Jaymes

They are smoked. I buy them all the time. Very popular with our local Mexican community. All you have to do is heat & eat, and even the heating is optional. They're great to pack into picnic lunches, and I have a quicky Green Chile Stew that I make with them. I'll dig out that recipe if you'd like.

I'm currently in Taos, then Santa Fe & Abq for a few days. Are you doing any waitlists?

I don't think folks are necessarily saying that wanting to whip something besides full, heavy cream is all "about poverty." Shel asked the initial question for who knows why (he didn't say exactly but implied it had something to do with fat content) and, although it certainly appears from his posts here that he is a thrifty feller, I strongly doubt that "poverty" was the reason for the question. There are many possible situations where one might be in a position to want to, or have to, make another choice. Poverty might be one, but only one, of those situations. I'm a fan of evaporated milk for many reasons (including as a substitute for full-fat cream in recipes such as eggnog and oyster stew), but, luckily, and thankfully, poverty has never been one.

So, Shel, I'm sure I'm not the only one eager to see what you decide to do. And how it works out for you.

I'm with y'all on the Cool Whip. Hate that stuff.

Speaking just for myself, I never tried to whip nonfat milk. That surprises me as well.

I'll bet I probably did. But mostly we used US products that were shipped in. Carnation powdered milk was the staple on everyone's shelves. Also Carnation canned whole evaporated milk and skim evaporated milk. This was the mid-70's, so lots of things were different back then.

It's easy to say "I would never" do this or that when you're sitting in an environment with which you are familiar and feel comfortable. But the fact is that you have absolutely no idea whatsoever what you would do if the situation called for it. Like if you were living in Panama for four years where fresh pasteurized milk was unavailable and you had three little kids including a newborn and a four-year-old that had been exposed to tuberculosis. And I wasn't aware of NIDO. Or had any idea whether or not it was available to me. Wish I had.

You know, I'm not one for artificial ingredients or weird substitutes either, but don't understand the revulsion about whipped evaporated milk. It is milk, after all. I remember when we lived in Panama we couldn't get fresh pasteurized milk. We were told that we'd be very wise to avoid the local unpasteurized dairy products because many diseases were rampant there, including tuberculosis, to which my 4-yr-old son was exposed and for which he had to take a very strict regimen of medication for nine months. We got frozen whole milk and cream from the US but the texture was really weird and the cream didn't whip well. I used a lot of powdered milk and canned milk products. And was very glad to get them.

I am 100 percent positive that you are absolutely correct for yourself. However, during the food rationings days of WW2, there were many mothers, like mine, not possessed of Jersey cows, who were doing the best they could to provide a bit of frothy fun toppings for things like birthday parties for their children. And a little bit of fake butter that, in fact, they had to "mix up" to spread on toast.

BTW, your mention of "the craggy, brown and crisp bumps and edges" reminded me of my very favorite type of drop biscuits from my childhood: cat head. That really takes me back.

Or was your only option, which, during several periods in our nation's history, was the case.

Shel, you should be able to use up that bourbon before too long. There are lots of things that benefit from a shot or two of bourbon: Pecan pie Bread pudding Cookies, like (obviously) bourbon balls Bourbon Pecan Cake Ham glaze Eggnog Grumpy old men Here's a list: http://www.foodnetwork.com/topics/bourbon.html

My grandmother always had a batch of drop biscuits dough waiting in the fridge. Especially when it was just her & grandpop living there, she only wanted to make two or three at a time. She'd just scoop out that much and bake them right then. I wish I had gotten her recipe. I'm not sure how most recipes would feel about being "held" in the fridge for several days. But it sure was handy. If you decided to have leftover chicken for lunch, for example, grandmom would always ask, "Would you like some fresh hot biscuits with that?"

I do know what you said but, as my roots go very very deep in both New Mexico and Texas, I've heard that story all my life and your post is the first time I've heard anyone claim it was Santa Fe in the 40's. You've backed up the usual timeline by about twenty years. Usually it's "Teresa Hernández, who worked at the FW Woolworth's lunch counter in Santa Fe, New Mexico" in the 1960's (1962 is the usual exact date cited for this supposed "invention"). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frito_pie So I wasn't responding just to your post. The part I agree with is that it's "not the most complex idea" and that multiple people likely began doing it pretty early on. Like about five minutes after Elmer fried up his first batch in San Antonio, Texas, a city already world-famous for chili. And probably even before that, as corn and chiles had been a well-known combination for centuries. That's just one more reason why I find it utterly ridiculous, absurd even (and frankly arrogant), for Santa Fe to keep saying that somebody there, 700+ miles from the place where, in 1932, Elmer first packaged up his new product that he called "Fritos," "invented" Frito Pie. To me, that's like trying to determine who "invented" chocolate sauce over ice cream. And then taking credit for it. .

Not sure about everybody else but, as a person that has been putting bourbon into sweet potatoes for a great many decades in the manner of the rest of my family's southern cooks that have been putting bourbon into sweet potatoes (and a great many other things including ourselves) for several generations, you don't want to use too much. Seriously, only a couple of tablespoons, if that, depending of course upon how many potatoes you're cooking.. It's a very strong flavor and easily can overpower everything else. Especially if you're serving little children and non-drinkers. When you're talking about such small amounts of bourbon, I've found that it doesn't make much difference which brand you use.

I always put bourbon in my candied sweet potatoes - whatever I have on hand. Along with a light dusting of "pumpkin pie spice," butter, brown sugar, and a spoonful of frozen orange juice concentrate.

There are some things we don't have to take "with a grain of salt." Some things are provable historical fact. One of these is that San Antonio was so famous for chili, even as far back as 1880, that the "Chili Queens" were drawing tourists from across the country. That's provable beyond dispute. Second is that Elmer Doolin began packaging and selling Fritos in San Antonio in 1932. Provable beyond dispute. For anybody to think for even so much as one minute that, in a town famous for chili, nobody, for some thirty years, ever had the notion to ladle some over Fritos is ridiculous. And, it's really impossible for me personally to believe that a Santa Fe waitress "invented" this dish in the early 1960's, since I was eating it, in the little bags, with cheese and onions on top, at a drive-in in San Angelo, Texas, in 1950. I'm sorry but it's obvious to me that the most logical scenario is that, as soon as Elmer turned out his first batch of Fritos in San Antonio back in 1932, somebody, probably his mother Daisy but who knows, said, "Boy, I'll bet some chili would be great over these."

So I mentioned Hot Buttered Rum over in the "Christmas Eve Menu" thread and it got me to wondering - what rum do y'all use for this?

Been thinking about you and your Christmas Eve dinner party and harkening back to my entertaining years and recall that I always liked to give the guests a little something to take home - sort of a party favor. Often it was a baked good of some sort - cookies or small loaves of pumpkin or cranberry bread. But during the winter, it usually was Hot Buttered Rum batter. I'd mix up the batter and serve Hot Buttered Rum at the party, but also pack up some for the guests to take home. When budget allowed, I'd pack the batter into seasonally-decorated mugs. When I couldn't afford that splurge, I'd just buy small plastic containers and tie them up with a pretty ribbon. Can't find my recipe for the Hot Buttered Rum batter but, if memory serves, it's very similar to this one: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/hot-buttered-rum-cocktail-recipe.html

I always have some spiced apple cider simmering on the stove or in a crockpot. It smells heavenly when guests walk in. And beside it, a bottle of Tuaca and some whipped cream. Children and non-drinkers can just have the plain cider, but others can add a glug of Tuaca to their mug to make a "Hot Apple Pie." http://www.food.com/recipe/hot-apple-pie-adult-beverage-329172 I've found that hot drinks are very welcomed on cold winter evenings. I know that I personally really love stepping in from the frosty air and being offered some hot buttered rum, or a Tom & Jerry, or Gluhwein, or something. Want to add that I'm also big on "soup shooters" - soups served in shot glasses - for starters at my winter dinner parties. You can google "soup shooters" for ideas but I particularly like spicy tomato soups, curried cauliflower, spiced pumpkin or other squash, rich and luxurious cream of mushroom, beer & cheese, cream of jalapeno, etc. Doesn't really matter as long as it's packed with flavor. I used to have my kids pass the hors d'oeuvres trays, starting when they were about eight years old or so. They'd get dressed up and everybody would brag on them and they'd feel very grownup and helpful and involved in the party. And then they were off to bed.

I can see how this might be a handy idea, but I often use bacon for things like wrapping a raw slice around a chicken tender and baking it, as I did last night. Or wrapping around a shrimp or water chestnut for the Barbie. Or laying across a meatloaf or casserole before it goes into the oven. And a great many other things that require raw floppy slices.

Bacon freezes perfectly. I always like having some around, but rarely need more than one or two slices at a time. I always have some in the freezer. Always. That said, however, as DDF points out, it will eventually go rancid, even in the freezer. I've used it after about 6 months, and it's fine. But I'm not sure of anything that won't spoil, even in the freezer, after 16 months.

I haven't really noticed all that much "animus towards Katsuji," with the exception of one poster here. And Aaron, of course, who doesn't really count since he was a name-calling jerk towards pretty-much everybody and, we later learn, is out on bail. To the contrary, it seems to me that the other cheftestants like Katsuji, regarding him as something of a pesky, funny little brother. I've really enjoyed him and am extremely sorry to see him go. I never failed to find him and his cooking choices interesting, and always looked forward to seeing what he was going to do next. I'll admit I never thought he had a real chance to win - dishes and skills not sophisticated enough - but got a kick out of his journey, and I'll be rooting him on in LCK. It was obvious, sadly to me, from the opening credits of the episode that his knives were in imminent danger of being packed up and toted on out of there. Has anyone else noticed that, if the show broadcasts your little personal vignette, that's the kiss of death? They obviously film these glimpses of each contestant's personal life before the season starts, but can't possibly show them all at one time. So, they tend to wait until you're on your way home before they feature yours. That way, everybody gets theirs broadcast. So when, within the first five minutes, we see Katsuji and his daughter, I said to myself, Katsuji, sayonara and adios. It's been fun.

Whipped evaporated milk, to which one has added a bit of sugar of one's choice, and a little flavoring such as vanilla or rum, is quite acceptable and was very popular for a number of years. High-powered immersion blender not required. A regular ol' hand-held Sunbeam mixer worked just fine. Which was a good thing since, when this was popular, high-powered immersion blenders had not yet been invented.