scubadoo97

I remember standing in front of the frozen food section in the grocery store looking with a blank stare at the assortment of boxes of frozen dinners that I knew would look nothing like the package. The lady next to me had the same look on her face. I spoke up feeling embarrassed and said I don't have a kitchen. She replied I don't have counter tops. We both laughed. I couldn't deal with the frozen food thing. Luckily we are in a warm climate so I grilled out most nights. We ate well during the remodeling project but the lack of a kitchen sink was hard. Washing dishes in a bathroom sink was the pits. Disposable plates, utensils and foil pans were our salvation. Other essential equipment was the microwave and a toaster oven. Good luck on your project.

A fresh diced serrano pepper or jalapeno works well to give it some real kick. I have also used cilantro along with the parsley.

One of the ant gel baits that contain Fipronil does the trick. Maxforce or Combat are easy to find. The ants will swarm all over this stuff and then in a day or two they are gone. Gone at least for a while. I know there is a reason these insects have been on this earth longer than we have and will be here when we're gone. There is no way to completely get rid of them but control is an option.

But remember they cut up Ralphie too. I have only had rabbit once, years ago. I don't remember much about it but obviously not grossed out about it. We have a ton of them hopping around our neighborhood and munching on our plants. I don't think I have the guts to blast away at one though. I think the neighbors would get nervous.

All excellent choices but not too close of a drive from St. Pete. For the flea market try the Wagon Wheel on Ulmerton Rd which is a lot closer. No Fresh Markets in St. Pete but check around for other specialty grocery stores. For regular grocery stores I would choose Publix over any other store due to customer service. They top the list and their spot in the market place reflects it. I am in the northern Pinellas area so can't give good advice on St. Pete. I like to search out local ethnic stores and St Pete has plenty.

Wow Susan, what a way to start the day. Breakfast for me was very simple. Rounds of Cuban bread drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, a cube of French feta and a sprinkle of Zatar

I use coconut milk most often in cooking but have used coconut water in sauces as well. I recently made coconut rice using both the coconut milk and coconut water to cook the rice. I found a product in our Asian market that is coconut water with strands of young coconut in it. There are several coconut drinks on the market that are essentially coconut water with bits of young coconut in it. You can use these where you want an essence of coconut.

Here in Florida where it is hot most of the year I use the grill when possible and in the dead of summer the toaster oven can be used for smaller meals with good results. Since I have a more powerful hood now, I was thinking of turning it on full blast to suck out some of the hot air in the kitchen.

From Judaism 101 http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm "Grape Products The restrictions on grape products derive from the laws against using products of idolatry. Wine was commonly used in the rituals of all ancient religions, and wine was routinely sanctified for pagan purposes while it was being processed. For this reason, use of wines and other grape products made by non-Jews was prohibited. (Whole grapes are not a problem, nor are whole grapes in fruit cocktail). For the most part, this rule only affects wine and grape juice. This becomes a concern with many fruit drinks or fruit-flavored drinks, which are often sweetened with grape juice. You may also notice that some baking powders are not kosher, because baking powder is sometimes made with cream of tartar, a by-product of wine making"

I have a Bamix stick blender and have used it in a drinking glass. I had the glass in the sink and was not holding it in my hands just holding the top while blending. I did this mostly to catch any mess while blending. No problems with the glass but I expect there could be some risk.

I just watched this show this morning and Mark took on Suvir Saran. He was a frequent poster here at Egullet a couple of years ago. Suvir's shrimp and okra looked amazing.

I suspect the EZ-peel shrimp common found in our grocery stores has been subjected to a similar device as well.

I sure do. I never follow a recipe to the letter unless it's baking. The difference is as a card carrying foodie I am thinking of how to improve it or make it different and in my mind I can imagine how it will look and taste before even making it. Kind of like playing music by ear. Improvisation is great. I rarely give out recipes because I do most of it off the cuff and I don't know the exact proportions only the basic ingredients. Some of this and that.... Maybe a disclaimer might be in order. Please be advised, failure to follow this recipe exactly may result in failure. I am to be held harmless should this recipe fail or cause bodily harm (can't be too careful).

Just got back from Sobe and we ate at Pacific Time, AltaMara and Sushi Samba. Best meal I had was from Pacific Time. I had a scallop dish that was excellent. The diced vegetables in a curry sauce was even tastier than the scallops.

Brining does wonders to the texture of farmed shrimp. Firms up the flesh and brings back the crunch or pop in the mouth experience. The flavor of farmed is still milder or bland compared to wild.

I don't use it in all my vinaigrettes but I like it in many. When using Dijon mustard which has a little bite I like the balance a little sugar gives. Just one more area of the tongue to stimulate

That's one of the ways my family makes it. A local Israeli restaurant make baba ghanouj with mayo instead of tahini. It really works well. Comes out creamy, white and no bitterness. I have tried it a few times and get raves from those that try it, but it is not traditional

Rancho, were yours the triply or aluminum/copper disc bottoms and how long have you been using them? FWIW I saw an All Clad 12"? Stainless-Steel Sauté Pan with Lid at Homegood reduced to $168. I'm thinking that is the 6 qt but still some serious bucks for one pan.

I think the mother is the same for red or white, yeast and Acetobacter. I used organic non filtered apple cider vinegar to get the "mother". Worked on both red and white.

This is exactly what I did a couple of years ago. I have a red and white in the pantry that I work from. I haven't tried sherry yet but would love to since finding sherry vinegar in local grocery stores and even specialty stores is pretty difficult.

I love my new kitchen and sure there are somethings I would do different if I was doing it all over. #1 would be to hire a different contractor. This has been the most difficult frustrating thing I have ever had to deal with due to poor work on their part and they came with good references. End result is the kitchen looks good and I love most of the appliances. The joy of cooking has increased significantly.

I love slaw and use cabbage quite a lot. You can give it a twist with different dressings, spices and other ingredients to give it an Asian or Mediterranean flavor which can turn regular cole slaw into something quite interesting. Of course I love the American standard as well.

I like the Pyrat rums. Even though it is more like a spiced rum it is good to drink neat or with a little ice. The sweetness pairs well with some cigars. My local haunt has just put the Pyrat Pistol on super special for $7.99 for the 375ml bottle. I picked up 3 bottles to give it a try and found it very similar to the XO. I may have to go buy a few more while they are on special.

An espresso machine can double as a hot water dispenser if you're not in a hurry. I can tell you home roasting is not something you want to undertake at this time. You will have too many things to get right in a restaurant that the last thing you need to worry about is home roasting. If you have a local roaster that will roast fresh for you and you can offer organic fair trade coffees that would fit in with your organic farm conversion to restaurant. I too think the french press idea would be a nice touch with good fresh beans of course. When you think about it, the people that are out there drinking 12 oz flavored lattes with whipped cream are not really into coffee anyway. I've seen in several coffee/espresso shops the Batista, and I use that term loosely here, pull dozens of shots one after another to fill a pitcher that will be used to make milk based coffee drinks for the day.

For Tampa is has to be the Cuban sandwich.