Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

We have a small one we picked up at Costco that we have in front of the sink and I definitely think it makes a different. If I'm going to be standing on our kitchen tile for a while, I'll wear my Birkinstocks (yes, so pretty) as they help a lot, but not as much as with the mat. I'm not sure about heels on the mat though, hopefully it's not a problem!

For the recipe as I entered it into the fair, I converted the grams to 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate and 1 1/4 cups milk (looks like I was a little short on the milk!).

Thanks for the congrats @Steffano2!

We love chimichurri sauce, too. We use a recipe from a Williams-Sonoma catalog, but I can't recall if it has oregano in it or not. Makes me want a juicy steak and sauce for dinner tonight!

We wrapped it around asparagus spears last night and roasted them in a 400 degree oven for about 12 minutes. YUM! We also make a white lasagna (bechamel sauce with parmesan) that includes prosciutto, asparagus, shredded/thinly sliced carrot, thinly sliced zuccini and more cheese that is quite tasty (adapted from the Spring Vegetable Lasagna recipe by Art Smith).

Our friends' son only eats a handful of things, but his pickiest thing is chocolate "donettes." They MUST be Mrs. Baird's brand in the purple bag. You cannot buy Hostess and put them in a Mrs. Baird's bag, he will not eat them and he will point out that they are NOT from the purple bag. Besides that, I'm not sure what he will even eat for breakfast! He refuses pizza - what 6 year old does that?! He will eat chicken nuggets and fettuccini alfredo from Olive Garden, but other than that, I don't think he'll eat. The kid would starve in my house.

I am a picky eater, too, but I've gotten much better about it with age!

- Chicken Littles (Adam made me remember them!) - I used to eat them dipped in KFC barbecue sauce.
- Flaky Flix - A Mother's cookie version that was coated in chocolate and rolled in corn flakes. There's a generic brand without the corn flakes in the grocery now, but they're not as good as the original.
- Hershey's chocolate gum (I haven't had it, but my boss used to get it in/near Hershey. The kids loved it, but now it's discontinued.)

Like Peggasus, I've had mine for at least 15 years and love it. We use it most often for shredding cheese and carrots, but I love Nikki's suggestion of using it for chocolate, too. People always look at me strange when I take out the Salad Shooter, but it's been a handy little appliance to have!

This is the one that I've always used. It's pretty easy and everyone always loves it. That said, I want to try the one cakepixie suggested with macadamias and coconut - YUM!

Carrot Cake
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 cups sugar
½ cup nuts
1 cup oil
4 eggs, beaten
2 cups fresh carrots, shredded
1 cup (8 oz.) crushed pineapple, do not drain
½ cup milk

Combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and sugar. Add nuts and toss. Stir in oil and eggs. Add carrots, pineapple, and milk. Beat with mixer. Pour into greased pan (or pans if making a layer cake). Bake at 350 for 35 - 40 minutes (about 30 minutes for layers).

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
½ cup margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound powdered sugar, sifted

Beat cream cheese, margarine, and vanilla. Gradually add powered sugar.

Filet Mignon.

I'll be making a maple-pecan tart and a carrot cake. Not pie, but YUM!

My Costco hasn't had the pine nuts lately; bummer! I keep watching for them to come back.

I've got a jar of it brewing right now. Have done so for years and never had any ill effects. As many others have said, we have to take the warnings with a grain of salt.

Here's the steak au poivre recipe I always use. I believe it came from epicurious.com initially. I always double or even quadruple the sauce ingredients and I also use filets typically.

Steak Au Poivre

1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon white peppercorns
1 teaspoon dried green peppercorns
2 boneless shell steaks (3/4 pound each, about 1 1/4 inches thick)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons Cognac or brandy

In a heavy-duty sealable plastic bag or between 2 sheets of wax paper crush peppercorns coarse with bottom of a heavy skillet. (Or use a pepper grinder and skip the frypan crushing step.) Pat steaks dry and coat both sides with peppercorn mixture. In a 10-inch heavy skillet heat butter and oil over moderate heat until hot but not smoking and cook steaks for 4 to 5 minutes on each side for medium rare. Season steaks with salt and transfer to plates.
Pour off excess fat from skillet and add cream and Cognac. Boil mixture, scraping up browned bits, until sauce thickens and coats back of spoon, about 1 minute. Season sauce with salt and spoon over steaks.