Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

My first was one that I picked up on whim off a library resale bookshelf during high school: Alfred Portale's Twelve Seasons Cookbook. I don't think I'd ever attempted more than painfully simple dishes before that(cinnamon toast, popcorn) and recipes always seemed like more miniscule gibberish than was worth following, but as I looked at the recipes in this book something in my brain clicked and the instructions suddenly seemed more than manageable (if the ingredients were sometimes moderately obscure and the photo presentation mildly intimidating).
And the rest, as they say...

Inimitably, endearingly silly. :)

That's absolutely terrible. I know there's much to be said for progress, but it's a shame to raze yet another a historic neighborhood when these are becoming few and far between in modern Chinese cities.

As one who has never used the stuff, what ARE the usual things one would fry in duck fat? I immediately thought of gnocchi, but that's only because Kathy recently mentioned doing so.

Most of us seem to have the right idea - good seafood shouldn't be overly fussed with. Depending on what we're talking about, I generally like my seafood steamed, grilled, baked, lightly sautéed, or raw. I am admittedly very fond, though, of my Chinese grandfather's "hong shao yu," or "Red Braised Fish," which is first marinated, then fried, and finally simmered in soy sauce and spices.

To cook more. I've been baking quite a bit recently, but still need to experiment at regular mealtimes.

Porterhouse.

Dark, rich chocolate mousse.

Really hot, hearty deep-dish pot pies.

Ahh...the enormous array of prosciutto and thin slices of lard, sandwiched with hot-off-the-griddle flatbread made by my adopted grandparents, on a farm in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy.
The food (and wine) alone would've made it memorable, but what makes me smile is the memory of grandfather, who would not tolerate the sight of my hands empty nor my mouth unfilled, hand-selecting cuts of meat and pushing another sandwich into my hands as soon as I finished the first, admonishing all the while, "Mangia, maangia!"

Dark chocolate mousse would hit the spot, right this moment...

Oh, amen. I make cross-country pilgrimages to Jim Lahey's church of dough, and thanks to this post, another may be soon forthcoming. (Attn:Robyn!)

My fondest/proudest - feeding a large group of friends studying for finals with a ricotta pancake/lime curd/maple cream breakfast. Considerably less sophisticated than a cocktail party, say, but arguably just as much fun.