weinoo

Shelby - the hotter, the better, imo.

I don't know that reducing or eliminating the fat will end up in a crisper crust. After all, Neapolitan pizza, made according to standards, has no olive oil in it, and is usually a fairly soft crust. What I think you're looking for is a Roman-style crust, which tend to be thin and crisp. Peter Reinhart, in his book American Pie, has a recipe for that style crust; indeed it contains a small amount of semolina flour, but in no way approaches the 20% mentioned above. Here's a blog post which discusses working with Reinhart's Roman-style pizza crust recipe.

Wonder Bread.

It's available as a stand alone attachment as well...Pasta roller. I got it for $79 shipped, making it not that much more expensive than an Atlas.

My most recent effort...65% - 68% hydration (KA A/P flour), tiny bit of instant yeast, no olive oil, no-knead 16 hour bulk fermentation, 48 hour retardation in fridge. Got the stone up to 600°F. Baked in just over 5 minutes.

Of course, some Italian friends of mine swear by hand-rolling; no machine attachments, no hand-cranked rollers either. My Atlas has sat unused for years in an upper kitchen cabinet. It's just too much of a pain in the neck for me and I was never able to deal with the one-handed aspect of it. I've recently purchased just the roller attachment for my Kitchen Aid and look forward to giving it a whirl.

Every tablespoon of fat you can skim off saves about 120 calories. Try fitday.com.

I don't know if this is a new development, but the gentleman formerly from Il Buco (Craig Atlas) is evidently now heading up the wine "program," and perhaps the front of the house as well.

Starbucks, never a corporation to shy away from being late to the party, is now offering "Blonde roasts." According to the web site, they're "lighter-bodied and mellow", and they "awaken the senses gently." I haven't tried any of these coffees, and I haven't had a Starbucks coffee in years, because I never liked the roast profile. Will this cause any Starbucks non-lovers out there to give them a try?

I guess it wasn't fine. And calling it an "amazing deli-grocery" might be a bit of hyperbole, in my opinion. The expansion of DiPalo's, Eataly, Whole Foods, Fromaggio Essex, Faicco's, and a number of other places where basically anything you could get at the Italian Food Center can be had, albeit in a nicer, cleaner environment, have probably all led to its demise. A couple of years worth of construction along Grand St. couldn't have helped either. It's closure doesn't bring me to tears, however; I never liked the joint.

Mirepoix and sometimes a pork product or two.

Yes - the one I frequent does...Pushcart Coffee, on the corner of E. Broadway and Clinton Sts. They also have a buy 10, get 1 free thing on the coffee drinks and sandwiches. You're right on the pricing and I agree with WK2 on the Stumptown and Intellegentsia...my two faves.

Many great beans are now available around the city. As David notes above, Stumptown beans in the Ace, and they're also sold down at Pushcart Coffee, on the lower east side (Clinton and E. Broadway). I'm not a huge fan of Oren's - but, that's just me. Blue Bottle beans available at Lost Weekend, on lower Orchard St. Counter Culture beans available at Roots & Vines, on Grand St. La Colombe - 3 locations in the city. Gimme Coffee on Mott. And on and on. As far as Kona "blends," meh.

Yes - resting it for 4 hours sounds ridiculous. 30, 45 or 60 minutes just fine, and probably all you need.

I was thinking of checking over at Despana. They look good but so expensive. I actually like salted anchovies - they're usually larger and more delicious.

I think the anchovies in the OP are slightly different than this linked version. Check this....click.

A third dinner this past weekend only confirmed what I already knew - this probably will be my favorite restaurant opening of 2012. With 3 dinners, I've had the chance to try most of the menu, and there isn't much I don't like, though the NY strip loin is pretty unexciting, and you can do better with the rest of the menu. I wish I could have the "pearl barley and clams" at every meal, it's that good... For the first time, I got to try the "chicken and eggs," simply braised chicken, nice and moist, over fingerling potatoes and topped with a pair of fried eggs... The lobster dish was tasty, earthy from mushrooms and cooked as well as any lobster around... And the turbot (iirc - it wasn't my entree) was served with braised fennel... I was forced into ordering the chocolate dessert again, with that most excellent coffee ice cream... I wish the wine list had more offerings under $50, and more by the glass choices, but that won't keep me away; after all, I can always stick to the cocktails.

Nice looking steak, Mike...welcome to the forums.

Exactly right. Thank you.

We literally forced ourselves to watch a whole "episode" last night. Can there be a worse piece of drek than this show? And is there anything that the two hosts wouldn't whore themselves out for? To say nothing of the 3 "judges." Why did it have to come to this?

Wait a second...I got food from my local Dominican/Puerto Rican place last night - delivery. Pernil, oxtail stew, red beans, black beans, rice, vegetable soup and even some Buffalo Wings. total cost - $32. It was ALL properly salted. So I don't believe any of this BS. Food either comes out of a restaurant kitchen properly salted or not. That's what I learned in cooking school and that's what I Iearned working in a restaurant as a prep cook. That's why people eat out - to have food cooked properly, no? The Zuni Cafe incident is interesting; as Judy Rogers notes in her excellent Zuni Cafe Cookbook: Judy knows salt and isn't afraid to show her customers that by putting those giant shakers at every table. My guess is that most, if not all, of the food coming out of that kitchen doesn't need anything but a knife and fork...or two hands.

Funny, I thought it was a pretty great week. Dungeness crab, anyone?

I'm an OXO fan for things like this.

I have no doubt that I love salt. From salumi to potato chips, salted cookies to salted caramels, it's one of my favorite seasonings. And I also know how important it is to help bring out the flavor of many ingredients when cooking. A pinch of salt in my ice cream base - of course. Making oatmeal in the morning - a little salt goes a long way. But...I think chefs, at least here in NYC, might be getting a little salt-happy. Over the past couple of months, there have been a number of restaurant dishes that we've ordered which have been practically inedible due to too much salt. So, is this a trend, a passing fad or just some really bad taste buds back there in the kitchen?

Fatty Cue in the West Village topic...click. Patrick's suggestions are good, as always. Maialino. Gramercy Tavern does a great lunch. Boulud Sud was one of my favorite openings last year. Balthazar - classic. ABC Kitchen. Fat Radish.