Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Welcome Cope215. Ditto what everyone else has said. I'm new here too and I love it. Just jump in and enjoy.

that's awful. you should get rid of it. in fact, just mail it to me and i'll dispose of it properly for you. ;)

I make so many more cookies now that I don't have to cream butter and sugar together by hand. (Sure, starting to defrost the butter earlier might have also improved that process, but a KitchenAid is so much more fun.)

They are also useful for standing next to while they are mixing and exclaiming loudly to anyone within earshot how you can't believe how fast your batter/dough just got mixed.

Make macarons! They are the most wonderful light airy crunchy chewy cookie ever!

Here's a link with lots of other links! (bonus!)

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2007/10/how-to-make-macarons-recipe.html

Thank you for participating, and congratulations to our winners: hamkracker

Winners have been notified by email and also appear on our Contest Winners page.

My favorite pork memory is back when I was a sous chef at a restaurant and I dared a waiter to drink a quart of pork fat......and he did. It was a good day.

Online: Ruhlman, Serious Eats, Allrecipes.
Books: I am a devoted user of Elizabeth David's French Provincial Cookbooks and the Be-ro baking books!
I am also enjoying cooking items on Youtube, there are a number of home cooks on there who show things that TV shows often assume "everyone knows" e.g. what does a "simmer" look like, how small is small for "diced small" . I've been cooking a long time and am still learning from these.

From blogs and online sources, I've had the most consistent success with recipes from Elise at Simply Recipes. They not only please me, but my family as well. While I enjoy reading thepioneerwoman.com and her recipes always sound good, I've had more misses than hits with her recipes. In fact, one went straight to the garbage disposal -- no one would eat it.

In terms of cookbook authors, Mark Bittman, Ina Garten (aka The Barefoot Contessa) and of course, Betty Crocker. One of my favorite gifts for new cooks is Pam Anderson's How to Cook Without a Book. I also like Fine Cooking's series "Cooking without Recipes."

I've had very good luck with Martha Stewart's Everyday Food -- the magazine, the book (Great Food Fast) and everydayfoodmag.com. Also marthastewart.com/dinnertonight.

Last year I visited a friend in Vegas and she took me to a little dive bar named the Double Down. The Double Down has two signature drinks; one is obscenely titled & I shall not name it though I believe Anthony Bourdain had it (saw that ep after the trip), the other is a bacon martini. Well, I do love the bacon so I got one. The bartender grabbed a bottle of vodka with bacon floating in it. Seriously.

Conclusion? Straight alcohol not consumed in shot form is not really my thing but it was interesting. The smell was absolutely putrid, but the taste wasn't bad. Like vodka with a smack of bacon.

A much more delicious story involves hippies & a Wilbur roasted underground luau style, but the bacon martini is definitely my favorite pork story.

When I realized the difference between standard supermarket pork shoulder and organic, free range pork. Amy from Amy's Meats (KCMO area) was giving out samples at Whole Foods. Really, I bought it just because it felt awkward to eat her food and not buy some. Truthfully, I was a little afraid when I saw how much I had bought (quantity and price). But, when I cooked it, it was AMAZING! Rich and sweet and oh-so tender. It is all I buy now.

As much as I love bacon and all things bacon, my favorite bacon memory is actually a negative experience. We had a bunch of friends at Zingerman's Roadhouse and, after a truly wonderful meal, I ordered the bacon apple pie. And normally while bacon goes with everything (mostly), this one just...didn't...work. Maybe it was the large chunks of bacon that didn't fit texturally, maybe it was the abrupt clash of sweet and savory with no bridging elements. Even so, we had a lot of fun passing around the plate and getting everyone's reactions, and had a lively discussion on how the dish could be improved. I think this was just one small bump in what was otherwise an excellent dining experience, and the entertainment value if nothing else made it quite worth it!

Confession...I gave up bacon for about 15 years. It was the highly irrational decision of a three year old. Thankfully I rediscovered the crispy stuff in college as it was one of the more palatable breakfast offerings at the dining hall. Oh, if I could turn back time... I need to make up for those lost years.