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Marls Barkley

Seattle Recs?

Yes to Le Panier. Yes! Seatown, a seafood-based restaurant, is just past the northern tip of Pike Place Market. They have all-day breakfast (8am-3pm), great seafood and rotisserie offerings for dinner. I think the donut machine JFCHyde is referring to is Daily Dozen. Worth checking out.

Cumin-Free Hummus??

I never add cumin. I love cumin, but not in hummus. Nope. No, sir. Simple is best when it comes to hummus. Maybe a little smoke paprika sprinkled on top.

Mexican Mashups?

I like to layer corn tortillas with fillings in between then top the whole thing in an enchilada sauce (or equivalent) and bake it in the oven. Kind of like a mix between a lasagna (but free form) and a cake.

My grandmother made crepes (hers were white, like very white, not sure what she used) and used to alternately layer cooked, crumbled chorizo (the fresh kind, not cured) and a sour cream type of sauce. Then she would top it with just a bit of jack cheese and back it. She called it "Sopa de Pastel" but I have no idea where the name came from. Sopa = soup and Pastel = cake. The latter makes sense, since it is layered.

Have'a Corn Chips

Oh yeah! So stinkin' tasty. I'll eat a whole bag on my own. Great for guacamole. Sturdy and crunchy!

What is the paddle attachment actually *for*?

Paddle = whatever you would use a spoon for.

Bake the Book: Bouchon Bakery

Chocolate eclair.

Soaking dried chilies for sauces

I use dried chiles a lot and I don't save the water because it's bitter.

Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway: The Sriracha Lover's Ultimate Gift Pack

Siracha + mayo served with avocado slIces.

Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway: Counter Culture Coffee Subscription

A bit of raw cane sugar and just enough milk to calm the natural bitterness of the coffee. Somtimes I'll up the sugar on the weekends for a more intense start-me-up.

Name Six Herbs/Spices

Cumin, fresh thyme, cinnamon, granulated garlic, dried oregano.

Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway: La Quercia's Pork Belly Heaven Package

I love love love pancetta in pasta carbonara.

How did you do up your Thanksgiving leftovers?

After having six for dinner, we had two friends over the night after Thanksgiving so it was a re-do of sorts. Our leftovers mixed with theirs. Then I made a bunch of turkey stock, pulled every bit of meat left on the carcass, and made a big pot of turkey & dumpling soup. Just had the last of it for yesterday's lunch. It was only a 9 lb bird!

Soooo how did it go? Thanksgiving dinner reports!

I made my first whole turkey for Thanksgiving (breast only, previously) and it turned out beautifully! Gave it a generous salting the night before, rubbed herbed butter under the breast skin and all over the entire bird. Stuffed a lemon, an onion, and more fresh herbs inside the cavity. Simple! I also made a butternut squash & spinach lasagna for the vegetarians. All the sides were delicious, too. I won't fear the big bird again.

Staff Picks: What's the Best Sandwich You've Ever Eaten?

Paseo's is AMAZING! I enter a brain-numbing food zone while eating their sandwich.

Cook the Book: 'How to Cook Everything The Basics'

Baking with Julia. Not quite splattered, more like gritty from all the flour in between the pages.

Healthiest (or healthier) bread out there

I will add on praise for Ezekiel 4:9, as-is or toasted. Also, Dave's Killer Bread is killer. My favorite is the sprouted wheat.

What are you cooking?

Tonight I'm making shepherd's pie (grinding my own lamb) and coffee crumb cake.

Where to eat/what to do in Portland and Seattle

Staple & Fancy in the Ballard neighborhood. Excellent food, casual atmosphere in an old brick building. Just super.

Also in Ballard is Ocho. A tapas bar with a great bartender. They have these goat cheese croquettes served with a red pepper & almond sauce. Divine. I order another serving before I'm done with the first.

Stay in Ballard and go to La Carta de Oaxaca. Best Mexican food in Seattle, in my opinion. My incredibly picky Mexican grandmother ate everything. Not a bite left.

Sneaky Skinny - Healthy Tips That Don't Scrimp on Satisfaction

I use low-fat cottage cheese for an alternative to alfredo sauce. I use my hand blender (or a food processor but I usually just make a small amount) to smootly puree the cottage cheese, add in some grated parmesan, pepper, ground nutmeg, and a splash of milk to get the right consistency. I may add a pinch of salt but not much, the cheese is already salty. It's surprisingly good and has a rich texture.

New Year's Eve eating?

My boyfriend has his son this weekend so they're hanging out at my house on NYE. We're ordering pizza. There will also be jalapeno cheddar popcorn, chips & salsa, and homemade chocolate chip cookies. And booze. Kid gets the second bedroom. Boyfriend and I can get tipsy and stumble to bed after the fireworks.

I'm planning on banana pancakes in the morning, or whatever hour we all decide to fall out of bed.

See's Candy Russian Roulette

I grew up with See's as a constant presence. My mother sends boxes over to our English relatives every Christmas. Now I think they're way too sweet. I do still have a soft spot for the bordeauxs (with the sprinkles). I pop into a store once in a while and buy one.

Missing out for a lifetime thanks to one innocent mistake.

Cooked zucchini. Blech! My mom tried to get me to eat it when I was really young but it was so gross. This was the 70's so, of course, it was usually served overcooked and soggy. Plus, it had nasty seeds. The taste was vile. After a few attempts she stopped trying to force me to eat it.

Forward to my aunt babysitting me while my mom was out of town. I'm at the dinner table and one of the side dishes was slices of zucchini, overcooked and soggy. I told her that I didn't have to eat, my mom said it was okay. She told me I had to and wasn't allowed to leave the table until I had eaten it. Eventually it came to a standstill. Me vs the (now cold) zucchini. I held my ground. I was NOT eating it. My aunt finally said if I ate one piece I could leave the table. I swallowed a slice, immediately gagged and threw up my dinner all over the table.

I still can't stand it most of the time. The only way I've been able to stomach it is if it's battered and deep-fried but I just tend to avoid it altogether.

Least favorite Thanksgiving dish?

I had grean bean casserole once. It was wretched stuff.

Annoying Lunch Habits of Coworkers

When I worked in a cd store our lunch table sat the maximum of two people, had a microwave perched at the end, was parked in the middle of the storage room/manager's office, had no windows and was within a few feet of the bathroom.

I used to work with one guy who, before he are his lunch, would take off his shoes at the table, peel off his socks and say "Ahhhh, that feels better." Gross. Keep your damn shoes on!

Another co-worker would take about 3-5 containers out of the small fridge and just take a few spoonfuls of each and pile it all together in one bowl, mix up the ingredients and chow down. There was always salsa involved. His lunch always looked like a bad Tex-Mex experiment.

Another person would microwave his spaghetti with meat sauce for endless minutes. It was usually in one of those flimsy, Glad-like plastic containers. When he would finally take out his meal (I swear sometimes he would nuke it for 8 or 9 minutes) it would be so hot he would toss the lid off, a HUGE pile of steam escaped and I could visibly see the plastic container had softened some. It just freaked me out to think off all the plastic-y chemicals that leached into his food.

What's yer favorite Mexican food ???

Chile verde. I make a damn good version.
Albondiga soup. My grandmother's ruled but there's a place here in Seattle that makes one just as good. They even give you fresh corn tortillas on the side so you can roll one up and dip it into the broth.
Posole. With all the toppings. Cabbage, lime, radishes, onions and more chile.
Seafood enchilada. The meat must be minced finely and topped with cabbage and red chile.
Red enchiladas. Filled with poached chicken, carrots and potato.

Frozen (huge) boneless turkey breast! Help!

During the holidays my work gave out a $20 off coupon towards a turkey. I used it right before it expired and, because I didn't want to spend more than $20, I ended buying a frozen boneless Kosher turkey breast instead of a whole bird. Now it sits in my freezer and I have no idea what to do with it. I need the freezer space back. I thought about using my slow cooker but it's too big to put in whole, I'd have to thaw it out first and then cut it into two smaller pieces. Any suggestions?

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