commenting on 'Julie and Julia'

So we saw the movie, of course, like I could have even tried to miss a movie with food at the center!
It was good. Meryl Streep was brilliant!!! I really could have done without the Julie part of it and just watched Merly Streep and Stanley Tucci for the whole two hours. All in all, I am not going to run right out and master french cooking myself, but I did get some great inspiration. Now I know what to try with the duck sitting in my freezer and I do want to retry buerre blanc. Love the sauce but found it hard to make last time.

This will come with a renewed exercise plan. You simply cannot put butter and ducks at the center of your life with out putting more than a few pound at the center of your physical self at the same time.

In short, the movie was also made far more special by the venue where we saw it. Gold Class Cinemas greets you with a hotel-like reception area. After you choose your seats, you are shown into a beautiful restaurant/lounge area to sit on comfy sofas, or at little cozy tables. You could even sit at the extensive bar. Yes that's right this is all before you get to the theater!
While you wait to be taken into your seats, you peruse the lovely menu and order your food and beverages. Then you are taken into a little theater with about 40 seats, and guided to your fully reclining plush movie chair. My friend, Reagan and I were then seated with pillow and a fuzzy blanket with our wine and time to chat before the previews. There were none of the typical warnings about cell phones, and being respectful of other movie-goers, you are just expected to be that way. Amazing!
Once the movie started, our appetizer of calamari showed up in tissue filled basket of fried tastiness. The calamari were great, but not as great as the paper thin slices of fried lemon and ginger! Once we finished those off, a super quiet waiter appeared to offer our main course of smoked salmon, with all the fixin's. Topped off later by some of the creamiest truffles I've ever had.
The whole food experience was highlighted by the wonderful movie playing in front of us. Ahhh! It was bliss.
I will surely revisit this spot.

goldclasscinemas.com

hotttt dogs, git 'cher hottt dogs

Ingredients:

1 package of soft lady fingers
1 pint strawberry sorbet, gelato, or ice cream
1 mango sliced into julienne strips
1 kiwi sliced and chopped into small cubes

using a tablespoon, scoop across the pint of strawberry to form an oblong. You may need to shape it a bit to form the correct hot dog shape. Set in the opened lady finger and add one strip of mango for the mustard and a little bit of chopped kiwi down the other side for the relish.

Other embellishments could be:
sliced strawberries - tomatoes
flaked coconut - chopped onions
poppy seeds - poppy seeds

gougeres - Sinskey style

Today I found the best recipe ever for making gougeres. You can find it at:

http://www.robertsinskey.com/kitchen/recipe/gougere

I didn't use the egg wash and they still come out beautiful!

I also used a small cookie scoop to get the batter onto the cookie sheets. To flatten any points, dip your finger in water and gently pat the point flat.

If you make bigger ones, they can be used for tasty sandwiches with a little ham or turkey.