snowangel

I think that the favorite veg dish around here is some stir-fryed greens (my family is partial to "chinese broccoli" done with that fermented soy bean stuff (that looks like baby poop). Also works well with spinach. It's nice and green, so it looks really pretty with curry.

Lori, fish sauce is anchovies and salt. The reason I suggest it is that it sounds like some Asian stir-fries might work -- either over rice or with rice noodles. If Asian is a possibility, the Lee Kum Kee webside provides ingredient details on many of their sauces and ingredients.

Two pheasants for dinner tonright -- braised yesterday. After browning the parts, deglazed with leftover white wine; then some chix stock and mustard and taragon. Over the course of the braise, the mstard disappeared, so Diana finished the sauce tonight with a bit more mustard and some cream. Over egg noodles, with salad on the sidee. Oh, and we added a mess of halved (read easy to pick out of you are a kid who refuses to eat them) mushrooms. We're thinking that the leftovers just might make their way into a pot pie tomorrow night.

Every Thanksgiving day, for the past 10 years, three friends (college buddies, who I have known since the mid-70's) head north for a weekend of no husbands, no kids and no pets, at a posh resort. We cook, drink wine, hot tub and do the like. Now that we are Women of a Certain Age, reading glasses are part of the thing. And, every year, I give a cookbook. It might be a purchased and marked up book (last year was "All About Braising," with every recipe I've done noted and marked up). This year, it was family recipes, and in additon, everyone got a beaded reading glasses "stringer." So, they hand around our necks and we don't have to wonder where the readers are.

Advice needed on chilies. Reference above to piri piri chilies, which I know nothing about.

So, just what do we suppose a smoked poultry stock would do to this?

Thought. Because venison most often tastes different than beef, how many people associate the venison taste with "gamey?"

Hmmm. I'm thinking a vehicle for venison, which not traditional, might just take to this preparation. So, how heretic is it to use Skippy's super chrunch (preference of the masses at the Fahning house hold)? Spices? What are suggestions, keeping in mind that we do like things on the zippy side. Chris, as many of us enter a holiday season, this seems like a perfect dish. So, you don't get to it that night, tomorrow it will reheat beautifully!

Lori, is fish sauce out?

Fondue?

I think there are a few factors that come into play. How old is the deer? A young deer is generally less gamey. What were the weather conditions like the winter before? The past couple of winters have been "easier" here, so the deer have more to eat, which leads to a less gamey taste. Was it properly and promptly field dressed? If not, it will probably taste gamier. The two deer that my MIL got for me last year were young and properly field dressed, so I can't really say they taste gamey. Slightly different from beef, though.

Er, hmmm. Not everyone likes boatloads of melted cheese. Nachos with home smoked and pulled pork doesn't need cheese. Peppers, yes. If pushed, a light dusting of cheese, but only when pushed.

John, there are a couple of topics on tapas. I haven't reviewed them to see how many include hot tapas with the ingredients you've indicated, but links to the topics are here: Tapas Recipes And, you might find some inspiration in the topic about Cooking with "Tapas" by Jose Andres. And, do let us know about your trials, tribulations and final decisions.

Just finished! A "market bag" knit out of linen yarn.

In the "so easy I'm almost ashamed to mention it" vein, I planted a ton of basil this past spring, and with the first hint of frost, I just cut all of the plants down, tied some dental floss to the stem end, and hung them upside down. Dried basil, in those little squat Kerr jars ($.10 each at goodwill), with a square of pinking-sheared red plaid, tied with a red ribbon. I had the ribbon, jar lids and ribbon. Total cost: $1.00 plus tax for 10 gifts.

Beautiful, Christian! One of the great things is that the cook-off parties are never over, they just become longgggg parties! How long do you figure this took from start to finish?

In the past, I have braised a pork loin in milk (ala Marcella Hagan). As I get ready to braise some pheasant, a friend suggested an overnight soak in milk. Why?

Dave, tell me more about the anchovies. I love salt packed, and am very intrigued by the idea of the cured white ones. I need to look for them locally, or ask you where my folks can get them for me when they visit my Berkeley sister in January. Advice, please!

I love the burnt bits. My kids always said it was a mom thing, but clearly, that's not necessarily true. All praise to the burnt bits! I've been on such a visually disgusting trip that I have given up on the camera, and chosen to spare my family the pain. Even my lovely chicken in a mustard tarragon sauce, that tasted so good...well, it looked like something I hadn't seen since my kids started eating solid food.

There is also John Thorne's Simple Cooking. My mom and I share subscriptions to both Cooks Illustrated and Fine Cooking, and after a few years of subscribing to both, I'm finding that I use Fine Cooking more often. It is less tedious. If your library has any of these periodicals (or any of the other one's mentioned), you might want to check out a couple of back issues and see what strikes your fancy.

I have always liked an "interlude" during a long meal, and it's always nice to have the interlude, followed by another interlude that doesn't involve food. A chance to stretch the aging legs, visit the restroom, gaze at the stars, etc.

This is helpful for everyone. Especially when I worked outside the home, I had a list on the fridge of easy to prepare dishes that were sure family pleasers -- made mostly out of pantry staples. I always made sure that I had the ingredients to make three of them for those "brain dead" nights. And, wonderful idea to give her samples of new-to-her food!

Sam, during his Thanksgiving blog, did an outstanding job of detailing day by day (in advance) and ala minute (during the meal) what when into his multi-course Thanksgiving meal. A must read, I think!

Laurie, I'm curious about one thing. Since you have been asked (and are expected) to pay for your guests, who is making the decisions about the wedding reception budget?

I always got sort of sick of the fact that at most of these parties, the emphasis is on sweets. You might want to look at this topic on finger foods and appetizers for some ideas. And, if you want to serve something that's not chilled or room temp, don't forget about the crock pot!