Basilgirl

I use Julia Child's recipe...each ingredient (crisp bacon, poached chicken or turkey, blue or Roquefort, avocado, HB egg, tomato...) is lovingly bathed in a light coat of dressing, then beautifully arranged as stripes atop the shredded/chopped lettuce in a big bowl, which I think also gets a light light dressing. After everyone admires it, the best part is tossing it all together into the perfect meal. At least that's what I think.

Cobb

Just a word of caution here - when shopping at Giant, check expiration dates! I bought some Swiss cheese last week, went to use it last night, and the expiration date was JANUARY 5 2004. This has been happening with alarming frequency ever since Royal Ahold took over. The employees just don't seem to care anymore. For awhile I checked dates on EVERYTHING from mayonnaise to bacon, but I guess I lapsed.

Glad Press N Seal - not really a gizmo, but it works Microplane grater Crockpot - made awesome chicken thighs the other night with BBQ sauce, vinegar, hot pepper flakes, pulled last night and put on crusty rolls with coleslawl Ronco Set It and Forget It rotisserie Spider ladle

Eunny Jang: Would these be "boo choo" or "pu chu"??????? My boyfriend grows these "garlic chives" and the Korean ladies fight over them. He swears by their restorative and "aphrodisiacal" properties.

Hot and sour soup Soft cooked eggs, mixed with lots of pieces of heavily buttered toast and tons of salt and pepper Orange juice with vodka Alka Seltzer Plus Night Time Cold Medicine - during the day

I think it is the Fair Lakes area. I read somewhere that they have pushed the opening back to 2005. My sister and I drove 40 miles each way to the one in Sterling. On a Saturday afternoon. What a zoo. We were both blown away by the whole experience.

Ok.... I have too much time on my hands today... I didn't come up with a recipe doing a quick google search ( "velvet spice cake") but did see that there should be a recipe in Rombauer's 1985 Joy of Cooking... Seems like a book that should be a the library. I was curious as to what to what makes a cake "velvet" -- is it just a descriptitve name or is there some technique or group of ingredients in common with, say for instance, "red velvet cake". edited for typo I checked my OLD (very pre-1985) Joy of Cooking and there it was! Thanks, Ludja, and thanks to TrishCT for posting the recipe. I'll get my sister to make this; I'm a lousy baker. Well, except for pizza dough and foccacia, but that's a different thread.

Please explain

OK, OK...i just skimmed this thread so...is there a recipe for Velvet Spice Cake out there? I Google Recipe Searched it and came up with nada. Thanks

But what about the Aussie Cheese Fries? A veritable mountain of fries, gobs of ooey-gooey Jack and Cheddar, lots o'bacon, served with Ranch dressing for dipping. Enough fat and cholesterol for the whole table for a week, all in one appetizer! The fries thing is 28 oz, and can honestly be thought of as at least 4 portions, the whole thing is (gulp) 2900 calories and 182 grams of fat. That breaks down to 720 calories per serving, while the bloomin onion is 845 per serving. AND THESE ARE THE APPETIZERS!!! /rant Then my ex-husband and I used to consume...1,440 calories and 90 grams of fat. Each. At one time. Plus huge mugs of Foster's. Oh. My. God.

I used to use this book a lot. I like it. It's a great reference book, and I also like the little sidebars like (Blankery-Blank Number) "Fish Dishes for People Who Don't Like Fish" or for people who don't like vegetables. Favorites include: Stir Fried Pork with Spinach - I tweak the recipe and marinate the pork for awhile in white wine, soy sauce, more garlic. It's delicious. Sauteed Chicken Cutlets - good basic recipe with interesting variations Corn fritters Lemon-Tabasco Dipping Sauce for shellfish - so easy, simple, good Pork Braised with Vinegar and Bay - yum Sauteed Pork Chops - one of the variations with white wine and lemon juice Basic Frittata Oven-Baked Ratatouille Roasted Vegetables, Catalonian Style and basic Roasted Vegetables

But what about the Aussie Cheese Fries? A veritable mountain of fries, gobs of ooey-gooey Jack and Cheddar, lots o'bacon, served with Ranch dressing for dipping. Enough fat and cholesterol for the whole table for a week, all in one appetizer!

Jolly Time Blast O Butter microwave popcorn. The whole bag. With extra popcorn salt, layered. For dinner last night.

I LOVE China Star in Fair City Mall in Fairfax. It gets a lot of press on That Other Board. Just wondering if any gulleters have been and if so what they ordered. Tyler Cowen has written it up in his latest Ethnic Dining Guide.

I like that attitude, Hill Valley! I'm bad, I'm bad, I'm really, really bad. Laziness ruled last night and even salami and cheese seemed too much trouble. I had microwaved Jolly Time Blast O Butter popcorn . With Two Buck Chuck Sauvignon Blech. Now I know why it's so cheap. I could never get away with that if The Boyfriend was around!

This is what I'll probably end up doing: Tonight - cheese, salami, Two Buck Chuck Thursday - Chinese carryout from a really good Szechuan place on the way home from work Friday - pizza delivery or leftover Chinese See, I cook or at least warm/reinvent almost every night, so this is really a mini-vacation for me! Last night was a frittata with leftover Easter ham, asparagus, roasted potatoes, scallions, Fontina and Swiss. Easy enough but we still didn't eat until the President came on (I get home around 7 PM ) (But I don't have to be at work until 10 AM )

The Boyfriend will be gone for a few days, and I usually don't cook when he's not around SO...when you're dining solo, do you cook or just grab some cheese & crackers? Any ideas for quick & easy things to make for one? And please, no Celeste-Pizza-for-Ones.

Great American Restaurants restaurants are indeed great. Artie's is my favorite, followed by Sweetwater Tavern.

Same old same old traditional Easter dinner: Smoked Smithfield ham, baked for 3 hours, glazed with jalapeno jelly Cook's Illustrated roasted potatoes (baby Yukon Golds) with garlic, herbes de Provence, parsley Roasted aparagus with hollandaise from a mix , doctored up with lemon juice & cayenne Yummy smoked salmon on mini rye with cream cheese and capers to start Chardonnay Dark chocolate, white chocolate, milk chocolate Easter eggs my brother sent me from Holland

I saw this place on the Food Network: Nacho Mama's: Vintage signage, south-of-the-border souvenirs and Elvis memorabilia pack this tiny, festive Tex-Mex joint. It's located on Canton's popular square. Large numbers of upwardly mobile patrons squeeze their way inside for the chance to eat chips and salsa out of hubcaps and sip pints of knock your socks off margaritas. The above average food offerings include staples like tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas and fajitas -- all of which can be had traditional (beef tacos) and creative (stir-fry quesadillas). The restaurant can get quite rowdy because the margaritas pack a punch. It's a great place to cut loose, but not the best choice if you're looking for quiet respite. Be warned, there aren't many tables and reservations aren't taken. Count on waiting an hour or two at peak times. -- Melissa Nurczynski, AOL City Guide

G&M in Linthicum (near the airport) - awesome crab cakes, no filler. The traditional Baltimore way, I understand, is to eat them with saltines. A real dive. Check out the "ambiance" and menu at www.gandmcrabcakes.com

Linguine with meatballs and red sauce, baked with smoked fontina, ricotta, mozzarella & parmesan. Cheap red wine.

Hmm. Until I read what kind of meatloaf you have my reply was going to be to use either horseradish or red chile. What kind of cheese did you use? What seasonings exactly? The cheese is provolone (SMOKY!!) and the ham was just plain old Dak imported boiled. The seasonings in the beef/veal/pork mixture are tomato juice (I used V-8), garlic, oregano, Parmesan, S&P. It's very very good and very simple to throw together. Also it is much easier to roll up, using foil as a guide, than it was when I used to help my Mom make it when I was a kid. But now it turns out The Boyfriend will be absconding with said leftover loaf and therefore sandwiches will not be on the menu tonight. However, I do appreciate all of these and any future replies for the next time we loaf. DON'T LET YOUR MEAT LOAF! Sorry. I couldn't resist.

I have some leftover ham & cheese stuffed meatloaf. I am ashamed to say that I don't think I have ever had a meatloaf sandwich. What kind of bread should I use? What kind of spread? Ketchup seems wrong with the Italian flavored meatloaf, but that could just be me. Should I stick more cheese on it? Heat it or eat it cold? Please help me with this overly simplistic request. Thank you.