Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

All this talk of Bob's Red Mill makes me homesick. Up until a year ago, I lived a mile from Bob's and could go in and buy most of their products in bulk, getting just what I needed at the moment

I think I know where you're coming from fuuchan. I don't think you're "picky", but knowing good food, you expect it to taste a certain way when you're out dining. I think sometimes the restaurant just isn't capable of putting up a dish as we expect it and I'm not sure commenting to the wait staff about it would help. It's like when you ask someone to recommend a great restaurant and they advise a certain place, saying it's fabulous. You go there and realize it just isn't. Some people just don't have high food standards. Of course that sounds snobby, but as I consider myself a fairly decent cook and savvy diner, I guess that's just the way it is.

Fresh parsley. It just tastes so awful to me. I wish there was a good substitute. Any ideas?

Coconut Cake from almost anywhere

oops...guess I should have read the comments first. Someone already posted the Penzey's idea. Guess I was excited about a recipe that uses Aleppo pepper :)

If you want to pay the postage, you can get Aleppo pepper from Penzeys.com. That's where I found it when I wanted to make a Roasted Clams recipe.

Petit Fours

I was a little late to the Indian cuisine party. My daughter wanted to go to an Indian restaurant for her birthday quite a few years ago. I had butter chicken and naan and couldn't believe what I had been missing out on for so many years.

Thanks for all the great suggestions everyone! I just picked up my CSA and it has rainbow chard in it again so I need to get to work on some of your ideas.

This past week we headed up to Walter Dacon Winery in Shelton, WA for a little picnic on their patio. Bought a bottle of their fabulous Viognier and enjoyed Crab Rolls I made from Cooking Light (http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1197155) and brownies from a free mix I received from King Arthur.

This vinaigrette is so good. It came from the farm where I get my CSA

Balsamic Maple Vinaigrette
Recipe By: Helsing Junction Farms
Serving Size: 6

1 garlic scape
1/4 cup olive oil
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 to 3 tablespoons red wine or lemon juice
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 big pinch salt

Very finely chop garlic scape into small pieces. Add to a jar with a tightly fitting lid along with remaining ingredients. Shake well.

NOTE : I chopped garlic scape in small food processor bowl, added remaining ingredients and processed for 1 minute.

Mushroom and Swiss with a garlic butter on the bun. No other condiments or veggies.