ninakale's Profile

In my experience (and I have ample), the worse the bar, the colder and cheaper the bottled beer- so when in Rome...

I've always used hot water and kosher salt (plenty of it) to clean coffee carafes. Picked that up in a restaurant I used to work in and it works well.

Check Bakerella's blog about making cake pops- haven't tried them- but you could make them without the sticks and they would be like truffles

I will not claim to be an expert on the subject, but my husband works as a chef consultant to a large public school system trying to bring healthier food to the middle schools. The issue is clearly not the lunch ladies- as pointed out by someone else, they are only making a predetermined menu that has been created by a nutritionist- and even in this major city, no chef was consulted until very recently.

The problem has to do with the government. The government gives subsidies for school lunches by providing a set dollar amount of funds per child that qualifies for federal aid. The government also provides commodities of food stuffs that have to be used by the school district if they want to continue to receive the subsidy in the future. My husband will come home and tell about how all of sudden a call will come down from the school district's food requisition area saying that they have to use up 50 cases of canned peaches or canned carrots- because if they don't, they won't be able to continue to receive commodities and the financial aid that comes along with it. There is little in the way of fresh food being sent to the schools. The amount of reform that needs to done is absolutely staggering.

I always turn to Escoffier when in need of inspiration. I love my Le Guide.

I got a bunch at Ikea last year- decent quality and they had all the different styles.