maggiethecat

As my grandfather might have said: "It's something that separates us from the other animals." ---And all of the other reasons listed above. Would someone kind please tell me whassa Perkins?

But some strange happy convergence of the planets, this topic reappeared today. Happy because my mailbox contained a package of yellow grits from a buddy in the Southeast Forum. (Thanks, Dave!) I think I have some shrimp in my freezer; I think I know what I'm cooking for dinner.

55,724. 10.55 miles. Way to go, bigwino. I'll have to check out the Jaspar White.

tsquare: As magical as travel-writing gets. Thank you.

I really miss the original, unimproved Fresca -- that lovely melding of citrus, saccherine with flavour notes of aluminum and bismuth. I suppose it's just nostalgia for after-school hearts tournaments, the Stones on the stereo, but the "new" Fresca simply tastes bland.

Art: Oh, that I had ever visited Portugal, and could recommend a restaurant! But I'm looking forward to your posts about Portugese cusisine, which, I suspect, is neglected compared to the food of Spain. Lucky dog.

Sinners, I'm closing this round Sunday, March 14th at midnight. There is someone in your kitchen -- or your memory --who's begging for beatification. I pondering Mexican for dinner tonight. Check out the eGRA and I'm sure you'll agree that we have a culinary saint right here: St Jaymes of Jalapeno. Symbol: Armadillo.

geekdoc: Write us all some scripts, please! 55,700. A nice round number. What a great quartet, JAZ, and as always, balma, thanks for your generosity with sources.

No, there is no need to confine oneself to That Time of the Month! Thank you, hathor. I did write the next installment, sorta:here. (shameless self-promotion department!)

My pleasure. 55,593. (Thanks for the heads-up on the Soyer!)

doc: Um, you caught me out! My only cred is being a functioning female who likes to eat. But I must agree with you: when I was on "continuous birth control" the ups and downs and cravings and homicidal rage were mitigated. A whole lot. Thing was, I decided to take my chances with condoms and mashed potatoes because of the nasty scares re: oh, 1980? Your system, in my experience, works wonderfully.

My sisters! The book is beguiling, and so is the movie. A hot Anglican priest who's a pilot...need I say more? The food in the book is pretty (hilariously) awful. Cold Comfort there.

No ma'am, I'm wide awake! I don't posses nearly enough information to discuss your points as intelligently as I should (day 22 as well) but I glommed on to this last bit because of the situation a buddy's in right now. She's just finished a month at Addictive Behaviour Workshop. (I had lunch with her every day for a couple of years -- me with my leftover rigatoni, her with a salad and a yoghurt. She gained a lot more weight than I did!) She's been on SRIs for a couple of years, and they may well have improved her life. But: This smart lady still can't control her food cravings! And, of course, that makes her feel guilty and helpless no matter how much therapy and how many meds she's taking! She told me that perhaps some of the other folks in her workshop are worse off than she --alcoholics, gamblers, crackheads -- but she still feels the same guilt and helplessness they do. By the way, my friend doesn't cook much. Lives on Lean Cuisines and Ben and Jerry's. I've considered doing the personal chef thing for her, but she'd think my cooking was the work of the devil, and I'd have to work out the nutrtional info for every blessed bite I delivered. She's taken SRIs while fertile and into menopause. As I said, I'm sure they've helped, but not enough to curb the cravings.

Meatloaf, mashed potatoes and fresh-baked bread are my favorites, all right, and it sure makes me sound dull! I think I need to get in touch with my inner bitch and throw some raw meat her way!

I love eGullet, and eGulls. (Welcome, geekdoc!) Thank you all so much for the benefits of your expertise -- and your sources. No surprise, I guess, that like any blank carby canvas grits benefit from excess. Cream, cream cheese, stock, infusions. Yum. And thank you phlawless; I don't think I really knew about yellow grits. I'll instruct WillowtheCat to bag me a couple of doves. Maybe not for awhile though; it's going to be a tough enough sell getting grits to the table a second time this week! But persevere I will.

55,591. Welcome to eGullet, FireWire. And although you may someday join the ranks uf us hopelessly addicted cookbook hounds, I'm sure you and Mark are doin' just fine!

I think I may have found my calling! Cream puffs! (Any investors out there?) Thanks, Suzanne.

I just returned form my semi-annual trip to DQ --I got the Brownie sundae . Yum.

Surely did, Sir! And Varmint, yes it helps. You've all helped -- thank you. (Dunno --I think polenta has slightly more flavor au naturel; I might need a blindfold taste test.) Now I have to come up with a scheme to reintroduce them to house. Grits souffle, maybe? Something less hard-core than the classic puddle?

Six tablespoons? As it's (almost ) lunchtime, I've been fooling around a bit with the slab in the fridge. Things may be looking up. First, I nuked a scrap with some butter and grated cheese. It re (de?)constituted itself into the original glop, but my, it tasted better. Then I took anouther square, mashed it up with a fork, and added it to an egg I was scrambling. More cheese, pepper, etc. Much better.

Point taken.. But that neutral pasta base would show off the flavour of the cheese, chicken fat, etc. What struck me is how everything got lost! mjc: Milk? Should I have used milk? I like the infusion idea a lot.

This northern lady made her maiden kitchen voyage into that great white grainy mess called grits last night. And she could have used a compass. Now, I've eaten grits at a Waffle House in Raleigh, (yes, tasty with a runny egg yolk and scraps of bacon ,) with shrimp and redeye gravy (prepared by Malawry, Dave the Cook and guajolote in Varmint's red maze of a kitchen) and twice nibbled (well, gorged) on the apotheosis of grits: Cooled in a sheet pan, brushed with duck fat and sizzled under a broiler. All good, some great! I have a baggie of grits given to me by one of the best cooks I know, shipped to him from a Varmint -- just heading off the "Did you use instant grits?" questions. I made fried chicken last night (excellent, thank you,) and thought this would be a great opportunity to haul out the Time-Life "Southern Cooking" tome and rustle up some grits. I followed their proportions: 4 cups water, 1 cup grits. Salt. Butter. I stirred, I simmered. No lumps. I tasted. No taste. So I added: About four ounces good gruyere and romano. More salt. Much more butter. Tabasco Sauce. Some chicken drippings. I got desperate and tossed in some red pepper flakes. I tasted. No taste. Maybe a tad better, but not a big difference here. I dutifully ate a glob. He refused to touch them. Where did I go wrong? Do grits form a white hole through which flavour is sucked to reappear in Sunday's polenta? Help a girl out here. (I'll fry up the leftovers for lunch; everything's better fried.)

No, dear bloviatrix, you are not alone -- I blasted the coating from the top of my KA paddle in a mere three months or something. Yes, I was annoyed. But I'm also lazy; I just keep using the thing. (We're still alive!)

55,556. Welcome, dahomechef! I got the RLB around Christmas, and I've learned a ton, including not to be nervous because the batter for the fabulous focaccia seems way too liquid.

55,429. Adam and balma: I'm going to have to pull out my Mrs. Beeton. Great discussion. DRColby: The Time-Life series is a personal favorite of mine, and has a cultish following among some of us at eGullet. But please, oh please: cook from them! The recipes are first-rate, well tested and still "modern."