On NPR, "Cooks Get A New 'Recipe View' From Google"

For webmasters, Google has redefined the classic ingredient list in reverse of what most cooks are used to, i.e.:

Ingredients:
Thinly-sliced apples: 6 cups
White sugar: 3/4 cup

To be blunt, I'm not so sure this is a good idea. It simply doesn't seem to be as intuitive as it could be for most cooks. There are so many different recipe sites out there now, to redefine how to post a recipe on the web at this point would seem downright futile.

Your thoughts? Also for the SE crew, will you now rework your recent Recipe data type to fit this new markup yourselves or let it go? Personally, I can't imagine going through my own online recipes and changing them just to satisfy Google.

The article is at:

Cornish pasty wins protected status from European commission
Only pasties made in Cornwall to the traditional recipe can be labelled 'Cornish pasties' after a ruling from Brussels

There's an official recipe on the Cornish Pasty Association's web site that includes decent photos, and also the note "Never attempt to add carrot, this is sacrilege!!"

This topic has been pushed off the front page, and is not on the second page either. With over 135 comments, and considering its obvious importance, it needs to be available. Any chance of this happening or has it temporarily or even permanently bitten the virtual dust?

Ok, I'm not think about cream or sugar here. Just simply, what's your brew method?

We have a Cuisinart grind-n-brew that we use mostly with ground coffee, usually Maxwell House. I use 10 rounded teaspoons per pot. When using beans, I cover the grinder blades by about another 1/4".

However, my boss has a Bunn and uses one-and-a-half 2" ice creams scoops of ground Maxwell House per 10 cups.

Pretty simple, but quite different. How 'bout you?

All through my life I've been involved with supplying food to family and friends whenever there's a lost. People tend to forget to eat during those times and it helps to remind them. Last year when I lost both my parents over a 4 month period, we ended up giving away food because so much was brought. Just this evening, we took a 7-lb deli tray we made to a neighbor's house, whose wife had passed away today. They can put parts of it out as-needed over the next few days.

What was the last condolence food delivery you made?

Robyn's asked about the worst burn while eating. What about cooking?

I was working as a fry cook at a local burger place in early 1980. One day I was using a burger spatula to cut down a 50 lb block of shortening as it melted into the fryer. At one point, the metal spatula slipped and hit the melted oil flat. The splash covered the back of my right hand with oil that was easily more than 300 degrees. Fortunately there was a sink behind me, and someone spun me around and shoved my hand under cold running water right away. There's no scar, just seriously painful memories.

We'll be in the Potomac Mills area for Thanksgiving. Does anyone have any suggestions for a decent (i.e., comfortable, pleasant, not fast food) restaurant for 6 or so for dinner? Doesn't quite matter if it's a "traditional" Thanksgiving Day meal, although that would be preferred.

Here in SE Michigan (at 35F this morning!) the outdoor BBQ season is winding down. We had a lot of good meals this summer, and with a lot of patience and a good grill I finally nailed the technique for perfect ribs. Tender, juicy, with a good 'bite' left in them, I finally feel good about cooking them regularly. Next year, I'll couple that with a recipe for my own sauce, something I haven't tried to do in probably 30 years.

So how were your own BBQs this year? Did you learn or make anything new?

What's the oldest cookbook you own? I have a copy of the "Pictorial Review Standard Cookbook" from 1931. Pictorial Review was apparently a monthly magazine, and this is 1,000 recipes from their pages including "Porto [not "Puerto"] Rican Pot Roast", "Hamburg Cakes" (today we put them between buns and add cheese and condiments), "Jellied Chicken" made with gelatin, and instructions for chopping ice for maintaining a freezer. The last chapter is some of their information on sewing and how to use a line of patterns they offered. There were originally some blank pages in the back of the book, which have been covered over with both handwritten recipes and recipes cut from the magazine and newspapers and glued onto the pages.

Luna Pier Cook

Yesterday a friend of 35 years gave me his mother's fruitcake recipe, which was her grandmother's recipe, apparently originating in the 1800s. My friend's mom would make dozens of these fruitcakes each year and give them as gifts. This was the kind of fruitcake people actually liked ... and I was shocked to learn there was a pound of ground pork fat in each five-loaf batch.

While researching the three Michigan coney sauces (Detroit, Flint and Jackson styles), I've discovered not an ounce of ground beef among the original recipes. Ground beef hearts, beef kidneys, suet, all in there, but no ground beef whatsoever.

What are some possibly weird ingredients you've found in recipes? Have you made them that way, or have you tried to find alternatives, possibly because of the "ewwww" factor?

Dave
Luna Pier Cook

What's your favorite flavor of paczki? My own two faves are raspberry and prune. And if you're only in here to rant about the packi's fat and calorie content, yer missin' the point of a day called FAT Tuesday! ;-)

From the Associated Press;

Transition officials said Friday that Cristeta Comerford will stay on for the Obamas ... Michelle Obama said she and Comerford agree on 'the importance of healthy eating and healthy families.' ... Comerford is a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Philippines who studied French cooking in Vienna, Austria, and specializes in ethnic and American cuisine.

I always found all of the talk about who they "should" have gotten a bit on the odd side since the White House Chef has nothing (ok, maybe a little) to do with the policies of the sitting or incoming President.

When you want a simple sandwich, what do you make? PB&J? Ham and Swiss with mayo on white bread? Grilled cheese with one slice of cheese and some butter? No Reubens please, even that's too elaborate an answer for this question ... Seriously, eaters, what's your simple sandwich pleasure?

From cbsnews.com:

"Customs inspectors scored the makings of a barbecue when a ... woman declared several soiled baby diapers ... Suspicious of the chunky diapers, inspectors ... found several links of ... chorizo inside ..."

More here.

Back on the Secret Supper Club thread I'd mentioned some Chef on "No Reservations" who'd said he'd smuggled some ingredient into the U.S. in his baby's diaper bag. Kinda makes me wonder about this woman's purpose. Maybe she was headed for the same kind of thing? Maybe she just didn't want to pay the duty on the doody? Who knows.

I just realized a possible trend: I know of more than one crock pot lid handle, my own and others, that are broken off. Is this just me or is this more widespread than just my own little world?

It's in honor of the still-missing JEP that I ask this question this way ...

We have an apple tree in our yard that currently has apples so big the squirrels finally can't run off with them! There's also a pear tree next to the apple tree. In the past couple weeks Mary's made a big bowl of fresh applesauce, and two batches of an apple-pear crisp.

If you use your garden, tell us about that, too!

BTW, I'm in email contact with JEP. There are still some struggles, but she is and will be around.

http://www.wlwt.com/cnn-news/17637031/detail.html

Excerpt: "One of Rep. John Boehner’s local offices was evacuated Monday afternoon after a suspicious package arrived in the mail ... Staffers received the letter ... After noticing it was leaking an oily substance, they called the Capitol police ... who advised them to evacuate ... After an X-ray analysis, investigators determined the package contained bacon ... Boehner voted twice last week for a $700 billion bailout ... A spokeswoman said it's ironic someone would send Boehner bacon because he has spent his career fighting pork barrel spending ... No injuries were reported ..."

Injuries? From bacon??? ;-)

Paul Newman, actor, and founder of "Newman's Own", has passed away. From a statement from the foundation, included in one of the many obituaries:

"Newman's Own ... What started as something of a joke in the basement of his home, turned into a highly-respected, multi-million dollar a year food company. And true to form, he shared this good fortune by donating all the profits and royalties he earned to thousands of charities around the world, a total which now exceeds $250 million."

Here on SE, a taste test of sandwich cookies, including Newman-O's, was reported yesterday, coincidentally the same day Mr. Newman passed away.

For those who have entered to win a copy of 'A16 Food + Wine', 'Restaurants & Institutions' is carrying a short blurb on the book in this month's issue. From the blurb, "We love the book for lots of reasons, not the least of which is that co-author Kate Leahy (who used to work at A16) is an editor at R&I."

Over at CBSNews.com:

"Whole Foods Market is recalling fresh ground beef sold between June 2 through Aug. 6 ... because of worries over E. coli bacteria contamination ... The company's recalled beef was processed at the Nebraska Beef plant linked to the E. coli outbreak this summer ..."

"Most Serious Eater" awardee JEP has returned from her hiatus. In an email I received from her just now she mentions 1,500 messages in her in-box, and LoCo's thread from early April. She wrote, "I felt honored to read all the compassionate comments from the SE community".

In her own words, "I'm pretty rusty, so be patient with me while I ease back into commenting in the blog world". Please join in supporting her in this ... and in properly welcoming her back into the fold.

Our friends at a nearby restaurant serve a Farm-Raised Deep-Fried Alligator appetizer with sour cream & chipotle dipping sauce. It's sweet, tender and tasty, and we eat the stuff like candy.

While buffalo isn't really anything 'exotic', Buffalo Filet Mignon can be difficult to find. Cooked right, it really does melt in the mouth.

What weirdness or oddity have you eaten at a meal, that you'd like to recommend?

For those who were looking for the split-top hot dog buns in a previous thread, I spotted them at a north Toledo Kroger this evening. They're labeled as Kroger-brand "New England Style Coney Roll" and come 8 to a package.

National Hot Dog Month ... just thought y'all might wanna know!

If you're hosting a graduation party, what are you having? Or if you've been to one, what'd they have?

Both Mary and I have sons graduating from high school, and we held a party yesterday afternoon. We kept it simple, having what the boys wanted: 8 lbs fresh ground beef with 1 gal. + 1 qt. Manwich on hamburger buns, sweet & sour meatballs, American potato salad, macaroni salad, broccoli/cauliflower salad, a huge bowl of Bugles, and 20 2 liters of pop. Except for the broccoli/cauliflower salad (which my sister made), everything was from a restaurant supply shop (GFS Marketplace for those who have one nearby), The full sheet cake, white on one end, chocolate on the other, with whipped icing, was a custom cake from Kroger.