Smithy

That is very good packaging. Hooray!

I hope so too. When the peppers do arrive, take a picture or two and send it along as proof. I loved your comment about ghost peppers, btw. I wanted to laugh at that one, but the rest of the post was too dire.

I noted a few days ago that my Tucson sourdough starter seems to be coming along. I decided to make a first batch of bread with it a couple of days ago, mixed the bread, gave it a chance for the first rise, then set it (covered) in the refrigerator for a longer proof. Yesterday I pulled it out to finish rising, get shaped, and bake. No rise. No structure! I used exactly the test-loaf recipe I've used before. When it became clear that the dough wasn't going to rise, I opted to try flatbread instead. You see the progression below. There was so little gluten that I couldn't pick it up without tearing. It flopped onto the griddle any old way, sometimes getting wrinkles. I pressed it with a spatula to get it properly cooked, at least - that tamed the very sour taste and made the cooked product more palatable. The lower left photo showed the most browned of the bunch; the lower right shows the basket of finished flatbreads without that one. Absolutely no structure to it! I think even pancakes would have more cohesiveness. Maybe it's because pancakes have some elasticity whereas these didn't. The flavor wasn't bad, but as a wrap for our dogs it was a bust. What do you suppose went wrong? The only changes I made from previous loaves were a different starter and possibly a day longer in the refrigerator than before.

Meringue cookies were one of our standby cookies at Christmas, and when I used to do Christmas baking in Duluth I'd include them. Ours always included chopped walnuts and chocolate chips. Mind, these were the drop-type meringue cookies, not the flat-and-decorated type that zimtsterrnen seems to be..

Gloriosky, that all looks delicious! I can attest that the egg whites freeze well. I've had a jar with 11 of them in the freezer. Earlier this week I thawed and used roughly half for the batter for chiles rellenos, then put the rest back into the freezer. The thawed whites whipped beautifully. Still...if you were to make zimtsternen (new to me also!) I doubt anyone would complain.

That is very different than what I'd envisioned. What a lovely, delicate pancake/crepe confection she produced! Thank you very much!

Maxon's Green Chile Chowder looks wonderful. Thank you! I've bookmarked that one. It's supposed to be coolish here next week, so I may be making it also. Also, I see on the next page a recipe for Tortilla Soup. You should have seen me, a few years ago, trying to work out what to do with a jar of (dried) Tortilla Soup mix! This would have been a helpful guide back then.

I'll PM it to you. @Jacksoup, please let us know if you make it. I find myself more interested in the Cranberry Nut Bread on the next page. I may try making it, with the substitution of dried cherries for cranberries because that's what I have on hand. Time to get going on holiday baking!

...or pavlova! I bet that would wow the guys.

Do you ever use egg whites as part of the batter for frying? That's what I was up to with stuffed jalapeños recently.

Red Sky at Morning, Sailor Take Warning... Yesterday's dawn wasn't so much dire as it was beautiful, but we knew the wind was likely to come up - and that rain might even arrive. I went to town to do laundry and pick up a couple of items we'd missed during our last shopping expedition. I also wanted to see how the Yuma Queen International Market was faring, and whether they had barberries. I discovered and wrote with great enthusiasm about this place last year, when it had just opened. I dunno. Maybe it's just that it was mid-afternoon there, but the place seemed much less stocked than before and it was hours before closing time. They had rearranged things somewhat. I found our favorite Egyptian cheese, although we didn't need any. The clerk who knew what she was doing had never heard of barberries, and was none the wiser when I mentioned "zereshk" instead. I looked around and couldn't find any. They still have a pretty good selection of spices - not only Middle Eastern but also Indian - and teas. I've never seen whole mace before yesterday. It's interesting that ground mace is much redder than the whole lace. The Clerk Who Knew What She Was Doing was rushing around trying to get out the door to her afternoon job, and the young man whom she left in charge was clearly new. I had ordered a gyro, and she relayed the order to him as she headed out, all apologies and rush. I had a LOT of time to peruse the shelves and refrigerator case while I waited...and waited...and waited for that sandwich. Some other customers came in, looking to buy dolmas. I waited more while the young man searched fruitlessly and finally called the Clerk Who Knew What She Was Doing on her cell phone. The store had run out. No wonder he couldn't find them! I perused the meat and bakery displays. I thought about also buying some baklava and kunafah, but by the time the young man was finished with my order I just wanted to pay and leave. I had asked for hummus also, and he'd scraped the last of the batch into a container for me while waiting for a balky grill. He was very apologetic about the delay ("grill not working properly," he said; I suspect it had been turned off) and gave me a small discount for my inconvenience. The sorriest part of the whole experience is that the gyro wasn't very good. I liked the tzatziki sauce he supplied, but didn't finish the meat. So...I dunno. Maybe the place will survive, but if yesterday's experience is typical I doubt that it will. Dinner last night was deliberately uncomplicated, since I came home late in the afternoon. Much of the bacon went into a broccoli salad with barberries and toasted pepitas in place of raisins and walnuts. It was a gracious plenty of a meal! (Sorry the upper-left picture is so fuzzy. I liked the geometry of the salad before it was mixed, but apparently the camera didn't focus as well as I'd thought.)

My DH wanted to convert this camp stove to propane so we wouldn't be carrying white gas, but so far I've resisted. I think most camp stoves made these days are built for propane, but I'm a traditionalist when it comes to inherited gear. I have acceded to leaving the old Coleman white gas lantern at home in favor of a propane-burning Coleman lantern. It puts out at least as much light and is quieter. Cash flow can certainly be an issue, but I hope you're able soon to hit the road! I've done the primitive camping thing, and it has its advantages. There are things one can see and do when traveling lightly that can't be done when there's a lot of gear (and a large trailer). Smaller vehicles can still carry a lot of gear and get places we can't. However, there is a limit to the amount of space and gear I'm willing to give up for months on end! I'll admire from afar the adventurers who backpack the Appalachian Trail all in one go, or ski across Antarctica. My ambition to ski the John Muir Trail died a quiet death after several long-weekend winter camping ski expeditions....

In Minnesota at least, hunting shacks and ice-fishing houses can be quite elaborately set up. No doubt it's the same (except for the ice houses) farther south as well. Those propane heaters are fine implements. Shelby, I really need to take frying lessons from you. Your fried foods always look so much better than mine!

Please alleviate my ignorance. How/why does one rake a pancake? Or, for that matter, a crêpe?

Remember these stuffed jalapeños? They have been nagging me for a few days. I don't know why the idea of whipping egg whites to a soft-peak consistency as part of the coating had me buffaloed. Maybe - probably - it was because I'd have to dig out my egg beater or else spend long minutes whipping by hand. I know people used to do that, even more recently than Julia Child. I didn't want to do it. Was that it? I don't know...but those darned stuffed peppers accused me every time I opened the refrigerator door. I got out my wand mixer. (I admit: this is not physical exertion.) I whipped the egg whites that had been travelling in our freezer and recently thawed. I rolled the peppers in the egg whites, then in masa. I set them aside for frying. Before I continued, I started another project: fry bacon to a nice crispness so it can be used in a broccoli salad - and perhaps a German potato salad. I love having an outdoor stove for frying! The first batch of bacon was more than a bit too crisp. I was out of practice gauging the temperature. I got it right in the end, and Quality Control (on both our parts) hid most of the evidence. By the time more than a half-pound of bacon had been fried, there was a generous amount of hot fat. I augmented it with peanut oil to fry the jalapeños. We ate. Ah-HOOAH! It needed sour cream to tame it. I've read that jalapeños can be unpredictable in their heat levels. These were hot. That stuff that looks like wadded-up tissue paper, or perhaps dielectric grease, was sour cream. Sorry about the picture! Dinner tonight was the last of the Thanksgiving prime rib (at which we've steadily picked away since then) chopped, warmed slowly in olive oil, then mixed with balsamic and tamer vinegars and tossed onto a green salad. After the salad was ready except for the dressing, we sat outside and watched the sky. We saw a fireball change from pencil-thin meteor-white, to a broader blue base, to red before it vanished. A few seconds later we heard a double WHUMP from its disintegration. What a gift!

I echo the others: this is supposed to be fun! and of course your hunters will feel as though you've rolled out the red blaze orange camo carpet for them. I like that Muffaletta Cheesecake very much! Judging by the paucity of leftovers when I made it, I'd say my dinner guests have felt the same!

I've seen boiled peanuts for sale in convenience stores in the south, always in slow cookers. However, I've no idea how they were prepared. Sorry!

I need a "pea-green with envy" emoji.

The windmill clearly wasn't the only thing I'd forgotten. I'd forgotten the award, too. Thanks for straightening me out!

At last!! It feels like the wait has been interminable! Do they hunt deer from the same shack that you showed us yesterday, or is that strictly for the waterfowl? I assume they stand-hunt, especially since Chum is going along. I want some of that chili. I just finished the last of a much-too-large batch of pinto beans, with chopped onion and grated cheese. It was pretty heavy for brunch, and it was nowhere near as pretty as your chili.

@Shelby, I wish I had your artistic gift! Your "only a half hour to spare" chalkboard is something that would take me hours and hours...and still wouldn't look as good! The pizza looks excellent as well.

That is...striking. I can't decide whether it looks like some gorgeous sunflower sculpture or a pile of pollywogs wiggling frantically away from where they were dropped.

I don't think we do, yet.* I learned about the River Road series here, I think from Best American Regional Cookbooks, but it isn't quite the same thing. I picked up a Lutheran Church cookbook from a yard sale in Duluth a few years ago, expecting to find the names of friends, but never recognized anyone. It is amusing to see all the Mrs. Husband's Name recipes. *Hint, hint...anyone?

I wouldn't describe it as a kid's book, although it's told from a kid's point of view. Like To Kill a Mockingbird (also told from a child's point of view) it deals with some heavy issues and adult themes. I'll have to reread it, though: I don't remember the windmill! @Okanagancook, thanks for the documentation and the air fryer comment. Now I'm sorry I don't have my air fryer with me! It's good to know those don't have to be oil-fried. @heidih, I think that business about the motion makes a lot of sense. Thanks for the visual. It reminds me of the verbal-visuals I've read about women kneading pasta dough.

Ooops. I baked bread yesterday. While the oven was preheating, I remembered - just a bit too late - that I keep the Tucson starter at the back of the stove to get a little heat from the pilot light. I cooked part of the starter! Fortunately, I also had a larger container back there for building my first batch of bread from the Tucson colony. It hadn't overheated yet, so I was able to discard what you see above.