I also love to grind them in a spice mill, but then I stir the powder into mushroom risotto. I don't really ever taste any grit, but the flavor that it imparts is incredible. Get a double whammy by soaking the whole dried shrooms in your beef or chicken stock that you use in the risotto, it's a mushroom lover's heaven.

I love pretty much anything with truffles, perfection though may be a little truffle salt on slow fried eggs...mmmm.

If I had a smoker, it would absolutely be the smoked turkey with the honey brine...looks incredible

I love love love poutine. Whenever we drive through wisconsin, I always pick up some cheese curds, and the last time I decided to make my own poutine with it, with homemade french fries, and leftover baby back rib meat. It wasnt as good as you would probably get in Canada, but it was still pretty delicious!
My attempt at homemade poutine

I had a ton of leftover spare rib meat that was shredded (after a little grilling mishap) and they had a bit of an asian flavor to them, so I made a spicy cilantro slaw and topped some rib sandwiches with it. It was delicious, and was a nice break from straight up meat. I tend to overeat mexican food, so the asian twist is a good way to switch it up.

Shredded spare rib sandwiches with spicy cilantro slaw

Hmm I have not heard of this book, looks great though. Another food blogger book just was released yesterday called "Foodies of the World", it looks almost like a coffee table book with tons of huge pictures and recipes.

Foodies of the World

I will have to check them both out!

I made this recently:

http://thesepeasarehollow.blogspot.com/2010/08/simple-summer-salad-giveaway.html

I only used two grains, but you could easily use five, I just recommend keeping the dressing separate, and applying it as you eat so the zucchini and cauliflower don't get soggy. The veggies added a lot of great texture and flavor, and IMO goat cheese makes everything better :-)

I made this arugula and pepita (raw pumpkin seeds) pesto last year. You could easily substitute basil for the arugula or do half and half. The pumpkin seeds really gave it the nuttiness and texture without the actual nuts. Hope this helps!

http://thesepeasarehollow.blogspot.com/2009/07/homemade-orecchiette-with-arugula-and.html

Il Porcuspino (the porcupine) located in San Lorenzo square is wonderful. We visited many times while studying abroad there, and when we went back the next year, the waiter actually remembered us. The food was incredible and the service, a delight. It is tourist friendly, meaning most of the employees speak fluent English, and a lot of the patrons were tourists (it is in San Lorenzo square so that explains the heavy tourist population) but the food was so homey and delicious. Truly one of my favorite food memories from Florence.

haha thanks everyone. We are just kind of winging bangkok actually, so no clue where we are staying and for how long, its a stop-over in between cambodia and Koh Tao. I expect we will be eating cheap most of the trip (just because I have heard street food is the way to go, and I am ALL for street food) but I wouldn't be opposed to one or two fine dining experiences if you have any recommendations! We leave on wednesday but I will check back next time I am on the internet if you have any koh tao recommendations! Thanks for the help!

Bisou,

I just put up a post on my blog about making tartlette's pistachio macaroons. I used her basic buttercream recipe and added some lemon juice and zest to some, and some homemade raspberry jam to some. I preferred the lemon, i think lemon is a great pair to pistachio, plus the cookie is so flavorful that the innards don't distract from it. Good luck with the macaron adventure, hope it goes better than mine!

Et tu Macarons?

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/cranberry-pomegranate-sauce

I made this this past weekend, and it was so good. I normally don't touch the cranberries at thanksgiving, and only made it because I figured we had to have them at the table. I ended up eating most of it.

I am making what turned out to be a GIANT pan of chicken and veggie curry. Bamboo shoots, bell peppers, chickpeas, yogurt, and cashews....only 10 minutes until i get to enjoy. It is perfect for this chilly day here in chicago!