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azureus

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Everything posted by azureus

  1. I live north of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, (pop. 125,000) and south of Brookings, SD (pop. 28,000). I've purchased pomegranate molasses and Spanish smoked paprika at the TJ Maxx store in Sioux Falls, but not anywhere else. The Hy-Vee grocery chain that we have here in the mid-West carries creme fraiche, cheap sherry vinegar, domestically-produced pancetta and slab bacon. Sioux Falls also has many small Mexican markets and a few Asian/international markets, so miso is available, and Mexican crema probably is as well. The Super Wal-Mart in Brookings carries offal and pig parts, though I haven't seen cheeks or skin. There are many local meat lockers in the area, and two butchers in Sioux Falls that offer various cuts of meat and locally-produced sausages and cured meats. April
  2. Killing your own food isn't necessarily more humane for the animals involved. Killing an animal cleanly takes skill, and that comes with practice--on living, feeling creatures. The first chickens that I butchered probably suffered more due to my inexperience. Eating what you kill is respectful, but it doesn't mitigate any pain the animal may experience. So, the case can be made for leaving the actual killing to experts. More importantly, it's just as respectful to not waste your food, no matter where it came from or how it was killed. April
  3. Um, yeah--pumpkin pie for breakfast yesterday; I think I'll eat the last piece this morning. April
  4. azureus

    Root Vegetable Chips

    What about radishes? Or would those be too spicy? April
  5. my grandparents were from the Tyrol and I remember this from my childhood in the late 40's...I have done many of the dishes she made from memory but I forgot about this one,,,Thanks!!! ← You're welcome! How similar is the recipe to what you recall? You should share some of your recipes. . . April
  6. Artichokes and cardoons belong to the genus Cynara. They are probably descended from the same wild thistle. The plants look similar in any event, and that may be reflected by the similar Italian names. I'm assuming that the artichoke stalks that divina is referring to are the thick midribs of each leaf. These are the parts of cardoons that are eaten. The genus Salvia contains many different species of plants. Here in the U.S., Salvias grown for ornamental uses are generally called "salvias". Salvia officinalis is the plant used in cooking, and is usually referred to as "sage" or "common garden sage". I make wild interpretations of the squash recipe all the time. I have mixed in any of the following: cubed carrots (last week it was purple carrots), parsnips, turnips, sweet potatoes, radishes and beetroot. The carrots stay firmer than the squash, while the sweet potatoes get very soft when baked. I have no explanation for why I've never used potatoes. April
  7. One of my favorite ways to serve polenta is with Goulash di Manzo. It's a Northern Italian dish with heavy Eastern European influences. It's become comfort food for me in the wintertime. April
  8. I think that prepping the squash ahead of time sounds like a great idea. I think I'll try it out myself. It does require a sturdy chef's knife and a strong arm to peel and cut up the squash, so you should give Franco time to recover. April
  9. I've been making Provençal Pumpkin Gratin for several years with your type of pumpkin. I could swear that I originally got the recipe here on eGullet, but I can't seem to find it. There is a mention of this dish here: Provencal Pumpkin Gratin The recipe is simple: 2lbs squash, peeled and diced 8 garlic cloves, minced (use fewer cloves if you want more of the squash flavor) 1/2c minced parsely salt and pepper, to taste 4T flour 1/3c olive oil Toss the squash together with the garlic, parsley and flour until the cubes are coated. Oil a gratin dish and fill with the squash. Drizzle with more olive oil. Bake at 325F for 2 to 2-1/2 hours, until the squash is soft and has a nice brown crust. It's one of my favorite dishes. April
  10. Try freezing the greens. Even the most fibrous stems become soft after a freeze/thaw cycle. This is how I process garden greens to feed to my poultry. April
  11. "German-style" potato salad is popular in my family. Lots of celery, onion, and bacon mixed with potatoes in a slightly sweet vinegar sauce. The "family" recipe is really from a fondue book published in 1969, but it's still good. April
  12. I save just a few feathers to look at, as I'm not sure what to do with all of them. My first attempt to pluck a goose ranks as one of the worst culinary experiences of my life. I can't believe anyone ever has the patience to pluck a goose for roasting. More on topic, in my dim memory, I recall reading a website about hanging fowl. The purpose of hanging was to tenderize older, tougher birds and to develop a gamey or "high" flavor in the meat. The guy who had the website was from somewhere in Great Britain, I think. He butchered his own birds and aged them for quite a long time--on the order of a couple weeks. He would snap their necks and hang them whole (with innards and feathers intact). The birds were hung by their feet in an area that was just above freezing. He stressed that the carcasses should be uncut, because any cuts or wounds would be a point of entry for bacteria, which would lead to rot. I don't recall what he had to say about the bacteria already in the gut. . . I haven't tried this. I just stew my old, tough birds. April
  13. This is what I do with my chickens (and turkeys and guineas), except that I dry-pluck them. The feathers come out nearly as easily as for a scalded bird,as long as you work quickly and start with the big wing feathers. If you wait too long, those feathers are impossible to pull without a dunking in hot water. April
  14. Oooh! That brings to mind a recipe out of Martha Stewart's magazine years ago: Ginger syrup and seltzer poured over a scoop each of vanilla ice cream and orange sherbet. It's a drinkable orange dreamsicle. April
  15. I haven't been (yet), but Roslyn, SD is home to the International Vinegar Museum I saw a lady wearing a t-shirt advertising the place while I was at the grocery store last week. It's not too far from me. I really should take a road trip some day. April
  16. azureus

    Using Up the Apples

    You can use store-bought, frozen crusts. We won't tell! You could buy the frozen single shells, fill them with your apple pie filling, then freeze. When you want pie, pull one out of your freezer, top with streusel and bake. Another suggestion that I read elsewhere on the internet(but haven't yet tried): Freeze your pie filling directly in pie tins. When it's frozen solid, pop the filling out of the tins and seal in freezer bags. Then, when you're ready to bake a pie, you can just place the formed filling directly in the pie crust without needing to thaw it first. Just bake the pie a bit longer when using frozen filling. April
  17. Thanks, Kerry, for the link to the other thread. There are good ideas in there. Peter--Are the green just salted and then stored, or are they fermented as well? Karen--I honestly hadn't considered a food donation. I was under the (probabably false) impression that the food bank mostly wanted canned goods and other store-bought foods. It's worth checking into. Thank you everyone, April
  18. These dishes have become staples in my household: Ragu alla Napoletana--I like that you end up with a whole roast to serve separately from the sauce and pasta. Risotto alla Milanese--Creamy and rich, but simple to make. Spaghetti alla Carbonara--Same as above. Spaghetti alla Puttanesca--My husband loves this dish. Just don't tell him that it has anchovies. Minestrone alla Romagnola--I feel virtuous eating all those vegetables. Pork Loin Braised in Milk, Bolognese Style--Simple to make, minimal ingredients. My husband's Danish grandmother has requested this for Thanksgiving three years in a row. Ciambella (from Marcella Hazan's "Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking") I often flavor it with orange flower water. April
  19. Thanks to a long, cool summer, my garden has produced more kale, collards, mustard greens and raab than my family can possibly eat fresh. I've blanched and frozen many quarts of greens for use in soups, and given bagfuls away to friends and family. I can't bear to see what's left go to waste, but I can only eat so much soup. I was contemplating making sauerkraut out of the kale and collards. Has anyone ever tried this? Any other ideas? A variety of recipes would be nice. April
  20. There is a pepper called Capsicum baccatum "Bishop's Crown" which resembles your description. It's listed as being fairly mild. If your's is hotter, it's probably the same species of pepper, but a different variety. Here's a link to a photo: Bishop's Crown. Habanero peppers are actually a different species, and are wrinkled rather than winged. April
  21. It worked just fine with a wild turkey that dressed out at 28 pounds and which I thought was going to be tough and gamy but turned out quite nice. Much less breast meat but huge thighs and strappy back muscles and mighty wings. ← Thanks, that's good to know. Now I have an excuse to purchase a larger roaster. April
  22. This method intrigues me. Would the poaching or steaming help to tenderize an older and very tough bird? I have some old, heritage breed tom turkeys that need to go. April
  23. azureus

    Cooking testicles

    I think that size has more to do with how close it is to breeding season when the birds are butchered. The age of the bird also is a factor. Here is South Dakota, "calf fries" are seasonal. The small, local papers advertise events (called "feeds" or "frys") around the time calves are being castrated. I think about recipes for testes when I butcher my own poultry, but somehow they always end up as a treat for the farm cats instead. I keep chickening out. . . April
  24. Thankfully, no. I've only had trouble with the occasional picnicbug. Now I just need to get everything processed before more tomatoes turn to slime in my kitchen. April
  25. My house looks the same. We have to move tomatoes out of the way in order to eat at our kitchen table. I don't have so many herbs to dry, but I've got big piles and containers of beans that need to be shucked. Yesterday, my husband asked me if we really needed so many tomatoes. I forbore telling him that he was just looking at one day's worth of picking! My paste tomatoes are bearing so heavily that I'm going to attempt estratto, the concentrated Sicilian tomato paste. Of course, here in South Dakota, I'll have to cheat and use my food dehydrator.
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