gourmande

oreilles de christ, pets de soeurs (both fabulous treats) ... but what was it with the religious overtones anyway and to add to your list - glissants - cretons canadiens - ragout de pattes et boulettes - kik cola? - poutine flavoured potato chips

Friday we enjoyed grilled salmon fillets glazed with a white balsamic reduction and crushed peppercorns; tiny new potatoes roasted with rosemary and lemon; green beans with toasted almonds; and leafy greens with tomato, cucumber and olives lightly dressed. Saturday we had lemon basil chicken; a warm potato salad with fennel, green beans and shallots tossed gently in a vinaigrette; garden fresh tomatoes and cucumbers dressed simply with a spritz of lemon juice, a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper and some crumbled feta Sunday was a light (and late) dinner since we'd spent most of the day at an outdoor reception savouring hors d'oeuvres and sampling wines. So once the outside temperature cooled down a bit, we had simply prepared "moules marinières" enjoyed with a baguette and a bottle of wine out on our front porch.

Not a book... but a fabulous well seasoned cast iron skillet for $5...

For months, a pizza joint near the university here sported a sign (the kind with plastic letter tiles) from which one letter fell off; it read: SPECIAL BIG LICE $4.95

Gosh, the first and last time I did that was in the summer of '83! I remember because I was in my last term - of pregnancy that is - and was "scaring" everyone around me with my seemingly boundless energy when it came to cooking, baking, sewing... I think they call it "nesting" Anyhow, at the time I had made lime and lemon sorbets served in hollowed out lime and lemon shells. Not sure why I never did it again but thanks for bringing the subject up GG Fruit shells do make very nice containers and I'm sure this will spark some more great ideas that have been tried or are worth exploring.

...It is most definitely "bun"... Maybe I'm missing something here. Are you saying that "bonnes" is pronounced "bun"? ← just saying that the "o" sound in bonnes (Fr) is closer to the "u" in bun (Eng) than it is to the "o" in bone (Eng). Obviously this is not directed to francophones (whatever their origin) but is intended to explain the sound to an anglophone who is unfamiliar with the pronunciation. That said, without actually hearing how the person pronounces "bun" ... ... Here is an audio file of bonne nuit (couldn't find bonnes bouche) that gives a fair idea of how the bonne would sound in bonnes bouches bonne nuit

HEV-ee ← the "Creu" part is like the oo in goody, not the oo in toot. And the "set" I would say nearly like say, but a bit shorter...more like the eh in meh. ← ..best phonetic help I've seen yet on Creuset... "Le" is another subject! Just to add, the "t" in Creuset is silent, and, the "eu" sound, especially as in "fleur", "feuille" or "bleu" is very difficult for many anglophones to wrap their tongue around... most literally.

It is most definitely "bun" Oops... lost the reference: pronunciatiation of "bonnes" in "bonnes bouches"

Personally, I'm quite happy with the decision. I appreciate the LCBO's high and consistent levels of service, the product range and availability it assures, its consistent and reasonable pricing, its community involvement, and yes, even the role it plays in "monitoring" those who can't seem to monitor themselves. Oh yeah, the Food and Drink Magazine isn't hard to take either... The following is LCBO's own media material, but a good starting point nonetheless for those here who may not be familiar with the institution or its mandate. Today's LCBO If you want to delve into the fun stuff though, click below. LCBO As a footnote, relatives from Missouri who visited recently were quite impressed by the selection, and noted that pricing for certain items (wines in particular) was considerably lower than what they had come across at home.

Also perfect for blasting the skins off peppers...

these were our endearing terms ... these work well in French but not in English petit chou translates as little cabbage petit coco or beau coco (boy) petite cocotte or belle cocotte (girl) translates as little or lovely egg... coco being "egg" in child speak. While coco can also mean the cocoa bean, it's the egg reference that applies to little ones

This is our family favourite - been making it for years! Pork Roasted with Garlic 3 1/2 lb boneless pork loin roast 6-8 minced cloves of garlic 1 tbsp ea. soya sauce and olive oil 1 tsp dried basil 1/2 tsp ea. salt & pepper 1/2 cup ea. chicken stock and white wine 1 tbsp cornstarch 2 tbsp cold water With a sharp knife, score the roast in several places. Make a paste of the garlic, soya sauce, olive oil, basil, salt and pepper, and rub all over pork, working into slits (it will be a thin coating) Place pork on rack in a roasting pan and roast at 325F for about 2 hours or until meat thermometer registers 160F - DO NOT OVERCOOK. Remove meat to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Pour excess fat from pan. Over med-high heat, deglaze pan with stock and wine scraping up all those delicious stuck-on bits and bring to a boil*. Make a slurry of the cornstarch and water, whisk into the pan and bring to a boil stirring constantly until thickened slightly. Stir in any juices that have accumulated under the pork and remove from heat. Adjust seasoning with S&P and serve with the thinly sliced pork roast. * If you like, you can strain the sauce into another saucepan before adding cornstarch slurry.

So, since we've been "Braising with Molly", shall we be "Grilling with Bobby"?

I tried the sauerbraten yesterday... fabulous. However, I doubled the amount of berries (juniper and allspice), bay, clove, salt and pepper called for in the marinade; marinated longer than 72 hours (just because unforeseen events screwed up my schedule); and kept my oven temp at 250 to maintain the gentle simmer. The final results were outstanding: fork tender meat and a tangy sweet sour sauce that my husband simply adored.

On average I cook dinner 6 nights out of 7 (breakfast and lunch every day, or almost) This week's dinners Monday: Linguini marinara, salad of mixed greens Tuesday: Leftover osso buco with sausage, basmati rice, green salad Wednesday: Chicken Parmigiana, pennine rigate, mixed salad; little chocolate cakes with warm caramel sauce Thursday: Guinness lamb stew, champ potatoes, green salad; warm apple cake and cream Friday: Steamed mussels à la marinière with bread and beer! Saturday: We were out on a mission scouting for a new location for our British Car Club meetings so it was appys at a number of pub style eateries. We all came back here for a "night cap": tea (Darjeeling) and apple cake Sunday: (tonight) Sauerbraten with egg noodles, glazed carrots, mixed salad; pana cotta with rhubarb compote

When it comes to recipe sharing it's never too late. Many thanks!

What a coincidence. That's what I made yesterday. I make soup 4-5 times a week, usually small batches, just enough for lunch for two of us. Earlier this week I made chicken noodle (Monday), pasta fagiole (Tuesday), and beef barley (yesterday). Today was tomato rice. If someone wants to get this the thread back on track and suggest another soup of the week, or specific recipe to try out, I'm in.

For St Patrick's Day... Guinness, lamb and root vegetable stew, champ potatoes with sour cream, and warm apple cake for dessert.

Yes please... sounds like an interesting variation on butter poached lobster. For our St Patrick's Day dinner yesterday I made a Guinness, lamb and root veg stew, champ potatoes with sour cream, and warm apple cake for dessert.

As others have pointed out, usually when a recipe calls for anise/pernod it is a flavour component to complement the dish. Generally speaking you can substitue whatever you prefer keeping in mind the the overall composition. In some cases you can leave it out altogether. Experiment ... have fun and enjoy rather than fret.

Well, St Patrick's Day is tomorrow and I still haven't decided what to make... I'm in a "St Patrick's Day rut", always making one of three dishes for the occasion: Steak and Guinness pie, corned beef and cabbage or lamb stew. My butcher told me he was getting one fresh lamb in today, so I was there bright and early and got the shanks, 4 shoulder chops and some shoulder stewing pieces, so I'm thinking stew it is this year. Does anyone have any other ideas for an Irish dish involving lamb?

I guess the problem is the term "plastic" which has become far too generic. The roast and the marinade are going into a zippered "plastic" bag!

I agree, however, I was just reading through her marinating procedures for the Saurbraten (which I'm now preparing) and she says, "... I prefer a glass or stainless steel bowl. Whatever you use, don't use plastic; the acidic marinade will absorb flavors from plastic." Given that this recipe requires a 48 to 72 hour marinade with regular "turning" so the meat marinates evenly, I certainly would have prefered using the zippered bag method. Do zippered plastic bags leech contaminating "flavours" like plastic bowls do?

Two recipes I tried this week are the red cabbage braised with maple and ginger, and osso buco alla Milanese For the cabbage dish I substituted golden raisins for the apple only because I didn't have any Granny Smiths and the raisins were handy. The dish was fine but the maple flavour just didn't come through. I suspect it's too subtle next to the ginger and cider vinegar. However, it was a nice accompaniment to the grilled Italian sausage and roasted potatoes. I think I'll sweeten the dish with brown sugar next time. Predictably, the Osso Buco was very good. The marked difference between this recipe and the way I usually make it was the use of fennel, and in the end, I'm not sure what the fennel contributed as I certainly didn't detect any of it in the final dish and neither did my husband. Also, I usually chop my vegetables finer and add more tomato to the mix, and to be honest I think I'll go back to my own recipe. However, for someone trying osso buco for the first time, this is a fantastic recipe. I realize that the traditional accompaniment is a risotto, but I've always prefered parsleyed boiled potatoes so that's what we had last night. As an aside, I must have been a very good girl because my husband gave me his marrow bone

Gotta be Wagyu or Kobe beef, right? ... still!