Q: My husband and I just bought our first house and in the kitchen (a very old kitchen) I found this "tool." It has an inscription on the side that says "ASTUGRID," and a series of numbers. Does anyone know what this is? 

Q: I use hoisin sauce in stir fries and in a dipping sauce for Vietnamese spring rolls. Are there other ways for me to use this tasty ingredient?

Sent by Zaboo

Q: Can you recommend a good champagne vinegar?

Sent by Mary

Q: For the next few weeks, I'll be working four hours from home and staying in a hotel with no refrigerator, though I will be coming home on weekends. Do you have any suggestions for non-perishable, non-refrigerated, no-cook healthy food that I could make instead of eating out every meal?

Q: I am hosting some lady friends this weekend for cocktails. A few are bringing appetizers or desserts, but I'd like to serve something that's a little more filling. Thought of doing soup or chili, but I've done that before. I'm also intrigued by the polenta party you recently focused on. Suggestions?

Sent by Kelly

Q: I bought a type of lettuce I've never seen before at a local farmer's market, and I forgot to write down the name. The leaves are juicier than any other lettuce I've had before, and the flavor is almost salty. Any idea what this is called?

Sent by Jaimi

Q: A friend of mine gave me a bottle of dark cocoa balsamic and I have no idea what to do with it. I've tasted it on its own, and while it isn't an overpowering cocoa taste, it is definitely there. Any ideas?

Sent by Elizabeth

Q: I'm going to college soon and looking to buy my own knives. Should I buy a knife block with knives or buy the knives separately from the block? I'm looking to spend around $100 total. The three knives I use the most are a paring knife, a chef's knife, and a bread knife.

Sent by Heejung

Q: I'm throwing my first baby shower in a month and am stumped about food! It's from 1-3pm, so we're just serving snacks and finger foods. We'll have a champagne bar with bubbly (both alcoholic & not), fruit and a cake, but we don't know what to serve. It's an an elegant, outdoor shower. Help!

Sent by Michelle

Q: We go through a fair amount of cheese at our house, and recently we started freezing the rinds. I know that we can simmer these in tomato sauce to give a nice flavor, and we've done that, but the problem is we go through WAY more cheese than we make homemade tomato sauce.