Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Sorbet is a good dairy-free dessert option.
How nice of you to go to such lengths to make him feel welcome, true hospitality!

Quorn chicken nuggets. You can season them with hot sauce to taste.

Seriously yall, she's freaking Pioneer Woman, if people will buy KATE GOSSELIN'S BOOK, they'll buy Ree's. (And my guess is there's a lot of people who own both.)

I may not be a fan of PW, but I think this was a cute thing for her to do.

@allot, again~ Just enjoy the process. You're doing it for people you care about. It will take some time. If that worries you, invite a friend over, pour a glass of wine and Enjoy the process. After all, when it comes down to it, as much as we love the end product, we ENJOY the process. Let us know how it turns out. I'm sure it will be Fabulous!

aww jennywren...
How often do your parents use theirs?
Can you make off with it, except for when they ask for it back? }8-)> ;-)

If you are serious, I have found a slow cooker I am in love with.
It is the Hamilton-Beach Set and Forget 6 quart slow cooker.
( http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/180-9911109-3817936?asin=B000GHGKXS&AFID=Performics_Google%20Product%20Listing%20Ads&LNM=Primary&ref=tgt_adv_XASD0001 )

I love the options on this baby. You can set the time in half hour increments; you can set it to turn to warm when a roast or chicken reaches a certain temperature with the thermometer probe; and it seems to cook more like the older crockpots, meaning less hot than many of the modern ones.

But, that's my favorite of the ones I own. A standard 3 1/2 quart old style Rival still does the job just fine. :-)

goodness, i didn't realize this post would become a lasagna throwdown. i mean lasagne. whatever. i have lots of good ideas from all of you. i feel like it is going to become an incredibly time consuming complicated project with ricotta/egg layers, bechamel layers, grilled vegetables, spinach ricotta egg layers, half a baked ziti. okay time to edit myself.

I don't know about veggies, but I do know that the original (and best) buffalo sauce recipe is made using Frank's Red Hot & butter...it can be found here

http://www.franksredhot.com/retailrecipeview.php?id=RE1303&recipe=BUFFALO-CHICKEN-WINGS

Anything else is just an imitation

I make a flavored simple syrup with lemongrass, ginger, and lemon as the start to one of my favorite cocktails. Equal parts sugar and water (2 cups each generally works for 8 cocktails), zest of lemon, cut said lemon in half and throw it in there, stalk of lemongrass cut in half, wacked with my back of my large asian cleaver just to bruise it, and rough chopped, and a roughly chopped large knob of ginger (a palm sized piece.) Bring to hard boil and leave at boil for 5 minutes. Kill the heat and steep for 30 minutes. Combine vodka, lime juice, and the syrup for a killer cocktail. I might try using the lemon granules as a cocktail glass rimmer.

@ChefChelley- I agree with you on no onions, and I cringe when I see Mario Batelli put onions and carrots in his pasta sauce. Have to admit that I'm a ricotta fan.

@ allot and mollykate... thanks. you wont be sorry. I generally make a double batch making sure to use whole milk, generous salt and pepper as well as a smidge of nutmeg. Off the heat I add in a few handfuls of good aged romano, give it a wisk and call it good. I let it cool for a good 15 minutes before I assemble the layers so it doesnt overcook the pasta.

@ ChefRobert...dude, Im not sure who you think you are dealing with, exactly. You can add "chef" to the beginning of any name you want and that doesnt make them one. You most certainly DO NOT need ricotta for a lasagna and bechamel is most certainly NOT better suited just for mac n cheese. (Uhhhh, any facebookers out there want to re-itterate this comment by my foodie pics on my catering/personal chef page??? I believe there are quite a few photos to substantiate my comment). THAT being said, the texture of bechamel is far more appealing than that of ricotta. You can make ricotta in 10 minutes but why in the hell would you want to? Its wet. Its gross. Its generally flavorless. Bechamel makes a delightfully creamy addition between the layers and when ladled on the final noodles as the topping, browns and gets that oh so cheesy deliciousness that everyone loves.

Also, while I enjoy TK very much, there are no onions in sauce. EVER. Can I get an amen from the dagos and waps in the room? We are straight off the boat, baby.

Bechamel rules. Onions and ricotta do not. Period.
Love,
ChefChelleyD01

p.s. @ Joyyyy...yes. it is, only we prefer to be Varsity...never the JV.

My boyfriends mom puts out pitted dates, stuffed with either cream cheese or peanut butter, rolled in sugar. The ones with the cream cheese are mmmm.

She also puts out the olives/pickles. So weird!

Don't you think waiters would like a guaranteed wage? The tipping system sucks. And the tips I got were then dispersed to the bartender, the host, the bussers, the dishwashers and the cooks. And those people made above minimum wage. I tipped them from my tips because it would insure prompt service when I needed it. We weren't required to tip them out where I worked, though I've heard more corporate places require it. We all took care of each other. So a bad tipper is known restaurant-wide, or even city wide because we all hung out together. I found that most people were generous, that 20% to 25% was common. I tip at least 30% because it's only a few extra dollars on top of what I was going to spend on the meal anyway. It's not a big deal. I find that commentors who get worked up about the tip system are generally trying to justify their actions. I would never date someone who calculated a tip down to the percentage before tax. It really tells me a lot about that person.