You know a product is popular when the copies come pouring in from China.  At a recent product show in Chicago I spotted a large booth sporting every traditional Mexican cooking tool that you might find in any Mexican kitchen.  The first item I picked up was a molcajete.  I turned the box over and saw the "Made In China" sticker.  After a closeup look at the molcajete it was clear it was not handmade or Mexican.  And so it was,  product after product from the Mexican clay olla, to the lemon juicer and ice shaver, all made in China.   About two weeks later at a Mexican market I found the exact same molcajetes, boxes disposed of so no indication of where it came from.  Any uninitiated buyer would not know it was Chinese.  


molinillo and tostonera made in china

Hecho In China
And now, a new player in the Mexican ...

You may have seen  pots de creme on an occasional dessert menu and wondered to yourself .. "pots de what?".  There has been a resurgence of popularity in the last few years.  Several main stream magazines like Martha Stewart, Fine Cooking and Gourmet have feature articles on this enticing custard.  I confess I'm a pots de creme snob.  My pet web site is Potsdecreme.com, a site I started a couple years after we launched GourmetSleuth.  So, suffice to say i'm an enthusiast.



I feel compelled to report to you my recent pot de creme menu sighting.  Tonight we found the dessert on the menu of The Lobster in Santa Monica, California.  As an aside let me say I enjoy dining here.  The food is fresh and for the most part well-prepared. I love the ahi and the squash soup is wonderful.  And how can you beat the view of the famous old ...

If you are even remotely in tuned to fitness issues you've probably heard about the 10,000 steps a day concept.   In short studies* have shown that walking 10,000 steps a day offers substantial health benefits.  To this end I have accumulated numerous contraptions that promise a reasonably accurate count of my precious daily steps and today there is a new kid on the block. Enter, FitBit!

Here is what it can do:
It's wireless so it transmits data to you computer without special docking equipment
You wear it day and night to track steps (sleep walking?) miles, calories burned
Online software tracks total calories burned, steps and distance.

The retail price is currently $99.00 but not available until 1st Quarter 2009

Any of you low-carbers out there getting tired of bacon and eggs for breakfast?

Well I'm with you there.  Thats why I created some nice little bacon and green chile cheese quiche made in muffin tins. 

 
This is actually the larger quiche.  Rather than using a crust I used non-stick muffin tins and I sprayed them with cooking spray. 

They came out great.  I put the leftovers in the freezer in zip-lock backs. Now I have a quick breakfast, lunch or dinner.

See recipe: Bacon and Green Chile Quiche