kateinmo’s Profile
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You live where?
I'm a mere hour or two away from you--in Mid-Misery! I'm 30 miles southeast of Jefferson City. I grew up in Idaho and Utah, then I married and moved to Boston. Big time culture shock! I loved living there. Then lived in Tempe, Arizona; El Centro, California (don't ask); and had a glorious 15 years in San Diego. I remarried, and my husband went to grad school at MU in Columbia. It has taken quite an adjustment to living in this small, rural town of 1600 people. However, we've been here almost two years and I'm still relatively sane. Don't know how much longer it will last, though. LOL!!
What are your strange, secret and personal cooking tips?
Love all the comments. I'm a good cook--the one who reads cookbooks as if they're novels. Love Joy of Cooking. Love the skills my husband has taught me. Love that he taught me it's okay to throw out a dish if it doesn't turn out (I grew up in poverty; throwing out food is a very, very tough thing to do). I'm OCD and make copious notes when trying out a recipe the first time. It tooke me a long time to learn that ingredients vary as dbcurrie mentioned. Lunchblock - loved your comment "Empiricism, for me, in the only way in the kitchen." Healthygirl78, you've got the right attitude, so you'll do just fine.
What are your favorite products from Trader Joe's?
Dana828,
You have my utmost sympathy. TJ's is a two-hour drive for me. This, after living in San Diego for 18 years...and for the last five years I was there, a TJ's was within walking distance! Now in San Diego, it's a15 minutes drive between stores! Oh, how I miss it!!! My favorite food from the San Diego TJ's is the Eastern Flat Bread, a soft, thicker version of pita bread. Yum! Can't get it in St. Louis, drat! I had converted several friends to TJ's, and when one of us was planning the two-hour trip, she had to call the other four and get their list. The total was usually $800-$1000, and our story was known so well at each of the four St. Louis stores that the shopper was always asked, "Are you the designated shopper for Columbia (MO) today?" Gave the checkers a good laugh and the shopper always got a big thank you and quite often a high five! Now that I've moved 50 miles away, I'm not part of the group anymore...sob...
kateinmo
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Recent Comments | Response to Comments
Serious Cocktails: A Lousy Tipper Walks Into a Bar ...
acbearce
Yes, I care that you're a chef and I'm sorry you've never received a tip. I frequently request a change in a menu item at a restaurant due to food allergies and sensitivities. I always send a tip to the chef via the server. My husband wonders if the chef gets it. Many times they do, because they they come out to thank me, telling me it's the first time anyone has ever tipped them. And I get the opportunity to thank them for cooking my meal just the way I wanted it.
My friends think I'm crazy to tip the chef. But hey! You went to extra work to cook my meal the way I wanted/needed it, you deserve to be tipped! And tipped well. And I make it a point to tell the manager about the good service I received from the kitchen.
Do you have a suggestion for ensuring that the tip gets to the chef and doesn't stay in the server's pocket?
kateinmo
You live where?
I'm a mere hour or two away from you--in Mid-Misery! I'm 30 miles southeast of Jefferson City. I grew up in Idaho and Utah, then I married and moved to Boston. Big time culture shock! I loved living there. Then lived in Tempe, Arizona; El Centro, California (don't ask); and had a glorious 15 years in San Diego. I remarried, and my husband went to grad school at MU in Columbia. It has taken quite an adjustment to living in this small, rural town of 1600 people. However, we've been here almost two years and I'm still relatively sane. Don't know how much longer it will last, though. LOL!!
What are your strange, secret and personal cooking tips?
Love all the comments. I'm a good cook--the one who reads cookbooks as if they're novels. Love Joy of Cooking. Love the skills my husband has taught me. Love that he taught me it's okay to throw out a dish if it doesn't turn out (I grew up in poverty; throwing out food is a very, very tough thing to do). I'm OCD and make copious notes when trying out a recipe the first time. It tooke me a long time to learn that ingredients vary as dbcurrie mentioned. Lunchblock - loved your comment "Empiricism, for me, in the only way in the kitchen." Healthygirl78, you've got the right attitude, so you'll do just fine.
What are your favorite products from Trader Joe's?
Dana828,
You have my utmost sympathy. TJ's is a two-hour drive for me. This, after living in San Diego for 18 years...and for the last five years I was there, a TJ's was within walking distance! Now in San Diego, it's a15 minutes drive between stores! Oh, how I miss it!!! My favorite food from the San Diego TJ's is the Eastern Flat Bread, a soft, thicker version of pita bread. Yum! Can't get it in St. Louis, drat! I had converted several friends to TJ's, and when one of us was planning the two-hour trip, she had to call the other four and get their list. The total was usually $800-$1000, and our story was known so well at each of the four St. Louis stores that the shopper was always asked, "Are you the designated shopper for Columbia (MO) today?" Gave the checkers a good laugh and the shopper always got a big thank you and quite often a high five! Now that I've moved 50 miles away, I'm not part of the group anymore...sob...
kateinmo
The 20 Dishes you need to know
chiff0nade,
I couldn't cook rice, either. But I can now, thanks to my husband teaching me his technique. Here it is:
Rice by Glen:
4 cups water
2 cups converted white rice
salt to taste
heavy 4 quart pan with a tight fitting lid
12" round pan (he uses our heavy frying pan) or dish 2-3 inches deep
Bring the 4 cups of water to a full rolling boil over high heat. Dump in the rice all at once. Stir well one time. Bring back to a "tiny" boil. Turn the heat down to medium. Put the lid on the pan, and watch for 2-4 minutes for lots of steam to come out of the pan. When it does, turn the heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes. Conventional wisdom says not to remove the lid during the 20 minutes, but my husband swears it makes no difference to take a peek or two to see how the rice is doing. At the end of the 20 minutes, take the pan off the heat. Remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork. Put the lid back on and let the rice sit off the heat for 5 minutes. Take the lid off and fluff the rice again with the fork. Dump the rice out into the 12" round pan or dish and let it sit for 20 minutes. Perfectly fluffy, separate grains of rice. Yes, you will have to reheat it before serving. My husband reheats it, covered, in the microwave. Even better, make it the day before you're going to use it; you'll be amazed at the improvement in the flavor. This recipe works well using chicken or beef stock for the liquid. Homemade is best, but if you don't have any around, bouillon or purchased chicken stock will do.
Good luck, and let me know if this works for you.
kateinmo
Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway: D'Artagnan Boneless Heritage Ham
It's not what's on my ham sandwich -- it's what my ham is on! My homemade whole wheat buttermilk bread -- light as a feather and absolutely scrumptious. "The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book", page 177, 2003 Random House Trade Paperback Edition, ISBN 0-8129-7967-7. My flour mill for freshly ground flour and a Kitchen Aid mixer help a lot in the bread making!
Cooking with Kids: Edible Cats for Halloween
Don't like getting stuck with the cat butts? Put a peppermint patty between the cupcake and the icing. Yum! I'd make the cupcakes in my muffin tops pan for bigger kitties. More yummy chocolate frosting per bite!
Top Ten Worst Halloween 'Candies'
What's with Tootsie Rolls being on this list?! Last year we moved to a very, very small (population 1,600 people) rural Mid-Missouri town just before Halloween. We had no idea what to give out. We bought the Child's Playtime Candy, which includes Tootsie Roll Juniors, Tootsie Roll Midgets, Tootsie Roll Snack Bars, Tootsie Roll Fruit Rolls, Tootsi Pops, and Mini Dots. You should have heard the excitement when kids saw our stash! Kid: "Oh, wow, look at all the Tootsie Rolls. Can I have one big one or two little ones?" Me: "You can have both." Kid: "Really? I can?" Me: "Sure." Kid: "Oh, thank you lady thank you." Other kids: "I want one of the pink ones, a green one, and a dots. Can I have that many?" "Tootsie Pops! Yaaayyy!" They loved it all! When the number of kids slowed down, we were giving each kid up to five pieces. We heard from the neighbors that we were the biggest hit on the block! So we're doing it again this year.
The 20 Dishes you need to know
My personal Top 20:
1. Bacon and Potato Omelette (I'm from germany and can't live without my "Bauernfrüstück")
2. Pasta with a garlic sauce
3. Spaghetti with meatballs
4. Roasted Chicken
5. Kao Pad (I'm also half Thai, and grew up with this dish)
6. Pancakes
7. Steak
8. Pizza
9. Potato Soup
10. A good Sandwich
11. Satay Sticks
12. Mashed Potaoes
13. Meatloaf
14. Gravy
15. Thai Sausages
16. Green Cabbage and Smoked Pork Chop
17. Spareribs
18. Quesadillas
19. Burger with some Fries and Fried Onions
20. Double Mud Chocolate Cake
Top Ten Worst Halloween 'Candies'
I disagree about a lot of the candy items mentioned here.
I, for one, LOVE the fun-sized (or mini, if you prefer) candies. It's a tiny bit of something insanely tasty, enough to give pleasure without causing tummy pains. When I was a young'un and I went trick-or-treating, one house gave out mini Clark bars. Yum-o-delish! I polished those off first.
I think the chewy peanut butter kisses taste absolutely divine.
Candy corn, I think is plenty of tasty, as are the candy pumpkins made of candy-corn base. Think little dollops of hardened cake-frosting.
As for apples and raisins, those I didn't mind in the least.
However, some items, I do agree about.
Toothbrushes -- a boring reminder
Religious pamphlets -- disappointing and WEIRD to boot.
Packages of "normal" food -- oh, for crying in Manhattan, what kid wants to receive a can of baked beans or a box of oat bran in his little plastic jack-o-lantern.
One time I received cough drops -- and not the Ludens or Pine Bros or Smith Bros or F&Fs, which are tasty and could pass as hard candy (as can the Ricolas). These were nasty little green pellets that were -- and tasted like -- MEDICATION. Like I said, for crying in Manhattan! For crying in Manhattan, Chicago, and San Francisco
Oh well. At least I didn't get a ROCK
Top Ten Worst Halloween 'Candies'
If I didn't live in an apartment building with no kids in it I'd be giving out and full sized candy bar AND a red bull to every kid. HAHAHA!!! HALLOWEEN IS FOR KIDS! SUCK IT PARENTS!
What are your favorite products from Trader Joe's?
Is the Pomegranate Glaze really discontinued? My mom tried to buy it in Atlanta but they didn't have it. Can it be found elsewhere???
What are your favorite products from Trader Joe's?
My top 5:
Chicken egg rolls
Frozen Naan
All of the curry sauces are amazing
Peanut butter pretzels
Booze, especially the Hofbrau
After reading this, I need to try that pumpkin butter.
What are your favorite products from Trader Joe's?
To the Columbia Mo crowd, I am the one who drove 100 miles to St. Louis to get the Blackberry Tea! Columbia is now so large, we could support a TJs if they would put one there!
What are your favorite products from Trader Joe's?
I drove 100 miles to the closest Trader Joes to me just to purchase their Blackberry Infusion tea and they NO LONGER CARRY IT!!!!!!!!!!! I could have cried. I am in love with that tea. They told me to try World Market and I found some Blackberry Sage green tea (for 3x the cost of Trader Joes teas) and it was weak and not comparable at all Could someone please tell me where I can find that luscious tea???? Many thanks!
You live where?
@MACDodge: my DH is from Queensbury
I am originally from Plymouth, MA.
But we are transplants to the culinary wasteland that is Cincinnati, OH.
You live where?
@sammie, there's only 2 of us in the Portland, ME area it seems! I guess we're just going to have to represent Portland's budding foodie community ourselves!
You live where?
Blenheim, New Zealand -- over the "ditch" (ie. Cook Strait. For those that don't know - it's a country of 3 islands to the east of Australia) from cardamompod in Wellington, NZ
You live where?
I'm in the burbs of Philly in Chester Co.
jcrisdo in orlando-where do you like to eat? Family is coming to Orlando on the 4th for a week and we're looking for good but inexpensive food like BBQ, breakfast, ethnic. Don't care much for the park food.
You live where?
Southern-ish Maine. Do not like it. Moving to Brooklyn in a few months for pastry school and planning to stay there. For a while, at least.
You live where?
Originally from So Cal; our permanent residence is 30 miles east of Seattle (just east of a large computer company); but we are currently in the middle of a 2-3 year assignment in Israel. We're renting a house in Caesarea (closest major city is Haifa.)
*waves @ dove3579*
dbcurrie - tell me about it, sounds like the first time I got stuck behind a tractor on my way home from work, or the traffic jam on the highway the first day they put the lambs out to pasture in the spring. My favorite is the farmers that drive their tractors to the store for more beer because they're too drunk to drive a car!
What are your strange, secret and personal cooking tips?
When you're cooking and you taste test and it tastes bland, try adding some bouillon - beef or chicken. No salt, just bouillon. And a pinch of cayenne pepper. You'll be amazed!!! old chef
What are your strange, secret and personal cooking tips?
Practice simple things first. I started with lasagna. I used those no boil noodles and followed the directions on the box using bottled sauce and packaged cheese. You know what? It was great! Even though I've advanced way beyond then since then, I still sometimes make it on my husband's request. He's been eating it for 10 years now and I don't think he realizes that it takes 5 min to assemble... Oh, and if you're worried about cooking meat and getting it right, my first attempts were meatless. I built my confidence gradually and now I roast chickens, sauté fish, you name it.
What are your strange, secret and personal cooking tips?
Never - Never - Never cook something for the first time for company. Always serve your very best and don't scrimp. Real butter (and lots)- real sugar and real cream. old chef
What are your strange, secret and personal cooking tips?
here are a few of my fave tips:
1. i recently discovered that pre-fried, dried shallots, onions, and garlic that you can find in Asian stores taste as good as ones you fry when trying to add flavor to a stew. forget all that slicing and frying and carmelizing, i will buy the store prepared kind from now on.
2. if you want butter taste in something, butter flavored Pam is more buttery than real butter. butter delivers richness, but the scent is stronger in butter flavored Pam
3. everything tastes better when carmelized. baking things to give them a slightly carmelized crust makes things taste MUCH BETTER
here is a weird thing i do--i make chocolate pork chop sauce by combining chocolate syrup with ketchep (roughly 1:1 ratio) it is an interesting combination and you would never guess it came from those two things
The 20 Dishes you need to know
My 20:
1. Buffalo, Beef, Ostrich, Elk or Venison Burgers
2. Lamb & Goat
3. Grilled Vegetables
4. Mixed Green Salad
5. Sauteed Vegetables
6. Eggs of all types
7. A Really Good soup
8. Broiled/Grilled Fish
9. Fish Stew
10. Spatch-Cock Chicken
11. Puttenesca Sauce
12. Ratatoullie
13. Tomato Sauce
14. Clam Sauce
15. Vegetable Stir Fry
16. Roasted Vegetables
... I cannot think of any more!
The 20 Dishes you need to know
I think that really depends on the audience, wouldn't you? I would say that macaroni and cheese may be essential because I have a small child at home, but I can count on one hand the number of times my parents have had mac and cheese in the past ten years.
Some of my staples:
I have 3 dishes I make with ground turkey or beef that can be whipped up in under 20 minutes -- one with worcestershire sauce and cheddar cheese, one with peppers, onions, fish sauce, sriracha and basil, and one that's a variation on sloppy joes.
Spaghetti Carbonara -- we almost always have bacon and eggs
Omelets -- They do in a pinch when the cupboard is bare
Various soups -- I make several variations on tortilla soup, which is a favorite in my house. I also frequently make butternut squash soup, and mushroom soup.
Panfried steak or pork chops with a pan sauce
Salad dressing
Beef Stew
Pot Roast
Tacos -- various fillings
Enchiladas -- various fillings
I can't imagine having only 20 dishes in my repertoire!
The 20 Dishes you need to know
roast chicken
cheese based salad (usually goat cheese)
homemade soup including beans of some kind
Indian style curry with Indian rice
stir fry, usually with tofu
a salmon (fresh) based dish
baked potato and salad
quiche
Thai style curry made with coconut milk
soup (made with beans), especially in the colder months
tacos (with pork or possibly chicken)
my style nachos (with anchovies on)
vegetarian chilli
ratatouille with rice or over pasta plus a protein
homemade burgers (usually lamb or possibly bison)
fillets of fish (haddock, catfish, etc.) baked in the oven over rice (brown) and veggies
What are your favorite products from Trader Joe's?
one drummer , too bad I'm not of your herd mentality , last I checked it is still a free country and more power to TJ's for their capitalistic success
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acbearce
Yes, I care that you're a chef and I'm sorry you've never received a tip. I frequently request a change in a menu item at a restaurant due to food allergies and sensitivities. I always send a tip to the chef via the server. My husband wonders if the chef gets it. Many times they do, because they they come out to thank me, telling me it's the first time anyone has ever tipped them. And I get the opportunity to thank them for cooking my meal just the way I wanted it.
My friends think I'm crazy to tip the chef. But hey! You went to extra work to cook my meal the way I wanted/needed it, you deserve to be tipped! And tipped well. And I make it a point to tell the manager about the good service I received from the kitchen.
Do you have a suggestion for ensuring that the tip gets to the chef and doesn't stay in the server's pocket?
kateinmo