tejon

Channa dal, please!

No, no, no. It's such a simple thing to prepare your own spices for each dish, and the outcome is far superior. Think of it like the difference between buying bouquet garni already assembled (how would you know the herbs used were right for the dish you're using?) versus tying up your own to suit the flavors of the food being prepared.

Yes, I have both pulp and paste. Rasam sounds delicious and looks quite simple to make. But my black mustard seeds turned out to be kolanji, and what are the dals? Scroll down here to see pictures of both toor and urad dal. Here's another rasam recipe that I can vouch for - very comforting and good for whatever ails you. I didn't have curry leaves when I made it up and it came out well - and doesn't require black mustard seeds. Though you could substitute brown mustard seeds - the taste isn't the same, but it's in the same ballpark. Ditto with the dals, you can use whatever dal you can find locally - taste won't be the same, but it'll still be very good.

GG Mora, do you have any tamarind? Rasam would be simple and delicious to make up, or maybe some vindaloo using whatever meat you like.

Thank you! I'm going to have to make up the dal as well soon. Something incredibly comforting about potatoes and dal, don't know what it is.

That would be first and foremost for me. There are many foods that are difficult to enjoy unless you grew up with them and are used to the taste or texture, or pairings of flavors that don't necessarily translate well to most people. Somehow much of Indian fare tastes good to just about anyone, which makes it more globally appealing. Then there's the rich diversity of Indian culture and style of cooking. There really is something for just about anyone to enjoy, since India encompasses so many different ways of preparing food. But I'll stick with Indian food tastes good . PS - the alu palak looked delicious. I can guess at most of the preparation, but could you share a general overview?

I'll take a stab there. First picture, alu palak: red potatoes, spinach, chiles, turmeric, cayenne, cumin (?) Second picture, mushoor dal: mashoor dal (tiny, delicious dried legumes), lime, whole cumin, chile, tomato, onion, garlic, cloves, ginger, bay leaf, cardamom (?) Third picture, panditji's kaddu: butternut squash, ginger, chile, amchoor (mango) powder, cayenne, coriander, (?) So are you doing chapatis, or rice?

What Indian Food means to me: if I had to choose one cuisine to eat every day for the rest of my life, with no deviations, I'd pick Indian. There is such a rich diversity of flavors and dishes that it's hard to grow tired. Incredible seasonings and spices, the most delicious ways to prepare vegetables of all sorts, and enough addictive snacks to satisfy anyone. Looking forward to the entertaining insanity that is sure to follow . That, and more food porn.

I got a chance to try one of these before they were on the market (thanks to Tad/FoodZealot) and wasn't very impressed. It tasted like a nice, crispy apple bathed in grape Kool Aid. Not that there's anything wrong with grape Kool Aid, mind you - just not what I'm looking for when biting into an apple. I think it would appeal to people who don't like the flavor of apples or somehow need to be enticed to eat fruit. Personally, I'll take my apples and grapes au natural.

I'm married with two small sons, three and five. I am at home with the boys, so I do most of the cooking and food preparation and planning. I cook dinner from scratch almost every night. We go out to eat (away from the little ones ) every couple of months or so, and occasionally will get fast food for all, but that's pretty rare. I do sometimes plan on having leftovers from earlier in the week as a menu item, but usually the sides or some part of it changes. Prep is almost always done on the same day, unless I'm planning to feed a much larger group. Right now menu planning is mainly up to me and my husband. My five year old son gets to pick one dinner a week, but my three year old doesn't really have enough of an opinion yet to give input. I try to incorporate things that will be generally liked. I make one meal, and that's what is for dinner - if the boys don't want what we're having they delve into their shelf in the refrigerator for string cheese, fruit, vegetables, something healthy that doesn't involve me making another meal. If we have guests who have special dietary needs, I work hard to accomodate them in any way I can. I worked around a whole host of food allergies with our sons for several years and know how much work it can be. Each week I sit down with the store circulars and look at what is on sale and what is in season. Then I go down my own mental list of dinners that have worked well in the past. Next I usually try at least one new recipe or preparation idea each week - tackling a new technique, trying something different. I shop once a week, going to three different stores (regular grocery, Trader Joe's, and an asian market for produce). I make up a list that includes everything needed for every meal for the next week and any other items that are running low. I cut coupons and end up saving quite a bit through planning everything out. We talk about pretty much anything that is child appropriate, since we have small children at the table. But just about anything is fair game for conversation, up to and including several discussions on the birds and the bees . We usually eat between five and six. I try for closer to five o clock, since that gives time for a family walk outside after dinner. Everyone sits at the dinner table, the TV and radio are turned off, and no toys are allowed at the table while we're eating. We sit down to eat together just about every night, and consider it important time together. There is an extra person or two at the table about once a week - I love feeding my friends and family! Dinner parties are a little more sporadic, but we both love to entertain and have people over. Our boys are always included, as well as the children of our friends. We always offer new foods to the boys, or foods they haven't necessarily liked in the past. I don't believe in disguising foods - if they're going to like something, they'll like it. We don't have a rule that they have to try something new, having found that usually they will eventually try a food of their own volition when they see us enjoying it. If they don't want to try something, that's usually a bonus - more for us! Our five year old is quickly catching on to the fact that most of what I prepare is pretty good stuff, and is branching out. I'm continually amazed at the things that our children will eat and enjoy, especially considering the diet of most small children. I think a lot of it has to do with encouraging them to try new things and actually *having* new foods available often.

I made the Woolley cake last night. Having read the thread so far, I tweaked it a little in an attempt to make it more moist and a bit sweeter (home baker here, looking for a better-than-boxed mix chocolate cake). I reduced the AP flour amount to 14 ounces and added 2 Tablespoons of corn syrup along with the buttermilk. The cocoa used was regular Hershey's, nothing special. The cake came out really moist. I wrapped one cake and left the other to cool without wrapping, and both were equally moist once they cooled. The chocolate flavor was incredible, and the texture was definitely more dense than people have been describing. It was a bit on the delicate side, but cooling firmed it up nicely. Bit of a dome, but nothing bad at all. I would give it a 5, easily. It left cake mixes in the dust. I know the intent was to compare the original recipe, unaltered, to other recipes, but I thought I'd share my results in case they are helpful.

I have another absurdlly simple cooking question. What's the best way to remove silk from ears of corn? I always end up plucking random ends from in between kernels one by one. Surely there is an easier way?

I don't even bother with stealth. A thick slice of fresh sourdough mops it up quite nicely

Liver and onions. The worst part was the smell, wafting up the stairs before dinner had even started, alerting us that tonight was going to be very unpleasant. It was always cooked until dry but still somehow strangely pasty, with that horrible taste that just lingered no matter how much water thrown down the throat. Still can't stand it, the texture or the taste.

Droooooool.

Those already look delicious, even uncooked. Now I feel a strong urge to leaf through my big Russian cookbook and make something hearty. My grandmother (the one who couldn't cook but did teach my mother to "drink like a Ruske") would be proud.

I'm enjoying this blog immensely. Nice to pick up in bits as it unfolds, like catching just enough pages of a favorite book to sate until the next reading. Now I'll admit to doing the same to a mug years ago. My defense - it was 3:00 am in a graveyard shift. Not that I wouldn't necessarily do the same fully awake, but at least I can protest that I was sleep deprived at the time.

OK - I have one. How do I roast garlic resulting in sweet, caramelized garlic? Everything I have tried, fiddling with temperatures and times, results in the same bitter garlic that I often come across in restaurants. I know there's a chemical change that turns it bitter - how do I avoid this?

I've been trying to learn more about Thai food in general and have been experimenting with different ingredients, to varying degrees of success. The first thing I purchased was fish sauce, as it is a basic to just about any Thai recipe. That just about put me off further experimentation all together - this stuff was truly vile. Even my husband, who loves Thai food of all sorts, said it wasn't any good. I'd like to dive into laarb and the many wonders of Thai cuisine....but I need a good fish sauce to start. What are your favorite brands? I know I can count on this group to steer me the right way on all things Thai .

I've had crispy spinach as an appetizer that was amazing. It was drizzled with lemon juice and sprkinled with just a bit of salt, which ended up tasting somewhat like salt and vinegar type potato chips. Truly addictive stuff.

Care to share the recipe on that one? I'm often the cupcake baker for my Ryan's preschool class

I use a large scoop for my muffins - each scoop of batter is the same amount, so it makes them all pretty even. I love using different sized scoops for anything that needs the same portions - cookies, meatballs, muffins, pancakes, filled baked goods, etc.

Nope - hasn't changed much at all. I had my 16th birthday party there (in one of the upstairs rooms) 20 years ago and remembered how tasty the prime rib was. Got married there 6 years ago, and the catering and experience was wonderful. We went back last year on our anniversary and had a very enjoyable and delicious dinner. It's a beautiful building, tucked surprisingly close to the beach (Little Corona beach is blocks away).

That is one slick helicoptor! Looking forward to more pictures. So far, it looks like an incredible time.

I was also inspired to make my first souffle tonight. I halved the chocolate souffle recipe and was surprised at how quickly and easily it all went together. They emerged light and proudly puffed from the oven, and tasted heavenly. I will be making these again very soon!