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Just a thought - I've been in foodservice all my life. Learning the culinary side of the business does not mean you need to become a cook. There are caterers, consultants, wedding or party planning businesses, and more that could benefit from someone with culinary know how. I went from pastry chef (no schooling), to owning a catering business, to managing restaurants, and now I run the dietary department in a skilled nursing facility. Back to the 9-5, weekends and holidays off, and all the time I want with my family!! Not all foodservice is drudgery!

I've make flake cereal at home, like corn flakes, but the shaped ones would be pretty hard. I've made gum at home, pasta, phyllo. I've used those "Secret Recipes" cookbooks, and they're fun, especially for my kids.

My dad always sautes whole mushrooms in butter, smoke and worchestershire sauce (sp?). They are fabulous this way, but go light on the smoke! I agree, a little goes a long way!

Waffles - definately. I like to crumble cooked bacon into the batter, then make them way crispy. Top with butter only.

I do love pancakes too. Stir leftover oatmeal into the batter, and you have pancakes to die for . Just butter of course. I'm really not into sweet breakfasts!

I grew up with this on the table, too. The other thing my dad always made that he grew up on was pancakes with bologna gravy. Same thing - chunk up unsliced bologna, saute and make a roux, and milk to make gravy and serve over pancakes. This was dinner at least twice a month when I was growing up in the 60's and 70's, and I just realized how close to SOS this is!! Yum. I think I 'll make it for dinner tonight!

I learned to eat this when my stepmother joined the family. We use 2 big boxes of jello, 1 can crushed pineapple(drained and squeezed), and about 1/2 a cup of nuts, chopped. Make one box of jello, and add the pineapple and nuts to it. Chill until firm, but keep it stirred until it sets so the fruit & nuts don't sink. Then take about 1 1/2 cups of sour cream, add 1/2 cup sugar and mix. Spread on top of the jello. Then make the other box of jello and let it chill for a 1/2 hour or so. Then pour it gently over the sour cream layer and chill the whole thing. We usually make this in a 9 x 12 cake pan. It's yummy!
When I was growing up, my dad always made a lime jello with cottage cheese and pineapple with a dollop of Miracle Whip on top. I like that, too.

The quaters describe how many pieces the whole chicken has been cut into, and them which of the quarters you're getting - leg quarters or breast quarters.

I guess I'm drawing a blank too, but the one none food one that always bothers me is "ink pen". Have you ever seen a pen that doesn't write in ink?

So many different lives! Amazing! I work in a nursing home as the dietary manager - try to please 80 people per day per meal!! Before that, I managed restaurants, cooked at Rainforest Cafe, owned my own catering business and I apprenticed as a pastry chef when I was in my teens. It's been a long life!!

I didn't know kobe beef could be all american, but it sounds good. Republican all the way for me - I guess i'm out voted here on this site!

When I worked in a bakery it was either buttercream or glaze, so how's that for differences?

We always dipped our frozen bananas in melted chocolate chips, rolled them in chipped peanuts, then froze them again. Also frozen Butterfingers are the best.

I worked as a pastry chef at a well known restaurant, and found that not another cook there had ever been taught any pastry skills - not even the executive chef. Before I left, I had to teach him and his sous chef how to make the desserts on the menu because they were planning to replace me with someone off the line. And that is why desserts in most restaurants are iffy!

When we moved to Utah, we discovered fry sauce. It's pretty much a mayo-ketchup mix, but every restaurant does theirs different - mayo/bbq, mayo/ketchup/pickle relish, ketchup/ranch dressing, etc. I have to admit, I am a big fan of fry sauce now, and every restaurant here carries it, even if they don't do it nationally. As for fries, they have to be thin, crispy and right out of the fryer with lots of salt.