Smithy

I think this was the inspiration for last night's dinner. Shredded brussels sprouts, sauteed in olive oil and a bit of butter along with a bit of chopped onion and coins of Farmer John's Louisiana Style hot sausage (the tube steak du jour). I was going for a hash brown / latke sort of consistency, and didn't get that, but the sprouts cooked down and browned admirably. It may not look like much (in fact, I know it doesn't) but it was delicious. I'll be doing it again. Thanks for the idea, kayb!

That reminds me, I need to make crumpets again. Then again, I've had biscuits on the brain for weeks... I keep thinking of ham and cheese, warm, in warm buttermilk biscuits. I have the ham. I have the cheese. I have the self-rising flour and buttermilk, but still haven't gotten to making the darned biscuits. When breakfast time comes it comes with a vengeance and I'm grabbing for the yogurt and fruit. It's a time-management dilemma. Kim, would you adopt me?

Yes, you probably do know, but you're right that the visit simply can't happen. Our usual trip through the L.A. Basin is also cancelled. We'll have to help our friend celebrate her Century Birthday remotely, with hopes of a visit this spring before we head back toward home. I'm pretty sure it will just be the two of us for Christmas...not sure even my sister should make the trip. It will be a strange Christmas for all of us. This is important for me to hear. Thank you!

For breakfast this morning I used half of one the pomegranates we bought last week for a buck apiece. I need to do something with the rest of these before they dry out, and then maybe go back for more if they're still at such a good price. Juice them. Make pomegranate-flavored gelatin. They are huge, fat, juicy, and intensely flavorful if this one is typical. They are also messy, as good pomegranates often are. See the splashes on the side of the bowl? They're also on my tee-shirt. Note to self: don't wear a favorite yellow tee-shirt when dealing with pomegranates. In other news: last night we had what's called a 2-inch rain in the areas we frequent: rain drops (which we never heard or saw) 2" apart. Today, the side of our pickup is decorated with a perfect 3-D dust pattern. Doesn't that look like beads of water illuminated from below? It isn't. It's dust collected by water droplets and concentrated at the bottom of the drip, and it's bone-dry.

More mac 'n' cheese 'n' ham last night. I've run us out of the large penne rigate, so chose farfalle this time. I know that shape got little love - with a few notable dissenters - over in the Pasta Shapes topic, but I have a bunch and like them for some things. I decided to see whether mac 'n' cheese was a good usage. There was still a small bowl of the last batch, untouched, in the refrigerator. I reheated that at the same time I was baking the new casserole. We tried them side by side. (The color in these photos makes the stuff look like Kraft Mac 'n' Cheese with the suspicious powder. I promise I didn't use any of that!) Observations: The last batch contained a mix of colby/jack, pepper jack and cheddar cheeses. The new batch contained only sharp cheddar (Crystal Farms orange, brought from home, and Tillamook white, recently purchased). We couldn't tell the difference in flavor! The sauce was runny enough that it got into the penne. I rather preferred the texture of the hollow noodle and the way the sauce hid inside it, although we had no complaints about the butterflies. The leftovers that we've been reheating from the last batch have had a grainy texture. Neither batch from last night seemed grainy. Is this a matter of reheating a starch-based sauce properly, that we haven't been doing? By coincidence, this morning Hank Shaw's email from Hunter Angler Gardener Cook featured Green Chile Mac and Cheese with Pheasant. I don't have access to pheasant, but I love the idea of putting Hatch Green chiles into this stuff. Next time around, I'm going that way. I note, however, that Mr. Shaw uses considerably less sauce for his mac 'n' cheese than we do. I realize this is a personal preference. Still, I wonder how the rest of you prefer your version of this dish? Heavy on the sauce? Barely sauced? It's probably such a personal issue that we should take the discussion over to Homemade Macaroni and Cheese: the Topic ....

I finally got around to making a version of Armadillo Eggs. Some folks might think them indistiguinguishable from Jalapeno Poppers, when you come right down to it, but I was using guidelines from @Robb Walsh's Tex-Mex Grill and Backyard Barbacoa Cookbook (eG-friendly Amazon.com link). He called 'em Armadillo Eggs. Right away, that book was helpful. I realized when I was setting up ingredients that I only had thick-sliced bacon. It's too thick and stiff to wrap around things easily. Well, said Robb's book, in that case you pound the bacon thinner with a meat mallet. "DUH!" I thought, "why didn't I think of that?!" I stopped slapping my forehead and grabbed the mallet. I snapped a photo halfway through to show the difference. I had some pulled pork and Neufchatel cheese from home, and barbecue sauce from Mineral Wells. I experimented with different cutting methods (cut off the ends per Robb's book, cut a slit down the sides per other sites) and experimented with the balance of ingredients in the stuffing. Some chiles had barbecue sauce, some didn't. There may have been two without pulled pork. I've forgotten now. After they were all wrapped and skewered with toothpicks to hold together, they went into the refrigerator. As it turns out, they stayed a couple of days while we had popcorn that night (no real appetite) and chili from the freezer the next (nobody felt like cooking). Last night was the big test night. It was cold and windy, so I cooked them in the oven at around 425, turning occasionally, until the bacon was crisp. Delicious! Strangely, neither of us could tell a difference in the flavors; the bacon and cream cheese dominated everything. I'll have to do something else with that pulled pork. I think I preferred cutting a slit in the sides rather than the end, but there was only one leaker. Next time I may try breading and deep-frying these things, just to add to the calorie count. A green salad was the other half of dinner. I'd intended to make Caesar dressing using a recipe from Schlesinger and Willoughby's Lettuce in Your Kitchen (eG-friendly Amazon.com link), but ran into a snag. I chose instead their Spicy Balsamic Vinaigrette (p. 74 in the book, if anyone else wants to try it). It's an excellent dressing, seasoned by celery seeds, coriander seeds, garlic and red pepper. I used about half the sugar they recommend, since I'm not a fan of sweet dressings, and it came out just right for my tastes. It was cold and windy here yesterday, but today isn't too bad. We may cook over the campfire. The sunrises and sunsets around here have been beautiful. Social distancing is easy around here.

I still don't understand what I'm supposed to do with the white. It looks as though the Julia and Jacques recipe linked above uses the whole egg. The recipe I asked about doesn't address it at all.

Now that you mention it, that's what I see too. I guess I was too hypnotized by the 'You bought this book on xx/xx/xx" flag.

I've just hit a stumbling block with my copy of Lettuce in Your Kitchen (eG-friendly Amazon.com link). The recipe for "Regulation Caesar Salad with Lots of Garlic Croutons" calls for 2 large eggs in the dressing ingredients. The first instruction says Does that mean that the whites will be firm and I'll have only yolks running out after I crack the eggs? If so, am I to do something else entirely with the cooked whites? I can't find this issue addressed anywhere in the recipe. I'm making another dressing for the time being, since I'm loath to possibly waste a couple of eggs. Advice, anyone?

The hard-backed copy of Lettuce in Your Kitchen (eG-friendly Amazon.com link), by Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby, is unexpectedly and inexplicably selling for $5.92. Don't ask me why, or for how long. I'm liking this book, although I ran across a question that I'm posting about in another topic this evening.

I adore Buffalo Wings, although I generally opt for ranch dressing rather than bleu cheese. @liamsaunt, yours look wonderful. So does the rest - as always - but you hit my special weakness.

Sorry...you need an explanation of this, or do you plan to use it as part of your webinar? In case it's the first: this was an old (1960's? 1970's?) gasoline station that wanted to make it services known to freeway drivers. In very large letters, the side of the building advertised that they sold fried chicken and that they had diesel. Whoever painted the sign didn't think carefully about word order or changing the lettering, and we thought the result had comical implications of how the chicken was fried. I'd attach a photo if I could find one. Diesel used to be very difficult to find except at truck stops. It still isn't a given that any gasoline station will sell diesel as well, and it's common to see a notation if they do. I suppose soon there will be signs that prominently display the presence of charging stations.

Heidi, you must be psychic. Look what turned up in my mail this month!

@Shelby, I may not have been paying enough attention over the years. I know Ronnie fishes and hunts, and you cook what he brings home - beautifully, if photos are to be believed. Are his hunting and fishing catches all, or at least most, of the meat you eat? (I'm not counting the oysters and crawdads you occasionally score by mail. ) If so, you're impressively self-sufficient!

Thank you for the update, @Shelby. It has been a discouraging year for all of us, and the pain and uncertainty aren't over yet. One of my favorite writers from the Duluth News Tribune also wrote about how strange and unsatisfying it was to try pheasant hunting with friends in North Dakota. They did it to carry on their decades-long tradition, but they couldn't be together swapping stories and sharing meals in the farmhouse in the evenings. We talked to some Texas deer hunters a couple of weeks ago about Chronic Wasting Disease precautions. They said they'd taken their deer to the registration station and that wildlife personnel had removed the lymph nodes from around the neck and sent them to a lab in Del Rio for analysis. The hunters had already processed the meat, but would be able to use it only after the results came back and verified that the meat was safe. (One hunter was sure his doe had been healthy; he'd seen deer with the disease before. Still, he was going to wait.) Do you get your deer meat tested that way? If so, what does one do with the meat if it isn't safe because the deer had CWD? I forgot to ask the hunter.

The place is gone now, but there used to be an old service station in Van Horn, Texas that prominently advertised DIESEL FRIED CHICKEN

It sounds like this guy worked hard for a long time. I'm sorry I've never had one of his tacos. What defines an Ensenada-style taco? I may never have had one.

This morning's breakfast was an indulgence. I finally broke into a small pot of smoked salmon pâté I brought from one of my favorite food places in Duluth: Northern Waters Smokehaus. It was very difficult to stop so there will be another meal or two later on. I've never had this pâté of theirs before. Now I wish I'd gotten more, or could figure out how to make it! It's tart, not very smoky, and packs a bit of unexpected heat. I can make out horseradish, green onion, and something that looks like dill although I don't taste it, and probably lemon juice. Ah, I just looked at their description of this treat: I'm sure I didn't pay as much as their listed price, but I think I got a smaller container. At any rate, it's delicious. I'm glad my darling isn't crazy about smoked salmon.

Now that we have a fireplace and grill, I'm figuring on a meal of stuffed-and-grilled stuff before long. Stay tuned.

On a different note: today was breakfast-fruit-salad making day. I was especially interested in how much time and effort it takes me to deal with dates the way I normally do, due to this discussion. I don't think I'll be changing my method.

We went to Yuma yesterday to get some supplies, see the doctor (routine visit, nothing serious), pick up meds and mail. The Wal-Mart customers were generally good about masking up, although we saw a lot of noses. Fry's grocery store customers were even better, with people giving each other room and waiting patiently when someone was perusing the same shelf or bin area. Supplies were generally good, although the shortages on paper products and cleaning products continued. Fortunately for us there's no apparent shortage of bread, wine, beer or fresh produce! We saw some amazingly good prices. We have been extremely lucky so far with regard to the Covid-19 pandemic. Yes, there have been closures and restrictions (and more are beginning) but in the places we usually frequent the inconvenience and business impact have seemed far away. Not so for the Carl's Jr we visited for brunch yesterday. The place looked closed. I went to check while my darling sat in the pickup, and when it turned out they were open I went inside and ordered our food for takeout. I thought at first the place was just opening up and they hadn't finished cleaning. Then I realized I was looking at seating restrictions. One person sat in the restaurant, alone. I got our orders and left. The good news is that the drive-through line got busy while we were eating, so their business may be all right. That isn't so for the little place in Winterhaven where we used to get propane and cheap beer. It's closed. Whether it failed because of the pandemic or other business issues I don't know. Yesterday it looked as though the place was being remodeled under new ownership. We never thought it was well run during our previous visits, although it served our needs. Today we tooled down to the little encampment where we get the occasional ice cream bar and where we take the trailer when the holding tanks need to be emptied. The campground is open, full nearly to capacity (everyone hiding out) but the store and museum are closed. We're in the middle of nowhere, but still in Southern California -- and in a county that's particularly hot. They're abiding by the rules. Yes to the trailer dump. No to ice cream, nor will I be able to look for charming plates in their shop.

I just finished pitting and chopping dates for my husband's fruit salad. The dates were a blend of barhi and medjool, admittedly not the freshest in either case. I think I'll stick with my method: pit, then lay flat and chop with a large knife. It didn't take long. I realize that in a professional kitchen and with professional-scale quantities a faster method might be necessary, but for my purposes this was much faster than scissors. (No lectures about cutting toward my thumb, please. The dates are soft enough to do that with impunity. )

Maybe soak them in syrup, then incorporate into a sweet bread with other dried fruits, along the lines of a stollen?

I circled back and took a look because of this post, and then also bought the book. One of the things I love about these bargain prices is that I'm getting a chance to try a recipe for just the time, ingredients and a couple of bucks. If even one is a winner then I've gotten a bargain. The Nashville-style Hot Chicken looked way too interesting to pass up.

I can't decide between giving a "Thanks" or a "Groan / Wow" response above. Do you know whether Stater Bros in 29 Palms does curbside pickup? If we go that way, early morning won't be an option. 😒