Bonnie Foster

Inexpensive, compact netbooks were all the rage during the recent economic downturn, and the product segment enjoyed explosive growth over that period. However, that growth rate started falling heavily at the end of 2009; in April 2010, netbook sales only grew a mere 5 percent. Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty says the iPad is to blame for the stalled growth, but it seems more likely that netbooks have merely saturated their niche in the market. - Bonnie Foster

It occurred to me a while ago that the site was missing a Quiche Lorraine recipe. Hah! An opportunity to cook bacon! (Like we don't get enough of those around here?) Culinary trends took an odd turn in the 70s when quiche gained the reputation of being a Ladies-who-lunch type of dish. Must have been because they took the bacon out and started putting everything else in (asparagus, goat cheese, mushrooms, heck, they even took out the crust.) But the mother of quiche recipes is the Quiche Lorraine, a light custard with lots of bacon in a buttery crust. In this version we've included some chopped chives because as of this writing it is springtime, and the chives are flourishing in the garden. - Bonnie Foster

:( - Scoble, Alex Scoble

Glad she's ok! - adf

Burgoo! Just word itself sounds like there should be a song about it (and there is). If you are unfamiliar with the concept of burgoo, it's Kentucky’s most famous stew, usually made for big gatherings (such as Derby Day) in huge kettles. Burgoo dates to before the Civil War and as legend has it, was invented by a French chef. Like a mulligan stew, it's sort of a empty-the-fridge recipe. Burgoos typically have at least three different meats, and plenty of vegetables such as corn, okra, and lima beans. Burgoo lovers differ on whether the stew ought to be cooked into a brown, undifferentiated mass, or whether you can still see individual ingredients. Some say burgoo is just a stew if you can’t stand a spoon in it. - Bonnie Foster

I love stews, but I've never tried a Burgoo. Has anyone here ever had Burgoo? - Bonnie Foster

Only once, but it didn't appeal to me. That was a long, long time ago, though. - Anika

A standard on the menu of any respectable steak house is peppercorn steak, or "steak au poivre" as the French call it. There is some debate over the exact origins of this recipe (which French chef, or French king, and what era), but a thick juicy steak served with a peppercorn sauce has been popular in American homes and restaurants for at least 50 years. The steak is usually crusted with cracked black or green peppercorns, and served with a sauce with cognac, and cream or demi-glace. The following recipe uses crushed black peppercorns, brandy, beef stock, and cream. In many recipes the peppercorns are pressed into the steak before cooking. In this recipe (adapted from the Joy of Cooking, same ingredients, slightly different method), the steak is seared first, so you can get good flavorful browning without burning a bunch of peppercorns. After searing, then a peppercorn sauce is made and served over the steak. - Bonnie Foster

I'm not much of a beef eater, but this even appealed to me! Time for dinner I think. ;) - Bonnie Foster

"Twitter is not a triumph of technology," Biz Stone, the company's creative director, told an audience in San Francisco this week. "It's a triumph of humanity." As Stone describes it, Twitter is a tool for times of revolution and strife, a service that can break news, bring down tyrants, and salve the wounds of the forsaken. When Capt. Chesley Sullenberger landed his plane in the Hudson last year, Twitter was there. When activists in Iran took to the streets to protest a stolen election, Twitter was there. When earthquakes ravaged Haiti and Chile, Twitter was there. I spend many hours a day on Twitter, but even I was shocked to learn from Stone that I was changing the world in the process. I'd assumed it was mainly a way to find links to the terrible things Tea Partiers say about Obama. - Bonnie Foster

I think I'm ready for something full of laughs and joy now.....can't take another one like this. :( - Bonnie Foster

Thomas Keller is most known for his landmark 3 Michelin star restaurant, The French Laundry in Yountville, California. French Laundry food is famously exquisite, requiring an insane amount of preparation for each dish (if you're curious about just how insane, check out Carol Blymire's now retired French Laundry at Home blog in which she cooked her way through the restaurant's cookbook.) A few years ago Keller launched another restaurant in the area, ad hoc, for patrons who wanted quality, without all the fuss. Home cooking, done incredibly well. - Bonnie Foster

I think I'm hungry because I'm really craving this right now! - Bonnie Foster