hummingbirdkiss

thanks so much you guys I appreciate it! has anyone made sugar skulls ..my girl ordered the molds and I am waiting ..I have decorated them before but never made them from scratch ..I imagine they are like making sugar eggs? but again I never made those either! no one else huh? it is ok I am off on this adventure of healing my husband is going to build the alter starting next week and we are going to go through and start collecting things ... deep breath ..this is going to be very hard for us .. please wish us strength I will post pictures if it feels right to do so ...and I think it will ..also if you are interested... thank you, Heidi

I am overwhelmed by this project and need help ! I am installing an alter and dedicating it to the memory of the sweetest young man on the planet ..who was torn from my life last year unexpectedly. has anyone here done an alter for this holiday?? any pictures? sugar skulls? how to do advice? discussion? ideas? ..there is tons of info on the internet but real life ideas..recipes ...creations ..decorations ..anything you may have to share would be greatly appreciated! he would have really dug this and was in my opinion a most brilliant artist ..this alter will be put on exhibit at the local art museum so it needs to really represent this is going to be one of the most emotional and hopefully healing things I have ever participated in and I have only a month to prepare for it thanks in advance for any help you can offer eta I am trying to get used to bifocals so please excuse my typos!!!

best sides ..pickled peppers, okra fungi, johnny cakes or flitters (spelled correctly you want flitters not fritters) double fried plantains ..and yes rice and peas any recipe for jerk is made better and really if you want it to be Island style you have to add a spoonful of Grace's Jerk seriously everyone in the islands does that they make up their own jerk recipe or use mammy's and then add a spoonful of jerk seasoning ..(just like mammy!)

tacos

right off I-5 heading south it is the 74th street exit take the frontage road past Bates College make a left on 84th and a right on Hosmer ..it is right there heading North take the 84th st exit ..it is super easy to find and in an awesome location if you are traveling anywhere near the Tacoma mall that is for sure!! easy on and off I-5 they have home made tortillas ..during the week..tortas, all kinds of great tacos..flautas...all the usual for a taqueria ...and all fresh and wonderful! and on the weekend (Sat and Sun) they have goat meat tacos ...they make elotes that are to die for and the BEST Posole I have eaten in Washington state..the bowls are not big enough!!!! no beer but a variety of soda, horchata, Jamaica and tamarindo in the machines enjoy if you are near there or heading north or south past Tacoma Mi Taqueria 8425 S Hosmer St #100-A Tacoma WA 98408 Phone: 253-536-5542

I agree they are out of this world expensive!!! I usually pay less than $3/lb for Penn Cove mussels!!! wow shipping must be the killer... locally fish and seafood are expensive as well but these most wonderful mussels are really cheap here..you can even buy them at Costco! someone told me they found them in a Costco in Santa Fe and they were awesome ..I think the way they ship I would not fear eating or ordering them (even though I prefer local stuff) as long as your shell fish is alive and intact they should be fine .. I have flown with Penn Cove mussels to Florida so my mother could taste them (she is a bonifide mussel freak and adored them as well) ..just in a cooler on ice connections were slow and it took all day ..they were fine ..so although I have not ordered them I would not fear it as long as they are overnight and packed well ...shipping companies have it down to an art! it is just the cost!!!!

Penn Cove they have fantastic mussels ..I am not sure how the Farm2market works (it seems to me it is just a shipping company not a "middle man" ? but that is how they do their shipping and the link is at the bottom of the page

YES I order an oz at a time and split it with a friend ..fantastic company and the saffron is wonderful ..I think eta I love the extracts they sell as well (they always toss a freebe in like a soap or an extract with your order)

this reminds me of my grandmother from Montreal's "runny jam" we called it ...the strawberries were intact and the syrup was very thick but not "set" ..I can read French and think I will try this recipe ..I have never been able to reproduce hers but the strawberries she used were the key... they were very tiny (about the size of Alpine) berries bursting with flavor!!! ..even in my garden they are not as intense as what she grew ..sadly thanks for starting this thread it makes me nostalgic for my Grandma's cooking that is for sure..we used to eat this jam with lots of butter on Challah

when I was considering fruit trees I went to a private nursery in my area and asked what they grew in their own yard... I ended up falling for the dwarf 5 way trees ..(I have a view and did not want to obstruct it) also the idea of five kinds of the same fruit on one tree was kind of exciting ... I do not need a huge load of anything I planted 5 way cherries 5 way plums 5 way Asian pears the single fruit trees are 2 fig trees 1 quince 1 persimmon I dont know about boy and girl grapes I planted concords a few years back (3 of them) and they all make grapes... it is so fun to grow your own fruits you will not regret this adventure that is for sure

I have a leg that needs to turn into curry this week my husband saws it into slices then this wonderful dish begins! mind you this is a cumination and recreation that became our own my husband saws the leg into slices ... I pound all this into a paste with a mortar and pestal no exact amts it depends on what I have and how much of it ... black pepper cumin seed a few allspice berries Beta Pac curry from Jamaica New Mexican red garlic ginger 3 habeneros salt I rub this paste all over the meat (careful with the chiles on your mitts and touching tender areas!!) let it sit until it is room temp then roast or grill it until it is browned and fragrent I have been known to add a spoon of Graces jerk seasoning paste in a jar and a few shots of Maggi to the paste put it in a Dutch oven with a couple of bay leaves and a good lager (when I am camping I build a good coal bed in the fire pit ..grill the meat instead of roast ...and just add coals to the top of the dutch oven all day cook down all day until the meat falls off the bone then add a can of coconut milk to finish eat with tortillas.. or Chapati's we like a huge bowl of fresh salad made with pineapple, ice cold mangos, lime juice and cilantro and of course a lager!

I know you don't mean me with the "sunshine" we get about 498572 inches of rain here!

Ha, wow, what a coincidence! I've been having the hardest time finding wood chips or carbon sources for my compost pile, and since I couldn't afford a wood chipper, I have been resorting to scavenging for twigs and sorts and grinding them up with my lawnmower (which is not a pretty sight). Soon enough, my neighbor has a tree grinding service across the street. I asked the guys if I could have some woodchips and they agreed to dump some on my driveway. Next thing I know, they got a little carried away and I ended up with over a thousand pounds of woodchips dumped on my driveway, LOL! Needless to say, I now have at least a year's supply of mulch, but hey at least it was free, and they didn't ask many questions either I've been bagging them and putting them in the backyard for the last week. I did notice that dragonflies (strangely enough) have been showing up, and I'm a little afraid of termites making their presence. Didn't really see any ticks either, but I'll guess I have to wait and see. I guess I feel a little more secure knowing the tree came from my neighbor instead of some unknown source. ← HA I knew there were two gardening threads! I just posted in the other one and really thought there was a compost conversation going on... then I just thought I was imagining things anyway raccoons tore up my compost heap ..and baby rabbits are full of produce!!! while I was away and the dogs were not in or around the house for a week ..wildlife had a blast with the freedom! Takadi the chips are a score but the termites can be a real issue! ..so watch for them closely and just keep them away from the house!!!...way way way out in the garden!

make a big bowl of granola to snack on eta my tummy hurts just thinking about all those oats

I am bumping gardens but am wondering ..I think there are two similar topics and I am not sure what one to post in now? I will post here because I can not find the other one! I know everyone is probably happy with sore knees dirt under their fingernails now...I know I am what are all of you eating and making from the garden now? please share!!! I pulled some baby purple carrots yesterday while thinning and was bummed they were orange ..then I found a fat one that is turning purple and was so excited I took a picture of it ..but it looks like a little fat purple stub so I will refrain from posting!!! it was pretty cute however and tasted very good! for those who have grown them ..they must purple up as they grow I guess? we are eating so well!!! three times a day from the garden with the baby carrots, snow peas (great with eggs in the morning)..rhubarb... all the herbs ...thinned baby onions are magnificant but I have to start leaving them to grow now so I have some whole onions! I have all kinds of greens at the peak of flavor right now! the pressure will be off the onions soon however because I just noticed my garlic is sending up flowers!!! I can hardly wait for those to be ready to harvest!!! the Italian parsley I planted is the best I have ever grown !!!a friend sent me a dark variety and I have never tasted such amazing parsley!!! I am glad I planted it all over because I can not get enough of it! I have TONS of seed pods on one of my "heirloom" collards... they have a heartfelt story behind them ..my dearest of friends and first friend in WA state gave me some of his .(I know I mentioned this in an earlier post someplace) ..and over the years I have planted saved and planted..he passed away last April and I want his legacy to live on ...they are wonerful collards and grow all winter long here ..in fact better of course after the first frost... I am happy to share if anyone wants some just pm me and when they are ready I will send you some! it should be about a month or so ..for them to be dry and ready to share ...then you can plant them as a fall crop! yesterday I made a wonderful soup of escarole, baby collards, broccoli rabe ..baby carrots ..baby onions....parsley ...garlic thinnings ..(my sick looking garlic is making bulbs that look fine ..so who knows why the tops were turning brown) I just chopped everything up covered it with home made chicken stock and simmered it all day in the Dutch oven... then made tiny meatballs and added them to the soup....shaved some parm into the soup served with home made (garden) herb croutons ...it was one of those wonderful bowls of happiness that comes together at the absolute right moment of flavor!!! a few more days an I should have enough young vine leaves to make some stuffed leaves with rhubarb! that is one of my favorite summertime foods ... I make two versions ..one with ground lamb and a vegetarian one with Washington State lentils ...roll up the filling (ground lamb or lentils ..lots of salt fresh cracked pepper... garlic.. a bit of rice fresh mint ..thyme and parsley) in the vine leaves (I blanch the leaves and cut the tough veins out before rolling) ...then layer fresh cut up rhubarb with the vine rolls until the steamer is full ... serve the rolls with the steamed rhubarb ...very very good!!! I stopped mounding the potatoes because they are starting to flower ..and I think that is appropriate? please correct me if I am wrong I could go on and on here but please tell ..what your garden is doing and what you are making from your bounty?

I do not like the radishes I grow here in the garden ..they look good and my dog loves them ..but I think the soil is too acidic or something because I just think they are awful tasting! I have tried all types of seeds now local ..not local ..I just give up on the radishes all together now .. my garden is just bursting!!! we eat three times a day from it now!!

please tell me how that works for you and maybe I will try it

I ate almost 1/4 of an entire massive gigantic jackfruit ...my tummy is not thrilled with this behavior many hugs Pax I hope you get better soon

I dont like the smell is all it is great fertilizer...I just can not stomach how it smells

I have fruit flies in my compost some days tons of worms coming in now ...it is quite fun , very rewarding and amazingly disgusting all at the same time! my layers consist of kitchen waste all kinds!! anything that looks like it will biodegrade goes in there I bought a bail of straw to mound my potatoes so I dump a layer of that or dried weeds (I have very attractive weed piles all over my driveway in various starges of death) I am going to beg some menure from friends who have animals like goats or bunnies ..no chicken!!! my garden is bursting with greens...the escarole is beyind wonderful and I have fresh herbs of all types but am using the fresh thyme tips with Italian parsley and onion thinnings daily now ... I can not keep the potatoes mounded everytime I walk out they need another layer! I am not sure when to stop mounding them? I have not grown these in years the most fun thing I am growing in the garden are the potatoes!..they are very interactive! (I have red, white and dark blue potatoes growing) the blue potatoes I got from the market (because they were insanely expensive to buy as seeds) and cut up/sprouted are about three times larger now than the certified seed potatoes..guess there was nothing on them to inhibit growth! has anyone grown potatoes in straw? are they really going to just be in there in layers or what?? I did them in dirt previously then dug them up everything either has flowers or is growing fruit now ..... I can eat three times a day now out of this garden Herb scones for breakfast salads for lunch and dinner I made a huge pot of chicken and escarole soup yesterday (enough for three days!) with all the herbs and greens I have and a giant chicken ...amazing there is no excuse not to grow something! ..I think everyone who loves to cook and eat... should naturally adore growing something how could you not?? ..but that is me thinking OT I have two kinds of hummingbirds in my yard nesting

my garden is just bursting with young greens right now ...brocolli rabe, escarole, collards ..and lots of baby onions to thin out ..along with Italian parsley and tender thyme leaves....so I made some spaghetti I also minced a handful of the greens sizzled them in lots of butter with the fresh herbs and baby onions...and put it on the sourdough bread with parmesan

I am extremely depressed and want to cry...my garlic has some kind of blight and it turning yellow and rotting ..I have two huge beds ..I pulled the yellowing ones this morning put them into regular trash to get whatever it is out of here .. looked so good a week ago ..big strong ..healthy...and now about a 1/3 have been pulled this was all certified seed garlic from Mason Co I want to cry

I have no words

Rob that is so my kind of dessert ..right there on that plate with all those flavors and textures!!! wow ... it looks beautiful!!!! my girlfriend tried to talk me into an AGA ...she has one and loves it ...but just not for me I really love my "mere" oven

this is the recipe I use for sour cherry rice it is Persian but looks really similar to what you want ..this is one of my favorite dishes on earth! cherry rice New Food of Life is also my favorite Persian cookbook my copy is really beaten up from use! ETA whoops you want the lamb ..I got so excited when I saw you wanted the cherry rice I did not go any further I have a recipe for Afghani lamb stew that looks really similar I will dig it out and post it maybe the two together will get you want you want....the rice is made with chicken stock but I serve it with roasted lamb