Rico

Call it what you will - but I'd call it something I'd dig into in a heartbeat! Thanks, Blether. And that's what I'd call optimistic food empathy ... I've been wanting to try crawfish pie for awhile, but am a little nervous to make a pie crust (which I have never done). But I had some fillo in the freezer, so I improvised and made 'crawfish pie' with them. Basically I just stuffed it with some etouffee. The final result was satisfactory.

Thanks, Blether. With winter coming around the bend, we're trying to eat outside as much as possible - futurewife because she enjoys the weather, me because I enjoy the lighting ... And, um, where is everybody? I thought this thread used to be popular? I feel like the unpopular kid that walks up to the cool kids and they all kind of disperse. Is that what's happening?? Anyway, Rosemary-Garlic Shrimp Skewers last night. I don't really know, technically, what a kebab is, or if I can call these that. So I played it safe and went with skewers. Everybody wins. Except the shrimp.

Yeah, we can go ahead and not quite be so specific. You can substitute 'engineer' with 'Rico' and that's still an accurate statement.

You are a patient soul, Dakki. I likely would have given up on them and found new friends! And my futurewife used to not like lamb, but we've since made some progress on that particular issue. She still doesn't like raw mushrooms, though. Patience, Grasshopper.

I'll second that. Anyway, I made parmesan-crusted cod. I was inspired by Ann_T's blog, which had parmesan-crusted halibut, but that was prohibitively expensive at the Central Market. So I made it with cod. I can only imagine how awesome this is with halibut, because it was still really good this way.

Blether – love the look of your seafood and cauliflower – I love when creamy things get those little scorchy sections! Blether, that does look absolutely fantastic. And Kim, I also love it when I hear neologisms such as 'scorchy'. Dinner last night was some tacos with grilled chicken, pico, lime juice and cilantro. I abide by the 'keep it simple, stupid' philosophy with tacos.

Not sure if this belongs in the hall of shame as well, but I always have a few tins of smoked oysters in my pantry ... to eat alone, nothing but me and a fork. The fiancee loves it (heaping levels of sarcasm). Other than that, canned tuna for sure, as well as anchovies and sardines.

Thanks for the kind words, ScottyBoy, and for the advice. I completely agree with it, and the idea of cutting it in the middle and stacking it is a solid one. I suppose that picture is just going to have to be re-taken with a new batch of fish. I'd be disappointed about that ... but it was really tasty.

And this is just one of the myriad reasons eGullet is awesome. I will be trying my Super H today (always love an excuse to trek up there), and mid-range restaurants of the Super H can't help. And I'm guessing I want to use them immediately, and not even freeze them, based on the ammonia thing?

All right, I'm becoming obsessed. I've got a question about this one - actually, a couple of questions: First - this is pan-fried halibut. Does that look like you'd want halibut to look after cutting into it? I really don't know; I've never made halibut before. It was cooked, but to me the photo looks undercooked. Second - The fork. Good or bad? It's in front of the main object, so I don't know if the viewer's like 'hey! a fork and some sort of fish stick! That must be some sort of social commentary or something!' When it's really just a picture of halibut. Thoughts? Edited to add the thing about it being cooked

Something new every day! That's a good idea. I might go check out some places to see what I can find. I'm a bit of a lobster neophyte, so I'm not really sure if I'll be able to find them for that price in Dallas. Regardless, I'm going to report back with my finds and my broth results ... since I'm sure everyone's just super riveted ...

So, I'm guessing it's not something a lot of people are looking for, because I can't seem to find lobster scraps anywhere - I've tried CM and WF, but they both looked at me like I've only got one hand (which is appropriate, since I've only got one hand), and TJ's and Rex's both said they could order it for me in 15 and 20-pound orders, respectively. That's about 10 and 15 pounds more than I want. And all I really want it for are smallish batches of stock for various things that I haven't really thought out completely yet. That, and I just find the process of making stock to be cathartic. Anyway, is it strange for someone to go looking for five-pound batches of used lobster? Even if it is strange, is there some place I can find it?

Whoa. See, I think looking at these photos can help one become a better cook. You're all inspiring me to step up my game, both with the photography aspect and (I think more importantly) the cooking aspect. Anyway, I grilled some ribeyes and put some truffeled white sauce on them.

This happened to me yesterday, and I just got out my Flavor Bible and started leafing through it. Five minutes later, I had (almost inadvertently) mixed and matched my way to a dinner plan ...

I've had four in the past two days ...

So I may or may not have rooted through Kim Shook's online recipes for something to eat last night. I'll be doing that more often. Last night's discovery: Lemony Chicken wings. They're lemony (and rosemary-y and garlicky). And tasty. Thanks for that one, Kim.

You guys are awesome. Haha! Well, hell, that's the whole point, right?? And the news keeps getting better for me. More experience necessarily means more cooking, which in turn means better cooking, leading to better photos, and ultimately better eating. Yes, I'm going to like this new pursuit. And Dakki, I have taken your advice on the Photobucket, and here's the first stuff I've got posted from there: It's a squash and goat cheese salad I got from Emeril's new grilling book. I feel like the squash in front looks kind of bland ... but it's squash, you know? It's also taken outside and I guess the sunlight makes it look shiny. I don't know if shiny is good. Edited to say I haven't quite figured out photobucket yet.

You use a pocket digital camera? Prawncrackers uses a Coolpix, too? I can get a tripod for this thing and adjust shutter speeds? This may have just advanced from a distracting pursuit to an all-out hobby.

Thanks, Dakki! See, I think I'd technically be the noob here, seeing as how I didn't even consider that the tomato on the left was facing away from the camera. But of course it is. Thanks for the insight. As for the blurriness, I think you're right, but I'm not sure how to fix it with my little pocket camera. Or maybe I was just moving the camera when I took the picture (sheepish). Can you get tripods for pocket cameras? Blether, thanks for the complimentary words. I shot this in my photo box I made about a week ago following this guy's directions. That alone has made a world of difference, though I feel I'm going to have to start adding stuff - garnish, if you will - to the photos so they're not all so ... plain clean white, you know? I have no idea how to go about that, like where people's eyes first go and so on. As for the shutter speed, I honestly don't know. I don't even know if my little pocket camera has modifiable shutter speed. I'd love to get a really cool one, but that's down the road for me. Are you at all familiar with coolpix (I feel like that's like asking a successful painter if he's familiar with Crayolas, but it's worth a shot!)?

Um ... I have a Nikon Coolpix. I have pretty much relegated myself to the fact that a lot of my pictures aren't going to be professional quality, but I'd still like to take good ones. It's the pouting golfer that blames the round on his equipment. So (bracing for the storm) ... any thoughts?:

Thanks, ScottyBoy, for the kind words and encouragement; I feel like I've got a long way to go until I get photos that look like either of those photos, not just the second one ... but hell, it's fun learning! To be honest, I don't know how I feel about it, either. Actually, I do - I feel bad about it, and I don't endorse it except in this case because it was awesome. But at the very least, I never led anyone to believe that I believed this to be 'Texas-style' chili. Anyway, I had the chili again tonight but wanted to make something I could photograph, so I made roasted tomatoes with garlic, alomonds and gorgonzola. And some other ingredients, too.

I used to love the cafeteria pizza in elementary school. My mom would pack these fantastic fresh sandwiches, and I'd envy the kid who got tomato paste and fake cheese on white bread. Though from Chris's original post, it sounds like things have improved pretty significantly.

You have all inspired me to take better pictures. Of course I would get inspired to take better pictures right before I have to take a picture of chili. Not some beautiful, multicolored seafood dish, but chili. I did my best. Anyway, chili meant good luck for the Cowboys last year. Not so much this year, apparently. But it was made with some smoked brisket I had left over as well as chorizo. It had a strong yum factor.

The food on this board - wow. So far this page alone has made me decide to buy a sous vide doohickey, a pasta maker and rib holders. Now if I could just fly you all into Dallas to teach me how to use them ... As it is, I've been lazy, so I decided to stop being lazy and start making something that didn't involve smoking large hunks of meat. Cool, tropical-stormy weather? Chicken Sauce Piquante. Super spicy; needed some tums before bed ... Judging by the other pictures here, my Nikon Coolpix and I are going to have to go over to the photography thread to learn how to use each other.

Good call, Chris! And dcarch, that looks ... well, let's just saying if one were having a party and trying to make friends, one would make a lot of friends by serving that.