MatthewB

No Coors Light. If I'm going to help fund right-wingers, I'll do it locally, thank you.

As far as Bell's, perhaps some ale but what about porter? No Coors Light. But, PBR!

Okie doke. I'll pick up more bourbon & fixin's for Sidecars. Is anyone going to want beer? Specific brand(s)?

You won't be disappointed. When smoking a larger piece of meat on my WSM, I nearly always throw a dozen or so fresh brats and/or sausages on toward the end. Great stuff.

I can pick up some inexpensive yet good cognac for Sidecars. Shall I? And a couple of bags of lemons? (I've always followed Paul Harrington's receipt for a Sidecar, FWIW.)

You ain't vibin' with the bling bling thang.

Should Sidecars be the official cocktail then? (2 parts cognac, 1 part fresh lemon juice, 1 part Cointreau.)

I nominate Guajolote's current sig line sans pic. Edit: spellin'

After what I witnessed last weekend, that question can only be answered by, "More." I've a just opened 1.75 liter bottle. I think I better pick up two more.

How many fifths of Maker's Mark might we require?

Sounds like a great idea! BTW, if you don't want to bother with crispy shallots, do you have any Durkee's onion rings in your pantry?

Wonderful dish though perhaps not quite as astounding as the recipe that started this thread. (Let's see what others think.) A couple of notes . . . How do you keep chopped spinach from clumping? Next time, I think I'd add a bit more work to this & deep-fry some thinly sliced shallots in peanut oil while waiting for the water to boil. I think the dish needs some shallots & crunchy fried shallots seem right to me. (Just distribute over the top after plating.) Thoughts?

Heather, You doing this tonight? I've a pot of water on the stove & I'm about to chop spinach. Start another thread, perhaps?

Please join us!

One thought came to mind . . . We may not have enough mixing/serving bowls.

Hmmmm. Basically, we're outfitted for two people prepping at the same time. So, if we want more than two people prepping (there's a song there, I know it), we will need extra knives, cutting boards, etc. We should be ok as far as pots/pans. Do we want real glasses or plastic cups for wine? I was thinking heavy-duty paper plates & plastic utensils. Do we want real stuff? We're fine on thermometers.

I'm willing to work on whatever. Perhaps we could all start with a handful of specific suggestions from CT & discuss from there?

Dave, some of these issues are mine too. If we are to proceed, we need to follow recipes, at least at the beginning. I typically think of meals, look up recipes (keeping in mind what's seasonal), and build my shopping list based on the recipes I will be making during the coming week. Perhaps we could post a weekly shopping list, with amounts of each item, for each experiment? If this is done well in advance it will give everyone the chance to have the ingredients on hand, and if something is hard to find, there will be enough time to track it down or figure out a substitute. Shall we try for weekly? Or bi-weekly? On a specific day if possible, for ease of planning? I'm in. (Every other week might work best for me until outdoor domestic chores end. But weekly would work too but I may miss a week here & there.)

Bittman's produced another simple pasta recipe. Might try it tonight. One-Pot Pasta Robed in Blue: Pasta With Spinach and Blue Cheese

Drinkboy caught much of what one might say on this issue. But let's remind ourselves of Mr. Lucky's advice anyway . . . The Secrets of a Dry Martini A Heart-to-Heart on Martinis

Cool. Heather, would you be willing to spearhead this adventure?

I would be honored. Seriously, we just bought the combined Technique/Methode and I've been looking for a reason to brush up on some rusty skills. Let's do it. :waiting for Seth: Anyone else?

I would be honored.

I took a look last night & more or less came to similiar conclusions. Seth, what would you think of us composing a menu from Complete Techniques--about once a month with three or four courses, perhaps--and the two of us each produce the menu the same evening or some such?

I'd like a few people to work on veggie/carbs (desserts?) in the afternoon/early evening. Other than that just have fun!