What I Use/Gift Help

Lately I have received a spate of emails wanting to know more about the cookbooks and equipment I use at home. I also got a couple emails asking for gift help for people who like to cook.

I complied a list of some of my favorite cookbooks from my personal collection here. I also use most of these cooking items every day. I also can direct you to these general kitchen essentials and baking essentials all of which are items I personally own (or in the case of the oven thermometer, I once owned but broke). These are some suggestions for gifts that I or anyone else would love and for the kids, there are a few more.

Vosges Chocolate Bars

Every time we go Wegmans (which isn't that often, it's about 1/2 hour away) we always check out their candy isle. I have never seen such a wonderful assortment in a grocery store. Scharffen Berger, Harry and David, Lindt, Rutter, Valrhona, Green & Black, etc. We generally pick out one bar to share. This time I was delighted to see (for the first time!) a selection of the Vosges chocolate bars. There were only three: Barcelona, Goji and the Red Fire to choose from so it was a tough decision. I finally chose the Barcelona which promised "hickory smoked almonds + fleur de sel gray sea salt + deep milk chocolate". Generally I always go for the dark chocolate, but at 41% cacao, the milk was pretty dark and I was intrigued by the fleur de sel and the smoked almonds. If it wasn't so expensive ($4.99, but still cheaper than the list price of $7) I might have been tempted to get more than one. As it was, I made a great choice, the smoky-salty taste was a delightful contrast to the slightly dark creamy chocolate.

It is great knowing I can get these close at home. I hope they sell well so maybe some other varieties will come in (Black Pearl! Macha! Woolloomooloo!) or even the new baking chips.

Tiny Candy, Big Identity Crisis

• I've always called these sprinkles.
• I've heard people from the Northeast call them jimmies.
• I also heard that some people call these sprinkles and only the chocolate ones jimmies.
• One guess for the origin of "jimmies" is that it is derived from the old English slang word "Jim-jam," which meant "a trivial article or knick-knack," and later used to mean "little quirks".
• If this is true, it is sort of ironic that British friends of mine refer to them as "hundreds and thousands".
• Another thought about the origins of "jimmies" (which is a registered, trademarked name of the product for the Just Born company, which also produces Peeps) is that the man who operated the machine that made what was then called "chocolate grains" was named Jimmy so they named them after him.
• Yet another explanation for "jimmies", one that I find truly bizarre is that it is a racist term-that by only calling the brown chocolate ones "jimmies" they are referring to Jim Crow. However, use of the word "jimmies" appears to predate the term "Jim Crow" so I am inclined to think that this is just an urban legend.
• I have also come across the chocolate ones referred to as "chocolate rice" on some Asian food sites/blogs but I am not sure it that is common or wide spread.
• Another word for them in the Northeastern part of the US is "shots". I find it odd that such a cold place of the country has so many terms for them, since they are traditionally found on ice cream, while warmer places only seem to have one.
• I have also heard vague references to them being called "spreckles" but I am not sure in what country.
• Nonpareils (small, round sugary balls), dragées (round, metallic) are vaguely similar in that they are used to decorate cakes and cookies, but are totally different items.

Are there any other names I missed?

Mini Baking Pans

Okay, I think we all know by now that I am a sucker for any miniature. These little cake pans are no exception. I already have a pan that yields 6 mini bundt cakes at a time and probably don't need more tiny cake vessels but I must say, I am tempted. These are sold individually for only $2.5o. This means you can buy just one (perfect for using up that tiny bit of leftover batter I always seem to have when baking a cake) or an assortment of which ever shape you want. All hearts! All tube pan! All bundt! All Jell-O mold shaped! I think they would also make cute party favors or a little decoration on top of a larger present.

What's in Your Basket Round Up

Hosting this event has been a lot of fun. I am more than a little nosy and can frequently be found checking out other people's carts at the market. Thanks so much to everyone who participated by giving me a more socially acceptable way to get a little glimpse into what people are buying and eating around the world.

I posted what I bought at a Korean grocery just out side of Baltimore City almost two weeks ago and we really haven't had to shop again.You can see what I bought and what I made with it all here. In the interest of full disclosure: my husband went once to buy milk and while there ran into our neighbor and former rock star/mayor (now governor) Martin O'Malley shopping but that was it.

Kristen of Gezellig Girl was my first respondent-she posted just a few minutes after I emailed her. I am jealous of her use of Fresh Direct! I wish we had that here in Baltimore, the prices look reasonable (especially for NYC) and they deliver! You can see her post here.


Emily of Appetive Behavior loves grocery shopping! Something I can't relate too-I enjoy the ethnic groceries and farmer's markets but day to day shopping kills me. She bought a ton of produce and gave us a excellent tip about feta cheese. Check her post out here.

Becky Ann over at Apron Strings posted here. I am impressed at the variety of items she bought at the farmer's market. Canned goods! Noodle bowls! Yogurt! One stop shopping.

Danielle, a fellow Baltimorean, posted this to her blog Box 89e. Like me, she is swayed by sales. She bought some acorn squash and linked to the recipe she used to prepare it.

I was excited to read Gretchen's (of Canela y Comino) post about buying groceries in Peru. She bought an amazing amount of fruits and vegetables for only 26 American dollars. I love the notes she included about most of the items.

Celine of Celineyum gave us a glimpse into a cart that included a lot of familiar staples: lemons, veggies and canned tomatoes. Check out her post here.


Cucina Bella's Sarah shares my interest in other people's carts. I am glad I am not the only supermarket gawker! She has a number of interesting items including some yummy looking yogurt and cheese and roast beef ends.

Check out what you can haul home on a bicycle at this post on Everybody Loves Sandwiches.

Another blogger who went to the Dekalb Farmer's Market and came home with quite a haul.

Yet another Baltimorean, Julie of Kitchenography , had a very interesting post where she discusses some ethnic markets she frequents (that I must now check out!) and some "Baltimore Moments" she had while shopping at Whole Foods.

Andrea Lynn of Madison & Mulberry posted about how difficult it can be to grocery shop when you live in a major city and have to limit your purchases due to the simple fact that you have to walk home with the bag afterwards. Now she lives in NJ and can take a car to the grocery store and is tempted by all sorts of new goodies, knowing she doesn't have to lug them home on foot.

The Baltimore Snacker was surprised to see that he buys more prepared foods than he thought. Check out his whole post here.

Ruthie of Vegan Ruthie likes to save by buying store brands. She ended up with quite a lot for only $107 with no single item that costing more than $4.85.

I was not surprised by the amount of fruits and vegetables the Vegan Diva bought. She is always sharing her great produce buys (3 stalks of lemongrass for 16 cents!) and this trip was no different.

Ben at Wait-and-See Pudding also went to a large Asian market and really stocked up. He only spent $80 and came home with a cart full of food and 40 lbs of rice! Get all of the details here.

No sugary items at all over all Sugar Delirium! She went to her local farmers market and came home with a bunch of ingredients she is not sure what to do with yet.

Over all All Things Edible, a whole lot of produce, meat and dairy was bought for only $65.

One last person from the Baltimore area, the Hungover Gourmet went to one of my favorite supermarkets, Wegmans, to buy a lot of tasty sounding items. I enjoyed reading his notes about what he planned to do with each purchase.

Kati of the Veggie Voice stocked up on a lot of organic goodies at Whole Foods. She also has a book suggestion if you are interested in learning more about what people around the world eat.

Ximena over at Lobstersquad posted a lovely drawing and list of her grocery haul here.

The voyeurism wraps up with Jasmine, the Cardamon Addict. She shopped at three separate stores. Isn't it odd that it is always the health food stores that has the best chocolate?


Thanks again to all who participated! I loved seeing what everyone bought and found some new (to me) blogs to check out in the process.

Heart Shaped Pancake Mold

Pancake molds are sort of an oddity in the kitchen. I don't know anyone who uses them on a regular basis, but the idea is interesting. What has always held me back from using them is that you can only make one rather small pancake* at a time. Even though they are relatively inexpensive (generally around $6) if you did want to buy more than one, it would add up. This heart shaped one is slightly larger than some of the other ones I have seen and while it is part of Crate and Barrel's Valentine's Day line up, I bet you could use it year round and no one would be the wiser. Plus I bet they will be marked down right after Valentine's Day and you could probably get a couple for what one costs now.

*or I bet you could make a sunny side up egg in one if it wasn't too big.

What's in My Basket

One trip to H Mart on January 13th:
2 avocados
3 Chinese eggplant
large bundle Swiss chard
4 bunches green onion
2 blocks fried bean curd
1 savoy cabbage
40 fresh thai peppers
3 baby napa cabbage
1 package hon-shimeji mushrooms
5 large cucumbers
1 large package rosemary
5 limes
2 lb green beans
2 lb bananas
1/4 lb snow peas
1 large (very fresh!!) knob ginger
1 lb fresh strawberries (only 99 cents!)
1 large package dried shiitake mushrooms
2 instant ramen
1 lb package crab stick (for sushi)
2 lb bag cellophane noodles
1 pack rice stick noodles
1 pack vegetable noodles
1 pack bean thread noodles
8 oz pickled ginger
1 package yogurt chew candy
1 bottle oyster sauce
1 bag panko
1 lb frozen squid
1 lb frozen mussels
1 large bottle rice vinegar
5 lb sushi rice
1 large bottle dark soy sauce
1 large bottle rice cooking wine
1 package shiitake and tomato noodles
2 packages nori
1 lb frozen masago (for sushi)
1 large bag frozen vegetable dumplings
1 large bag frozen mixed seafood dumplings
1 large bag frozen pork and chive dumplings
32 oz jar kimchee
1 bag tapioca pearls (for bubble tea)
1 large bag green tea mix for bubble tea
12 pack Coke

All for $103.

I didn't take pictures of what I bought (that's a picture of frozen sea squirts up top that I snapped in the store) but you can see what I made either entirely with ingredients I bought at H Mart or where a item from this trip was a main ingredient: Sushi rolls (twice!), focaccia bread, chinese eggplant/green bean stir fry, dumpling dipping sauce, kimchee rice, bubble tea, Schezuan Mussels with Eggplant , Cuba Libre cupcakes, chinese style stuffed cabbage, sesame marinated steak and some things I didn't post: homemade pork sausage patties, stir fried rice with fried tofu/veggies, biscuits with green onions, scrambled eggs w/green onions, and soba noodles with sesame seeds and snow peas.

We haven't had to go back to the store yet!

Deadline tomorrow!

To participate:

• List everything you bought, even the potentially embarrassing bits


• How much you spent


• Share where you shopped


• Post a picture (if possible)
  
• Send me a link to the post to my email address : coconutlimeblog @ gmail . com


• Post by January 25th, and the round up will be here on Jan. 27th.

Banned from Chowhound?

Have you been even banned from Chowhound or had your post mysteriously disappear? There seems to be a lot of this going on at this online message board/ forum about food. Slashfood had an interesting post about people being banned and posts being removed when they are unfavorable to the establishment they are talking about. I subscribe the feed for the Baltimore/DC area on Bloglines and I see this happen rather frequently. For example, yesterday someone posted a negative experience involving a Whole Foods store. It showed up on Bloglines as a new post but when I clicked on it to read and respond, it had been removed. From what I saw, it did not have particularly inflammatory speech or any foul language. I also noticed a post about the legality of bringing home an open bottle of wine from a restaurant in MD*. Why, then were they removed**? Is it some sort of fear of lawsuit on the part of Chow (who merged with Chowhound after their magazine folded and became online only) and Chowhound? You would think there would be some sort of warning (like there is on the commentary tracks of movies) that the views expressed are that of the person who posted and not Chowhound's, etc.

It is a shame because I like to hear about negative experiences as much as I do the positive and I would like the only regional forum (that I can find, and even so, we have to share it with DC and NOVA) to be more than just a "where can I find..." repository. Although I would like to know: where can I find affordable matcha powder in my area?

*Now legal, you just have to put it in the trunk.
**a response to removals from Chowhound can be found here but I don't think it makes much sense in these cases.

Fruit Print Fabric

I love anything in a fruit print: fabric, dishes, dishcloths, clothes. I think this fabric from Reprodepot would make beautiful kitchen curtains.

Pillsbury Bake-Off

The annual Pillsbury Bake-Off has begun! Submissions are due by April 22nd. I am half tempted to enter, but I am not sure what I'd make. I am not familiar with a lot of the packaged products you have to choose from as one of your ingredients. I wish I could have entered back in the 1960s when the winning recipes included many more "raw ingredient" type things like flour*. I mean, yay for food blogger Anna Ginsberg for winning last year, but I have to say, not only would I not have frozen waffles/maple syrup on hand, I don't think it would occur to me in a million years to add them to chicken. Maybe I don't have the kind of culinary mind it would take to win? It might be fun to try though. I will try, there are many products to choose from and several categories to enter. Not to mention the million dollar prize!


*I guess in a way this reflects how most Americans actually cook now, by doctoring up packaged foods.

IngenuiTea

While I am not a tea drinker, my husband is and he loves his IngenuiTea teapot. It is really quite clever, you put loose tea and hot water in the top, let it seep and then push it down on the top of your mug which releases a lever and the tea drains out, leaving the tea leaves behind. You can get it by itself or as part of a starter set with a selection of teas. They have a great variety of teas for all tastes. They also have some other fun products including the Concert Teapot which is almost a work of art, and the blooming tea/clear mug set.

Leave a comment with your email address and I can send you a $5 off your first purchase coupon if you are interested.

Fancy Cupcake Liners

I know this is a dilemma that plagues the best of us. What do you do if you want to both be elegant and serve cupcakes? Live in fear no longer. These cupcake liners have fancy cut out designs that will hover above the cupcake. They are a little pricy ($8 for 10) but for a special occasion, it might be worth it.

Two of My Favorite Things in One

I spotted this over at Plastic Girl. I bet you can't guess what it is! Decorative cakes made out of melted Tupperware! While I don't condone tupper-violence, I can't help but be attracted to these little cakes.

What's In Your Basket?

I shared my grocery purchases yesterday and it got me wondering about what other people buy at the grocery store. I thought it would be fun to have a one day event where we all share what we bought during one trip to the store.

To participate:

• List everything you bought, even the potentially embarrassing bits


• How much you spent


• Share where you shopped


• Post a picture (if possible)
  
• Send me a link to the post to my email address : coconutlimeblog @ gmail . com


• Post by January 25th, and the round up will be here on Jan. 27th.

Thrifty Tip #3: Shop at Ethnic Groceries

I am a big fan of shopping at the various ethnic groceries around Baltimore. One of our favorites, H Mart, formerly named Han Ah Rheum, is a giant Korean grocery store that is the size of a grocery store like a Safeway. They have great prices not only on various Asian products but also serve a large Indian and Latino population. Their produce prices* are the cheapest I've seen and you can find many vegetables and fruits both exotic (fresh durian or rambutan anyone?) and not (green beans, 5 kinds of eggplants) for sale.

To illustrate my point, I'd like to share our grocery purchases last night in its entirety:

2 avocados
3 Chinese eggplant
large bundle Swiss chard
4 bunches green onion
2 blocks fried bean curd
1 savoy cabbage
40 fresh thai peppers
3 baby napa cabbage
1 package hon-shimeji mushrooms
5 large cucumbers
1 large package rosemary
5 limes
2 lb green beans
2 lb bananas
1/4 lb snow peas
1 large (very fresh!!) knob ginger
1 lb fresh strawberries (only 99 cents!)
1 large package dried shiitake mushrooms
2 instant ramen
1 lb package crab stick (for sushi)
2 lb bag cellophane noodles
1 pack rice stick noodles
1 pack vegetable noodles
1 pack bean thread noodles
8 oz pickled ginger
1 package yogurt chew candy
1 bottle oyster sauce
1 bag panko
1 lb frozen squid
1 lb frozen mussels
1 large bottle rice vinegar
5 lb sushi rice
1 large bottle dark soy sauce
1 large bottle rice cooking wine
1 package shiitake and tomato noodles
2 packages nori
1 lb frozen masago (for sushi)
1 large bag frozen vegetable dumplings
1 large bag frozen mixed seafood dumplings
1 large bag frozen pork and chive dumplings
32 oz jar kimchee
1 bag tapioca pearls (for bubble tea)
1 large bag green tea mix for bubble tea
12 pack Coke

All for $103.



*If you are lucky enough to live in a city with a ethnic neighborhood like a Chinatown, that is a good place for cheap, varied produce as well. NPR highlighted this in an story last week.

Baked Carrots from Food that Really Schmecks!

Food That Really Schmecks* by Edna Staebler is a collection of Mennonite country cooking recipes. Edna Staebler was a journalist who in the process of writing a story befriended a Mennonite family. She began collecting their recipes and put them out in a book. It is a down home sort of cookbook, conversational in tone and the recipes all could be classified as "comfort food". These recipes range from desserts to fruit/vegetables, breads and meats all with copious amounts of butter, eggs and sugar. There no pictures but wonderful descriptions and asides about each recipe. Many of the recipes have notes like "the best thing you could do to a potato", "an omelette that will cover your bones" or "serve hot hot hot". It is sort of like reading someone's old family cookbook, complete with marginalia. There are tips on making vegetables, sauces and bread which as quite helpful, but you should be forewarned that some of the recipes call for things like "butter the size of an egg", a moderate oven and suet. You'll need to guess about bowl size, how long "awhile" is and when to add spices. I don't want to dissuade you from buying the book, even if you don't make the recipes, it is a fascinating peek back in time and into a culture different than our own. I honestly read most of it like I would a novel.

It was hard to decide on a recipe to make. Many of the recipes are on the, let's say heavy side, or called for ingredients that I didn't happen to have on hand. After much deliberation, I decided on the above recipe and it turned out very well. I never would have thought of shredding and baking carrots but it was a good, easy side dish. The ginger gave it a bit of a zip and amazingly the carrots stayed slightly crisp even after 45 minutes in the oven. A easy, no fuss side dish. When I have more time, I'd like to make some of the breads and rolls in the book, she provides lots of variations that sound intriguing.



This is a part of the A Day That Really Schmecks round up. Check out all of the posts over at Cardamon Addict on January 15th. Thanks to Jasmine for coordinating the event and to the publishers for sending me this book to review.






*Okay, I have to admit, part of the allure of this book is the title. We have had great fun trying to work "schmecks" (which means "good" to the best of my knowledge) into casual conversation.

Clearly Retro

These glass baking dishes (above) from Crate and Barrel have a sort of retro feel to them. They are very affordable ($9 for the small, $13 for the large) and are dishwasher, microwave and oven safe. What I like about them is the tight fitting lid, it would be very handy to bake in these and then be able to stick them right in the fridge.

I also spotted these refrigerator dishes (below). Refrigerator dishes aren't something you see too much of any more. I have some vintage Pyrex ones but for the most part, I rely on Tupperware for my food storage. The great thing about refrigerator dishes is that beyond being stylish, they can go from the fridge to the oven. They can even be frozen, microwaved and stuck in the dish washer.

Momofuku Ando

The creator of instant ramen, Momofuku Ando, died recently at age 96. NPR has a interesting bit about it by Robert Smith (I am assuming not of the Cure fame) who talks to grad students and discusses the impact of ramen in the US.

My wishlist: A Yummy Treats Shirt

Okay, so this isn't exactly something you can use in your kitchen. But really, doesn't it deserve a mention? Made by Kid Pirate, this print comes in a t-shirt ($10) and a sweatshirt ($24). They also sell a chocopops t-shirt in brown ($10).

New Arrivals

I've blogged about Rosanna's plates and serving ware before. Now the new Spring line is out and it is just as pretty. I love the new Boho collection. The colors and designs remind me of Lilly Pulitzer dresses and big fancy parties on the lawn. I like how it is floral and bright without being too fussy.

Fresh From the Factory

You can now order Reese's cups straight from the factory-they mail the jar to you within 96 hours of the candies being made. I have to say, as someone who has been to Hershey PA more times than I can count, fresher is better. The candy might still be good on the expiration date but it's better fresher. This would make a really special gift for someone who is a big Reese's Cup fan. Click here to order.

Food Blog Awards

This year's food blog awards are up. I enjoyed nominating my favorites and it is opened up to the public to vote.

I am pleased to see some of my favorites in the final 5 for their categories- Lovescool for Best Chef Blog (I remember it from the pre-chef days, it was the first food blog I read), Vegan Lunchbox and Sweetnicks up in the Family/Kids category. In the new blog category we have Jumbo Empanadas and Pinch My Salt facing off, several fun entries up for best post, my long time read Rice and Noodles for Best Recipes, Cream Puffs in Venice for writing and most surprisingly (to me, anyway) I am up in the original recipes category. Go and vote!


The nominations are good place to find new blogs too. Gastrokid is new to me and super cute. And Sushi Day! Yum!

Mark Bittman: Friend or Foe?

So, how do you all feel about Mark Bittman? He's all over the New York Times, bloggers every where tried his "no knead" bread, he has a tv show, contributes to NPR and has written several cookbooks. The thing is, I feel like I should like him, but I am not sure I do. On one hand, I like anyone who encourages the average person to cook and bake (much in the same way I appreciated Oprah encouraging people to read, despite my misgivings about her and her book choices) but on the other, I find I don't really enjoy his recipes or style.

While I appreciate an opinionated person, some of his opinions (like there aren't any really good Asian cookbooks in America) just don't seem well founded. A quick Amazon search yields over a thousand cookbooks on Japanese, Thai, Chinese, and Korean food alone-surely some are acceptable.

I find it grating that he and his publishers re-released How to Cook Everything in several smaller chunks without adding anything new. They don't exactly hide that it is recycled material, but I bet many people bought some of the newer books (list price per book about $15-20) without realizing that they could get the whole thing in one book for much cheaper (Amazon has it for $23, list price $35). His other book, The Minimalist Cooks Dinner also has parts of HTCE in it.

Frankly I wasn't too impressed with How to Cook Everything to begin with. I realize that it is aimed at non cooks but honestly, I didn't see a single recipe I felt the urge to make. Not because they were too easy but that they seem uninspired. His other book The Best Recipes in the World was marginally better, but even he admits the recipes are not for the most part authentic. His casual style and breezy attitude about cooking are probably a result of being a very successful but untrained chef (who wouldn't be confident if you had been a cab driver and community organizer only to rocket to culinary stardom and NYT columns?) but occasionally do a disservice to the food. He does a bit of blurring of culinary boundaries which struck me as odd as it is supposed to be a book on international foods. He does focus on more of the "every day" cooking of various countries as opposed to just the fancy dishes which I appreciate but again, if even he says the recipes aren't always authentic, and are often extremely simplified, I wonder if one is really getting a true taste of the cuisine.

His penchant for fast and easy some times leads to some misses as well. I also found some cooking times to be off, in more than one recipe he has you cook chicken for only 5 minutes, which leaves them raw and potentially dangerous. He also calls for you to cook things like minced onion and garlic over high heat for 5 or more minutes, which would leave you with cinders, not carmelization. Some of the recipes are a little odd, a method for cooking pasta like risotto to avoid having to wait to bring water to a boil seems a little pointless. It takes something with no hands on time like boiling water and makes it a slightly faster but more tedious task. Another slightly bizzare suggestion is to use a whole chicken to make broth and then to discard the chicken. It just seems like a waste of money and food when a perfectly good stock can be made with a carcass. For someone who calls themselves a "minimalist" this seems a bit over the top.


Despite all this, I do appreciate that he gives many people who are not experienced cooks a place to start. Maybe after reading his books they will move on to other cookbooks that they might not have felt ready for before.


This is a much longer post than I planned on writing but I am really interested in hearing your thoughts and experiences... Mark Bittman- Friend or Foe?

Thanks for the help!

For the record:
Drank: classic coke, champagne
Ate: Nerds (1983), gummy bears (introduced to US 1980), Jelly Belly (Reagan's favorite) jelly beans, Skittles (1982), poke cake (recipe put out by Jell-O during the eighties) and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pizza with Artichoke Hearts.
Watched: Footloose (better than expected, the "making of" was so earnest!), Flashdance (made no sense), Some Kind of Wonderful (okay, Mary Stuart Masterson and Elias Koteas were good) and For Keeps (which was actually oddly funny and good). Dirty Dancing didn't arrive on time.

It was a lot of fun! I am looking forward to next year's 70s night. Fondue!