Tagged: Food for Thought

Which would you rather mix up some cake or waffle batter in? 

My birthday present, that stoneware beauty pictured above, or some soulless plastic thing?

In this week's Food for Thought Seattle Times food blogger Nancy Leson rhapsodizes over New York style cheesecake. Who knew there were so many other kinds?

The Bulgarians top it with smetana, not the composer but a soured heavy cream. Ancient Romans made it with honey and a cheese similar to modern-day ricotta. The Bavarian Quarkkuchen is put together with quark cheese, not the elementary particle but a cheese made from soured milk. 

It seems almost every nation on Earth has its own version of the waist-thickening wonder.

I think I've found the secret and it's just two words:

Baking powder.  

Buy pork bellies! 

I've always wanted to bellow that phrase into a two-piece antique telephone while dressed up with top hat and money bag like the Monopoly millionaire.

But this time I really mean it. 

... and you don't even have to be Polish to make 'em.

I'd teach my kid to cook if I had one.  I  have cats instead and they're not interested.  But if you do have a kid, there are lots of ways to get them to do the cooking.

I'd define "kitchen gizmo" as one of those things that you buy on impulse, use a few times and then stash away in the closet – or in Nancy Leson's case – a basement freezer. 

None of us are immune to the lure of the kitchen gizmo, even though I claimed otherwise in this week's Food for Thought. 

I was tempted by a recipe I found on the web for Poor Man's Lobster which called for boiling sturgeon in lime soda.  Intrigued but dubious, I chose a less bizarre preparation.