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Cook the Book: 'Almost Meatless'
Ceci in umido - chickpea stew with a little pancetta for flavoring.
Culinary Rule Breaking
I frequently bake without measuring - I just eyeball the measurements. I figure that people have been baking for far longer than standardized measurements (and regulated ovens) have been around. So far, it's worked out just fine.
Green Eggs and Ham (And a Side of Kitsch) at The Friendly Toast in Portsmouth, NH
I remember this place! The sweet potato fries with sour cream and brown sugar are great.
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Novels with great food scenes... what are your favorites?
Posted by thebasilqueen, November 7, 2007 at 1:55 PM
Japanese restaurant that serves katsudon in Boston?
Posted by thebasilqueen, November 5, 2007 at 12:02 PM
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Recent Comments | Response to Comments
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
If we're friends, I'll gladly offer you a taste of what I order. I might even ask you for a taste of yours. But come after my plate uninvited, and yes, you will end up with a fork stuck in your hand.
Cook the Book: 'Almost Meatless'
Ceci in umido - chickpea stew with a little pancetta for flavoring.
Culinary Rule Breaking
I frequently bake without measuring - I just eyeball the measurements. I figure that people have been baking for far longer than standardized measurements (and regulated ovens) have been around. So far, it's worked out just fine.
Green Eggs and Ham (And a Side of Kitsch) at The Friendly Toast in Portsmouth, NH
I remember this place! The sweet potato fries with sour cream and brown sugar are great.
I make a great ____, but I won't eat it.
I dated a guy in college who didn't eat any simple carbohydrates - no flour, no rice, no potatoes, and no sugar. I baked him a few flourless, artificially sweetened desserts I wouldn't have touched with a ten-foot pole. (He ate them. He liked them. I should have guessed that the relationship wouldn't work out.)
I also picked up a recipe for key lime pie with an ingredient list that calls for Cool Whip and sweetened condensed milk. It gets rave reviews, but I feel vaguely guilty every time I make it.
Beets on a Burger
I grew up in Australia, and I love beetroot. Particularly on burgers with a fried egg. The American aversion to beets has always baffled me.
Cook the Book: 'Fat'
Pork belly braised in port wine. If you're not going to eat the fat, there's no point in cooking pork belly at all.
'American' foods people from other cultures like and dislike
I grew up in Australia, came to the US for school.
I found a lot of the processed foods bizarre - I thought cheese in a can was some sort of joke until I actually saw it in the supermarket. Fluff definitely didn't taste as good as children's books suggest.
New England seafood dishes were a mixed bag. I liked clam chowder, but I remember being pretty horrified when I ordered a seafood platter and *everything* on it was fried.
@ shazza - I found the peanut butter obsession weird, too. I ate peanut butter on sandwiches occasionally as a kid, but Nutella sandwiches were so much better. :)
Vegan desserts
Apple and raspberry crumble, topping made with quick-cook oats, margarine and your choice of sweetener. (I like honey myself, but I can't tell if it's on your list of no-no's.) Your boyfriend can top it with ice-cream if he insists. :P
Cook the Book: 'Olives and Oranges'
Fries. (Particularly when I can get away with adding them into my sandwich, as in the French greque-frites.)
I use twice as much of ____ when I cook
Basil, garlic, lemon (in desserts), booze, chocolate, butter... there's a very scant handful of recipes that I can't resist tweaking when I make them.
Food curiosity
I would love to try real Southern BBQ. Unfortunately, I don't really know anyone in the South, and from what I gather, you really need a local to take you to the good places. :)
I have tons of Za'taar... help!
I'll bet it would make for really interesting roast chicken, served with a cucumber and yogurt sauce on the side.
homemade pasta: worth the time, trouble and storage space?
I make fresh pasta regularly, using a hand-cranked machine. As long as you're not making stuffed pasta, it's about as time-consuming as baking a cake.
Comfort food
I like polenta with cheese and poached eggs on bad days, but on days when I've run out of even the energy to cook, it has to be a giant bowl of plain pasta with a terrifying quantity of melted cheese.
Cook the Book: Lidia's Italy
Penne alla vodka. It's incredibly simple, but people are always impressed.
Favorite Sausage?
I'm with brooke29 - have yet to encounter any sausage I've disliked. I particularly like the more unusual varieties like andouillette (tripe sausage) and boudin noir (blood sausage).
Desert Island Food
Can I have multiple courses? Give me a bowl of mixed olives and some freshly grilled sardines to start. Then I'll take a mile-high sandwich on good Italian bread, spread with pesto and stuffed with roasted peppers and onions, grilled zucchini and eggplant, thick slices of fresh buffalo mozzarella, and paper-thin slices of prosciutto. Raspberries and cream for dessert. I'd also like a nice Chianti to go with the meal, and espresso to finish.
What's the deal with 2nd Avenue Deli?
I was there in February with my sister on a Saturday afternoon. It was crowded and there was a queue out the door, but service was quick and attentive. We had chopped liver, pastrami, matzo ball soup, and fries. The fries were pretty terrible, but everything else was great.
Eating for Two: How Do You Love Sardines, Tell Me All the Ways
I love pasta with tinned sardines, capers and lemon zest.
Cooking with Offal
D'oh. I completely forgot the obvious... chopped liver!
Cooking with Offal
Offal! Yum. :)
Beef tongue is fantastic hot or cold, and makes amazing sandwiches on rye bread with whole-grain mustard and pickles. It's a little disconcerting to prepare (it looks like a tongue) but it tastes quite similar to brisket, beefy and a little fatty. Joy of Cooking should have some good recipes; there was also an article on it in the NYT a few months ago.
Veal sweetbreads, provided you can find them, are magical morsels of deliciousness. Pan-fry gently and serve with a butter-lemon sauce and chopped parsley.
And bone marrow is also delicious, if you can get big shank bones. I believe the NYT has a Fergus Henderson (author of "Nose to Tail Eating") recipe for that.
Whatever happened with...
@LoCo - Great thread topic!
I was wondering if chisai's dilemma would have a happy ending. Glad to hear it did. :)
What to cook/eat when you're tired and stressed?
I'd go for something warm and stewy with beans. Tex-Mex stew. Italian bean soup. Easily made in giant batches, easily frozen. And high in iron, too. :)
Does Anyone Really Love Pumpkin Pie?
I love pumpkin pie, sweet potato pie, and I will eat butternut squash right out of the rind once it's roasted. I bake pumpkin bread and pumpkin pie in autumn, not really for the holidays so much. I generally love squash. I once made pies from a squash in Peru just because it was a novelty. These squashes/gourds are so big it takes two people to carry one. It's important to remember that pies aren't just a desert - they are often the main course, filled with meats, vegetables, and spices. My family usually has pumpkin pie around Thanksgiving and Christmas, but we also get tired of traditional holiday foods. Frequently, for Thanksgiving or Christmas, we will decide to have something different at the table. Last year we had an incredible Italian dish that my father prepared for Christmas, and I smoked chicken and baby back ribs for Thanksgiving. It didn't change the spirit of the holidays at all for us. So, I guess the important thing is that you enjoy what you cook and eat during the holidays.
Do you blog? What's your URL?
Cocina Savant
http://cocinasavant.blogspot.com/
Weekly pictures, recipes, and thoughts from a husband and wife who love books and cooking for each other.
Eating for Two: How Do You Love Sardines, Tell Me All the Ways
Well, it has been a year, but I got one more. I bet even Marvin from Burnt Lumpia doesn't know about this. When I get my hands on some green (unripe) mango (traditional craving for pregnant Filipinas), we get some which start to get soft but still green. We (our family) scrapes it with a fork/chops it very fine and serves it with sardines and tomato sauce and rice. Sometimes we saute it a bit, but mostly we don't bother.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
I'm a sharer. With family and some friends I will share any of mine and try any of theirs, often finishing the left over bits or cleaning up other peoples plates. Sometimes I steal food from others without asking, but knowing that those people won't mind. Sharing goes beyond food, and extends to utensils in my family, I know its not for everyone, but it works out great for us.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
If I'm eating with friends or my boyfriend (which is almost always who I'm eating with when I'm out), then I'll offer a taste of whatever I'm eating, ESPECIALLY if I like it. Share the wealth! I have like-minded friends, so they usually offer back - if they don't, I don't even usually notice. I may ask for a small taste if it's something I really want to try, but I'm not militantly pro- or anti-sharing.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
sharing does not bother me at all...just DON"T eat from my personal dish in front of me...or try to feed me off your fork/chopsticks..I will leave !!!
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
One of my favorite "shared" meals was at NOPA in SF. All three of us agreed upon three dishes...we would eat and then say switch and we would move the plate to the next person...probably not for everyone but so good for us!!! I love eating with good friends.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
It seems unnatural for me not to share, but then I grew up in a family where sharing food was the norm. It was very weird one time when I went out with a group of friends to a place I knew had mediocre big portions (I was outvoted on where to go) and asked if anyone wanted to split a dish with me and they all looked at me like I was insane. I shut-up and at the end no one finished their meal.
There are some unspoken rules to polite sharing though. If you ask, make sure you have something to give back. My mom is the queen of breaking this rule, she'll always be like I'm not that hungry I'll just have a bite of yours and of course half the time she's paying so it's not like anyone can say no. It was especially obnoxious when we were in Italy where you're trying to taste as much of everything in the short amount of time you have. I think this stems from when my sister and I were kids and would never finish our meals, but we're not kids anymore.
Another is don't force anyone to order what you want just to share. My littlest sister is famous for doing this and she gets away with it because stepmom wants her to eat. I was amazed at how she dictated what my stepmom and dad would eat and when she turned to me I was just like uh uh I know what I'm getting.
Ask ask ask is the third. There are certain occasions where you don't have to (my sister and I never do when we go out to eat together, but we've been doing that a long time) but always err on the side of asking. It's just good to be polite.
Different occasions call for different types of sharing. Now that I've moved I've got to find new dining companions who like to share.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
@janaatwg , you or someone close to her should really take your friend aside and tell her that her behavior is alienating her friends. Maybe she is not fully aware.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
First of all I think one should never 'steal' off another's plate. Silverware incl chopsticks were originally weapons to defend one's food, so permission should be asked before reaching over, unless permission was firmly previously established.
I have a problem with 'plate envy' so I may choose to order the same thing as another, because why order something else, only to then desire the other's plate more than my own. So right on @ksimmy. I usually interview my table mates before I make a choice, unless I had one of those lucky days where I have a craving that the restaurant can fulfill.
I am happy to have you share, and may put the brakes on if you are eating most of mine, and none of yours (which I don't desire either).
I can't stand all that germ phobic behavior of 'you can have that corner, I didn't touch it'. If you are that phobic you are unsuitable for sharing I think.
I love family style because my preference is usually a little taste of everything. Getting Chinese take-out with my mate is a challenge 'cause he just orders and eats his one or two things and doesn't want any of mine. (He is a reluctant sharer-but has been trainable.) So that's makes for less variety. I solve this issue by ordering 3 dishes for me, me, and me and eating the leftovers for lunch over a few days. Problem solved.
Sharing is nice but what is even nicer is respecting people's eating preferences incl wether they share or not (and not incl. someone forbidding for you to order the same as them).
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
Bottom line, there are many factors if you should share or not. They are...
1. The people you are dining with
2. What kind of restaurant you are at
3. how hungry you are
4. how good the dish is that you ordered.
And that rule about ordering the same dish? Order what you want, get what you are craving! Don't deny yourself anything! Especially when you are paying for it!
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
Sharing is the standard for me and my husband. We almost never order the same dish. Usually upon their arrival we each taste both of the dishes. If one of us strongly prefers the other's dish, we switch. If we both really like both dishes, we each eat about half and then switch plates. If we both like the same dish and both really dislike the other (which is infrequent), my husband insists that I eat the better dish. We didn't concoct this rigid-sounding regime - it has simply evolved over many years of wedded bliss. A perfect system (ok, less perfect for him)!
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
I prefer sharing, though I may be a bit neurotic about making sure there is enough for everyone to try everything. After the Mythbusters episode about "double dipping" I'm much less concerned about someone else's fork.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
I like family style meals and usually like sharing. The only exception to this is when I go to a tapas restaurant...I always feel like there is not enough food and everything is so tasty but there is just so little of it!! I get too stressed out-I just want to ask the server to bring me the rest of whatever I ordered that little taste is NOT enough.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
In some ways I agree with @beersnob and@redfish, but I can share when asked politely. No stabbing. If I have been to the establishment before and want to order something that I really love then I may not want to give it all away so please order a serving for yourself.
I have a friend that will drive you to distraction as well as myself. We plan a gals night out and she arrives a bit late and announces that she can't really hang out with us and she'll just have a bite of ours. That is beyond the pale of sharing and it is hard because every other part of her is so great. She gets included less and less and that is sad. The rule is to, at the very least, order something that you can share if you are asking for some of someone elses food.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
Sharing is permissible any time people agree to share.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
I have one friend for whom most of our eating outs (or occasional takeouts) go thusly: order. eat, eat, eat, eat, switch. eat, eat, eat, eat, switch ... we wind up the meal with both of our plates somewhere near the center of the table as we pick over them ... However, she's about the only person I'll do that with. In my family if we go out we usually ask for a bite, and it's always given ... or we proactively offer a bit of our own as a hint that we want some of theirs.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
Sharing food is alright, it promotes being at ease with the person. If you dont like to share, thats alright I really dont want to fight off a person who acts like a dog anyway.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
My boyfriend and I go out to eat often with our two best friends, and we always try to order four different meals, so as to all taste everything. This seems totally normal to me, but at the same time, I would never do it with someone else (even sharing with our families is off limits).
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
Sharing food is beyond tacky. It's something you do as a child, with your family, behind closed doors. The thought of a group of people's dirty cutlery going into my food is enough to make me barf. If you want to try what I'm eating, you should have ordered it. Or better yet, order a different entree next time.
If I'm with a group of people that I know will expect me to share my food, I ask the waitress to split my entree in half and go from there. Otherwise, it's no dice.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
I grew up with a dad who would take pieces of food he wanted off mom's plate without asking. She is a picky eater and this would drive her absolutely nuts. By proxy, it started to drive me nuts too. She isn't someone who takes pleasure in food, she sees eating as a chore. So if someone takes the one bite she was actually interested in.... Anyway, my husband knows not to take without asking. He learned the hard way when he snatched a fry. I'll share bites, but like others have said I order what I order for a reason.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
When is it socially acceptable NOT to share food? Assuming everyone's mom taught "sharing is caring", I find it hurtful when people even consider not sharing. You don't share, you don't come to dinners.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
My husband grew up in a strickly no-sharing household, not even sharing bowls of salsa when eating Mexican food. I grew up in a very "eat-whatever-you-can-reach home." I knew we were getting engaged when he offered me some red beans and rice from his plate :)
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
I only share with family members. And vice versa. My son will order something and offer it to me. Sometimes I will try it, sometimes I won't.
I do the same with him. We rarely order the same thing to eat when we go out. Also, I was raised where family style eating wasn't the norm. Later in life I saw the advantages of it and embraced it. But when I am with anyone that isn't family, I pretty much revert back to being very selfish with my food. I don't ask for what they are eating, nor do I share what I am eating with them.
When Is It Socially Acceptable to Share Food?
Ditacting to someone what they should order is just not right, unless it is previously agreed upon.
Other than that, life is too short; eat what you want!
Recent Posts
Novels with great food scenes... what are your favorites?
Posted by thebasilqueen, November 7, 2007 at 1:55 PM
Japanese restaurant that serves katsudon in Boston?
Posted by thebasilqueen, November 5, 2007 at 12:02 PM
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About thebasilqueen
Website: http://basilqueen.blogspot.com
Location: Boston, MA
About: An unhappy law student, unabashed glutton, and aspiring chef, Adele is an avid reader of food blogs who started her own as a way to procrastinate during class.
Favorite foods: Will eat almost anything - the line is currently drawn at balut. Would really rather not eat peanut butter, tempeh, or seitan unless absolutely necessary.
Last bite on earth: Fugu.
If we're friends, I'll gladly offer you a taste of what I order. I might even ask you for a taste of yours. But come after my plate uninvited, and yes, you will end up with a fork stuck in your hand.