badthings

Russ, it was your article in the other Times that first alerted me to Julie/Julia. I love that you printed it out for Julia. Personally, I think Julie has misinterpreted Julia a little, and I can understand why the latter would be put off by that. This comes out in AH's description of Julia's "ancient" technique, e.g. And really, this exagerrated fear of butter is so overwrought.

I agree (just from watching the show) that Mario's approach to the food is impeccable. I just don't know why one would want to try to emulate the recipes, rather than the approach. I am glad that people mentioned Rogers and Gray. Italian Country Cookbook is the best book about food I have ever read. Seriously. I didn't mention it initially because the request was for regional/non-restaurant books. A quick google search turned up Le ricette regionali italiane for 40 Euros, + 20 Euros shipping to US. You might want to take the ISBN to a good local bookstore and see if they can order it. Thanks, Pongi, for the suggestion. Ada Boni appears to be out of print. I really like the Lynch/Bastianich wine book, but another benefit of Plotkin's Friuli book is the extensive section on the wines. Your mouth will water and your wallet fall open...

The Food of Italy by Waverly Root is an old but very useful survey of Italian regional cooking, but it is not a cookbook. Fred Plotkin's La Terra Fortunata is highly regarded, and seems very authentic for Friuli-Venezia Giulia. He has another book on Liguria. I really like Marcella Hazan for Reggio-Emilia, but i am no judge of its authenticity. This book is particularly useful, because it's from the sixties, so she really makes an effort to explain the basic concepts.

Yes, but what is it, exactly? It smells nouvelle to me, with a whiff of provence of course. (I have not used the book extensively, so I may be off base). But I think the Piedmontese winemaker got it exactly wrong. We needed someone to tell us how to shop. Someone who looked at our perfect produce and realized that the most important thing was not to fuck it up. And it is not really her fault if, as Saint Alice, she is credited with inventing the obvious. Because it was not obvious here in America before it got a name and a movement and a Saint. At least that's the usual story, and it has always made sense to me. If Tower deserves all the credit, that's fine, but it doesn't really matter -- because (this is where the winemaker is right of course), he's really claiming to have mastered the obvious. Unless there was more to the food than shopping, in which case Steve's question is the relevant one:

Ha. We were there last October (after the floods). Beautiful, beautiful area around the dentelles. Had a wonderful meal at L'Oustalet in "downtown" Gigondas. It's run by a very nice German couple. I'd describe it as a "typical country osteria" -- what's that in french, an auberge? They have a great list of gigondas and other local wines -- the house wine is a Chateau du Trignon Gigondas, bottled special for them. The Beaugraviere wine list is truly amazing. So is the decor. I found the food flawless but not exciting. Certainly worth the money though. For expensive food, I have heard that Christian Etienne in Avignon, right next to the palais des papes, is excellent, but we didn't go.

don't be too sure. alice's insistent persona gets to be a nag, but she can be a lot of fun. though, probably, not as much as jeremiah. Oh, I'd let her buy me some Tempier any time too. I'd love to talk to her. It's just that as a Boston expat, I actually find Emeril's accent endearing. I know it's hard to imagine. Sorry to sidetrack the thread. I too am interested in how today's "california cuisine" is related to Towers's (and others') food from the 70's. For me it really is all about the shopping.

For what it's worth, I sent my 20-something unemployed sister and her boyfriend to Babbo for her birthday. This is was in March. They had a great time and a great meal, and a great wine suggested by the staff. They're not foodies, but they're not unsophisticated either. They would certainly have told me if the service was problematic. There was also no mention of any difficulty getting reservations. Now, I have noticed that otherwise intelligent people are surpisingly prone to geographical determinism. It is remarkable how frequently "midwesterner" is in fact conflated with "rube," or "lamé tracksuit habitué," or worse. Just last week I watched a librarian from DC (which, IMO is a pretty provincial town) insult a Texan to her face at a party and laugh as if that were some kind of socially acceptable conversational gambit. The supreme irony: this librarian was herself from Orange County, or the valley, or some other godforsaken wasteland. note: that's a JOKE. I'm sure SoCal's great. Just a little humor. I advise those of you from the places singled out for such ridicule to do what I do: smile and nod, then find someone more interesting to talk to. I have no personal stake in this: I'm completely bicoastal, and only set foot in between to change planes. Having said that, I think there is a very valid point about the rubes in the fancy restaurant, but it has nothing to do with geography. Mario is a TV star. He attracts an audience of people who do not spend all day thinking about food, or arguing about it on message boards, and who are not accustomed to eating at expensive restaurants in NYC or elsewhere. Those people, whether they be from NoLiTa or Nashville, are going to find that Babbo is not like Hardee's (or Hot and Crusty). They may or may not be disappointed, or boorish. There is, however, no excuse for the rubes in SF. I would tell the spandex-shorts-at-Chez-Panisse story here if I could bear it.

Let's remember that Emeril's a celebrity too. I mean, I certainly understand that the Saint Alice persona is tiresome -- I have to live in the same town and watch the yuppies line up at Cafe Fanny to spend $8 to eat a poached egg in a parking lot every day. But as long as we're forced to live in a bankrupt society in which meaning is constituted by personality, I'd rather have celebrities who "mean" quality ingredients, than people who are celebrities by virtue of shouting "BAM!". Of course, I'd rather go out for a drink with Emeril. As long as he buys the Domaine Tempier.

There was a pretty good article in Saveur (not online) a few months ago about "leaf lard", which discussed the unacceptability of the hydrogenated mass-produced lard. Rick Bayless says (from memory) that Mexicans render lard at a higher temp. than in the US, which makes it brown y sabroso -- he suggests 350 degrees in the oven. I have found US pork so lean that it's tough to get a lot of lard out of a shoulder. The best thing to do would be to buy fatty scraps from a butcher, if you could. Or make your own chicharron. Of course in Mexico you can buy the good stuff. As far as people who can afford it buying vegetable oil, taste is culturally-economically constructed, isn't it? A lot of Mexicans prefer Bimbo tortillas, snow white and loaded with chemicals. Here in Alta California, tortillas made of nothing but masa and cal are labelled "gourmet." In the same way New Yorkers happily fork over $13 for a Balthazar "peasant loaf," whereas actual peasants have spent the last 1000 years fantazing about sterile white bread.

This is the Zagat disease. Once, when I was in a particularly bad mood, I referred to Zagat as the collective wisdom of the starfucker unwashed.Which is a little harsh. But whoever put Everette and Jones on a list of good things needs to be quarantined and/or lobotomized. Such a statement is literally a crime against BBQ. The sauce is flavorless except for its revolting sweetness. The meat is simultaneously dry, gristly and flavorless. Every 5 years i forget how offensive it is and confirm its inedibility. What a joke. perhaps unnecessary EDIT: changed "bad move" to "bad mood".

I should note that Preston does make a "jug wine". It's $25 for a 3 liter bottle, and you can only get it on Sundays at the winery. (That's a little pricier than I was thinking of, but it's the right idea at least). I managed to procure one, and I will report when I have the opportunity to open it.

I make pizza with Bufala all the time (I do have a hard time getting the slices on the pizza without eating them raw). Never had a problem with dripping. I slice it, and make as thin a crust as possible and cook it as hot as my poor little oven can handle -- which means that it cooks in under 10 min. I thought that the rather draconian rules for the vera pizza napoletana demanded bufala, but I was wrong. To me Bufala is the most obvious food item for which price is no object (after fruit maybe) -- there is just no comparison with even artisan fresh cow mozzarella, which in any event costs almost as much. I wonder why no one has tried dairy farming Buffalo here. So my position is that it's like a perfect peach -- who needs a recipe? Just eat it over the sink. (Or put it on a cheese plate).

Try The Spanish Table. They have several kinds. no pictures on the site, but the salespeople are generally very helpful.

Sorry about the name thing -- I wanted to remain semi-anonymous in the hope that my boss won't notice how much time I'm spending on eGullet. The last Summer Lady was perfect. It would have lasted until today, easy. Bruce Cole knows what to do with underripe peaches: grill 'em, with balsamic. Much cooler than jams/cobblers, et al. Can you grill plums, I wonder? Our tree is, um, promiscuous this year. I'll have to give it a shot.

shhh. don't tell anyone. Fino is the best deal in town, and I want to keep it that way. Had some great tapas in Boston last month at a place run by an expat Madrileño and his American wife. The waitress had no idea what I was talking about when I ordered a Manzanilla. Obviously not the most popular option there.

Russ, excellent article. I think it is important to stress that flavor is not the same thing as Brix. I would really like to see some kind of comprehensive varietal analysis of stone fruit. It's difficult to compare because they are in season at different times. I am about to go home to the final FH "Summer Lady" from Saturday's market. In contrast to last week's Suncrests, they were nearly rock-hard (despite a brix <13), hence unbruised, but also inedible by the slurping-over-the-sink method I prefer. By Tuseday they were firm but slurpable, and last night was otherworldy. I'm just praying the last one hasn't disintegrated. Tana, that outstanding in the field thing is a great idea. Though I have to say, I just saw an invite for the Alice Waters/FH dinner, and it's not, shall we say, priced for the masses. I know, it's charity. But still.

here are some non-comprehensive reactions: CIA Greystone is a cool place. went to a wedding there and the food was impressive... for a wedding. don't know what it's like to pay for it. Tra vigne is very reasonable, actually, as far as the famous places go -- some of our Napa natives can give you more suggestions. I wouldn't worry about Chez P. reservations -- 1 month is probably fine. You will save a lot of money and get to choose what you eat if you go upstairs (the café). The quality (and the winelist, most importantly!) is the same, atmosphere more informal. La Taqueria is a damn good burrito. Farolito is excellent but maybe not quite as good; you can't really go wrong. There is not much around the airport as far as I know. I don't eat in SF much, so you are at the mercy of our more sophisticated members, but 2 places I think are actually worth the money are Zuni and Delfina. hope you have a great trip.

I will check the next time I go to TJ's but it could be a while.

It seems that the main reason to join the club is to have access to all these wines that don't make it to the store. Which is legitimate, particularly with something like Hafner. But it doesn't seem that there are great deals out there, unless the people who know about them aren't saying. I wonder what the economics of bulk-wine clubs would be like. Never happen in Napa, obviously, but maybe it would work in the foothils? What/where is this Wine Club store?

The home charcuterie book sounds mouth-watering. Would you mind describing what your concept is, how it's working out, things that have surprised you, etc.? Is there a regional focus? Amusing anecdotes? Thanks for sharing.

What wine clubs to you belong to and why, and what are they like? For example, I just joined two this summer: Cline (Carneros): 4 shipments x 2 bottles Preston (Dry Creek): 4 x 6 (2 bottles each of 3 diff. wines) It is too early for me to describe these clubs in detail, but I joined as an experiment because I like both wineries. Both have pretty generous discounts (though these are off list prices a bit higher than I pay at my local merchants), and both let you buy wines you never see in stores (the rosés) or rarely (Cline's "small berry" Mourvèdre). Personally, what I would love to find is a place where you could back in a couple times a year and fill a couple 5-gallon bottles with quality table wine for cheap, but I doubt that exists. It would also be interesting to talk about higher end clubs.

The Blue Ribbon Bakery guys swear that schmaltz is the only way to fry a potato pancake. (think I read that in F&W some years ago).

OK, terrible mistake: it was not Sally Schneider, but Paula Wolfert in Cooking of SW France who wrote: She is talking about braises, in which these fats are added to (already defatted) stock, but I don't see why it wouldn't also apply to stock itself. She also says: Presumably she means that the hydrophilic heads of lipid molecules a) provide the flavor, and b) can be severed from the hydrocarbon chains, which is where the calories are. Does anyone know of more recent "latest scientific knowledge" about this? Maybe we should cook up some light sweet crude as an experiment?By the way, this class is fascinating. I have been making stock for years but I am learning a lot from this. Thank you FG, Carolyn, and commentators. And I vote for a food science class, or at least a Maillard reaction thread.

Italian historiography is, as you might imagine, extremely regional. Montanari is definitely the place to start, if you read italian, and his notes will direct you to more specific regional sources (he is bolognese). Piero Camporesi (also emilian, I believe) has written some interesting stuff based on primary matrials (cookbooks, household accounts, folklore, agrarian surveys, etc.) These are probably not widely available outside of Italy.

Inquiry, not temerity: Why bother to defat in advance if you're just going to defat the whole thing later? I've even found it easier to remove the fat really thoroughly if there's a nice thick layer on top. I seem to recall Sally Schneider (New Way to Cook) suggesting that cooking liquids with lots of fat, then defatting them adds to the mouthfeel and even taste. Unrelated question: I thought browning reactions required temperatures higher than 200 F. If we are cooking at ~180, are we foregoing the browning reactions entirely? Or is our low simmer hotter than than that?