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@RedSquirrel -- Thank you! I didn't have anything to share on hole composting as I just did it and it worked, so I was going to have to go looking. Thanks for finding that. I'd say it sounds more difficult than it is. I only bothered to turn mine a few times and if it did have a smell I put a light layer of dirt on top as that negated the odor which went away quickly anyway. My hole was about 3 feet long and two feet wide and a foot or so deep. I'd fill one end then the other. One of the lovely things was getting some volunteer potato plants growing on the edges one year.

@wookie (and whoever else is interested) -- Here's a National Geographic Article on red wriggler worm composting inside in your kitchen. It can be done outside too although some precautions need to be done for the freezes but this is good for apartment dwellers too.

Here's another four page bit on various home composting systems from Oprah's Earth Day show last April which has nice visuals and a link to explore more at the end.

Just to make a couple points. I'd stay away from those barrel ones that turn. They get too heavy and are too hard to empty. Also, home composters do not get hot enough to compost those bio-degradable plastics. Those have to go to special facilities to be broken down.

@sieseye--I didn't realize I could compost in a hole! Well, there's a lot about gardening that I don't know. Every compost site/instruction page seemed to want to sell me a big compost bin that could be turned, aerated, and kept moist. Could you post more detailed instructions or provide a resource for me to consult? Thanks ever so!

@moibec--I used to "lose" food in the freezer all the time, too. When I moved last year, I had so much forgotten food in the freezer it was embarrassing and of course wasteful bc some of it was too old and freezer-burned to give to others. So in my new home, I created a checklist of items in the freezer. I'm not taking a complete inventory, like I will NOT forget that I have ice cream(s), but I might forget that container of chicken enchiladas I made or the pint of bolognese waaaaay in the back. I take a look at the checklist when I'm planning meals or feeling a little peckish.

I've never understood the "dried beans get old" thing. I mean they're dried and hard and they are going to require some amount of soaking and boiling. What's it matter if they were this year's beans or last? And how are you supposed to know?

@producestories -- Thanks for that advice. That's exactly what I was hoping for. I think some people just do what they've always done because they don't know why they've always done it to begin with. The pork roast story woke me up from that. I really like to understand the why of everything.

I also meant to tell you about one of the best pieces of advice I read from some chef (who I can't even remember now). He said to gather up all your kitchen stuff and put it in a box. Then whatever you take out of the box to actually use goes back in your drawers or on your shelves. Whatever is left in the box after 30 days (or time you specify) goes away. That's how you end up with just what you really use in your kitchen.

I do like though that she showed us how to do it without a yogurt maker. I despise recipes that tell me to use whatever gadget I don't have. I'd much prefer to find out if I even like the recipe before I go for the gadget.

@beth1 -- a good composting bin should avoid most issues of offensive. A worm composting system is also really good and lets one compost more than just plant foods. It's the meats, fats, dairy, breads that bring bad odors and pests. I had an open hole I put my coffee grounds, crushed egg shells, veggie and fruit scraps in and then when it was full I covered it with the dirt from the new hole. By the time it was full I could scoop out the old hole of it's wonderful deep, rich, dark compost and have another hole. The natural local worms loved it and there was no smell or pests. The neighbors never even knew and it was only a few feet from the kitchen door. However, you can even get kitchen composters these days either with worms or charcoal filters.

@producestories -- seems we found each other at the exactly correct time. :) Twenty dollars sounds very reasonable. I found a recipe for the coconut milk yogurt a couple days ago. There's a bit of political commentary at the top but just skim it down to the recipe parts to see what she did and the probiotic culture starter she used and what other people suggest in the comments. I too want to eat more but the prices are pretty high for the good stuff and I don't want HFCS (or corn thickeners...) at all nor to be too sweet (also not pucker sour but it's much easier to add a sprinkle of sugar or swirl of honey or agave...). This way I can use local (or in the case of coconut, at least organic). I also like supporting my neighbors (and the security of having local food). Growing raspberries a half world away often means displacing the food those in that country eat. There's nothing like a local strawberry. I just discovered green garlic a few weeks ago and what a delight. I bet it would be good with a homemade plain coconut milk yogurt.

Composting--I really would like to, but haven't acquired a compost bin. Then, in my small yard with close neighbors, where can I put it where it won't offend?

No disrespect intended but I don't think the "cooking is an art, baking is a science" advice pertains to switching out walnuts for pecans. There are definitely chemical reactions that need to take place for baking to work. A knowledge of what's going to react with what else is why baking recipes are generally more than just "guidelines."

Don't get me wrong - the world won't get rocked if someone adds two cups of chocolate chips to something instead of one cup but the leavening agents (acid? non acid?) and flour types (bread? cake? A/P?) generally have a great deal to do with the success of a baking recipe.

I wouldn't write off that baking/science rule just yet.

Mine is the whole "precise measuring" in baking rule. If every recipe for a baked good only worked because you used exactly 4 ounces of flour and 1 ounce of butter and x amount of this, why would we have so many recipes for exactly the same thing?

As long as I'm not worried about being able to recreate something exactly, I bake the same way I cook - I read a bunch of recipes, measure some stuff (more-or-less) and improvise. It's not a wedding cake, it's not a cure for cancer, it's just a batch of cookies!

Even though I should not have any chocolate... I have a weakness for it. Last night, I finished dinner with a flourless chocolate torte with milk chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream - it was sinful!!!!

Smallblonde, I'm so envious of you. Singapore. I just love that part of the world. Beautiful people. Beautiful food. Beautiful sights. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Do you ever venture down to Bali? That's one of my favorite places on the planet... wistful sigh...

How 'bout that - it's my year! Thanks for the recipe - cool tradition! Luck and prosperity to all in the new year.

Didn't finish........your meal sounds like a dream and I'm hungry all over again. Have you been cooking for a week? I could use a little luck and prosperity - what's in that salad?

salad with sherry vinaigrette, artichoke frittata, lacinato kale.

Great tilapia recipe moibec - it was delicious!

February in PA is usually freezing, icy, snowy. Today was mid-60's, drizzling. I opened all my windows to get some air. I haven't had to have my driveway plowed even once yet this season. Knocking on oak, pine, maple, mahogany, beech, teak and cherry! To all with snow or tornadoes, you have my deepest sympathy, truly.