Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Kenji - that is one of the refutations I had read. I meant both: the studies themselves, but the especially the interpretations of such published by Dr. Campbell. As you yourself acknowledge, the studies used for his "analysis" were for the most part epidemiological studies, using self reported data, performed with no controls. The "conclusions" Campbell comes to are not conclusions at all: his goal was to build a case for veganism from the outset, and he then cherry picks from the questionable-to-begin-with data to build his argument, ignoring some evidence that would dispute his claims and flat out lying (mostly by omission) about other facts. His entire approach is biased, yet is presented as incontrovertible scientific evidence.

"Campbell’s sin is not bad science through incompetence, but sensationalism through omission and generalization."

This to me is worse than bad science through incompetence. It is bad science through deliberate misrepresentation. I'd rather not continue to paraphrase so I will post a couple links:

http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Spotting-Bad-Science-103-The-China-Study.pdf

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/cancer/the-china-study-vs-the-china-study/

The raw data presented in the book are pretty much useless for drawing any the conclusions Campbell is proclaiming, they are only worthwhile for building hypotheses which then must be proven or disproven through randomized controlled trials. And there are plenty of those that disprove his conclusions that animal proteins and fats are unhealthy. In fact, quite the opposite. The evidence shows that saturated fats from animal sources do not cause heart disease. They actually reduce inflammation that leads to metabolic syndrome which is the underlying cause for among other things, diabetes and heart disease.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071203091236.htm

The notion that dietary cholesterol has an impact on cholesterol levels in the body is also a myth, at least as far as the negative impact of such is concerned. In fact, consumption of cholesterol has beneficial effect, raising the amount of "good" cholesterol. High "bad" cholesterol is secreted by the liver, not the rsult of eating too much of it in your diet, and this over secretion is actually linked to too much carbohydrate intake. Hello bread and pasta eating vegans, and all other low fat, high carb dieters!

http://www.livestrong.com/article/83353-cholesterol-myths-busted/

Deliberate omission of facts, cherry picking data from observational studies, presenting correlation as causation, all are capital crimes against science and disqualify all claims made by those who engage in such.

Kenji - yum! sounds awesome.

Kenji - I imagine your mayo could be made with all kinds of pizza friendly flavors. Roast garlic. Zucchini. Pine nuts and basil. Red peppers.....

I made a "discovery" last weekend: celery juice blended with a liberal amount of soy lecithin and some xanthan. It turned into a spreadable soft gel with the same consistency as a good home made mayo. It was delicious, and had nothing else in it. No oil, no seasonings either. It can be done with any juice. Something to add to the vegan arsenal (xanthan is vegan right?)

Pretty much ANYTHING (besides maybe Flavia packets or Folger's) will be better than a Keurig. How do you define better or worse? I love the kone. It's "better" than French press in that the coffee doesn't sit on the grounds, and the brew is less gritty.

Instead of cheese, for creaminess, I'd try topping it with your eggplant "mayo" from a few days ago. And the flavors wouldn't even be incongruous.

Marrow is essentially just fat. It's not extremely flavorful, but it is rich. So, crusty bread for sure. And something acidic to cut the richness, therefore a parsley salad with a good vinaigrette is a good complement.

Or you could go the Marea route, and toss the warmed marrow nuggets into a tomato based pasta. Search this site for the Marea braised octopus pasta for a detailed play by play of how to make that amazing dish.

Kenji - you could do the veggie grilling columns, I'm pretty sure Joshua Bousel can cover for you, he's doing an excellent job already :)

@Ghostly - thanks for the pointer.

I like Tuhilltown's stuff better than the cheaper and more conventional stuff made by the bigger name distillers. I keep coming back to the Baby Bourbon, it's the best one they do imho. I do like their corn whiskey too. I also saw they are making an aged rum now too, which is very tempting. If it was easier to find, I'd drink a lot more Pappy Van Winkle than I do. A friend of mine scored a bottle and very generously offers me a glass whenever we're hanging out at his place.

Use for cooking rice, or lentils, the ramen idea is great, you could also serve tortellini in it, you could use it for a minestrone soup. Or simmer some root veggies in it (celery root/parsnip/potato/sunchoke/...) and blast the lot of it in a food processor or with a stick blender once they are tender, and you'll have a fantastic rich savory purée.

Under Pressure is totally doable. I have also heard people whining and moaning about the French Laundry cookbook which I use all the time.

If Kenji says that pre-sear is unnecessary then Kenji would be wrong. Try it for yourself. Also, read Dave Arnold's blog: http://www.cookingissues.com/

His work on sous vide technique is fantastic. I hope he continues to flesh out his SV primer.

As far as why the torch doesn't produce the same depth of flavor as searing, I think you pretty much nailed it. That and the fact that you actually have less control over it, it has a tendency to burn rather than produce the desired reaction, and the heat is applied in a focused, localized spot as opposed to the entire surface that is in contact with the pan. I think the reason why the blowtorch is favored by professional chefs is for logistical reasons, and in some cases for the theatrics of a waiter torching a dish tableside.

Oh, and I want to make this with fresh espelette peppers. The next time I'm in France in late September, it's on.

(just a few examples)