Is it just me, or do the packages of sliced mushrooms in grocery stores anger others too?

Here's the scenario: you pick up a package of sliced mushrooms, with the assumption that said mushrooms are pre-washed. I mean, if they're not washed, the process of slicing them will have spread whatever filth is on them so thoroughly as to make them unwashable, right? And you can't wash mushroom slices anyway: they'd crumble into (still-kinda-filthy) confetti. But you read the entire label, just to make sure that it doesn't say the mushrooms require washing; and it doesn't say that anywhere on the label.

Then, when you get the cursed mushrooms home, and open the package, ON THE INSIDE there's another label indicating that the mushrooms need to be washed. Are you kidding?

Hi all,

I just got an ice cream maker, and really want to make something with chocolate chips in it. But rock-hard chocolate in ice cream is always kind of disappointing; does anyone know of something I could add to chocolate to make it softer when it's frozen? Like, would a ganache freeze softer than regular chocolate? And would untempered chocolate freeze softer than tempered?

The herb & spice section of my cupboard is crazy crowded, and putting a spice rack on my wall would really help out on the spice-finding front. But I've always heard that it's best to store your herbs & spices in a dark place, so I've been hesitant to take them from the dark cupboard and put them on a shelf on the wall, where they'll be more exposed.

Does anyone here know how much herbs and spices really degrade in light? And whether the type of light makes a big difference (energy-saving fluorescent vs. sun)? And whether there are some spices that can handle it better?

So I was eating lunch today at what had seemed to be a pretty nice restaurant. The salad was kind of bad, but in a vague way that I couldn't piece together until after getting back to work: the tomatoes, while looking great, were pretty mushy and didn't taste like much of anything. They were also really cold.

Now, I remember from my trusty Field Guide to Produce that refrigerating tomatoes is frowned on, but do any of you know why, exactly? Does it really cause the kind of mushy blandness in that salad, or was that a coincidence? I'm concerned now about the groceries I bring home; I should probably be more careful about what goes in the fridge, and what goes on the counter. Because I know I've just blithely thrown tomatoes in my refrigerator along with everything else.

So I'm going to make gumbo this weekend, and was wondering if anyone had recommendations for where to find sausage for such a thing--spicy, and not too sweet. Once upon a time, Dave Duerson hot links were the perfect thing, and easy to find anywhere, but they don't seem to exist anymore. And the andouille stocked by Treasure Island and Whole Foods just doesn't work well at all--it ends up really tough, so I'm guessing it's just not fatty enough to stand up to long simmering.

I'm thinking Paulina Market; any other suggestions?