KatieLoeb

This week my days off are shifting from Sun-Mon to Mon-Tues so I'm in the extra night. Glad it worked out this way! I'll look forward to seeing you then.

I've done that exact trajectory enough times to tell you it's an easy stumble from one place to the other. It's all in my 'hood. Walk up Bainbridge from Ansill to Southwark. Further up Bainbridge three blocks to 7th Street and turn northward (right) half a block to come visit me at Chick's. See you tomorrow night!

Yes! I'll be in all weekend. I'm even working Sunday night this week. A fresh batch of Rhubarb syrup/compote/goo was made a few short days ago and lives in my cooler. I'll be happy to mix up a Rhuby Daiquiri for anyone that wants to try one until they run out! It's a funky twist on a Hemingway daiquiri and is quite tasty, even if I do say so myself. I love rhubarb and was literally haunted by the idea of creating a cocktail with it until I finally tweaked this one out a few days ago.

Spurred on by this thread, I stopped and picked up some lunch to go from Hardena today. I liked some of it better than other parts, but that satay is undoubtedly the best EVER. I had lamb satay - the sauce is amazing. That other sweet soy based sauce threw me for a loop. I thought those little green rings were bits of scallion. Nope - hot peppers! Woo-hoo! My mouth was on fire but in the inimitable words of John Mellencamp - it hurt so good. I also tried a baby squid and vegetable stew (too salty for my taste and the wee little squidleys hadn't had their tiny little beaks removed so every once in a while there was a bite with the texture of a toenail in it. Ewww.), a chicken a tofu stew made with coconut milk that I really liked, and one of those killer veggie fritters. A whopping $10 for all this food. I shared with my coworkers and they liked it too. I'll definitely be back there soon for more. So many other interesting looking things to taste....

Significant would be an understatement, Sandy. Port Richmond, if you close your eyes, sounds like a bustling corner in Warsaw. If the buildings were older you'd totally think you were in Poland. I remember once trying to ask an older woman for directions somewhere and she shrugged at me. "No English", she said. There are many immigrants and first and second generation Poles in Port Richmond. A lot of the older folks never learned to speak English and didn't have to, as there's a thriving community with stores, bakeries, banks, medical offices, etc. right there that serve their community in their native language. There's also a kielbasa factory up there where one can purchase freshly smoked sausages. Anyone remember the name and address for that? I've always wanted to check that place out...

Rich: I'm less concerned for myself than I am for the rest of the eGullet membership. I know I'll still see you and benefit from your wit and wisdom. I look forward to you continuing my beer education and seeing you at DDC dinners, however infrequently we might be able to coerce folks into organize them these days. You are a treasure and a dear friend. I'll miss your steady hand in the beer forum, but know that we've neither seen nor heard the last of you here. Maybe we'll even hear more from you than before! Cheers, mon ami! We'll be raising a glass together soon enough...

The peaches and the pearl plums are pretty awesome too. Can't wait for the first Asian Pears to come in. My annual countdown has begun...

Kathleen! Great to see you blogging from Espana! How exciting. I'm very interested to see the cooking later in the week and hear more about your fabulous lifestyle. Sigh. You are truly Livin' la Vida bella! Congrats on your successes with your singing career! That's awesome. A former roommate of mine does what you do and teaches (in Germany, but occasionally sings around Europe and in the States when the role comes up) so I know just how difficult and competitive it is. You should be very proud of yourself! The magazine cover looks gorgeous by the way... Carry on. I can't wait to read about your week.

I actually haven't made the spaghetti squash yet and was just thinking I needed to do that tonight. Not sure what I'm going to do with it yet. I'll report back. The Eggplant-Tomato Tart/Quiche was very good. I took most of it to work to treat my coworkers and myself to lunch last week. Smoked gouda cheese makes everything taste good.

I have a small sample sized bottle of Fee Bros. Orgeat that I keep in my bar at room temperature. It doesn't seem any worse for wear because of it.

Purple prose aside, what's up with the strange pricing, secret deals on different days, secret ordering code and the clueless staff? That burger better be divine if it takes that much work to get it to me at the price quoted on the menu. And a ten-effing-dollar lemonade better have some high end hooch in it or be made from yuzu fruits hand squeezed by Dhali-Lamas-in-training or that's just criminal. Period.

A good cookie is a beautiful thing. Well worth travelling for or making other clandestine trades of goods/services/food items for. I've never had Carol's Cookies, but confess that I'm now intrigued. If there's a cookie trade happening, I suggest that the details be posted here. I will gladly trade a cocktail at my bar for a good cookie. Show up bearing cookies and I'll shake you up something fabulous. Promise.

Makes for a tasty watermelon-basil mojito with some muddled cubed melon, rum and a bit of fresh lime juice. Shake hard and strain over fresh ice. Also tasty with citrus vodka and fresh lemon juice for a lemon-basil sour. There are many possibilities. Basil syrup is delicious!

I am certain that Ms. LeNell made Joe Fee's acquaintance as well, so I'm certain she oughta be able to get them by dropping an e-mail or making a call. The grapefruit bitters are citrusy and subtlely spicy. Just delicious. They smell yummy right from the bottle. I haven't exactly tried drinking them straight, so I don't know if I'd call them "potable", but they are quite delicious.

Thanks for the plug, Charlie! I'd be happy to help you and your friend have a fun night and whip you up a nice drink or two, or pour you a fabulous glass of wine. Just stop by.

Awesome! Glad that worked out for you. I think the addition of fresh lime juice will make the syrup more perishable than the inclusion of the zests. If you use it up quickly that might not matter, but I'd just add the fresh lime juice to each glass as needed, so the syrup lasts a bit longer in the fridge. I've kept it for up to four weeks before noticing any change in color or flavor.

Fee Brothers Grapefruit bitters are brand spanking new. You can probably order them direct from Fee Brothers - not sure if they're in distribution yet. They're delicious and ought to be in every bitters lover's collection. My bottle was a gift from Joe Fee himself, whom I was lucky enough to meet and party with at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans.

Welcome to eGullet and the wonderful world of limoncello, mrRed! You're not diluting the solution with the extra vodka. You're bringing it back up to proof or strength to taste after diluting it with simple syrup. Limoncello isn't just lemon flavored vodka. It's a liqueur that incorporates a significant amount of sugar (in the form of simple syrup) for sweetness and viscosity.

Awesome. I love the Krakus market. It's a shame they're closed. Did the sign say when they're back from vacation or whatever? I'm due for a frozen pierogie run as well as some mustards. Syrenka's stuffed cabbage (galumpkes, as I know them) are some of the very best I've had. I haven't been there in ages. Perhaps I'll need to plan for lunch there when I stop by Krakus.

Speaking of rhubarb cocktail ideas.... I took my rhubarb compote into work tonight and screwed around with it in a few different directions. Strawberry-Rhubarb Mojitos proved quite popular with our guests this evening. I also tried it mixed with Absolut Pear vodka, fresh lemon and Stirrings Basil Martini syrup. Interesting but a bit too sweet. Better when more lemon was added. Last experiment was a margarita riff with rhubarb compote, 1800 anejo tequila, fresh lime juice and Clement Creole Shrubb. Too tart this time so a big splash of simple syrup and a couple of dashes of Fee Brothers Grapefruit bitters fixed it up. But the tequila overwhelmed the rhubarb, so next time I'd try it with a tequila blanco so the rhubarb shines through. I think the next batch of rhubarb compote will be spiced up in a subtle manner with some fresh ginger and a dash of Chinese Five Spice powder. Ought to make for an interesting whisper of background flavors with almost anything.

Now I'm thirsty again too... How did you make the rhubarb juice?? Did you cook it down first? What I made basically is boiled diced rhubarb (aobut 2.5 cups), barely covered with water and cooked at a low simmer for about 25 minutes, then I added about 1/3 volume of sugar (about .75 cups) to the pot and stirred to break up the fibrousness of the rhubarb and melt the sugar. It's still has some tang, but isn't overly sour. And definitely tastes like rhubarb, which I like very much. Lost a lot of color though. It's pretty light pink, not a deep ruby red like the stalks were before cooking. Maybe a tiny splash of Pom juice for color would work. I came across that recipe for the Dirty French Chef snooping about for rhubarb cocktail ideas. I love the description of the drink being "...sweet and savory with just a hint of bitterness, much like a real-life dirty French chef."

i've had something like that but we used aged balsamic instead of pernod.... ← That sounds interesting. Did you actually do the rinse on the glass with it, or just put a couple of drops into the drink?? Aged balsamic could potentially be quite overwhelming with improper application. Tonight I'm messing with some rhubarb compote I made earlier tonight for cocktail experimentation. Cachaca was a bit too sweet. I'm thinking maybe a reposado tequila, some lime and a sweetening agent other than triple sec. Not sure what yet. Might try some Creole Shrubb and see how that works.

Right except, I believe, lo mein noodles are made from wheat flour and chow fun noodles are made from rice flour. ← Right. Just talking shapes here. But I wasn't sure about the make up of lo mein so I didn't speak to it. I knew that chow fun were rice noodles. Thanks for answering my unspoken question.

I just saw purslane for the first time at my local farmer's market last weekend. Tasted a little piece and thought it was awful. Tasted like lawn clippings smell - too green and clorophyll-like for me. Perhaps I'd enjoy it more cooked. The tacos idea sounds intriguing.

Lo Mein:Spaghetti as Chow Fun:Papardelle. Wide, fat and flat noodles with toppings. Beef and Broccoli with Satay sauce is my usual order here in Philly's Chinatown.