JAZ

I got the bar second-hand from a friend of mine (and my guess is that they also bought it second hand). I'd always coveted it when I'd visit her and her husband, and told her that if she was ever going to get rid of it, I wanted right of first refusal. So, around eight years ago, they were remodeling. She called to say it just didn't fit in with their new look and to ask if I was still interested. Took me about 2 seconds to say yes. I'll definitely give you some cocktail recipes. I work part time at Sur La Table, near Union Square downtown. I don't know about photos of the store, but I can give you a tour of some of my cookware and gadgets, certainly. I'm off to a couple of my favorite markets while it's not raining. When I come back, I'll tell you more about work and shopping, and show you some pictures of the markets and my kitchen.

Thanks, everyone. Let's see: I'm not sure how much of the city I'll be able to explore with you all -- the weather has been wet and nasty, and I don't think slogging around in the rain would be fun for any of us. But I'll do what I can in between downpours. The cats are not particularly camera shy, so I might be able to get a few more shots of them. (The dishes are cool, aren't they? I thought I had the only cats around that ate out of Kotobuki dishes, but I guess I was wrong. I can't believe Johnnyd's cat used to have the same dish.) As for shopping, I'm lucky to be pretty close to some good markets and have several options for larger grocery stores that are fairly convenient. Since I'm only shopping for myself, it's not as difficult as it would be if I were shopping for a family. I'll get to shopping strategies in a minute, but first, brunch. It's a day off for me, and after a couple of not-great days, I decided to treat myelf to a Bloody Mary. To be precise, I suppose I should call it a a Caesar since I use Clamato. But then again, because I use gin, a Red Snapper might be a better name. A Snappy Caesar, maybe? Oh course, if I called it that, no one would know what I was talking about. I'll stick with the Bloody Mary. All mixed up and ready to go. The finished drink (not a very great photo; my apologies). On to the food. Nothing too exciting -- some leftover carrot soup, half a cheese twist I got yesterday at a little farmers' market a couple of blocks from where I work, and some smoked salmon spread from the same market.

I thought about calling this "Meet Me at the Bar" because, well, I do have a bar in my living room, but I don't want people to get the wrong idea, and besides, my Mom might be reading this. (Actually, my parents know I have a bar in my living room. I've had it for years.) Then I thought about calling it "A Girl and her Cookware" because, having worked at a cookware store for more years than I can believe, I have collected a frightening amount. So why "Park and Shop"? People of a certain age (women, probably) might remember the old board game by that name. Or maybe not -- maybe my sister and our friends were the only ones who played that strange game. In brief, here's an overview. You had two markers: one car and one pedestrian. You drew cards that told you which shops you had to visit. You started out with your car, and "drove" to one of several parking lots, depending on where your shops were located. Then you used your pedestrian to visit all the shops. (I know, we're not talking the excitement of buying property on Boardwalk, but hey, we liked it.) Of course there were squares you could land on that sent you to jail (I don't remember why -- jaywalking?) or otherwise set you back. But mostly, the strategy involved trying to find the shortest, most economic way of visiting all the shops on your list, and that's why I always remember it, because in many ways, that's my shopping life today. Back when I worked in an office and had a civilized hour for lunch, I often used that time to run as many errands as possible, and that's when it first came to me that I was living the "Park and Shop" game (without the parking, but close enough.) Now, since I am without a car, much of my food planning revolves around trying to figure out exactly that same thing -- how to get to all the shops I need to without making unnecessary side trips, taking impossibly long bus routes, or ending up with so much stuff I can't carry it. But "Public Transportation and Shop" doesn't quite have the same ring, does it? So "Park and Shop" it is. I'll talk more in a while about the shops I visit, how this whole process plays out day to day and how it influences my cooking style. But first, here's the way I start all my mornings, feeding the boys. Damien, Mookie, and Felix having breakfast. Max generally prefers private dining. Once they've eaten and I've let them out, I can concentrate on caffeine. I have a 10-cup programmable Krups machine, but I've found that my little one-cup Melita, which started life as a travel coffee maker, is more manageable for just me. I drag out the big black machine only when I have company. So, if you'll let me drink my coffee, I'll be back with more about the week ahead (kitchen pictures, too).

Chenery Park in Glen Park has a kids' night every Tuesday. In addition to the regular menu, they offer a kids' menu with smaller portions of their popular dishes (lower prices too). They try to set it up so that parties with small children are all seated in the upstairs section, keeping the rest of the tables a little bit quieter. (You can check out their "Kids' Club" on the web site.)

For dinner last night, I made a caesar salad with seared scallops. The scallops were great; the salad was good, but not great. I think I need help with my caesar dressing.

I guess I don't see an overwhelming reason to discount these boards based on those threads. There are basically three comments there from people who don't like them, without much to back them up. Most of the comments are actually on bamboo boards. My personal experience with the Epicureans has been that they don't dull my knives. My feeling is that if your knives scratch or cut your boards, then the board is softer than the knife and, thus, it's not hard on your knives. My Epicurean has as many scores as my wood boards -- more, probably -- although not as many as my poly board.

I just made the "Winter Greens Gratin" from Fine Cooking magazine. It's a little time consuming, compared with my usual methods for greens, but it's worth it for something a little more special. I used rainbow chard (the article suggests several varieties, with cooking instructions for them). Here's the blanched chard, along with the buttered bread crumbs, grated Parmesan and a mixture of bacon and pancetta (which you can barely see, because I can't frame a photo to save my life). The recipe calls for only the leaves, but I used the stems too, because I like them. I just cooked them for 10 minutes or so before adding the leaves to blanch. Here are the gratins assembled and ready to go into the oven: I made two -- one for tonight and one to reheat tomorrow or the next day. Here's the one for later -- I took out it out early, so I could reheat it without drying it out:

I've had one for quite a while and haven't noticed it being at all hard on my knives. It seems about the same density as a wood board. My only complaint about it is that because it's so light, it slides around a lot unless you put down a damp towel first.

What material is your grill pan? From the picture, it looks like cast iron, which in my experience heats pretty evenly -- although it can take a long time to heat up the section not over the burners. I have the two-burner reversible Le Creuset grill pan, which heats up well if I'm patient enough to wait for it. One trick I've read about but not tried is to preheat the pan in the oven and then move it to the stove when you're ready to cook. Way more planning than I'm capable of, though.

Several years ago I assisted at a cooking class taught by Anne Willan, who made a similar cheese and herb "twice-baked" souffle. The texture is not as light as a regular souffle, but they're still very good.

I do use pennies. They work beautifully and they are cheaper than pie weights. (It's surprising how quickly you can collect enough for several pie shells. But if you don't want to wait, go to the bank and buy three or four rolls.)

A friend of mine and I decided to check out Swig a couple of months ago. We got there around 10:30 on a Thursday. We were carded at the door (not awful at our ages, actually), and walked into a crowded, throbbingly loud room. Under the right circumstances, it might have been okay, but we wanted a place where we could talk and not have to wait in line for drinks, so we left and went across the street to Cortez.

You might also try Cortez in the Adagio Hotel on Geary. I've heard good things about Bix but haven't been there in years.

Echoing what others have said, as advice for a beginner, I'd avoid trying something new -- when you're an experienced cook and thrower of dinner parties, you'll be able to gauge pretty well how something will work, what kind of time is involved, etc. But when you're new at it, and nervous, it just adds to the stress. Marlene's advice to start out with small groups is great -- maybe even just two or three friends, or one other couple (if you're half of a couple). Then you can move on to bigger groups with more confidence. Cocktails and appetizers are a lot of work, and I'd never suggest them for someone who's new to entertaining, and who's going to prepare dinner on top of that. It's different if you just want to have a cocktail party (I have lots of advice on that, but that's another topic), but if dinner is the focus, a few snacks and a glass of champagne is a great way to start. And I'd never be embarrassed to buy premade items for snacks, as long as the quality is good. Some hummus and olives, or spiced nuts, or a good pate or terrine, is a nice and easy way to start. I'd stick with no more than four courses, including dessert, and only that if most of them are all done ahead. I've found that soup is a great first course -- it's all ready to go, requires no last minute work except for putting it in bowls (and maybe a simple garnish), and can go with all kinds of menus and all seasons. And people don't expect soup -- it's really very impressive that way. Then, depending on the type of meal, you could follow up with the main course and finish with a salad, or follow with a composed salad and finish with the main course. Then dessert, and you're done. A few other things that bear mentioning. Depending on your guests, make sure you have something non-alcoholic to serve, even if it's just sparkling water. If it's a long party and guests are drinking a lot, make sure there's lots of water available before and during dinner. For some menu-planning advice, here is an eGCI class on the subject. It's not specifically for party menus, but might contain some information you can use.

I never meant that keeping a kettle on the stove is illogical for everyone -- if I made tea every day, or even a few times a week, it would make some sense. It's just that I've been doing it all this time only because it's what I grew up seeing. So, Brooks, you can keep your kettle on the stove.

Isn't there a Hirsch rye out there, too? I would swear I've had Manhattans with it.

A friend of mine was visiting recently and we spent quite a bit of time cooking. Several times, we needed all the burner space, so I moved my tea kettle off the burner where it normally resides to make room; then, when we cleaned up, I moved it back. After a couple of times watching me do this, he asked why I keep it on the stove, since I rarely seemed to use it. The only answer I could think of was that it's what my Mom did. I grew up with a tea kettle on a back burner of the stove pretty much all the time. It was natural; it was the way things were. But here's the thing -- my Mom makes tea every day; I make tea about once a month, tops. The kettle has no other routine uses for me, so it occurred to me that for the past 20 years, I've essentially taken up a burner with an item that I use a lot less than any of my pots and pans. All it does is collect grease and dust from sitting out. It's an especially stupid habit given that I don't like unnecessary clutter in my kitchen. So, after all this time, I've moved it to a cupboard. But since then, I've tried to identify other habits I have that make no sense and have found a couple more, mostly storage related. Anyone else have any habits like this?

I've been thinking about this for a few days, and the best I can do in one sentence is that the best bartenders will make you feel like a regular, even if you aren't and even if you never can or will be.

Brooks is right -- it's because the colder the water is, the more carbon dioxide will stay dissolved in the water. For the same reason, you should always chill soda bottles before opening -- you lose much less CO2 so you get less spurting upon opening and end up with soda that stays fizzy longer.

I had a nice drink with this rum a couple of weeks ago. Muddled slices of yellow bell and jalapeno peppers, rum, simple syrup and lemon juice, topped with soda. Really refreshing. The heat and flavor of the peppers matched well with the rum. I also tasted it neat and was impressed -- very smooth but interesting.

I found Carpano Antica at my favorite liquor shop and bought a bottle. Tonight, I tried a version of the 2-2-2 Manhattan from Pegu Club. The drink calls for 2 different ryes, two vermouths and two types of bitters (hence the name), but I only had Wild Turkey rye, so I went with: 2 oz. Wild Turkey rye 1/4 oz. Noilly Prat dry vermouth 1/4 (+) oz. Carpano Antica Dash Peychauds bitters Dash bitters Not quite as good as the Pegu Club's (which, as I recall, is made with Rittenhouse bonded and Mitcher's), but good enough to make me a believer in Manhattans.

Lots of advice in this topic in the Cocktails Forum.

I always blind bake the crust for quiche.

I like the Moros as well -- although to be honest I have to admit I've never eaten the fruit, just juiced them for cocktails and sorbets. I can imagine that they're not the greatest for eating plain, but I like the tartness -- it's much better in cocktails than sweeter orange juice. I recently made a sorbet from Pamela Sheldon Johns's Gelato book using blood orange juice and Campari. It was great, but now I'm thinking about blood orange juice and bourbon or rye.

You've probably figured it out by now, but you put the straight blade in, and then dial the wheel to choose the large or small julienne size. Then you can slice the whole potato and end up with julienne.