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[Caravan Ray]

Ok guys 'n' gals, I need an American's help (the first and only time I'll ever write that!)

So I am cooking a meal for 8 this weekend, and the receipe I want to do calls for 3 cups of white onions and 2 cups of ball peppers. I know cups is an american-only invention - research reveals it is 285ml (or 1/2 pint in proper.)

So me dumb, of course, but how can you have 800ml of white onions? Or do they mean the equivalent of a pint and a half, in onion form? that's a helluva lot of onions, to be getting the receipe wrong!

Translation, followed by light mocking of the chef, would be recieved gratefully.

j$

For 8 people I'd be guessing 2 big white onions is plenty. The recipe you have is probably referring to "Old Uncle Jethro's E-Zeee Liquified Onions in a Can(TM)" - or some other American atrocity (I still don't know what the hell "jack cheese" is suppposed to be, though those deep-fried mozerella sticks were a taste sensation - thanks Mogosagatai!).

By "ball peppers" - are your referring to "bell peppers" - which is what the Seppos call capsicums, or the small, round, mild red chillies the Italians eat? Either way - chuck in about a handfull (...wash your hands first - God knows what you might have been doing beforehand).

And if you don't already have one - affect a fake cockney accent - that impish Jamie Oliver is just so charming. (Or preferably - if you can frock up to look like Nigella - that would make my mouth water)

[Eric Y.]

j$, usually when people refer to volume quantities of onions (as in "cups") it would mean in cut form (i.e. chopped, diced, sliced, or however you are to be preparing them). this being the case, a "cup of onions" or here, "three cups of onions" would be the approximate volume of cut onions that would fit in three cups. one important consideration: in american measurement, a cup is 8 fluid ounces; a pint is 16; three cups would be 24 ounces, or about 1-1/4 british pints.

(still, that does sound like a hell of a lot of onions.)

and referring to mr. ray's query, i've never heard of "ball peppers" as an american expression referring to any type of pepper; i would assume the meaning is "bell peppers", often referred to by color (i.e. "green bell peppers" [or red or yellow]) and also known as "sweet peppers".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Capsicum1.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Greenpeppers.jpg
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Image:Washing_peppers.jpg

[j$]

yes, Bell - typo by me....

Thanks guys it's Roast beef with onion relish on foccacia bread so we shall see how it turns out with that many onions!

[Caravan Ray]

and referring to mr. ray's query, i've never heard of "ball peppers" as an american expression referring to any type of pepper; i would assume the meaning is "bell peppers", often referred to by color (i.e. "green bell peppers" [or red or yellow]) and also known as "sweet peppers".
http://en.[CENSORED].org/wiki/Image:Capsicum1.jpg
http://en.[CENSORED].org/wiki/Image:Greenpeppers.jpg
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Image:Washing_peppers.jpg

You Americans and your crazy nomenclature! "Pepper" should only be used when referring to Piper nigrum which bears no relation to the plants of the genus Capsicum, and hence should not be called 'peppers'. Capsicums are actually part of the Family Solanaceae which makes them more closely related to potatos and tomatoes.

Calling a capsicum a "bell pepper" only leads to confusion - especially when a Bell Chilli is something completely different

(And funnily enough - having already referred to her in this thread, Nigella is also a member of the pepper family Nigella sativa - which might have something to do with her being hot...)

[Eric Y.]

that's not an american thing -- blame columbus for the naming issues.

[mkilly]

I made this today:
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/recipes/gingerbread

Came out pretty super. I just threw everything, in order, in my KitchenAid standing mixer, and let it mix it up basically constantly. I recommend mini-loaf pans instead of a full one; they're more adorable. Also they're useful for banana bread and pumpkin bread where sometimes it doesn't cook all the way through and you get a gross mushy part.

[Märk]

Mexican lasagna:

-1 lb. of browned ground beef, seasoned with that taco seasoning stuff
-1 can of refried beans, warmed up (so it's easier to spread)
-1 medium tomato and 1 medium onion, finely diced
-about 1 cup of grated cheddar
-(optional) jalepenos or chipoltes
-nacho cheese sauce, warmed up (runny)
-salsa
-sour cream
-5 or 6 soft flour tortillas

Lay tortilla on a medium pizza pan, thinly spread some beans on it, sprinkle ground beef, tomatoes, onions, cheddar, and peppers evenly, put a few glops of salsa and sour cream on it, and drizzle the nacho cheese on. Slap another tortilla on top, smush it down a bit, and repeat until you either run out of ingredients or tortillas. I made mine 5 layers, and it was about 3 inches thick. Bake for 10 minutes @ 350. So delicious.