laurenmilan

Mmmm, I tried these a few times when I dated a guy in Maryland. Those were the days... don't miss the guy, do miss the burritos. Had a sample of their "inspiration" in downtown San Jose the night before my flight left. Much tastier, more complex flavor. Had one other thing Chipotle did not... the ability to make me REGRET stopping for a burrito in downtown San Jose before getting on a plane!

The sad thing is... in some areas of US Suburbia, that's considered cutting-edge cuisine! My aunt in Jacksonville, Florida recently bragged about all the trendy Italian bistros & coffeehouses opening up near her! Hmm, they seem at least a decade behind us...

Some more evil ideas that came to me... - make something disgusting and "low cal/hi-fiber" that's supposed to be good for you. Use yogurt where cream should be. Make a cookie with oat bran. - make something semi-homemade (aka from boxes) like jello pudding pies/cheesecakes. UGH. Just the same as homemade, right? - white chocolate, very very popular in the mid 80s. White chocolate ON white chocolate ON white chocolate.

wasn't that the decade when flourless chocolate cake came into vogue to begin with? (to become a tired dessert-menu standby by the 90s?) hmm, maybe flourless chocolate cakes, stacked impossibly high with needless accents & garnishes, and made ludicrously small... Also, remember, that's the decade when specialty ice creams came into vogue as well.

I have a California Culinary Institute cookbook from the 80s, and it has a strawberry mirror cake, made with sponge cake, layers of strawberry mousse, and a translucent layer of strawberry gel on top made with Xnox and strawberry puree. Very slick.

It's so good to see so much respect for a home technique! We Americans seem to be locked into the "more expensive equipment is better" mentality when it comes to coffee-brewing, and it's nice to have a reality check as to how coffee is actually made in Italian and Italian-American homes. LOL, by the way, I heard something recently that really puts the whole "Why is the espresso in American cafes usually so bad?" The average age of a barista in Italy is 35. In the US.... I don't even wanna think about it... the average is a college junior with about 30 minutes of training.

I used to have one of the $30 ones, and always thought that I was "doing it wrong". When I got a Krups Espresso Bravo and learned how to use it properly, I found out it was the old machine that was at fault.

I was raised to revere real whipped cream, and was allowed to make it for company since I was 8. It was like some wacky ritual. It's funny seeing the look on people's faces when they taste it for the first time... some never had whipped cream without the fluffy texture you get from a can. Whipping cream with a hand mixer is just way too good and way too easy to pass up on if you can help it.

Wow, you weren't kidding... here's my favorite nugget of joy... I haven't seen carnage like this since Amanda Hesser leafed through "Semi-Homemade Cooking".

I fully expect to hear "Why is there constant Alton Brown on TV Food Network?" in 2004, considering he's got a nice 11PM M-F slot nowadays... Mmmmmm... Ina....

LOL, then again considering how many people buy cookbooks and don't ever use them... I can imagine this having a lot of appeal to moms who hate to cook but feel guilty... The wacky thing about Sandra Lee is that she starts out with some good ideas. Some. Tiramisu can be made with mascarapone & heavy cream, sugar, strong coffee or espresso, some alcohol, and ladyfingers. No big whoop there. That's pretty easy in and of itself. But when Lee does it, she starts off with ladyfingers... good, good, mascarapone, good good...Kahlua, ok... and then... SHE PUTS IN VANILLA PUDDING CUPS with the mascarapone. Not even making instant pudding. She just tosses in the preservative and fake-flavor soup in with mascarapone. And on top, she tosses in some Cool Whip. The woman's got a wonderful KitchenAid mixer right behind her, and she can't whip cream into the mascarapone or on its own as a topping. My mom and I watched this show together once, she said she had to stop cuz she had the flu and watching the crap cocktails episode made her queasy...

I believe Panerra does the same thing, and for a chain, they make a very, very good mocha. Far better than any of the local coffeehouses I know...

Lauren, this is obviously EXTRA reason for you to bring a Durian pie. Unlabeled, of course. I love you guys. You may not all be certified, but you're certainly all certifiable.

Gamine usually refers to the delicate pixie-cut hairstyle, or a delicately featured, youthful woman. Audrey Hepburn kinda thing.

If I don't pass out halfway through preparing the custard... Heh, we could disguise the smell under the layer of meringue... hmmm....

Just read the issue, it sounds more like what will be hitting the mass markets in 2004, not what the culinary community (including enthusiastic amateurs) regard as "new trends". We've known about French Laundry's donuts, the "new retro" style, the "faux blue-collar" thing, and most of the other items under "What's Next" for quite some time. And well, Slow Food has been around for what, 5-10 years now?

Damn, and I was gonna wow the crowds with my Durian Meringue pie (Tony Bourdain might show up, ya never know...)

LOL too true! Then again, I've always loved those threads in "Pastry & baking" talking about the problem of desserts in restaurants. (People don't order them because they're too full, the pastries are too expensive, and/or too mediocre, and restauranteurs don't improve their offerings because diners apparently don't care.) Mmmm, pie...

OK, I'm in! I heard about this potluck at the Burger Club meeting today, and would love to participate.. Okay, I want some of Elyse's pecan pie. There, I said it... : So far, I'm thinking of contributing some white chocolate mousse&pumpkin mousse pie in a gingersnap crust, and some chai-spiced apple pie (with 5 spice whipped cream to garnish - think they'll let me fire up the handblender?) This sounds like a lotta fun...

A Danny Meyer trademark, to be sure... As for a future trip for BBQ, I'd certainly be game. Although I should note that the desserts at Blue Smoke got some poor reviews. Any suggestions for good after-dinner spots nearby? Hmm, considering how disappointing otherwise good restaurants' desserts can be, maybe a Dessert Club is in order...

I wanted to thank everyone in Burger Club for giving me such a warm welcome and showing me such a great time! I had a blast, and look forward to the next New York burger venture...

The light one sounds incredible. Do you have the recipe? I'll have to research it... it was from an early 1990s issue of Martha Stewart Living...

Kitchen of Light is very good, I especially like the Salmon in Aquavit and the Wild Blueberry Parfait. Unfortunately, my area has a small Scandanvian population, so our local PBS never carried New Scandanavian Kitchen. Ironically, the book I've used the most - so far - is IKEA's Real Swedish Food. Very homey recipes, my favorites have been the salmon casserole (salmon filets layered with new potatoes, fresh dill, and vegetables) and the lingonberry parfait (the traditional French definition of parfait, what we in the States usually call a "semifreddo").

I love that Aquavit book as well! I was hesitant to buy it, until I paged through at Borders and found how approachable the recipes are (been to the restaurant, and am understandably intimidated about reproducing that at home.) I have a Swedish fiancee, so this is actually my 6th Swedish/Scandanavian cookbook (have a few general ones, as well as Kitchen of light)

Jeebus.