Smithy

Welcome! It's great that you like trying new foods and like a variety of foods. Is there anything in particular that you really, especially strongly, like to make and/or eat? Do you cook a lot at home, or prefer eating out, or let someone else in the house do the cooking?

Luminarc and Arccuisine are supposed to be borosilicate. They're both European but I see Luminarc in some stores. I think I read that Luminarc is the spinoff to Europe of the former Pyrex when Corning spun it off, but I may be misremembering the details.

Did you sear that? Do you do a quick sear now, after your 135F cook?

I used 135F for slightly over 2 hours the last time I tried it, after checking various recommendations (mostly in this topic, starting here). I rubbed it first with oil, pimentón and a grilling rub; after the 2 hours I gave it a quick sear to brown the exterior. I thought it was pretty good, but it's such a lean cut of meat that it needed extra fat. I ended up using most of it for sandwiches, like this: I liked the results well enough, but came away thinking that the meat would benefit from being cooked with something that would add more flavor and a bit of fat. @FauxPas mentioned here that she'd had good success with a char siu treatment of pork tenderloin...but then, that isn't sous vide and she still needed to add fat. Based on my results above, I don't think I'd go hotter than 135F for sous vide, and given its small diameter I might even try a lower temperature: @rotuts had recommended 130F when I asked. It depends on how pink you like your pork, and you can see what I got with 135 and a quick sear.

That is an excellent idea. I know that my darling and I often do exactly as described: go in for a few things - or even a whole list - but still stagger out wondering what happened. At our stores things are itemized in groups (meats together, dairy together, and so on) so we can kindof see where all the money went. The bar graphs and bubble diagrams in this receipt make a great visualization tool. Would it change the way we shop? Well...probably not...but it would be enlightening. It might also help to confirm our suspicions that meat is more expensive at one of the places we shop but produce is more so at another.

Oh, my word...that all looks wonderful.

Me too. I like yogurt and fruit for breakfast...provided I don't look at this topic! I have serious biscuit envy right now.

While we wait for Teo to answer, I'll put my oar in as a non-chocolatier. Here is an example of a 12" x 6" x 3" clear box to which a pump can be attached. Is this too small for production purposes? If so, there may be larger alternatives among the professional sources.

That's a nice flavor treatment, but why leaves the vines attached? At what stage would you detach them (before serving, or let the guests do it)? Please understand I'm not being critical; all the suggestions sound good to me, but this particular instruction puzzles me.

Since it's been a few days, I think it makes more sense to write another post instead of editing my original response. Our final total for this trip was 9,390.8 miles. Not all of that was pulling the trailer; when we're parked someplace for a while, we still need the truck to run errands without pulling the Princessmobile. Up until a few years ago, we drove home (without the Princessmobile) for a month in the winter. That added an extra 5,000 miles, roughly. We've discussed renting a vehicle to make the trek, in the event we do so again, but once again it was not a factor this winter. Thanks again for the comments and questions, everyone! It's been fun sharing our trip with you. (...and yes, @Shelby, I'm still luxuriating in the space of our house!)

The closing paragraph from the above-linked article made me laugh:

It looks like a blast. I've edited your quoted post to focus on just a few pictures. What's in the lettuce wrap near the top? I'm guessing the Gyro / Mary "USED-TA" have a little lamb? (I love that name.) How did it taste? The middle photo is of a dessert - apple something? What did you think of it? The bottom photo is clearly the salmon...I just want to know how it tasted. I've never met salmon I didn't like... Going to the top: what sort of information was passed along during the Q&A session? Finally: did you pick up any ideas, either for technique or flavor combination, that you'll be applying to your own cookery? Thanks for posting about this festival.

I'm just now seeing this, but wouldn't have had confidence to make suggestions. When my dough has been too slack I've put it in a pan. It's been edible, but hardly the lovely texture that we see in these pages. What did you end up trying, and how did it come out?

I'm glad you enjoyed it. We wrote down the finishing mileage but haven't looked yet at the start mileage. I'll edit this post when I get the number.

Thanks for this. My lovage hasn't come up yet, but it's a prolific plant and I need to find more ways to use it.

We've outrun spring. We got home this morning at 10:30, and my darling whinged all the way. It's 32F outside as I type. Our road is a muddy, sloppy mess complete with frost heaves: the trailer actually broke through the road surface at one soft spot, but fortunately not to the axles. There's a touch of snow left in the yard, and a few downed trees will need to be cut and split. Still. We're home! The fire is cozy. The emptying of the Princessmobile has begun. I am agog with all the room of our house refrigerator, and the kitchen counter space. We have a dishwasher! I am still reflexively thinking of which sink to use when I wash something, until I remember that it all goes to the same (septic) tank. The Princessmobile has multiple holding tanks, and washwater distribution can be important over the long haul. We spent last night as we had the first night of the trip: in a Walmart parking lot. We bought a few things that we would need when we got home, but their deli offerings didn't appeal to us for dinner. We ate the leftover combination of Jezebel-sauce Chicken and Spinach Madeline. Tonight, after umpteen trips up and down the (3 flights of ) household stairs and starting to settle into the house, it was leftover split pea stew. Trust me, the original isn't photogenic and the leftovers look worse. But they're filling. Since I have no interesting food with which to close this season's episode, I'll show you the cover of a book I spotted along the way. It wasn't for sale, but it was an entertaining read at the laundromat - and claims to be the origin of the term for what we do. Thanks for keeping us company.

We spent last night at the Lakeside Casino, formerly known as Terrible's (and still known that way in our GPS database) in Osceola, Iowa. This RV park keeps getting more expensive. When we first started coming, the fee was $20 but you got a $10 rebate to use at their restaurant or casino. When the place changed hands, the fee simply became $20 with no rebate. This time it was $25. Not bad for 50A electrical service, water and sewer, but rather pricey for straight electric service, which was all we needed. Still, it's an easy setup. Food and fuel are close by. The park pond wildlife is fun to watch. We missed a chance at a different kind of wildlife watching. Look closely at this photo. See the yellow bus and trailer? The TV game show "Wheel of Fortune" had brought its mobile operation to Osceola. They had two days of auditions going, using a mini-version of the game. I considered going to see some of the fun - OK, I confess I considered going to audition - until I found out that the mini-shows were two hours long, the line was atrocious, and any applicants who were called back for follow-up auditions would have to come back to Osceola. Nah. The fantasy wasn't that strong. I enjoyed eavedropping at the restaurant that night, from some people who had gone. Sounded like it was more stress than fun, but that might have been sour grapes from folks who weren't picked. I looked at the buffet offerings, but aside from an awesome dessert table and salad bar it didn't look as tempting as many buffets. I remember fried chicken, chicken fried steak, roast turkey with trimmings, Szechuan chicken, fried mushrooms, several kinds of potatoes, barbecued sausage, roast broccoli, good-looking green beans. In other words, there was plenty to eat at the buffet but nothing to justify the extra money compared to ordering from the menu. I chose the Awesome Chicken Sandwich; he picked the BBQ Bacon Cheddar Burger. The waitress, a delightful and informative woman, was good enough to substitute the rosemary roasted potatoes from the buffet for one of the other sides, at my request. He liked his burger, but thinks he's been spoiled by our homemade burgers in which we mix hot Italian sausage with ground beef; he finds most burgers on the bland side now. My chicken sandwich wasn't as good as I remembered from two years ago, and I think it was a bit dried out. Still, it was a handful - and plenty - and well-flavored - and more than I could eat. The leftovers are in the refrigerator. Two years ago at our last visit, we learned about a law that required a 20-minute space between drink orders: you couldn't order a beer or a glass of wine more frequently than every 20 minutes. They've done away with that rule now, but the bartender was so slammed that the delay worked out the same anyway! This morning we picked up sandwiches at the local Subway and got more information about the Wheel of Fortune spectacle. Sunday had been a zoo. Subway had catered the event, and in addition many of the would-be contestants came directly to them. Their business tripled for the day. The gentleman describing the scene said he'd been called in on his day off to help. The lines were huge and the parking lots jammed. It was good for business, but he was glad it was over. This morning's breakfast sandwich for me: Eggs, salami, turkey, bacon, cheese, tomatoes, spinach, a touch of onion and a few banana peppers. A touch of chipotle sauce. His was tamer: eggs, sausage and cheese...but he walked away without specifying that he wanted nothing more on it. I had them add tomatoes and lettuce, with a touch of mayo. He wasn't pleased. "I wanted something like an Egg McMuffin!" I'll know next time.

chromedome's title and edition sound right. Definitely no sour cream. Hmm, 1990 edition? That may be the same edition as mine...and not as old as I'd thought. Predates my access to the Internet, but perhaps not the Internet itself, after all.

It does, but until I get home to look at the book the best I can do is the obvious "Baby Potatoes Braised in Butter with Carrots and Dill". My copy of the New York Times Cookbook actually predates the Internet 😲 and I don't see the same recipe online. I'll update this topic if I find out more information.

Further to the potatoes: this post tells in more detail the technique and proportions. I'd forgotten that it's considered a braised potato dish, or was when I wrote about it back then.

Seen in Kansas City: an advert for some restaurant. In two electronic billboard flashes, it said "WE DON'T HAVE COOKS. THEY'RE FOODOLOGISTS." and "WE DON'T HAVE BARTENDERS. THEY'RE MIXOLOGISTS." I'm not sure I see the point. Maybe someone can explain it to me? 'Crost the Wide Missouri:

I've never had a problem with sticking or pan cleanup using this technique. This post shows the same dish (complete with carrots) done in enameled cast iron. Remember you just cook until the water has evaporated; if you go until the butter is browning you've probably gone too far. Since I don't have a CSO I can't compare the results. I would expect the fat on the outside of the potatoes to make a difference, but perhaps if you oiled the potatoes and used the super steam function it would be similar. If you try it, let us know, eh?

Speaking of storms, some whoppers blew through in the wee hours of this morning. I love the sound and light show (when I'm safely inside) and could have slept well, but there were things to secure and bring inside before resuming sleep. This morning we awoke to a plaster of maple seeds and oak catkins on every flat surface outside. I swept what I could, but I'm sure we will be doing our fair share of seed dispersion as we continue north. The worst discovery was that the pickup windows were wide open! We aren't sure which of us opened them or why, but there was some mopping to do. Luckily, there doesn't seem to be any damage. Last night was our final night for this trip in our fully-opened trailer, and my final time to do any cooking beyond reheating leftovers in the microwave. Potatoes and fish were the choice! Baby potatoes got one of my favorite treatments, adapted from a recipe in the original New York Times Cookbook. Spread one layer of baby potatoes across the bottom of a pot; add about 1/4 cup water and 2-3T butter, cover. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down, and steam, shaking the pot occasionally, about 20 minutes until the water has evaporated and the potatoes are cooked. The potato skins pop on the outside, but the flesh is tender. The original recipe includes fresh dill and carrots; sometimes I bother with that, but last night I didn't. Not shown is the green salad. Meanwhile, in a skillet, I cooked orange roughy in a mustard/lemon/butter/garlic sauce. This is a recipe we've worked on intermittently to duplicate a dish we had in Egypt that we both liked. By now we disagree about what the original was like (how brown was the fish, how much sauce, how mustardy) and we'd have to go digging through old photos to remind ourselves of the appearance. Still - whether we can call it Rodway Inn Fish or not, the flavors were pretty good. The fish was a bit cottony. I may have overcooked it a bit. That seems to happen more when I cook orange roughy than other white fish. Dinner:

I'll try that grilling trick too. I'm not crazy about radishes, but once in a while they can taste good to me. My husband loves them. When my parents bought their first house after WWII, they planted a garden. It included a row or two of radishes. The radishes came up quickly and abundantly, and only then did they learn that neither one liked radishes. Each said, "But I thought YOU liked them!" The gift of the magi. They never planted radishes again.

That certainly makes it simpler. Thanks!