Yiannos

I don't know about chemicals but it does sort of piss me off that grocers could be selling you apples that have been stored potentially for years as fresh. Why take away something that helps you gauge the nutritional state of produce? There is no benefit to us, only to the people trying to push apples past their prime as fresh. And this comes from someone who is generally not averse to the GMO thing, depending on the situation.

Hm, Jamba Juice sells smoothies outside of my kid's school every single Thursday without fail, "fund raising". Except yesterday. I wonder if this has anything to do with that? Though we are in California where strawberries basically fall from the sky, it would be a shame if a local place were importing them from Egypt...

Along this same train of thought, I recently discovered Masterchef Australia and I love it for all of the same reasons I love the Bake Off. No interpersonal drama or abrasive personalities to artificially create said drama. Just a lot of normal decent people humbly learning about making food and pushing their limits. I used to really enjoy shows like Top Chef or Chopped, but now they feel like a circus compared to the refinement of the Bake Off and the Aussies cooking their lamb and beets. Um, Nigella Lawson was on for a week too!

Hey, give me my wife back man

This makes me think of peanut butter cups/chocolate and peanut butter in general... I think they have this sort of universally understood perfection, and in my head it is because your palate sort of bounces back and forth between the salty pb and the almost overly sweet chocolate. That spot in between where most of the experience lies is why they are so damn good. I think?

The last of a bag of cherries and a handful of pantry stuff led to this cherry + chocolate clafoutis from the Moosewood Book of Desserts

Thank you all for the warm welcome, I hope I can contribute, I have just scratched the surface here and there are so many members with skills far surpassing my own! Maybe if there is a heated argument about lamb or gyros or something I will throw the gauntlet down.

To add to the Sac thread, there is a great Mediterranean Market (that's the name too) on Fulton Ave in Sacramento, tons of Middle Eastern groceries and products, a small deli section with all kinds of fresh olives and cheese. If you are out in the North/Roseville area, there is a smaller but equally well-stocked one on Harding Blvd in Roseville. The Roseville shop for example had mastic when no one else around did, if that says anything.

Thanks! I wish I could say I was throwing together a romantic and Mediterranean meal to tie off my introduction, like a moussaka or pastitsio or something, but the combination of a lazy Saturday and asking the kids what they wanted to eat has led to... nachos.

Hello to all, my name is John. While I sort of fell into cooking out of necessity when I became a stay at home dad about a decade ago, it quickly turned into a passion of mine. Having grown up in a Greek family and all the great food that goes along with that experience has been the foundation for my work in the kitchen day to day. Being that I also spent a good portion of my younger years as a musician, cooking has satisfied that inherent creative itch too, while helping to keep my family healthy and happy. I am excited to have come across the wealth of information that these forums offer. Looking forward to learning and sharing experiences with you all.

I have made lots of ice cream from both of these books, and I think they compliment each other really well. I like the Perfect Scoop for really excellent examples most of the classic flavors you'd expect to find in an ice cream book. The custard-based recipes are especially amazing in flavor and texture. The Jeni's book is great too in it's own way, I like that most of the recipes can be whipped up in an afternoon if you have the ingredients, and while she does have recipes for say chocolate and vanilla, a lot of the others use some interesting flavor combinations and techniques to expand on the really delicious "standards" you find in the Lebovitz book. I bounce back and forth between these two more than any others during the summer.