Cooking is intuitive and experimental until something gets set on fire: FOOD

[mixed cats]

I make weirdo fucked up vegetable nachos though, you probably don't want that

I want a beer so hard but I don't have any beer and was too sweaty to bring myself to stop anywhere on the way home

[YojimboMonkey]

I have lime sherbet! that is sufficiently fruit smoothy-like for my current needs.

Nachos will have to wait.

[Greg Nog]

I made some killer eggrolls the other day; they were the store-bought eggroll wrappers, but filled with veggie faux-sausage and malai kofta sauce, deep-fried.  It only furthered my theory that anything in a deep-fried eggroll wrapper is bound to be delicious.

[mixed cats]

it are fact! Bill makes these fucking fried wontons and they are the best noodle-wrapped-fried-things and we take them to potlucks and they get eaten by even the pickiest old people.

in conclusion i would like to eat those eggrolls

[Bernard]

beer
sounds so good right now

[G.C.R]

I had to come here to tell some one about this incredible candy I'm eating: its a strawberry licorice roll with white chocolate inside. I'm a rotten person who is eating in the library, and I'm having to retrain myself from making moaning sounds of food enjoyment.

[El_Josharino]

the amount of nachos I eat is obscene

Let's be best friends forever.

[alex]

Ha, so this just happened:

There's a praline shop just a couple of blocks from my place of employment that makes pralines with really excellent fillings (my favourites are the caramel/whipped cream one, the one that seems to be some kind of amaretto cream, and the chocolate sea shells), and since maybe late last year or so I've taken to go there quite frequently, usually to give myself strength for serious bouts of writing (or to battle the sense of desperation when it just doesn't seem to be working out at all). I estimate I go there a little bit less than once a week on average. Today was one of those days. As I arrived there, a bunch of German tourists were outside the shop, together with the owner, questioning him about how they make them while sampling chocolates. I nodded at the owner and went inside to wait for him to come in and serve me. After a minute or so, one of the German tourists asked him if he didn't want to go inside seeing as he has a customer waiting. The owner grinned and said, "oh, it's alright, she comes here every day!" Ooops! I denied vehemently, of course, and left the shop - after getting my chocolate, that is - saying "see you soon...but not tomorrow".

[clare]

 

I like the kind of shops where the staff get to know the regulars. At least it shows he's paying attention.

[alex]

I've noticed my reaction depends entirely on how well it fits my self-conception to think of myself at a regular at that particular shop. When I was in my late teens or sp, for a while I had a tendency to often buy a hotdog at the stand near the subway station where I lived if I came home with the last subway around midnight. At some point, the hotdog vendor (a perfectly friendly woman) made a comment not unlike the one above (maybe cutting me off as I was about to make my order and say "we know what our regulars like!"), and I never came back after that, not a single time in all the years I lived nearby. Just fundamentally disagreed with my self-image to think of myself as a regular at a hotdog stand.

I found it endearing from the chocolate guy, though. As much as I rationally know that I should really, really cut down on the chocolate, I'm pretty okay with the self-image as a chocolate addict. Which is probably part of the reason why it's so hard to cut down!

[davy]

At some point, the hotdog vendor (a perfectly friendly woman) made a comment not unlike the one above (maybe cutting me off as I was about to make my order and say "we know what our regulars like!"), and I never came back after that, not a single time in all the years I lived nearby.

This makes me sad for the hotdog vendor!

[Greg Nog]

I made this Barefoot Contessa broccoli recipe last night and holy shit it was fucking awesome.  I encourage all of you to do the same the next time you're thinking about having some broccoli!  I left out the pine nuts and basil, but it was still just splendid.

[Ignatius]

That is how it's done! I've seen that technique elsewhere and it makes a meal outta broccoli let me tell you.

[Greg Nog]

Indeed, the broccoli was the bulk of my dinner; I'd planned on also stir-frying some beef strips and having ome of the broccoli left over, but I pretty much just wolfed down a couple pounds of the broccoli along with a glass of milk, then thought, "I don't really want the beef, now.  Damn, I wish I had more broccoli."

[Thermofusion]

"Good olive oil"

Damn! Whatchu tryina say bout my olive oil, Ina Garten?

recipe sounds delicious

[Greg Nog]

The odd thing was the slightly-fruity olive oil taste kind of disappears among the parmesan and lemon and roasted broccoli; I think pretty much any oil would work just as well.  I may try the next iteration with an even stronger-tasting lipid, like bacon-grease.

[Ignatius]

Only the olive oil has to be good, though. Everything else you can pull out of the dumpster, I guess.

[Bernard]

I made this Barefoot Contessa broccoli recipe last night and holy shit it was fucking awesome.  I encourage all of you to do the same the next time you're thinking about having some broccoli!  I left out the pine nuts and basil, but it was still just splendid.

OOh, thank you -- I have parmesan and pine nuts and have been wondering what else I could make besides the usual.

[silentsigh89]

Greg, I swear to god I made that recipe minus the pine nuts and basil three nights ago. It was delicious. Perhaps so delicious that I sent out some mass telepathic message about how everybody should make it. Did you want to make broccoli that night, or did you just know that you HAD to?

[Greg Nog]

Actually, I came across the recipe unexpectedly on the internet, then decided I had to try it right away.  After eating it, I e-mailed my sister to be like, "HOLY CRAP YOU GOTTA TRY THIS," and apparently, they already make it all the time in her household; it's one of her wife's favorite recipes.

[alex]

That does sound pretty excellent (minus the parmesan, which I don't eat). I've been all about broccoli with almonds in the last couple of months, but I'd be willing to make an exception for this recipe. If I'd been a little bit more productive all day, I'd probably leave work right now to still make it to the organic shop before they close in order to buy some broccoli and pine nuts. As it stands, I'm still tempted. They had incredibly good broccoli last time I was at that shop, too.

[Greg Nog]

The parmesan adds a strong umami kick that I think is a significant amount of the deliciousness; if you leave it out, I might suggest something like miso to make up for it.

[alex]

That sounds like a good suggestion, thanks! Also, dammit, guess that means I'm done at work for today.

[milesofsparks]

if it weren't five million degrees and if my oven didn't put as much heat into the kitchen as the food, I would totally make that tonight.  I'll make a note for September.

[ellaguru]

I will also make this. Although my olive oil isn't what you'd call "good".