mjc

Yes, but don't expect a refund if you don't spend the whole thing. ← Last year I split the fast pass with a friend and we ran out of money much more quickly than I thought we would. Also the lines were pretty long, even with the pass.

thinking more about it. Not only should you be asking these questions, but you should be trying it out. Everyone can give you all kinds of answers about how many hours they work, but really the only way to know if something is right for you, is to do it. The best way to find out is to go hang out in the type of kitchen you think you would like to be a part of and see for yourself how it is.

Don't be afraid to ask every single question you can think of about any career you are thinking of pursuing. How can you know you want to devote your life to something, if you don't have all the details?

Anne Mendelson's new book, Milk: The surprising story of milk through the ages is great history on milk. It also has some very interesting historical recipes. (And she was on my web show.)

Alice Waters is obviously able to live life in a way that most people aren't. Its cool that she is able to have that amazing kitchen and year round fantastic food. We can't all be like Alice, but we can try to adopt some of her message and (I agree with you) not just dismiss it, because her particular ideal lifestyle may be unattainable.

Did anyone watch Alice Waters on 60 minutes last night? If not here it is. I thought it was an interesting segment, especially following the fascinating piece on Ben Bernanke. The angle on segment about the fed chairman was that the federal reserve was out to help main street not wall street and that Bernanke is himself a very down to earth common guy. This is the opposite feeling I got from watching the segment on Alice Waters. I like Alice Waters and what she is trying to do. On the show I think that Lesley Stahl portrayed her ideals an unrealistic and impractical. This is the exact opposite message that she and the slow food movement want to convey. Alice said on the show that she wants good clean and fair food as a right for everyone. This is hardly an elitist message, but I think they still managed to make her look like one.

This place in Queens is supposedly one of the only places that actually makes it.

How well did it work? How did you use it?

I saw this movie at Slow Food Nation this past Labor Day weekend. It was very good. The teacher is quite a tough woman, and I don't know how I would do with her as my teacher, but she does an amazing job with her students. The culinary art program competition they do is really interesting, I had no idea that something like that existed.

Here's a place, I just found, that will sell you a pound of it. Just get the real thing, don't substitute.

very cool. I hope it's staying right where it is!

I think this article from the NYT is pretty relevant to this thread: It's Organic, but Does That Mean It's Safer? The article talks about the imperfect system of organic certification and raises the possibility of corruption in the system. According to the article, since organic certification agencies are paid by their clients, its in their best interests to certify and maintain certification of these customers. I think this article really supports the notion that just because something is organic doesn't mean its necessarily great or safe, the safest food to eat is probably the food that comes from a place that you can certify yourself.

I made a box of the organic DeCecco penne the other day. I must say that I didn't notice it to be obviously any better or worse than the non-organic version that I usually make. But maybe I need to try again and pay closer attention.

I love this site. I can't believe that people actually make those things for real! My favorite is the picture of the Mega Double stuff Oreo (half-way down)

Thanks!! Totally, its so embarrassing when you can't get the thing opened.

I've got kind of a different, but cool cocktail video at the End of the new episode of my web show you all might be interested in. I went to the Pegu Club and made a Tom and Jerry with Audrey.

This is a pretty comprehensive book: http://www.amazon.com/Bugialli-Pasta-Giull...846/ref=ed_oe_h

How much is it? ← I THINK it was in the low $30s. ← $21 is what I heard. ← It was $40 the day I was there.

It was on the menu the day I was there 2 weeks ago . . . so was jean georges.

I've never been to an industrial organic farm or an industrial farm, but have seen plenty of pictures and read a lot about them. I've been to quite a few small "local" farms. While there might be standards for animal welfare in the organic certification rules, these rules are not really that great. Probably industrial organic animals are somewhat better off than their non-organic counterparts. You really don't know, because they don't show you any pictures and you can't really visit. If you compare how a small local farmer that you meet and talk to is raising their animals to an industrial organic operation you will likely see a world of difference. Its one thing for an animal to "have access" to the outdoors, its another form them to live outdoors and have access to shelter. A lot of small farmers are not certified organic, because they want to reserve the right to give their animals antibiotics if they get a bacterial infection. In all other ways their raising/care for their animals may far exceed any minimal "standards" to be labeled organic.

Buying organic at the supermarket makes sense, but not too much. Most of the organic products are going are likely going to come from massive industrial-organic farms and have been shipped all of the country. What makes more sense is to buy products from local producers--people who you can meet. I think it's worth the premium for these products.

Those are fantastic pictures! I had the duck and foie gras ravioli on my first visit to scarpetta, they were really good, but I also found many were lacking foie gras flavor. It seems as though some contained only duck.

I agree with all of the above. In the general area of the Village I love Lupa. I would add Crispo to the list, I'm always impressed by it and the prices are reasonable. The creamy polenta with prosciutto and smoked mozzarella is a great appetizer. He also does this really interesting veal parmigiana with crispy veal breast. I also like Gonzo. Morandi gets mixed reviews, the one meal I had there was very good.

It's funny/sad that they're keeping the space for private parties, and now is about the worst imaginable market for such events. Let's hope Trabocchi finds another gig in town. ← I read on Eater that they own the building.

I was disappointed that they had so many things that are difficult to get, but didn't even try to use them. I think that members of past seasons groups would have been more excited to see the pigs heads, lambs heads, etc and made some very interesting dishes.