gfron1

Funny that you ask @ElsieD. One of the things that is obvious that finally clicked for me on this trip was the volume of the recipes. Most fruitcake recipes total about 20 pounds, and same goes for most of the canned products. I don't know why but it took me until this trip to realize that they were canning for the year or season, so of course they were massive amounts. So what's even more impressive to me about these cooks is that I never have enough space for canning in my commercial kitchen. I can't imagine canning on a woodburning stove in a tiny homestead. They probably did it outside, but still...

Here is a recipe for chili sauce from 1872 Chili Sauce 30 tomatoes 3 Lg onions 3 Lg green peppers 1 T each all spice, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg 2 T Salt 1 qt Vinegar 1 C Sugar Mince the onion and peppers. Lightly cook the tomatoes, combine all and cook til thick. Looks very similar.

I finally got my eyes on the oldest known cookbook from the Ozarks over the weekend, and the author stated, "A proper scale is crucial to success." The book, FYI, is Chicora's Help to the Housekeeper.

In my research on historic Ozark cooking I have repeatedly seen recipes for Corn Pone. And recently I sat down with @kayb and we discussed what they were. On one hand I see recipes for unleavened corn bread, almost always dropped by spoon into hot lard. On the other hand it was thought that pone referred more to the technique of cast iron baked, or possibly even just an oval shape. Googling definitions and recipes doesn't really give me any more confidence in an answer. For your etification, here's a potato pone recipe I found in the Little Rock historic library. 1890. I'm sure there are plenty of people who have family memories of this... @andiesenji?

I have one option but I need to get my color laser out of storage to see if the card stock will go through. It won't go through my home laser. DIY Printable Boxes

I have a lot to sort through from this recent r&d trip, but I thought I'd share some of the gifts shared with me by @kayb and my foraging friend. I'm calling the red jar chile sauce, but Kay called it tomato pickle I think. Based on everything she told me, it is identical to the historic recipes I keep finding or chile sauce...which has no heat. Its more of a slightly sweetened tomato chutney or compote. The kumquat moonshine marmalade is something I made for my hosts.

I'm in the midst of another research trip. Last night I went to a presentation by Chef Erin Rowe who is exploring foodways in the region, and we were joined by an Ozark foraging friends of mine, Rachaelle Elizabeth (Once Upon A Weed). We're all working on related aspects, but all a bit different, so the idea exchange is really helpful. One of my questions is how lard was handled in the old days - meaning, after you've rendered it, and once you've used it once, then what? Was it left to sit in a dedicated cast iron? Was it strained into a container? Was it stored at room temp, root cellar, ? Surely it was repeatedly used so did flavors transfer or was there a chicken lard, cattfish lard and fried fruit pie lard? That's the kind of stuff we're sorting through.

Have you tried Chef Rubber, AUI or other pastry distributors who might have them in a warehouse somewhere?

HERE's and interview I did with one of our oldest, most listened to talk stations. My research is congealing in a way that I'm getting closer to saying what I want/need to say about the project. I come in about halfway through.

Did you happen to catch the article on cannelé in the most recent Toothache magazine? Kriss Harvey compared 3 techniques, different ingredients and showed all the variations. Interesting article. Yours look perfect.

Well its way too late for that I scarfed them down...and not because they are that good. They have the texture of those dry peanut butter cheese crackers that you get at the gas station. The flavor was sweet and salty, sort of umami meets a light sweetness. I would not get them again except for shock value.

At this point in the calendar you can sit tight. If you follow this thread you'll know when momentum is building. I'm still trying to lock in the 2nd master class...I really want a skill-based workshop, and when I do that's when I think most people will jump in and start registering. You can split the registration up however....but again I don't expect to have many until March or even April.

My two favorite are still Art of Eating and Gastronomica. These two slide in between your descritions. Both are long-form magazine/journal type publications. Both are extremely in-depth, culturally wide-spanning publications. If you want beyond the mainstream you won't find better IMO.

Same as last year ($175). The registration links have the details.

[Hold my beer...] Flaming hot chicken wings Oreos from China. Got them for Christmas.

Yes they bake longer. The mats provide a layer of insulation.

Assuming you regularly double check your Delta 2 and are sure you were at working temp, and your room is at an acceptable temperature, then the only answer cold be what Kerry said. I suspect that possibly your cocoa butter layer was very thin and you were just above working temp and/or the room was warm enough to pull the chocolate out of temper enough to melt the cocoa butter. Regardless for cocoa butter to run something is too warm.

And just this morning I got my first pre-Civil War notes: The reference material is Cynthia R. Price, “Patterns of Cultural Behavior and Intra-Site Distributions of Faunal Remains at the Widow Harris Site,” Historical Archaeology 19, no. 2 (1985), 40-56. Pr1985a So, what do I see in here that's of interest? This is my first sighting of Spicewood, which I'll have to confirm is what we now call Spicebush. That's good, because we use a lot of it. Sarvis Berries are aka Service Berries which is already on our list. The drying process and use of pumpkins is interesting. And the use of song birds. Not sure how I will or can use that but noted.

I'll look up Crooked Creek. And @catservant, this again is one of those things where we can use modern knowledge with a classic ingredient to bring it to contemporary tastes. I'm already working on ways to tone it down or highlight flavors within. Stay tuned. I think by High South they mean the northern edge of what is traditionally considered South. I think they want to secede from The Ozarks by joining The South, but I won't hear of it! The Ozarks are something to be celebrated, and if you dig deep enough you can find the uniquenesses that should lead the charge! And, I'm assuming I'll be going right through Jonesboro as I head from LR to I-55 to head back up. That would be on Friday the 18th. ETA: This from Crooked Creek's facebook page:

@catservant These are the stories that I love hearing. I'm heading your way in a couple of weeks to source sorghum. I'll be starting the trip over in Bentonville for a High South dinner/discussion. And these are the distinctions that I"m trying to tease out. Every detail i find I ask myself again - What is Ozark cuisine? How is it distinct from Southern cuisine or Appalachian cuisine? And now I'm chewing on the implications of the modern term "High South Cuisine."

(Note to mods, I'm posting this here instead of Food Media or another forum since its mostly of interest to the pastry geeks) Anyone who remembers the old Tish Boyle magazines from 15 years ago or so (Pastry Arts & Design and its predecessor) will want to grab this one year free subscription HERE

I do and its on my short list. My concern has always been if the flimsy polycarb would be durable enough, and seeing his poor shine (he loved it, I only saw the sheen and waves) did not give me confidence.

Not sure if anyone follows this guy, but It came up as a suggested video for me and was actually a lot of fun. He tempers sous vide (12/15/18), then creates a custom polycarb bar form with a vacuum forming machine (12/22/18). HERE {As time passes you'll need to go to his posts from late December, 2018.}

Yes and the Ozark version Bittersweet.

Thank you so much for sharing this Kay. I know you're in AR now, but where were you raised? Asking because your experiences sound very similar to all the info I'm gathering. The only thing you mentioned that stood out as something unusual is catching bream. No one has mentioned that yet.