Kerouac1964

Thanks for the replies! I like the wok idea. I've just purchased a wok. And hadn't thought of roasting nuts in it. The sugar addition sounds nice, as well. I like a sweet/salty combination. I was snacking on trail mix this weekend and adding a bit of table salt to it to enhance the m&ms and raisins . My original idea was to soak in a brine when the pistachios were in the shell, but - I could always shell them and then just spritze them with a salt solution, dry then repeat as needed to try and build the salt amount desired. Those nuts were really one-of-a-kind items. I've never seen nuts that salty since! A rare indulgence to be sure, as the salt will soon make the lips, fingers a bit sore!!! Mike T. Sioux City, IA

Hello! I'm on a quest to recreate a treat I encountered years ago at a Peanut Shack at my local mall. I purchased a 1/2 lb of extra salty Jumbo Pistachios and snuck them into the maxi-plex theatre to see an action flick. The nuts were very tasty, coming right off a heat lamp and they were very crisp and fresh as well. I prefer pistachios with a lot of salt. I could not believe how salty these were. They were literally WHITE with salt. You could see little crystals shining on these in-the-shell beauties. And they were a very nice Jumbo grade as well. I don't recall ever eating a bigger pistachio since that 1/2 pound batch. I've been wanting to recreate that magic treat, and cannot find a specific recipe to help me accomplish this task. Unfortunately the Peanut Shack no longer exists, and I am unable to find that chain on the Internet. Perhaps they went under? I have even gone so far as to email several Pistachio ranchers in the hopes that they would have heard of the process for getting the extra salt onto the the nuts. The most helpful reply I recieved was to use a brine solution, then dry them in the oven. I think this is perhaps the best bet to date. I was hoping a culinary expert online at Egullet might be able to offer a salt to water ratio content? and the Oven temp, and roasting time? How long to leave the nuts in the brine? What would be the best type of salt to use - Kosher, sea salt? Thanks in advance for any help!! Mike T. aka Kerouac1964 Sioux City, Iowa :cool

I like the idea of hard lemonade. Perhaps open a few bottles, place in a fancy decanter and tell them its an exotic Lemon ice-wine from Canada? LOL

Hail Fellow Iowans! Those Des Moines places sound very nice! I'm located in Sioux City, and can offer a nice low-priced Mexican-American restaraunt. Navarates - located on old Hwy 75 on the northeast edge of town. Very good basic menu. Located in an old truck stop. Very plain, even a bit untidy due to the amount of nonstop business they have. Meals are served on piping hot platters, big homestyle portions! From what I know of their kitchen they are a family ran business who make all their food from scratch including their sauces, and wonderful chili gravy. Years ago, when they were located in an old diner, I used to have a great open view of the kitchen. There would be two or three eldery Grandma's in there sweating over huge pots of wonderful chili gravy. Their younger children would be placing orders in rapid fire spanish. The food tastes just like it did 20 years ago! Oh my! I'd better go have lunch today....hmmmm a tamale and burrito with chili gravy, black olives and hot sauce..... Kerouac1964

After reading all the cool "other" meat dish ideas, I just had to tell of my first experience with head cheese. I was on the Net a month or so ago, and surfed into a Cajun food site. So, I start scoping out the aligator sausage when I suddenly spot spicy and mild head cheese. Just had to give them a shot. That meat order, overall was the best online gourmet meat purchase I've made all year! I had chaurice, venison sausage, hickory smoked pork sausage and I discovered the mystery of Boudin. I liked Boudin so much in fact, I am going to buy a meat/grinder/stuffer next month to make it myself. I ate the head cheese fried up with some scrambled eggs for breakfast. My first impression: OH MY GOD! Where was this stuff in my college days when I would go out the night before and drink my self to into near alcohol poisoning! It was the perfect greasy-spoon breakfast after the night out!! Will be attempting blood sausage soon, and when I find out how to roast/eat/prepare bone marrow...that's next on my culinary kinks and Kicks!!! Eatin' Large in Sioux City, IA Kerouac1964