blue_dolphin

Consider trying steam-bake instead of steam broil for your asparagus so they'll get heat from both top and bottom. I was happy with texture and flavor I got from asparagus cooked that way. Generally ~ 10 min steam-bake @ 425 F, no preheat for skinny spears, a bit longer for fat ones. I was going for good roasted flavor, there was some browning but I wasn't specifically looking for a lot of char, so it may not be what you want. I was impressed that I was able to get a nice roast on the skinny spears without turning them into jerky ! edited to add: you can see the "color" or lack thereof on skinny spears in this post

My local Total Wine only carries the regular Small Hand tonic syrup. I've used it with great success for the frozen G&T's that @rustwood mentioned - they are very refreshing! I'll keep an eye out for the other Small Hand tonic Have you tried it?

My new vocabulary words for today: touton and (from the menu) brewis Also, it's 85 F inside but I'm too lazy to go around and close the windows and crank up the AC when I know it's already cooling down, so I am virtually dipping my toes in some of that 5-6 C Newfoundland water. Thank you, @ElsieD!

Yes.....and put lots of bacon in your spinach salad.

It's just the other side of the media hype that certain foods (red meat, butter, fat, sugar, fill-in-the-blank) will kill you.

I have hard water too. I've gotten stuff burned on but so far nothing an overnight soak and a final scrub with Barkeepers Friend couldn't fix.

And yet, you lived to tell the tale !

I usually use a spouted measuring cup or the blender jar (the Blendtec small Twister jar is perfect as it has an elongated spout that almost perfectly matches the width of the molds) unless the mixture is quite viscous, in which case I scoop it into a zip-top freezer bag and cut off a corner to use it like a piping bag, as @Tri2Cook suggested. I have the same 10-pop mold that you do, @MelissaH. I found it sometimes difficult to remove the lid, especially if I accidentally nudged the sticks in a way that they were no longer parallel and frozen in slightly different directions. So I skip the lid and freeze until the mixture is slushy enough to support the sticks (usually 30 - 45 min or so) before sticking them in. This method does run the risk of having the mixture frozen solid with no sticks if you forget. So far, that hasn't happened to me, although there was a very close call with last night's peanut butter and banana pops - timers are good! I keep a small cookie sheet in the freezer because it helps keep the mold level on the wire shelf and then it's pre-chilled and ready to place the unmolded pops on. When I remove the mold from the freezer, the cookie sheet comes along and gets a fresh sheet of waxed paper on top. I have a rectangular plastic container about the size of the mold that I fill with tepid tap water so that the filled mold parts can be immersed until I can pull a pop out. Usually 10-20 sec, though it varies a lot. Boozy pops thaw quick. I used to run hot water over the molds but I was afraid I was using too much water so I switched to this method, then I can take the water outside and water plants. As soon as I can get a pop to move, I put the mold on the counter next to the chilled, waxed paper topped cookie sheet, quickly remove all the pops and put them on the waxed paper and put them back into the freezer. After they've firmed back up, I transfer the individual pops to snack-sized zip-top bags and toss them into a bigger freezer bag. I used to do sort of the same thing you did, folding the waxed paper over the pops and then folding the pops up accordion-style and placing the package in a larger bag. I hate the waste of the individual bags but it's easier for giving them away or serving to a group and results in less freezer-burn. When I eat one at home, I rinse out the bags, dry and reuse them. I usually give the sticks a quick rinse before I use them and check for loose splinters but I haven't done any soaking comparisons.

What kind of pluots did you get, @ProfessionalHobbit? And what do you plan to do with your stone fruits? I bought "Emerald Beaut" pluots and "Summer Punch" plumcots at the farmers market this week. Not a ton, just 6 of each. Plus a few "Oh Henry" peaches. Haven't decided how to use them yet. Also got strawberries, lemons, limes, eggs and avocados.

The recipe I linked to calls for 7 bananas to make 10 pops. I used 4 bananas and got 7 pops. You could easily start with 2 bananas and make a few pops to play with the recipe.

Banana popsicles would be fun to play with. I was thinking mango and coconut would be a good addition instead of the peanut butter. Or strawberries....or Nutella....

Chocolate-dipped peanut butter & banana pops: I got the recipe for these over on The Kitchn. It's basically that one-ingredient frozen banana ice cream that was all over the place a few years ago with the addition of some peanut butter and frozen into popsicle molds.

That was my reasoning in choosing the IP over some of the less expensive knock-offs that have non-stick pots. I have a few non-stick skillets for some things but don't consider them "durable goods" . When I first got the IP, I thought it might be handy if they would offer a non-stick insert as an accessory, but now that I've been using it for a while, I don't think it's something I'd spring for.

@liamsaunt, your photographs are just stunning. Granted, you've got some pretty wonderful subject matter in those gorgeous dishes, but you've done a magnificent job in capturing them. Thank you for sharing.

The rest of the farmers market strawberries went into these strawberries & balsamic vinegar pops:

Welcome/bienvenue to eGullet, @Suzanne B! I'm afraid that's about as bilingual as I can get ! Please do jump right in and post what you are cooking or have questions about.

That looks like a fabulous lunch! I'm afraid I'd need a bit of a nap before getting back on the road!

Strawberries & cream: All of the _________& cream popsicles I've made from the people's pops book have been delightful and these were no exception.

I don't think you can go wrong with either one of them, both are authored by eG members: @JAZ and @pazzaglia. I decided to go with Hip Pressure Cooking first because I'd used and had success with a number of recipes from the website and I liked the way the recipes were given for both conventional and electric pressure cookers. In addition to the recipes, there are useful tables in the back of the book that provide quick reference for various types of foods and there are multiple pages of useful and educational tips interspersed with the recipes. It's the book I've recommended to friends who have purchased IPs. I still plan to purchase the Healthy Pressure Cooker Cookbook but am trying to limit my cookbook purchases. Sorry I can't offer you a direct comparison of the 2 books.

Thanks for posting this, @Okanagancook, making cultured butter has been on my list of things to try from the Artisan Cheesemaking at Home cookbook. I made whole milk ricotta and crème fraîche and then stalled out! The sources they give for the starter culture (they call for Aroma B powdered mesophilic starter culture for butter) are: The Beverage People in northern California Dairy Connection in Madison, WI - http://www.getculture.com is their "consumer/hobby" retail site Glengarry Cheesemaking and Dairy Supply in Lancaster, Ontario in Canada I need to get an order together and start trying some of this stuff - thanks for the nudge!

Small batches of blackberries & lemon verbena, on the left, and blueberries & cream on the right. I wanted to try the blueberry & buttermilk combination but that will have to wait as the sweet cream was at the ready and that sounded pretty good too.

One of my favorites, always a treat to see an update posted to this one.

I'm all packed and ready to go - really looking forward to this!

Last year, I used the Instant Pot to make the Pressure Cooker Ragù Bolognese from Serious Eats. Gathering all the ingredients was, for a mostly non-meat eater, a bit of a production. However, the final product was excellent. I had a couple of groups of carnivorous house guests whose plans were unclear. My usual quick dinners are vegetarian and I appreciated being able to pull some of that sauce out of the freezer and put a flavorful, satisfying meal on the table in half an hour or so. I plan to repeat the production again this fall. @rotuts, I purchased this pasta that I served with my ragù at Trader Joes: They don't always have it, but it pops up from time to time. Here's my post from the TJ's thread so you can see the package.

Over on the Facebook group, someone posted a link to this list of accessories that may be helpful for new IP users