IowaDee

I also like and use Alton Brown's method of wrapping the asparagus in damp paper towels and steaming the bundle for 2-4 minutes. He also pre -salts before putting them in the MW. Easy to check a spear and stop the action when things are cooked to your taste. I always use whole spears but snap off the tough ends.

I have glass mixing bowls because I like being able to look at the bottom and make sure I have mixed everything in. Used to leave unmixed stuff. I have lots of cornflower Corningware and love it. Everything from pie plates and loaf pans to casseroles and baking dishes. But what I use the most, get ready for it, are my Visionware pieces My collection started probably more than 20 years ago when my local market offered a different piece each week for a low price if you spent so much on groceries.. I have added to those pieces until I have a large set which I use every day. They are workhorses, easy to clean and almost impossible to break. Did drop one pan when I slipped on the ice walking to the car. .The only drawback I can find is that, as I get older, they get heavier. I own several of the non-stick pieces and the coating is still like new.

The first home we owned was a flat roofed one that leaked all too often. Can't tell you how many tubes of Black Jack we squeezed on that thing! When we listed the house I asked the realtor about how to respond if asked if the roof leaked. She told us that if it wasn't leaking when the question was asked, I should just say "no". I have always been grateful that no one asked the question.

I'm thinking about having one of those DNA tests done. As far as I know, I'm 100% WASP but somehow I feel that there may be just a single Dong gene lurking within. Everything you post about them just makes me feel good.

Don't know if hauling home cheese is possible but these two represent my state well. Both have won numerous awards. Prairie Breeze from the Milton Creamery and Maytag Blue from Newton do us proud in Iowa.

Thanks for taking the trouble to find out.

I know that bamboo is very hard as well as being non porous so using it to cook and serve in makes perfect sense. Not to mention just how beautifully it compliments the food. I have a few serving pieces of acacia wood that give me the same feeling. As always, I'm am awed by the places you go, the food you eat and the wonderful people you meet.

I'm curious as to the serving containers. They look like each one is a section of a large bamboo stalk that has been sliced from top to bottom to make two containers. The natural sections of the bamboo make ideal ends for the bowls. Does this make sense or am I just seeing things?

What an amazing adventure to be taken on. Silly questions but do you know what the tufts are on the women's dresses are? It looks too smooth to be raw wool, goat hair or maybe a fiber of some sort? The beauty of the clothing just amazes me. I was bitching to my husband about how I hate wearing my winter jacket because it is so heavy. Compared to them, I have it easy! Am looking forward to more of your photographs.

First half of shotgun season for deer begins tomorrow. Heard a lot of big booms yesterday . Hubby says the local good ole boys were "tuning their instruments" for opening day. Our trapper usually shares some ground venison with us.

I consider myself more of a gatherer then a hunter but I sure would love that meal!

Judging from the names and locations, I'm going to guess these are Amish owned places. Camel dairies seem to be one of the latest things among them. Petty much run out of the puppy mill business so maybe this is the next big thing. Not that I'm comparing the two. We had a huge mill not far from us that shut down. I'll have to watch for camels now. Okay, back to the main topic, sorry about that....

igourmet.com is having a 20% off sale tomorrow. They already caught me with an earlier sale that offered free shipping or I would be jumping on this one. I love that one of the listings that you can search is simply called. "stinky cheese". We are working our way through that list wedge by wedge.

Penzys Spices has both single and double strength Madgascar Vanilla on sale until Dec. 4. After the sale, prices are set to rise a lot.

Got to wondering where the camel milk came from. Only camels I'm aware of there are those at the zoo or Grants Farm. Never had milk but I was gifted a roast from Jungle Jim's market a few years back. Not a lot of camel recipes out there and I might have been better off looking for advice on how to soften an old leather saddle. Went the low and slow method in the slow cooker. Wasn't near low or slow enough. I suspect the beast had died of old age after a lifetime of hauling his bony ass up and down sand dunes and spitting at tourists. He got the last laugh for sure!

Maybe "Shelbys". She's the only person that seems to LOVE the stuff

I was hoping to climb on board as you passed my neighborhood but missed you. Looking forward to your trip even if I am stuck here.

Camel ice cream? Rather than scoop or two, you can ask. "one hump or two"?

I love that you name your herbs. I now have a pot of basil named Rathbone

I had always heard that Coke would dissolve a tooth overnight. We tired it ala Myth Busters and didn't happen. Check out the truth on Snoops. Not only did it not work, I had nothing for the damn Tooth Fairy to collect, hence no loot under the pillow.

We have the same thing as lindag posted earlier. Use them all the time at the library to shelve books on the top shelves. I also use it as a seat when I trim and otherwise mess with my larger houseplants. I stow it away in the closet under the stairs. Funny aside, I saw a photo of one of the Kardashians' homes and they had a bright red version of it. Probably paid an interior decorator big bucks to recommend it too. To reach light objects on high shelves, I also use a long pair of tongs. Never mind the time I dropped and spilled the can of panko bread crumbs using that method.

I don't know when I have read a food blog that made me so eager to try almost everything. Usually two or three things jump out but each meal yelled "taste me" , "taste me"! Oh how I would if I could.

But what was the breed of hen that laid that egg?

Oh Dear God, wheat in flour? Next you will be telling me that there is corn in my corn meal. And might there be oats in my oatmeal too? Where will it end?

Well I like Seattle but not so much this time of year. Maybe I won't offer to carry your luggage this trip