22tango

Although we haven't taken our 21-month-old there....Kaspar's won Seattle Magazine's best place to take kids last October:

In 15 minutes?? Usually something pasta-ish. If you have some leftovers to work with it can be even better -- ie. leftover baked squash or sweet potato can be tossed with pasta, feta & browned butter! YUM! I also like a nice omelet (so quick & adaptable) with a green salad. Leftover rice from chinese takeout?? Put it in the freezer to reheat another night in your microwave while you sear some fresh fish & dice up a tropical salsa (mango, red onion, lime juice & rind, cilantro, jalapeno). Sides of broccoli or asparagus steam oh-so-quickly in a microwave too! Salads, soups (from a can -- sorry! ), & sandwiches can all be pretty quick.

fishsticks -- to this day I can't eat anything with breading because it reminds me of the awfulness of fishsticks and how sick to my stomach I'd get afterwards if forced to eat them!! And beef tongue -- mistakenly served to me for my birthday -- yuck-O!! (with 4 of us, Mom sometimes couldn't remember who liked what!?!?)

Speaking of McD's fries... ...did you know that they carefully cut them with lasers into certain shapes so that there will be a particular statistical distribution of longs, middles, and short-sizes. This ideal proportion of fry sizes has been determined so that they will seemingly fill up the boxes while using the least amount of fries!! (My father-in-law, through his job in the commercial food industry, saw one of the plants where this was done.) In fast food economy, nothing is random!

(with apologies.... ) "And soon, mechanically, dispirited after a dreary day with the depressing morrow, I raised to my lips a spoonful of the tuna in which I had dipped a morsel of bread. No sooner had the crunchy salad mixed with the crumbs touched my palate than a shudder ran through me and I stopped, intent upon the extraordinary thing that was happening to me. An exquisite pleasure had invaded my senses, something isolated, detached, with no suggestions of its origin. And at once, the vicissitudes of life had become different to me..."

I adore PNW weather!! Frankly, freezing cold and the dead brown landscapes of the east coast are more depressing to me than the mild, green (yet overcast) weather in Seattle. Dirty slush and salted, gritty trash on sidewalks all winter just add to my longing to be back home in damp, clean Seattle. Spring can be a little depressing because you're ready for some sun (and we're usually teased by beautiful sunny days in February followed by grey drizzle in March)...but our flowers bloom in riotous profusion which keeps me very Happy!! And as others have already pointed out, summers are definately the best!!

FYI: Primanti's is INDEED in the strip among other locations...and is open 24 hours there. See website: http://www.primantibrothers.com/index.html It's my favorite Pittsburgh "sangwidge"!!

In 1971, I sent away cereal box tops and waited for the mailman to bring me: I don't remember any particular recipes from it... Followed by The Nancy Drew Cookbook ... I still have this one (for nostalgia's sake)!! But my favorite cookbook wasn't mine...I loved reading my Mom's Saucepans and the Single Girl by Jinx Kragen (later to become Jinx Morgan of Bon Apetite Magazine & "The Sugar Mill Caribbean Cookbook" fame) & Judy Perry. How to "catch" a man with food!!

One great attachment to my Atlas Pasta Machine I couldn't live without is the add-on motor, so you no longer have to turn the crank and can use both hands to lovingly feed the dough through!! WHAT FUN!!!

Possibly. I grew up near Princeton, NJ. But I first saw the "Rachel" in Pittsburgh when I was in college in the late 80's. You still see it on menus here in the 'burg.

Yes...I tried to point that out on the Sloppy Joe thread (the irony of Rachel not knowing what a "Rachel" is...) but, alas, I guess the thread had disintegrated by then!

Harrumph! Harrumph! (That is, I agree!!) I remember Seattle 5 years ago...and even 13 years ago. Sorry, I moved there in 1989 so I can't go back further. I love the way the restaurant scene has changed -- especially downtown! And I agree that service can be frustrating and needs work. Vancouver would be a good role model to aspire to! But, oh, even though I love that we're constructively criticising the restaurant scene in Seattle, I find it terribly depressing to be stuck in Pittsburgh for the next several years (grad school) without the benefit of "neighborhood finds, ethnic eateries and exquisite seafood"! You guys don't know how lucky you are (sorry Pittsburgh!) I live again in Seattle, vicariously, by reading eGullet's PNW board. I hope the Seattle scene continues to improve! And I hope I'll get to read about it here as it happens!!

Hmmm....is that a statement or a question??

Love heirloom tomatoes, love balsamico traditionale, have never tried them together...in my mind I thought it might work. I didn't think of the acidity. I usually just have my balsamico straight from a spoon. Though I have to ask, is there such a thing as a "good 5 year old" balsamico?? I thought most of those were just caramel colored vinegar!

Unfortunately, according to this old Seattle Times article, he's not cooking (at least for us) anymore: http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/...8&query=virazon edited to add: I also miss Mamounia!! What a sensory experience!

We're now living in the 'burgh while my husband is in grad school. We're looking for some recs for interesting and good food to be found in and around Pittsburgh (any price range...it's the food that counts!) THANKS!!

Interestingly, I once took part in an heirloom tomato tasting. We tasted them plain and with a touch of salt. It was amazing the difference a little salt could make with some of them, and vice versa. We were most surprised that some were MUCH better naked! In a salad composed of several types, of course, I'd still add S+P, (maybe)herbs & EVO, and perhaps a slight drizzle of balsamico traditionale (75 yr old!) if you like.

Virazon! I had one of my best meals EVER there! We had the opportunity to try two Burgundies from two different fields across the road from each other, and by the end of the meal we were being served by the chef, Astolfo Rueda, himself. He even gave us some of his home-made lemon brandy to finish what was already an incredible meal from both a food and wine standpoint! The personal touch is part of what made it so remarkable. We were terribly sad to hear that it had closed due to discord in the partnership a few months later.

Well...don't know if it's any good, but the ubiquitous BeniHana salad dressing recipe is on their site: http://www.benihana.com/recipe.asp?what=be...-salad-dressing

I believe in the Julia Child "diet": http://www.diabetes.org/main/community/for...ast/page562.jsp

Yummy! I love molten chocolate cakes! Nice idea. After all, who says just because you're a new Mom you can't have good dessert! Vegetarian Chili is always a good idea -- and I could mix up some cornbread batter to cook quickly in the waffle iron for nice crispy corn cakes on the side! The Bierocks sound intriguing...kind of like an empanada?? I could also do a spicy potato-veggie samosa-like filling for my husband. I'm not sure I'd try the MasterCook freezer quiche recipe -- I'm partial to the more traditional french style tarts. I've been re-reading my "Art of the Tart" for good ideas now that Rachel has me thinking about pre-prepped quiches! MMmmm...and reading back through some of the suggestions makes me want to make a Thai vegetable curry for dinner tonight! I can just see that it may be easiest for me to make some of these ideas for dinners this month, and triple or quadruple the amounts so I can start storing. Thanks for the great brainstorming guys!

Yum! The Potatoes sound great! I meant to ask before...wouldn't it be simpler with the quiches to freeze them after putting together (rather than as separate parts)?? Or even to make them and cook them up until the last 15 or so minutes and then freeze?? Does freezing the components avoid some problems (ie. soggy pastry?)

Help! I'm faced with one month left to go until I become a first time MOM, and I'm trying to come up with some GOOD ideas of frozen dishes I can stock up the freezer with for the first few weeks. I'm much more of an a la minute kind of cook, and rarely indulge in casseroles...but maybe I'm missing out on some good possibilities. Or perhaps there are some great ideas for staples that I could easily be frozen and then put together in interesting ways for two exhausted, hungry new parents. I've thought about whipping up some savory crepes to freeze and fill with quickly sauteed veggies, cheese, etc... Or ye old standby of lasagne, which can just be popped into the oven to bake. But I think my brain is currently too "pregnant" to think of anything better. One caveat, or challenge if you prefer, my husband is vegetarian (though perhaps I should say "pescetarian" since he'll occasionally eat fish/seafood) so no meat please!! THANKS!

I love pesto on pasta, but often find it needs something more -- some acidity! So I often add some diced sundried tomatoes or quickly sauteed cherry tomatoes to my pesto linguini. Ahhhhh....now *that's* better!!!

Gosh, there are too many I love...so here's my "Save from a fire list": "Lindsey Shere's Chez Panisse Desserts" -- recipes that really work and are inspiring for their elegant simplicity and variety! Anything by Donna Hay -- for fantastic, quick, asian-inspired, beautifully presented every day food! Any of Rozanne Gold's "1-2-3" books -- for evidence of how you can build great recipes using few high-quality ingredients plus great technique. "Culinary Artistry" -- for brainstorming (though not really a "cookbook") Anything by Charlie Trotter -- because I like drooling over "food porn"! Favorite Out-of-Prints: "Victorian Cakes" by Caroline King -- stories of cake baking in an 1880s family with wonderful descriptions of life in a victorian kitchen, and lots of old-fashioned cake recipes. "Saucepans and the Single Girl" by Jinx Kragen and Judy Perry -- all those cholesterol-laden foods Mom used in the 60's to "catch" Dad! Quite a riot!!