Text 8075, 106 rader
Skriven 2013-12-21 08:08:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av RUTH HAFFLY
Ärende: cats yuck etc 618
=========================
 RH> But most everybody thinks they're Italian--and they are on the menu of
 RH> every Italian restaurant I've ever been to.

I went to an Italian-American restaurant last night that
served meatballs with its spaghetti dishes but only on
request and at a $3 upcharge per. You could get the
eminently Italian anchovy-garlic-hot-pepper-oil pasta
with an eminently American meatball if you so choose. To
be fair, there were better matches, such as with red
sauce, marinara sauce (I don't know how they made the
distinction, but the latter is more expensive), or fra
diavolo. With cacio e burro might be okay (they use
Romano, though). I had fritto misto of shrimp, scallops,
and squid, not over pasta, in honor of my now flourishing
extra-sweetness.

I've not seen meatballs paired with pasta in Italian
Italian restaurants nor in their simulations in the states.
They are occasionally served separately - in Italy, as big
blobs (polpettone) as a shared appetizer, in the US, as
little blobs (polpettine) in various contexts mostly on
the kids' menu.

  Years ago, while in high
 RH> school, my younger brother and sister each got to taake part in a 3
 RH> week study trip to Italy. (I was in college at the time.) They both
 RH> came back reporting that the pizza (and other "Italian" foods) were
 RH> nowhere near like what' served in so many places. Who took a left turn
 RH> on it, when, and how did the non authentic Italian food get to be
 RH> accepted as standard Italian food?

I'm not sure about the mechanics of such transformations, but
suffice it to say that the same thing happened with Chinese.

 ML> You should quail when you say that.
 RH> As long as I'm not robin Peter to pay Paul.

Don't crow about it.

 RH> Our dogs and cats always got dry food, dogs also got table scraps
 RH> (those small enough not to be worth saving). Actually, for a number of
 RH> years, my folks bought dog food for both the cats and the dogs--not
 RH> until Mom started working outside the home did the cats get cat food.
 
Did the cats mind the dog food? Probably not. And dry food is
said to be good for their kidneys and digestion anyway. Here,
each cat gets two cans of Fancy Feast or the equivalent in the
extra-special flavors - "salmon florentine," give me a break.
More if they beg loudly enough. I misapprove.

 ML> Dave's 7-bone plan is an excellent one. You get some of the best
 ML> beef on the animal and some bones and gristle to make soup out
 ML> of as well.
 RH> Guess I need to look into it. The Fresh Market might have some beef
 RH> shanks; I think they do some of their own butchering. I'm not sure if

Get lower shank, as you're not fatty food people, and save the
upper shanks with the bone marrow for those who like that kind
of thing (or be prepared to skim extra delicious fat off your
stock); better, oxtail. 7-bone is really nice, as you get some
delicious and sometimes tender muscle meat as well as the bone:
it should be available in almost any grocery as it's a standard
cut. The 7 refers to the shape of the bone, not to the number
of bones.

 RH> Whole Foods does or not, have to check next time we go there.

The impression I get of Whole Foods is that the staff are these
sensitive young folks who would prefer not to deal with meats
that would too closely remind them of their animal origin. But
then I avoid Whole Foods, finding it a mixture of what I find
worst in both the leftist and the predatory corporate cultures,
and some of the enterprises it took over and dismantled
represented my values more.

Eetch (Red Tabouli / Mock Kheyma) 
cat: salad, tabboulleh, tabouli, tabbouli, etc., Armenian
yield: 1 batch

1 c fine bulgur  (if numbered, use #2)
29 oz Hunt's Tomato Sauce
1 lg onion, diced fine
1 lg green bell pepper, diced fine
3 scallions, chopped (to 4)
1/2 bn parsley, chopped
1/4 c fresh lemon juice
salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste

Stir the tomato sauce and lemon juice into the bulgur
and set that aside while you're chopping up your veggies.

If you're short on time - or don't care what it looks
like so long as it tastes great - go ahead and run the
veggies through your food processor. I just prefer the
look of the little chunks of green pepper, etc. Stir in
the peppers, onion and scallion, then season to taste
with salt, pepper and cayenne and refrigerate for
several hours to allow the bulgur to absorb the juice
and soften.

http://hyethymecafe.blogspot.com


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