Xanthippe

This is much like my mama's recipe, including Duke's mayo (the best!), except for the cream cheese. I must make up a batch using your recipe, Ron -- sounds delicious! Why does no one make pimento cheese outside the south??

Mmmm, yes! Long, slow caramelizing is my favorite way with parsnips. C/W Spencer's method sounds good as well -- I must try it. Per Ogden Nash: The parsnip, children, I repeat Is simply an anemic beet Some people find the parsnip edible Myself, I find this claim incredible and Celery, raw Develops the jaw; Celery, stewed Is more quietly chewed Ogden's da man . . .

Uh, are gate crashers allowed?? Your menu sounds awesome -- reminds me of my childhood! Memories . . .

The now-defunct McHenry's in Paradise, CA (where I got married, incidentally) had the requisite number of waitresses, all with teased hairdos, and the absolute best cream pies this side of heaven. And killer corned beef hash -- plus, the cook knew who to properly poach the egg that perched atop the hash!! Mrs. McHenry oversaw the dining room, while Mr. McHenry, always wearing a worried frown on his flushed face, worked his magic in the kitchen. Edit to clarify: I got married in the town of Paradise, not in McHenry's (although now that I think on it, that might not have been such a bad idea . . . ).

Petrale sole, methinks.

A true mustard maven must make a pilgrimage, either literally or in cyber-space, to the Mount Horeb Mustard Museum. An exhaustive selection of mustards, and probably the most whimisically clever catalogues I've ever had the pleasure to peruse. Barry Levenson, the curator, is also a former assistant state attorney general who has written a fascinating book, Habeas Codfish: Reflections on Food and the Law. Worth a read . . .

"I loathe flaccid bacon," she stated crisply. "You call that a knife-sharpening job??" the Executive Chef asked cuttingly. "I need those green beans prepped now!" the sous chef barked snappily. "Whasshhh good to eat at thishh place?" the drunk at the Jamaican restaurant mumbled jerkily. "Give me an extra dollop of that chipotle salsa, honey," the vamp purred smokily. "I enjoy a good Gewurztraminer with my strudel," she said spicily. "Ouch! I nicked my knuckles when I grated that rhizome," he winced gingerly.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I really wouldn't care about the cake's appearance after shipping, as long as it tasted as good as your description. I'm going to call these folks posthaste. Looking forward to the frosting adventure pix . . .

I'm with Mamster on this one -- a positive trend, indeed. Prose in the third person, however, well-written, is either ponderous and turgid, or flaccid. Give me the immediacy of the more informal style, please.

Well then, if we're talking recipes, it's gonna take me a while to count 'em all . . .

Are these like pilot crackers? Yes, although not as dry as most pilots tend to be. Same goes for the Neva-Betta mini versions I mentioned . . .

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. Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod. We have a neighborhood pharmacy that has a restaurant at one end. The food is OK, but not great. Solid shakes. Vanilla and Cherry Cokes with real syrup. Freshly made orangeade. But the reason to go to this place is for their desserts, particularly their coconut layer cake. It is the single richest, most decadent dessert I have ever eaten. I often go there for a side salad and coconut cake. You don't need much else. One other aspect of a cake that I'm not sure has been mentioned is sea foam icing. Very popular down here. 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 . . .

Socrates and I have 183, with three more in transit . . .

Just found the recipe given to me so many years ago, and it's identical to the one from the Favre Family Cookbook. Can't remember Annabel's last name, but I don't think it was Favre! Ever since my mama left Durham and moved to New Hampshire, I unfortunately have no reason to find myself in the Triangle area. I enjoyed a number of great meals at the Magnolia Grill, and always saved room for one of Karen Barker's terrific desserts.

Do you have a recipe, Varmint? I've never heard of it. Yum. Coca Cola Cake. Just make sure you have a dose of insulin handy. Oh, yeah! I'm another Coca Cola Cake lover; I believe I do have a recipe (given to me at the tender age of nine by Annabel, my grandmother's next-door neighbor) for it somewhere. I'll look, and will post if I'm successful. Other classics on my "revival list" include: Coconut Layer Cake, Chocolate Buttermilk Cake, Beet Cake, St. Louis Orange Ring Cake, and the afore-mentioned Red Velvet (my grandmother called it "Red Rose") Cake.

Oh, yes! Bath Olivers are wonderful. I find they're particularly well-suited to pairing with stronger cheeses; their "blandness," for lack of a better word, is the perfect foil for a blue such as Fourme d'Ambert. When I can't find Bath Olivers, my substitute of choice is a sort of mini version called Neva-Betta. They have the requisite "blandness and crisp-factor, as well as the puffiness.

Ooh, ooh, yes! How could I forget Spice Cake??!? It was the second thing I learned to make all those years ago, coming hard on the heels of coffee cake. Retro desserts should be hipper than they are, alas.

Do you grind your own meat? How do you season it, if at all?? Condiment choices??? See, there's a great deal on which you can elaborate!

Socrates is the Master of Hyperbole . . .

Kyle ( ), You live in San Francisco, if I recall; did you buy them there? And how much did the place charge for cleaned and cracked??

Wow, no kidding! If that's what po' folks eat on the Olympic Peninsula, I'm so there right now -- and with no money in my pocket!! And here I thought I got a good deal on Saturday when I paid $3.99/lb. for 'em (cooked, cracked and cleaned) at a local fish market . . .

Oh, dear! So sorry you had to be the taste-test subject for what sounds like a very appalling excuse for an Oreo. But you've performed a good deed (albeit an unintentional one) in that you've saved many of us from wasting $1.99 . . .

While in Spain, I had the pleasure of eating several delicious versions of what I understand is a classic dish: lamb ragout with roasted roasted peppers. The meat was marinated in olive oil, wine, cumin, and sweet paprika. The stew, if I recall, contained onions, garlic, lemon juice, additional paprika (and perhaps cumin?), and lots of roasted red peppers (which might have been piquillo peppers, now that I know what they are). One version also contained tomatoes; another had some sort of piquant ingredient(s) as well. Are you familiar with this dish? Does your book have a recipe for it, or something like it?? Thank you, Marina, for participating in this Q&A.

I've settled on two versions of TT, both very much like Bond Girl's, the only real difference being that I use either key lime or chipotle avocado oil (omitting the jalapeno in the latter case).

I believe what you've described is what we call Mexican green onions in these parts. I can get them at local farmers' markets and/or Hispanic mercados. They're wonderful, but very, very strong -- just as you said. In the Catalan region of Spain, I've had them roasted or grilled and served with Romesco sauce. Awesome combination. Romesco sauce is also fabulous with roasted asparagus . . .