Richard Kilgore

As I noted, they were both bulk beans, but one batch came from Kroger and turned out great, and one came from Wal-Mart and turned out not at all. Week apart. The water here tastes terrible, so I always filter cooking water. So I assume Wal-Mart got a deal on some old, old beans. And Kroger uses a kitschy barrel, Wal-Mart just opens up the huge bulk boxes. Back to Kroger.

Bulk Pinto Beans, Linda. By the pound.

Bulk Pinto Bean Alert! Last week I cooked bulk Pintos from Kroger and they turned out just fine after 1 1/2 hours in the oven. This week I cooked bulk Pintos from Wal-Mart for 1 1/2, 2 1/2, 3 hours and they were still inedible. Dumped them and the rest of them in the cupboard I had not yet tried to cook.

Thanks, Sean. That sounds great. I am asuming there is a huge diference between the regular Anson grits and their 20 minute grits. Have you done a comparison?

Here's a brief, but important caveat in the Times. Coffee consumption is something I always ask clients about if they are having symptoms of anxiety or insomnia. Richard A. Friedman, M.D. on caffeine intoxication.

Great ideas. I like to find out about Texas cookbooks that have missed my radar. Claire797 -- your recommendation added to additional ones on other threads, so I hunted down a copy of Stop and Smell the Rosemary. I have seen it in book stores, but it is usually shrink-wrapped, so you can't see the contents. I was amazed to see that they have printed at least 220,000 copies of the book over five printings. It is a beautifully designed book, and the recipes look great. joiei -- Can you give us a title on the UT Alumni book?

That's an interesting list. Spencer Michlin must have done some rigorous research at lunch time. There are several I want to try now. Raynickben, I also like some of the corner Bakery sandwiches, especially those using Steakhouse Rye, a wonderfully dark, chewy bread.

Sam, I was not really interested in the pods. With the illy deal you can choose whole beans or pods, every month or every other month. The cheapest pod option, though is four 4.4 ounce packages (18 serving each) for $46 every other month = $276/year for 6.6 lbs ($41.8/lb.). The cheapest whole bean option is six 8.8 ounce cans for $66 every other month = $396/year for 19.8 lb ($20/lb). Quite a deal. I'll still wait. Moka and French Press for me for now with good beans, grinder, and a roaster of some sort.

Another question -- does cheese completely mask the advantages of Anson grits, as stated above by Robyn? Are they best simply served?

Thanks for the scientific study, guys. I assume this was a double blind study. Your dedicated efforts reinforce my path of grinder, popcorn roaster, then serious roaster...then maybe espresso machina. I believe Sam said he prefers the stainless steel Moka pots, and I hope he reappears to clarify why. The Bailetti site made a point of the aluminum being a good material because it is porous enough to retain coffee residue which enhances flavor the more it is used. Any opinions all around?

Ah, ha! What Beans described is similar to what I have seen in the Florida Keys: a sugar mixture in a small saucepan, but I did not see the whole procedure. Very good stuff. It propelled me from KW to the Miami Airport one day.

I have heard of making Cuban coffee by dumping sugar in a filter basket and then running your coffee through it. Also by using a Moka and adding sugar? Is there an authentic way? Best way?

Dave -- nope, charcoal smoker, no gas grill. I am going to try out the popcorn popper method. I found another one tonight. (I checked my closet-where-all-lost-things-reside and found that my popcorn poper is a Poppery II, which tend to burn out according to the folks over on coffeegeek, so I think this one is going to remain a dedicated popcorn popper as much as I like the idea of using something for an unintended use). I will report back as soon as the smoke clears and the fire trucks leave. Moka. Actually I have a small one of these, but can not find it even in the closet. Maybe the garage. I have had it for many years and tried using it a year or so ago again, but had trouble finding a replacement gasket and set it aside. Really aside apparently. When I used it previously I am sure I did not use good coffee, and it was okay, but I preferred the Melita filter system and used that regularly for many, many years until six to eight months ago when I began using a French Press daily, instead of just on weekends. I'll try a Moka again. Amazon has a stainless model 3 cup for about $35 and same model 6 cup for $40. My old one was the traditional aluminum style, also on Amazon.

Thanks. I happened to do a search here and on coffee geek last night. Looks like the alternatives are $180 for the iRoast or a used popcorn popper for $15...or the dog bowl, heat gun, oven mitt, and colanders.

I did mine in a crock pot, too, with a 72/25% mix of sweet to hot Szeged. The chicken was suculent, but I poured and patted the paprika onto the skinned chicken quarters before cooking...and it may have been too much paprika even for Linda! Yow! I'll try shaking the chicken in the bag next time. I did not watch the onions well because I let it cook overnight, and there was a lot of moisture in the pot in the morning. Still very tasty. I would like to try some of the top-rated parika now. And yes, I really like the metal cans, too.

I'm with rancho-gordo. The Moka is right in my price range for now. Moka and French Press with home roasted beans ought to keep me occupied for awhile. I am sure I read something here about converting a popcorn popper to roast beans. And I just happen to have an old air popper that is not busy doing any thing else right now. Do those things really work? Better than the entry level roasters that run $60-70?

chefseanbrock -- what about Fifi's idea above -- doing the grits in a crock pot? Ever tried it? What kind of quantities do you do and what do you do them in? Daily? And what do you do with them after they are cooked?

Thanks for all the opinions and experience. I am in no rush on this, but I know I am not going to go for a $1,000 plus machine. So this FF X5 or the Silvia is more likely. For now I like my french press coffee and am getting a Rocky next month to make it even better. Thanks, Steven, for pointing out the $300 FF X5s. That makes more sense to me, because the minimum illy purchase spread over a year is actually $395. I would rather be able to try different pods or grind a variety of beans, whether or not I end up roasting them myself. And I may end up roasting for the french press before I get an espresso machine. Thanks again, everyone. More ideas are certainly welcome. Richard

Thanks for your comments, Chefseanbrock. I was quite impressed by the article and planned on trying several of the Anson Mills products. And your recommendations and confidence add to my interest. Among other things, I would like to try their hominy in my posole. I also have a question. Someone up thread complained that Anson Mills grits take "hours" to cook. What is your experience? Do you use the quick version, or the regular grits? Is their a qualitative difference?

I had one of these many years ago, but it must have gotten lost in a move along the way. I think about getting another from time to time. It does make the smoothest coffee I have ever had due to the lack of oils. I had forgotten how good even coffee of modest quality is when run through that thing for making iced coffee.

What's a reasonable place to start for decent espresso? I do French press daily, but I saw the adv for the illy/FrancisFrancis X5 deal ($175 plus a minimum of $395 worth of illy over 12 months). Is this worth doing? Are there less expensive machines to consider?

Since you have the flexibility in your food budget, I agree with the idea of eating serious Mexican and barbeque in Ft. Worth, but not upscale. If you want something that has a 19th century Texas writ large in Ft.Worth, I still suggest the steakhouse at the hotel at the Ft.Worth Stockyards. I'll look for a website. (I would not necessarily nix Lonesome Dove, I just would not do it if I only had 2 - 3 days here with your objectives in mind.) Then you have a number of options in Dallas, anyone of which you may be pleased with. In addition to Scott's suggestions there is Sharon Hage's York Street (6047 Lewis Street, Dallas, TX 75206, 214-826-0968). She was recently nominated for the James Beard Foundation Best Chef Southwest Award, as was Kent Rathbun (Abacus, 4511 McKinney Avenue, Dallas, TX 75205, 214-559-3111). Sharon Hage is known for using fresh local Texas ingredients creatively, and I understand that York Street is a place that a lot of local chefs like to eat. (And it should run $40-50 w/o wine, but including tax & tip.) If you decide to go to the Tasting Room at Lola, you should try to make a reservation right away. That's probably a good idea for any of the upscale places.

Scott -- those are fine Dallas recommendations, of course, but bperlow asked in his first post for places he could spend $40 - $50 at the most for dinner (and $20 max for lunch). And he is primarily interested in "only in Texas" food. So given those requests, how would you modify your suggestions?

Here's another mill, one of only two in Texas apparently: Morrison Milling in Denton, Texas Not sure that any of the cornmeal would be best for grits, but I did try a package of their Stone Ground Yellow Cornbread Mix. It was so much better than any other mix I have tried that I ordered 15 lbs. of cornmeal (not the mix) from them. I'll ask them about grits. I think I'll try a small amount of both Anson Mills and War Eagle for the grits.

So it's okay to have a muffaleta with a bread of Italian origin, but not something using bolillos of Mexican-French origin? Maybe I am not following your logic.