I am completely impressed by your cleaver skills! Brave woman.

Made this again, using mint in lieu of cilantro. Also lovely.

It has been extremely difficult!

Oh how you make me want to go back. Of many meals enjoyed in various parts of Italy, the best food was in Bologna. We spent four days there during winter. I believe the only spot on your list we hit (besides the markets) was Caminetto D'Oro--and yes that ragu was memorable. We also had fabulous pizza at a place we just happened into one day, but I foolishly did not make a note of it at the time.

Great report. Thanks.

Shrimp Salad, p. 68

Another wonderfully refreshing, easily assembled salad: peeled and cleaned shrimp (I had 16 large) get stir-fried quickly in oil (2 T peanut), then cut on the diagonal and tossed with sliced scallions (I used 4), julienned English cucumber (about 1 c), chopped cilantro (2 T), minced chile (1 red Thai bird), fish sauce (1 tsp), and fresh lime juice (2 T). I added salt and about 2 tsp of shallot oil. (Fried shallots would no doubt be a tasty addition.)

I made this as a light lunch for two, but my husband said he could have eaten it all himself. It really was delicious. That it is low-cal, low-carb, and heart-healthy is a real bonus.

Smoky Napa Stir-Fry, p. 115

This simple prep may be my favorite recipe from this book--because, like a simple lentil dish from Madhur Jaffrey, it is destined to become part of our regular rotation.

I wasn't expecting too much, just wanted to use up my leftover napa cabbage and was glad to have some use for the oyster sauce languishing in my fridge. How much we loved this--more for its wonderful sweetness than its smokiness (though the "smoky undertone" ND promises is there)--was a surprise, esp. since DH isn't much of a cabbage fan.

"Burma" has been all about belying my expectations: I'm delighted by just how easy so many of the recipes have turned out to be.

Chicken in Tart Garlic Sauce, p.162

Despite its bland look--it and the accompanying napa cabbage stir fry made for one monochromatic plate--we liked this chicken, with its gingery punch and chile kick, quite a lot.

Not much to add to lesliej's report: I used bs chicken thighs, cut into pieces, the garlic-ginger-salt paste, three fresh thai bird chiles, seeded. Based on lesliej's recommendation, I decreased the water for the sauce to a scant 2/3 c, and reduced the sauce a bit before finishing with lime juice and cilantro.

Another quick and easy recipe that delivers big flavor from a short list of ingredients and minimal effort.

Lemongrass-Ginger Sliders p.192

I decided to make a half-recipe for a lunch for DH and me. I used 1/2 Lb of ground pork. (For the red-meat averse, these could probably be made successfully with ground turkey or chicken.)

Remembering that Allegra was underwhelmed by underspiced patties, I upped the garlic, ginger, and lemongrass proportions by 50%. Otherwise, I followed the recipe except that I used Korean chile powder (of which I wouldn't have minded a bit more in the mix). I had planned to grill them but discovered we were out of fuel for the gas grill so fried them in hot oil in a cast iron skillet.

We ate these in butter lettuce "cups," with cucumber batons, sliced radish, and cilantro and drizzled with the tart-sweet chile-garlic sauce. Diet-friendly, low-carb, healthful--we felt downright virtuous upon finishing.

Wow, were these delicious. They remind me of one of my favorite apps--grilled meatballs on lemongrass skewers--served at a local restaurant.

Great summer fare: I'll be doing these again and again, next time on the grill.

It certainly looks good!

Chicken Salad, Burma Style, p. 72

I knew I'd love this the minute I saw the ingredient list, and my instincts didn't fail me. We both loved this and found it the perfect light dinner (or antidote!) after a heavy restaurant lunch.

No need for me to repeat as Gio has already covered the process. I did sprinkle on the optional toasted chckpea flour. (DH added some chopped peanuts to his portion, and that was very tasty, too.)

One thing I know: I am going to make sure to keep a supply of fried shallots and shallot oil on hand. With those in the larder and some leftover meat, this salad can be whipped up in no time.

BIG SMALL PLATES

The only Cindy Pawlcyn book I own is The Fog City Diner Cookbook, one of the relatively few restaurant cookbooks I've actually cooked from successfully. But I adore Mustard's Grill and often make a MG pork chop recipe I found online. So Pawlcyn sounds great--and so do small-ish plates. (Lots of cheap copies of BSP available on Amazon.

EPICURIOUS COOKBOOK also sounds good, especially w/recipes available online.

To me, the best pizza comes from a wood-burning brick/stone/clay oven so most home-baked pizza won't measure up to that. However, we find our grilled pizza (and even some we've done on a stone in a super-hot oven) to be superior to much of what we can get in a restaurant. (Granted, I don't live in a great pizza town.)

At any rate, grilled pizza seems to come closest to what comes from a wood-burning oven.

You've convinced me! I looked at this, then passed over it since carrot salads so often disappoint even when they sound promising. Now, on it goes to the to-make list. Looks beautiful too.

Fried Rice with Shallots, p. 226

Had leftover rice so decided to try this (I realized I have never made fried rice before--why???). Incredibly easy and absolutely delicious, this accompanied our grilled chicken and long-bean salad last night.

I followed the recipe exactly as written and would make it again in a heartbeat; will also try variations--love MelMM's sub of asparagus and can think of lots of other desirable add-ins.

Lovely report--and the dish looks and sounds delectable. I'll now be adding it to my list.

Long-bean Salad with Roasted Peanuts, p. 50

This sounded intriguing enough to me that I made a trek out to the Asian market for long beans. You could make it with green beans, but as ND says, long beans hold better, stay crisp.

You trim and boil the beans, drain, then toss with roasted peanuts (1/4 c), toss again with dressing (1 T fresh lime juice, 2 tsp ea fish sauce and shallot oil), and then sprinkle 2 T fried shallots on top. (I skipped the salt called for after the dressing as my peanuts were salted.)

Do try this one. It was delicious: crisp-tender beans refreshing dressing, crunchy peanuts, crispy-sweet (and, as others have noted, utterly addictive) shallots.

A winner. Next time I spy long beans, I'll be grabbing them.

Thanks; I'm planning to try it in Burmese Chicken Salad in the next few days. I took another taste of mine, and I think it's OK. Fingers crossed.

Easy Grilled Chicken, p. 163

I couldn't resist this one either; had me at "easy" and "grilled." Because I had unevenly matched chicken pieces, a package of drumettes and another of thighs, I did hack away at the thighs with my cleaver. While this made for more uniformly sized pieces and easier grill timing, the hacked pieces were quite visibly *hacked*: I definitely lack cleaver skills. I probably won't be engaging in this scary practice again.

As has already been described, said pieces get rubbed with easy-peasy marinade and grilled. I managed to overgrill them a tad (should have listened to DH on this one, but had to be my bossy self). Still, we both loved this--I w/the Tart-Sweet Chile-Garlic Sauce, DH without. His verdict: the chicken is so flavorful on its own that it needs no sauce. True, but I thought the sauce enhanced it.

A definite repeater--but next time I'll either use boneless chicken or just grill the larger pieces.

Tart-Sweet Chile-Garlic Sauce, p. 36

Thanks to MelMM for inspiring me to make this although I admit questioning my own sanity as I tediously stemmed and seeded a "packed" cup of dried chiles (a mix of Thai bird and "Indian" in my case), knowing several jars and bottles of various chili-garlic pastes and sauces were already languishing in my fridge!

But, ah, yes, this homemade concoction is definitely better--and very little effort once those chiles are prepped. I loved all the things going on here and really enjoyed it with Easy Grilled Chicken (although my chile-wimpy husband found it too hot), and know I'll love it with many other things. Glad to have it in the repertoire.

Thanks MelMM and lesliej.

I'm thinking I may have gotten my skillet too hot before I started.

I may try another batch and then compare the two tastes before I use it. But I'll wait to hear delys77's results.

This from the woman who took on soybean disks!

; )

Thanks, delys; I'll be checking in to see what you think after you use it.

Toasted Chickpea Flour, p.32

Has anyone made this???

I'm concerned because mine is much darker than ND's appears in the photos. It is just a shade lighter than cinnamon, and I'm concerned that maybe I toasted it too much. If anyone has any experience with this, I'd love to know before I use mine.

It couldn't be easier. I did a half recipe, tossing 1 c of the flour (Bob's Red Mill) into a hot smallish cast iron skillet and lowering the fire and stirring briskly as the flour did start browning immediately. By the time it was all evenly browned, it was brown, not tan, as ND's appears to be. I don't think it tastes burnt, but I'm not sure how it is supposed to taste.

I'm including a couple of photos, one with the untoasted and toasted versions side by side. Even taking into consideration my lack of skill in photography, you can probably tell that my finished product is fairly dark. Any thoughts?

Fried Shallots and Shallot Oil, p. 24

I made these this morning in prepping for tonight's dinner. I agree with Gio: this is really pretty simple. The most onerous part of the task is peeling the shallots; I used a mandolin slicer to slice them so that was a snap.

The shallot oil has a heavenly aroma!

It's my favorite way to make pizza at home, and since I do grilled pizza fairly often, I'll add my two cents. We have a Weber gas grill. I've never used a stone on it, but always put the pizza directly onto the grill. I couldn't do it without a peel (mine are wood, but I have a feeling metal might be easier), which I dust with cornmeal before putting on the rolled or stretched crust. I then add the ingredients. I grill the pizza, without flipping it, on the super hot grill (700-750), lid down, for just a few minutes, until the cheese melts and the crust starts to char.

For this to work, you mustn't overload the pizza with ingredients or it will be too heavy to flick easily off the peel. I try to settle on two or three, including the cheese. Be spare with tomato sauce. Or just brush with olive oil or pesto for a tomato-less version.

Toppings like prosciutto, olives, capers, artichoke hearts, roasted garlic, even peas work well. Things such as sausage or mushrooms should be pre-cooked. I also like to pre-cook, almost caramelize, onions or red peppers if I'm using them, but that's not necessary. The pizza needs to be removed as soon as the crust is cooked through; ingredients won't "cook" during such a short time on the grill. If you want to keep the pizza on the grill longer for whatever reason, move it from direct to indirect heat so as not to burn the bottom.

I love piling arugula or other fresh veggies onto the bubbling hot pizza just before cutting it.

Shrimp Curry, p. 136

We had this for dinner tonight--very quickly assembled, as MelMM has noted. (I started out trying to pound the shallots and garlic in my mortar and pestle, as Duguid suggests, but gave up quickly and just tossed the minced bits into the peanut oil.) I too was heavy-handed with the cilantro and thought the flavors were improved by it.

We liked this fine, but tomato-forward seafood dishes will never be my favorite, even when brightened by cilantro and a squirt of lime. Not a failure by any means--we'll certainly finish the leftovers--but I guess I prefer shrimp curries with coconut milk or cream to mute the tomatoes.

Everyday Cabbage-Shallot Refresher, Pg. 220

We had this as an adjunct to Shrimp Curry. I followed the recipe as written, happened to have Napa cabbage and fresh cayennes so those were my choices.

I agree that this was refreshing, but it didn't knock my socks off. I wanted something else there--maybe cilantro? roasted peanuts? more chile? Or maybe I just didn't get the seasoning quite right.

I'd make this again--so easy--but I'd want to do some tinkering.

Wow, Allegra, you are one motivated and resourceful cook. I too am in awe.

Be sure to call early for a reservation, Gretchen, esp. if you're going to be there in high season. It's always full.

Last time we were there, I didn't call enough ahead and was told they were booked for several nights. When I begged, they told us to come in toward the end of the evening and they'd make sure we got to eat. And they did. How often does that happen? But the staff is wonderfully friendly and accommodating.

I'm green with envy. Primo is one of my favorite restaurants anywhere. We try to make it to Maine in July or August every other year or so, and Primo is always a highlight; sometimes we have two dinners there. I've never been disappointed. Between the fabulous food and the ambiance--for me, it's just about the perfect dining experience.

Thanks for reminding me.