I need some direction. I was given a large piece of something called Cooper River Salmon. It is awfully orange! What will it taste like? How on earth should I prepare it? I do have a grill. Please help me out with this!

Over the years, I have often heard people say certain foods are aphrodisiacs. Like oysters for example. Do you believe there are foods that truly make you want to do the wild thing? Tell us what they are! It's spring after all......

I have made "Favorites" of several recipes I have seen here on SE. After trying a couple of them, I don't think I will make them again. So, is there a way to "Un-Favorite" an item?

Sometimes if I eat late at night or go out to dinner and have something a bit richer than I am accustomed to, I wake up the next morning recalling the strangest dreams, and yes, sometimes nightmares.

For Instance, recently, we had a delightful dinner out with friends and I had oysters on the 1/2 shell, a Caesar salad and a wonderful parpadelle with a wild mushroom cream sauce.

My dream/nightmare ~ My brand new red leather Coach handbag (which I don't have, BTW) was stolen by a Girl Scout. While we were looking for my handbag, I was thrown out of a moving vehicle that had the doors open, into the ocean. I survived by holding onto a pillow. When I was rescued, I asked the owner of the pillow if I could keep it because it would mean so much to me. She said no. It was part of a set and she couldn't replace it.

I was certainly relieved to wake up from that one! Has this ever happened to you?

Every week, we make it a point to stop at one of my favorite local Mediterranean restaurants. I always order the same thing. The falafel salad. The falafel comes with a delicious wood oven pita, feta, and kalamata olives beautifully arranged on a crisp salad of romaine, cucumbers and tomatoes with a side of Tahina. YUM!

Now the problem is, there are very few restaurants in our area that offer such a delightful meal. So, I would like to attempt falafel making at home.

I have googled falafel and read numerous recipes, but I always put more credence in what my fellow Serious Eaters think. Do you falafel? Do you fry it? Can it be baked? (I'm baking this year. 2009, the year of the Oven!)

So Mr. izzy went to his family Christmas celebration yesterday and came home with a gift for me from my BIL. 32 ounces of freshly shucked oysters from the eastern shore of Maryland. The jar is packed full with oysters and just a little of their liquor. I have always had my oysters on the 1/2 shell with a lovely sherry mignonette. I keep opening the fridge and gazing at them looking for inspiration.

What would my Serious Eats friends do with these beauties? Recipes would be greatly appreciated!

Last night I was prepping 8 heads of romaine for the Caesar salad I am bringing to a party tonight. I cleaned the lettuce in a sink full of cold water, twice. Then I put the lettuce in 2 colanders to drain. When I was finished, I rinsed the 2 colanders in hot water and put them in the rack to dry.

In walks DH and the first thing he says is the colanders aren't clean and need to go through the dishwasher. I said all they had in them was CLEAN lettuce and they are fine.

The debate continued this morning when I was putting away dishes and cleaning up from breakfast. Can I get some support on this?

Finally, OJ is going to do serious jail time! So what should we make him for dinner the first day be begins serving his actual sentence? (And don't say he is already in there. I know that. With today's announcement, it is time to begin a new stretch in "jail time")

So, what should the menu be?

Not being a fan (understatement) of turkey, I am not interested in the traditional Thanksgiving leftovers. Tonight we will have a Caesar salad, grilled asparagus and grilled chicken breast. I am heating up some stuffing and corn bake for dinner to make DH happy, but I have already moved on in the food department. Yesterday was Thanksgiving so I am all set. Does anyone else feel this way?

I just wanted to take a minute out of my Thanksgiving Eve festivities to wish each and everyone here on Serious Eats a Very Happy Thanksgiving.

Enjoy your family and friends. Savor the fruits of your labor in the kitchen. And, please don't sweat the small stuff!

I have had the most delightful experience on this site the past several months and I do feel like I know many of you through the words you post here.

So, I raise my glass (a delightful Logan Chardonnay) to you all and offer you this toast;

"To everyone out there to who takes the time to reach out and connect with others during this time; to those who choose to commemorate our human bonds in any way, their own way, at this time; to those who use food as the great equalizer ("never mind politics, have you tried this pie?"); to those who have much to grouse about, but choose not to, and to those who work their asses off making sure others feel a belonging that, really, is already there. Happy Thanksgiving!" *glasses clink here*

I am in the market for a new wine opener. I currently have a wine opener from Williams-Sonoma. It was a gift from a good friend several years ago. It is a waiter style corkscrew. The small foil cutter really doesn't work very good.

What is the best wine opener for the money out there?

Happy Wednesday Serious Eaters! I am on a quest to make the above named soup. We went to my favorite Thai resto for lunch today and I came away craving more of this lovely soup.

What is THE "go to" recipe for making lemongrass soup? Do you have the secret? Please share!!

Oh, and GO PHILLIES!!!! Tonight is the night!

You are sitting at a quiet table for two waiting for your dinner guest. In walks __________ (insert: name of guest ~ chef/cook/actor/musician/politician/author or ?) This person is here just to see you. What are you eating and drinking? What are you talking about?

I'm just saying! No need to respond. Unless of course you are rooting for the Phillies. If that is the case, what will you make to celebrate their victory?

Since I have pizza on the brain right now, I have yet another query.

I eat my pizza with a knife and fork. Up to the crust that is. Then I am done.

What do you Serious Eaters feel is the proper way to eat a slice of pizza? Is it okay to use a knife and fork? Or do I need to change my ways?

Our delightful thread on pizza toppings, brings me to another question.

I enjoyed every delicious bite of my slice of Florentine, until I got to the crust. I don't like the crust. I don't hate the crust, I just don't like the crust. So I don't eat the crust.

Am I the only one? Do you eat your pizza crust?

In anticipation of my stick blender purchase, I have been perusing recipes for soup. Tis' the season for pumpkin, so WS had a recipe for a roasted (I know, here we go with the oven again) pumpkin soup with cider cream. Looks interesting.

The recipe calls for 4 baking pumpkins or kabocha squash. I just have one question; HUH????????

Yep. That's what I said this afternoon when my supposed adoring husband came home, after traveling ALL week, with the biggest most disgusting rectangle of Velveeta I have ever seen! I asked him if he had lost his mind! He said a customer had given it to him and he could have brought more home, but since he had never seen me actually use Velveeta, he did not want to surprise me with too much Velveeta! Are you F-ing kidding me? A bottle of wine? A few flowers? Some REAL cheese? Noooo!

Needless to say, I was a bit harsh and said a REAL husband would NEVER bring his wife Velveeta!!! I said our 18 years together have been a complete waste and I wanted a divorce.

Okay that was 2 hours ago. I think I may have overreacted. He gives great cooking tools at Christmas after all.

So, how do I forgive him? Are there any reasons not to chuck the Velveeta in the garbage? I mean we are talking HUGE industrial size Velveeta. Hell, it doesn't even need refrigeration!! I am completely beside myself right now! He won't even come in the same room right now. :-0 Oh Boy.............Now what?

I went out an purchased a slow cooker last weekend. My inspiration was a recipe I read for making short ribs. I have never had short ribs. The ones in the recipe photo looked like they had bones. I saw some at the store, but they did not have bones. Bobby Flay made short ribs on Sunday and they did not have bones. Am I missing something? I think I need a short rib education!

I went to Costco today and purchased the Rival 6 quart Crock Pot. To my delight, it came with a mini Crock Pot. There was a small recipe book with it as well. I am not real impressed with it. Then I started to think; what the hell am I going to do with the mini Crock Pot!

Since so many of you have a slow cooker, what cookbook do you recommend I purchase?

GO PHILLIES!!!!!

I do not eat turkey. I do not like turkey or any turkey products. Never have. So each year at Thanksgiving, I make something different. I am in a funk this year and I know it is only October, but I would love some suggestions for a main meat course. Ideally it would be something I can cook/roast on my grill, and I would love some ideas for a sauce to go with it. Oh, and no ham. We only eat ham at Christmas and Easter. You guys have all the answers!

Is there a fresh or frozen brand out there you would consider acceptable? I really do not like heavy doughy gnocchi. I have never purchased gnocchi. Or made it for that matter. :-()

Before the make it yourself responses (which I already know is the right thing to do), remember I am trying to get my cooking act back together.

I promise, I will stop starting threads today. Maybe.

In my effort to regain my mojo in the kitchen, I have spent this morning looking through my HUGE pile of cooking mags, which has been amassing since my funk began.

There is an intriguing recipe for Asian short ribs prepared in a slow cooker. I have never owned a slow cooker, nor have I ever cooked in one. What should I look for in a slow cooker? Is bigger better? Is one brand more reliable? And the big question; how expensive are they?

I looked for another thread on slow cookers, but it seemed more geared toward recipes than the actual equipment. I know I can google for pricing, but that doesn't help me understand the correlation between the brand, the quality, the features and you get my drift.......My SE buds have the experience.

The last few dishes I prepared were more of a chore than a pleasure. I have had zero desire to spend time in my kitchen. I would love some refreshing ideas on preparing seasonal veggies as well as chicken, steak and seafood.

I want to get back the feeling of excitement about cooking. Because of this funk, we have been eating out way too much! Not a solid long term plan. Sure, I've still enjoyed the banter on SE, but I have had absolutely nothing to contribute.

I am grilling scallops tomorrow (thanks Butrflygirly). I bought a new bottle of white truffle olive oil today. I can't even come up with a decent side dish!

Please remember I don't bake or use my oven. I grill all year long. Seriously, am I crazy? Can I be helped? There is no place else for me to turn.

Signed,
Sad in the Suburbs

KateRuby's thread got me thinking about my obligation for this Saturday night. It's Girl's Night In and I am bringing grilled 11-15 count shrimp. They are big and really need something big for dipping. I am grilling them right before leaving the house so they will be served at room temperature. I have thought about kicked up cocktail sauce, remoulade, and pesto. What would you serve with these beauties?

I have to add, all of my girlfriends look to me to bring the "Ta Da" dish as not one of them can tell a spatula from a serving spoon!

It's Super Bowl Sunday, so I tried to come up with a Sunday Brunch recipe that would hold you until the big game starts just after 6 p.m. ET. Ina Garten's croissant bread pudding, adapted from her very first cookbook,... More