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A couple more: "custard" in the UK means a custard sauce that you pour over desserts like Xmas pudding, not a firm custard like pumpkin pie. And "dumplings" are the kind that you get in chicken and dumplings, not the kind with stuff inside, like you get when you go for dim sum.

Love the shirt, but prepare for the assault from the fundie contingent in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . .

Hmmmm . . . do you think this would work with kohlrabi? I keep getting these kohlrabis in my CSA box and I'm not sure what to do with them. Raw kohlrabi tastes similar to a turnip, so I wonder if I could make the switch.

Well, if TVP gives you the heebies, you can always just mash up some beans and mix them in with the beef.

Sorry, don't mean to nitpick, but there ain't a thing "healthy" or "light" about chicken thighs. They have more saturated fat than a lean steak, such as top sirloin. Removing the skin helps, but I don't think it solves the problem.

Well, none of the grocery stores here double coupons, we don't have CVS here, and the drug stores here don't have programs like that . . . I also think that this kind of shopping has hidden costs that aren't considered when you just look at register receipts. For example, how many newspapers do you have to subscribe to in order to get that many coupons? How much gas do you have to use in order to run from store to store? And how much time do you have to put in to organize all this? I'm not saying that these costs do away with the savings, but the amount you save probably isn't as much as is claimed.

My pleasure, fozziebayer!

For the hummus, soak 3/4 c. dried garbanzos overnight, then drain and rinse. Saute 1 chopped onion and 2 chopped garlic cloves in a little olive oil until onion is soft. Transfer onion and garlic to the pot with the beans, cover with water, and simmer until the beans are tender and most of the liquid is gone. Mash beans in food processor with 1 1/2 T. tahini, 2 1/2 T. lemon juice (bottled is okay), and 1 t. garlic powder (yeah, yeah, I know, but it works!) You might need a little salt if the tahini is unsalted. To pack this for lunch, put some in a shallow plastic container and drizzle a little olive oil over it. Put chopped cuke, tomato, and green onion in a little separate container. Add some quartered pitas in a baggie and you're set.

This is the best, most flavorful hummus I've ever had, but some folks might find it a little too garlicky. I've never had any complaints, though--even people who hate beans like this recipe, especially with the vegetables on top.

What with the cost and the lousy nutrition associated with eating out, I've never been able to understand how people can eat lunch out every day. I usually come home for lunch, but I think I'm going to start taking my lunch again to save on gas. I find a cold sandwich really depressing, so I usually bring leftovers to zap--pasta, homemade fried rice, stir fry, whatever. A salad is good, too, with some sort of protein in it (romaine or iceberg travel well). If you have access to a microwave, you can bake a potato in it and put whatever on it for a quick lunch. I have several tiny plastic containers that I store things like cheese in to sprinkle on my pasta or salad. You might want to stick with creamy salad dressings, since I've found that very few containers are really leak-proof when full of a vinaigrette! I also try to avoid particularly smelly lunches (spaghetti with garlic and olive oil, for example) because co-workers tend to whine about them. :) I don't recommend the overpriced junk that they sell in the grocery store for bringing in your lunch box (noodle soup, etc.) because it has almost zero nutritional value and you'll get hungry mid-afternoon. I've found that one of the biggest obstacles to bringing lunch is finding the time in the morning to get it ready, so I usually do it the night before--if it's leftovers, I just put my lunch portion in a separate container when I'm putting everything away after dinner.

I wasn't sure if you wanted actual recipes, fozziebayer, but I have a killer hummus recipe and a good tuna salad recipe if you're interested.

Hi, I'm STH, and if you spend any time on progressive political blogs, you may have seen my handle before. I just recently started getting into reading food blogs, and I'm really enjoying Serious Eats. I'm a 43-year-old woman who lives in eastern Washington (about a 4-hour drive from renewbee--hi, neighbor!) I'm a self-taught cook, as my father doesn't cook at all and my mother does her best, but isn't what you might call gifted in that area (as she'd be the first to tell you). She says that she learned 7 entree recipes when she got married, one for each day of the week, and she pretty much still has the same repertoire! I'm a little bit more adventurous than that, but have plenty to learn; I've just joined a CSA for the first time, so this summer will be spent learning to cook some unfamiliar produce. My focus is on healthy cooking with lots of vegetables, whole grains, a little meat for flavor, and few processed ingredients; I have a hard time making a recipe without tinkering with it to make it a little healthier. I'm inordinately proud of the fact that people who eat my cooking are usually surprised at how good it tastes, considering how healthy it is!