Smita Nordwall

So sorry for the late entry. Drone and I will be there. I will bring Bloody Mary gazpacho and possibly crepes for dessert.

What do you do with rue? I love the look of the plant so I put one in couple of years ago and it is thriving but I'd love to be able to use it.

There were strawberries (very sweet ones) at both the markets I attended last week. Can't say how much they cost at Annandale Mason District but they were $4 per basket at Vienna on Saturday. Also got tiny, tender kohlrabi, lettuce and fresh pasta in Annandale and bacon, asparagus and gerbera daisies in Vienna. But the best reason to visit with of those markets and the one in Kingstowne Friday? .... CRACKPOT GOURMET, of course. Please come visit, shoot the breeze, sample the jams, and let me get to know you.

Drone and I are planning to buy a propane grill after years for loyalty to the Webber Kettle. We would love to get suggestions on what we should look for. We don't want to spend a ton of money, around $500? Is that a good goal?

Thanks Johnb. Ours are on Iam's but they seemed to like that added canned food. I will see how they react to my concoction. Just can't believe the extent of the canned food recall.

As I write this, a pot sits simmering on the stove with brown rice, sweet potato, carrots, garlic, a pinch of salt, little cider vinegar to which I will add tofu and rehydrated seaweed. My two dogs (each almost 100 pounds) are off all canned dog food. This stew will supplement their dry food. If not, all I would end up cooking is for those hippos. Does anyone have a recipe/suggestions for large breeds?

Ahhhh.... Lupini. that's it. Thanks guys. Now. Where do I buy some?

During the DR happy hour at Dino, the chef kept us fat and happy with some great apps. One was a dish of beans ( I think fava beans). Can anyone, Dean????, tell me the kind of beans we ate and what had been done to them?

You are right, I am not at the Burke market, yet. Last year, I was at Kingstowne and Mason District in Annandale. Hope to add Mt. Vernon and either Reston or Burke this year. For all of you looking for variety, I'd recommend both Kingstowne and Mason District. There are some great vendors at both. Come by and see us.

I noticed the Fairfax County farmers markets were not mentioned in the shopping guide. As a vendor at those markets, I was wondering is there a reason why? Do you not shop at the various markets in Reston, Annanndale, Kinstowne etc? I know the market organizers would love any input we have to offer.

Fresh lima beans!!!!! I love them too. I get them at farmers markets, although you are right, not many farmers grow them. Level Green farms sells at several Fairfax County markets and usually have them in August. I splurge then and freeze my own. Asian eggplant, peppers and heirloom tomatoes from my garden win my vote as well. This time of the year, all the greens I can cook. One of fave ways: with loads of garlic and white beans.

Pat, Sorry I didn't see this earlier. There is an Ethiopian market on South Pickett street, in the shopping center at the corner of S. Pickett and Van Dorn. I know it's also available in Adams Morgan.

Yes, if you are willing to sell your soul.

Quit my day job? I did. As a result, I am: 1. way more broke. 2. way more happy. 3. Looking forward to tomorrow. While the last two are motivators, the first shouldn't be a deterrent. It took a huge leap of faith to leave a well-paying job as a journalist and spend my days making preserves. If you feel you must, you should. If you have doubts.... don't.

Go ahead and blaspheme, jparrott, that's the kind of thinking I was looking for. I ended up taking the easy way out and making injera chips for my crunch-hound hubby. Injera dries very well in the oven... but next time I am thinking of using it like a dosa. It has the tang that's similar ... Perhaps I can roll some "Indian" veggies in it and then crisp the roll in the oven.

I stopped by an Ethiopian market today and now I have a huge package of beautiful injera in my kitchen. What can I do besides make a vat of wat? Does anyone know if you can freeze injera? Come on folks let that creativity flow....

Whoops -- make that "felt like a hotel restaurant, rather than the restaurant IN a hotel that it is."

Hubby E and I lunched at Corduroy yesterday. Once again, I will let him be the writer. "My first impression: Corduroy looked & felt like a hotel restaurant, rather than the hotel in a restaurant that it is. I think it was the combination of the wraparound mirror on the walls & the somewhat shabby/run-down upholstery on some of the chairs (mine had a half-dollar-sized hole in the seat). This impression was forgotten almost instantly by our friendly & competent waiter. We’d ordered a glass of wine each; he returned minutes later saying the chef had recommended a half bottle of something else that was similar & cost the same. More of similar wine, less money? Absolutely. The wine? Eh. But we’re not sommeliers, so he stuff probably was similar to what we’d ordered. Do I believe the chef recommended it? Power was there (he’s known for almost always being there), but I rather doubt it. Either way, it was a very promising start. As were the appetizers. I had the warm goat cheese with crispy potato. It came with a large portion of cheese atop lettuce leaves, with a spider web of -- yes, crispy -- potatoes sticking out of the cheese. The lettuce was difficult to cut through with a fork, & I refuse to go to the knife for that kind of appetizer, but it was otherwise excellent, a nice combo, beautifully done. At the waiter’s suggestion, CG had the Filipino-style spring rolls with dipping sauce. I loved it -- the fried shell was crispy without being greasy & I thought the pork filling was nicely seasoned. CG liked it OK, but found it a little dull; I think she expected it to be a little spicier. In fact, she said preferred the ones at Manila Cafe in Springfield -- greasier, but, in her mind, more flavorful. Between courses, I asked CG why she thought there was a saucer in the middle of the table with two slices of lemon on it. She guessed -- correctly, I’m sure -- that it was for people to put in their water, & thank the gods! I’ve been railing for years about restaurants just assuming you want lemon with your water; this may not have been the most elegant solution, but a solution beats the hell out of the alternative. Entrees. I had the lobster & chervil omelet with baby greens. I have never had an omelet that was better cooked. This was art -- light, fluffy, glorious. Which was sad, since the rest of it was pretty bland. More lobster would have helped there, not that I’d expect the omelet to be lobster-packed during RW, but so would salt. Like, any salt. If the kitchen folk were aiming for pure egg-lobster-chervil flavor, they achieved it, but I’d have appreciated a bit of cheese & at least a pinch of salt. Still, you don’t come across a perfect omelet often enough, so I’d call it a wash. CG had the roast (organic) lamb sirloin with garlic mashed potatoes, and, wow. WOW. CG’s an awesome cook, & I say this with no disrespect, but I’ve never had a piece of lamb I liked better -- it was juicy, succulent, melt-in-your-mouth perfection. The spuds were excellent -- so often, places over-garlic their garlic mashed spuds, overpowering the potato flavor. Not at Corduroy. And the green beans served with it were dead-on al dente. For my money, this was easily the best of the four entrees we tried during RW. Neither of us are dessert fiends, so I don’t feel qualified to say much about them except that my chocolate tart with caramelized banana was rich & very, very satisfying. And CG’s chocolate-hazelnut bars -- which our waiter said that Power learned at Citronelle & which he serves with Michel Richard’s blessing -- was downright decadent. We brought it home, ate it hours later & loved it. And if CG loves a dessert, that’s saying something. In sum: Great service, great food, pleasant atmosphere. That was our first trip to Corduroy; we’ll definitely be back.

This really is unacceptable. Perhaps ScotteeM and I can help? A couple of Dobermans by your side when you order next time might have him leaving the order on your doorstep and asking you to mail the payment. On a more serious note, I would tell the guy, "please don't touch me" in the firmest of tones.

My husband E and I had lunch today at Farrah Olivia. Since he is the professional writer, I will let you see what he wrote about it (with a little in put from me). I, of course, am CG. "The first thing I noticed about the place is how small it is -- fewer than 25 tables. I didn't think we'd have needed a reservation -- it's a Wednesday, after all, & they serve lunch until 3 (our reservation was for 1:15) -- but ours was the only table open. The place has a reputation for a slow kitchen, & it lived up to its reputation -- it took at least 30 minutes for our appetizers to arrive. We got bread, at least, which had four toppings -- honey-lavender butter, bok choy, tomato-basil & spiced pumpkin spreads. The first two were great; the pumpkin tasted like less-sweet pumpkin pie & the tomato tasted like tomato paste. When our apps finally arrived, it was worth the wait. CG had duck confit with grapes, endive & Maytag -- excellent. The duck was perfectly cooked, and the Maytag & grapes complemented it nicely. I had the goat cheese potstickers with lemongrass broth & fennel, & -- disaster! It came with mushrooms! (E hates mushrooms!) CG offered to switch immediately, but I decided to give it a try & see if the 'shrooms bothered me, & they didn't. The potstickers were delicious, but the real highlight was the broth. I don't know how they could call it lemongrass -- it was rich & brown with no lemongrass flavor whatsoever -- but it was so good that we were sopping it up with bread. It was a bit too salty, but that's the only complaint, & a mild one. Second course: soup/salad (neither of us were interested in the desserts, although they looked fanciful). I had the silky cream of Parmesan soup with root veggies & cinnamon spicing, which was absolutely delicious &, as advertised, silky. The cinnamon really worked well with the Parm. CG had a deconstructed Caesar salad. The romaine came on a sourdough flan wafer with a bit of dressing on top, with the bacon, more sauce & sardines in individual piles on the plate. The sourdough flan was really good, the rest of it was OK but nothing to write home about. Entrée: I had Korobuta pork with honeyed cabbage & prosciutto jus which was … fine. The pork was perfectly cooked & nicely flavorful, just a little dull. CG had a salmon filet that came wrapped in caul fat and spiced with five spice. She said that it was the best salmon she'd ever had. Overall, we were quite satisfied. The service was … not hovering, exactly, just a little chattier/needier than I'd like (asking if we liked each course a couple of times), but she was clearly a professional waiter -- not someone who was working their way through college or something -- so no real complaints there, either. Friday: Corduroy."

Tonight: Posole verde with chicken and a mixed-greens salad. Keeping in mind Don's dinner invitation for the "losers" of the fitness challenge.

Gamasot is a gem. We dined there New Year's Eve. A comforting, delicious way to end a year. Escoffier, how did you hear about the rice cake soup? I don't recall seeing any signs the night before.

What a great incentive for the newbie. I am in as well. Thanks guys.

Hi, I am new to this site but since I make preserves for a living, thought I could help you out. I would not recommend using Ina's recipe and simply canning it. For successful preservation, you need a certain amount of acid and I am not sure Ina's recipe has that. You can make Ina's sauce, put it in a pretty jar and recommend that it be refrigerated and used fairly quickly. Or, you can use recipes that are specifically formulated for canning. This is a good place to start. If you have any specific questions, I will be happy to help. http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_03/bbqsauce.html