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Paupered Chef. I really like the food projects and of course dinner tonight. What isn't there to like?

I was super pumped when I found these shows online.
http://www.kqed.org/w/morefastfoodmyway/episodes.html

The penne ratatouille recipe was my dinner last night. I would HIGHLY recommend it right now since it is that time of year for all the produce.

Dungeness Crab pasta. The simpler the better.

There is a great chapter in "The Man Who Ate Everything" by Jeffrey Steingarten where he travels to Sicily to learn and eat their fabulous granita. I just finished the book yesterday. There are recipes too, but like Gina's, they are simple. Thanks for the post. It is hot here in Seattle so a granita sounds great.

RIght now it is veraci pizza at the ballard/fremont markets in seattle

bolito...just do it please

I really enjoy Jamie at Home, so I ran a search for some streaming videos. Here they are. http://www.surfthechannel.com/show/112.html. Such a great show....and there is "Potatoes."

Crab, just boil it.

Flay's chimchurri turkey and guava/cranberry sauce.

Things we have learned over the years from Top Chef:
1. don't make salads (spinach with balsamic? boring)
2. don't make drinks or little shots of drinks (hasn't happened, probably will)
3. Try at a little presentation (Jeffrey this week with his slop plate, Fabio's must have been pretty bad to lose to that; also the "punk" guy from last year, pretty much everything he made was just ladled all over the plate)

A few observations:
-what's the deal with all the lamb chops? I think half the field made lamb. I'm not sure what kind of options the cooks have, but it seems to always be scalops, pork tendo, LAMB, and maybe beef or fish. What about all the other wonderful meats/cuts? If anyone could cook these they would have a huge advantage.
-Also I was fairly amused with the chef who lucked out and scored Little Italy not named Leah. She walks into the Italian market saying something like "I have no experience with Italian food." REALLY? NONE? How is that even possible??? Something to ponder going forward.

Predictions:
-Winner: Hosea
-Runner up: Stefan
-Crowd fave: Gene. Loved it when Padma proclaimed: "you just made one of the most authentic...." Good stuff there.
-Darkhorse: the mom from jersey. GO MOM FROM JERSEY! (no idea why she is the darkhorse but, hey it is week #1.

I was searching for cooking videos on youtube and came across the "Unemployed Gourmet". It's pretty funny with one ep including a deep fried cheese and pepper and bacon "corn" dog. Worth a look.

Arugula for basil. And walnuts for pinenuts. There are a bunch of recipes like this online. If you like arugula like I do, this is a winner bc the flavors aren't quite as strong as with your standard genovese.