Plantes Vertes

Smithy, Jerusalem artichokes make nice crisps (ie chips). You can serve like this them as an accompaniment to game fowl, or to add a crunchy element to a salad for example; I had a very nice meal once of a slow-cooked, deep-fried egg with braised bitter greens, hazelnuts, hazelnut oil and the crisps on top. Otherwise you can turn them into a pureed soup with some sherry, mushrooms, onion, rosemary and creme fraiche, or batter and deep-fry them in slices; roasted to go with a lemon chicken dish is a good call too, and I've also had them poached in olive oil as a tapa. I am curious about something; how do you and DH divide the kitchen work? What is your process for deciding what to eat? Thanks!

Fortunately I have long practiced sublimating my humiliations and transmuting them into neurosis, so this type of error barely registers on my self-esteem-o-graph now No, pretty sure it was a standard Negroni formulation, plus somethingorother that I can't remember. Guess I'll have to go back and check. Oh well.

I curtailed a hard day's doing nothing much to take myself out to Happiness Forgets last night; here is the proof. Bonnie Prince Bailie Nicol Jarvie scotch, PX, Punt e Mes, Absinthe, Jerry Thomas Bitters and citric acid I really liked this drink, which I guess is an elaboration of a Robert Burns. Although they produce a very harmonious result the various elements remain distinct and it's possible to appreciate each part. Dante Tapatio Reposado, Kummel, Chartreuse, lime, cane syrup, basil, celery bitters As a herbivore I will never spurn a bit of greenery and I was interested in the use of basil here, but in fact I did not really enjoy this one, which I found sweet and sticky. Perhaps that's what cane syrup will do. The tequila was also extremely restrained and I thought it could have been more prominent for an improved balance, but I did like the big bits of plant matter and shards of ice. I spoke to my neighbour about this choice and she expressed a totally opposite opinion. Perfect Manhattan The couple sitting by me worked for Pernod-Ricard and Havana Club and were spending a busman's holiday in the bar. I reckoned they knew whereof they spoke and since they told me it was their favourite place in London I picked their brains about what to order; this was Mamie's recommendation and she liked either it or me so much she bought me one. What a sweetheart. At this point I became engaged in an involved conversation with a cage-fighting entrepreneur, so I didn't take any more pictures. I ordered the house Negroni. I was very, er, interested in my discussion and that caused me to forget some important details like what was in it and what it was called. The Count seems plausible. Anyway, the bitter side is quite attenuated by some additional ingredient and it's a very pleasant variant. Happiness Forgets is super relaxed and friendly. The music is cool. The bartenders and hostess are very, very pretty. I can only criticise the unlikely orientation of the bathrooms, which open directly onto the bar ( ). That struck me as a trifle indiscreet. I just prefer not to look at toilets. The bar menu is quite short but there's a proper range of options and the offering changes frequently so you won't get bored even if you go there all by yourself with a vague intention to do some reading over a quick drink and end up staying for five hours and being politely encouraged to go elsewhere because everyone who works there would like to leave soon... Julian who was serving my sector of the bar first came there on an exchange from the Goldene Bar in Munich and would not go home at the end, so it seems people like working as well as drinking there. Well they would not allow me to stay any longer so I was forced back home to meet a friend. We resumed by leaping onto the Tammany Hall bandwagon. My guest said 'Oh God' with feeling when he tasted it and I could tell he meant it as he drank several. Thank you. Rafa To conclude we made a couple of Sazeracs, and post a brief but necessary snooze, a cold shower and some jolt coffees it was work time. For my friend.

Rafa, you're like a thirsty person's fairy godmother.

I was hoping to see a dirty-faced scullion or performing rodents turning the spit, but whatever

I think there's a big difference between what's required or desirable or economical in a restaurant, and what is considered suitable for a TV show, though. At least in the UK, many people are not able to make a cake or pasta sauce from scratch, and live off food from packets. There's a whole infestation of new supermarkets that contain nothing but food in packets, including ready-cut fruit and vegetables in microwave-safe plastic dishes. Those people aspire to eating exotic food but do not want the hassle of chopping it up. If you show them a chef boning out a chicken or cutting potatoes into matchsticks they'll just think This fancy-pants show-off is wasting my time with his know-it-all food tricks; it would alienate most of the audience. They want to see things that are easy and relatable and that they could conceivably recreate at home without too much effort.

If you look at the aesthetic that is popular in a lot of western modern high-end restaurants now, it seems that a somewhat whimsical random appearance is preferred to the exactitude of a perfect brunoise, julienne etc. I suppose that classic French knife skills like mushroom turning have become less important as French cuisine has become less influential, too. I don't suppose that many restaurants do a lot of butchery either, so maybe knife skills are just overall less crucial than they were. And then the type of chefs that appear on TV are probably spending a lot of time making programmes, doing interviews and managing their businesses rather than cooking; maybe they're a bit rusty

Shelby and Smithy, could you line the tops with drawer liner? It's smooth, so wipes clean.

Norm, I believe I read that andiesenji has a device that will make pods out of your own coffee. I guess it's something like this. Would one of those help?

Last year I did roasted whole onions in their jackets, roasted beetroot and roasted rhubarb for the first time. They're worth a try!

Drink ten Hail Maries and sin no more. For future reference Mortal sins (deprive the soul of sanctifying grace) Eating your sled dogs Cannibalism Failure to consume your five-a-day Venial sins (only a partial loss of grace) Over-cooking your penguin Running out of Champagne Employing bottled yuzu juice in a sour

Today we drank a Hanky Panky 2oz gin 1oz red vermouth 1/4oz Fernet Branca Orange peel garnish Stirred And yesterday an Amertinez 1 1/4 oz gin 2/3 oz Cynar 2/3 oz sweet vermouth 1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino 2 dash orange bitters Orange peel garnish Stirred I go in for these radical changes of style from time to time...

Santa dropped by while I was visiting my folks. Thanks Santa! I'm stoked.

I would guess that most vegans choose their lifestyle as a matter of personal ethics rather than aversion to the taste of meat; they might like meat but prefer to sacrifice eating it because of perceived cruelty. In fact the tradition of fake meat food originates with Buddhist monks if I understand correctly. They don't eat meat because they believe it's wrong to do so, but obviously still enjoy the taste and texture.

Some friends plan to open a market stall selling chowder of various sorts. I see that this could be popular but a few obstacles occurred to me. 1. Most of the recipes will contain seafood and fish. Normally you would add these ingredients at different times according to the length of cooking required. Will it be possible to cook batches of the stew - with the fish and seafood? (That really doesn't seem feasible to me as they will quickly overcook.) Are there some sea ingredients that will survive long cooking? (Not literally...) - without the fish and seafood, adding them separately to smaller batches? How long could the completed soup hold up to simmering? 2. How long could the soup be held on a simmer without the seafood? 3. Are some varieties of chowder more suitable for this sort of service? 4. Are there any non-fish chowders that are not corn chowder (not an ideal recipe for midwinter in the UK...)? All thoughts welcome.

Seitan

Here's a Molto Italiano recipe for rabbit and peppers that might fit the bill if you sub green for yellow and orange, or here is one for rabbit and red peppers.

The most reliable remedy for kitchen madness is ample alcohol. Soak cook and guests in wine for several hours.

It's a dish from northern France, where the baby sweet pepper crop would be quite scarce I should think, so perhaps its an idiosyncratic addition. You might just have to put them in and see what happens. Maybe saute them with the onions.

I can't see why you would not do the garlic studding, but if some reason does emerge you can always make a garlic paste to rub the pork instead.

Dare I ask about 'Jail Slaw'...?

Yes, it's known as Chinese Leaf in the UK.

I admire your results under pressure, Dcarch! Recently we gave a big party with guests arriving at all different times. We had to think carefully about what to cook so we could keep food coming without having to cook during the evening. We decided to: Make cooked food that could be frozen after so that we could make a lot without worrying about waste Have a number of dishes that could be renewed during the party without a lot of effort, like rice and crudites Base the menu on dishes that would stand up to being served at different temperatures so timing would be less important Do a menu of dishes that could be served in various orders so it wouldn't matter if people started eating at different times or went back for more later Totally empty the fridge, freezer and all the cupboards to make space for party food in case of unexpected guests

The Savoy book also has the Yellow Parrot.

Non-chewy bread would be an object of suspicion and pity in my book. I would imagine fluffy Wonderbread bread or old dry bread as non-chewy.