gourmande

a childhood friend's "wise" older sister told us: "if you swallow grape seeds they'll accumulate in your appendix, which will cause it to rupture and you will die!" Needless to say, I spent a sleepness night fretting over how many grape seeds I had swallowed thus far in my short life... I was convinced I wouldnn't make it past age 6!

I get all of mine at the dollar store...

For a truly simple, one pot dish, how about pasta tossed with pesto (basil, sundried tomato...). For other one or two pot meals using pasta, how about: Pasta e fagiole? Stir fried veg over vermicelli or rice noodles? Chicken curry over egg noodles?

Apple: Granny Smith only because it's all I had. Red Pepper coulis: Roasted red peppers, a drizzle of olive oil and smoked paprika (to taste) puréed with the immersion blender. Spicy pumpkin seeds: I had these on hand but basically toss raw seeds with a spicy mix of your choice (chili powder, cayenne, cumin, smoked papika or chipotle... whatever you like) a bit of salt, and a squeeze of fresh lime or lemon juice, then spread on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. Toasted pumkin seeds: just sautéed some raw seeds until lightly toasted Hope this helps

This soup sounds yummy Gourmande.... do you have a recipe that you can share or did you make it up as you went? I just happen to have some butternut squash in my root veggie basket right now and have been trying to decide what to make.... soup sounds like a very good idea. No recipe, just made it on the fly... Roasted and puréed the squash yesterday (I find roasting gives it a nicer flavour). Sweated one chopped onion in butter. Added one large chopped carrot, one small potato cubed, one peeled, cored and cubed apple, one chopped garlic clove, chopped thyme leaves, about 1 tsp minced ginger, a pinch each of salt, cumin and curry powder, and 4 cups chicken stock. Brought the soup to a boil then reduced heat and simmered slowly until vegetables were tender. At this point I added the puréed squash then let entire mixture cool slightly before puréeing the lot. As it happens the consistency was just as I had hoped. Before serving I simply reheated, swirling in about 1/4 cup heavy cream. Seasoning was just fine so I didn't need to add a thing. However, I did add a bit smoked paprika to my red pepper coulis to give it a little extra kick.

tonight we had an autumn harvest soup of sorts: butternut squash, carrot, apple, potato... seasoned with ginger, cumin and curry, and garnished with roasted red pepper purée and toasted spicy pumpkin seeds.

No need to be embarrassed... Nee-swahz

Well, there may not be an official soup theme, but I'm sensing a pattern: mushrooms! So I may as welll jump on the bandwagon and try the Les Halles mushroom soup. However, since he does say in his intro that "it gets even better overnight", I'm making today to enjoy tomorrow... If it's like all the other recipes in the book that I've tried, I'm sure I won't be disappointed.

Complètement d'accord !... Back to food... Can someone help me with the mardi gras treat of choice in my area: paczki First, let me say I had NEVER heard of this food item until I moved here 5 years ago. My introduction to it was mardi gras week 2000 when my husband announced that "poonshkis" would be available soon. "Poonshkis ?" Ok, now I know WHAT they are, but is that the correct pronunciation?

It isn't... it simply took on a life of its own yesterday. You are correct, In French there ARE two accepted spellings and pronunciations one with the s and one without: taste-vin and tâte-vin (I don't think I'll ever see, hear and use this word in the same light again )

No problem, any excuse to get a new cookbook works with me

I must get this braising book so that I too can contribute ... or... are non-Molly recipes welcome?

Or in Hawkesbury jargon (a dialect I'm learning to appreciate)..." j'va dire comme s'te gars..." followed by whatever suits Can mean anything along the lines of "oh well...", "as they say...", "like I said..." Warning: EXTREME regionalism - don't try this, errrrr... ANYWHERE! Back to food... Can someone help me with the mardi gras treat of choice in my area: paczki First, let me say I had NEVER heard of this food item until I moved here 5 years ago. My introduction to it was mardi gras week 2000 when my husband announced that "poonshkis" would be available soon. "Poonshkis ?" Ok, now I know WHAT they are, but is that the correct pronunciation?

Please don't, you are indeed very helpful. Let's all move on ... ?

Close enough.

I may get blasted here but... I'm the "only person on earth" (according to my husband ) who doesn't like pancakes. I have had them, I'll make them, but they just don't turn me on. I'm sure a good psychiatrist could help my husband out with this Anyway, when I DO make/serve pancakes I usually go the buttermilk route and add bananas, blueberries, pineapple, raisins, whatever the brood seems up for. As topping I favour sweet butter and light grade maple syrup, but will entertain seasonal fruit and nice fruit preserves.

Agree... In my experience I've found the euille and eu sounds the most difficult to work with. So don't let it inhibit you, whatever you manage, feel good about it!

Thanks... that's the business promo I need Ah! But who is your speaker? Leads us back to how you hear and interpret sounds. "Vei(n)" has worked well with the students I have had here (southern Ontario), but my choices might be different if I were in Newfoundland or Arkansas... though I may never know for sure Moral of the story: regional inflections make the world go round.

what the ... ... see later post...

My first and only food mill is one I purchased about 5 years ago at a local Italian general store where the "staff" (the lovely ladies who own the shop) were very attentive to my needs. Though they could have sold me a very expensive model beyond my means and needs, they recommended what they believed would best meet my requirements ... and they were 100% correct: an extremely affordable Emanuel Passatutto 3. Despite its size it's a mighty little machine, for home use that is. Two years ago I processed two bushels of tomatoes in one "sitting" without much fatigue. So besides taking the route I did (which includes the added bonus of making new friends in the community), keep looking here for other recommendations.

ouï-dire, oui... the ouïe seems to be at the root of the problem...

How one pronounces "eh" is yet another key/trick/problem... non? One thing is certain, the French digraphs in, en, an, on, ou, eu... parmi others, are very difficult to express or otherwise translate in written terms. Where is that eG audio feature! edit: re use of the English pronunciation "veh" for the French term "vin" (and homonymns vingt or vint for that matter...) I still prefer "vei(n)"

I think you have mistakenly inverted the "ah" and "eh" sounds in the word. It's in fact "tahs-tuh-VEH(N)," the last syllable accented and ending with a nasal sound. ← being the picky sort I am... the a in the first syllable is pronounced like the a in the French amour, manie, or the English mat, flat... thus Tasst(e)-vei(n) ... (ref my earlier post re use of the word vein)

Tout à fait ! The n is nasal like the root word itself: vin There is an alternate word and pronunciation: Tâte-vin, pronounced tawt-vei(n) ... the n being silent In helping anglophones with French pronunciation, I have found that the word "vein" (stopping just short the n) works well with most. Edit: taste-vin: the word that started this particular string of posts...

I too have an electric stove (unfortunately) and use the wok often with great results every time. I place the wok on the support ring (don't know the technical term) over the largest element and "wok on high" ...