Margaret Pilgrim

Our new micro has only one power option: “Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!” Works perfectly for reheating lunch in 45 seconds to a minute.

If you had a husband you wouldn't have this "problem'. I just put the dasher on a salad plate and it comes back squeaky clean. But I'm sure your way works equally well.

Shades of my childhood. Heaven.

An interesting HEADS UP. Several months ago, a utility wire that serves our house failed, leaving our house without a neutral ground. (Fortunately, our son dropped by and realized that the alarm system was down. He called us and we talked him through shutting down the power to the house and alerting emergency from our utility co.) But the point here is that every "smart" appliance in the house got fried, while those without computing ingredients survived. We are now fighting with the utility who wants to substantially depreciate every appliance regardless of how much use it has had. So we may be out thousands because of their failure. Back to KISS.

Indoors.

A base of creme fraiche or dilute sour cream, fresh mozz and goat or blue cheese then figs a pizza => divine. A kiss of rosemary and balsamic = heaven.

w, is the extra browning on top due to the CSO top heating element? I ask because this happens essentially with anything I bake for any length of time, and wondered if it was unavoidable.

Duval and &droid, FWIW, I dust peel with polenta, then shape the pizza on the peel. Less stress for me. Then shoot loaded pizza into the oven.

Microwave ovens generate strong feelings, pro and con. We've had and depended on one since, say, '80. Husband took an early one to his business for instant lunches and snacks. Since he retired, we (he) depends on heated leftovers for lunch. I can't imagine my life without this middle-of-the-day convenience! Our original model was single-powered, dial operated, perfect for our simple uses. But pretty gutless. Last year we decided to proactively replace it. BUT we had no interest in a smart microwave. (In fact, I loathe smart appliances that have been cooking many decades less than I!) We found our solution with Panosonic Commercial microwave, meant for break rooms, gas-station hot deli counters, etc. Powerful, idiot-proof, compact, nothing smart about it. We use it several times a day and would be hard-pressed without it. We bought ours at a restaurant supply at substantial discount from MSRP.

Barbara Kafka. Brilliant ways of using the microwave to do just about everything, but IMHO many recipes involve a lot more steps and utensils than I would use on stovetop. That said, we depend on our microwave for lunches daily.

Halve figs but leave the stem end intact. Place in a buttered baking dish. Cover with clumps of fresh goat cheese or fromage blanc. A very few rosemary leaves. Roast in hot oven until cheese starts to melt. Drizzle with a few drops of very good balsamic vinegar. Cheese course, dessert or breakfast.

You can flash saute leaf lettuce in a little evoo. Edges will crisp up while leaf remains tender. Add dressing or simply lemon juice, etc, to your taste, or just serve as a side vegetable.

I have one kinda like AlaMoi's. Never use(d) it. $1 at a garage sale. Only time I need to weight something is "chicken under a brick" for which I use a....foil wrapped brick.

Not prescribing this, but a friend who wears a size 0 has a simple regime. She eats ONLY when she is hungry, never just because it is some normal meal time. That means she seldom has more than tea in the morning, eats a normal lunch and a late dinner, or sometimes a very light dinner. She has a very healthy appetite when she does eat, and shies away from nothing. She makes me aware of the number of times I eat when I'm really not that hungry but just because it seems like mealtime and/or the food is there.

Then I'll take mine "to go" and throw it back in the oven for a bit...Thanks for the warning.

I'd eat that last slab.

Are you talking fresh anchovy? Never had them cooked, only as divine boquerones.

I repeat, for white sauce, veloute, Allemande, hollandaise, bernaise, beurre blanc and friends, i depend on the coiled wire whisk shown above. I literally could not cook without them.

I have an Oster I was given as a present in 1958. Weighs a ton. Works great. Doesn't boil water, but hardly can I.

THIS shaped whisk. With it, lumps haven't a chance. Without it, I can't boil water.

Impressive!!!

Interesting. For me, a pan is much easier to clean than a blender. i have no problem making emulsified sauces using a coiled wire whisk. Funny story. D-I-L dropped by with their new Italian au pair. The young woman told me how she loved to cook but was having trouble in the US finding the jarred bechemel sauce she used in Italy. Boggled, I told her how easy it was to make. She was dubious, so we made a batch in just a few minutes. She was ecstatic!

I'll add to this good collection BETTY CROCKER IMPOSSIBLE PIES. There are several dozen versions, each with a taste twist, all based on Bisquik and pantry staples. For instance Cheeseburger impossible pie. Google for variations. I remember the pizza one to be particularly winning

I seldom buy or even then enjoy ice cream shop ice cream. For me the best is stiff churn followed by an hour or so ripening in the freezer. Then serve. I.e., dinner party. Worry about the leftovers tomorrow.