If you follow these two steps, you will almost double the volume of juice you get out of  lemons, limes, oranges, grapepfruit and the like.  First, pop them in the microwave.  One fruit for 15 seconds.  Each add'l fruit gets 5 more seconds.   Then, place them on the counter or cutting board and putting the force of your "elbow grease" behind them, roll them around a bit.  You'll be amazed at the amount of juice you'll get!  Lula uses citrus in a myriad of recipes...Pork Loin with Peach Mango Salsa,  and Salmon Piccata are two.  Go to www.lulasforlunch.com  and guess which menu items contain citrus...there are 6 on our Breakfasty/Brunchy menu alone!!! - Lula

The "season" is over...if you're like me, ample leftover food is in the fridge. I served Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Creamed Parsnip Potatoes and Roasted Asparagus for dinner (along with the requisite Homemade Rustic Fennel Bread and Winter Greens Salad, several appetizers and of course, Gordon's Famous Pecan Pie)! The tenderloin is no mystery - slap it on the rustic bread with a little butter or mayonnaise and horseradish, topped with the salad and/or asparagus, and have lunch! The leftover potatoes become potato pancakes for breakfast with soul satisfying scrambled sausage eggs. But for the rest of you, what's left over? What are you doing with it? Have you frozen something to become "mystery dinner" sometime in the near future? Are you (Oh, NOOOoooooooo!!!!!!!) throwing things out? DON'T!!! Submit your questions/conundrums to ME...I'll help you "waste not, want not"!

Lori Pierce (Lula)
Lula'sfor Lunch...and More!
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http://blog.lulasforlunch.com
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Citrus fruits have what looks like "pores" - just like our skin.  The larger the pores, the thicker the skin, the less the juice.  How easy is that!?!?  - Lula

Oh! And If you're a member of Linked In, join our group!  Lula's Foodie Forum

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It's crunch time!  Have a frozen turkey and not enough time?  Any bulk protein (turkey, whole chicken, roasts etc) is thawed more quickly and efficiently in water.  Sink not big enough?  Use the bathtub!  It takes a few hours, but that's a whole lot quicker than 3 days in the refrigerator!  Don't care about the science?  Stop here and just do what I say.  Want to know why?  Read on...

Thawing on the counter is dangerous because of the temperature "danger zone" from the outside in as the turkey begins to thaw.  Thawing on a low oven or in the microwave causes the meat to cook unevenly.  Thawing on un-coated aluminum is great (the best!)  for flat stuff like frozen steaks or boneless chicken breasts because of how heat transfers to cold stuff on flat surfaces.

Everything is made up of molecules &/or electrons, and they ARE heat.  Heat is NOT temperature.   Temperature is just our definition in numbers of how fast the molecules within a substance are moving.  Heat is simply the energy of moving molecules.  The more movement of the molecules, and the more closely the molecules are structured within a substance, the more heat. WATER has a much more dense molecular structure than air,  and is able to transfer heat to the frozen mass more quickly than air. 

I am thankful for my readers!  Happy Turkey Day! - Lula

There's lots to know about Vanilla.  I'll concentrate on a fact or two, and save the rest for another time.  Vanilla pods (bean is a misnomer) come from a specific Orchid.  Vanilla is technically a fruit!  If you enjoyed this fun fact, subscribe to where it came from:  http://blog.lulasforlunch.com  !!  You'll get stuff like this about once a week.  - Lula

Thanksgiving Menu for delivery 11/23

$14.00 pp/min 8

Homemade Rustic Bread

Winter Greens Salad w/Roasted Pecans & Figs

Choose one of Each:

Cajun Turkey Breast w/Oyster Stuffing & Gravy

Turkey Breast w/Mushroom & Cranberry Gravy

Creamed Yukon Gold Herbed Gravy Potatoes

Grand Marnier Sweet Potatoes –Roasted & Whipped

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Maple Glazed Peas & Carrots

Cranberry/Apple Crisp

Pumpkin Spice Cake

PO Box 15604 Taylor Mill KY  41015

p/f 859-360-0251

I love that I'm always learning something new...I just had the best meatball I've ever had, and I'd like to share!  I've always made my meatballs with beef, pork and veal when so inclined to pursue this labor of love...but I just had a meatball with only pork and veal and I must say the texture and flavor were beyond compare!  The centuries old Stone House Inn in Farmington, PA  www.stonehouseinn.com has Italian roots and obviously they've kept the recipe the same.  The dish has inspired me to invent an Italian Meatloaf Sandwich and entree.  Be on the lookout!! - Till my next tasty traveling bite, - Lula

Did you know that smaller squashes are sweeter, and you should always pick butternut squashes that are longer than they are round at the bottom - you get more actual edible flesh that way since the seed pocket in the "fat bottom" isn't useable. - Lula

Fondue is HOT this season...and Lula has several to choose from!  How about Satay Fondue with Pan Roasted Chicken, Sweet Bell Pepper and Herbed Pita Skewers, or Greek Fondue with a blend of tangy cheeses and Greek herbs and spices, or traditional Swiss Fondue, served with French bread cubes and apple slices, OR... a client favorite (go figure, Cincinnati!) Cheddar/Ale Fondue, served with homemade German Salt Rye bread and beer poached sausages!!!  For more appetizer options for your fall/holiday party, go to www.lulasforlunch.com  and drool!!!!! - Lula

New oil, or Olio Nuovo as the Italians say, is the first extra-virgin olive oil off of the press at harvest time.  It is brilliant green and has tiny particles of olive in it.  Up until the last year or two, only Italians have enjoyed this intense, fresh and RICH oil at harvest time (about late September through January), but NOW, we Americans can get it from our California producers via web.  A really great one I've tried is from McEvoy Ranch www.mcelvoyranch.com .  Another producer that sells this great stuff online is California Olive Ranch www.californiaoliveranch.com .  Though I haven't tried this one it gets great marks.  If you're an olive oil lover, just go to one of these websites and order a bottle and they'll ship it to you so you can indulge in a unique sensory and taste experience.  You'll miss it after it's gone, and look forward to next season! - Lula
www.lulasforlunch.com