chezcherie

i agree that it's rarely worth the increased expense for white rice, which is pretty quick cooking. but the brown rice? that's a whole different kettle of grains, in my household! plus, for some reason, cooking brown rice, besides the extended cooking time, is my personal culinary achilles' heel. i'm sure a rice cooker would solve that issue, but i've got no available real estate for that! anyone else have good white rice cooking juju, but bad brown rice skills?

i eat brown rice when i'm trying to eat more healthfully. brown rice takes 45+ minutes to cook. do you know how many snickers bars (errrr, caramellos) i can eat in 45 minutes??? i've just finished writing my third trader joe's cookbook (not sponsored or sold at tj's) , and i know the inventory of those stores backwards, forwards and upside down. i've been told that the frozen brown rice is one of their top-selling skus, and it's difficult to keep in stock. i love the stuff. the box is too large to fit well in my freezer, but i just recycle the outer box and stash the three bags hither and yon in the freezer. there is a relatively new frozen brown rice, red rice and black barley combo that i really like, too. (edited to modify candybar example)

i was married a long time ago. 32 years. we got the requisite china, and a set of stoneware. we have three children, now grown, and we have used these dishes thousands of times. nearly every day for those years. sometimes we have used the whole set at one time, but not often. i cannot see any difference between the plates or bowls. we may have broken one or two along the way, but these things are formidable. this feels like searching for a solution for which there is no problem. (that being said, i'm enjoying the fifo banter!)

It's there. Under "Natural Flavor". They don't have to call it MSG. i found this exchange very interesting. i taught cooking classes to the staff, back when lawry's was headquartered in monrovia. (a lovely bunch they all were, and i was sad to see them swallowed by unilever.) i was thinkin' that there probably WAS MSG in there, as one of their other big products was Accent (practically pure MSG). and msg does hide under the "natural flavor" umbrella frequently. just went to my shelf, where my prized jar, labeled "Packaged especially for Cherie" rests. much to my surprise, it does indeed, state in red letters "contains no MSG". knock me over with a feather! doesn't even say "no ADDED msg", which is another frequent label, as of course, there is naturally occurring msg in all sorts of yummy foods--mushrooms, aged cheeses, meats... i'm not ascared of no msg, but i would have bet money that there was a good amount in lawry's seasoned salt.

read the ingredients, especially before purchasing a big box. some commercial "puff pastry" is made without butter. all sorts of hydrolized what-have-you in there...what's the point of that? puff=butter, imho.

i second the brandy snap. don't florentines always have nuts?

i definitely do. and i really enjoy it. especially when i'm traveling, or have been engaged in lots of networking or social events involving large groups of people, i like to relax my "talking muscles" by dining solo. if there's a seat viewing the kitchen, that's my choice--either a counter, or just a good view. i sip my wine and watch someone else cook for me. the ballet of the kitchen never fails to keep my interest, and i find it very relaxing to just be me for a meal.

just returned from iacp conference in austin, where i watched a great cooking demo/chat by jacques pepin. he said that cherry stems make a great tea, which he said is purportedly good for the kidneys, and a diuretic. he said that in france, the cherry stems are sold for this purpose. never seen that. don't know if it's accurate info, but i heart chef pepin, and found that tidbit fascinating. (he does a spot-on julia impression, btw.)

where i live, that's a much greater danger this time of year than anything that might result from swallowing some cherry pits. on the other hand, we got an amaaaazing batch of bings (from costco. yeah, costco) yesterday. so good, the 3 lbs are gone, and there are only three of us around the house. (as far as i know, we all spit pits.) had to buy some more--not as great, but i don't do costco on the weekends, let alone a holiday weekend--to make a recipe for rhubarb-cherry jam i couldn't resist in a blog post i saw today.

couldn't agree more, rancho gordo. having done a few on camera segments myself, i no longer have that deer-in-headlights feeling i had the first few times, but it is indeed hard/weird/unnatural, and to make it look otherwise is a skill.

ummmm, apparently still cooking and still together. caprial and john's kitchen portland or just sayin'.

i'll be attending the iacp conference in austin next week and i have a few dining opportunities unfilled. wondering who might be going, who might want to share a table some evening, and where the don't miss spots are in austin? i've never been to the city, though i've heard great things, so i'm looking forward to suggestions! HOST'S NOTE: Click here for the terms under which this is listed on the eG Forums.

just reading through the posts, on my way to chime in with my own rapture meal, and here it is. plats de mer is what i call it, but if balthazar calls it seafood salad, fine by me. i'll take a triple-decker, since it's the last one....isn't it?

dexter--congrats on your achievement. that's a huge accomplishment!

i recently passed the court of master sommelier's introductory certificate exam. it really taught me how much i don't know, and how much there is to learn. i think it is a good place to start--has a good online community and lots of resources. they hold tasting and other educational events, and there are reallllly smart wine folks involved with this group, who seem very approachable and happy to share their knowledge with folks studying the fascinating world of wine.

far from an expert on duck confit, other than eating it, but i believe the salt and spice rub serves two purposes. first to draw moisture out of the meat, which is critical to preserving it. and secondly to add flavor. is that what you are asking?

i am very careful to nuke only for a few seconds. otherwise a bit of a cooked taste results.

did you use the jim wallace recipe on ricki carroll's site? took a workshop with him recently and he was quite enthusiastic about the newly developed quark recipe.

i do roll or nuke. usually roll. but i do agree that i seem to get more juice that way. the cells seem to swell a bit, giving up their juicy goodness more readily.

honestly, i don't know. after a couple issues, they tried a "different model"--charging for the magazine.... then it went from editor to editor every issue, and i think ownership changed hands a few times in the 18 months or two years it was published. really too bad, because i love the edible model, and with a new wave of artisan butchers and all manner of foraging, canning, curing and what-have-you, it's really a shame LA doesn't have an edible!

salt dough would work. it's used for bread sculpture show pieces (and in place of play-do!) def not edible, good texture for the activity you describe, and won't rise. salt dough

very sad that edible los angeles folded. i was an original advertiser (for my cooking school), even though we really don't advertise. have loved the issues i've picked up (edible ojai, san francisco, east bay, boston, etc.) and with the food scene booming in la, i really wish somebody would give it another try!

many thanks, heidih, for the tour of my old stomping grounds! memories of annie's, and (OMG!) the red onion brought smiles and good memories. great glimpse into your food life. cheers!

wow...nobody so far insists on mac n cheese with ham? many families i know wouldn't be able to swallow the ham w/o the cheesey chaser!

i visualize the plate. does it need a pop of color? what shapes are already there, and what would complement? also, of course, flavors and weight--a rich main equals lighter sides. as Genkinaonna mentioned, i try not to go too multi-ethnic, most of the time.