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sladeums

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Posts posted by sladeums

  1. I've not been, but info I've heard from reliable sources indicates the Blues is a bit better than the 'cue.

    Not at all dreadful, but there's better to be had.

    Good place for live music - if a decent band is playing you could definitely have a good time.

  2. Many long years ago I was a callow lad making Caesar salad in a local Community College Dining Room-raw egg and all.

    Never killed anyone although the Parmesan came out of a cardboard container already grated-if you could stomach that crud you could eat anything. :biggrin:

    Yup!

    That's the spirit!

    :laugh:

  3. I use raw egg when I make it myself and have

    never killed anyone. But you're right, I've heard

    warnings that the elderly and super-sensitive should

    not consume raw eggs, but anyone else should be

    fine. Apparently the way they manufacture eggs

    these days, their bacteria content is way low?

    I'm fine with the not making it in front of you thing.

    I just would like a good one, and suggestions on

    this thread reassured me they're still out there somewhere.

    Thanks everyone!

    Yeah, actually it's not until the last couple years that the REALLY food-friendly folk posited the theory that only those with comprimised immune systems should be concerned about raw egg.

    As far as I would conservatively guess about 70 percent of those in the US (a figure I arbitrarily pulled out of my ass) would tell you that you are likely to die or get very sick from eating raw eggs...I am excluding those over 80 and those who are extremely fond of Rocky.

  4. I just scanned this thread so excuse me if this has already been mentioned, but one of the main reasons the tableside Caesar service died off is because of the fact that raw egg plays a part in the traditional prep...and as someone mentioned this is also part of the lovely heritage of the dish.

    But raw egg became taboo a long time ago...so you get the more user-friendly, garlic-mayonaisse Caesar salad that is so common today.

  5. In KC, if you look up some barbecue (which you should) - here are some ideas, in my personal order of preference along with suggested menu items:

    LC's (burnt ends, beef sandwich, fries, beans)

    Oklahoma Joe's (ribs, turkey, sausage, carolina sandwich, unusual beans - burnt ends only available on Wednesday)

    Fiorella's Jack Stack (lamb ribs, crown prime of beef, martin city sandwich, beans, cheesy corn)

    or

    Winslow's City Market Barbecue isn't too bad either (burnt ends, ribs, beans, fries).

    Keep in mind if you do induldge in 'cue in KC that the speciality of the town is burnt ends and most places also strive to do a good beef sandwich.

    Here is a fairly recent KC thread:

    click here for KC BBQ thread.

  6. I have a little monster diner in my town.

    They are a bit of throwback to the 50's cookbook with a 90's desire for monstrous portions.

    Big Daddy's Diner

    1901 Farnam St (within walking distance from all downtown hotels if you are ever stranded in Omaha overnight)

    and

    8412 Park Dr (Ralston...which is Omaha)

    but anyway the dish:

    an 8-ounce hamburger (yes, that's half a pound) topped with a fried egg, cheese and ham (the Omaha burger); or bacon (the Big Daddy). So to recap that is a 1/2 pound burger with cheese and some extra meat topped with a fried egg (oh, and you can choose soup or salad instead of fries - if you are calorie-sensitive).

    I understand there are a few calories there...and another thing - they have a HUGE Monte Cristo (very old school).

  7. If it helps anyone make their decision about whether or not to continue a subscription, I would like to point out that they now have the three most recent season's content of 'America's Test Kitchen' available for free (with registration) online.

    As far as I knew in the past you had to pay for most of this content.

    Since I'm not a subscriber, I'm unsure of how their print content corresponds to the TV series though.

    click here for 'America's Test Kitchen' site.

  8. I was in an odd mood one weekend morning and concocted a sandwich of peanut butter (natural), bacon, banana, and a few hot pepper flakes on toasted sourdough. Mmm -- hot, sour, salty, sweet (and crunchy).

    This particular combo is referred to more commonly as the 'Elvis Sandwich'...you had a few tweaks though, the standard has no red pepper flakes and is grilled whole - as in the entire sandwich, not just the bread.

  9. Lobel's has a 'Two for February' online promotion for this month:

    "...Order a selected cut of American Wagyu beef and you'll receive a complimentary 10-ounce cut of Wagyu Boneless Center-Cut Sirloin (a $36.98 value)..."

    Doesn't exactly make it cheap, but does make it cheaper.

    click here for details.

  10. [...]Typically the meat is wrapped in banana leaves and cooked over coals in a pib or pit.[...]

    What's a pib? Web searched turned up "Press Information Bureau," "Processor-In-a-Box," "Philosophy-in-Business," and "El Producto Interno Bruto" (=Gross National Product). www.m-w.com found no such word. I'm very curious.

    Pib = pibil

    An earthen pit dug to cook meats.

    Usually has a layer of leaves (avocado, bannana, maguey) to insulate and flavor the meat.

    Frequently either wood-fired or fired from heated stones.

    that's my understanding at least.

  11. This new "Take 5" bar, from, Hershey's is actually fantastic.  It's got a much stronger salty quality than sweetness, and that makes it somewhat unique among mass-packaged candy bars.

    The list of ingredients (pretzels, caramel, peanuts, peanut butter, milk chocolate) seems ordinary, but it's actually more than the sum of it's parts, due to a fairly interesting texture.  It's also MEGA-caloric.  220 for 1.5 ounces.  Whooooooo!

    I didn't like this.

    Too much going on with nothing playing well with others.

    Like a 'Whatchamacallit' (which ain't great) with no focus.

  12. Excellent.

    That clears it up for me.

    ...and if you're taking pictures, dude, be sure to return with them!

    I'm not gonna dig up the Diana Kennedy thread, but I noticed you'd mentioned having some cookbooks on the way, and you had expressed a yen for good pictures...if you are looking for a few solid cookbooks in this genre with better pics you might want to check out (if you haven't already) : 'Mexico The Beautiful' and 'The Mexican Gourmet'.

    Also, if you are just looking for a great collection of recipes I really found Marge Poore's '1001 Mexican Recipes' top-damn-notch. A huge amount of preps to deal with, but no pics - a great cookbook, I feel, for someone at least slightly well-versed with the ins and outs of the Mexican table.

  13. oh shit, I must just be an aberration then!

    it may also be personal preference, as I like the finished product to be thick as very soft cookie dough...if it runs freely off a slightly skewed chip I have issues.

    I never had concerns with making the dip with undrained Ro-tel while cooking conventionally, but I've consistently had problems when cooking it in the microwave, thus my advice.

    edit: it's a 'product', not 'produce'

  14. I may be wrong, but my concept of the difference between quesadillas and empanadas is basically whether or not it is deep/shallow-fried (empanada) or cooked on a dry or lightly-oiled skillet, griddle, comal, open-fire - what-have-you (quesadilla).

    Also, I've generally considered an empanada more of a south-of-the-(Mexican)border dish.

    I dunno.

  15. In regards to the achiote paste mentioned in the ingredients, are you talking an actual prepared paste (recado) - which I equate with a store/market-bought or homemade paste including ground annato and other flavorings or just simply ground annato?

    I would guess my confusion comes with the manner in which the ingredient is listed:

    2 tbsp achiote paste (ground annato seeds)

    Which I understand as two separate things.

    Also for the soup base - you're talking Knorr/Maggi, right?

    Not nitpicking at all - just wanting to be clear.

    The recipe sounds quite good...

    In case you have not been welcomed, then: "WELCOME!".

    We definitely can use some more Mex-centric posters like yourself.

  16. I really dislike heavy-handed cinnamon (cassia).

    Which to me is odd...

    I love the other cinnamon families (canela/Ceylon/zeylanicum/true) which are rather floral compared to cassia.

    AND

    I am a unrepentant chili-head! Love the heat and the flavor, and even just heat for heat's sake.

    So then, why don't I like our cinnamon?

    To me it tastes harsh...yes, one who's favorite salsa is just chopped habaneros, lime juice and salt...who has no issue with Dave's Insanity or Possible Side Effects - - but give me even a stick of Big Red and my tastebuds fold.

    I just almost cringe thinking of it in other preparations - don't like the stuff at all.

  17. I just tried the venerable Ro Tel and Velveeta for the first time, in the microwave, and the cheese (if you can call Velveeta "cheese") broke!  Any tips for making this next time?

    Hum....never heard of this before. Did you stir? How much cheese to one can of Ro-Tel?

    Also was it low-fat Velvetta?

    We unintentionally stumbled across this stuff recently, and it totally screwed our 'trailer park' au gratin potatoes.

    You also may have mistaken the 'breaking' as the liquid from the tomatoes separating out from the cheese.

    Make sure your can of tomatoes is very well-drained, smash down the lid and all - - extract as much liquid as possible before adding to the cheese.

    Another way to avoid this is to melt the cheese alone and add the well-drained, room-temp tomatoes afterwards - in addition to making the cheese cool enough to eat it does not get as soupy.

  18. Cincinnati Chili recipes frequently do utilize unsweetened chocolate/cocoa powder.

    Cinnamon, allspice and cloves are present in a variety of combinations of any one or all. Also you will find Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste and vinegar.

    It is more like a thick sauce (since that is it's primary use) rather than the traditional soup or stew-like chili.

    I can offer no empirical evidence in regards to chocolate/cocoa use other than to say look at a few recipes, and that's what you'll find.

    There is also this article in the Cincinnati Post which makes a slight reference at the end of the article in regards to people suspecting chocolate being in Skyline's recipe:

    click here for article on Nicholas Lambrinides, the founder of Skyline.

    A couple times a year I make a big batch of Cincy Chili to eat for about a week. I enjoy it - and I think more people unfamilar with it would as well if were not called 'chili'.

  19. Remember Quisp? I think it made a short-lived comeback a few years ago.  It tasted much like the Cap'n's (???) cereal, only the smaller pieces were easier on the mouth.

    For me its Heartland granola when I'm feeling crunchy, and Reese's Peanutbutter Puffs when I'm feeling the need to get cracked out on sugar, that stuff is good.

    Quisp is available regionally and can also be ordered off their website:

    click here to see where it is available locally.

  20. For salsa, nothing beats Herdez Salsa Casera. Well, homemade could...

    Herdez...I have to second that. Good, good stuff.

    yum

    I like the Herdez Salsa Casera as well and seem to prefer the canned to the bottled.

    But don't tell the testers at Cook's Illustrated.

    Was watching an episode of America's Test Kitchen today and they had the results of their store-bought salsa tasting.

    Contenders: Old El Paso, Taco Bell Thick and Chunky, Santa Barbara and Herdez Salsa Casera.

    Results:

    1. Santa Barbara (this is a regional refrigerated brand). The freshest tasting.

    2. Old El Paso. Fairly high scoring.

    3. Taco Bell. Too sweet. Not what most would call salsa.

    4. Herdez. Too watery, little flavor.

  21. Generally speaking I would understand 'mole sauce' to be prepared from 'mole paste' and whatever desired liquid medium.

    I would think a tablespoon of a 'mole sauce' would not go very far in flavoring anything, depending on the context of the recipe.

  22. Mmm, i second the thought on the yumminess of Dagoba. the xlocolatl (that might be spelled wrong) is exactly the chocolate/chili bar i've been wanting.

    You might look at some of the other high-end producers for this type of product as well.

    The chocolate with chili and/or spice is not that uncommon.

    A good one-stop place to look for reference is:

    Chocosphere.

    Never ordered from them, so don't know how that fares, but they do list a wide range of products which I enjoy e-window shopping.

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