gimlis1mum's Profile
Prepared meals for delivery in Chapel Hill, NC
hi folks,
My sis-in-law broke her arm, and I'd like to send some food for her & her family. I was thinking about prepared meals, frozen or not, rather than delivery from a restaurant. Is there a service in Chapel Hill or nearby that will deliver their goods? Sorry if this has been asked before, I didn't find a thread when I searched this board.
Thanks!
Fresh corn and polenta replacements
Well, fattier cuts of pork makes me think of rice; maybe sticky rice? But the couscous might work anyway. (Thinking of lamb shanks and couscous, so the pork might work too).
those veggie sautes sound good - I'll look for that cookbook later this summer when CSA season is in full swing & we get 8 ears of corn a week :-)
Fresh corn and polenta replacements
How about couscous instead of polenta. If you want something creamier, go for rissotto.
I've never stir-fried corn, so no ideas there...are you talking about the mini-corn-on-the cob stuff? Just curious. Can you tell us what ingredients you usually saute and stir-fry corn with? might help me to think of a substitute. I've never used caramelized corn to flavor a sauce, I'm curious about that too. (And dying to make a pun about caramel corn but it's just not coming to me...lucky for you).
Favorite dinner ideas with Costco's Tru Roots Sprouted Bean Trio?
What did you end up doing with them? I bought a bag, too, but it's still sitting unopened on the shelf. I haven't found an inspiration yet...
Korean pepper plants at Reliable market
I've grown purple perilla in th past, I found it at Mahoney's. Theplant is beautiful and it wil self-sow for future years. I ahven't really figured out how to use it - I think in korean cooking you use the leaves to wrap various things? but I noticed that a lot of my Chinese neighbors have it in their gardens. So it must be pretty useful.
Madrid, we should met up there sometime :-) I haven't tried to ask teh staff many questions, I usually study up before i go! But I still wonder about all the different brands of gojuchang and doenjang..I spent a good ten minutes reading labels, trying to figure out what the differences were. In the end I bought the ones with the fewest ingredients!
Breast cancer diet recommendations?
My hubby has been going through chemo for months...i've made lots of bone broth. My Korean friend has been bringing it to us, too. SHe also suggested soups made with doenjiang (fermented soybean paste) and albalone porridge, since albalone is supposed to be very nutritious. Seaweed soup, too , if she likes it.
I'd also suggest that she try to get lots of protein in her diet. Her body will need it to recover after therapies. Try out a few different brands of protein shakes to see what she likes, for when she just doesn't feel like eating solid foods. We ended up getting some from Costco that had the highest amount of protein per serving.
cooking for toddler / fussy one year old - cookbook recommendations?
Some of my friends like Annabel Karmel's books. I didnt use them so I can't give you specific suggestions...but I do have an idea for the green veggies.
My sneaky way: save your broccoli stems, peel them and shred them fine. Add the shredded stems to waffle batter. I use a cornmeal waffle recipe from Dorie Greenspan, and add a little grated cheese to it too. You don't really taste either the broccoli or the cheese - the overall effect is just a rich, moist waffle with a crisp exterior (thanks to the cornmeal). freeze the extras and you have great walking-around food - waffles don't crumble all over the stroller or carseat.
You can also use grated broccoli stems, or shredded zucchini, etc in a Korean pancake (jeon).
My not-so-sneaky, though somewhat coercive way: take a container with steamed broocili (or green beans, any veggie) with you to the playground. Don't take any other snacks. On your way home from the playground, simply hand your child the veggies; if they're hungry, they might take a bite. If they complain, you say Sorry honey, all I have right now is broccoli. You can eat that now or wait until we get home (and then let them have something else when you get home, if they want it. But hopefully they'll eat the veggies!).
Harvesting coriander roots?
Bumping this because I pulled up some self-sowing (sowed?) cilantro today that's already bolted...the main part of the root had a woody core, not good for a cilantro pesto or curry paste, I'd think. But it would do okay as flavoring in a broth. The smaller side roots were fine & I smashed them up with some garlic to make a paste for a soup. The leaves and stems were lost causes from a culinary perspective, though - awful soapy taste, and I don't usually think that cilantro tastes like soap. Onto the compost pile they went.
Korean pepper plants at Reliable market
I stopped in today and saw that they had a few veggie seedlings out back. I've been wanting to grow Korean peppers, found a source in a catalog a few years ago but then lost the catalog. Reliable had a few other veggies as well, Japanese eggplants, sesame (I think that's the same as perilla, yes?), squash (variety not specified), etc.
I remember seeing seedlings outside HMart at about the same time last year, though I don't recall that they carried hot peppers. I hope these plants ($2.50 for a four-pack) are the real thing, I'd love to have some homegrown peppers to make hot pepper powder.
Need North End Restaurant for visiting parents and awful toddler
Does Grandma want everyone to sit at the table the entire time? Our usual strategy is to study the menu ahead of time and order as soon as possible. Then one of us takes the 3-year-old for a walk around the neighborhood and the other bribes the 6-year-old with Angry Birds until the food arrives.
And then there are the times that I have to get both kids doing calisthenics, out there on the sidewalk until the food is served... Make 'em do jumping jacks, toe touches and (in extreme cases) squat-thrusts until they are short of breath and then they'll be ready to sit down :-)
A friend of mine uses a less physical approach: she keeps a special bag of toys, that they only bring to restaurants.
Can I Salvage My Asparagus Plants?
Hooray! Glad the p[lnats made it through.
I'm just north of Boston. My asparagus (new plnats put in last fall, in a new location) are sending up big firns at this point. I did snek a spear or two early on, simply for the novelty of munching fresh asaragus in the garden in March. Who knows when that opportunity will come again? :-)
Mexican family restaurant coming to Malden?
I wish I did...I drive by every week or so, peeking into their windows and wondering what's happening.
Feeding the cancer patient who becomes a transplant patient
Thought I would post an update..thanks again to all who commented. I jumped the gun on making this post as hubby ended up needing a lot more chemo, but at last has been cleared to go to transplant. We have been lucky food-wise in that other than an aversion to fish, his appetite and interest in food has stayed intact throughout the last several months of treatment.
His hospital admission is in a few weeks and it's great to have this list of ideas at the ready. There is so much else to do, I can't even think about cooking right now (which is shocking and unstelling, to someone who spends most of her time thinking about food!).
Dosa batter
Maybe it was to save his blender..when I search online for dosa recipes, there were a lot of references to blenders with burnt-out motors as the price one pays for homemade dosa batter.
Where can I buy fresh duck?
The Hong Kong market usually has fresh duck (Malden location, at least.) Pekin duck with it's feet and head still attached. Very reasonable price, about $12 for a 5-6 lb duck.
Surprising Menu Items That Steal the Show
I had to look that up! Bengal gram is chickpeas, right?
Surprising Menu Items That Steal the Show
I *think* it's buticha. They sell containers of buticha in the deli case; it looks a lot like egg salad. I had never tried it before but now I'm in love with the stuff and get some to take home whenever I stop in.
Anyway, there is a flavor in the grape leaves that reminds me of the buticha.so maybe they use chickpea flour as a binder for the rice stuffing in the grape leaves?
I have tried their hummus and wasn't crazy about it. But I loves the buticha.
(this is unrelated to the op's question but I think opinionated chef will want to know - yes they make their shwarma on a spit. We tried it and the falafel once and they were ok but not as good as what we've had from Moroccan Hopsitality down the street).
Surprising Menu Items That Steal the Show
The grape leaves at Abiata Cafe in Malden. I don't really like stuffed grape leaves, but I was getting takeout to share with friends, one of which adores them so I picked up a container. Not sure why I decided to taste them but I'm glad I did...the filling has some of that chickpea-flour-stuff who's name I can never remember, I think, and they have a really lemony dressing on them.
Eta: Abiata is and Ethiopian rest, but they have some middle eastern food too.
Finding the Seaweed Used in Japanese Seaweed Salad
Are you talking about the bright green seaweed salad, or the darker type? I forget where I heard that the bright green strands are an extruded product, not a natural seaweed. Anyone else know?
Surprisingly good Indian food at the Burlington Mall...
I like the crepes at Appleseed in the food court, especially the Philadephia (thin sliced roast beef and cheese sauce). Not a traditional crepe but pretty tasty. Also they have a deal where if you buy one regular crepe (with nutella or another simple filling) you get a second one for a dollar more. One for Mommy, one for you...
Help for "Dummies" at H Mart Food Stalls.....
The ladies' restroom is usually fine, or so it has been on the several occasions when I had to take my kids in there. No exp with the mens' room, tho :-)
As for prepared foods, you could try some of the panchan in the big refrigerated section behind the food court. Check the labels on kimchi because some varieties contain oysters or shrimp. I think most of the seaweed and other veggie preparations would be ok ( lotus root, bellflower roots, shredded radish ones etc). I've bought their crabstick pajeon but cant recall if they've had veggies-only ones, too. The rice cakes (ddeok) should be ok for vegetarians, too.
In the refrigerated case across from the meat cases ( in the back of the store), there are a
lot of pre-packaged noodle soups and dishes that you might want to check out. I haven't looked at them too closely since I usually make myown broths...but there might be something vegetarian-friendly inn there as well.
What's Going In Your Garden Now?
Just north of Boston...I went crazy last month and planted radishes, peas and lettuces in mid-February during a warm spell. All but the peas are sprouting up. Sorrel is almost big enough to pick for a salad; rhubarb, chives and garlic are about where yours are. Thyme is rampant. I have a rosemary shrub in a pot that survived the winter, in a sheltered spot outside my back door.
My new apricot tree and (relative to the apricot) old peach tree look almost ready to bloom. No movement on the new plum tree yet. Buds on blueberry bushes are swelling.
I am poring over my seed packets, thinking about what I can risk putting in next! It's a crazy year.
signs of Spring? sorrel? ramps? fresh green almonds? chervil? mache? morels?
IMO it's too early for local stuff unless you're using a greenhouse/tunnel/coldframe...The sorrel in my garden is just beggining to sprout up. Chives, too. The mache that re-seeded itself last fall is probably ready to pick, though.
Can I Salvage My Asparagus Plants?
I had some asparagus that were slow to start - as in, first year after planting crowns, only one plant sent up shoots, the next year a couple moreplants revived...but none of them really ever got going strong. If you have room for a new bed (or can remember exactly where you'd planted before and can squeeze them in) it's probably worth it to put in new crowns.
Great lunch in Everett area
That cheese roll did me in, too - spicy and sour, too much so for me. I love the Enqulale Ferfer (eggs with jalapeno and onion) for breakfast, and the grape leaves which are stuffed with something I can't quite idenitfy (some of that chick pea flour stuff?). One time when I was in they had a side dish of sauteed mushrooms in the prepared foods case that was awesome, but I haven't seen it since.
A fun thing: I noticed that when the gal behind the register handed me my change, she held the money in one hand and used the other hand to support her elbow - a gesture that iId seen on our trips to Seoul (it's a way of showing respect - you use both hands to give and receive things). I asked about it and she told me that it's an Ethiopian custom, too.
Dosa batter
I made an inquiry on the home cooking board too, and only got one response (but it was a good one!)
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/836780
Thanks too to OC and bulldog for the links and suggestions. When I'd made the last dosa last night, hubby looked at me hopefully and asked when we could have them again :)
Dosa batter
i was in American India Cash & Carry on Pleasant St, in Malden a couple of weeks ago and saw that they sell pre-made dosa batter. Went back last Friday and picked some up to try it out. I don't recall seeing it for sale at other markets - has anyone seen it elsewhere?
My dosa-making skills are limited but I was pretty happy with the results. A pint of batter cost $3.50 and I got 6-7 dosas, making them in a 12" skillet. The batter is unsalted; I asked the woman working there about it and she said that some people prefer much less salt, so they sell the batter without adding any. (I ended up using about 2 teaspoons of salt for the whole pint, which seems like a lot to me but it needed it). The batter tasted even better today (Tuesday) after a few more days fermenting in the fridge.
They also sell frozen coconut and cilantro chutneys, $1.99 for a four-pack. We only used one container of each for all of the dosa (dosai?) that we made. So overall it was a pretty cheap way to get a dosa fix :)
Filling for masala dosa?
Thanks - this is exactly what I was looking for. Boiling the potatoes intact seems to make a big difference in taste and texture vs. Cooking diced potatoes. My dosa-making technique needs a lot of work, but the flavors were great. Thanks again.
Filling for masala dosa?
I bought a pint of dosa batter at a local Indian market and am entirely too excited about dosas for breakfast tomorrow. Anyone have a recipe or suggestion for the potato filling in a masala dosa?
Musubi mold?
If you are willing to forgo the rectangle shape and make do with a triangle, I found a onigiri mold at Reliable market for just a couple of bucks (seaweed wraps included). Otherwise I think the span can is a great suggestion.
