I’ve made this a while back, and haven’t in a long time. It’s good and hearty. Freezes well too. Make sure you brow the ribs well, otherwise they come out a really unattractive gray color. If you do the browning in batches it usually works better than trying to throw them all in at once. read more »
[Originally posted March 6, 2007]
This is actually really easy to make. It tastes incredible. Look how beautiful it is. It presents well, only takes a few minutes to make, so is perfect for “fancy” dinners. We made it for the caregroup valentines dinner and was a huge hit.
I tend to use more shallots than most, so you can cut down if you want. Also if the pepper crust is too strong for you, just dust off more of it before you put it in the pan. Piece of advice about steaks. Don’t cook them more than medium, or at worst medium well. If you can bear to eat it nice and pink in the center (I personally like it redder) you’ll enjoy it much more. We were in Quebec in a small restaurant and we overheard a nearby table ask their waiter for the steak to be prepared well-done. The waiter responded, “Well done as in slightly pink in the center or like the sole of my shoe?” Gives you a sense of how seriously the French take their food! read more »
[Originally posted August 9, 2006]
I saw this recipe in Gourmet. It’s really easy to make and multiplies really easily. I usually use wingettes, but sometimes you can’t find this in the store. If you can only get regular chicken wings, cut off the wing tip at the joint and discard. Then cut the wing in half at the elbow. Now you’ve got two nice little wingettes.
Gourmet lists this as an entree, but I always think of chicken wings as a side dish. So if you want to serve it as a main it’ll probably make four servings instead. In terms of tasting the sesame seeds. Toss them into a dry skillet over medium heat until the seeds get darker by a shade or two. read more »
[Originally posted June 2, 2006]
I can’t take credit for this recipe, but it really makes a great waffle. Sarah loves waffles, and I wish I was energetic enough to make these on a regular basis. The main problem I’ve found is having buttermilk on hand. If you don’t use it right away you can freeze it in single use measurements. It’s generally not a good idea to refreeze after a defrost because the milk tends to separate. So if you tend to make a double recipe freeze 2 cups worth. If you have time, give the buttermilk a good stir to try and homogenize it again. read more »
[Originally posted June 6, 2006]
I’m still not entirely sure what to call this dish. I made it last night at a whim and I figured I’d just go ahead and post it. I served it with a side of rice, and the type of sausage I think you could change as you want. I had chorizo on hand so that’s what I threw in. It’s almost like a Chicken Madeira, but it’s not quite. If you think of something better let me know.
If you increase the amount of chicken, you probably don’t really need to increase the amount of chicken stock. But if you make more than 6 chicken breasts you’ll probably need another pan, at which point you might as well just double the whole recipe.
edit: ooo how about Braised Chicken and Garlic read more »
[Originally posted August 5, 2006]
I love getting this at Hunan Manor. I can’t quite get it right, but this is pretty close. If you find a better version let me know!
Don’t skip the purging step. It really helps make them taste better. All the extra water that eggplants hide inside will make this all very watery and the taste will be weak. read more »
[Originally posted June 13, 2006]
A few years ago I took a cooking class at L’Academie De Cuisine. Since this was a very basic recreational class I didn’t get that much out of it, but I did get a few good recipes. This is one of them. I love pound cake. It’s probably one of my favorite desserts. Other than coconut custard pie and cheesecake. Then there’s Creme Caramel and cream puffs and ok have to stop!
I think Entenmann’s makes one of the best butter pound cakes commercially, but it is incredibly bad for you. This version is pretty good and a little better for you. You can make these in 3 small loaf pans as well instead of one 9×5. Easier to give out as gifts. If you’re going to make lots of pound cake get your hands on a stand mixer. It’d be too tiring otherwise. You can also choose to use vanilla instead or in addition to the lemon extract. Try other flavors as you like. read more »
[originally posted March 14, 2006]
This is so much better than that molded cranberry jelly most people use. I can definitely understand if you choose to use jelly for the convenience, but this sauce actually gets soaked up by the turkey so you don’t just have the bouncy, squigly, topping, but an actual flavor agent. You can make this quite a bit in advance and just reheat it when you need it. read more »
[Originally posted May 15, 2006]
Hey we’ve got a new feature on the site. As I get time, I’ll put up recipes again. My old site had a few things scattered about, and people have been asking for them as well. I’ll do my best to get at least one up a week. At that rate, I’ll run out of my own creations in about 2 months 
. Better get started cooking again.
I started making this about a month ago, and people seem to like it. So I’ll go ahead and put it up. It’s not complicated at all, just takes a little patience to mix the rice. read more »
[Originally posted August 7, 2007]
I tried my first bottle of Coke Zero today. Seems to taste pretty good. I think I might actually like it better than Diet Coke.
So what is the difference? The only thing I see is the addition of acesulfame potassium. Seems to be a new artificial zero-calorie sweetener. I couldn’t figure out why Coke Zero tasted better than Diet Coke until I found this article. So it looks like Diet Coke tastes like a calorie free version of New Coke, which was designed to taste like Pepsi. This is what caused the huge public backlash against New Coke to begin with, despite the fact that for most people they choose Pepsi in blind taste tests because of the sweeter taste.
I’ve always liked Classic Coke better, but switched to Diet Coke because I was getting a little round in the middle. When C2 came out I was somewhat excited, but it tasted a little funny since it was just half and half. But Coke Zero is suppose to be a zero-cal version of Classic Coke, and that may very well be why I like it better. It’s not quite as sweet tasting as Diet Coke, and is a little smoother and less after-taste. I’ll have to keep trying to really see, but so far it has caught my fancy.