Re: shallots. I've cooked with shallots once last year. They struck me as being less chemically than a standard onion (in that my eyes didn't water as much), but maybe it was just the shallots I bought, not a property of shallots in general.

I used to eat Tostitos, and I liked the "scoops" the best. But sometime last year, I got tired of the uber-saltiness and uber-flakiness of Tostitos. Mind you, there were moments when I was craving salt like woah, and then Tostitos really hit the spot. But for salsa, I really liked using those Tapatia no salt California style chips.

Aw yes, heirloom cherry tomatoes are prettier than heck (I would fantasize about throwing a dinner party, just so I could display those pretties in a nice bowl), but I think the heirloom normal tomatoes have that lovely taste.

Erg, here the tomatoes are starting to get the mid-winter-import blahs, where the skin may act like it's ripe or over-ripe, but the seeds inside are still green. Ah well, it's better than being in a heatwavesays I, through clenched teeth ;P