What Are Your Most and Least Favorite Pasta Shapes?

Not sure if you are joking, but penne is the plural of penna which means feather or quill.

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Storing homemade fresh mozzarella

The local salumeria that my family has bought fesh mozzarella from for 50 years or so does not hold theirs in brine; they hold it in the liquid leftover from making it.

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Seeing Someone Touch Your Food

Just curious Redstickchef...have you ever had anyone complain you don't wear gloves or report getting sick while with employer B?

ttoommyy in Not About Food

Best Pasta Dish of 2012

I had the appetizer portion of the Frascatelli all Romana with ramps, speck and black pepper cream at Union Square last month and it was hands down the best pasta dish I've had so far this year. Creamy but light and with a wonderful mouthfeel. Since I thought the 1/2 portion was filling, I am more than sure you can make a whole meal of the full portion. Buon appetito!

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Best Pasta Dish of 2012

Plus they sell the agnolotti at the fresh pasta counter so you can try to make the dish at home as well!

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Seeing Someone Touch Your Food

Good observation small h!

ttoommyy in Not About Food

Seeing Someone Touch Your Food

Do you both realize that same waiter is probably touching food in the kitchen when helping to plate certain items?

ttoommyy in Not About Food

Meat curing salt

Great. Thanks kathryn.

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Seeing Someone Touch Your Food

Agree with you 100% ricepad.

Unless the counter person puts on a fresh pair of gloves in front of you and then disposes of those gloves immediately after touching your food, you will NEVER know where else those gloves have been. In a perfect world, the counter person would change their gloves each and every time, but we know that is never going to happen. Like I said in an earlier post, when I was younger no one ever wore gloves in food service. Human beings seemed to have survived those times and continued to thrive.

ttoommyy in Not About Food

Meat curing salt

I agree. I want to follow the recipe exactly the first time, especially since this is my first attempt at a cured item.

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Meat curing salt

Thanks tex. I wonder if the addition of the sugar adds anything to the finished product or if Jacques was just using it because Morton may be a sponsor?

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Meat curing salt

Thanks for the info kathryn. I'm not familiar with either of these places. Other than the online stores, are they located in NYC?

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Meat curing salt

No, I haven't yet but will do so this weekend when I do my usual shopping. Thanks dave_c.

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Meat curing salt

Thanks tex, I appreciate the info. I did a search on the Morton's web site and see this 2 lb. bag is supposed to be available at a number of Wegman's grocery stores in NJ, with the closest being a 17-mile drive from my place in Hoboken. May be a good field trip for this long weekend coming up.

edit: I just noticed I can order it from Morton's web site. I may wind up going that route if nothing else pans out.

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Meat curing salt

Does anyone know of a source in NYC to buy meat curing salt or something similar? I was watching an episode of Essential Pepin and now I want to try my hand at a country paté or sausage. I know I can probably get it online but I thought I'd try NYC first. Thanks.

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Seeing Someone Touch Your Food

I'm 51 years old. I can't for the life of me remember people in food service using gloves for at least the first 30 or so of those years. Didn't bother me then and doesn't bother me now.

ttoommyy in Not About Food

red sauce Italian near the Theater District- Trattoria Trecolori, Puttanesca or somewhere else?

I wouldn't necessarily categorize Becco as red-sauce Italian.

ttoommyy in Manhattan

What should I order at...

You must, must, must try the charcuterie at the Public House! We had the duck rillettes, country pate and a porchetta stuffed with rabbit loin. As a bonus, the chef sent out a "foie gras parfait." This was a crock of foie gras with a layer of rhubarb gelatin on top. It was all delicious. We were amazed at how good the food was given that we had never heard of the place before. Enjoy!

ttoommyy in Las Vegas

First date (technically, 1.5, I guess) recommendations please! Great food + beer options!

I second Birreria.

ttoommyy in Manhattan

Reservations for lunch?

Some places do take reservations; not sure about the ones you have mentioned though. If a place does take a reservation I usually do so through Open Table if able to because then I accumulate points.

ttoommyy in Las Vegas

Kraft "real Parmesan cheese"

"I didn't say a word, money is tight."

Great point laliz. We must always remember that here on CH.

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Calorie listings at chains

Of course.

ttoommyy in Not About Food

Kraft "real Parmesan cheese"

"and we still don't know who is keeping the green box in business"

I know you haven't lived in the States in a while, but there is a vast population here between the coasts whose idea of Italian food is the restaurant chain Olive Garden. They are the ones keeping the "green box in business." Not everyone is as educated, or cares to be for that matter, in the finer points of cheese as we CH snobs are. We must always remember that when speaking from our soap boxes. :)

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Calorie listings at chains

Thanks chowser. Another thing that helped me was taking a basic nutrition class in college. It made me understand food better. It should be a required class in grammar and high scools both.

ttoommyy in Not About Food

Kraft "real Parmesan cheese"

That looks like a slightly older version maybe?

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Kraft "real Parmesan cheese"

Aren't we though? lol
It's rarely ever the copywriter though. I'm sure if that is the intention of writing "100% Grated Parmesan" then that piece of "creative genius" came from way on high in the corporation that is Kraft.

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Kraft "real Parmesan cheese"

"Perhaps the OP inferred that "100%" meant "real"?"

I was wondering the same thing. I think that's what Kraft wants the consumer to believe. But it can also be read as 100% modifying the word "grated;" fully grated Parmesan cheese. As an advertising copywriter I would not put it past them.

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Kraft "real Parmesan cheese"

And here's a picture of the can. I don't see the word "real." Maybe that was used with older versions and they have since stopped using it?

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics

Kraft "real Parmesan cheese"

"...so the question remains: what is in the green box? what do they mean by 'real Parmesan cheese'?"

I don't see anywhere that they use the phrase "real Parmesan cheese."

From the Kraft web site:
KRAFT 100% GRATED PARMESAN Cheese

KRAFT 100% GRATED PARMESAN Cheese, in the familiar green can, has been a part of the Italian meal tradition for over half a century. For millions of Americans, shaking on the grated Parmesan cheese is the finishing touch that signals permission to share good food in the company of those that you love.

Shake it on your favorite pasta or pizza. Or visit our recipe page to make great dishes using KRAFT 100% GRATED PARMESAN Cheese. Now available in 16 oz. and 24 oz. sizes.

Ingredients: PARMESAN CHEESE (PASTEURIZED PART-SKIM MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES), CELLULOSE POWDER TO PREVENT CAKING, POTASSIUM SORBATE TO PROTECT FLAVOR. CONTAINS: MILK.

ttoommyy in General Chowhounding Topics