Margaret Pilgrim

I used Instacart during the first half of 2020. They offer several small independent markets, excellent meat and dairy, but delivery charges and tip pushed the expense well over normal. We are very lucky to have two neighborhood markets selling impeccable fish and meat. One is the brother of Bryan Flannery and sells arguably equally top flight mea in the family's original flagship market. Not cheap but with no delivery charge or tipping, prices are probably same or less. And it's lovely to be able to "kick tires" when buying meat.

Not able to grab the dim sum take out we'd hankered for for several days, i.e., long lines, early closures, a kitchen wok of strip steak, broccoli, mushroom, onion. Not like your Amah made, but probably better than mine might have.

@heidih you are brilliant! But we knew that!

We call this "roni" in our house, short for and a home made version of Rice-a-roni. A staple side-dish here. My problem is that breaking spaghetti into 3/4" pieces, as we like to do, really does a number on my hands. i wonder what would happen if you threw it into a processor? Besides ear-splitting noise...

Okay. Thanks for the heads up, since I make a special stop to buy Colavita fettuccini nests ($3.99/16oz). I use them for "cabbage noodles", cabbage slivered the same width as the fettuccini, both boiled until tender crisp then combined and cooked together with a huge chunk of butter until done to taste. A family and friend favorite side dish (simple fish or chicken) shared by a NYC internet friend.

One of my favorites.

While one can argue that top priced imports will meet your needs, we've found that an eye on the pot with frequent tastings toward the end of your expected cooking range provide pretty similar results: al dente strands. We use De Cecco, Barilla, Colavita, Rao's, Sam's Club (may be discontinued), assorted imported brands as encountered, with similarly excellent results.

1) I love both bucatini and percatelli. And, I have just discovered Colavita...in a small country town. Really rather good bagged fettuccine and pappardelle. I buy multiple bags every month or so.

Are they the same brand?

There is a major difference between the powdery and shredded grated cheese. Each has its advocates, but in my mind these two are not really interchangeable.

FWIW, my sister-in-law's Genovese-born parents, fabulous cooks, only used dry jack, scoffing at parmigiano-reggiano as effete and a waste of money.

I also try to grate cheese before it becomes rock hard. There is a difference in "age" as it refers to a wheel of cheese and "age" as the super-dry chunk you've left sleeping in your cheese compartment.

I use a vintage 'bolt to the counter" heavy duty hand crank grater that lives in the pantry,. $4 at a PA flea market. Grand-kids vie to grate cheese whenever they visit.

I'll grate your cheese if you'll chop my vegetables.

i'd go here in a heartbeat. I remember "Gus's Pickles" some years back. I recently read in a "Rising Chef" cookbook a recipe for dill pickle panzanella salad to be served with a tarted up fried chicken. Works for me!

This is exactly the recipe I copied and printed out for my 10 year old granddaughter, and which we used this afternoon for our "Christmas Day (instead of dinner) Baked Alaska party". She has been begging to make one (and I had no intention of cooking a second holiday meal), so they came over after lunch and she made this. I was dubious, but it turned out astoundingly well and was delicious to boot. She was ecstatic and flushed with praise.

Beautiful food, good looking group! Beautiful table, good looking group! Happy holidays!

Tropic, the most amazing fresh lard I can source comes from a tiny butcher shop in the deep Mission. It is the by-product of carnitas. Might you have something similar? ( In crust for apple pie....sigh.)

Everything stunning. But this....wow!

Remember the old song, "When they've all gone home..."? It actually was a lovely afternoon and evening. Son and three kids made the croquembouche. Other years' may have been more perfect but this one was somehow less stressful. Practice, or kids growing up. Oohs and aahs and pleases and thank yous and excuse mes. Never thought we'd get here en masse. Standing roast, Yorkshire, roast carrots, plain baked yams, rolls. Lots of butter met its god. Tomorrow they return after lunch to make a Baked Alaska. I'm not cooking another dinner. Maybe spaghettii. Merry Christmas everyone.

If you write elsewhere like you do here, you are not one I refer to. I find your writing tight, concise and your thoughts worth sharing. Writing with the hope of 100% agreement would be a fool's errand, the resulting content not worth reading.

I usually close the tag realizing that here is one more person trying to make a living, word by word by word.

And bread sticks!

I still am! I must have missed Kerry's entreaties. I have almost no appliances. No Intantpot, rice cooker, crockpot, pressure cooker, smart anythings. I did fall to the siren calls of the CSO, and may someday really use it. I do love previously acquired pasta rolling apparatus, ice cream machine(s) and my reach-for Oster mini-processor attachment. For those with an original Oster blender, this is one of the workhorses of my kitchen. For veg of all kinds, cooked or raw meat.

indeed! More info, please, on rutabega greens. Not that I'll ever see them even at my farmer's market. That said, any substitutes in mind? Turnip, perhaps?