Serious Eats: macknitter's Profile

It might be Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake (made with hot coffee instead of boiling water), frosted with the companion Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Frosting, which is fudgy and delicious.

macknitter at 11:46PM on 02/12/08

From Talk

Food Mags: Which to Choose?

I'm another big fan of Cook's Illustrated and, like previous posters, I also enjoy Cook's Country, despite it being CI's country cousin (all puns intended). I like Cooking Light, as well.

macknitter at 11:41PM on 02/12/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: 'Chocolate Holidays'

How do I NOT indulge in chocolate might be a better question, in my case.

Godiva Dark Chocolate Truffle hot chocolate is a favorite, but brownies, chocolate cake, Oreo truffles, even a Hershey bar with almonds...

macknitter at 1:47PM on 02/05/08

From Serious Eats

Turkey Talk 2007 with Gourmet's Ruth Reichl

Though in most ways I'm much more a CI gal than a Gourmet gal, I will admit that I do tend to want to prepare the feast by myself. I start days ahead of time, with the cranberry sauce, and am usually whipped into a frenzy just before the meal goes on the table!

If my guests insist on bringing something, I usually request hors d'oeuvres or desserts. Don't get me wrong, I love to bake - it's how I got into cooking in the first place - but if I start asking for side dishes, I have to figure out how they're going to be reheated, etc. I'd rather orchestrate dinner myself.

macknitter at 5:12PM on 11/13/07

From Serious Eats

Turkey Talk 2007 With Christopher Kimball of Cook's Illustrated

Lovely to see this article. I'm a devoted fan of ATK and CI - I refer to The New Best Recipe as my "cooking Bible." And hey, if he doesn't care for green beans, all the more for me! (He can have my share of Brussels sprouts.)

macknitter at 7:17PM on 11/12/07

From Recipes

Apple Cranberry Crisp with Pecan Topping

This sounds great. My mom's bringing pies, but I might make this as a third dessert - thanks for the suggestion!

macknitter at 7:01PM on 11/12/07

From Talk

Do you blog? What's your URL?

I do. I try to post two or three times a week. usually recipes, sometimes reviews.

http://throwingspoons.blogspot.com

macknitter at 5:52PM on 11/04/07

From Talk

What are your favorite soup & sandwich combos?

Another vote for grilled cheese and tomato!

macknitter at 5:48PM on 11/04/07

From Serious Eats

Southern Foodways: Boudin

It sounds like the southern version of Scottish haggis (which I love).

macknitter at 12:14AM on 10/21/07

From Talk

Chili beans. An oxymoron?

I have two different chili recipes that I love and - gasp - they're both vegetarian chilis. One is a three-bean chili (kidney, black bean and refried, to thicken the chili), the other is almost more of a stew, with tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, kidney beans, and garbanzos.

macknitter at 11:49PM on 10/20/07

From Talk

I'm getting my turkey from _____________

The same place we've gotten our fresh turkeys for the past five Thanksgivings: Raymond's Turkey Farm in Methuen, MA ( http://www.raymondsturkeyfarm.net/ ). They raise broad-breasted White Holland turkeys. We usually pick it up the day before Thanksgiving. I've not tried brining it, I just roast it, and it's the best turkey I've ever had, if I do say so myself.

macknitter at 11:43PM on 10/13/07

From Talk

When you have a lot of cream cheese, you should make ____.

Oreo Truffles. Easy and decadent, and no one will believe you made them, or what they're made from!

Throw a package of Oreos (regular, not double-stuffed) in the food processor, and process into fine crumbs (or mash into fine crumbs with a rolling pin or meat tenderizer).
Mix with 8 oz. softened cream cheese until no white streaks remain; you'll have a uniform, nearly-black "dough."
Roll into 3/4" balls; chill for an hour.
Melt chocolate chips (white, milk, or dark) in a double boiler, or a heat-proof bowl over simmering water; dip balls in chocolate, remove to waxed paper-lined rimmed baking sheet, and chill.

macknitter at 10:43PM on 09/25/07

From Serious Eats

A Map of Regional Foods

Not to mention baked beans, Maine lobsters or Vermont maple syrup. New England has plenty of things other than coffee milk and "bread in a can" (which I happen to like, but not as much as my mom's homemade brown bread).

Are snowballs a regional thing for Maryland? I think of them as such, but maybe that's just because we don't have them around here.

macknitter at 11:27PM on 09/24/07

From Talk

Do you know any great places in Maine...

Of course, NOW I find the Jameson website... http://www.jamesontavern.com/

macknitter at 7:12PM on 09/19/07

From Talk

Do you know any great places in Maine...

Me again, to add a link for Gritty McDuff's: http://www.grittys.com (my husband's all-time favorite brewery)

Jameson Tavern doesn't seem to have a website. Trip Advisor doesn't give them the greatest rating, but my experiences there have been good.

There's always Ben & Jerry's in front of L.L. Bean's... ;)

macknitter at 7:11PM on 09/19/07

From Talk

Do you know any great places in Maine...

If you're looking for something a little different in downtown Bar Harbor, definitely go to Café This Way! We went last summer, got the last table on the deck - and when we tasted dinner, we promptly made reservations for the following night. I've been told they also do outstanding breakfasts; we're looking forward to finding out for ourselves in a couple of weeks! Appetizers are from $8-12, salads are $7-8, entrées range from $14-24, and is well worth a bit of a splurge. Their website is http://www.cafethisway.com.

You can get great afternoon tea (lunch, too) at Jordan Pond House. They also make sweeten-your-own lemonade (served with simple syrup on the side). The lobster stew, while on the pricey side for lunch, is exquisite. http://www.jordanpond.com.

On our last trip, we went to Galyn's our first night there. Maybe we just didn't order the right dishes, but we were quite disappointed in the food.

You asked about Freeport: I can recommend Gritty McDuff's, a brew pub; food's decent, beer is great. I've had some really good meals at the Jameson Tavern, too; their tap room menu is good for lunch.

macknitter at 6:44PM on 09/19/07

From Talk

What seemingly basic ingredient can you simply not bear?

Caraway. Hate, hate, hate it. Bleargh.

Not fond of capers, but it's nothing like the caraway hate.

I like the taste of onions; it's the texture I'm not fond of. I'll still eat around them; have since I was a kid.

macknitter at 9:01PM on 09/03/07

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: 'Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant'

Breakfast for dinner: French toast is a favorite, as my husband isn't a fan. Scrambled eggs with sauteed mushrooms, some Canadian bacon or sausage, and hot buttered toast is also lovely.

macknitter at 10:30PM on 08/30/07

From Talk

What is your favorite potato salad mix-in?

I use the recipe from my favorite cookbook, The New Best Recipe. Diced hardboiled egg, minced sweet pickles, minced red onion, minced celery, minimal mayo, and a little Dijon mustard. Recipe's in my blog: Throwing Spoons

macknitter at 9:59PM on 08/30/07

From Talk

Do you blog? What's your URL?

Cocina Savant
http://cocinasavant.blogspot.com/
Weekly pictures, recipes, and thoughts from a husband and wife who love books and cooking for each other.

dlunsford at 4:10PM on 10/08/09

From Talk

Chili beans. An oxymoron?

Chili must have beans for me to love it, but it also needs a lot of meat, and a lot of heat.

My new favorite chili recipe is one I created a few months ago: Chili con Carne with Rancho Gordo Pinquitos. It has one small bag of lush, delicious beans, and 5 lbs of roast beef (chuck or tip, ideally).

Cheers,

~ Paula

Paula Maack at 5:14AM on 05/08/09

From Talk

Chili beans. An oxymoron?

I will give the ABSOLUTE greatest crock pot chili recipe EVER!!!!!

Ingredients:
-3 lbs. Lean Groud Beef---
-2(28 oz.) cans of Chunky Crushed Tomatoes---
-1(28 oz.) can Peeled Tomatoes----
-2 (12 oz., give or take) cans Red Kidney Beans
-3 Green Bell Pepers (abaout 2 lbs.)---
-1 Red Bell Pepers (about 3/4 of a lb.)---
-1 large Onion---
-2 Jalapeno Peppers (about 1 1/4 lbs.)---
-2 cups Rice(any style)
-2 large Tomatoes--
-8 table spns. Chili powder--
-3 table spns. Flour--
-3 table spns. Salt--
-5 table spns. Crushed Red Peppers--
-2 table spns. Pepper--
-3 table spns. Basil--
-3 table spns. Oregeno--
-1 table spns. Sugar--
- 5 table spns. Extra Virgin Olive Oil---
-8 table spns. of finely Chopped Garlic(sorry i don't know how many cloves exactly, but $1 worth of garlic is plenty---

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

-1. Fist put the two cans Crushed Tomatoes and 1 can Peeled in the crock pot on HIGH. Just let it cook.

-2. Cook the Ground Beef on a medium high flame until browned, add 2 table spns. of Chil Powder to the meat as it cooks. When ground beef is fully cooked DRAIN it and add it to the crock pot that already has the cans of Crushed + can of Peeled Tomatoes already cooking.

-3. Cook the Onion(Chopped), Green Bell Peppers(chopped), Red Bell Pepper(chopped), 8 chopped tblspns. chopped Garlic, Jalapeno Peppers, and 5 table spns. Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Cook until ALL ingredients are glazed/tender/slightly browned.-------and add it to the crock pot that already has the cans of Crushed + can of Peeled Tomatoes, and ground beef already cooking

-4. mix 6 tblspns. Chili Powder with 3 tblspns. Flour with *about* 5 tblspns. water. thouroghly mix the Chili Powder + Flour + water ( it should be a little thinner than a tooth past consistancy) ADD that mixture(RUE) to the crock pot.

--5. Add Basil, Crushed Red Pepper, Oregenp, Salt, Pepper, Sugar, to the Crock Pot.

--6. Chop the 2 Tomatoes into fairly large pieces. Add the chopped Tomatoes to the Crock Pot.

--7. *DRAIN* the 2 cans Red Kidney Beans

csgmatty at 1:11AM on 05/08/09

From Serious Eats

Turkey Talk 2007 With Christopher Kimball of Cook's Illustrated

I'm a vegetarian and I love green beans, but guess what--I LOVE America's Test Kitchen on PBS. Since Julia Child and the Frugal Gourmet, it was the first show that got me watching food TV since I was a kid.

Do I agree with everything Mr. Kimball says? No. But at least he has a strong opinion, and he's friggin' hilarious when he says it--and that's better than trying to please all the people and all the palates all of the time. I find a bit of arrogance charming, and I take it with a pinch of (artisanal sea) salt.

CI's and ATK brownies and cookies and pretty much all dishes that you DO need a certain science behind are sensational and foolproof. Even for idiot beginning cooks like me.

And even if I don't agree with all of the scientific tests and test tastes, I find it interesting to see what the results are, even if they aren't some pronouncement from on high.

HeartofGlass at 7:29PM on 11/02/08

From Serious Eats

Turkey Talk 2007 with Gourmet's Ruth Reichl

I love all of Ruth's books. If I ever win the lottery, I would bribe her to let me come to dinner sometime!!

floridayaya at 6:25AM on 10/30/08

From Serious Eats

Turkey Talk 2007 With Christopher Kimball of Cook's Illustrated

I'm a big fan of CI and ATK. (Though I do agree with some poters in another thread about Cook's Country being just ATK on a different set)
What Kimball and his team do is so informative and unbiased. The hows and whys of each recipe are explained in plain language; I learn something from each article. And the absence of advertising is so refreshing. Have you read a Bon Appetit lately? It's got more ads than Glamour! And some of the articles? Rich beautiful people in lavish home eat gorgeous food with rich beautiful friends. Please! It's not just food porn, it's lifestyle porn!!

sailordave at 1:25AM on 10/30/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

Thanks for participating and congratulations to our winners:

AlbinoRockstar
Laura78
Sugary Chic
SeahorseLady
grahamred

Please check your email for more information on how to claim your book.

Robyn Lee at 5:27PM on 04/21/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

Homemade is the best!

donnak4 at 12:47AM on 04/15/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

I have to admit, mine is the best I've eaten. I just use a yellow cornbread mix (usually Martha White), add Pace's Picante Sauce, grated cheddar cheese and whole kernal corn. Extra cheese goes on top. Yuuummmy! For restaurant cornbread, it has to be Mama's Daughter's Diner in Lewisville, Texas.

chrissy75007 at 11:42PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

I had the most amazing cornbread at Marie Callendar's restaurant in Oklahoma City.

artmarcia at 10:54PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

Jiffy Mix made in a preheated cast iron skillet, greased with some bacon drippings. I love the crusty brown portion! Gotta eat it with real BUTTER! Thanks for the opportunity to participate in this giveaway!

bndraldy at 8:31PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

My favorite cornbread was my mother's. She started it in a cast iron skillet over a flame then finished it in the oven. Sometimes she added cracklins. Awesome!

willitara at 7:58PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

My favorite was my mother's homemade cornbread. She's gone now...sure wish I'd gotten her recipe.

Ninacu at 6:22PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

I always use the cornbread recipe from the Fanny Farmer cookbook.

lovegr8food at 5:22PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

Both my husband and I love corn bread, this looks like a great book, it's the first I have heard of it. Oh and of course I make it the best!

judis121 at 4:27PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

My grandma's homemade cornbread. ~ :)

jmagloro at 3:57PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

I use the one on the Alber's cornmeal box and my north carolinian girlfirend's tip: melt the butter in the baking dish before you pour in the batter. Perfect, every time.

Tobey at 3:33PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

I make my own cornbread but I need some new ideas.

kathleenyohanna at 12:51PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

Living in the South cornbread is a staple of any meal. I keep trying different recipes and enjoying each one. So far I like the one by Chef John of Food Wishes. Good eating for sure.

msbooch75 at 12:39PM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

My favorite cornbread is homemade, just the way Grandma taught me. I miss her.

auntieness at 11:53AM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats

Cook the Book: The Cornbread Gospels

My first husband had an aunt who was known for her cornbread. Nobody else's came close. I asked her once if I could have her recipe. She laughed and said there was no recipe, it was a handful of this and a pinch of that. Well, she agreed to make cornbread and to let me measure the handfuls and pinches before they went into the mixing bowl. I later learned that she'd never given the recipe to anybody else - ever. I make it when I need a cornbread fix. Not quite as good as hers, but still my favorite.

NoPunyNerd at 10:51AM on 04/14/08

From Serious Eats