Rover

Earlier in the year, I tried Nigel Slater's A Stew of Oxtail and Onions for a Cold Night and I loved it. It's a completely different take on the conventional flavours for braising oxtails and I must have made it 3 or 4 times this year; now that cooler nights are here, I thought of it again. The dish definitely deserves a place in this thread. The recipe comes from "Tender - Volume I", but here's a link http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/feb/24/foodanddrink.shopping21 from The Guardian - 3rd recipe in the article. Another terrific discovery this summer was Michael Ruhlman's Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Lemon Zest and Thyme Marinade http://ruhlman.com/2010/04/marinades-grilled-pork-tenderloinwith-lemon-zest-and-thyme-marinade.html Michael butterflies the tenderloin resulting in a very quick way to grill the pork and it's delicious. I've successfully frozen the tenderloin in the marinade and now routinely keep one in the freezer ready to grill. Edited to correct links.

Would it be worth getting this book if one didn't garden? I don't have the space for one, but almost all of the fruits and vegetables I eat are seasonal. Yes, Nakji, it would be worthwhile, but if you'd like a preview - why not get it from the library before you purchase it? I've enjoyed the book equally as a cookbook and a gardening read. I've also enjoyed it simply as a good book, especially now that I can bask in the sunshine on the deck with a stack of books beside me ... this one is near the top of the stack. Rover

Each chapter tackles a vegetable topic which includes a gardening overview (growth habits, when to start, preference for soil/light conditions, harvesting, storage and varieties.) For example, in the onion chapter the gardening coverage is about 3 pages and about 14 pages devoted to recipes, usage, kitchen tips. I think the book doesn't attempt to teach gardening but emphasizes the partnership between the vegetable garden and the kitchen... and, naturally - seasonality. The potato chapter is terrific. I originally placed a hold on the book from the library so I could get a preview and a sense of whether I'd get much use out of it. I think I dipped into it for about 30 minutes before ordering my own copy. There are probably about 15 or so post-its festooning the pages which include recipes I'm planning on trying and a few new plantings which provoked my interest. Rover

Tender is my most recent cookbook acquisition and I'm really enjoying both cooking and reading from it. Tender - Volume 1 addresses vegetables both from the gardening and cooking standpoint - I believe Volume 2 will be about fruits. I made the "Stew of Oxtails & Onions for a Cold Night" and got a round of applause from my guests. This version contains no stock, tomatoes or garlic; it relies on some white wine, bay leaves and both smooth and grainy Dijon mustards to finish with some heavy cream. A real departure from my standard and it was really delicious. I'm finding the chapter on onions particularly enjoyable. I've been a fan of Nigel Slater's writing for quite a while and this book appeals to both the gardener and cook in me. Rover

ElsieD, if you get a packet of seeds and basically raise them from scratch - a bright window or under a bright light - in a pot, your new thyme shoots should just zoom along. Pay attention to watering and just give them haircuts to use in the kitchen. Don't let them dry out completely, but don't swamp them either. The new shoots really do have to be new. The plants that winter over become woody to aide their survival, which is why I seed new ones each year. Notwithstanding, the mature plants are more prolific and more deeply flavoured, but they aren't going to give you those tender stalks and baby leaves. Rover.

Young thyme - as in newly-hatched, may simply be chopped up as is; the stems are very tender, delicate and as flavourful as the leaves. This is great if you have a garden and can grow your own - but actually thyme grows very easily indoors, too. I grow thyme as an annual, planting new seeds each year for exactly this reason; I use a lot of thyme and having a constant supply of "young stuff" negates the necessity for all that picking. I recognize this isn't a solution for everyone, but if you love thyme, planting a few (or many) seeds in an indoor plant pot can supply you with young, tender, fragrant and fresh thyme year round - starting a new new planting whenever you need it. I must confess that I don't really find the plucking and stripping of more mature thyme stems greatly onerous. There's something about the release of the fragrance and essential oils that's both calming and therapeutic for me. Each year, I have a new current favourite herb (it was marjoram this year) but I've never lost my delight in thyme. Rover

We are talking very picky, with no tolerance for heat in their food past a 2, at the most. My youngest son age 5, loves Orange Chicken and white sticky rice. The rice CANNOT touch the chicken or he will not eat the rice. He eats a lot of both, but only in different mouthfuls. He inherited this from the Matriarch of the family, my Mother-in-Law. Of the 25 people coming to the party 20 have this particular gene in their make-up. We are talking PICKY LOL I can't help thinking it may be a mistake to prepare lamb for so many who might possibly not enjoy it. I love lamb; but I want to pick out my purchase for myself and I never serve it to self-confessed picky eaters. Lamb can be expensive and it would be sad to spend the money and the time on something your audience won't care for. I think it's a bit of a gamble to do this for a special occasion and wonder if short-ribs or another choice from the braising topic might work better. Good luck with the birthday celebration! Rover edited for typo

Me too - but it doesn't stop me ordering Hot & Sour Soup when a cold's stuffy nose, fuzzy head syndrome settles in. My palate seems to die with the onset of a cold and the only thing I can taste is something spicy e.g. Hot & Sour soup. Rover

I hadn't realized that Lamb curry, or curry d'agneau, is one of France's classic bistro dishes, until I stumbled on the recipe below adapted from Patricia Wells At Home in Provence. This will be on my menu sometime this week. Spicy Lamb Curry with Yogurt & Apples lamb shoulder (or shoulder chops), cubed sea salt & ground pepper to taste 4 med onions, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced 2oz piece fresh ginger, finely chopped freshly minced garlic cumin seeds, freshly ground coriander seeds, freshly ground turmeric cayenne pepper yogurt 1 firm, tart apple e.g. Granny Smith, grated Brown lamb & season with salt & pepper. Leave the fat remaining in the pan and saute the onions with a pinch of salt; cook over medium heat about 15 minutes. Add the ginger & garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add the ground spices and cook until they are fragrant, about 15 seconds more. Add the yogurt and mix in well. Add the lamb and any juices, grated apple and 1 cup of hot water. Blend carefully. The liquid should just barely cover the meat. Cover and simmer gently, turning the lamb regularly to coat it evenly with the sauce, until the meat is very tender - about 1 1/2 hours. The sauce should be fragrant a slightly thickened. Taste for seasoning. The dish may be prepared ahead to this point, refrigerated and then brought to a simmer over low heat. Rover

I love this mushroom soup recipe as well. I agree, nothing I could be more cheering. Tonight, we enjoyed the Curried Cauliflower with Coriander Chutney discussed up thread (http://livinginthekitchenwithpuppies.blogspot.com/2008/09/curried-cauliflower-soup-with-coriander.html). I've been wanting to make this recipe for ages, and finally all everything fell into place. Delicious, simple soup with just the right seasonings. I've happily added this to my rotation of soups. Have I mentioned I love soup? Corrina - I've had that soup on my To Try list since last year; thank you for reminding me... I can't think why I haven't made it yet. Rover

Mine comes from The Rebar Cookbook from the restaurant in Victoria, Vancouver Island. Over the years, it's made the rounds at my workplace and beyond; it's popular as a snack as well as with yogurt & conventional cereal style. 3 c large flake oats 1 1/2 c barley flakes 1/2 c oat bran 1 c unsweetened coconut 1/2 tsp salt 1 c hazelnuts, coarsely chopped 1/2 c pumpkin seeds 1/2 c sunflower seeds 1/2 c vegetable oil 1/4 c water 2/3 c maple syrup or honey or combo. 1 tsp vanilla 1 c dried cranberries 1/2 c dried blueberries Notes: Other Seed/Nut/Fruit combinations: almonds, wheatgerm, dried cherries pecans, flax seeds, dried mango walnuts, dried apricots and figs Combine and bake everything except the dried fruit at 250F for about 30-40 minutes. Stir in the dried fruit when cooled. The fragrance is heavenly... this would be what to bake when you're trying to sell your house - forget the cinnamon buns! Rover

I'm making Les Halles Mushroom Soup this evening - one of the simplest, most tasty soups in my repertoire. I always have a cache of chicken stock in the freezer, so this is a cinch to prepare and what could be more cheering on a cool fall evening than mushroom soup garnished with parsley from the garden and a dollop of fino sherry? Rover

Simple Food by Jill Dupleix and also her Very Simple Food. Imaginative approach, simple techniques and a no fuss approach to very tasty food. I met her when she did a demo and book-signing and was impressed by her friendly, easy-going style. I've been using many of her ideas in my repertoire. Rover

For me it's risotto and the patience required to stir, stir, stir; scoop in the simmering stock - then sip a glass of wine and do it all over again. Years ago I read an article about what wines to drink as you stir risotto, while I remember none of the specifics, I do recall it captured the methodology and pleasure involved in the whole process. A dinner guest once took over the stirring of Risotto Milanese and was so enchanted that it became the risotto standard for him by which all others were judged. The Osso Bucco with which it was served is another pleasurable example of patient and calm cooking. Rover

I have the following: . Chef's Salad - Bill Jones . The Salad Book - Claire Connery . Christopher Idone's The Salad Days . Great Greens - Georgeanne Brennan . Greens - a Country Garden Cookbook - Sibella Kraus I didn't realize I had quite this selection, but they're all pretty good with very little duplication. My personal favourite main course salad is Salade Nicoise ... naturally from Julia. Rover

Saw the movie with a friend today followed by a reception at Barbara-Jo's Books To Cooks. Loved the movie ... laughed and cried, so it it hit all the right notes for me. Walked over to the shop in glorious sunshine (after a very overcast day) to be greeted with a glasses of rose and platters of gourgeres. Every copy of MTAOFC was sold in seconds, together with all the other Julia Child themed books. We had mimosa salads and - Boeuf Bourguignon. The food was great and we toasted Julia's birthday - followed by beautifully iced birthday cupcakes filled with lemon curd and topped with a birthday candle. It was a terrific way to both see the movie and salute Julia on her birthday.

I often see bags and tubs of peeled garlic in Asian grocery stores and I've had excellent results using them. I've also tried Herb's chopped garlic which comes sealed in large or small tubs. I believe it's a local product, but will check next time I see it. I'm growing a crop of garlic in my garden - hopeful for a fall harvest, but I planted late so it may have to overwinter for an early spring harvest. At the farmer's market there are such fabulous varieties of locally grown garlic at the moment and I've been buying samples of each ... incomparable! However, if you're peeling and preparing large quantities of garlic, you can't beat the ready-peeled for convenience and the flavour is great. I did several batches of large volume roasted tomatoes last summer and tossed handfuls of ready-peeled garlic in the mix. Rover

There's a specialty magazine store on Commercial Drive (don't remember the name) across from Dr. Vigari's Gallery. They have a huge selection of multi-lingual-cross-cultural magazines including many food related ones. There's another store on Broadway at Granville next door to Oscar's that's bursting with magazines and lots of food/dessert issues in several languages. Rover

Ah yes - the pot luck culture. All of the situations mentioned above have happened to me, including the annoying (possibly infuriating) couple of people who either don't bring anything and expect to graze or those who try to pass off bought stuff as their own. I'm at peace with the pot luck dilemma these days; I've come to realize it's about feeding the masses (or the group), not about what might please my palate or preferences. Unless you're participating in a pot luck for like-minded individuals who will appreciate the nuances of your carefully prepared contributions, the average PL get-together is more about items that are thrown together at the last moment and - in many cases - a good excuse to have all those chips, dips, layered salads (sorry - I do know there are good ones out there), cream cheese "creations", et al. I completely concur with "know your group/audience" and maybe push it further to realize what most of them will bring and want to eat. I've done ridiculous things like getting up at 4:00am so my tart/pie/cake - offering will be freshly baked/prepared and lovingly presented in the manner I'd like to see it. Complete waste of good sleeping time, unless - of course, you're in like-minded company. I have a couple of standard fall-back items: Marinated Flank Steak with or without Roasted Tomato Salsa (from the Herbfarm Cookbook) - I can marinate overnight and then grill, or take it to the party and grill it there for a total of 7 minutes. It's terrific hot or cold, thinly sliced and served w/that amazing salsa. Even uncommitted vegetarians like it. Easy to transport, easy to serve and they fall on it like ravening hoards. Second fallback is a pie or a tart for dessert - pick something simple and uncomplicated that looks pretty. My most recent is raspberry-lemon shortbread tart (so easy to do); couldn't find raspberries on Saturday so I used blackberries and I didn't even get a piece myself, it was gone so quickly. I feel I'm staying true to my own standards and yet pleasing the crowd. Rover

I'm in, although on the 15th to honour Julia, a friend and I are going to the movie, followed by a reception at Barbara-Jo's Books To Cooks. There are so many go-to recipes from Julia's books to which I continue to return; I think Julia was all about adapting to the moment and to what you have on hand. There's a quote from her which I keep close to my heart: "Just because you don't have all the exact ingredients, doesn't mean you can't make the dish." And, of course - Never apologize! Rover

Tried the curried DE's with mango chutney ... fabulous - they were tasty, tangy and a sellout; everyone adored them. Rover

Dinner with Friends (Dennis Quaid & Andie MacDowell) who play food writers. Some terrific food and cooking scenes. I can never really decide if I thought this movie was good. I've seen it several times and feel differently about it with each viewing. Rover

Second hand book store find ... not the book I was looking for, but The Cooking of Southwest France - Paula Wolfert, more than made up for it. Lovely condition, hardback - $8.00 and I'm pretty happy about, too. Rover

Welcome, Avibenshi - we look forward to seeing more of your delicious food ideas! Rover

Sardines on toast fingers - these were served all through my young-person-hood growing up in England at any gathering and get-together worth its reputation. When they were brought by a neighbour to a recent party - it was like greeting an old friend. Not gourmet, not chic, they were deliciously savoury and transported me to taste memories long gone. I haven't thought of them in years. Nestled amongst those taste memories is potted shrimp w/toast points and tiny squares of Welsh Rarebit passed around on fancy plates festooned with doilies. I'm filled with curiosity to know what others might recall in a sentimental journey of appetizers. Rover