FauxPas

Breaking Bread: A Baker's Journey Home in 75 Recipes by Martin Philip (head bread baker at King Arthur Flour) is only $1.99 on Amazon.com (and possibly on Amazon Canada as well). Seems to get pretty good reviews. No idea if this book has been featured here before. Description is:

Is there any chance the cabinet could be deeper though, maybe with a pull out shelf or shelves? Then you could fit some pots and pans in there. Just a thought, it's probably an expensive custom item.

Will you have a similar fridge and small cabinet above? I have often wished to replace that small cabinet above the fridge with one or two open deep shelves. I am short and almost NEVER use the small cabinet that usually resides above a fridge. I don't even know what is in my current one in this house, because I pile stuff on top of the fridge and block the cabinet doors. If I had a shelf that was deep enough to hold meaningful amounts and it was open so that I could see what was up there, then I think i would use it a lot more than that crappy little inaccessible cabinet.

Whose autographs are on there? Did you leave one behind also?

Thanks so much for taking the time to do this! Good to know there's still some availability somewhere. 😀 I see that Best Buy Canada still lists them for sale for $198.99 Cdn. (Only $150 USD.) That's the newer model, a 'marketplace seller' has a refurbished older model for $149.99 Cdn.

Browsing imported food over at Yummy Bazaar and saw some potato chip flavours I might like. Blue Cheese and Walnut, maybe. But Sparkling Wine? Caviar? Moutarde et Miel, mustard and honey? Chorizo and Fried Egg? https://yummybazaar.com/collections/flavored-chips

How long did you cook them? They might be easier if warmed through rather than completely heated, since the peppers won't hold their shape after too much cooking. I've done a 'cheater' version before using filled half peppers, kind of like this: https://www.spendwithpennies.com/jalapeno-poppers/

And me!

Wow, was that planned or something that just came up? Glad to hear you are OK now. Maybe you can plan a nice meal for New Year's? Hope all is going well for you!

We are big fans of Hy's of Canada Seasoning Salt, but we mainly use it for steaks and patties. There's a non-MSG version, but we don't care which one we get, we like them both. I see people use the Lawry's for some salads, eggs, potatoes - anything else? I wonder how different these seasoning salts are in terms of their ingredients. I should check out the Penzey's, I still have a gift card for them.

On a whim, I picked up a cookie/ornament decorating kit from TJ's. This would be fun to do with kids, but not really young kids, as some of the decorations are really small. A friend and I did these this afternoon, she's going to add them to her tree. Not sure how tasty they would be, we didn't want to eat any as there is already so much sweet food around right now! It was fun, though.

@Ann_T, I could buy one here and bring it back to Vancouver Island with me when we return in March/April, if you don't mind waiting for it.

I was just reading Leite's Culinaria and saw the featured recipe was for Venison with Balsamic Blackberry Sauce. I really like that site, but I'm not a venison eater (just never really get exposed to it much) and can't say how good it would be. Thought I would include the link to the recipe, just in case you were interested. 🙂 What is your weather like these days? I suspect we would have heard if there was any snow 😄, but wonder how cold your temps are getting. I love your blogs, @Shelby!

Penzey's is offering $50 gift cards for only $35 and they ship for free in the US. You can send one to someone else or even to yourself. I think today is the last day.

Not at all sure about that, I wasn't in the area back then, but it may have been called that by some folks. I don't think the Tohono O'odham would call it that, they don't like being referred to as Papago, as far as I know. Papago basically means 'tepary bean eater' a name given to them by others and then adopted by the Spanish, etc. Tohono O'odham means 'people of the desert' or similar. But I'm no expert either! 🙂

Also, meant to mention that there is a terrific Tohono O'odham museum/cultural centre at Topawa, near Sells, AZ. It's worth a visit, we used to stop in when we went to Desert Rains Cafe, but since the cafe closed.... 😞

I know they use the saguaro fruit/syrup as part of the summer rain ceremony, so I wonder if that is what she is referring to? There are some important rituals connected to the harvest and use of the fruit. (Some of them a bit odd, not sure how much is still practiced this way, see for example: https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/precipitous-purgetohono-o-odhams-saguaro-wine-feast-ushers-in-rainy-season-6425902 )

Salinas lettuce in Canada may have been imported to Canada, though no e coli outbreak showing up yet. https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/romaine-lettuce-e-coli-outbreak-1.5370929 Here in Tucson, we bought an organic Caesar salad kit a few days ago and ate some that night. The next day, I read about this Salinas lettuce issue and checked the bag. Sure enough, it said Salinas, so I threw the rest out. Hoping the organic lettuces weren't affected as much as the non-organic. Hoping we don't get sick, anyway.

Don't eat romaine lettuce from Salinas. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dont-eat-romaine-lettuce-from-salinas-california-u-s-health-officials-cite-e-coli-outbreaks/ This article has more details: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/food/2019/11/22/romaine-lettuce-safety-alert-e-coli-outbreak-expanded/4274292002/

And as we discussed, there are a gazillion places to eat in this area. We really have to meet at a more interesting place next time! But that location seemed very convenient for you folks and we had limited time that day. It's always wonderful to see you and I hope we have more visiting time during our next get-together! Our burgers were fine, quite good really, and we agree the fries were good. Also, loved that curry ketchup!

We got even more rain in the Tucson area and very early this morning we were awakened by some decent thunder and lightning as well. The sky is clearing now and the sun is shining but we might get another bout of rain later today. I have an appointment and some shopping to do, so I hope it holds off until I get home. I always find it hard to describe the taste of prickly pear. I think of it as a tropical berry flavour with a slightly chalky note. Someone (can't remember who) described it as a mix of watermelon and natural bubble gum flavour. My husband's 7 year-old grandson was visiting recently and had a sip and said it tasted like wine. I laughed, looked at his dad and asked, "He drinks wine?" I guess he has had a small taste or two. 😄

Have to wait until Dec 1st to start the calendar, no peeking or snacking until then, ha. Kitty is interested in it though, gave it a very thorough sniff before I put it away. ☺

Trader Joe's has Advent Calendars for dogs and cats. Are these new this year? Don't think I've seen them before. Anyway, our kitty received one.

Somewhat similar to using the Instant Pot for juicing, I think. https://www.thekitchn.com/extract-fruit-juice-easier-fas-154002

That's brilliant! They should really hire you!!!! 🙂