We had a very nice meeting at my home on Sunday to explore some tips and tricks following the usual fine conversation about where to buy it and the latest restaurants.

We looked at bag-in-box wine which has the marvelous quality that one can drink a half-glass at a time for weeks without oxidizing the wine. I’m currently in thrall to this cote du rhone available at Wine and Cheese Cask ($30 for 3 liters = $7.50 bottle):

I’m also excited about this soda system (a tip from Niki!) which is available at Tag’s in Porter Square. The CO2 cartridge provides 100 liters of carbonation and is exchangable.

We fried some almonds in peanut oil to demonstrate the superiority of freshly made nuts: you can do the same with most others and I’m addicted to freshly fried pepita seeds.

Perhaps the most enthusiastically received tip was the German Pancake: 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup whole milk, 1 jumbo egg, and nutmeg baked in a preheated frying pan at 400 degrees for 22 minutes:

Then add lots of lemon juice and your preferred amount of confectioner’s sugar: yum!

Some foodies gathered last Saturday at the home of Len and Judith Inker to put together a wide-range of “unusual” pizzas: not a tomato in the bunch!

Len started us off with some very unusual potato chips.  Sliced on a mandoline, a pair of chips is pressed around a sage leaf and then fried.  Very tasty!

Then Ann Oppenheimer whipped up a cream cheese and wild smoked salmon pizza:

Deb and I countered with mascarpone, speck and arugula, one of our all time favorites:

Heidi Vernon upped the topping quotient with her roasted squash and cheeses:

Kitty Selfridge and Pat Ruopp came forward with fig jam, proscuitto, cheese and arugula:

And Len closed out the parade with portobella mushrooms and goat cheese on a flour tortilla:

Thanks to Len and Judith for their hospitality and to Len for many batches of fine pizza dough!