Smithy

She's a sweetie, the smallest and most delicate of our family. Although her given name is Tigger, I often call her "Lacy Lynx". Hmm. No tarragon in the pictures I've shown. 2 out of 3 isn't bad, though!

Smithy is probably asleep. Cisco's are a fish that are fairly small (like 10" fatter rather than wider). They favor cold fresh water; they tend to be found in deep, clear, cold lakes, and smoke rather intensely because of the fat. I love smoked ciscos. I've never had a cisco that was not smoked. Nor have I ever caught a cisco. Now, Smithy can add her comments. ← I'm not asleep yet, although I should be, and I will be soon. Thanks for answer, Susan; it was better than I could have done. I think I'll call Kendall's early next week (to keep them open) and go get a selection of smoked fish. Then I'll have a tasting...private, with photos and reports. Dogs and cats not allowed. It's been a long time since I had ciscos, but your description is spot-on.

Oh, I plan to try at least one new recipe over the weekend. I just flat told my students I wasn't available on Saturday afternoon. We have a glider by-day planned for Sunday, but if that is called for rain I'll actually have a day home. I love those rainy days, too! I don't know about the others, but my take on the Middle Eastern food is that I like it a lot, it isn't all that difficult (at least, not at the level I attempt) and it's the only way I can get it when I'm around here. On the other hand, I have yet ever to attempt a Japanese recipe, and I'll bet you cook those all the time. Is it a question of exposure? Or is it a question of critical mass here on eGullet, that a number of Middle Eastern food enthusiasts are encouraging each other and distorting your sense of how common it is? I don't know the answer to that question. I do know I have a limited number of friends in this area to whom I'd serve Middle Eastern food, because they think it's too far out of the norm. OK, we can justify a bit of a flying discussion now. Unless a child has ready access to a flying adult - say, a parent or parent's friend who flies frequently and likes to take kids along - I think it's best to wait until around 15 or 16 to start taking serious flight lessons. An occasional flight of the gee-this-is-fun-look-what-we-can-do! variety is great, but actual lessons are usually overkill before then. There are a couple of reasons for that. The biggest reason is that, assuming New Zealand's rule are the same as in the USA, your son won't be able to solo an airplane until he's 16, nor get his private pilot's license until he's 17. (The age limits are younger for gliders and balloons, and those can be good ways to start kids off earlier.) I've seen kids lose interest, despite initial enthusiasm and parents who were fully supportive, because they went about as far as they could go until they could legally solo. On the other hand if they wait until they can progress steadily and get the license, they won't be hearing "Why is it taking you so long? You must be really stooopid" from their friends. The other reason is that kids need a certain degree of mental maturity before they're ready, really, to be pilots. Don't get me started about "youngest pilot to fly across country" stories. Those kids aren't making the decisions. If your son has already decided he wants to be an aeronautical engineer, maybe he does have the mental maturity? How old is he? Meanwhile, I understand all about scoping out good places to eat near airport, under approach paths, etc. I used to take my lunch out to the local airport and turn on my portable aviation radio so I could listen to the chatter while I ate. Our Saturday Morning Breakfast, which I may or may not attend this week, is at the airport. People keep flying in earlier in hopes of landing before the gang is assembled at the restaurant. The picture windows are huge, and there's always an audience.

Somehow, I'd have guessed you'd have weeded out all the snakes by now! Doesn't A drive them away for you before they're invited to dinner? I'm glad you mentioned the eggs for dinner bit. You're right, it's a bit unusual, and yet I just recently learned a dish that's perfect for that: poached eggs (I like 'em runny) atop a bed of baby spinach that's been wilted with a hot vinaigrette. It's beautiful, tasty, and so easy that I almost did it tonight when I realized how late dinner would be. In the end, as you'll see, I stuck to Plan A (more or less) but the spinach and egg trick is one for the books. I still don't know couscous, much less sweet couscous. Are you saying that it would traditionally be a dessert, instead of part of the main meal?

Have you tried the kefta recipes? She nails them. People always seem really reluctant to try the kefta mkaouara because it sounds weird and not as "fancy" as other dishes but it was always my hands down favorite thing I ever ate in Morocco. I also made the slightly less exotic kefta "emshmel" a few times and that gets inhaled by guests, I often don't think they even bother chewing. Quite disturbing actually. ← I haven't yet, but now I shall. Should I do it this weekend during the blog? I was thinking of another chicken tagine, but I see the mkaouara uses some fine summer produce. Edited to add: inhaled, eh? What an image!

In Jackal10's Food Blog we saw beautiful herbs, well tended and plentiful. There was even a game to identify as many herbs as possible. I looked at his lovely garden and swooned. Mine doesn't look like that. I'll post a photo of the "main" garden later, such as it is, but I should explain that many of my plants are in pots instead of the bed. We're still landscaping around the yard and debating about where things need to go, so it was easiest just to plant in pots that could be moved. It makes it easier to weed them, too. You'll see why that's important for me. Here's the first what-is-it set. The photos are a bit far away, so may be difficult to identify. I have closer views of some of them. This one should be easy. There will be a bit less in this pot after this evening or tomorrow evening. Here's the first of the gratuitous pet photos. Tigger was good enough to pose last evening when I got home. You see why I've been complaining about the tomatoes. At least, some are finally ripening! The cherry tomatoes on the other side of the house are doing better. These photos are as I uploaded them, but they look a bit large (not to mention too uniform) to me. Does anyone else have an opinion about this?

It actually was quite warm - shorts weather - right up through last weekend. Here's what it looked like on Sunday: When it changes, it changes fast. MelissaH, I remember my first trip here was in the winter. I worked here 3 days before realizing the lake was within a quarter mile! These Great Lakes are amazing, aren't they? Viva, surprisingly, it isn't that cold yet although it will be before much longer. The cloud cover last night helped keep the place much warmer than predicted. I think it only got down into the 50's last night.

I have to admit, I usually get my fish from a favorite place in Duluth that you'll be seeing later, but it's nothing against Kendalls. Kendalls' is a bit off my usual route, and they're "usually" not there if I make the detour, because of my odd hours. During the weekends when I'm doing most of my shopping, I'm not near Knife River. That said, I bet they'll be willing to let me take some photos, and I plan to stop by during this blog time to see. Their fish is great, and they're very nice people. Betty Kendall keeps "Betty's Bar" across the road and down a ways. I'd been hoping to do this blog some night there was an old-timey music jam session going on there, partly to participate but justified by the potluck party food, but it isn't to be. I think Smokey Kendalls' and Lou's Fish House are prime examples of the way things used to be along the North Shore, and in some places continue to be. They have a variety of fish caught around here that they smoke themselves, so you'll see smoked herring, smoked lake trout, smoked cisco, but you're not likely to see artisan cheeses. The Northern Waters Smokehaus in Duluth that I frequent carries smoked salmon and trout only, with a variety of coatings, but they also carry artisan cheeses and specialty meats like andouille sausage. They've gone upscale. I'm really hoping to get some photos of the old and the new, to show how much things have changed here in the last 20 years. When I stopped in at Lou's, I looked around, scoped out the selection, and planned to stop by during the blog. Then I decided, "what the heck, I have the camera now" and went out to the car to get it. In I came, camera in hand. Counter lady: "May I help you?" Me: "Well, I came in to buy some things, but I also wonder whether you'd mind my taking some photos." She: "Photos? Why?" Me: "Have you ever heard of a blog?" (blank look) "Web log?" (more blank look) "Well, I'm going to be doing an online documentary of the food I eat for the next week. I'd like to show off some of the North Shore businesses, and I wonder if I could take some photos of your food?" She: "Nope. No photos. Here's a map of the Duluth/Superior area that you can show your friends. Tell them we've been featured in National Geographic, and will be in next month's issue of Midwest Living." I tried a couple more times to explain what was going on, and got a business card out of her. All in all, I came away reminded of hobbits and their deep suspicion of anything new. The funny thing is, Lou's has a web site. Edited for spelling and punctuation.

C'mon. You know you want one! Go check out the Ice cream, gelato, sherbet Cook-Off XI over in the Cooking forum for more inspiration, if you need any! While I've been uploading photos and posting, I've been eating the lunch I'd packed: leftover, reheated Djej Emshemel (Chicken with Lemons and Olives Emshemel) from Paula Wolfert's Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco. I had every intention of showing you a photo of this luscious stuff, but I swear if you saw the photo of my leftovers you'd never think of trying it. Mine is swimming in sauce, all of a strange lemony saffrony yellow color. There's a definite art to food photography, and I won't disgrace one of Paula's recipes with such a shot. Suffice it to say that this chicken is drop-dead tender (I've been eating the thighs with a spoon) and the sauce deserves some good bread to soak it up, but a spoon works just fine too. I have another plum to eat, and the rest of this morning's breakfast (I ate little of it this morning), so I've food left over for afternoon snacks.

Thanks for the nice responses, everyone! I'm laughing at you folks in Atlanta and Florida. Sure, I remember living in the L.A. Basin and wishing for a bit more variety in the weather. Be careful what you wish for, because you're going to get it.... I think I'm getting this photo business worked out, but it's a slow go. (I am encouraged by the comments about the ice cream, though!) You'll have to let me know whether they're too big, too dark, that sort of thing. This morning while I was answering Snow Angel I was having my first morning's cuppa joe. I used to be a purist about grinding the beans in the morning, then pouring the boiling water through the drip filter, and so forth. Then I got married and learned that marriage is the art of compromise...or learning from one another! We keep an automatic drip coffee maker plugged in, and the last thing before going to bed is to load it up with coffee and water for the morning. We awaken to freshly-brewed coffee, ready to boost us as we do the usual rounds of petting and medicating and feeding cats, walking dog and cats, packing lunch, etc. In case you're wondering, my husband's learning/compromise was not to keep drinking the same pot of coffee all week! I drew the line at that. I really am not interested in food first thing in the morning, so I make breakfast to eat on the road, or to peck at through the morning. This morning it was a bunch of rainier cherries from Michigan, brought over when the local raspberry farm made their annual truck run for cherries and blueberries. I also made a sandwich of toasted pita, sliced avocado, and smoked salmon spread from Lou's Fish House. The avocado is quite definitely not a local product, but it's a summer favorite. I put a squeeze of lemon and a dash of Spike on it, and usually I'm good to go. This week, in preparation for the blog, I stopped in at Lou's to pick up some fish and take photos. (There will be no photos of the interior. I'll tell you about that later, if I remember.) Still, the smoked salmon spread looked too good to pass up. It's good stuff. The fixings: Breakfast, ready for the road: And for those of you who wonder at the wisdom of eating on the road, here's the road: That's fog in the photo, by the way. We don't call Lake Superior a big refrigerator for nothing.

I'm afraid the only thing liable to ripen in my garden is some of the tomatoes. I tried peppers this year, and they're a laugh. The herbs are doing well. I'll be posting photos of what I grow, and how I use it. The Farmers' Market that I can attend (there are a few in the area) will be open on Saturday, and I plan to have photos of that, too. Flying is, as always, a weather-dependednt activity, so we'll have to see about that. I thought about titling this blog "weather permitting" since it dictates so much of what I do. The maples and birch are starting to turn up here. I keep wanting to shout at them, "get your clothes back on!" Edited for punctuation.

In Northeast Minnesota, what they call the Iron Range, Where men are men and that is that, and some things never change, Where winter stays 9 months a year, there is no spring or fall and it's so cold the mercury cannot be seen at all... -- So begins Garrison Keillor's Ballad of the Finn Who Would Not Take a Sauna. It's a fine read, if you like that sort of thing (I do), and it's even better if you can hear Garrison himself recite it. It's also as good an introduction as I can think of to this corner of my world. As luck and good timing would have it, I'm blogging during that all-too-brief time that is NOT winter, and might be called summer if you were to squint. Summer here is the despair of gardeners. It started this year around July 4, as it frequently does. Tonight is August 17, and the temperature is predicted to dip to 39F. We're on the fast downhill slide from summer into fall, all right. I can't speak for everyone around here, but I'm clinging hard to the last vestiges of summer. It isn't that I don't like the fall - I do - but summer and its produce here are too ephemeral to wish them to hurry away. This blog is to be a bit of a tour for you, to show you around the area and its produce, and to celebrate summer as it starts to slide in earnest. My area of coverage is pretty broad. I live near Duluth, which is at the pointy end of Lake Superior, but I spend a lot of time working up the North Shore of Lake Superior, and somewhat less time inland on the Iron Range. (Do not let my blog title and the poem confuse you: Duluth is not the Iron Range is not the North Shore. From a distance they may look alike, but the residents will no more appreciate being mislabeled than, say, a Scot would appreciate being called English.) If you look at a map of Minnesota and imagine lopping off the northeastern quadrant, going roughly straight north from the end of Lake Superior, you can see why it's called the Arrowhead. The cultures and foods of the areas I visit are different enough that they're all worth exploring, and I'll do that to the best of my ability. I'll add a couple of words about my work and the way I imagine this blog will work, and then post this to get things going. First off: I work two jobs - one full time, one less so. Sometimes I'm near a computer during the day, but I can't count on it, so my main activity is likely to be during the evening, or first thing in the morning. The full-time job is only indirectly related to food. The part-time job is as a flight instructor, and it isn't at all related to food, although there's likely to be an airport lunch sometime this week. However - both jobs involve a lot of teaching and communication! I cannot abide posting or lecturing in a vacuum, so I hope you'll ask lots of questions or post comments. I plan to solicit opinions and suggestions for some cookery I intend to do, too. While I've been typing on this, I've been having an evening snack: Nectarine-plum ice cream based on Ruth Smith's Peach Ice Cream, the original recipe, and Folie a Deux Menage a Trois wine, an inexpensive blend of zinfandel, merlot and cabernet sauvignon. Mmm. Ice cream and red wine are a nice combination, especially at this hour. Welcome to my world!

pretzel art blogging: words, with fiberoptic twist peer into your world - thanks

I have All-Clad stainless (shiny exterior) saute pans, sauce pans, and braiser that I acquired, oh, 3 or 5 years ago. I wouldn't get the braiser again, knowing now what I know about braising (this pan is too light), but it's certainly pretty and makes a good serving piece or in-between-sizes saute pan when I need one. I'm happy with the saute pans and, given the limitations of my cooking, the sauce pans. (I cook on electric, so the expense of copper is overkill for me. I'm maybe a mid-level home cook, so there are likely some nuances of cookery that elude me and might otherwise matter for a better cook.) I can't speak to Master Chef. I haven't had problems with the handles on these All-Clads, but I don't do much real sauteeing where a good grip is essential for extended stretches. If I had it to do over again, I'd reread this entire thread and consider alternatives, but I've no complaint with the pieces I picked up - except, as noted above, the braiser. I also didn't want the anodized aluminum. I have enough dishes already that can't go in the dishwasher; I certainly don't need a workhorse to be so fussy. It seems as though the brushed exterior had an issue like that, too? But now I'm not sure. Our pans hang on the walls, so aesthetics were a factor.

By the way - does anyone else own a dog that eats raspberries? I couldn't figure out why the wild raspberries everywhere else were doing so well and our crop was so light. I finally caught our husky eating ours! It's both funny and aggravating to watch him delicately nibble a cane, stripping the berries as he goes, with nary a leaf lost or a thorn in his mouth. Since he's a doggie teenager, and I'm always telling him "no" about something really important (my sorrel, my watering can, the cats), I let him have his fun and went foraging elsewhere.

Some years back my parents were getting ready to barbecue. Dad was carrying the tray loaded with stuff out to the back door, and a mouse ran across the floor in front of him. With admirable presence of mind, he put the tray down on top of the mouse. NOW what to do? As it happened, the mouse's head was sticking out from under the tray yet, so Dad grabbed the meat tenderizing mallet and clobbered the little guy. He couldn't understand why Mom refused to use the meat mallet again, no matter how much he cleaned it. I'm pretty sure the barbecue tray and contents got used anyway.

That (freezing things flat for quicker defrosting) is a great idea! I don't have a griddle/grill of any sort. Hmm, now maybe I have an excuse?

Kit Kat is made by Hershey's in the United States, but in Europe it's made by Nestle. Isn't that strange? ← Ha! I had "Hershey's" written, then looked again at Jack's link and changed it. So much for source-checking. I'd ask about the connection of Hershey's and Nestle overseas, but that might be too OT. This blog gets more amazing, even after a couple of glasses of wine. No need for bourbon. The spirit of Hunter is with us.

Ah, of course....the nonlinear approach is the ticket! Where's Hunter S when we need him? ← Dead. ← hes not dead hes just not taking any calls right now ← One might say he's a bit scattered these days.

Ah, of course....the nonlinear approach is the ticket! Where's Hunter S when we need him?

Not to derail the conversation, but I'm as interested in this other note as in the original topic - and no, I'm not at all surprised. I frequently try recipes for dishes I've never eaten but that sound interesting. (If I were to cavil, I would liken it more to sight-reading a piece of music previously unheard, rather than trying to construct the melody from the chord progression alone, but that would be cavilling.) I heard or read once that cookbooks took off in America because so many pioneers moved away from their family roots to places where there were unfamiliar ingredients and customs. Without previous generations around to show the way, it became vital to come up with precise measurements and exact descriptions of a dish, because someone might not know what the end result was supposed to be enough to make adjustments. It always made sense to me. Then again, it could be bogus pop history. My one effort at clafouti was not exactly a disaster, but wasn't worth repeating either. I took it to a family gathering, where it was eagerly greeted. "A clafouti!" my sister-in-law exclaimed, "I've always wondered what it's like!" Everyone politely ate a piece, but nobody wanted seconds... and in this family, leftovers are rare. It never occurred to me before now that clafouti might be tricky to get right.

I think they're a terrific idea! We have the crock with utensils, a couple of drawers with utensils, and small hooks just under the cabinets for hanging some utensils, so the backsplash of the work counter on either side of the stove has spatula, ladle, scoop, sieve, potholders and so forth hanging. I resisted the idea at first, but it actually looks good (to us) and puts the most-used utensils within easy reach without having 5 other things fall out of the crock when the desired item is removed. Oh, very definitely, appliance garages in the corner! (You get points for creativity, even if someone else had already invented them. ) That is, if they leave enough room for work surface.

That's very interesting! I didn't know okra would do that - that is, lose its slime and turn brown, presumably without burning. Now I have two version of okra to try when I get around to it. Maybe there's more to okra than bamya, after all.

My turn, while Will is contemplating the answer. What's matcha?

What timely advice, and I thank you. My mid-sized tomato plant (Totem) has been doing well, and it's trimming its leaves all by itself. The cherry tomato (Patio) plant and the big tomato plant (variety forgotten) are trying valiantly but the fruit hasn't started blushing yet. It was 39F in Hibbing last night, but only down to the 50's in Duluth.