My cousin came over to visit, and we made homemade pizza! My mom has always done it, using the recipe from my dad's grandma, but we tried it out for ourselves today. It was almost as much fun making it as it was eating it.

Don't know if it's cuz I was a little hungry or not, but, I just made THE BEST version of Olive Garden's Zuppa Tuscana for my dad's 81st birthday today (Tues) -- one of his favorites. Changed it up a little, using a large leftover shallot with a medium (instead of large) white onion. Center-cut bacon. Some shakes of Spuds to thicken it up with potato taste. Plus some seasoning not included in the recipe.

I use escarole instead of the more-bitter kale. I also use red-skinned potatoes, so reduce boiling time to 20 mins max.

O M G ... great like crack cocaine

BTW, I always just got Cento brand chicken broth, but fuck that. After reading the label and seeing MSG, I switched to Progresso -- all natural.

I burnt my finger making supper tonight. OUCH!!

Mig - you're suppose to stir Tangle Guts with a fork! NOT your finger! Get well soon.

I know I normally make fun of your fast food habits, but those burgers and cajun fries are awesome, Geoffy. There's one in Bayside on 26th Avenue, just over the Throggs Neck Bridge, so it's literally just a little over the length of the bridge for me, maybe 3 or 4 miles tops. But I have to pay the toll twice, just to get a burger fix. But it's worth it! The best part is, you can order online and the food is ready at exactly the time that you ask for it.

I'm liking the new Cooking Channel, Food Network's little sister. Comcast didn't yet carry it as of a couple weeks ago, but I have it from FiOS. I get to watch Julia Child and Galloping Gourmet every afternoon.

I'm with you, Geoff - Great channel. They run a lot of cool shows that aired a few years back on the Food Network. I am really enjoying La Dolce Vita with David Rocco and his super good looking better-half!

How drunk is Graham Kerr on a semi-regular basis???

100% of the time?? lol

I LOVE the Cooking Channel. I hadn't seen it until last month when we switched from Comcast to a dish, but I'm really in love with all the programs they show.

I was a kid when it was on, but even I loved watching that show, just to see how soused he would get. He was pretty funny.

Kate Lawson: Simply the Best
Melon salad keeps heat out of the kitchen

One of the things I love about summer is that I can play outside until the street lights come on. And when I go inside I don't have to work hard to make dinner.

My joy is to come from work, change into my ratty shorts, T-shirt and clogs and walk the perimeter of my yard (I jokingly call it touring the estate).

I check the gardens for the dreaded Japanese beetles, which I pluck off my plants and plunge into a bucket of soapy water that I carry with me. I water the herbs and the fussy annuals, survey for critter damage (nibbled hostas and gobbled coneflowers from the deer, woodchuck and rabbits), fill the bird feeders and set out a plate of kibble for Foster, the orange and white tabby that has adopted me and now hangs around the yard.

It helps me unwind, especially after the grueling drive on the Lodge.

My husband is most understanding of my ritual and frankly, since we eat dinner later in the evening, it keeps the pressure off me to not have to come home and crank up the oven.

That's a relief, especially during these latest heat waves when all I want for dinner is an ice cube soaked in my favorite spirit.

One meal that I love to "toss together," especially on a super warm evening, is fresh melon and prosciutto.

I've always loved a slice of sweet cantaloupe wrapped with a salty piece of ham. It's a great summer nosh to serve with cocktails, but with a few extra steps and an addition of balsamic vinaigrette, you can turn it into a refreshing summer salad.

This time of year, when the super sweet melons are piled high at the farmers markets, it's not hard to find the perfect one. When selecting a melon, look for one with the appropriate color that is heavy for its size and that has a clean slip at the stem end. Melons with a jagged piece of stem still attached or a flat cut at the stem should be avoided as they were prematurely harvested.

I pair this salad with a toasted baguette and some cheese along with a chilled white wine and it's perfect for eating while watching the fireflies come out.

Article with pictures

Melon and Prosciutto Salad
Recipe adapted from the Culinary Institute of America
1/2 pound cantaloupe, scooped into balls or cut into slices
1/2 pound honeydew, scooped into balls or cut into slices
3-4 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
Cracked black peppercorns, as needed
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
5 cups mesclun mix
Arrange the melon balls or slices and prosciutto on chilled plates.
Drizzle the melon and prosciutto with the vinegar and garnish with the cracked pepper.
Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil. Toss together with the mesclun greens.
Divide the salad among the plates and serve immediately. Serves 4.
Per serving: 231 calories; 17 g fat (3 g saturated fat; 66 percent calories from fat); 14 g carbohydrates; 5 mg cholesterol; 514 mg sodium; 8 g protein; 2 g fiber

380 million eggs recalled in salmonella outbreak;

Hundreds of people have been sickened in a salmonella outbreak linked to eggs in three states and possibly more, and health officials on Wednesday dramatically expanded a recall to 380 million eggs.

The recalled eggs are packaged under the following brand names: Lucerne, Albertson, Mountain Dairy, Ralph's, Boomsma's, Sunshine, Hillandale, Trafficanda, Farm Fresh, Shoreland, Lund, Dutch Farms and Kemps. The eggs are packed in cartons of various sizes, including 6-egg cartons, dozen-egg cartons and 18-egg cartons.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38741401/ns/health-food_safety

Another reason to avoid eating eggs...

Phew. I got a carton of Sunny Farms eggs and made a bacon & shallot omelet the other day. Still scary, though.

I love shallots, Geoffy. People who dismiss them as a "cross between a clove of garlic and an onion" are retarded (not that I have anything against garlic and onions). But the taste of a shallot is distinct, and sublime.

Stop that nonsense over eggs. Eat them. They're an excellent form of protein. The egg is nature's perfect food.

I haven't eaten eggs since around roughly the mid seventies and I'm certainly not about to start now..

So, you wouldn't have wanted to join us for breakfast this morning? I made cheese grits, bacon and eggs over easy!

No eggs anytime, anywhere, anyhow..
Both of my parents were no-nonsense people who liked eggs and were of the opinion that a child should eat what was in front of him... As you might imagine this led to some pretty stubborn confrontations until finally they realized that I wasn't being hardheaded, I just didn't like eggs.

Ok, maybe I was being a LITTLE hardheaded but I haven't willingly eaten an egg since 7 or so at the latest.

Grits are okay. Some people in my family growing up used to like fried egg and bacon sandwiches.

I loooooooooove grits!

That's the part-time Floridian in me, I guess .

I love grits. I worked for a company that was headquartered in Nashville, and I couldn't wait to travel to corporate for my grits fix. My husband was never a fan, but he was in Charlotte on business last week and fell in love with cheese grits. I tried making them for the first time this morning, and all I could think of was Joe Pesci in "My Cousin Vinny", with his grit line of questioning.

I rarely use the microwave for anything but reheating, but a friend of mine who runs a '50s style diner in Delray Beach gave me a tip: If you're only cooking enough grits for 3 or 4 people, you can't beat the microwave. Just follow the directions on the box and they come lump free and creamy every single time. I honestly can't tell the difference, so I rarely bother to make them on the stovetop anymore.

20 Things That Can Ruin Your Smile

Food, drinks, and unhealthy habits that are wreaking havoc on your teeth and gums by Kristin Koch

But even if you brush, use white strips, and visit your dentist twice a year, it may not be enough. Here are some factors that can wreak havoc on your teeth and gums, and put a serious damper on your smile.

Sports drinks

In the last decade, sports beverages have become increasingly popular, but they aren't great for your teeth.

"Scientific research has found that the pH levels in many sports drinks could lead to tooth erosion due to their high concentration of acidic components, which could wear away at the tooth's enamel," says David F. Halpern, DMD, FAGD, president of the Academy of General Dentistry.

Additionally, these drinks are often high in sugars that act as "food" for acid-producing bacteria, which then sneak into the cracks and crevices in your teeth, causing cavities and tooth decay.

Bottled water

Tap water often contains fluoride—about 60 percent of people in the U.S. have fluoride in their water supply. However, most bottled waters contain less fluoride than recommended for good oral health (it will be listed as an ingredient on the label if it is an additive).

"Fluoride makes the entire tooth structure more resistant to decay and promotes remineralization, which aids in repairing early decay before damage is even visible," explains Academy of General Dentistry spokesperson, Charles H. Perle, DMD, FAGD. "Studies have confirmed that the most effective source of fluoride is water fluoridation."

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/oral-care/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100261172&gt1=31017

By CRISTIAN SALAZAR updated 9/5/2010 11:22:56 PM ET

NEW YORK — The Black Widow of eating contests gobbled up nearly 181 chicken wings in 12 minutes, devouring the national championship record in Buffalo on Sunday.

"I'm so happy!" said Sonya Thomas, who ate 4.86 pounds of chicken wings to win the contest, besting world eating marvel Joey Chestnut at the ninth annual National Buffalo Wing Festival.

In a lot of bad seventies movies and fifties pulp fiction there were always hitmen/gangsters from Detroit arriving to take over the local rackets. Life imitating art? Watch out Chicago...you're next...

The Michigan coney is gaining a foothold at Leo's Coney Island in Chicago, where the chili, onion and mustard-laden hot dogs are outselling traditional Chicago dogs by a ratio of 9-to-1.

The restaurant, three blocks from Wrigley Field, is the only one of Leo's 40 stores that is located outside Michigan, but it is already one of the chain's top-five performers, said Leo Stassinopolous Jr., director of franchising and son of the restaurant's eponymous co-owner.

The six-month-old Leo's in Illinois has drawn a crowd of Michigan transplants, as well as curious Chicago foodies.

"That was one of my biggest concerns," said Lou Goldhaber, co-owner of the Chicago store. "Are we going to give them a taste of home? But I think we hit that one out of the park."

The restaurant, which opened Feb. 15, got a boost from Chicago magazine, which named Leo's to its Hot List two months in a row.

Coney Islands, which refers to the late-night diner-style format as well as the breed of hot dog, have been a Motor City fixture for nearly a century.

Named for the Brooklyn, N.Y., neighborhood that lays claim to the original hot dog, the restaurant concept sells coney dogs as well as Mediterranean and typical diner fare.

The Michigan format had been slow to expand beyond the state's borders until Leo's opened the franchise in Chicago, America's third-most populous city with 2.8 million residents.

But the Windy City red hot remains alive and well, said food critic Michael Nagrant, the founder of hungrymag.com, a food writing website.

"Personally, I'm happy there's a piece of Michigan in Chicago, but what these guys need to understand is that there's a lot of competition," said Nagrant, who lives in Chicago but hails from Shelby Township. "I don't think the coney dog is replacing the Chicago dog any time soon."

A Chicago-style hot dog is garnished with tomatoes, onions, mustard, celery salt, relish, a pickle spear and spicy pickled peppers, known as sport peppers, all in a poppy seed bun.

It is so popular that Brooklyn-based Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs failed in its attempt to penetrate the market.

Traffic at Leo's Chicago location has tapered off since the first two months, when customers routinely waited up to an hour for a table, but sales are still up month over month, Goldhaber said.
....
Detroit Coneys touch down in Chicago

Just picked up a Costco pumpkin pie yesterday. It's something ridiculous like 68 ounces. But with a coupon, I paid $3.99 for this delightful treat. I'll be elbowing the kids when we simultaneously head toward the fridge...

I was in Costco looking for an apple pie (none to be found) and saw the giant pumpkin ones. I love Costco's desserts, so I'm sure the pumpkin's great. Did you ever try their cheesecake? Although it's pre-sliced, who needs that? Hand the whole thing over with a fork!

I've never had a pumpkin pie (or apple cider) as good as from Delicious Orchards in Colts Neck, NJ. Unfortunately I don't think they ship them (and their other pies only ship from Nov-Mar for some odd reason). It's a great market/bakery if you're ever in the area!

Never had the Costco cheesecake SB. I would guess that it is every bit as good as the pumpkin pie. Bought some of their bagels last week, too and was impressed.

I'm awaiting my invitation from Bruce Springsteen to visit his farmhouse in Colts Neck. When that happens, I will be sure to stop at Delicious Orchards.