SLB

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/25/dining/broadway-panhandler-longtime-manhattan-cookware-retailer-to-close-in-spring.html?hpw&rref=food&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well I figured this was on the horizon during the seeming-fire-sale they were having all fall. So sad. In addition to his expertise, Mr. Kornbleuth is a really nice person to spend a lot of money with. I better set some money aside for the final days . . . .

Me three.

This was a fun thread! Please don't forget, shoveling is an athletic activity, and you're gonna need a recovery food . . . . Meanwhile, my Stormy Jonas Take #1 was a riff on the Hemingway daiquiri, with meyer-lemon juice subbed for the lime juice portion, and lime juice subbed for the grapefruit juice portion; and maraschino juice unaltered in portion. The rum was a DR white, Don Reyes [I live in a Dominican neighborhood, and when in Rome during a storm . . . .] I did not like it. [I did drink it, tho . . . .] My Stormy Jonas Take #2 involved the same rum in the same amount; meyer-lemon juice subbed for the lime juice portion; the traditional grapefruit juice; and MUCH less maraschino liquor. It was actually bland. [I did drink it, tho.] Then I switched to wine. Because once I hit 40 (several years ago), I found I could no longer even taunt the ruin of a rum hangover. Anyway. Happy digging out, y'all!

Cakewalk, even if not successful as bread, it sure is successfully beautiful. The crust looks perfect. And I second Lisa Shock on the dressing suggestion, I bet that would be delicious. It's also true, tho, that I have something like 2 gallon-bags of bread crumbs/croutons from my bread baking fails. At some point, you just do NOT need any more of those.

Yup [on the eG priorities]. I decided that the cocktail for Storm Jonas was gonna bring me to the Caribbean: Hemingway Daiquiris. I mean, it's citrus season!

I'm in Northern Manhattan, and we're just starting to get a little wind. I'm thinking: unspecified soup in beef broth (I have a freezer somewhat overwhelmed with a whole lot of frozen beef broth); tacos with the fridge full of leftovers that I somehow rounded out this week with; and some chocolate-y oatmeal cookies I spied a recipe for recently. In honesty, I really want cake; but I don't have any basis to expect this storm to otherwise disrupt next week's work schedule, and I need the cookies for my lunches next week. So I guess I should take advantage of the chilly, and make the cookies. I'm not supposed to be eating bread right now, but I admit that, also, there is a rye-roll that I really want to make this weekend. Specifically, I want to make it to go with ham sandwiches next week, since Murray's cheese was handing out these samples of somebody's "rosemary-ham", and the rosemary was astonishingly tasteful, not overpowering at all, and although I don't much eat sandwiches. . . well . . . . Anyway. I have [kinda] fond memories of my decade in hurricane country, where the power-outages were for real, and the prep was life-force analytical, and strategic. In NYC, it's just not that likely that a blizzard is going to take down the power. Man, does that make a difference in my imagination. Good luck to y'all, down the mid-Atlantic. We're only getting a foot, and -- at least in the city -- our power lines are underground. Hang in there.

An update. It turns out that Gotham Bar & Grill has published a cookbook. One that, lo and behold, has a recipe for its "house dressing". [for the record, the house dressing notes aged sherry vinegar, and also a bit of dijon mustard; the dijon was probably bringing the brightness, in reflection. But there wasn't much in what I had that day, at least, I did not ping dijon, honestly.] DUH!!! I'm not sure why I blanked on the possibility of a resto-cookbook . . . . But anyway, fortunately eG member hongda was kind enough to hip me to it. Many, many thanks! So, onward. I'll report back on the sherry vinegars as info develops. But we can move on, hopefully to some joyful winter salads.

Could be; the waitress was distinctly emphasizing that fact about theirs, though. God, I just had a flashback to childhood: "Cooking Sherry". I could not believe anyone cooked with that stuff, ever! The, uh, nose . . .

Well, I walked back by Gotham B&G today, and reviewed the menu to confirm something that was flickering deep in my memory: the menu says aged sherry, not aged sherry vinegar. Which would really run up the cost of the trials . . . .

Host's note: this topic is continued from Salad (2011 - 2015). I had a plain green salad yesterday at Gotham Bar & Grill in New York, with the most remarkable dressing. They swore up and down that it was all about the aged sherry vinegar; but, it was the *brightest* sherry vinegar I have ever encountered. I mean "bright" in a way that is just . . . not really a sherry quality. I don't know if that makes sense. But now I'm on a mission. I spent mucho bucks today on aged sherry vinegars at Despana in Soho. We'll see how it goes. I'm very excited. Also, a little nervous, I'm really inspired by the Salad threads but I guess I should've searched for a salad-dressing thread.

ohgodthatlooksgood, <deep breath>

Gorgeous, they look like works of art for sure. But, I admit it -- I'm looking forward to hearing whether the food confirms the Stradivarius nod.

I have been surprised at how dramatic the difference can be.

I will say, since this thread I've used my Mixteca pot directly on the flame twice with no diffuser, and while I'm still anxious about the way it's a little wobbly on the grate, I've been astonished at how much faster the beans come to a boil. With the diffuser, I did often have the feeling that the beans took a weirdly long time to cook. I was definitely cautious with the heat, though, probably letting it stay on low for longer than necessary. Also, for what it's worth -- I did a long-form cure of the pot when I first got it. I appreciate that Rancho has reported that it's not necessary with this pot, and I'm not trying to argue with anyone on the meaning or the science; but for whatever it's worth, that clay on mines was *dry*.

I know, the pan I had my eye on has, sigh, vanished. That said -- none of the items I've been checking out were anywhere near 90% off. A lot of that stuff is never ever on any kind of big sale anywhere, tho, so it's nice to have even a small discount.

I'm on lockdown from buying much of anything, with a carefully carved out and highly scrutinized exception for the Chef's Catalog Clearance opportunity, but my last hurrah was a side-mouth ladle: http://korin.com/Side-Mouth-Stainless-Steel-Ladle?sc=28&category=17780921 It's soup season!

Anybody know if the prices will get slashed further as time passes? I've got my eye on an all-clad d5 pan, and could tolerate a little more, uh, savings.

Thanks all. I was just thinking that my salads need a serious injection of imagination. This is great!

Thanks. As I indicated, it's not a phenomenon that I've come across, interesting that it's so common. In any case, both my pyrex pieces were new a good decade before the mid-90s, and both have been dropped more than once; hence my thinking on the matter. Wishing everyone a shatter-free season of good eating. SLB.

I have never heard of a pyrex dish breaking, under any circumstances! I confess I'm stunned at the possibility. Also, kind of intrigued. However. My Emile Henry baking dish has a long, infuriatingly in-your-face crack in it. I don't have any idea how it happened, and I still use the dish, which maybe is foolish. But it was one of the most expensive things I had ever purchased at the time, and it was so pretty . . . and I am still annoyed about the crack. I just did not think of the pan as precious, you know? I thought all that money meant that it was a strong tool! [In retrospect, I don't think it cost like a fortune or anything, I just bought it when I was a broke graduate student, and probably shouldn't've been buying anything]. One follow up -- the diffuser in my photo is not the SimmerMat, but rather is the one by Ilsa. I do own the justly famous SimmerMat as well, though, and want to note that my Mixteca pot does NOT balance comfortably on its knobs, at least not on the design that I have. It sits fine when the simmermat is inverted for use on the glass cook-top side. I think Jaymes had said she was foregoing the diffusers all around, and the point has been made that this clay pot can take the direct flame; but I did want to make sure to point out that my pot sits on the Ilsa in the photo, just in case anyone was about to buy themselves a SimmerMat. <edited for gender mistake!>

I know this pot can go right on the flame (unlike some of my other clay pots). The only reason I use the simmermat is because the base of the pot is relatively small, and it needs to be keenly balanced on my grate (which has an open space in the middle). It's tipple-y, and makes me a little nervous. Also, it does not help that I never totally levelled my stove. Don't ask, I know it's raggedy. And it's just a slight tilt. But with a narrow base, and 3 quarts of material, and an expensive beauty that will break . . . . On the soap -- that was me, Steve, I don't know where I saw that or why I thought that. Duly corrected! But -- you got any tips on the musty-must, tho? It's kind of like a wet clay smell, but it persists long after the clay should be thoroughly dry.

Nice pix! I have the pot, and cook once a week with it. It's beautiful, and the beans are good. The distinction that I most notice in the clay-cookery is that you won't mistakenly cook the beans until busted, they'll stay whole longer than in a metal pot. [Some of us grew up on beans cooked until they're busted, possibly because that's how you make an old bean creamy . . . but that's another thread]. Anyway. I will say, Steve is recommending that the pot be washed with soap; I bought it from another vendor, and had gotten the sense that I should not use soap or dishwasher detergent. I did not for several months, and the pot developed a musty odor that I can't seem to get rid of. It's not a terrible odor, and doesn't reek of rot or anything like that; but it's not exactly pleasant. I now wash it in regular dish soap, and wish I'd done so from the beginning.

Okay, brilliant. Why didn't I think of that??? My cupboard is OVERRUN with jar lids!

I usually use dried, but I had never had the RG garbanzos before; it's possible I'd never had recently-picked garbanzos before too, I guess. They really did have more taste. I have not experienced this with every single RG bean that has a commercially-grown counterpart, but the garbanzos were stunners.

Dejah, your low-carb reports are thrilling! It's a diet that works well for me -- everything in me performs better with lots of protein; but I get spiritually exhausted with all the meat, all the time. This is, like, dynamite!