I actually do not care for the "egg in unusual places" trend. I had a friend not understand the way it was described and had to send the dish back because she really can't stand eggs. I can understand why a cooked egg is contributed to some dishes (extra protein), but sometimes the flavor of the runny yolk is unwelcome.

Interesting. I thought it meant more souffles, omelets, frittatas at different times of day, but maybe it means instead the egg on the pizza and so on.

I completely enjoy the trend of returning to good old fashioned food, ie unusual cuts of meat - the once common food of the peasantry that had all but disappeared. Now if only that trend would catch on in Baltimore....

Dear EL (he typed, sighing): "It seems to me we're going the other way in Baltimore." Has Baltimore ever really gone the "same" way? I don't think so. It will always be the the little city that wants to be big. It will always think it's better than it really is or ever will be. It will always be pretentious and pretend that it is on the par with DC or NYC or many, many other cities. What Baltimore should do is rest on its laurels as one of this country's oldest, most historic places and stop thinking it is anything but.

Now, that's merely my own humble opinion. However, regarding the lack of a "food blog" as referenced in another link, I personally feel that Dining@Large is, shall I say, large enough to encompass both dining and food - with an appreciative nod to Mr. Sessa's efforts, of course.

BTW: were you at all consulted on the "state cake" story? (I'm rolling my eyes at the fact that the story even warranted reporting - much less an admissible byline.)

Yes, I'm going to now officially stake my claim to all food discussions, and any other blogger who tries to nibble away at my turf (sorry for the mixed metaphor) -- Watch Out. :-)

As for the state cake. Not me.

As to the State Cake, all of these years I thought the Lady Baltimore Cake was the State Cake.

Now, I don't even know where you can still get a Lady Baltimore Cake.

I'm proud of you, EL! You truly deserve the title "Big Ace" just for braving to stand up to all pretenders. We who are your fans and blogophiles will have your back should any interloper infringe on your turf - AND surf!

(Apologies for mistyping my name earlier.)

I would have changed it for you, but I was afraid that it was some incredibly hip play on words that I didn't want to admit I didn't get.

Egg in unusual places... in this case it indeed was a runny fried egg in the middle of her pizza. She reported back that there was very little description to the toppings, mostly the name and a mention of crust... but she was adventurous... up to when the runny egg appeared.

I've also seen a runny friend egg atop bowls of noodles and some grain dishes. If I see it in the description I often will pass this up as I detest runny eggs myself. Or if I think the meal can stand without it, I'll request that it be omitted. Most of the time this isn't an issue.

In Europe last summer a runny egg made an appearance on beautifully cooked asparagus. I didn't mind that combination at all.

I think the Eastern Shore cake is up for "state dessert". In my view, that title should go to Berger's Cookies.

But I guess MD would get a state dessert that was made with a cake mix (“preferably Duncan Hines”).

I agree, Dahlink, the egg on asparagus is divine. I do it that way frequently in lieu of hollandaise.