Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

i love how this story is right above the one on the starbucks logo showing some boobage.

i just use my toaster, just flip them over after one side is brown, no open flame needed.

some hot sauces are just hot with no taste, others are tasty but lack real kick, it is somewhat difficult to find a good in-between that works for you. i like sriracha because it has a nice garlicky flavor and a little kick, very good with eggs or curry. if you can find them, fruit based hot sauces are very good. try asian (especially korean or thai) style hot sauces, they usually have more flavor than their american counterparts.

If you are in Pennsylvania, try Gazebo Room greek dressing, it is absolutely delicious and pretty natural but unfortunately not widely available. Briana's is very good too.
I am definitely a fan of homemade dressing, it's too easy and a lot cheaper than buying bottled. Just invest $5 in an airtight container with a pour feature, make a batch of non-perishable vinaigrette (oil, vinegar, seasoning) and keep it in your cabinet, it will stay good for weeks.

Just don't buy commercial reduced fat dressing, all they do is load it up with sugar and/or HFCS to improve the taste.

well this is all fine and good but really...how is the chicken??

p.s. another proud moment from my city of birth. these are the same people who were protesting at a civil war fallen soldiers ceremony, claiming that it proves america condones sodomy. no logic at all.

i can't remember ever being served a plated meal outside of a restaurant or wedding reception. family meals are always laid out in serving pieces on the table or buffet style. all of my friends and their families do this as well.
i sort of find the idea of plated meals outside of family or close friends to be very presumptuous. on the other hand, a very beautifully plated dish would wow the hell out of me! shows a lot of effort on behalf of the host.

also, i can't believe there are hosts out there that would do something as rude as serve a heavy person less of something while giving a skinny person more.

when i was young i spent the night at a friend's house and her mom made pasta with tomato sauce and meatballs for dinner. she cooked the sauce and the meatballs in a crockpot, which i had never seen done before. the meatballs tasted like how wet cat food from a can smells, and the texture was about the same too. the sauce tasted like watery tomato soup, i barely choked down the small helping i was served.

@Library Lady

Yes, I am aware that I am somewhat egocentric, but thankfully I had parents who raised me to have some social awareness and to mind my own business when out in public. If I really wanted to be jerk I would call you on it when I catch you undressing other people's purchases with your eyes, but again with the 'it's none of my business' thing.

I'm not expecting people here to fully grasp the idiocy of what they find a pleasant grocery store pasttime, I just thought I'd let you know what everyone else thinks of you. Take it how you will.

@missbhavens

no you are not the only one. i could go on for hours about the little freedoms being stripped from our "land of the free", but it wouldn't serve any purpose on this site.
i often wonder how these people who make these rediculous rules think they survived going through school themselves without them back in the day.
solution: if your kid has a nut allergy then you pack their lunch everyday, tell them not to eat other kid's food, and not to share food. problem solved and no one else inconvenienced. why is it the school's responsibility to restrict everyone's diet for a few individuals??

you mean in my dreams or in reality?

dream: grilled lamb chops with herbed rice and grilled marinated vegetables.

reality: leftover spaghetti. again. can you tell i'm excited?

I definitely inherited my mom's dislike for sugary foods. We both complain often that most store bought desserts are sickly sweet. She inherited this from her father, but her mother loves all things super sweet.
On the whole i have also inherited my mom's love for new and interesting foods, we both like to experiment with recipes and spend the extra money to get the REALLY good ingredients once in a while. We both dislike processed foods and generally eat pretty healthy, i remember being one of the few kids in elementary school who didn't get a snack cake or other unhealthy dessert in my lunch everyday. i'm glad for that now.

fried chicken. seriously.
and ditto on the peanut butter sandwich.

I finally got off my bum and bought a Farberware candy thermometer so I could make marshmallows. I go to take it out of the packaging (in mid-recipe) only to find that it's glass, and broken. Best part was, my marshmallows still turned out just fine.

I think if you have a lot of experience, or good instincts, you can get away without one for many things. However, if I started cooking large, expensive cuts of beef or lamb I would invest in a good one.

Any good recomendations for an oven thermometer??