Don't throw it away! If you don't want it box it up and send it to Cathy. She collects funny kitchen gadgets. My father taught me to make huge spaetzle noodles. Dumpling he called them. A dozen eggs cracked into a bowl, flour until it is fairly stiff dough, and a half a handful of parsley. Dropped from a spoon into a pot of boiling water. Tip.. wet the spoon in a cup of water bewteen each spoonful of dough so it won't stick... push off into the water with your finger. I've also seen my father roll this dough out on a floured cutting board and cut it into strips for stroganoff noodles. One of my variations that is very delicious is to substitute spinach flour. They take to most any gravy and can be added to soups (don't cook them in the soup). My youngest sister likes them buttered with parmeasan cheese. My father often cooked a chicken, made gravy, and these spaetzle noodles to go with the gravy. After awhile he started leaving the chicken on the stove because everyone ate spaetzle and gravy until they were full. Give them a try Bobby. They are easy to make and difficult to get wrong. They float when cooked and you can even overcook them some without making them bad. They keep in the fridge and reheat perfectly in a microwave. : ) lyra

I learned to make yeast bread (still learning..)and then learned that once you begin baking your own bread you can't go back to store bought LOL. I finally learned (she's probably so tired of reading about this...)how to cook a great turkey by following the instructions Ann T posted. My summer project was to become so competent making my own pie crusts that I would never be tempted to buy the rolled up ones from the refrigerator case. Managed that, and in the process family and friends ate and were gifted with more fresh fruit pies than in any previous year. Used my LC Dutch oven sporadically in previous years but since I want it handy for coffeehaus's No Knead Bread, these days I have something simmering in it several times a week. Would love to get more T&T recipes for it. Learned about the Thermapen cooking thermometer from this forum. Researched reviews and now want one... Since DS graduated HS in '98 I had put on a couple pounds each year. Doesn't sound too bad, but over the course of 10 yrs. that became 20 extra pounds that didn't look or feel good on my 5'2" frame. I made an effort to become more physically active and became conscious of everything I was eating and dropped that 20 by June and have maintained the loss over 1/2 a year. FINALLY learned that "eat what you love, and love what you eat" works for me - not eliminating whole groups of food. Also learned (kind of knew it, but it really sunk in this year)that cooking and eating at home is so much more soul satisfying than eating out & on the run that it's easier to be fully satisfied with smaller portions of great food. Last, not least, I learned about this forum which is full of really talented, knowlegeable, fun people who inspire me every day to try new recipes and methods.

I'm in San Francisco on holiday and brought SWMBO to Cookin’, the amazing jumble of vintage French cookware on Divisadero St that I posted about at the start of this thread. The door was locked with a hand-lettered sign: "Knock", which I did. A man opened the door and explained the store is no longer open to the public but only admits "the trade". Before I could break down in tears he said he'd give us ten minutes in the shop. We entered and I said I was looking for a 25 mm carbon steel Sabatier chefs knife (yes, I like my first one so much I want another one). We wriggled through the forest of enamel pots, vintage advertisements, hanging racks, small appliances from the 1970s, cases and boxes and reached the glass case holding thousands of knives. He rummaged around a bit, and then went to fetch the owner Judy. She looked exactly as she had last time I was there, and we started talking about French knifemaking, blade profiles, her trips to France, and where the best markets were. I don't have any reason to think she recognized me. There are people you just click with right away and for me, she is one. She showed me a collection of vintage mochi molds and Japanese pastry branding irons, and we talked about her desire to find a collector or museum to keep this set intact. We went into the back room and she explained her plan to install a kitchen for cooking demonstrations. By now I'd been in the shop for a hour and I hesitantly asked if there was a way to become a "trade member" to have access to her shop in future. "No problem, I'll give you a card.". So a little later I left with a business card that signifies something that I'm not sure what, two 25 mm Sabatier knives, and various pots and forks that SWMBO, who had been talking with the man, had decided I should buy. Oh, and three recommendations for hole in the wall food joints in San Francisco that I promised to visit. I love shops and people like this. I hope Judy and Cookin' last forever.

I love gift cards. For my soon-to-be-graduating college senior: gift cards to Starbucks, or one of her favorite local restaurants. Or to her favorite movie theater. That's always a big hit with DD. To my newly married son & DIL in Georgia: Amazon and Homegoods are their favorites. I have a hard time finding good, easily packable or easily shippable gifts that they will actually use, and I don't like wasting money on "just stuff". If they give me a wish list ahead of time, CDs and DVDs that they'd like are easy enough, but both are now on Netflix, as are DH & myself. A gift card for their local museum, zoo, bio park or aquarium are also ideas. As was mentioned here already, UPS shipping costs are high now. I won't bore you the details, but I was recently charged $169 at a UPS Pack-N-Ship to mail 7 lightweight items and 2 paintings back from Michigan to my home here in New Mexico. Never again!