bloviatrix

There are probably about 12 books that I use constantly. This is about 10% of the cookbook collection. The rest I use primarily as inspiration or if I'm trying to learn a new technique.

I think it's time for TiVo.

::drools:: ::falls over:: If I'm following correctly, you had this in NYC. What restaurant did you go to for this dish? (Unless I missed the flow of the thread and you cooked this one...) We went to Shallots, which is a kosher restaurant in mid-town. It's one of the nicer, upscale kosher places - David Rockwell designed the space. Great place for business lunches and special occassion dinners.

Why, thank you re: my brevity. Frank Rich turned me on to the word. But admit it, bloviate is a perfect word for the world of internet message boards.

I had duck for dinner tonight. It was lovely. The meat was cooked rare, just the way I like it - flavorful and juicy. The skin was crisp and crackling - a nice counterpoint to the juicy flesh. Sitting under the slices of meat was a duck confit hash that was very tasty. And the artfully dribbled around the plate was a cherry-syrah sauce. It was heavenly.

I feel that way about ducks. Whenever I'm at the 79th Street Boat Basin and I see the ducks I always say "Look, dinner." Inevitably I get some nasty looks from the people around me. I view it as their loss. They don't know what they're missing. We're going out for dinner tonight. I'm thinking about ordering the duck as the restaurant we're headed to does it very well.

mine is "Jai-ya".

Welcome to eGullet ik8r2u! I make a flourless chocolate cake, but I'm getting bored of it. At Passover I served it with strawberries that were infused with a balsamic-vanilla syrup that was a hit.

That looks yummy. Thanks for the suggestion.

Some years ago in Amanda Hesser wrote a long article about duck in the NY Times. Her theory was that most home cooks found duck to be a pain in the ass to make. Futhermore, duck at home is often comes out tough because cooks treat it like chicken. That, coupled with the price turns people off. I can relate to her theory a bit, because the first time I ever attempted duck it was an absolute disaster - although the port and prune reduction was tasty. My husband could believe that I spent thirty some-odd dollars on something that turned out so lousy. But, over time I prevailed, and have since figured out a way to play up the duck's strength. In my love for duck, it is the item I'm most apt to order off a menu, and I find that many restaurants don't know how to prepare it well either. All to frequently I've had duck that's been over-cooked so that the meat is dry and flavorless. But when a dish is well made ---- ahhhhhhh. Perfection.

I'm going to second the statement that many people are put off by the smell of lamb. It can be a bit strong. But a nicely grilled lambchop is really tasty.

I know, I know. It's amusing just to think about the idea of a kosher restaurant in Mongolia, but I'll take the opportunity to point out a couple of things about world travel for those with dietary restrictions: It's definitely true that there's a point of restrictedness (is that a word?) at which it becomes supremely challenging to travel outside of places that really cater to you. But it can always be done if you're willing to form a group. I probably couldn't take one Hasidic Jew to Mongolia on a tour, because at that level of observance that person would be very particular about what knife has touched what product, and what bowl has been used for what, but if a group of 12 wanted to go I'm pretty certain that I could set it up--we'd have our own cook (as we did), vegetarian-only food (they'd have to eat a lot of noodles, and some mayonnaise too!), and other approved arrangements. At a lower level of observance, it becomes even easier in direct proportion to the lessening of restrictions: I can take strictly Conservative and even some Modern Orthodox Jews to Nepal, for example, as part of a mixed group because they tend to be satisfied with "no meat" as a sufficient level of kashruth so I can just tell the cook, "No meat." And, while I don't keep kosher, I did grow up in a kosher home, know the dietary laws, and still observe some of the practices of kashruth. And this has never been a problem for me traveling anywhere in the world--except maybe North Carolina. [edited for clarity] You mean Chabad doesn't have an outpost in UB? Seriously, though....Ellen, I'm loving your writing. I can't wait for the next segment.

Well, as someone who keeps kosher, lobsters really aren't an issue. Regarding the presentation of whole fish, when I was Venice I ordered bronzino and whole fish came out on the plate. I managed to quell my disgust and eat the fish - leaving the head in tact. It never occurred to me to send it back.

Thanks so much Rachel. I am now officially blind.... I second Dumpling on this one.

Fish head, lamb head -- my darling 'trix just has an aversion to head. ~bloviator

I've actually eaten lamb's head. But all we had was the lower jaw. If it was the whole skull, I'm sure I would have had a bad reaction. It's tradition on Rosh Hashana to eat either lamb's head or fish head's. I've given the husband the responsibility of prepping the heads.

What do you think reminded me to start this thread?? I'm gonna have nightmares from that photo.

I have serious fish head issues. They freak me out. I think I was traumatized by a smoked whitefish as a child, but I'm not sure. I'm ok in the fish store when it comes to checking out the fish eyes to make sure they're not clouded over, but I will not buy a fish unless it's beheaded. Does anyone else have the same reaction to fish heads? How do you deal with it? (BTW, my husband teases me about this phobia. He actually dared me to start this thread )

I would like to point out that bloviatrix is the feminized version of a real word. A bloviator is one who speaks or writes verbosely and windily. You can also use bloviate, which is the verb. Frank Rich, of The New York Times, has been trying to reintroduce the word into everyday vocabulary.

Fascinating article. Regarding the jeep getting stuck in the lake - how did you guys get out of there?

Had some eggplants that needed to be used. So I made a pasta sauce with chopped onion, garlic, tomatoes, eggplant, and fresh mozzerella. Had it with fettuccini.

I totally agree with you on this. Whenever I see that browning onions should take 10 minutes or less I always wonder how high a flame they're using. My onions never brown that quickly.

I just put in a vote for Dastardly Mash.

I'm not sure if my taste has changed or I've just grown accustomed to cilantro. There was a time when I found it soapy. But now, I find fresh and "green."

I picked up a book at the Judaica store yesterday (Artscroll's Rosh Hashanah:Its significance, laws and prayers). In the mean time, my husband looked at the text regarding the dates and realized that it's a play on words. Date in hebrew is "tamar." The word for consumed/eradication is "yitam." And when a food relates to evil, it's taken as an allusion to our enemies. Hence, dates are eaten to symoblize our enemies being destroyed. It seems that many communities developed customs based on the names of foods. Ukranian Jews would give their children chicken livers. The Yiddish for liver is leberlach which sounds like leb ehrlich which means "live honestly."