Maison Rustique

This topic reminds me of an anecdote about Monet in one of the cookbooks that feature him, his home and recipes. It purports that he insisted on tossing the salads at the table himself and he loved black pepper so much that he would put a ton on the salad. So much that no one else could/would eat the salad. No idea if that is fact, but it was the first thing that came to mind upon reading this. I have cut back on salting when I cook because my husband and others in the family try to cut back on sodium in their diet. I just add what I want on my food at the table.

Not sure how I got to be an old lady and not heard of Clear Jel. Thanks--I need to check it out!

This was why I stopped both Imperfect and Misfits a couple of years ago. I had to throw out way too many foods that had defrosted during shipping/delivery. Sure they would give me credit, but that doesn't help when your entire meal plans for the week have gone out the window.

I have this one which you also might enjoy. Fascinating and heart-wrenching.

I am working to clear space on the kitchen counter to make room for my old Cuisinart workhorse for the same reason. Arthritis and tendinitis are just too bad now.

It is a chute.

I hadn't heard of Chess Cake. I Googled and found that it is very similar to Gooey Butter Cake, which I believe originated in St. Louis, so maybe it is the midwestern version of Chess Cake.

Thank you both for all this thoughtful, helpful advice!

I have also learned from a friend that she uses her Vitamix to mill flour. I've got an Aldi knock-off and am going to give it a try to see how it turns out. If I can use something I've already got, all the better.

I'm going to revive this thread because I am suddenly interested in getting an electric flour mill. If there is a more recent thread that discusses, please direct me to it, as I didn't see it. I assume in the several years since this one was active, there may be new products and people will have had different experiences with what they have. First off, I'm not a professional and do not need anything extra fancy or enormous. If fact, the smaller, the better since I have limited kitchen space. Electric is a must because of my hand issues. Inexpensive but efficient is what I'm looking for at this time. Something that will handle all the various types of grain and mill well-enough for my mediocre bread-baking attempts. Any thoughts? And, since I have no experience with it, should I anticipate any difficulty in purchasing whole grains in reasonable quantities and varieties? Thanks for any thoughts!

There was a restaurant in Orange County called The Gypsy Den. (They have since changed their name to The Den, as gypsy is not an acceptable term any more. Apologies to all for my use of it here. I typed this up years ago and saved as a photo, so can't edit.) At any rate, they had a delightful salad on their menu and when I lived and worked near there, I'd often get it for lunch. When it was no longer available, I decided to concoct my own version of it. I am always asked for the recipe when I take it to gatherings. I hope you enjoy.

I don't want to take the thread off-topic, but would you be willing to share your recipe for orgeat? Thanks!

Those eggplants almost look like balloon animals. LOL!

What a treasure! I wish I was younger and had the money to invest. But, I'm downsizing my cookbook collection because we need to get into a smaller place.

That sounds fascinating but can't read it because of paywall.

Thanks, all!!

I tried both of them at least a year ago--maybe longer--and had problems. Mostly with shipping and temperature. Meats would arrive defrosted and lukewarm. Produce would be battered by stuff sitting on them or knocking around in the box. I cancelled but now see such great stuff that'd I'd consider giving it another try if they have improved.

That sounds delicious!

@AnniehWhich subscription do you use--Misfits or Imperfect? I'm still trying to decide what to do.

No hood, just a small "exhaust" fan that only circulates the grease and smoke.

Our kitchen in California was enormous and wonderful. The kitchen in this house is tiny and horrible. A lot of my kitchen stuff never made it into this kitchen. Now, we need to downsize and get into a smaller place so I've been working my way through all the stuff I haven seen in 15 years. Hard to decide what to keep and what to pitch.

@Shelby, remind me if it is Misfits or Imperfect that you still get? I keep wondering if I should give Imperfect another try. They send me deals to come back all the time.

Since I have not paid for any of these newsletters or blogs, I don't know if they carry advertising or not. I doubt I would pay to read them (I can't even keep up with the 3 print decorating magazines I still subscribe to--I'm always about 3 issues behind.), but if I did pay for them and they carry advertising, I'd be unhappy about being charged. As a former advertising person, I come from the old school where advertising paid for the publishing and subscription costs were ridiculously low and just a way to show the advertisers that people actually liked and read that medium. Yeah, I'm a dinosaur.

Nancy, I probably should have said not to cut the apricots too small. Or too large. Probably does take some experimenting. Thanks for trying and sharing!

I never would have thought of baking it that way. I will give it a try.