Chad

I like the Pringles cans, too. Two empty ones with the lids on make the best impromtou bongos in the snack aisle . Chad

Trillium, thanks for the great class. This is a cuisine that I was entirely unfamiliar with. I'm eager to try a couple of your dishes. I'm trying to convince my wife that I need new toys -- what's your advice on a rice cooker? Is it necessary? Does a cooker to a better or more consistent job? What brands/models do you recommend? Thanks! Chad

Yup, the Salice Salentino is one of my favorites as well. It's my every day red, especially since the Marques de Caceres Rioja got all snooty and went to $14 a bottle . I like big paint-stripping reds, and the Taurino fits the bill. I think of the Salice Salentino, E. Guigal's Cotes du Rhone and a couple of others as high-end pizza wines. They go well with casual food, but you wouldn't be ashamed to put them on the table with guests over. Any others I'm missing? Chad edit: spellig

I know I'm curious. What is our delightfully un-PC PC making these days? Any of the suggestions on this thread make the cut? Chad

Bon Appetit or Gourmet? After a couple of fast and furious rounds of school fundraising (scented candles anyone?), my wife and I find ourselves with a couple of magazine subscription vouchers. I don't even have a clue as to what the money went for. Arming rebels in Togo, I think. Anyway, I haven't picked up either magazine in a couple of years. I checked out recent issues of both and was less than impressed. Saveur is not on the list, so it's between those two. Any opinions? Or should I just get a subscription to "Discover" and be done with the whole mess? Chad

Sorry, HJ , didn't mean to ruffle any feathers. Actually I wasn't refering to you but to someone else (can't recall whom now) who implied it was their restaurant/waitstaff's policy to remove plates even while others at the table were still eating. Chad

Jack, thanks for another great lesson! A couple of questions. The last time I made mayo (okay, it was also the first time I made mayo ) I used two egg yolks and some ground mustard to what should have been a cup and a half of oil. I ended up using a little more than two cups of oil because the stuff refused to thicken the way it was supposed to. Seeing your method, I wonder if two yolks were too many. But I would have thought that the mayonaise would be thicker with two yolks, not thinner. Thoughts, opinions? By the way, I plan on making the Rouille this afternoon. I have a couple of chiles left over from the summer crop that'll make for an, um, interesting, mayonaise . Chad

I consider this extremely rude. Not just my pet peeve, though, it goes against the general rules of etiquette. The idea being that those who are still eating will feel very self conscious, especially if they're the last to finish. They feel like everyone is watching them and waiting. Which is, of course, true, because you can't (or shouldn't) order dessert or coffee or light a cigarette until that person is finished. Just plain courtesy, then, to leave all plates on the table until each diner is finished with his meal. I've had to forcibly restrain waiters and waitresses who swoop in and grab my empty plate before my wife has finished her meal. That's why I always leave something on the plate as a decoy so I can claim that I'm still eating. Chad

Russ, thanks again for a great Q&A. And for being a regular eGullet member. It is indeed a wonderful thing to share ideas and opinions with you and Paula Wolfert and Tony Bourdain and Grant Achatz and all of the other pros who contribute here. It also helps a lot when talking to other people about eGullet. When I mention that I hang out on a food-related Internet site, I get that slightly pitying look reserved for the socially inept. The complete Star Trek video collection and Dr. Who t-shirt are simply assumed. However, when they know who some of the regulars are the mood quicky shifts, and I can usually get them to come take a look. A little shameless name dropping can be a good thing. To the heart of the matter. I've recently gone back to writing full time after a lengthy stint in the marketing/advertising world. Why? A chronic fear of making money, I suspect. That and my wife is willing to put up with it for the time being. Good enough for me. I know you work at home. Have you developed any tricks for keeping focused throughout the day? Do you have a set routine? Structured writing times? A way to deal with the guilt associated with the completely necessary but hard to explain staring-out-the-window time? A good excuse for not having brushed your teeth by 11:00? Thanks, Chad

I finally picked up a copy of "How to Read a French Fry" yesterday -- at Borders' usurious prices; dear God, man, how do you sleep at night? The book will now have a place of honor on my shelf next to the books that I actually use rather than just salivate over. McGee, Corriher, Wolke, Alton Brown and now Parsons. Nice job. What really hooked me was the section on pie crusts. I've gotten myself into a bit of a dilemma. My wife wants chicken pot pie. Fine, I can do that. She suggested I buy a pie crust. I was insulted. I was outraged. My manly ego reared up to the full height of its fire-wielding, meat-searing glory and yawped, "Storebought piecrust? I'll make my own damn pie crust, thank you very much." This despite the fact that I've never made a pie crust in my life. Ah, but I have books. I have the Internet. I have Russ Parsons captive on eGullet! Bwahahahaha! Anyway, I'm thinking short crust rather than flaky, mainly because the filling is going to be a bit goopy and I don't want my pie to have the texture of a third-grader's paper mache project. I'm thinking blind baking beforehand. Maybe a puff pastry top. I've armed myself with a new deep dish pie tin, roasted a chicken and have everything ready to go. I bought lard because I remember that's what my grandmother used. I also bought a Marie Callender's frozen pie crust -- just in case. I've hidden it in the freezer behind the year-old tub of Blue Bunny ice cream that everyone hates and covered it with a bag of Tater Tots. I have a detailed cover story about Thanksgiving pecan pie in case it is discovered. So I'm set. I think. My questions: Am I right about the short crust versus flaky? You mention that commercially rendered lard doesn't taste good. Should I just use butter or shortening instead? Any hints on thickening the filling so that it doesn't ooze out onto the plate like The Blob going after Steve McQueen? Thanks for any advice you might offer. Chad edit: solecism

Too tired to see if this has been done before, but: Bacon is its own reward Chad

Andy, a well conceived, well presented class. Thank you. A couple of questions. Have you ever participated in a cooking contest sponsored by a food manufacturer? The Pillsbury Bakeoff is the prototype, but I've also seen contests sponsored by McIlheney (Tabasco sauce) and others. Similar to the Amanda Hesser/Sandra Lee thread, is there an art to using prepackaged ingredients? Would you do it? Secondly, what the hell are fondant potatos? I thought I had a handle on fondant, but that's the first time I've seen a reference to fondant potatos. Am I missing something (or simply thick)? Thanks, Chad

Why is the theme from The Godfather playing in my head? I prefer the term "attititude adjustment." It's most efficacious when done with the thick end of a pool cue. Lord knows, that's what my wife would be doing to me right about now. You might want to get hold of a Bonking Stick. I have a feeling that it'll come in handy over the next couple of days. Y'all have fun. And post plenty of damn pictures! Deep fried & sanctified, Chad

Sweet Jesus, the temptation. Opened the paper this morning to see a full page ad . . . $84 from Wichita to Raleigh/Durham on AirTran. Of course, my wife is out of town this weekend, so I'm handling the kids <grit teeth>. No last minute plane flights for me. Crap. Maybe I'll do up some Lexington-style in y'all's honor. Chad

Oh, by the way, congratulations! You'll be fabulous. Chad

Okay, you don't have an ice cream maker yet, but when you get one how 'bout a riff on a Mint Julep gelatto, sorbet, glace type thing? Certainly Southern and would probably be damn tasty. Other ideas, a whimsical take on the prototypical "congealed salad," usually made with Jello, whipped cream and fruit chunks. You could have a lot of fun turning that into an upmarket dessert. And given that this is the 85th anniversary of the Moon Pie, you could do something really cool with graham cracker crusts, some sort of fluffy filling and chocolate. Might be fun. You've got to get some sort of peach or blackberry cobbler on the menu, too. Always a staple of Southern cooking. Perhaps dress it up with some puff pastry and purees. Interesting melon granitas? Honeydew, cantaloupe, that sort of thing. Hmm, maybe a sweet tea sorbet/granita/gelatto type thing. Just a couple of ideas. As you read them please keep in mind my grandmother's saying, "Nothing is completely useless; it can always serve as a bad example." Chad

Jeez, Dean, if you were really concerned about your wife's sanity, you'd have left her at the altar . There would have been a simple note, "Honey, I know you don't understand, but many years from now you'll have a horrible nightmare about a whole, dead pig in your bathtub and think to yourself, 'so that's how it would have turned out.' Believe me, it's better this way. Love, Varmint" Chad

Another way to go is The Quick Recipe from the Cook's Illustrated folks. I like it a lot. There are some pretty good recipes, and everything can be made in less than 60 minutes (including all prep time). We've made several meals from the book, and while they're not grand gourmet, they are damn tasty -- and most importantly, pass the "kid test." Consider this one the Anti Sandra Cookbook. Chad

Coolest dessert I've seen was white chocolate ravioli. Probably old hat to most of y'all, but I was impressed. White chocolate softened, rolled thin and pressed into both sides of a ravioli press. The interior was filled with chocolate mousse and the whole thing pressed together to form these beautiful little white raviolis. Served with some sort of raspberry/chocolate sauce so the whole thing looked like a pastel version of ravioli with a good tomato sauce. Quite cool, I thought. Chad

I agree. The show had great potential, but the sidekick...Rooney I think.....really downgraded the show. The attempt at comedy was not funny, just stupid and annoying. The sad thing is that Steve Rooney can really cook. Dunno why he was cast as the village idiot in "Mario Eats Italy," but he's also done dozens of weird characters on "Good Eats." I think his Mario Eats role may have sunk him, however. According to Matthew Stillman, the former FNTV exec who did a Q&A here not long ago, Rooney's bio from the Good Eats Fan Page Chad

My mental caption to that picture was "Home Surgery Gone Awry," but I like yours better. Chad

Peanut butter and crispy bacon. I love it. My kids gag. Of course I gagged when my grandfather ate peanut butter and sardine sandwiches . My kids also think that bananas and mayo are nasty, but it was a childhood favorite that I still indulge in every once in a while. Nastiest food combination I can think of (and would never eat)? Celery with peanut butter and raisins. What twisted mind created this abomination? Ew. Chad

Hmm, I can accept a compliment, but I do tend to overanalyze the meal. It drives my wife nuts when I say, "I think I oversalted the water," or "next time I'll try long grain rice rather than arborio." I'm not fishing for compliments or disparaging the meal, but after the first couple of forksfull I'm already skipping ahead to the next time I make the dish and figuring out what I'd do differently. We still bicker about it, she feeling that she's already praised the meal and that I'm plumping for more ego inflating. Not so. I can appreciate that something tastes good -- and accept the compliments graciously -- and still find things to try next time. Chad

This is a very cool knife. Kershaw has a good reputation and the Kai/Shun line is the coolest thing to come out of Seki in a long, long time. I've long felt that VG10 would be the ultimate kitchen steel. It takes an insanely sharp edge, holds that edge for quite while, even under heavy use, is relatively easy to resharpen and keeps a "toothy" profile. Nifty. Damn nifty. I've had custom kitchen knives in ATS-34, BG42 and several other exotic steels, but nothing has sliced and diced as well as my VG-10 pocket knives. Sad but true. Until now, no one made a good kitchen knife in VG-10, except Falkniven's "Blue Whale" and I hate the design. Needless to say I have a serious lust for the Kai/Shun 10 incher. Dunno why they just used VG-10 as the core. It wouldn't have been any more expensive to use it for the whole blade. But then you wouldn't get the cool Damascus steel look that they've gone for. That's something, I suppose. Nice score. Chad