chromedome

An older Dutch gentleman of my acquaintance frequently quoted his own granny to the effect that "crumbs are still bread." In her usage it was intended as a general endorsement of frugality, rather than applying specifically to bread, but it works either way. Historically bread-eating cultures in often had similar strictures against wastage of any scrap. I'm guessing they began to fade in the 19th century as industrialization hit agriculture, milling and baking*. Between mechanized harvesting replacing laborers with scythes, and high speed Hungarian-style roller mills replacing age-old stone milling, and purified yeast streamlining the baking process, bread became cheaper and more readily available than it had ever been. When that happened, the moral imperative to not squander the bread "earned by the sweat of one's brow" faded. On a more prosaic note, it's also pretty hard to feel reverent toward Wonder Bread and it's sad, bland, spongy kin. (*I know there are plenty of other factors at play, including and especially the broader rise in prosperity across the industrialized world, but a detailed analysis wasn't my aim...)

That's more like it. I'm sure I can find another thing or two to get up to the threshold for free shipping.

I found it on the Walmart.ca website...for $52.95 CDN.

Prompted by this thread, I just looked up the EZ-DUZ-IT to see if it's available in Canada. It is indeed...for $37.95 CDN on Amazon.ca. If it's really built like the old Swing-a-Way it'll last long enough to be worth it, but that was a nasty shock to my East Coast Frugality Gene (TM). It might take me a few days to actually muster up the gumption to make the purchase.

I suppose you've all heard the story of the three elderly ladies on a road trip together? They were driving through Kentucky and arrived at the outskirts of Louisville. The one who was driving announced this to the others, who had dozed off (as one will, on a lengthy trip with people whose stories you've all heard before). She pronounced it "Lewisville," and one of her traveling companions took exception to that. "I've always heard it said as 'Looeyville,' she replied. Now the third piped up, claiming "I've got family here, and they say it's pronounced more like 'Louahvahlll." They went back and forth on these general lines for a few minutes, getting more heated as they did so. Finally the driver swing abruptly onto the nearest off-ramp, announcing "Well let's just settle this once and for all!" She pulled the car into the a nearby strip mall and the three of them stumped grimly into the first business they saw, like a pack of little grey-permed thunderclouds. The driver marched up to the kid behind the counter and said sternly "Young man! Speaking slowly and distinctly, please tell us exactly where we are!" The young 'un recoiled from this blast, swallowed hard and blinked a few times, and then - speaking very slowly and carefully - replied "Burrr...gerrrr Kinnnggg..."

You'll find that his first post here was in defense of someone who'd written a negative review of his then-current book. I've always thought that said a lot about him.

Yes, there are several domesticated varieties bred specifically for meat production. On one of our interminable trips between provinces, my daughter and SIL were chatting about his brother's pet bunny, and another that his cousin owned. The cousin's was a Flemish Giant, at which point I piped up unthinkingly and commented that "Oh, those are one of the best meat breeds!" The conversation died at that point... (ETA: Driving between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia is only a few hours, which hardly counts as "interminable" by Canadian standards, but *any* time in the company of my SIL is unequivocably interminable.)

Potential pieces of glass in Monster brand Salted Caramel energy drink. http://www.inspection.gc.ca/about-the-cfia/newsroom/food-recall-warnings/complete-listing/2019-03-22/eng/1553298085992/1553298088098

The "turtle burgers" were a big hit, though the younger granddaughter (whose mom keeps turtles in an aquarium) required repeated assurances that "no turtles were harmed in the making of this burger."

I showed that to my GF. Now I gotta make 'em tonight for her and the grandkids.

Jane's Pub Style chicken nuggets, also salmonella. This one's national. Only one date code currently recalled, but that might change. http://www.inspection.gc.ca/about-the-cfia/newsroom/food-recall-warnings/complete-listing/2019-03-21/eng/1553209880516/1553209882053

Kinda food-ish...

A couple of Organic Matters brand herbal teas are being recalled for possible salmonella. BC for sure, possibly national. http://www.inspection.gc.ca/about-the-cfia/newsroom/food-recall-warnings/complete-listing/2019-03-21/eng/1553204633622/1553204635521

While I'm not enthused about the use of cymbals as props, I'm pleased to note that they've at least chosen Sabian, manufactured here in small-town Meductic, New Brunswick (about 90 minutes north of me).

That's the gold standard, right there (IMO, anyway...).

I think of Kali whenever I hear the expression "forewarned is forearmed."

To me the calculus is simple: Tuna packed in oil retains much more of its flavor. Given that it's not a daily staple for me, the price difference is meaningless and the caloric impact of a ml or two of oil equally so. I just want it to taste good when I do eat it, so I buy oil-packed.

"Sorghum nouveau" sounds like a brilliant marketing idea.

It turns up in Canadian supermarkets, though it's certainly not a popular/mainstream item. If you look in the wee section of shelf where they keep specialty versions (tuna in mustard, tuna with herbs and lemon, etc) you'll also see tuna with chilies. Personally, I'm happy just to see tuna in oil finally getting some traction. For the longest time Clover Leaf was the only brand I could find consistently, but now Rio and a couple of others are reliably available. I don't eat a lot of tuna these days, but oil-packed is so vastly superior I just refuse to buy the water-packed kind.

Ontario only, botulism in bar clams. http://inspection.gc.ca/about-the-cfia/newsroom/food-recall-warnings/complete-listing/2019-03-15/eng/1552702897100/1552702899415

That's a deceptively simple request, isn't it? I bought and returned about a dozen at different price points before settling on my current one. It's Calphalon-branded, and God only knows who actually makes it for them. Working well for the...uh...five? six? years I've owned it.

I'm on the road, and therefore settled for store-bought. At least it was locally made, with local apples.

I'd bet against that. I have the same ambivalence about it that @EatingBen does...part of me says "wow, I'd invest in that!" and part of me rolls its eyes and mutters "here we go again..." That being said, I think there's enough awareness now of the downside to Keurig's disposability that a new product would probably try to mitigate that criticism in advance. At my home we use refillable, reusable K-cups for those who want the convenience. My mom buys a brand that's in fully compostable pods, and lives in a province that actively composts food waste.

I don't use mine for chocolate, but on the Foodsaver you push a button to put it in manual-vacuum mode and then hold down the vacuum button for as long or as short a period as you wish. When you let go it stops, and then you use the separate "Seal" button to close the bag. I played around with it a few times while trying to seal easily-squished items such as hot dog or hamburger buns, before realizing (duh) that it was easier and better to freeze the buns before vac-bagging them. I'm guessing Greweling uses his machine that way, just holding down the button long enough for the bag to form itself gently around the pieces.

At some point one of the major cookie-makers had a peanut butter cookie called the Nutterbutter, so I suspect that's why the name got changed.