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The Ten Most Recent Posts By AuntJone
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, May 3, 2008 at 11:29 AM
Last night we gathered with a group of friends to bid farewell to my husband's best friend. I wasn't particularly hungry so I ordered a bowl of sirloin vegetable soup. We'd been to this bar several times and the food has always been good so I had no reservations. I was very much disappointed to see that my bowl of "vegetable soup" consisted mainly of diced tomatoes with about 2 kernals of corn, a couple slivered green beans and some chunks of potato and carrot. I DON'T LIKE TOMATOES so I was deflated from the start. The broth was flavorful. The sirloin was tender and not chewy or gristly. But where were the vegetables!?!? I ate what I could before it was down to basically nothing but tomatoes. To top it all off, we had a crabby server so I didn't think I'd get too much sympathy if I had asked for another serving.
If you were faced with something like this would you have asked for another bowl/plate of whatever you ordered? I didn't, but I'm wondering if I would have been out of line if I had. It wasn't just that I don't like tomatoes , but the fact that I ordered VEGETABLE soup, not "diced tomato soup and whatever scraps of vegetables we can find". Tell me if I'm being petty. I can take it!
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, April 14, 2008 at 4:09 PM
I have two and both of them originated from the same animal: goat. I tried goat cheese at a trade show a few years ago and couldn't wait for a sample of something - anything - that would get that horrid taste out of my mouth. Fast forward to this past weekend. I went to my local dollar store hoping they'd have some caramel ice cream topping for my son's birthday cheesecake. They didn't, but they had Mexican caramel sauce made with goat milk. Long story short, I tasted a tiny bit and wanted to die. I rinsed my mouth out with hot water and brushed my teeth as soon as I was sure I wasn't going to vomit. Then I made the 10 minute drive to the nearest grocery (which I REALLY should have done in the first place) and bought what I needed.
So what your worst taste scenarios? Are you willing to try it again to see if your tastes have changed? I've sworn off anything goat-related!
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, March 18, 2008 at 12:21 PM
My husband hates round steak. HATES IT. I wanted to get a frozen, cubed round steak used up so I decided to make it last night. His biggest gripe is that round steak is tough so I was bound and determined to change his mind. And I did.
Long story short, he loved it. "Remember this recipe!" He declared. I laughed at him. It was lightly floured, pan fried, then baked for about 30 minutes. No recipe needed. Served with mashed potatoes, peas and a respectable gravy (I SUCK at gravy, but this was actually edible.), it made for a great meal.
Have you converted anyone from "Yuck! I won't eat that!" to "Could you make that again?" Did you switch it up in a major way or just prepare it in a manner that made it more palatable?
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, March 18, 2008 at 11:52 AM
What gets your digestive juices flowing the wrong way? I have several, tho in a few months I'm sure plain tap water will be reflux-inducing as junior starts pushing my internal organs sideways and upwards. Sigh...my thighs and my esophagus will never be the same....
Here are my offenders::
Legumes (I REALLY don't know why, but beans give me the burn bad)
Some tomato sauces
Some spicy foods
Cheap coffee
Cinnamon on occasion
Is there anything you love but avoid because of the after effects, or do you self-medicate before or after so you can continue to enjoy your favorites? I'm curious to see how many of us plow through that plate of nachos topped with jalapenos and habenaro salsa with a devil-may-care attitude only to curse ourselves at bedtime!
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, March 6, 2008 at 9:44 AM
I'm bored with just mozzarella. What else can I combine with the standard mozz to make a knock out pizza? I'll be shopping at a CRAPPY little Kroger store in my hometown so I don't know what kind of variety will be available, but let me know your faves and hopefully I can track them down.
I can't get too wild and crazy because the husband LOVES pizza and prefers it unadulterated. I'm game for anything except for pungent varieties (i.e. bleu cheese) and I need it to be either pastuerized or a cheese that can be heated/melted to lessen my risk of ingesting bacteria and other nasties. Being pregnant is SO much fun....
And because said husband is such a pizza purist, the other toppings will include the usual sausage, pepperoni and possibly some vegetable matter if I'm ambitious. No pineapple or other exotic items on our pie. :(
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, March 4, 2008 at 1:59 PM
What are your go-to freezer or shelf stable meals when life catches you off guard?
I didn't want leftovers for lunch today so I stopped at the store on my way to work and bought a Lean Cuisine meal- here's the description for the "Salmon Mediterranean": wild salmon with zucchini, peppers and whole grain pasta in a garlic tomato sauce. I'm sure none of you will be surprised to know that is wasn't very good.
I brown-bag it 95% of the time so I only buy pre-packaged meals out of desperation, but I'd sure like to avoid a catastrophe like this again. Suggestions would be most appreciated!
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, February 5, 2008 at 1:36 PM
I'm totally piggy-backing off the post of dsd1000. By the time I thought of posting about Salad Master the All Clad query was already up!
Does anyone currently use Salad Master cookware, or have you in the past? What are your thoughts? My co-worker SWEARS by it. I think he'd give up an appendage before he'd ever surrender his set. I'm curious to know what more serious cooks (he's single and doesn't cook a whole lot- he's had the set for 20+ years) think of it. Is it worth the investment?
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, February 5, 2008 at 1:06 PM
A co-worker swears by Omaha Steaks but I can't bring myself to try them. I just flipped through a food catalog from Pfaelzer Bros. and have a Chesapeake Bay catalog to look at next. I've never order food from catalogs (except for cookies that I sent as a gift one year) so I'm curious if any Serious Eaters do so on a regular basis. If so, what do you buy? What was your worst experience? Let's exclude specialty ingredients- spices, flours, chocolate, etc. this time- that can be a topic for another post!
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, January 30, 2008 at 10:32 AM
I'm expecting my second child in September and started experiencing serious nausea last week.- yippee! Anything sweet or seasoned makes me want to hurl. I can't even bring myself to eat chocolate! My appetite is nearly non-existent (totally, completely unlike me!) so finding something to eat has been difficult.
So what foods did you, or your significant other, run from while pregnant? What could you or your sig. o. eat without trouble?
From Talk
Posted by AuntJone, December 17, 2007 at 11:11 AM
So what have you screwed up so far this year? I have made 4 batches of fudge that will probably go in the trash, a batch of sugar cookies that are edible but won't be given away, and Danish kringle which turned out ok except most of the almond filling oozed out during the baking process. I'm giving one of the kringles to a friend, the other will probably be gone by the time I get home.
Anyone else having a tough time in the kitchen this year? Please tell me I'm not alone. The only treat I've made and deemed gift-worthy was pretzel bark, and that barely counts as 'baking'!
I'm on the verge of giving out Hickory Farms baskets instead of attempting anything else so please share your disasters with me so I feel better. And maybe, just maybe, I'll try to make those damn buttermilk cookies for my husband.
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