bettyjoan

I am currently having way too much fun with the Washington Post cookie issue. First up was honeyed sriracha cookies - they are really different, sweet on the front end with a subtle spice that grows as you eat. I'm also going to try my hand at the gluten-free chai-spiced snickerdoodles and the raspberry pomegranite bars. I love that the holiday season gives me a good excuse to bake a zillion cookies and then share them with colleagues and friends.

Ginger chewies: http://www.chow.com/recipes/10071-super-sized-ginger-chewies Cranberry upside down cake: http://www.marthastewart.com/332789/cranberry-upside-down-cake I really like the cranberry cake for breakfast - it's sweet, but not TOO sweet, and the tart cranberries really wake your mouth up.

That didn't take long: http://www.popville.com/2014/12/roses-luxury-reservations-already-listed-on-craigslist-table-for-2-going-for-200/?ic_source=ic-featured-frontpage-top ETA: http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/youngandhungry/2014/12/02/scalper-tries-to-sell-roses-luxury-reservation/

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had our usual two-night affair - Thursday was prime rib, green beans, roasted potatoes, and sauteed mushrooms (traditional Thanksgiving for my family - my late grandmother hated turkey), and Friday was turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, roasted brussels sprouts, and cranberry sauce (my chefly brother-in-law and his mother put everything together). All of the food was absolutely delicious - my mom got the beef and turkey from a specialty meat market this year (instead of a big chain grocery store), and the difference in quality was astounding. Well worth the added cost. I made my famous ginger chewies and a cranberry upside down cake. I also took the prime rib bones and made beef stock and then beef barley soup - it was the best batch I've made in a long time. Of course, just as I was getting accolades for my awesome soup, Chef David decided to turn the turkey leftovers into maybe the most amazing turkey noodle soup ever. It's good AND bad having a chef in the family.

Yep, that's him! I remember chatting with you about the Minibar connection - and then I told my sister about it, and she remembered the night very fondly.

It's already happening: "No More Reservations: Exclusive Restaurants Require Ticketing Instead" by Jeff Tyler on npr.org My brother-in-law's restaurant in SF uses this same ticketing system, and while there were definitely kinks in the beginning (high demand pretty much crashed the system), it is preferable to the no-shows. If the tickets are transferrable (which they are), what's the real downside?

Finally got to try Bullfrog yesterday, and while the everything bagel was delicious, I'm not sure we'll be back anytime soon. Their ordering/service system leaves a lot to be desired, especially on a busy weekend. First, when you enter, you have to fight your way to the front to take a number. Then, when they call your number, you go up and order/pay. Then you wait again to hear your number called when your food is ready. Maybe it works better when they are not as crowded (as many things would, naturally), but I waited over 30 minutes just to put my order in - they had two stations set up with tablets/Square for orders and payment, but they were only using one (despite the fact that the other station had an employee standing there, doing what, I'm not sure). When I finally got up to the station to place my order, the guy taking it walked away no less than 3 times before the transaction was finished. I ordered a salt bagel with jalapeno cream cheese and an everything bagel with scallion and chive cream cheese. Unfortunately, we didn't open the bagels until we were walking home, and we realized that my husband got a plain bagel instead of a salt bagel (given the lack of attention at the register, I shouldn't be surprised that the order was wrong). When my folks come to town, maybe I'll pre-order a dozen and go pick them up during a less crowded time. But, I don't see us making Bullfrog a part of our Saturday or Sunday routine - just too much time.

Made "zoodles" (zucchini noodles) with turkey meatballs and the aforementioned red sauce. It's official: with a sauce that good, I can be fooled into thinking zucchini is pasta.

Seared salmon over BLT salad - well, BAT salad, since I used arugula instead of lettuce - with a lemon caper vinaigrette.

Dinner was BLTs and sliced cucumbers, but I also just got done making this: http://seriouseats.com/2014/09/the-food-lab-use-the-oven-to-make-the-best-darned-italian-american-red-sauce-ever-recipe.html It. Is. AWESOME. Off to look for new ways to use it (eggplant parmesan is already on my brain).

Thanks to everyone who came out - great food and conversation! And the weather could not have been prettier. For those who asked, this is the method I use for hard-boiled eggs: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/04/steamed-hard-boiled-eggs-recipe.html I love how today's conversation topics went all over the map, but always somehow made their way back to food.

Learned a valuable lesson about Rose's last night - my group of 6 got in line around 4:30 (well, only 2 of us waited in line, the rest moved on to grab a cocktail elsewhere), and by the time we made it to the hosts at around 5:30, we were told no way, no how. I didn't realize that there was only ONE place they could seat a larger party. Perhaps they could come out to the line and let folks know once the larger table is "spoken for" for the night? We were in good spirits and didn't mind waiting (we knew we weren't actually going to be eating until much later in the evening), but there was something very irksome about waiting for an hour...for nothing.

Raspberry palmiers are done, and deviled eggs just need to be filled. Looking forward to seeing folks! I don't think it's a huge deal if we don't have name tags, especially since this is a smaller event.

Sounds like folks want to charge onward - so, onward we shall charge! I'll bring an assortment of deviled eggs, beer, and probably also something sweet. Noon sounds like a great start time.

So...there has been concern regarding attendance (or lack thereof), and it's been suggested that we should cancel the picnic. As much as I hate to do so, I do acknowledge that with the current RSVP list, it's likely to be a lot of effort for just a few folks. What does everyone think? I think that if we do cancel (and heck, even if we don't), I'd like to get some folks together - call it a picnic committee of sorts - to discuss our next attempt at the event and what we can do to avoid this situation in the future. Let me know - I'm flexible either way.

Yeah, unfortunately, my nephew is a TERRIBLE sleeper. We can't ever count on him sleeping through a meal (in fact, when I was out in California visiting him this summer, he would often START fussing immediately when we sat down to dine, both at home and at restaurants), so places that are understanding of the fussiness and that also have some noise to drown him out are best.

My parents, sister, and 4-month-old nephew are coming to town for Columbus Day weekend. We may be able to get a babysitter one night so we can go out for a grown-up meal. For the other meals, can anyone recommend restaurants that would be as delicious as possible but also friendly to a potentially fussy infant? All genres of food and all price ranges will be considered - but we must stick to DC, and the closer to NoMa, the better. Thanks!

It sounds like you are asking for recommendations in Madrid. If so, you should look here - much good intel. Madrid is my favorite place in the whole world, and I find that you can walk into any number of restaurants and have amazing food.

I think starting around 11 sounds good - any other thoughts? It's definitely a "come when you can" type of event, but I doubt folks will be there after 5. StarStraf, thanks for the offer, I will let you know! I hope to have my Zipcar membership activated by then, in which case we'll do that (and I can bring heavier stuff in that case). Who else is joining us?

So, I am slowly getting over my aversion to zucchini (though I don't think I'll ever be a fan of zucchini bread - the smell just always repelled me when I was a kid and my mom would bake batches and batches of it). I bought a spiralizer thingy to make zucchini noodles, as a means of preparing low/no-carb "pasta" dishes. Does anyone have any particularly yummy suggestions for recipes in that vein?

Bunless zucchini-turkey burgers Arugula salad with tomato, basil, red onion, mozzarella, and balsamic

Can someone commit to bringing a cooler and ice? We just sold our car, so I am still figuring out how we are getting there, so I don't want to add to the complexity by bringing something that bulky.

Seared skirt steaks with charred corn, peach, and jalapeno salsa. Yum.

Husband and I are trying to limit the carbs, so last night was chicken enchilada-filled zucchini boats (from Skinnytaste) and Trader Joe's roasted corn. I'm not a huge zucchini fan, but the dish was spicy and interesting enough that I didn't notice the zucchini taste as much. I will cook it a little less next time, since the zucchini was a bit mushy (which definitely reminded me that I was eating zucchini). Catching up on reading this thread, and everyone's recent dinners sound so good. Why not bring your cooking talents (and your lovely faces) to the DR picnic this weekend?

So how did the chili turn out?