chromedome

Yes, I missed that earlier. Pike=jackfish, though my favorite colloquialism for them out West is "slough shark."

More or less my feeling as well. I will not lecture or think less of anyone who does fish for sport using barbless hooks, and then releases their catch; but it's not my thing. If I go fishing it is with the intent of eating a fish, full stop. When I have my meal in hand, however idyllic the day, I'm done.

Chicken and duck fat are good keepers as well, just FYI. Can't answer for the "years" part, mind you. And I have had some home-rendered lard go rancid on me, but that was in a little bar fridge and I certainly can't vouch for its temperature. I mainly use it now to store pickles, jams and selected condiments once they've been opened.

A posthumous honor... https://www.facebook.com/foodday/?__cft__[0]=AZW7vPSIbbcBl8BFtDxGK3jIkye8-FSuwlOY1Zk-yxEZYf9d3Ae8s5lEI3x3hhL6rhh39siyFgfcuRgQ57pAqK07uggveTizbAL7-KAM2H2hVijaqw-bO0qkDzUsRf5qNs2n3VgLkGHDDI6AhLAy5jfb&__tn__=-UC%2CP-R

That's an impressive specimen. When I was an inquisitive and science-minded youngster, my father (a sailor) brought me home a barracuda from the Caribbean (he got one of the ship's cooks to throw it in the walk-in freezer for him). The first time I saw a photo of a pike, I was struck by how similar they were in design...a definite case of convergent evolution.

I put this here because it's a bar...

I mostly roast mine, and it works nicely. I probably cook 'em to a degree you'd consider sacrilegious - until they're somewhat charred and the tips of the skinnier ones are actually crunchy - but they're sweet and delicious that way. I generally favor pencil-thin stems for general purpose use, but those really skinny ones show up frequently in my neck of the woods at about this time (the ones I blanched and froze recently were super-skinny, the ones at the same store on my next trip were normal sized). Most are fine, but you'll get the occasionally woody one.

It all comes back to Google's algorithms, because what Google rewards is what Google gets (I've written online content for nearly a decade, now, and can personally attest to the carnage when they make a significant change to the algorithm). That's not "gaming the system," it *is* the system, full stop. We've had earlier threads on Google's inadequacy as a tool for finding decent recipes, and this is why. I'm sure a significant percentage of these bloggers, probably a solid majority, would happily forego the necessity of padding their recipes with 1800 words of prattle. They do it because the time they invest in blather shows a payback in Google's (algorithm-driven) search rankings, which in turn gives a significant advantage in Google's (algorithm-driven) ad revenue. It also drives eyeballs that can in turn generate clicks on affiliate links to Amazon or whoever. Don't blame the bloggers. If you like a site, there are often ways to support it directly (donations, Patreon, etc), in which case you can use the various snipping and ad-stripping tools with a clear conscience.

In my area Shoppers puts Atlantic or No-Name on for $3.49 or $2.99 most weekends (limit 2, used to be 4); Superstore and No Frills do so sporadically (every 4-6 weeks, except near baking-oriented holidays when it's more frequent) but put a wider selection of brands on sale; and Sobeys somewhat less often...perhaps every 2-3 months.

Oh, I do...I have both a Winners and a Marshalls nearby in adjoining shopping centers, and a Value Village as well. No joy so far, but hope springs eternal.

Very nice! ...and welcome to the wonderful world of eG.

I hung onto one of those portable butane burners when I stopped doing catering and farmer's markets, just to have on hand. Primarily it's a winter-storm backup for cooking purposes, and I toss it in my van during winter road trips or summer camping trips for similar reasons. Haven't had to use it yet, except for camping. Also, one day I will find myself a wok with a rounded bottom*, and my butane burner will then become the wok burner. *I know, I know, I can order them online. It's been a low priority, and I haven't gotten to it yet. Someday, when the time is right, I'll need to top up an order to get free shipping...

IIRC those are about the regular prices where I am, as well. I never pay regular price.

You need a big spit, but on the upside it's self-basting.

Well, it's a 454 g brick, aka a pound by any other name, though that's not the point. Pull back the foil, cut off your piece, fold back the foil...just as one does with cream cheese and many other things. Not a big deal. Though as I said above, it's basically down to personal preference and what you're used to.

I've done it in cooking classes and with the grandkids, but given the relative prices of heavy cream and butter (at least where I live) there's little incentive to do so. Simple math says I'd get roughly 350 g of butter from my liter of heavy cream at 35% fat (assuming I get it all, which is dubious in real-world terms), and that cream sells for $6.49-$6.99 where I live unless it's on sale, which is rare. Butter goes on most weekends for $2.99-$3.49/lb, so I can get 2 lbs already made for the cost of my +/-350 g made fresh from cream.

Found a countertop Cuisinart toaster/convection oven at Value Village a couple of weeks ago for $9.99. New ones sell at $129-$169 in my area, depending on model, but this one is discontinued so I don't know where it would have fit on that spectrum. Still a bargain, in any case. Just tested it today (now that it's been thoroughly cleaned) by reheating some roasted potatoes left over from a couple of nights ago. Seems to work great, pending more in-depth workouts.

I used to get both when I lived near the border, and was able to run across to Calais regularly. Both were good (I'd liken them to Lactantia) but when a) I moved farther from the border; and b) butter started going on sale regularly for deeper discounts up here, it wasn't really worth it. Also, and I know some here have the opposite preference, I detest the "stick" format of individually wrapped quarter-pounds. I suppose it's a question of what one becomes used to, but I always hated farting around with the extra packaging.

I have a power bar permanently mounted to the underside of my desktop for exactly that reason. As/if/when I get to build the place I'm slowly planning, I will definitely make some provision for power in the island (assuming there is one...at present I'm leaning in that direction) and if not in the table itself, then at least "table-adjacent."

Oh, we won't get local asparagus until June or thereabouts, and there's very little of it. This is just commercial stuff from wherever. The greengrocer has these ridiculous door-crasher prices on produce pretty regularly. I think he's at the point with the distributor where he can take entire truckloads if the price is right, and this is the end result.

My local independent butcher/greengrocer had asparagus on for 97 cents/lb this week, so I've got 7 lbs blanched and frozen (and two more in my fridge for immediate consumption). Thinking about maybe getting another couple of pounds to pickle. I find pickled asparagus a nice addition to potato salads in summertime.

Not assuming you're a fool. There have been many times I've questioned and second-guessed my own judgement, and that was pretty much how I read your OP/call for second opinions. I'm on the other coast, and I basically buy what's on sale. When Lactantia's on for a good price I load up on that, because I consider it to be pretty good. Otherwise I buy a lot of the yellow-label Loblaw's butter, because most weekends Shopper's has it on for a good price; ADL or Dairy Isle, a PEI brand; Atlantic, and occasionally Scotsburn or other brands if they happen to be on at a good sale or special-purchase price. ADL/Dairy Isle is probably the best of them aside from Lactantia. I also sometimes buy the butter from a local family-owned dairy in Sussex, but not often since my farmer's market days (a vendor often brought it to market). Aside from Lactantia and the supermarket house brands I don't think any of them would be available where you are, and I suspect (but don't know) that those are produced regionally so I doubt they're the same as what I buy.

...or just cabin fever, as we creep into Year Two of COVID.

Not an expert, but in my experience the magnet test works well. Take along a decent magnet when you shop, and try it on pots and pans. The stronger the grip (tested in several spots along the cooking surface) the better it'll likely work. I've been using Canadian-made Paderno pots and pans purchased at a deep discount, which work well for me. Sadly, that information does you little good in New York.