanilla Dreamery ice cream. The Dreamery line was discontinued! My husband is not happy about this. He tried it based upon a review in Fine Cooking magazine where they rated it the best vanilla. It's been his favorite, next to Double Rainbow, ever since. He even refused to buy vanilla ice cream for a dessert last week because "all they had was Hagen Daz and Ben & Jerry's. (He is serious about his vanilla!) Why, oh why do they torture us so!

Have you tried it with the lemon juice? Just wondering which you preferred if you had a chance to make a comparison.

Well, the peach cobbler is done. For someone who doesn't bake, I boldly made changes to the recipe without knowing the consequences. It called for a shallow 1 1/2 qt baking dish. My 1 1/2 qt dish is not shallow. I also had a lot of peaches, so I decided to use a larger but shallower dish. I added peaches and then decided to add blueberries as well. It came out kind of soupy because there wasn't any cornstarch or other thickener called for. The topping wasn't that interesting and probably was meant to be thicker than how it ended up. I also forgot to add the vanilla to the fruit mixture . In the end, it was warm, sweet and perfect with vanilla ice cream. It was served in bowls instead of plates because of the soupy nature of it, but that was just fine. It wasn't very difficult, but it wasn't anything to write home about either. It didn't help that I limited recipes to those that didn't require a mixer or rolling pin or food processer. Will I try again, I'm not sure. Not being a big dessert fan anyway, I'm probably not the best one to get involved with baking. I appreciate all the support from everyone here. I actually almost bought a pastry set at BB&B yesterday, but then I said "What are you doing??" and I walked away.

Gotta go with smoked salmon!

Campari is my choice lately. Two winners: Titan's Temptation (from Salvatore Calabrese's Complete Home Bartender's Guide) 1 oz sambuca (we used Molinari) 1 oz Campari 1 oz fresh lemon juice Shake and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a slice of lemon. Beautiful to look at and tastes great! The sweetness of the sambuca goes well with the bitter Campari and tart lemon juice. Very refreshing and actually a good drink with spicy foods. Campari and Soda Fill a highball glass with ice. Add 2/3 Campari and 1/3 lemon soda. I used Wegman's Frizzante Sicilian Lemon Soda. Add a slice of lemon for good measure and good looks. Good stuff!

Thanks to everyone for all the suggestions. I'm making this cobbler from the Food Network's site. Peach Cobbler It calls for peeling the peaches, so I guess I'll do it their way. I'll report back on Sunday.

Cal Reds - wow! Those are real beauties. The color of the skin is so pretty it seems a shame to take them off. Think rustic.

You have greatly overestimated my abilities here. The only thing simple about pie dough for me is a frozen pie crust. There is no rolling pin in this house and I have no idea what it means to "dock" the center of the rolled out dough. Most baking around here starts with Duncan Hines!

I did look at the dessert thread and saw Jason's peach/blueberry cobbler courtesy of Paula Deen. Galettes are beautiful but very intimidating. Cobblers and crisps seem to be more forgiving. And you are right, nothing beats a scoop of ice cream on a warm cobbler. The Paula Deen recipe didn't indicate the size of the cooking dish, so I passed on it. If the dish is too large the cobbler will be to thin. Too small dish would get a very thick topping. Since I don't bake I need recipes that are more specific than hers. Jason's final dessert looks wonderful!

I've been looking at recipes for peach cobblers. Friends are coming for dinner this weekend and she always serves up a freshly baked dessert using the fruits of the season. I figured I could bake something really simple. My mixer died and the food processor is small, so the recipe needs to be something requiring neither. There are several recipes on the food network that might work. Some require peeling the peaches and others don't. Any thoughts on this? Also, some cook the peaches first while the easiest recipes do not. Pros and cons? When a "baking dish" is called for, is that pyrex? Help! I can put together a great dinner menu, but once the dessert calls for more than the local bakery's cannollis I'm in way over my head.

Discretion? Just whisper, it will never leave this room

Absolutely amazing!

His posts were always entertaining. Count me among the many who were shocked by how young he was. It is a shame that he had to leave so soon. It was comforting to hear that he lived like a rock star. Good for you Matthew Xavier Hassett! You will be missed.

The edible garden consists of two hanging pots of parsley and one of basil. In the flower bed are rosemary (first year it has come back from the previous year), oregano (doesn't seem to have grown since it was planted in June), lemon thyme, chives, savory and sage. Two sage plants have died - and I considered them indestructable! The parsley never seems to keep up with usage. We planted six plants in two pots. I've had to buy parsley to meet my cooking needs. The basil always seems to do well and we have more than we need from three plants. The parsley is grown in hanging pots because something ate the plants in the garden. Does anyone have any ideas to get a bigger parsley crop? Someone told me not to fertilize as that would make the leaves tough with less flavor. Maybe they don't like being cramped? All I know is we never seem to have enough parsley, no matter how many plants we put in each year. I envy Arey's parsley!

My mouth is watering and my belt is getting tighter while reading this. It's a tough job, but somebody has to do it. Keep up the good work and keep the photos coming.