Toliver

Marlena, I can't speak for others but I certainly wouldn't mind a bit if your blog ran long! Will you be staying in Barcelona for the weekend after the ceremony? Or will you return home the next day? I ask because if you will be staying, I'd certainly like to have you share some of your Barcelona dining with us, in addition to the dinner Friday night.

I posted about this earlier in the thread. I can attest that I roasted more cauliflower a couple days ago using a dark brown cookie sheet with a small lip (covered with aluminum foil for easy cleanup) and it just took the 20 minutes the recipe calls for. I can also verify Tommy's point. I made two smallish heads and ended up overcrowding the sheet pan and some pieces did just steam. But overall, I got good browning. As for phaelon56's experience...did you turn the cauliflower at the ten minute mark like the recipe calls for? You mentioned that at 15 minutes you thought it was browning too fast. If you had turned the cauliflower at the ten minute mark, there shouldn't have been any "browning too fast" since the uncooked side would have then been down for only 5 minutes and the already-browned side would be up at that point so it wouldn't be browning anymore (I believe it's the contact with the sheet pan and the oil that creates the browning). Unless, of course, as fifi suggested, there is a calibration problem with your oven. If you use an aluminum (light colored) sheet pan, the roasting will take longer. Also, a lower oven temp will increase cooking time, decrease a majority of the browning but should provide the overall golden color previously mentioned.

[JINMYO] Gah! [/JINMYO] The show itself can become a conduit to educate the American audience. Have faith in the medium and in the viewers. But then I'm an optimist, or least, I hope I am. edited to add s p a c i n g

I know what you mean. Here at eGullet, my lips get sore from reading so much (sorry for the old joke). You think six pages is bad, try reading the "Dinner!" thread from page 1...oy! You can probably zip through many of the posts in that cauliflower thread since there's a lot of "I thought you guys were crazy until I tried it for myself" kind of posts.

Only if she wears one of the outfits she wore in that magazine, what was it, FHM? Maxim? Be interesting to see Flay and Morimoto on the same team....or have the Japanese Iron Chefs come by during sweeps week..... If you really want to set the tone of the show early, have Bourdain do the first show against Flay! You know AB won't let them pull any Shatner-esque type BS! And let Bourdain smoke, drink, cuss and scratch his nether regions while he's cooking. That I would pay to see! edit to add the nut scratchin'

Many here seem to like the Roasted Cauliflower version. Some have posted alternative methods of using cauliflower in that discussion, as well (see the later pages for the cauliflower, red onion and chickpeas suggestion, for example). edited to clarify

we don't have a selection of exotic ice creams here, alas, but we do have the excellent hill station ice cream. tonight it practically flung open the freezer door itself and insinuated itself into my bow: an english company owned by two americans who love ice cream. the chocolate is modelled on paris' bertillon, and its good, the coffee ice cream is wonderful too. (i'm not so fond of the coffee spice flavor) and most of the other flavors are spices: cinnamon, ginger, vanilla bean, and there is a coconut rum i think. anyhow: my favourite: cardomom. Cardomom! The jilted spice...often passed over and relegated to the back of the spice cupboard until its container is mistakenly brought forward to the light of day. The ice cream sounds delicious, as does the Ginger flavor! Sleep well. We're looking forward to breakfast. edited for spellling

Oooh, we're left hanging in suspense! What flavor ice cream is calling your name from the freezer? And I'm going to guess it's not from a big name-brand company.

"Atlantic Salmon" is just the name of that type of salmon. It's kind of like "Napa Cabbage" doesn't really come from Napa. It's just part of the name. Napa Cabbage is available in the grocery stores here in Napa. Some people even grow some in the community garden where I have a plot - maybe they are growing Napa Napa Cabbage Okay...let's play: And if Tayka Maroc of www.tayka.com (Morrocan cuisine) grew it, it would be "Tayka Napa Cabbage".

"Atlantic Salmon" is just the name of that type of salmon. It's kind of like "Napa Cabbage" doesn't really come from Napa. It's just part of the name.

It sounds like a punchline for a joke: "I'm not eating for one, I'm eating for 10,000!" You set an admirable example of the eGullet axiom "Taking one for the Team".

Your first day at blogging and already you've brought a tear to my eye. I just may need a vicarious nap after that vicarious meal! This is some wonderfully descriptive writing. How about a little background (how you became a "foodie")?

"...and this little piggy went to marlena's." I am looking forward to hearing how dinner turned out! I vote, for the good of the blog, that you completely toss the diet out the window and take us on a culinary joyride.

Last night was Rachel Perlow's Chicken Marsala. It turned out great and was very easy to make. The Marsala sauce was wonderful. I was taken aback at how huge the chicken breasts got once I flattened them out. Guess I don't know my own strength! Accompanied by some pasta tossed with a little melted butter, some shredded Greek Myzithra cheese and minced parsley, which was quite tasty. I also had some steamed "pencil" asparagus (which was only 99 cents a pound at the grocery store!). I dressed it with lemon and a splash of evoo with some salt & pepper. Thanks, Rachel, for the Chicken Marsala recipe!

Last night was homemade Beef Chow Fun & WonTon (containing pork, shrimp and mushrooms) Soup with thin egg noodles (a little redundant with the wontons but good nonetheless) accompanied by steamed rice which went uneaten.

Mongo, how did it turn out?

Thanks for the reminder about the non-stick foil. I should have put that in the "This Really Works" thread. It really works. I always line my roasting sheet pan with foil (non-stick or whatever's onhand) when roasting cauliflower which makes cleanup a breeze. fifi, your pic looks great! I may have to give nutcake's & redfox's chickpeas/cauliflower/red onion combo a try.

Doing your math, I'd say 4 heads. Though, the way I eat this stuff, I'd make a head per person! I've been wondering about this kind of quandry. How do you prepare this dish for a lot of people? You'd have to have more than two racks in your oven to be able to cook a large quantity. Cook ahead and then nuke it once it's all done? Or throw it all in one of those large roasters and pray to Jim Dixon that it all comes out okay? edited out one too many "kind of's"

Very silly-- the Europeans laugh at Americans for their scrubbing themselves until the skin comes off... Agreed I'm american and I think that germ phobia in America has reached epic heights. People walking around with paper towels gingerly opening doors, endless hand washing... I love hearing the story about Julia dropping the turkey (?) on the floor, then just picking it up and putting it back on the counter with a wink to the audience. Ah, but it's not that paranoid. Dogs (and other pets) do go outside and encounter much that our shoes protect us from: pesticides & herbicides in gardens and lawns (and spillover onto sidewalks), fecal matter and urine, motor oil (some synthetic motor oils contain toxins that can be absorbed by contact with our skin) & radiator fluid can be found on driveways and streets, the ubiquitously dirty "dirt", etc. This is yet another reason why some people insist that shoes be taken off at the door before entering a house. Washing your hands after petting your pet before you handle food still sounds like a good idea to me. Call me Howard Hughes, I guess.

Now this is another great food blog! I can almost taste the honey. I am looking forward to dinner.

Now I've got the "willies". Last night I caught the opening minutes of "Family Circle's Good Food Fast". The host came out, she pet her little dog, she did a little intro for the episode and then they cut to the show open. When they came back from the show open, she started in prepping food and cooking. My problem with this is that she didn't wash her hands after petting her dog before she started cooking. I know, I know, the show isn't in "Real Time", it's edited and we just didn't see her wash her hands but we're sure she did wash her hands, right? Right? I guess I just needed to see her do it. Call me a wimp but it's just one more show on FoodTV I won't be watching again... edited to add: plax/Neil, I love your "Hairy" Potter avatar!

I can't stand her laugh (more like a cackle) but I do watch her show some of the time. Although she can get a little Sandra Lee-ish, some of her recipes are great. Her "Not Yo Mama's Banana Pudding" is a real crowd pleaser with my family. I'd love to eat at her restaurant, too. I've heard nothing but great things about it.

NO

My mom's secret ingredient (and fifi's, too!) for her Potato Salad and her Cole Slaw is some celery seed. It does wonders to add that little "something" extra to those recipes. As a kid, we all loved raw celery sticks stuffed with peanut butter (the celery was little more than a delivery system for the peanut butter ). I also used to love dipping plain raw celery sticks into salsa. It's almost an empty caloric food from what I understand (not much "there" there). Is there any truth to the rumor that we burn more calories digesting it than we take in by eating it?