hjshorter

well, smokers i know have told me this, so well, yeah some do i m sure I'm one of those. When I smoked, I didn't smoke in my apartment or car, because I didn't want them to smell like smoke.

He was interviewed on NPR's Diane Rehm Show the other day, talking about the book. In addition to being talented, he is one of the most gracious guests I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. I can't wait to read the book.

eep. I assume desitin is non-toxic! Emma (almost 4) helped bake Ian's birthday cake this weekend. She helped weigh the ingredients, and put things into the bowl for me - and did a great job. I may let her start scrambling eggs soon. She already makes a mean salad and shakes the dressing like a pro.

Agreed - it's absolutely the best for hot dogs. Anything else overwhelms the relish.

If it was a downtown spot I wonder if Whole Foods nixed the competition? Fairfax or Sterling would definitely be an occasional shopping trip for us.

Hot dogs, and I put it in potato salad occasionally, but that's about all it's good for.

Thanks for the report, and the great pictures, Vengroff. The chickens looked fab - how did they taste?

Are you serious? I had no idea that pickles could be fried. Not sure how I feel about it either.

It's still available. Click

Another Maille dijon fan here. Also: Terrapin Ridge Cracked Pepper, Lemon & Thyme French's Boar's Head Moutarde de Meaux (sp? the grainy one) Zatarains Creole Coleman's Dry I love Mister Mustard but can't find it anywhere.

I didn't find CDM revolting at all. For what it's worth, my husband was raised in New Orleans and didn't consider a visit beneath him at all when he took me to his hometown. We also went to Le Madeleine, the one uptown, at the end of the streetcar tracks.

Oh, maaannnnn!!! Just as I'm resigning myself to the fact that my mama's up and moved to New Hampshire, Varmint has to regale us with a description of his neighborhood pharmacy's coconut layer cake!! Varmint, where in North Carolina do you live? What's the pharmacy's name?? Do they ship their desserts??? I'm going nuts here! hjshorter, please take pix of your son's frosting adventures . . . I believe I heard about that cake from you at the ball game, Varmint. I am definitely stopping in Raleigh on my way to Charlotte next month. And yes, I'm sure there will be plenty of pics of Ian's frosting encounter!

Oh wow, I forgot about that one! My mom made it all the time. She called it Lemon Supreme cake. I had apricot nectar and a lemon juice/confectioners sugar glaze.

We always have buttermilk around, and those are the only three items we use it for. Buttermilk sorbet sounded great. With berry season coming up it warrants a search at epicurious.com to see if it's there.

Bripastryguy, can buttermilk just be subbed for the milk in a cake recipe, or do other parts of the recipe have to be adjusted, like the leavening?

One of the very few things I have from my grandmother (my Dad's mom) is a handwritten recipe for Mississippi Mud cake. She was a fine down-home cook from Oklahoma. I wish I had more of her recipes. What's in the Banana Split Cake?

I am almost sure I will make that on Saturday for my baby boy's first birthday. I can't wait to see what he does with the coconut frosting.

Do you have a recipe, Varmint? I've never heard of it.

You're very welcome . I'm sure you and clair797 will love the book as much as I have. I haven't made the Orange Velvet Cake, but it looks like a strongly orange flavored, fine grained butter cake. There are also a huge number of fillings, frostings and glazes including a "traditional Kentucky" Sour-Cream Nut Icing that sounds really good. I have the original version of the book and there a few diagrams and illustrations, but no photos. I don't know if the new edition now includes pictures. Nightscotsman, thanks from me too. I just put it on my Amazon wish list. The sour cream nut icing sounds yummy. I make a sour cream spice cake it might be good on.

I love Wayne Harley Brachman. What a career! Edit: Meant to add that I loved your first line, mamster, and the rest of the article too.

I actually had this dessert at Le Cirque in 1998. It was precious. It appealed to the dollhouse collector in me. I have no recollection of how it tasted.

If you want another place across the river, I would add Addie's in Rockville, unless something has gone terribly wrong there in the last year. Black's is a spinoff (for lack of a better word) from Addie's. We've had some fine meals there.

These folks were at my local Costco last week offering samples of their coffees. I had never heard of them, even though their facility is two miles from my house. Has anyone else sampled their coffee? I was impressed enough by the flavor and freshness to buy three pounds, and may call and arrange a tour of the roasting facility. Mayorga Coffee Roasters

Could you provide some recipes? I like the sound of Stuffed Monkey.

Yes, what's up with that? One is not aspiring to the heights of pastrychefdom with any of these cakes. They are not that hard to bake. You got that right! It really isn't hard, but no one does it. The round of birthday parties for my daughter's friends has just begun...more nasty cake. On a related note, no one has their kid's birthday party at home anymore (well, except us). No pigs in blankets, English muffin pizzas, pin the tail on the donkey, homemade punch and cake...the party is farmed out to Gymboree or Chuckie Cheese with crappy food and canned "games." The sad thing is, those parties cost big bucks. Same with supermarket cake. With a little time and thought you can have something wonderful for much less money.