chromedome

I can recall a time when my spaghetti sauce (which I was *very* proud of) included Campbell's tomato soup and canned, sliced olives. Obviously my tastes have evolved and I've acquired a lot of knowledge and skills in the intervening years decades, but it started with developing an interest in cooking as opposed to just eating whatever happened to be in front of me. If an enthusiastic (albeit self-interested) 19-yo can plant that seed in other teens or 20-somethings, well...so much the better for everyone. To me the whole argument is very similar to the ongoing battle over school reading lists. Some teachers and parents are adamantly opposed to graphic novels/memoirs being on those lists (or Harry Potter, or sci-fi/fantasy, or whatever), while others (including me) argue that "for God's sake, if they want to read instead of staring at a screen, let 'em read what they want!" Let it be fun, let them be enthused, and then you can direct that enthusiasm. You can't steer a car that's not in motion, right? I've taught cooking classes where the lightning-bolt moment for some of the students was a throwaway comment about how I augmented the kids' boxed mac & cheese when they were younger. It wasn't what I was shooting for, but that was what resonated for those people in that moment. It's all grist for the mill.

The Britain of the era also featured a large quantity of bombed-out buildings, which were not (in their turn) an indictment of English architecture. It was a slow recovery, and affected daily life in many ways.

A new Netflix documentary and its companion site, about African-American cuisine and its role in US history and culture.

I'm actually rather surprised that Brussels sprouts are unknown in China, given their broad embrace of other brassicas. Seems like there might be an entrepreneurial opportunity there for someone.

I'm a big fan of sage Derby. It may not be the most exalted use, but I really love it in a grilled cheese sandwich.

Okay, that makes sense. Over here blue is reduced-fat, which is even more prone to curdling. Full-fat is better. The microwave would work, for sure. So does the milk steamer/frother used to make milky espresso beverages, if you happen to have one of those (and it's pretty quick, on the higher-end machines).

Milk curdles when you boil it, full stop (salt accelerates the process, but you can season at the end if necessary). You can heat it slowly to a low simmer (about 180 F) without breaking, though you'll need to go low-and-slow. I'm not sure off the top of my head whether potatoes have enough acidity to affect the result. Also it will tend to stick to the bottom and scorch, so you'll need to stir it a lot. Potentially as the potatoes get cooked-er their starch might stabilize and thicken the milk, allowing for a higher temperature, but you'd have to get to that stage first (and it would exacerbate the risk of sticking/scorching). What's the end result you're trying to achieve? Perhaps someone can suggest a better approach?

The straw suppresses weeds and helps retain moisture, and then breaks down to provide additional tilth (organic matter) in the soil. You can use your matured compost as top dressing or side dressing around your plants, though the timing depends on what you're growing. You can also add some to the hole when you're putting in transplants.

Given her age, and her relatively recent culinary training, it's quite possible her father was trying to find a viable niche where she could function once her parents passed. I know a family in Alberta who followed a similar course with their daughter, though from a younger age.

I was mystified as well. I was mentally trying to envision some sort of protective cap for the "business end" of the thing. Mind you, this was pre-caffeine...

You say that like it's a bad thing?...

They're also pretty sustainable, relative to most of the alternatives.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/05/indigenous-forest-gardens-remain-productive-and-diverse-for-over-a-century/

Money quote from Jason's review:

I can't answer for anyone, since I've never succumbed to the temptation, but a) the APO is twice the price; and b) I expect many of the CSO owners are standing pat while their ovens last.

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/what-was-native-american-food-like-before-europeans

In Newfoundland it's common to see them diced and added to potato salad, turning the whole thing shocking pink. Not that I advocate for this, mind you, but it's at least... interesting, the first time. Traditionally you'd see it served with regular "white" potato salad and another one flavored with yellow mustard (which, again, I don't necessarily advocate) as part of a cold plate with the leftovers from a holiday meal or similarly large spread. One of my aunts made her third one green, rather than yellow, so they'd correspond to the old-school Newfoundland flag of pink, white and green (said to represent, respectively, England's rose, Scotland's thistle and Ireland's shamrock). I don't remember for sure what she "greened" it with, but suspect it was cooked-and-mashed peas.

Canadian peeps, if you've bought enoki mushrooms from Metro lately check them against this alert (Listeria). https://inspection.canada.ca/food-recall-warnings-and-allergy-alerts/2021-05-15/eng/1621108438423/1621108444577?utm_source=r_listserv

https://civileats.com/2021/05/07/why-ken-meter-is-on-a-mission-to-build-community-food-webs/

There's a recall for BC and Quebec (so far) on one particular brand of Taleggio, for listeria. https://inspection.canada.ca/food-recall-warnings-and-allergy-alerts/2021-05-12/eng/1620873492820/1620873499288?utm_source=r_listserv

That's generally how I do the autumn batch with the "feral" apples, because prepping them is otherwise a PITA. A few of the trees around here produce apples with a rosy blush to their flesh, and one small crabapple tree yields apples the size of a large cherry with a rich deep-pink hue, so I always include a few of those for color.

When we get our own place, yeah...that's in the plan.

I use a mix of whatever's available from the grower, during the months they're open, but usually try to mix at least 2-3 varieties for broader flavor and sweet-tart balance. In autumn I also gather apples from the "feral" trees growing in my neighbourhood, some of which produce surprisingly good apples at nearly market size. I'll need to make more from supermarket apples before the summer is over, but supermarkets here stock local NB/NS apples most of the year, as well. In fairness, when I *do* need to get apples trucked in from across the continent, I mostly taste the difference when eating them out of hand. In the applesauce it's much less apparent.

My nearly-invariable breakfast is steel-cut oatmeal, and I put a healthy glop of applesauce on it in lieu of other sweeteners. I also sometimes have it on toast as a breakfast (on mornings when I wake up and realize I've forgotten to make oatmeal...) and I like it with yogurt as a snack/dessert at random intervals. That accounts for most of my usage, though I'll also occasionally have it on pancakes or waffles, or incorporated into muffins or a cake. Oh, and I'll also turn a few pints a year into fruit leather for the grandkids.