I am by no means an expert since I only smoke fish and misc vegetables if I’m smoking fish. I like my round stack electric smoker because...well...it works great for my needs. I got it at a Goodwill for $35.

That one looks awesome! Mine is round and has a dome lid, two racks  - a lot less fancy. But it was inexpensive and I’ve had it for over 20 years.

Taco Bell rice is SHIT! I can’t handle it. It’s wet and weird. Not sure when they changed the recipe, but they need to go back in time. More recently, when I ordered the 7 layer burrito I’d say, NO RICE. Now I just don’t go to Taco Bell. I can put beans and cheese, sour cream, guac and salsa on a tortilla in my own…

Unless he screwed his ex wife and sons over after the divorce - then the money was his to dispose of has he wished. It would be a nice gesture for the beneficiary to gift some of it to his family, but she doesn’t have to. 

I understand the allure. It’s fun to experiment with new equipment. If you’re a good cook - there are only so many new roads to travel down.

20 or so years ago, I got on a Coke kick. When I looked at pictures - I was puffy. Not just overweight, but PUFFY. (I mean I’m overweight now due to menopause and other pauses, still not puffy.)

I remember when I first saw bottled water and laughed. “Who’s going to pay for water when you can drink it from the tap?” That was the only time I was wrong. Which is why I remember it.

I get it. Because I can’t abide hot drinks. Not coffee, not tea, not Christmas cider, not even hot cocoa. It could be 20 F outside and I still don’t think I’d be down for that. These preferences can be hardwired. I say...carry on!

What an odyssey! Your poor kid. And poor you. Glad you found an alternative that works.

You can now find cooked, peeled whole beets in the frigerated section of most grocery stores. I still prefer the taste and color of fresh beets, but I keep a container in my fridge for quick beet and goat cheese salads. I do love borscht too! Your vegetarian version sounds wonderful. I think a lot of recipes use beef…

For banh mi I use the baked tofu blocks you can get at most Asian markets. Much firmer and dryer than even extra firm tofu. Takes on marinades well without getting soggy.

Most vegan cheese is pretty bad and “meh” at best. But I have found that Chao slices are a good and melty. There’s a very very slight coconut taste at the back end, but on a savory heated sandwich you wouldn’t notice it at all.

If you need to use up a shit ton of scallions, make Korean scallion pancakes (pajeon). 

You could say “It looks like sushi, but the ingredients are different. It’s delicious!”

At a restaurant? Super fresh sushi and sashimi. At home? Fried oysters, cheddar-creamed collard greens, the freshest garden tomatoes - sliced, salt and pepper.

I don’t know why I wrote “dethawed” - maybe I confused it with defrosted. Of course it’s “thawed.” Funny how we sometimes de-ify our words unnecessarily!

Where I live it’s the beach and tens of thousands of tourists. So, good luck eating at a restaurant, even pizza delivery. My husband’s cousins are in the next town over on a beach vacation in adjoining condos; he joined them along with his brothers and their wives. I said, NO. I don’t like crowds, sand, heat, distant…

My early childhood was 70's. THE dressing was Thousand Island. A neighbor (briefly) blew our minds with Catalina dressing but it didn’t stick. Sometimes I still crave Thousand Island on iceberg with croutons and those fcheap fake bacon bits. Reminds me of a family night out at Sizzler.

I’d be willing to try the “crab” cake. Lots of mass market crab cakes contain very little crab anyway. It’s all about seasoning and sauce unless you’re going upscale. The filets? Probably not. We live along the Gulf Coast and I’m pescatarian specifically because we live here and my husband fishes. If we lived inland,…

Well, for me it’s been 27 years. There are other circumstances that make my case particularly painful, but I can predict his daughter won’t ever recover completely. It’s a hard thing to carry. And I’m angry for her to have to begin carrying it at such a young age.