Margaret Pilgrim

Try this "panade" from Judy Rogers' Zuni Cafe: http://www.food.com/recipe/chard-onion-gruy-re-panade-bread-casserole-368749

I think what is striking me as off-key is the lack of a relationship with the server. Even when we don't have a common language, we always try to establish a working relationship with restaurant staff. It is part of our enjoyment of the meal. The server is, after all, our conduit to the kitchen. We question specific herbs or flavors or techniques, and find that servers are universally interested in trying to explain or find answers, even when language is a barrier. I can't imagine duplicating this relationship with a recorder.

In the parts of France to which I tend to travel, it's because the staff only speak French and my French is pretty much limited to what I was taught at school some 45 years ago. "La plume de ma tante" isn't a great deal of help when I don't understand which fish is on the menu. Indeed. However, I find that ingredients or techniques given in French are much more understandable than some English translations!

Much of my dining out takes place in France where more frequently than not the server has trouble making ingredients perfectly clear. Regardless, I find delight in a plate at face value. It boils down to whether one is dining for enjoyment or for publication.

Wow! There are some sensational tidbits above. Many, however, still involve something moist on top of a base, which is what I am trying to avoid. I am looking for something fumble-proof. No, my guests aren't clutzes, but I try to fail-safe anything I serve away from table. Also, dinners are very substantial so I avoid anything more than a blotter to keep guests from getting too tipsy beforehand. Katie, the cheese course is a plateau of cheeses with some kind of fruit accompaniment (cherry or fig compote, nectarine slices, fresh grapes or figs) and crusty bread. Since including the cheese course, I have just served nuts or olive oil crackers or some other (boring) simple "grab a handful" bite. Returning guests know not of overload beforehand.

Instead of straight, try using any blue in Dorie Greenspan's faux cheez-its crackers. You'll get the drift of the cheese without the uber-richness that can be off-putting. (Guests literally inhale these, so make the entire recipe.) http://traceysculinaryadventures.blogspot.com/2011/12/cheez-it-ish-crackers.html

Since we almost always serve a separate cheese course, I avoid serving cheese as a pre-dinner drinks accompaniment. I also avoid anything that involves more than a toothpick or cocktail fork, i.e., anything messy, drippy, crumbly, nothing that can fall in someone's lap or on the carpet and cause embarrassment. What's in your whiz bag that fits this bill?

Chinese bao (steamed buns with veggie fillings) or veggoe dim sum would fit the bill. I used to send those in school lunches.

My mother used to send me off with grated carrot/raisin salad sandwiches on Roman Meal bread, not an easy trade in those days. But actually a rather good sandwich.

Thanks for bringing this to our attention. It's definitely a "go" next time I want to sauce fish. In return, but without pics, I'll tout the cotriade recipe: a luscious fish and mussel chowder spiked with sorrel. A crowd pleaser every time.

Smiling in delight! Have you ever tried just plain whipped jello? You let it get semi-jelled, then whip it with a mixer for a l o n g time, maybe 5 minutes. It becomes a delightfully artificially flavored mousse. Almost but not quite Jello 1-2-3.

Mine too. And when I accidently left blackberries stored this way for two weeks while I was away, they were perfectly edible when I got home! I do the same for mushrooms and they don't get icky. I will try this. Historically, I have avoided putting strawberries in the refrigerator. I came from strawberry country, where berries were eaten warm from the fields, never chilled. Today, it is not possible, and even those I buy at the field are too ripe to last more than a matter of hours, one of my minor rants. (Strawberries should be bright vermillion-to-light red, never dark red. As far as I am concerned, the stands are selling "over-ripes".)

While my question was formed around the purchase of farm-to-you produce, there is at least equal need to consider green grocer produce. I frequently shop in an ethnic area where the cultural norm is for the buyer to pick up and visually inspect each piece of produce, handling it at length to see every surface. A single piece of fruit may be handled by many scores of hands before winding up in my sack.

Hmm. Last night I put some reheated leftover curried zucchini (just sauteed grated zucchini deglazed with creme fraiche with a good dose of curry powder) over pasta and it was incredible. The first round was good, but this was lovely.

Put simply, the inherent problem is that of unwashed hands picking the produce after bathroom breaks.

From individual farmers/orchards in the (California) Central Valley, eg, Lodi and Stockton.

We have been living in a fool's paradise for years. We frequently buy fruit at a farm, e.g., cherries, and happily eat them en route home without washing them. Same for apricots and berries. We have never experienced an intestinal bug from this, but I realize that we are on borrowed time. Once home, I give them a good rinse and put them in a pierced bowl. I realize that this is totally inadequate to do more than remove some dust. How do you handle fruits and vegetables, given the not infrequent e-coli scares that have hit the country?

Amen, sister!

You bring up an interesting point. I have found that most people who run chronically late are not aware of it! They just run on a different time from the rest of us. Getting to the airport seconds before the doors close, to the movie a minute before the film roles, a restaurant within the grace period of a reservation is just the way things go. And their answer is often, "I've never missed a plane..." Whether they can be reconditioned, is an individual matter.

I really do live in the mythical kingdom! I can't remember when a guest was ever late except for an emergency. And when there has been a problem, we have always received a phone call well before the appointed time to warn us so that we can adjust our timing or begin without them if necessary.

Don't know if its my locale (San Francisco) or group of friends, but food is taken rather seriously, as is a dinner invitation. We're not talking casual, flip-flop and shorts backyard barbeques. Arriving "socially late" is no longer done nor is plying one's guests with booze while sorting out the meal prep. I can't remember being held captive waiting more than a half hour for dinner in modern times. Sometimes a course will take more kitchen time than others and guests will wait maybe 10 minutes at table, but with conversation and wine that is not a problem and is sometimes necessary in cases of something like a dessert souffle or such.

Oh, yes! And peaches with Brie.

I think that some people "get" entertaining and others really don't. There is a, no, there has to be a planned flow from arrival, drinks and pre-dinner socializing to a controlled progression of plates. Until one can handle this, one should serve courses that can be finished before guests arrive.

Peach salsa is fabulous! I just substitute peaches for tomatoes and add a little brown sugar. A peach conserve laced with jalapeno is excellent with pork. Sliced peaches can join sliced onions as a base for slow roasted (say, 4 hours at 275) pork shoulder. Halved peaches brushed with OO and dusted with cracked pepper are nice on the grill, maybe with sausages.

Good ideas, all. And remember that not all of these supplies need by hauled from home. Many can be picked up on a daily basis in local markets.