I used to have a slice of pecan pie while the last piece of mom's lasagna was reheating with a little water in her small Revereware skillet. Maybe a Coke and a smoke for dessert.

I'd pan fry some good sausage or a chunk of country ham.

To me the part I have the hardest time with is the idea that if something is broken it needs to be replaced rather than fixed. I tend to favor brands where if a part wears out or breaks, you replace only the part. It is amazing what brand loyalty that engenders. On this site think Weber. I want the things I have to get passed down and be appreciated, like Kaleo's mom's toaster.

I assume my old toaster is parked in a land fill, and that is sad. I wish WS had a service department or could at least say "we will get the new element to you in two weeks." Was checking the bay last night and am thinking I will ,snag an old Sunbeam.

As regards WS the kitchen shopping options in Austin are limited enough I still go there, as well as to SLT, but I go to those places or sale food items and expendables like tab vegetable peelers and wooden spatulas.

Thanks , Kaleo. I certainly respect the good experiences others report with Dualit, but mine didn't play out that way. Years ago I got an old mechanical toner Dualit four slice. One element deteriorated and died. I got tired enough of the fourth slice being toasted on one side that I took it back to WS where I had bought it and asked if they could get a replacement element since Dualit wasn't willing to respond. They said no, so I took it home and lived with until the other side of the fourth slot began to fail. I took it back and they exchanged it for another, but it had a chip sensor in place of the mechanical timer. I hated it. After a year elements began to fail but WS had changed its exchange policy. I just want a toaster with nothing resembling a microchip in it. I shall look for old Sunbeams. Cheers.

Does anyone have a favorite current model toaster, not a toaster oven. I want something that quickly makes real toast, not warm bread.

I think wine tasting is legit and for real. Years ago in Houston a noted oenophile was given a blind taste of "something." He then and there identified the grape, country, and vintage. I know there are wines I like that taste very different from wines of the same year, same grape, same general area, etc. as others I don't like. Knowledgeable tasters helped me understand why. (For example I like the 2011 Chehalem PN, not so much the Patricia Green...explanation, the Patricia Green grows along a ridge with iron deposits. Advice, try it again in five years.). Sure most people generally cannot say if they are drinking cab or merlot, but they also rave about foods that I think are overcooked, over sauced, junk.

Totally with you on this one...also green chilies and goat cheese.

I gave up reading recipes years ago...they made me too mad when I missed steps or ingredients!

Never even crossed my mind. So if this is a poll, put me down as a no. Those little suckers can really add a lot of depth to a lot of dishes.

Oooo...bigger topic than knives in my house. The knives are all 40 year old plus carbon knives and most of the pans are that vintage tin lined heavy copper or well seasoned steel. My family knows how to use and care for them, but no one else seems to. Fortunately they are all afraid of my ten inch chef knife. Sad to say that virtually no one I know knows that these things need to be treated right or that they are incredible. My friends probably think I am just too cheap to buy new SS stuff...which I am, but that is beside the point. But back to the original issue, how fortunate the knife I use least, the 6 inch chef, is the one guests gravitate to...

Panna cotta or trifle or clafoutis all seem summery to me, and I like the way that with very little adaptation they all work with the parade of fruits as they come "in season." I am looking forward to cherry season.

Yep on both! I also use leftover chunks of chicken, pork, and beef often in a pseudo Bolognese. The other night I converted half a pork tender into a cross between carne guisada and pork al pastor...don't see why you couldn't do the same with chicken.

A really fresh egg from a chicken that actually lives outside, as opposed to one living in a long building with a tiny door at each end so that they can call it free range. My only proviso is that it be cooked simply, like boiled or poached, maybe fried.

I love having the first tee time, grabbing a breakfast taco on the way to the course, and pulling out a flask of Lagavulin on about the second fairway. But then you'd need to figure out how to squeeze in golf...

Seriously, I'd do something you could save and eat later if they didn't eat it, like a frittata.

Too true! Also you don't see a lot of dead straight walls in the early 80s tract homes like we live in. As you can tell, however, I personally am not bothered by a fair amount of kitchen clutter. I like to be able to grab things. However, I know a lot of real estate agents, and they always say that if we ever sell, we will need to store all of the stuff that is now on top of the cabinets. And here I thought, apparently wrongly, that the vinegar crock and tinned fish poacher added to the ambience... Go figure. Dang but kitchens are personal!

Oh yeah...I didn't do this kitchen, but cabinets all the way to the ceiling are nice if you don't like having to wash the the things stored on top before each use due to dust, etc.

Very happy with counter depth GE French door fridge. Cold water is inside the upper. Seems to me to provide colder water than in door models. The Bosch bottom of line DW cleans well and is pretty much silent. The fifteen year old Corian knock off counters are very functional. I have worked in restaurant kitchens and am not a huge fan of SS counters. Actually if I had my dream kitchen I like marble, white marble. I have ceramic floors and gravitate to the gel mat. I'd like rustic wood floors. I got a KA gas stove. The burners are one great, one ok, and two "you must be kidding" weak ones, but I like the oven a lot. If I were doing it from scratch I'd find a Pre-circuit board Wolf and vent the heck out of it. I have the mother board blow twice. Ridiculous to have a gas stove that can't be lit by hand!

Crab Norfolk isn't bad either. I don't know if they have a different name for it, but I love it on Smithfield ham. Thin slice of ham, big pile of crabmeat, butter. With cold beer.

I have a Genesis 300 series that is about five years old. The grates are a very heavy stainless, the tube shaped pieces being about a quarter of an inch thick. I love it. I throw some wood chips in a steel smoke box, turn it on, let it preheat five to ten minutes, and cook. I kept the grates immaculate a few years and finally wised up. Now I brush with a metal grill brush after preheating and before cooking. Duh!

I agree it sounds like a lot of starches and a lot of work, but I really want to come. It sounds freaking awesome. I like Caprese. Another great treatment is halved heirloom tomatoes of different sorts with a little citronette, some grey salt, and a chiffonade of basil. It would be easier than Caprese.

I know you want more work and I know fresh local corn is great no matter how it is done, but I have developed a love of a simplified version similar to Mexican street corn... Mix mayonnaise, lime, and Sriracha, coat the ears with it, and grill. A sprinkling of Cotija is optional. It is great with pork and some slices of fresh tomato.

I have a relatively new Bamix and no pot scratching issues. I love it. It does have a cord, but it hasn't been an issue. My vintage 1949 wrists and fingers are arthritic, and I find the grip very comfortable and the controls very easy. It has done everything I have asked it to do pretty much perfectly, even making a cup of mayonnaise in the jar in about five seconds, maybe less.

No idea since I have not had it, but a can of enchilada sauce mixed with shredded chicken and maybe some minced, sweated onions would probably be a good starting point. Maybe sprinkle a little Cotija on it, too.

Personally I like a smidge of it, grated and toasted, with a little crushed and toasted fennel seed in my Bolognese.

Bourbon. The only question is Evan Williams 1783 in an old fashioned or Bookers, maybe with a cube of ice. I am leaning towards the Oboe Fox so I can have two.

However you cook it, if you have truly a lot, cooked asparagus refrigerates well and is nice to have on hand to toss into salads, fritattas, panini, etc. When I roast peppers I just throw them in a jar with olive oil and salt. I don't see why you couldn't do that with asparagus. Also I will bet they be great puréed or chopped and folded into a cheese soufflé. Also when confronted with a lot of steamed asparagus, a great option is to make Hollandaise and eat until it hurts. Heh heh.

Hot sauce like Cholula is great on fries, combining zing with the vinegar. Of course mayonnaise is preferred if the fries are any good.

Spring is moving into summer in Austin, but a lovely bit of late cool had me wondering how I should take advantage of a likely last chance until October to cook the foods I usually like when it is cool. I opted for white beans with tomatoes and fennel. Now you have distracted me and my revised forecast is showing a madeleines and tea front pushing through at 3:30.

Purty often.

Love gazpacho but am also very fond of avocado with curry powder or garam masala.

I find the $1.00 thick glass stemmed glasses from places like World Market very reminiscent of cheaper spots in France or Italy and a little more stable than the Duralexes, which have a very narrow base.