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my mom, and a whole bunch of books!

Ah, yes, you can store it in the freezer, but it's not required. It also sits at room temperature for a long time while it ages. Even if it did go back in there, making limoncello would at least buy her some time. :)

Get some lemons and make limoncello. That's what I'd do with gifted vodka!

I'm a big fan of "further pie profligacy" in all its forms, so at first I was sad to hear about the kibosh. But truly enjoying Thanksgiving and still succeeding at your goals is FABULOUS. :)

I have a lot of luck with a 4-minutes-on, 4-minutes off cycle. The resting helps the dough absorb the moisture, and has the added bonus of not burning out your motor. Even if the recipe calls for just 5 or 6 minutes of kneading, I still do the resting step, even if I get impatient waiting there with a kitchen timer! I also do this regardless of the size of the batch. Try it and see if you get the same burning smell.

I'm about to attempt an apple mostarda - it's along the lines of zucchini's idea, but specifically an italian savory sauce.

I just made Santa Lucia buns using the recpie posted on the Fresh Loaf discussion boards:

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/4189/santa-lucia-bread#comment-26429

The ingredients listed are all originally swedish, but I was able to make appropriate substitutions as they discuss in the thread. I should note that I used a homemade sugar syrup instead of the "vit baksirap", but if you're in the states, you can use karo syrup instead of making stuff up like I do. :)

Good luck! the buns we made were a big hit!

At big grocery stores with loyalty cards, I like to be able to offer to swipe my card for people who don't have one. Once I was behind a man who didn't speak much English and was only buying a gallon of milk but was counting it out down to the penny. The cashier tried to get him to ask me if he could borrow my card, but he didn't quite get the idea. It was so easy to save someone a dollar or two! It would have been nice to do more, but everything starts small.

I'm going to echo the others who've suggested using paper bags instead of plastic bags. This means that you will (most likely) not get mold, and that as it naturally dries out it will be an even better candidate for cutting into cubes and making croutons! I've honestly had a lot of luck adjusting what I expect from my bread, rather than expecting the same sandwich on day #5.

Also, since you've specifically asked for secret natural ingredients, try rosemary or garlic. There are more herbs that have an effect similar to the rosemary, but I've forgotten them at the moment. This is a rich area for research, if you're so inclined!

Bloomington has a fantastic food culture, in my opinion. People and their restaurants are adventurous, both in doing the old standards well and in finding new standards. :)

The Bloomington farmer's market and Winter market bring the local marketing season to ten months of the year (all but December and January). The vendors are really excellent, and you can even get tamales at one stall using the pork shoulder you could have bought from another vendor, cooking demonstrations by local chefs, with a really liberal sprinkling of local musicians throughout the market.

There are also two cooking stores downtown, which I think is rather remarkable for a city this size (maybe I'm just from too small a town for this to seem normal? :), Goods for Cooks and The Inner Chef. There is also Bloomington Cooking School, run by a local chef.

Bloomingfoods, the local co-op, and Sahara Mart are two sources for more out-of-the-way ingredients, and they both sell some prepared foods. There are also a handful of asian groceries and other international markets.

There's vegetarian+local at Roots (on the square), Irish pub food at The Irish Lion (just off the square), American pub food at Upland Brewery (ate there last night, in fact...) acceptable sushi all over town (we like Asuka,on the east side), excellent Indian at Shanti (on the main street, Kirkwood), AMAZING Thai home cooking at Esan Thai right behind Shanti (try the yellow curry!), a neat little Creperie which I like even though some of my friends give it mixed reviews (the Cafe et Crepe, downtown), and the Uptown Cafe (just off the square). There are many, many more!

Some of these restaurants have websites, and I hope I've given you enough to find them. My apologies if I've gotten any names slightly wrong, I've had to do a lot of this on memory in a short break from work. :)

So in short, food folks are doing just fine in Bloomington. It has its drawbacks (Seafood, why are you so faaar awaaaayyy!?), but all in all, you'll find a lot of new and old things to make your taste buds happy!

--Sarah