kayb

My favorite version of a Dutch baby has ricotta cheese in the middle, topped with apple butter. I sort of wrap two sides to the center, and eat it like a big, fat crepe. My Dutch baby also has, I think, three eggs and a quarter-cup of flour. It's probably big enough for two...but I usually eat it all. I'm also fond of one with grated cheese and bacon sprinkled on top before sliding into the oven.

Living in the Mississippi River Delta, where temperatures and humidity vie for top spot in the summer, heating up the kitchen is definitely an issue. If I'm going to bake bread, it gets baked early in the morning after an overnight refrigerator rise, before the house heats up TOO much. I use my Instant Pot a lot; the stovetop contributes to the misery. And I find my CSO invaluable; I can get oven results without oven heat jacking up the overall kitchen/house temperature. It was 93 today, humidity in the upper 80s. In mid-May. Gonna be a scorcher, they say.

Sudden craving for deviled eggs....

Finding myself in town 20 minutes before a scheduled early morning meeting at a client's office, I opted to dash through the local McDonald's drivethrough and sit in their parking lot and eat a quick breakfast in the car. Didn't want a breakfast sandwich, wasn't in the notion for my usual apple pie and hash browns, so I ordered "maple nut oatmeal with fruit." The fruit was diced apple and many, many raisins (and a few dried cranberries). Sweet enough, but not too sweet. It was almost decent. But dang, those people learn how to cook oatmeal with some salt! About half a packet of salt would have taken care of what ailed it; there was, of course, no salt packets to be found anywhere in my car. I realize some people are on low-sodium diets and have restricted salt intake. Throw a packet in the bag for the rest of us, wouldja, McD's, please?

You can't beat their customer service. I thought I'd lost my bracket for mine. They don't sell it separately. But they told me if I'd send my circulator back, they'd send me a new one. I found the bracket, fortunately.

Yes. That's lovely. And drool-worthy, for the sorbet alone.

My inclination would be to SV for longer; whether that is the right thing to do, I have no clue. But I eat grass-finished, pasture-raised beef, which, because it's been wandering about the hillside, tends toward being more toothsome than grain-finished, and I SV longer than most folks recommend -- up to four hours, with no mealy/mushy texture. Try a three-hour cook and see what that does.

Oh, don't disapppear! Keep us posted from the rabbit hole!

I wish I could deal with medium-rare pork. I can't. I was too conditioned to "you'll get trichinosis!" as a child. I know that's not really an issue. Still can't get past it.

Thanks, @Toliver. Not sure how I missed that first time around. Bought three of 'em. It's only money, right?

Thanks for taking us along! I love NOLA, and it's almost as much fun to follow someone else's culinary adventures there as it is to have my own!

Anova still has its 30 percent off Mothers Day sale going, if anyone is still in the market. Bluetooth $129. Clickety.

It would be the spice storage, which comes after the kitchen excavation, both of which come after stashing the boots and winter shoes so I have room to get out the sandals, now that it seems to have gotten to be summer without the benefit of spring. Also on tomorrow's list is cleaning out the fridge, which is taking on a funky smell. Tuesday is working in the garden, along with real work. If you wish to schedule an intervention, I don't think I can fit you in until late June.

This is, perhaps, on the agenda this week for me.

I had something similar to this when Cyalexa and I went to the Catbird Seat in Nashville. It was, essentially, a pork "butter." Ours had either nasturtiums or geraniums, I forget which, in it, added a lovely acidic note that played against the creamy, buttery fat. Be still, my heart! If only you had had the egg carpaccio as well...

Many thanks! Looks simple enough. They would work well with the pineapple pears from the tree up home, should it decide to bear this year.

Oddly, I like both canned asparagus and the fresh kind, albeit they bear little resemblance to each other. There's a taste to the canned I like, particularly when heated with a bunch of butter. I'd forgotten about having it fried. That's good. I've had it both in a tempura batter and in panko crumbs. Another favorite is to wrap in ribbons of proscuitto and roast.

Oh, and the sponge-head paint "brushes" (I think you use them for edging around doors and woodwork). They're marvelous for cleaning out that top channel where the lid fits and seals on your IP.

These make my mouth water. I used to get them at IHOP with strawberry preserves. I have never tried to make them...but must, someday. Never thought of them with caramelized apples, which is one of my favorite ways to prepare apples.

Off topic, but this made me think of "fried biscuits," a deer camp standby. One takes the flaky "whomp biscuits" -- the "old-fashioned" style won't work. Pull them apart in horizontal layers so you have two flatter biscuits for each one. Fry them on medium heat in butter until they're puffy and done in the middle. Serve with jam, jelly, syrup or sprinkled with sugar. These are heart-stopping and artery-clogging, and wonderful.

@Anna N, could you share a link/recipe for the Asian pear pickles?

I agree with @Anna N and @rotuts. I think you got a defective unit. Mine has never fluctuated more than a half a degree after reaching temp, and it seems to circulate well. They'll send you a new one in a heartbeat.

I love NOLA; I love to eat my way through it. I have a friend who contends the way to "do" a foodie tour of NOLA is an early breakfast somewhere of beignets or croissants and coffee; brunch at one of the classics; late lunch at a po'boy place or Willie Mae's, appetizers in a bar of a favorite about 5:30 or 6, and then dinner at 9 p.m., with lots of walking between each. I think the only disappointing meal I ever had in NOLA was at Tujague's, on the opposite side of Jackson Square from Cafe DuMonde. I'd heard great things, but I guess you can hit anywhere on an off night. This one was. I've never been overwhelmed with either Acme or Felix's. Drago's oysters are MUCH better. Glad you got to Mother's. I love the shrimp and oyster po'boy, and the debris isn't bad, either.

There is no such thing as too much Jarlsberg. I had a tradition for my daughters' 16th birthdays, that I would take them (alone) to dinner at a French restaurant. My middle one asked if she could have a steak. I said she could. She asked if I thought they would have Heinz 57 or A-1. I told her it would not matter if they did or not, she would not use it. Not there, not for that steak. For one night, she could be grown up.

I love anything you can do to it. Some of my favorite preps: -- Saute fresh corn kernels and asparagus in butter until barely crisp-tender, with a healthy handful of minced tarragon. Add steamed shrimp, and toss just until the shrimp are warmed. -- Drizzle spears with olive oil and roast at 450 for about 6 minutes. Put on a platter and sprinkle with some lemon zest. Cube cantaloupe and fresh mozzarella and toss with a lemon viniagrette; pile on top of the asparagus. Sprinkle the whole thing with grated parmigiano. -- Saute in butter, slide onto a plate, and quickly fry an egg or two in the remaining butter. Slide on top of the spears and dig in. -- Cut into one-inch lengths, blanch quickly, and shock in ice water. Toss with sliced raw sugar snap peas, par-boiled carrots (to the point they're a little tender but not cooked through), in a mixture of 2:1 vinegar to granulated sugar. (It's good to add sliced mushrooms to this, right before serving.