IowaDee

Iowa has come a long ways. When we moved here there were no Sunday sales plus the State ran all the booze stores. There was a list with prices posted on the wall and you had to fill out an order blank. A clerk went into the back the got you selection. The first time I went, there was a guy that owed the local furniture store. He really thought he was a big frog in a little pond. His order had several bottles of champagne on it. He made sure we all knew it was Christmas gifts for "All the little people who work for me". Guess where I never shopped!

Nah. hold out for over easy!

Looks delicious but just reading the rim of your plate makes me hungry! One order of each please.

We shop at a midwest chain called HyVee. It is employee owned and has wonderful service. They offer home delivery too. I always see at least one "shopper" when we are there. I notice how very, very carefully they examine each item before adding it to the cart. They are at least as picky about fruits and veggies as I am. Each apple, potato and onion get the picky housewife check. I suspect it is the same way with meat selection. We don't have a lot of different grocery store to pick from, HyVee, Aldies and Fareway, but they are all good. Only Hyvee offers home delivery. One day a week, they run a bus to pick up people who have no way to get to the store. At a set time, they take them home again and carry in their groceries. No charge for this service. I don't know the details other than that, but what a great service it is. I should add that these three stores are 25+miles from our house. The only really local store will shop for you and have it bagged and ready to pick up. But the quality leaves much to be desired and most of the meat looks downright scary. We have an amazing butcher's shop here that more than makes up for that.

Beautiful tomato and I love the owl picture in the background!

I keep thinking there should be a slot to drop your money in. Maybe like a car wash has? And I suppose they could offer a finishing wax like the car wash does! Pass thanks. "Come for the food, stay for the toilet" Some catchy motto huh?

Shelby....Wow, that photo of your peppers is beautiful. It belongs in a cookbook as a centerfold.

It very possible that the Hatch chilies I've had are not the real thing. They are all from an Iowa based grocery chain. By the time they get here, they are a bit wilted and flaccid.....that sounds like an ad for Viagra doesn't it? I've seen poblano plants for sale and a large garden center so next year I shall experiment with a couple of them

I used to grow Anaheim chiles. To my taste they are the closet ones to Hatch. Picked some at the green stage but they were so much better if left to ripen to that rich, red shade. Just like the difference between green bells and red ones. Now that I buy all my peppers, I usually grab poblanos. Makes me want to plant one next year and let some chilies vine ripen. I know ripe ones are dried and become anchos but I want to taste them before they are dried. Anyone done that?

I heard a rumor that the green flavor you like so well is really derived from green bells!

My goodness, Shelby, I know you can't unhinge your jaw but it looks like the only way to bite that wonderful creation!

Damn, wish I hadn't been such a goody-goody gal. At least the replacement loot is still being used all the time.

I remember the recall and how sad it made me. You had to return the lid, not the entire pot. You got a coupon good for quite a bit of credit towards other Corning products. I "bought a cornflower casserole, square baking dish, pie pan I think, two grabit sets. All in all, I'd give them all back to have a working percolator again. Maybe Corning is like Sears used to be. It was almost a joke that you could return about anything, anytime for any reason.

The Corning ware electric coffee maker was the best ever. Perfect coffee and so easy to keep spotless.

I apologize if the information I posted as to the demise of Maytag was not accurate. I gleaned it from reading local accounts by disgruntled former employees. I realize they were hardly unbiased. But I stand by my feelings that their products can't hold a candle to the ones they once produced. Alex, thanks for mentioning the possible reason for the loud pop. I had not heard that explanation before. Our dishwasher makes noises all through the cycles. It is getting some age on it so maybe we will be able to replace it without guilt soon.

When we were married, Maytag appliances were the brand to dream about. No way on earth could our budget stretch to pay for them. As the years went buy we were able to purchase a Maytag washing machine which is still going strong. Then on April 1, 2006 Maytag sold out to Whirlpool Co. And that was the end of Maytag's quality appliances. Too bad we didn't catch on sooner. We were now in a position to buy a stove, dishwasher and fridge all with the coveted Maytag name. Looking back, I should have realized that selling the company on April Fool's Day should have sent up a red flag. Whirlpool took a well respected company with a stellar reputation and ran it straight into the ground. I have a fridge that snaps, crackles and pops more than any bowl of Rice Krispies. a dishwasher that sounds like it is crushing gravel with every load and a stove with an oven that takes eons to reach temperature. Baking cookies is a constant dance of rotate the sheets due to the uneven heating. I bought a Breville Smart Oven in January and can count on the fingers of one hand the times I have fired up the Maytag monster. Have no idea what we will do when in is time to replace the other miserable Maytag appliances. In the meantime, the old Maytag washer just keeps going and going and may put that pink battery bunny to shame some day.

Okay to be fair, I didn't find this myself. A girlfriend in Florida did and passed it on to me. It is a copy of the 1951 cookbook "A World of Good Eating" It is written by Helen Frost but, more important in my mind, is that the illustrations are by Helen A. Nelson. To say they are charming is not to begin to do them justice. Nelson had a long career illustrating books, cards and other things. Her children look like first cousins of the Campbell Soup kids only I like them much more. . The cookbook is divided into recipes from different regions. Poland somehow ended up with a chapter by itself. No mention of anything in the New World except America. Frost lived in New England so maybe that accounts for her choices. The Chinese recipes are curious and seem to require large amounts of green peppers. That leaves out some egulleters for sure. There are a couple of recipes in the British Isles section that look worth trying. I'll report back if they are any good. If nothing else , the colored drawing that introduce each area could be removed and framed. They are that cute!

Beautifully written and a very interesting subject. I loved the part when she was comparing gifts from her childhood!

Welcome to egullet. I'm sure many of us would love to hear more about your life in France. Are you a cheese maker yourself?

Don't know if it would help but I have found that the orioles would leave the tomatoes alone if I set some shallow dishes of grape jelly around. Or, if you can find cheap ones, the birds go nuts over oranges cut in half.

If you google fig liqueur, you will find recipes for making it at home. Might make unique gifts! For sure, I'd try it.

I love dried figs but know nothing about making them. I assume it is just like drying any other fruit. I have serious fig envy and had no idea they were really grown in Mexico. I don't recall seeing them for sale but once my eyes locked on the avocados, I was pretty much blind to anything else in the produce section.

Am I seeing some stowaway figs in the mix? That is a beautiful assortment of tomatoes! I can't imagine doing that under the best circumstances.

Hey, we've grown the exact same corn. We just call it "Corn in search of an orthodontist." Shrimp looks amazing!

And that's what I call gilding the lily and I loved it. What an amazing meal to end an amazing blog. And I shall now slink off and eat my humble BLT.