Why can't I be retired?
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Jet Blue All You Can Jet from September 7 to October 6 $499 Weekdays, $699 Any Day
~david
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Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Erector Fire Truck 6 Model Set: Fire Truck, Bulldozer, Tug Boat, Fire Boat, Dragster, & Helicopter $12
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Erector Fire Truck 6 Model Set: Fire Truck, Bulldozer, Tug Boat, Fire Boat, Dragster, & Helicopter $12
~david
(sent via mobile device)
Monday, August 16, 2010
Two Delicious Worlds Collide With Red Velvet Fried Chicken
don't tell john l. about this!!
Sent to you by David via Google Reader:
via The Consumerist by Chris Morran on 8/16/10
San Francisco continues to confound us... On one hand the city is trying to take all the happy out of Happy Meals; on the other hand, it's the same place you can now order up a plate of fried chicken coated in a red velvet cake batter.
The culinary curiosity is now available on the menu at San Francisco's American Cupcake, where the general manager says "It has the classic red velvet flavor with a hint of vinegar, cocoa and sweetness."
To make the dish, the brined chicken is first dunked in the red velvet batter before receiving a second coating of toasted red velvet crumbs. Once it's been caked-up properly, it's into the fryer and onto your plate.
And because red velvet cake is incomplete without cream cheese frosting, the chicken is served with a side of cream cheese infused garlic mashed potatoes.
If anyone in the San Francisco area decides to give the red velvet fried chicken a shot, we'd love to hear your opinion.
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Thursday, August 12, 2010
Restaurant Grade Sheet Pans
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Restaurant Grade Sheet Pans
After screwing around with grocery-store sheet pans for years, I went to a restaurant supply store and bought three plain metal sheet pans (technically "half-sheet" at 13x18, but true "full-sheets" are only used in commercial ovens). I've used them for over three years now, and am totally convinced that they are awesome.
Here's why people buy grocery store sheet pans: they're cheap, non-stick coated, and easily found at the grocery store. And here's what's wrong with them. They are flimsy metal, so they warp in the oven if you use them at high temperatures (over, say, 425F). They come in non-standard size, so you can never be sure that a cooling rack will fit into them. And their fancy-schmancy non-stick coating means that you baby them.
Here's why plain old restaurant-grade sheet pans are awesome:
They're not much more expensive than the cheap stuff you buy in the grocery store. Going from a $7 grocery-store pan to a $12 restaurant-grade pan is a significant percentage markup, but it's only $5. If you have a restaurant supply store near you, you may be able to get the restaurant-grade pans for basically the same price as the grocery-store pans.
They are heavy metal, which means that you can toss them into a 500 degree (F) oven to bake bread on them and not worry about warping. And they don't have any non-stick coating to worry about. I have used my sheet pans for everything from crafting trays to putting them under gardening flats when starting seedlings. No matter how nasty and dirty they get, I know that I can just take a steel wool pad to them and they'll come back to like-new.
You might think the lack of a non-stick coating is a minus, but seriously, you just spray the pan with non-stick or use baking parchment or silicon mats. It's not that hard. Every baker I know backs up "nonstick" pans with non-stick spray or parchment anyway, so it's not like there's any change in your cooking process.
The link below is not to the exact item I own (sorry, I bought it at a restaurant supply store and can't find it online), but it looks like basically the same thing.
-- Joshua Bardwell
Amco Food Service Half Sheet Pan
$11
Available from Amazon
Manufactured by Focus Food Service
~david
(sent via mobile device)
Friday, August 6, 2010
The Childrens Place 75% off Sale + additional 15% off code: Newborn & Infant $3+, Girls Tops & Bottoms $3+, Boys Tops & Bottoms $3+ + $5 flat-rate S/H
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The Childrens Place 75% off Sale + additional 15% off code: Newborn & Infant $3+, Girls Tops & Bottoms $3+, Boys Tops & Bottoms $3+ + $5 flat-rate S/H
~david
(sent via mobile device)
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Read Your Paid Software's Fine Print for Unexpected Savings [Saving Money]
Sent to you by David via Google Reader:
via Lifehacker by Kevin Purdy on 8/3/10
Windows site Neowin.net, by way of a Twitter reply from Microsoft's Australian offices, points out that every copy of Office allows for legitimate installation on one primary computer and a "portable device," which for all intents and purposes means a laptop. If your primary computer is a laptop, well, you're allowed to use Office on both those computers. Office's Home and Student version allows for three home installations, too, but that's another story.
So while reading through a license agreement might seem like an exercise in migraine testing, scanning to the section on installation rights, or asking the question, can pay off. Because nobody around these parts was even thinking of making a secondary installation before being fully cleared by the license agreement.
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Monday, August 2, 2010
Quick 220
hmmm... a way to keep using our old dryer... maybe...
Sent to you by David via Google Reader:
via Cool Tools on 8/2/10
When I moved into my apartment I found it had a through-the-wall air conditioner sleeve. I ignored it and installed my window air conditioner. When that old AC died about 3 years ago, I was told by the co-op board that the rules had changed and I had to use the sleeve. I guess I should pay more attention to coop board announcements. My problem was that next to the sleeve was a 110V outlet but every AC that fit the sleeve required 220V.
After being quoted over $1000 to run 220V to the sleeve I was desperate to find another solution. Luckily, I found the Quick 220 Power Converter. All it took was the 110V outlet near the sleeve and an extension cord from another 110V outlet on a different circuit. Instantly, I had two 220V outlets. And at $160.00 I was very happy with the price. They also throw in an outlet tester because both 110V outlets must be wired correctly (not something you can assume in an old apartment) for the Quick 220 to work.
-- Donnie BQuick 220 Volt Converter
$160
Available from and manufactured by Quick 220 Systems
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