maggiethecat

Sure, why not? Now, to find a pattern....

Hmmm. You know, I think I just might..... Yes please, Suzanne.

tanabutler: Welcome! You too, Mayhaw Man. I'll join you at the Kiddy Table. But as I said earlier on this thread: "This ain't no friggin contest!" Or words to the affect. 39,423.

Yes, that's foreplay.

Is there any couture more elegant than Japanese work clothing, whether stitched for a hod carrier or a geisha? I don't think so. And I love ties. My favorite blouse ties, and now that I think of it---so did my wedding dress. Jinmyo, do you know a source for your jubon? Or a pattern? (I sew.)

OK, I just can't bear to miss this. I'll leave the wedding before the tossing of the garter. Victoria! Looking forward to seeing you again.

Two of my top four, the other being snowangel's corn on the cob, and...a huge bowl of ripe cherries. They didn't write: "Life is Just a Bowl of Broccoli Rabe," (though that's good too.).

Thank you, tanabutler, for the great photo of my garden thug, mentha spicata. Your beautiful picture should be posted in the post office, so amateur gardeners, as I was when I planted it twenty years ago, can run like rabbits. Mentha spicata will survive even the cockroach after a nuclear attack.I think this variety is what's about to envelop my house. Plain 'ole mint. Jason, please try the pasta salad version and let us know. I'm kinda duboius because I think the warm melted parm is part of the charm. But I sway easily.

Via our weekly Sunday night phone call, my mother gave me a prime example of a new recipe that excites the heck out of her (She's made it twice in less than two weeks,) and surprised her with it's high return in the pleasure/simplicity ratio. Turn to page 44 of Jacques Pepin's "The Apprentice" and check out "Maman's Cheese Souffle." No separating of eggs, no whipping of eggs whites, and still a beautiful, luscious foolproof cheese souffle. I'm going to try it this week--Mummy says it's the perfect size for a four person lunch. Jacques points out that it can be made a day in advance. Come to think of it: Jacques, Jeannette and Marilyn: How could these three Giants of the Kitchen possibly be wrong?

This is often where I fail, and I agree that it can make all the difference in the world, especially in egg dishes.

Wotan specialist? Wow. You ate well yesterday. Could you please tell me more about the frites? Were the garlic and parsley (yum!) applied before frying, or presented as a garnish/condiment after frying? Either way, what a good idea.

I can't bear the smell of scallops cooking. Due to, probably, a bad childhood experience, even a whiff of scallop actually nauseates me. It is the only cooking smell that produces the gag effect, but I'll eat them. Larry: Smells good.

It is chez nous, but the demographic's skewed. I can't say I've ever heard an American order one, but, I'm not in bars that much.

Me too, because they're better that way, and I rarely buy vodka. (My husband gets it on occasion when he feels Cosmo-deprived.) I prefer V-8 or Clamato juice, if available, but if not--any old tomato juice tarts up into a Bloody Mary just fine. Lots of course-ground pepper, please.

How could I have forgotten this? (That's one of many reasons why I love this thread.) I wasn't a latchkey kid, but sometimes my mother was elsewhere(Hairdresser? Bridge party?)and she'd ask that I start dinner. The responsibility thrilled me, challenged me and made me feel All Grown Up. It was never anything fancy: chili or Curry Captain or stew, but I revelled in being the Boss in the kitchen. I was prouder of my Swiss Steak at fourteen than I am for much better, harder dishes I make now. Thanks, fifi. That transported me back to the kitchen at 805 Rue Des Plaines.

Blush. Thanks for the links, Rachel.

I don't have an office to go to right now, but I have neighbors. I automatically halve anything I've baked and trot it next door before the sun sets on it. My mother never fails to provide dessert, and it's always fresh and homemade. I don't bake as often as I like (abovementioned Girlish Figure concerns and marriage to a man who counts calories as if he were a sixteen year old girl)but four or five times a year I plan a Puff Pastry Saturday. I make lots. Th stuff freezes perfectly, and being able to pull some from the fridge when the whim strikes is a very comforting thing.

This is a damn brilliant idea. Toliver, make it and market it. Seriously.

Priscilla: Thank you, Lexicographer Lady. I'll remember the etymological difference forever. Hobbes: What does a tea master do?

No, Toliver, it was not too long! Thanks so much for this. I fixed on this tiny detail from your post, because I, of course, had to be excused too (to hit the suds, then homework.) My young adult daughter had to do the same. But I've noticed that, (er ahem, old lady clearing throat) no one I know has children who ask this. And I think it's because the ritual of family dinner has slipped away. Why ask to be excused if everyone is rushing and eating their own personal microwaved dinner,and there's nothing there to be excused from? It's not the solemn (and perhaps, sometimes dreaded) everyday event it was for most folks, even twenty years ago. Thanks for sharing. Really.

You're worried because I don't like PBJs and cottage cheese? Speaking of "simple" and knockout, your Deconstructed Gazpacho Bruschette certainly qualify.

Well, it's a recipe now! Cream, cream, cream. Yum. Arch: We made the Strog too, so it must have been the mag. And I agree with you wholeheartedly. It was simple, and surprisingly good.

We were veering dangerously on topic over at MatthewB's bio, and it got me thinking... Both Matthew and I made the Pasta with Mint and Parmesan from The Minimalist column in this Wednesday's New York Times. Both of us did it because mint is about to choke out all other life forms in our gardens, lawns, and in my case, between the pavers on the patio. Neither of us thought that we'd be knocked out by such a simple-seeming recipe: a big handful of mint, butter, S&P, parmesan, pasta. I added a handful of baby peas for the heck of it. I was impressed. Matthew's gonna make it again this weekend. For such simplicity, this dish packs enormous flavour and, I thought, subtlety. When was the last time a simple-seeming recipe knocked your socks off?

Great post, Sweet Willie, keep'em coming. Welcome to eGullet and the Heartland community therin. Keep your eyes peeled for upcoming social events: we're really not that scary when you get to know us. We do eat and drink a lot, though.

I hang my head with shame. Guess I'll need to polish my colloquialisms among native speakers. Kate: Zuke is just a blank canvas, as you've noted. My English granny served it boiled to death (called it marrow) and very, very lightly salted and buttered. I didn't try it again for fifteen years. My female inlaws (Irish cooks) still serve it the way my grandmother did. Why the hell bother?