jjpuss

To add to the pickle discussion: One nice combo we have frequently when ordering out is ricotta, pickled cherry peppers, and caramelized onions, with red sauce, no mozzarella. The dollops of ricotta offset the sour/hot pungency of pickled peppers, and sweet cooked onions are a nice complement, although sometimes we order roasted fennel bulb instead, which also provides sweetness. At home, I've mentioned before that my husband makes an amazing caramelized onion and broccoli rabe pizza with red fresno peppers and no red sauce. Sometimes uses cheese; sometimes not. He sautes the rabe with sliced garlic and the peppers, and then it gets slightly caramelized as the pizza cooks. Only problem is now that every time I buy broccoli rabe my husband feels obligated to make pizza. Okay, not my problem.

Why has nobody mentioned Wegmans? They're gradually taking over the eastern seaboard, and most people seem happy about it.

Stand in front of Mike's, turn around, and you will be in front of the best selection of Italian olives I've ever found, including big "Greek" olives, cerignolas, and the amazing, hard-to-find, mild, buttery (really), green castaveltrano. I've been known to make a special trip to Arthur Ave. just for those!

That Taco Cabana in Mpls started out as a Two Pesos and was switched after a lawsuit. I know that the place is long gone, but is the Taco Bell directly across Lake Street still there? I'm not in Mpls anymore, but I suspect it is.

I was under the impression that Anchor Steam, by definition, is not a lager (bottom-fermented) at all, but sort of a "middle-fermented" beer. I think the story is that the first batch was made in a bathtub. And I was not aware that Sierra Nevada even made a lager, but then, I haven't really been looking for one. For semi-mass produced, I'd vote for Brooklyn Lager, or even the fabulous Brooklyn Pilsner, but you can't really get it outside of NYC. Of course, you can't really get Yuengling outside of PA either.

Thanks, Suzanne! I'd love to trade war stories. I've got "before" pictures, but "after" is still after today . How do I find the threads? I just searched "renovation" and "remodel" and came up empty.

Never tasted any olive oil at Williams Sonoma that wasn't nearly rancid. Overpriced, to boot. I wouldn't buy it there if you have any other sources at all. You can sometimes find decent, relatively fresh olive oil at Marshalls (yes, the discount clothing store), of all places. You can't taste it, but the dates on the bottles do help a little.

What I use all the time: The food mill. Makes applesauce, mashed potatoes, tomato sauce, lentil soup, refried beans, jam, hummus... And, oh, yeah -- baby food. I can mix anything with some white rice, run it through the food mill, and my 11 month old eats it right up. We never use our espresso machine, but since we are now in the 6th week of a 3 week kitchen remodel, I'm surprised at how many little electric doodads have come in handy. We've been using this stupid little steamer every day for rice, I've broken out the hot pot from college, and I actually went out and bought an electric skillet. Works great for poaching eggs.

Hi, I'm new here, but this is as good a place to start as any, I guess. I'm a non-veg married to a strict (ethical) vegetarian. I do most of the cooking at our house (he does the baking), and often employ TVP with pretty nice results that go toward satisfying cravings for meaty food. Since I know (and like) what meat tastes like, I won't settle for nasty, bland TVP preparations. It does take some doing to get TVP to taste like anything, and there are a few somewhat labor intensive tricks involved, including rinsing out the plastic-flavored soy starch, marinating in something hyper-tasty, using flavorful sauces, and making sure not to soak the well-flavored TVP in anything that will leach the flavor out of it. Some of my favorite TVP dishes include a stew with large chunks of TVP "chicken", which also makes a nice potpie, and a country pate that employs crimini mushrooms, tofu, toasted pecans, pine nuts and TVP. Many non-veggies of my acquaintance eagerly scarf this stuff up, so it's not just me and veggie-husband that think it's good. Yes, there are different varieties and quality levels of TVP. The easiest to come by is that crumbled stuff that people use in chili and other dishes requiring a generic hamburger texture. There are also lots of shapes and textures that range from little brown chewy "beef" slices to very tender "chicken" puffs. All of these come dried and need to be rehydrated and then they can be turned into food.