( The 100 Foods )

The Mango of Doom was certainly a tasty mango, but it didn't put all previous mangoes to shame. It had a slightly more complex flavor than what I'm used to, with just a hint of... I'd say licorice, but not evil like licorice ( Read more... )

The mango of doom sits on the kitchen counter, ripening, wrapped in a light foam netting.

Today or tomorrow will be the optimal time to eat it, now that it's more yellow than green and giving off a mango perfume.

It is irradiated, expensive, and has possibly flown more miles this year than I have.

I've been told that it will explain why my friends ( Read more... )

My Christmas gifts in 08 had a culinary theme: new cookbooks, ceramic knives*, and a starter kit for making cheese.

This week I tried the "30 minute mozzarella & ricotta kit" for the first time. It took longer than 30 minutes, and the results were more ricotta-crumbly than mozzerella-stretchy, but it still was quite tasty.  The trouble-shooting ( Read more... )

On Two Pressure Cookers.

The figurative pressure cooker of work is now depressurizing under the clear, cold water of post-conference energy.

I am, again, quite happy with my real pressure cooker.

This week I tried 30 minute beef stock-- I only used 1 lb of bones, not 5, and didn't pre-roast them per Bittman (?), but it still was a good stock, fine ( Read more... )

Have I mentioned here how much I like my new pressure cooker?

It's put a giant set of recipes into my "go ahead, contemplate them" mindspace because I can shop at 7pm and have them done by 8pm.

(Shop by 5pm in order to have a recipe done by 8pm never worked as well for me. Nor did shop in the evening to set up a crock-pot to start at 8am to be ( Read more... )

If you're in the fluorosphere and didn't see the Making Light dinner announcement in OT96:
we're having a get together ('Making Weight' I call it) on Tuesday night the 18th in Oakland at 6pm. See Serge's post for details.

I see that today's NYTimes has a recipe for  Simple Crusty Bread that appears to be faster and easier than Lahey's No Knead Bread. The first review I've found says it isn't as good as NKB, but I'll have to check it out anyways.
We're not hosting Thanksgiving- we can't, as a relative of mine is heavily allergic to cats. I've been asked to make my ( Read more... )

Erythritol is a sugar-alcohol that ( Read more... )

Quince and Comets:

Similarities

They both should be fully enjoyed when here.

They're both surprising and wonderful. The smell-memory of quince summarizes everything delightful about the taste of early fall.  The visual-memory of comets reminds me of earlier skies.  I remember the time my parents asked me to count the stars in the loglo-lit skies over ( Read more... )