Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Also, a trick for storing a cut half avocado (though probably not as foolproof as your submerging method): place face down on top of some cut onion (scraps are fine) in a just large enough closed container. Effective!

I've known Vernor's since the '50s and am a devotee. It does seem a bit sweeter than the old days (probably occurred during one of its many corporate acquisitions or perhaps when the switch to HFCS from sugar was made) but not drastically. Still my favorite by far. Distribution here in the east is still nonexistent but mail order in cans or glass bottles is easily found.

I grew up in Southeast Chicago, lived there from 1950 to 1968 and visited regularly through the 1970s. Hot dogs were then (and are now) a personal obsession, so perhaps someone can clear up an enduring mystery for me. When I lived there, consuming dogs served up by many memorable stands, the standard issue Chicago hot dog was: a steamed Vienna (or sometimes a David Berg) sausage, steamed poppy seed bun, yellow mustard, relish, chopped white onion and a slice of dill pickle. Note: no tomatoes, celery seed or sport peppers. Never saw them. So when did those first show up? After my time? Or were they perhaps a North Side thing?

My Chinese cleaver. Made by Dexter from New Kam Man on Canal Street. The most versatile knife I own. It has held its edge for more than ten years without professional sharpening. Perfect for vegetables and meats -- even carved a Thanksgiving turkey with it one year. And a bench scraper to boot.

The good news: V&T's pizza is helped immensely by ordering it "crispy - well done." Mozzarella is top quality; best toppings include artichoke and eggplant. The bad news: it seems V&T has gone over to prefab crust instead of making their own. Their crust was once as good as a gas oven pizza gets, yeasty and chewy, big bubbles, irregularly shaped. And ordered well done a bit charred. But recent pies have seemed suspiciously too round and, sure enough, flip it over and the bottom shows signs of a tell-tale grid pattern that is a sure sign of a factory made crust. Walking past their open kitchen used to be you'd see their cooks stretching dough all day. No more.