Text 14321, 142 rader
Skriven 2011-08-04 09:22:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av JIM WELLER
Ärende: pizza 696
=================
 JW> Hey, I'm 61 and I still like pizza parties!

[redacted] [snork]

 Perhaps because I got
 JW> off to a late start; I never tasted one til I was 17

I had my first at a place called Pizzateria in Wheaton, MD,
where I went for my friend Gravelpit's birthday party.
Initially, given my distrust for all things cheesy, I
refused to taste the stuff, but I was convinced to try a
square (this was a giant pan pizza, medium crust, served
in a takeout box), and I have loved pizza ever since.

Haven't had a whole lot of it, but I can still taste this
one fifty some years later; it was distinct from all others
since, with the smokiness and greasiness of pepperoni (not
too much of it), the cheese melded with the cardboard (it
had taken quite a bit of convincing, and the pizza was in
leftover condition by the time of success), the not too
much tomato sauce, which had no discernible basil in it
but quite a bit of oregano.

Some time before my sister died, we went to a restaurant
nearby to the site, and I saw what looked like a takeout but
couldn't make out the name. Occasionally I have a fleeting
urge to look it up, but inertia and the need to take 3
separate buses to get there have always won out.

--

 JW> They would still net more. The Pizza Hut general manager here makes
 JW> $54,000 to $66,000, part salary, part bonus. George made $95,000 the
 JW> last year he was open, working just 11 AM to 7 PM, 6 days a week, 10
 JW> months a year with a 2 month vacation in Greece every summer.

George did well, but he probably worked darned hard when he
was working.

  Two
 JW> young Georges could stay open 12 months, 7 days a week including
 JW> late to catch the bar crowds and net more than double that. I found
 JW> a few of them ready to give it a try but they couldn't raise a
 JW> decent down payment or even a lease security deposit let alone bank
 JW> financing.

So it wasn't all the fault of the young entrepreneurs.

 And George turned down one guy I found cause he looked
 JW> too Turkish. (He was actually Lebanese.)
 
[another snork] The Turks claim of course that they have
always treated the Greeks fairly, if not well, and it must
be admitted that the prisoner swap from the whatever it was
1920s was a creative solution. Armenians are another issue
altogether: if there was no holocaust, what became of all
those people?

 ML> what became of Chef Pierre?
 JW> He is still in receivership, running his original core business Le
 JW> Frolic bistro and bar, under the direction of the receiver, with
 JW> everything else closed down and liquidated.

Probably for the best.

 JW> He's more likeable and
 JW> not as arrogant as he used to be. He looks better too; I think he
 JW> used to run on cocaine and no sleep.

[yet another snork] To be expected, all of the above.

Interesting that the Greeks are happy with taking credit
for certain great Muslim inventions -

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v7.07

      Title: Imam Bayaldi (Eggplant Stuffed with Aromatics)
 Categories: Greek, Vegetarian, Vegetables
   Servings: 5

           Karen Mintzias
  2 1/2 lb Eggplants
           Salt
      3 md Onions, peeled and sliced
    1/2 c  Water
      5 tb Olive oil
      5    Fresh tomatoes, peeled and
           - sliced, or: canned plum
      8    Tomatoes, sliced
    1/2 c  Chopped fresh parsley
      4    Garlic cloves, peeled and
           - sliced
           Freshly ground pepper
      1 pn Granulated sugar
           Fresh parsley for garnish

  *Note: 8 canned plum tomatoes, sliced, may be substituted for the 5 fresh.

  Wash the eggplants, cut off the stem end if using large ones and cut in
  half lengthwise.  With the tip of a sharp knife, make at least 3 lengthwise
  slashes on the cut sides of the eggplants, being careful not to pierce the
  skin on the opposite side.   Sprinkle with salt and let stand for 30
  minutes.  Rinse with cold water, dry, and invert to drain.

  Meanwhile, put the onions in a small pan with the 1/2 cup water and simmer
  a few minutes.  Drain and discard the water or save for soup.

  In a medium frying pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil and saute the onions
  until soft, then put approximately a third of them in the bottom of a
  buttered casserole large enough to accomodate all the eggplants. Set 4 to 5
  tomato slices over the onions in the casserole and add the rest of the
  tomatoes to the onion remaining in the frying pan. Saute onions and
  tomatoes for 10 minutes, then stir in all but 2 tablespoons of the parsley
  and remove from the heat.  Set the eggplants into the casserole, tuck a
  slice of garlic into each eggplant slash, and stuff the slashes with the
  filling, allowing some to cover the top of the eggplant.  Season lightly
  with salt, pepper, and a pinch of sugar, then dribble the remaining oil and
  chopped parsley over the eggplants.  Cover the casserole with a lid or
  aluminum foil and bake in a moderate oven (350 F) for 30 to 40 minutes,
  until fork-tender, removing the cover during the last 10 minutes, to allow
  the sauce to thicken.  Garnish with parsley and serve warm.

  Note: This is excellent as a first course of a subsequently light meal
  topped with fresh fruit and Turkish coffee.

  If you wish, you may leave the eggplants whole, slash one side and remove
  some of the pulp with a small spoon.  This pulp is then sauteed with the
  filing and stuffed into the eggplant, a very attractive method for the
  smaller eggplants.  As you might suspect, both variations may also be
  prepared on top of the stove.

  From: "The Food of Greece" by Vilma Liacouras Chantiles.  Avenel Books, New
  York.

  Typed for you by Karen Mintzias

MMMMM


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