chromedome

There's no plaice like home! (...hangs head, slinks away...)

I have a slight preference for a double sink, but I do appreciate the versatility of having one large one. My last place in Nova Scotia had the big old-fashioned sink, and I "doubled" it by the simple expedient of using a small plastic tub as my washbasin for dishes. The rest of the sink then became the functional equivalent of a second. When necessary (big roasters, etc) I'd just lift out the basin, and have the full space for oversized items.

That's what I know as Swiss steak as well, though there's a sharp division among those who make it with gravy and those who make it with a tomato-based sauce. I was raised with the tomato version, but I'm broad-minded enough to appreciate either. Dr. Salisbury was a 19th-century physician and crank, who theorized that the widespread diarrhea he saw among Civil War troops could have been avoided by a diet of coffee and minced lean beef. He developed the ancestral version of the Atkins/paleo/keto diets, and "Salisbury steak" was one of the dishes he recommended. Because vegetables and starchy foods were full of toxins, doncha know.

I'm a yellow-pea guy, myself. Green pea soup reminds me rather too vividly of an illness my son had, back in my diaper-changing days. I actually like mine more pea-forward and with fewer pieces of actual ham in it, which is another reason why hocks work so well for me. I'm not entirely certain why pea soup is more of a "thing" here than bean soup. Certainly there were plenty of beans grown and used in my neck of the woods, as well. It might just be a cultural thing...the Acadians here would have had an ancestral connection to good ol' potage St-Germaine, while the Anglophones of us would have had our "pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold." There's also the issue of peas' lesser reputation for provoking flatulence. When your winters are cold and (in the days before central heating) your house is buttoned up as tight as you can make it, that might have been a factor.

Much the same thing, but the other way around. I braise them in sauerkraut, usually with a piece of fresh pork as well and a few sausages added late, then serve it with boiled potatoes and a few different kinds of mustard. My longtime best friend's family was from Germany, and I learned this from his mom. I do also use them in bean soups, but - this being the East Coast - more often it'll be pea soup. I like mine to have a good ham flavor, and a hock works better than the bone left over from a ham. That being said, if I have a ham bone or ham skin I'll bag them and freeze them for soup days, and throw those in as well or instead.

I'll second that. I usually whisk my leavenings into the dry ingredients to incorporate them evenly, or - if they happen to be on the counter anyway - use my stand mixer or Cuisinart to do the same thing.

Finished the series last night. Overall it was fun to watch, though I had a few quibbles (especially about how the final judging went down). I won't get into that, though, because it'd be pretty difficult to discuss or even reference tangentially without spoilers.

That's quite interesting. I studied German back in 8th grade, which is exactly the wrong time for a roomful of boys to hear any word that sounds like "fart."

Picnics are still widely available here in Atlantic Canada, and typically less costly than actual hams. I'll buy a ham for a holiday meal, because of the larger, prettier slices, but for ordinary meals I do prefer the picnic. I also pick up smoked hocks from one particular Superstore when I'm in Nova Scotia, because none of the others seem to stock them.

Alas, mine often arrive prematurely in the "shirts that don't matter" category because I forget to change before cooking. Perhaps one of these days I'll manage to form the habit...

I intend to at least do cinnamon stars and shortbreads. If time and ambition hold up, I'll add decorated sugar cookies (the grandkids are young enough to find those super-cool) and perhaps some kind of stuffed cookies with date or quince filling. A very small batch of mince tarts, just for me, because nobody else eats them and I don't get through a lot of sweets.

My GF keeps a few of those Snickers on hand with the snarky adjectives on them ("irritable," "whiny," "dramatic," etc) to give out to her daughters and friends as opportunity arises.

I dunno, I've changed enough diapers to believe that a filter cartridge might just be an excellent idea.

That's correct, and I'm usually tempted to say it more than once just for emphasis. The furthest any reputable researcher will go is to state that, for reasons currently still unknown, the brains of a minority of Alzheimer's patients seem to concentrate aluminum. It's certainly not "the" cause, and probably not "a" cause, but more likely a symptom. Also, as far as that goes, aluminum cookware is not a significant source of lifetime exposure (things like antacids and antiperspirants are much more pertinent).

AFAIK I'm getting nothing culinary this year, but of course I'm not necessarily privy to everyone's gift-giving intentions. Last year the in-laws gifted me with a food dehydrator, which was one of the very few things left on my "always kinda wanted, never owned" list. I've tried to emphasize to everyone that a) I have pretty much every kitchen gadget I'm interested in owning, and several more that I've just accumulated; and b) in the event I see fit to add something to my (already-requires-too-much-storage) kitchen battery, I'd probably prefer to pick it myself. I suggested shirts. My shirts always seem to get stains and spots from cooking (I own dozens of aprons, never think to put one on until it's too late).

Well, it's not a successful mission until they've actually taken their samples and brought 'em back to earth. But yeah, getting there is - as they say - half the fun. Or the stress, if you're in the telemetry, navigation and guidance systems end of things (he is).

My GF actually sent me that one, because it made a nice intersection with my existing interest in rocketry and space exploration. My best friend since childhood is actually in aerospace, and played a significant role in the current OSIRIS-REx mission.

That's genius. If I still baked regularly, that might have finally given me a reason to dabble in SV.

My GF and I binged the first four episodes last night. I generally don't watch these competition shows, because (like Lisa) I detest the hackneyed format, but the food made it interesting enough to keep watching. I'll probably finish it, but it isn't really overcoming my dislike of the competition-show structure in general. Seeing a guy who has placed well in the Bocuse d'Or struggle with the individual challenges just underlines the unreality of it all.

GQ, of all publications, followed up with a really good and touching retrospective: https://www.gq.com/story/anthony-bourdain-men-of-the-year-tribute

We had a few days' serious thaw, so unexpectedly I was able to get one more harvest out of my garden (we'd been in the deep freeze 10 days ago, and I wasn't sure I'd get another opportunity). I managed one more mess o' greens, mostly hardy brassicas with a bit of dandelion. The beets I'd planted late - mostly for greens - gave me about a dozen golden beets (an early variety, Golden Grex..the extra-dark Bull's Blood, not an early variety, didn't give me anything but greens in the limited time I had). To my surprise I also got the other half of my red onions, which I'd assumed would be a write off. I'd gambled on leaving them in the ground for another week or two, and then the hard freeze intervened. My indoor lettuces and kale look like they'll do well in their current location (on a windowsill in our exercise room, where they get more light) so I'll have something fresh to look forward to after the holidays.

Found on FB:

But...those pics are in color...

Yeah, it's a difference of focus. Yours are meringue cookies with nuts in 'em, while cinnamon stars are nut cookies with enough egg white to hold them together.

Wearing my former food-safety trainer hat: Anna's right, molds can introduce mycotoxins into foods even when they're apparently confined to the surface. Also, as Lisa says, many pathogens (especially Listeria monocytogenes) can quite happily keep on keepin' on even at refrigerator temperatures. I share your horror at the tragedy of wasted lamb stock, but OTOH it's an excuse to eat lamb again soon so you'l have the makings for a new batch. That, plus avoiding a nasty bout of GI distress, adds up to a win-win.