Toliver

That cheese sounds like it might go well with slices of apple or in a ham sandwich.

It looks like one of those cheese graters. Hmm...I'm trying to recall if my grater has a slicer/shaver blade like the one you linked to. If you want to slice garlic, there's also the Garlic Press & Slicer combo. There are garlic mandolines, too (Mario Batali sells one). And then there's the Garlic Card. It's just a simple garlic grater (read the item info to see how it was invented). I'm guessing you could also use it to grate ginger.

Regarding their iced coffees, can you get them blended (so the ice is crushed) or do they only serve them over ice? Also, do they offer the same iced coffees flavors as decaf?

I recall an episode of "Molto Mario" where Mario said almost the same thing. He said he uses good olive oil to cook with but saves the top-of-the-line olive oil to add as a finishing touch off the heat just before serving.

McDonald’s plans specialty coffee drinks in ’08 They estimate such coffee sales will bring in $1 billion annually. So will consumers bypass the coffee houses if they can get their specialty coffee along with their breakfast all in one place...like at McDonald's?

They're vented. The FAQ on the website also confirms that they are not recyclable. Shame on them.

Here is a previous discussion on soups with a lot of inspiration and recipes: 52 1/2 Weeks, 53 Soups, A New Years Resolution I Can Keep

My guess is that the "tastes like french fries" might have been referring to the texture (crisp outside, soft inside) as opposed to the flavor. They've never tasted like french fries to me but are good in their own special way.

I've thought about using Hot and Sour soup as a yardstick. The reason I decided against it is because when it's poorly made, it's not edible. That a Chinese restaurant doesn't even offer it can be used as a gauge, as well.

Some Italian dishes use a little bit of anchovies or anchovy paste for flavoring. Perhaps this has become the replacement for their fish sauce.

I rip as I read. That way I was able to get rid of a lot of magazines that were hanging around cluttering up my home. Cook's Illustrated is the exception. Why don't magazines offer a year-end recap on CD? If Bon Appetit offered a year-end CD with every issue from that year saved on the CD as PDF files (include the ads, I don't care), it would save me so much time and space. Then I could print out the recipe as I use them or re-read the issues at my leisure without having to search for a particular issue in storage.

I'm a confessed chilehead so when it comes to Chinese restaurants, my yardstick is Kung Pao Chicken. Did it have spiciness like it's supposed to or was it mild? With most Mexican restaurants, I usually choose chile verde. However, if I see they offer something with a mole sauce, I'll go with that instead. If their mole is good, then I think it's safe to say they know what they're doing in the kitchen. As for Italian, I usually try anything that will have their red sauce since a lot of menu items come with it. If the red sauce isn't good, then most of their dishes won't be good either.

Regarding bacon, buy the pound of bacon and fry it all up in a cast iron skillet. Set aside some bacon for immediate use and then put the rest of the cooked bacon in a ziploc bag (or vac seal it) and freeze it. Take out slices as you need them and use the microwave to reheat them. You can also portion it into separate bags and freeze them, taking out a portion at a time. The frying of the bacon is great for seasoning your cast iron skillet. You also get yummy rendered bacon fat to use in other dishes (store it in a jar in the refrigerator). And the frozen bacon is easy to access and use anytime you need it.

My local grocery stores generally have one checkout lane that doesn't have candy in it. If the stores you frequent don't have such candy-free checkout lanes, speak to the manager of the store and request it. They can only say "no" but they might say "yes".

Thanks for taking one for the team! And as a general rule, I try to stay away from any food that requires batteries.

Ah, the crust! A touch of the divine in a basic dish. If you ever pan fry it, you can get a good crust in a well-seasoned cast iron skillet.

Roasted asparugus with grated parmesan (or even shaved, if you have a hunk of it) tossed on at the end.

I am sure this can be applied to soda brands other than Pepsi but... Is there a reason why all of the Pepsi products are not on the shelves next to each other? I was in Albertson's to get some Diet Pepsi and thought I'd find it next to the regular Pepsi. But noooooooo. The Diet Pepsi is further down the aisle from the regular Pepsi with other non-Pepsi soda products shelved between the two. You might argue that perhaps they want to keep the diet sodas separate from the regular versions to avoid confusion but the different kinds of Pepsi have distinct labels so even if they are next to each other on the shelf, I'm not likely to grab the wrong kind of Pepsi since I know what the Diet Pepsi 2-liter bottles look like. I can't imagine Pepsi doing this (isn't it more logical to group all of your products together, especially if you're the one stocking the shelves?) so I'm thinking it's the store that's spreading the product out. Can anyone offer an explanation?

My local Costco now has a refridgerated room for their more fragile produce. You don't linger long in that cold room unless it's during the high heat of summer. It would make sense to group all refrigerated items together.

Thanks for the intriguing post. Yet another reason why this web site should have a Food Science discussion area. SSB's of the world, Unite!

The second flavor currently offered by Doritos Collisions: Hot Wings and Blue Cheese Though I am not a fan of blue cheese, I thought they definitely got the blue cheese flavor right. Unfortunately, I think they blew it on the "Hot Wings" part. Hot Wings usually have a vinegar-based hot pepper sauce flavor (Tabasco, Texas Pete's, Louisiana Crystal, etc) which was completely missing in these chips. Vinegar can be done as evidenced in the many "Salt & Vinegar" flavored potato chips on the market so why not replicate a touch of vinegar with these chips? Go figure. They do have a little bit of heat to them but nothing extraordinary. I did see Doritos Collisions in the grocery store chip aisle available in the larger family-sized bags so apparently they're not a limited edition flavor.

You're preaching to the choir. My mom has been using the bags for years and the turkey always turn out great.

Here's a previous discussion about Kylie: "Kylie Kwong: Simply Magic, Discovery Home Channel, Have you seen it?" Perhaps a host can merge the topics.

I've owned the big Magnum for a while and the opening problem has occured only once. It's a trifling matter to check the opening before grinding. No need to throw the superior grinding baby out with the bathwater.

Rocco is also heading up a contest/search for a TV cooking show co-host sponsored by Bertolli (pasta & olive oil maker): Rocco's contest