Smithy

We never expected or intended to be there so long. We finally left yesterday, and these pictures show just how much the sunrise had shifted from its position at the winter solstice. Our campfire ring, which we were so pleased to find unmolested when we arrived last November, was just as pristine when we left...not because we did a fine job of cleaning it up, but because it sat unused and forlorn all season. Wind was a frequent interference. Medical issues were the other. I dislike dropping a narrative abruptly, as I did over a month ago, so I'll do a bit of catching up and wrapping up in the next few days. What happened was, my darling was a guest at a hospital, then a rehab hospital, for nearly a month. During that time I drove back and forth from the Princessmobile to the various facilities watching over him. I took care of the Princessmobile, animals, bills, my own self...checked in here on eGullet and continued hosting duties...but did very little in the way of interesting eating. In fact, you could say my cooking was minimmalist and perfunctory. I now understand folks who really want good food, only a little of it, with a minmum fuss and cleanup. @MetsFan5 and her Tovola Smart Oven come to mind. So do folks who participated in the topic @ElsieD started: Help! I've lost my cooking mojo and I want it back! Well, except in my case I was too busy, tired and dispirited to even want it back at the time. Things have turned around since then. I ate a LOT of salads and leftovers. The leftovers were from when my darling was in the hospital and had very little interest in food. I can't say there was much good food to come out of there, although I had an excellent pork chile verde one evening. Even my darling had liked it, but he'd had too little appetite to eat much of it. The rehab hospital, on the other hand, had excellent food at an astonishingly low price. For under $5 I could get a full lunch or dinner, if I wished, while I ate with my darling. i didn't usually want that much, but their green salads were generous and delicious, and their tuna salad was at least as good as anything I could make. I often came home with a clamshell containing the remains of a lunch salad, and ate that for dinner if I hadn't already had enough. One thing I learned at the rehab hospital is that there actually is a bottled dressing that I like. It came in plastic packets in their dining hall, but I discovered I could buy it in a grocery store. Well, it's ALMOST the same thing. I'm a bit surprised and mildly disgruntled at the difference. The bottle needs shaking, and the individual packets don't. I think that's interesting, but haven't really investigated why it is. I also ate, and continue to eat, a LOT of hummus and tabbouli. It took at least one bunch of neglected and thrown away cilantro and parsley before I finally found the mojo to try making the tabbouli, but it's become a staple. Makes a pretty good salad topping,... ...and goes well atop a tortilla chip, with or without hummus. Sometimes this was dinner. The recipes for tabbouli and hummus both come from the cookbook Balaboosta (eG-friendly Amazon.com link), which I bought way back in 2018 and quite forgot until I began looking for tabbouli and hummus recipes from my onboard Kindle collection. I recommend this book. These particular recipes have become my gold standard for the foods in question. My only problem with the tabbouli is that it makes enough for a crowd, and when I'm eating it alone the bulgur gets mushy before I've finished it off. I need to remember to scale down the recipe. During the time we languished in the desert, waiting for my darling to recover enough to travel -- and then waiting for trailer repairs! (but that's another story!) -- I saw the entire bloom-to-seed life cycle of some of our beloved flowers. A few hardy late bloomers like the paloverde trees are just starting to blossom. I don't have any photos of them in their full, frothy yellow glory, but they've been a welcome sight on our road trip. I learned a few things about easy cooking, and will share them in future posts.

I'd think pig would qualify as an omnivore rather than a carnivore, but your material quoted brings up lots of other examples! I had also forgotten about alligator, which definitely qualifies as a carnivore even if not commonly available.

I’ve eaten black bear before and thought it quite good. I’d assumed that bears, being omnivores, wouldn’t fall into the same category as mountain lion, which as far as I know is an obligate carnivore. I’ve learned something today.

I love Hank Shaw's website and tips, and this looks good. I'm surprised, though, at mountain lion! I had some idea that apex predators weren't generally good to eat. Am I wrong about that?

Welcome! It sounds like you'll fit right in! We have a number of other hunters and fisherfolk here, as well as would-be hunters and fisherfolk who love to read about it. It's also good to see more gluten-free folks joining in. I am lucky enough not to need GF food, but a number of our members do -- and my daughter in law is one of them, always on the search for good recipes or substitutes. Given how long you've lurked, you probably have a clear idea of where and how to post -- but if you have questions, feel free to contact a host (I am one) by Personal Messenger. Raspberries and strawberries I know and love, but what are haskaps?

https://www.gocomics.com/pearlsbeforeswine/2024/04/14

My sister is considering a countertop oven. Based on your experiences, I've told her that the Tovala is worth looking at. Thanks for your reports! Keep them coming, please!

What an interesting question! Truth to tell, I've never tried it so I can't comment (yet). I'll have to try some and see what I've been missing.

I'm afraid our Easter dinner was a bust. My husband has been (badly) under the weather for a couple of months, and it's affected his appetite and my energy. Nonetheless I tried to do a nice pork tenderloin...and did the poor thing a disservice. Milk Street had a schnitzel recipe for pork tenderloin medallions, of all things, and I considered it then rejected the idea. I also saw some delightful-looking recipes for pork curries. But no, in the end I tried adapting an old favorite treatment of pork shoulder. What the heck: nothing ventured, nothing gained. I seasoned the tenderloin, then tried to brown it in a Dutch oven. It didn't brown well, but I was trying not to overcook it. At least I got it started. Then I removed it, browned and partially cooked baby potatoes (cut in half) until they were well on their way. Put the tenderloin pieces back in the pot, slathered the whole thing with Lipton's Recipe Secrets (fka Lipton's Onion Soup mix). Gave it a bit of time steaming, then finished in the oven. As I said, it was a disservice to the pork. See the top half of this collage to see how it turned out to be much more like pulled pork. The potatoes were the star of the show, and we'll be enjoying them! These photos are of the leftovers. They're better warm. The asparagus was pretty good, somewhere in the middle of the good / not so good continuum. Barely cooked, then tossed with toasted alnuts and a browned butter / vinegar sauce. No pictures. So...yes, it was Easter dinner but I'm glad we didn't have guests. Now I'm going to have to figure out how to do pulled pork, to finish up that meat!

I loved this bit:

I'm looking forward to this vicarious trip! It's been years since I was in Healdsburg and surrounds, and even longer since I ate anywhere in San Francisco. Keep it coming, and thanks! Oh...if there's a typical salad dressing with the salads you showed, what is it? I'm thinking of the very first one, with avocado, at Chez Panisse Cafe. ...and I envy you the aroma of citrus blossoms, and the sight of those lovely camellias!

I've never had tupelo honey, so can't comment on that. However, I will note that given your location there should be plenty of unadulterated locally produced honeys: whether from citrus, clover, or other local crops. In my current location it's pretty easy to come by Sonoran Desert honey. Although you're several hundred miles away, I wouldn't be surprised to see it in some of your local stores. And yes, it's mild stuff, with good flavor. Are the farmers' markets up and running in your area yet?

If you aren't sure about refrigerator shelf life, what about freezing those sambals in appropriate portion sizes?

@Shelby, I'm so sorry for your news. @Ann_T, thanks for the tips. Is it my imagination, or is there a sudden interest in grilled sandwiches? I see them from @Shelby, @Maison Rustique, @rotuts and others, and see new inspiration for my new panini press. 🙂

Life brought all my time for and interest in cooking to a screeching halt for around a month, but now that the dust is starting to settle I have some preliminary results to share. I also have a wealth of recipes and cookbooks from which to choose, when things get even calmer. I tried grilling slices of eggplant that had been brushed with olive oil, as the preliminary step to making eggplant parmesan. It appears I didn't get any "after" pictures, which is too bad. They took on light grill marks and a pretty golden brown color. Unfortunately the eggplant came out so tough that the entire assemblage needed a knife for every bite. Was it because of the grilling method? I don't know. It could also have been because by that time the eggplants were at least a month old! I'll try the technique again later, with fresh eggplant, and report back. Pressed sandwiches have been a fairly regular occurrence. When I had some interest in and time for cooking again, I bought a selection of sliced meats and cheeses. The results have ranged from Reuben to grilled cheese sandwiches. I'm finding I like my homemade sauerkraut added after grilling to my sandwich. Again, there aren't any detailed pictures of the innards but here's a composite of one pair of sandwiches. I do have to flip them, despite having grill shapes on both top and bottom plates, to get good grill marks. The top plate doesn't seem to get as hot as the bottom plate. So far we're very pleased with the results, basic as they are.