Toasted

So sorry you had that experience. It sounds like the lady was a little nuts??? I had a recent situation at a local place where I complained about the used bandaids all over the bathroom floor. The owner said that I was "too Picky" and "if I was bothered then I should pick up myself!". Yeah, I love to go to restaurants and pick up old bandaids with my meal! Anyway, we will NOT be going back to that place even though I believe in eating in local places.

I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your blog. Your daughter is beautiful and your energy and ability to get things done amazes me! My favorite part was the homemade pasta. I have the same pasta maker and it took me a long time to figure out how to make something edible with it. Now I'm kind of getting the hang of it and I've realized how delicous homemade pasta really is. Thanks and blessings to you and your family.

I'm sorry that the food is so crappy. I never got to go to an automat but I always wanted to. The history of the original automats is very interesting- there is a book about them on Amazon, sorry, don't have the link. Has anyone else read the book "From the Mixed-up Files Of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" oh, by E.L. Konigsburg. Great book and when the kids in the book run away they eat at the automat. Good book for ages 7 to 110.

te=Tess,Aug 30 2006, 09:31 AM] Coolness! Hopefulll, Padma Lakshmi will do a good job. She's always sounded like she was amusing. ←

How about macaroni salad? Had it with every plate lunch when we were there. Basically: cooked macaroni mixed with mayo, sometimes with a few shreds of carrot mixed in. Simple but good.

This hasn't been a great tag sale season because of the rain. I'm very jealous of all of your great finds, although happy for you, of course! My latest find was at the goodwill, three small fish shaped serving dishes. I think they're be fun for outside this summer.

I'm also about half way through. Great book. One of the best food lits that I've read in awhile.

I loved this show and can't wait until the next one. I wonder why none of the chef's ever show up here? I'd love to hear their opionions on the show and how things went down. I think it would be a good egullet discussion, hint, hint!

I may be crazy but I think it looks good. I'd like to see some pictures of people eating it first before I make up my mind. Mess factor may be an issue although kids would love it.

My favorite is the Vegan lunch box. Great site. A very inventive and creative woman posting pics of her child's lunch each day. Veganlunchbox.com

Wow, that writer sounds bitter. Fiddleheads were a big deal when I was growing up it ME. We knew that they only were around for a short time so we had them every night and it was fun and exciting. Do a google search and you'll find many recipes. I just found a new recipe for fiddleheads and gnocci in a celery broth. I just bought five lbs. of fiddleheads at our local store. We'll eat some tonight but I'm blanching and freezing the rest and I plan to keep doing so until they stop coming in. BTW: there is a place in ME where you can order canned fiddleheads. I think it's Belle's? I'll link it when I get a chance- they even ship frozen for a limited amount of time. I'd love to read about any great fiddlehead recipes you all have out there. Thanks.

Probably TMI but it'll make you all feel better. I peed on the cloth seat at a very expensive restaurant. By mistake, of course! I had just had a baby two weeks before and my friends took me out for lunch as a treat. So, I had a glass of wine, we all started laughing and then I realized, Hey, bladder control is not what it used to be. I cried and left a huge tip but couldn't confess to the waitress because I was so ashamed. I still feel guilty about it and I probably should. I have a feeling that they figured out what the big tip was for (cringe).

Wow! It looks like so much fun. Your kids are really lucky. Now, about that grilled zucchini- did you marinate it before you put it on the grill? Just wondering. I think I need to start at thread about marinating veggies to grill. Have fun, wish I was there!

Thank you for all the support and ideas! My daughters presentation went great. Sorry, no pictures yet, it was too chaotic here on Fri. morning. The kids loved using the chops sticks with the rice and everybody at least tried the edememe and many of them really liked it. The big hit was the bento box. The bottom layer was rice, carrot sticks, and chopped green pepper. I used a cookie cutter to cut smoked tofu into "stars" to put on top of the rice. The top layer was sliced plums and grapes and a diamond shaped brownie which I placed in a muffin paper to keep it dry. It really looked great and Emily loved eating it. It was a bit time consuming though, probably because I'm new at it. I'll try to post a picture of tomorrows bento.

I think everyone but Andrea was drunk off their asses! Did that Ken guy actually throw a water bottle? What a debacle.

I so love fiddleheads! I like a little balsamic vinegar dripped over them and a little butter too. Definitely boil them, drain and cook again like the last post suggested. Some of my family in Maine have a great spot and gather tons and then blanch and freeze them. They taste as good as the fresh stuff I can get around here. A lot of people like to mix them into omlettes or other egg dishes. You might try that. Oh, my aunt likes to throw some type of ham thing in the water while she boils up the fiddleheads. I think it's called a hawlk? I don't know, I'm a vegetarian and I wish she'd told me before I gobbled all that good stuff up! : Still, it was the only vegetable dish at the reunion and it was really good.

I love my kitchen now that we've opened it up and put in the island and have new counters and more storage. It's not a fancy kitchen, we don't have a gas stove or a high tec fridge but it works out very well. This is the first nice kitchen I've ever had in any of our houses or apartments. It's by far my favorite room in the house and I probably spend at least 70% of my time there. It definitely makes me happy and was well worth the money. Someone said upthread that the island can easily be taken over with clutter. I agree but I make a point throughout the day of removing any junk and having the kids pick up their school stuff. We eat breakfast and lunch there and I use it for prep as well so it's important to me that it's as clean and clear as possible. It's the only area of the house where I tend to get fussy if it isn't neat so the kids and my husband generally go along with it and pick up when asked.

Grit in the mushrooms? I'm only a home cook but that's never, ever happened to me. How do mushrooms get gritty and how do you "ungrit" them anyway?

I forgot that you did that eGCI on Japanese cuisine. Lots of good stuff there. I just checked out the link to the kinpira thread- more great ideas. My daughter is impressed with all the bento pictures on this thread- she wonders what time the mommies get up to make such good food? I'm now ashamed of the pb&j and apples I pack her most days!

Barley tea (mugicha), of course! Sorry, I'm not Kris. ← Great idea! I'm going to try to take some pictures of this project and post them ( even though I suck at taking pictures). Did I mention we almost got the Giant Japanese Salamander instead of food? Close call.

Great information- thank you so much! Is "fu" the same as wheat gluten or seitan? It sounds like it. I make it myself and we eat it in many dishes. Gisei-dofu-Now I know what to look for in when I search for recipes. The Bento box we got has two tiers and the top fits into the bottom tier when empty. Are Japanese chopsticks always smaller than Chinese chops sticks by the way? Maybe it's just the set we got. Thanks for all your help.

Kris, Thanks! No tofu? There is tofu in the miso soup we get here at the local Japanese restaurant. If you have any ideas for my daughter's project I would love to hear them. I'm really happy that she got this one. We're planning on bringing in rice and edameme in little bowls with chopsticks for all the students. We also got some Japanese cookies. I've read that most students in Japan drink milk with lunch. Is there anything else I could bring in for the beverage? BTW: the kids are 8-9 yrs. old. Thanks again.

Hi! I just read through the whole thread and it's very interesting and informative. My 9 year old daughter is doing a project on Japanese food with a main focus on Bentos. We just received the bento box that I ordered for her today. I have a couple of questions about packing food. We are used to eating rice hot, is rice in Japan usually eaten at room temp. or only in Bentos? I noticed the links to "Hot Lunch" Bentos- do many children use these and do they really keep the food warm? Ok, one more question: do vegetarian bento boxes exist? Our family is vegetarian and I'm trying to think of some cool things to put in the box to make it look authentic- So far I made a "cat" using a cookie cutter with some smoked tofu. Thanks the help.

Totally agree! Pies are often thrown at town fairs where there are also scary clowns. Sometimes clowns throw the pies, but never a cake. Therefore cake is better and clown free. I will now rest my cake! Sorry about that. I'm not a dessert person in general but a great chocolate cake after a wonderful meal is the best imo. Pie is an everyday type of thing- good but boring.