Katie Meadow

Back in my day we had vanilla coke, chocolate coke and lemon coke at the soda fountain after school. I've read about these dirty sodas. They sound.....FAWFUL.

I am a loyal customer of Marsh Hen Mill on Edisto Island. I visited the store when I was on the island in April. I love their grits and I love their Carolina Gold rice. That's the only rice I buy by mail. All the other rice I use I can find here in the East Bay. I agree that I'm confused by the Charleston Gold or aromatic rice varieties, but as far as I know MHM only sells the one type and I'm sticking to that for now.

My latest crush is Carolina Gold rice. If you can overcome ennui enough to make it fresh, it's fabulous with just butter and salt.

Yes.

@YvetteMT and @Smithy Okay so I wrote it as a recipe. We've always called them Border Beans. 2 cups dry beans. I like Domingo Rojo, but pinto beans or others work. 1 white onion, diced 1 stalk celery and 1 carrot, minced 4 cloves garlic, minced Fresh thyme + 1 tsp Mex oregano + 1/2 tsp cumin epazote, if available 1-2 Tbsp New Mexico red Chile powder, or to taste Water Smoked pork products: 2 smoked pork necks or smoked shank or hock Opt additions: 1/2 cup black coffee and/or a cup or so of fire roasted tomatoes Wash beans and toss any grit or stones. Soak 5-6 hours in water. Drain and rinse. Sauté onion in fat: could be veg oil, bacon grease, or lard, until soft, 5 or so min. Add carrot and celery, sauté another 5 minutes. Add garlic, cook another couple of minutes. Add beans and stir to coat. Turn up the heat and add water so the beans are covered by about 2-3 inches of liquid. Bring to a boil and cook at a medium boil for 10 minutes. Turn the flame down to low. Add herbs and spices. Add and bury the smoked pork. Cover, with just a bit of air, and simmer low until beans are tender, 2 or 2-1/2 hours as needed. When almost done add salt. Take out the pork bones2 and shred off the meat and throw it back in. Then it’s done. If you wish to add coffee or tomatoes do so after the beans have cooked at least 1 1/2 hours. I follow the theory that adding acidic ingredients should be done in the later stage. Note the amount of water depends on how fast everything is cooking and also on how soupy you like your beans.You can add water as needed while cooking I like mine soupy, and eat them over rice, with a little minced raw onion and more salt as desired. My husband sometimes likes to top his beans with grated Oaxaca cheese. If you have some smoky ham stock use that and omit the necks. I suppose you could use a smoked turkey wing if you don’t want to use pork, but I’ve never tried that.

I bought some za'atar recently on a whim, not knowing what exactly to do with it. Last night I made a NYT recipe called Easy Chickpea Salad with Za'atar. It was really delicious and, in fact, easy. The recipe suggests eating it with a warm pita, which would be very nice I'm sure, or rice, but I decided to have it with warm bulgur, and that was perfect. I didn't see the advantage of using vinegar in addition to the lemon juice, so I just used lemon juice to taste. Oh, and I added an extra sprinkle of Aleppo pepper.

@YvetteMT and @Smithy My beans don't have a written recipe but when I get a chance tomorrow I'll write a description.

One thing that has consistently been a life-saver is beans. I often make 1 package of RG bean.s, typically either Red Beans and Rice, or my version of southwestern beans. Mostly I use Domingo Rojo. We are always able to freeze a quart or more of every batch. When there's little else to cook or I'm not in the mood to lift a finger, this is a perfect solution. I just have to remember to defrost the beans. Then all that needs to be made is rice, which my husband always seems willing to do. Easy and satisfying. I try to have a couple of quarts of beans in the freezer at all times. The reason we are always able to freeze enough beans for a generous meal for 2 is that I don't make beans for guests. I have enough friends and relatives for whom beans don't work; my beans are not vegetarian. Some friends don't like beans, and some don't like spicy food. No problem.

@Smithy, one thing I do NOT when ovetaken by said ennui is make a salad. I hate making salads with lettuce anyway; it seems like a lot of labor, washing and chipping and mixing dressing, etc. In this situation I make a cheese omelet. If I can still walk over to the fridge I might have a raw carrot and/or an apple and crackers.

Okay, I'm a grits snob. Instant grits just aren't as good as fresh stone ground grits. If you want the most freshly milled grits order from a place that actually has a mill. I've been ordering from Marsh Hen Mill (formerly known as Geechie Boy) for many years now. The mill is on Edisto Island in South Carolina. Anson Mills is another purvveyor. It is true that a pot of grits needs attention and close to an hour from start to finish, but it isn't at all difficult. Yes I agree that if you want grits frequently for breakfast you had best figure out how to cook grits ahead. I find leftover grits are just fine for breakfast, but this idea works really well and is bit more elegant. Make a large batch of grits. Pour when still very hot and soft into a sheet pan, making a layer of about 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch and try to get it smooth and even. When cooled, you can cut it into portions. These can be refrigerated and used as desired, by sautéing in butter or oil in a non-stick pan. The outside should be crispy and the inside melty. This takes only a few minutes on each side, and can be eaten sweet or savory, not just for breakfast, but for a fast easy easy side dish or a snack. And the squares can also be baked with a a variety of ingredients, like tomatoes and mozzarella.

Hmm. Most of the things I have cooked in my pan are relatively fast-cooking and I haven't had an issue with the handle being too hot. I have a couple of silicone pot holders that are grabby that would do the job.

What isn't great with huckleberries?

Both Al Arz and Soom are made in Israel from Ethiopian grown sesame seeds. I haven't tried Al Arz, but Soom is delicious. And it is never hard to stir.

@FrogPrincesse's idea of citrus curd is a good one, and way less labor intensive than marmalade. I love it on toast for breakfast and there are plenty of tarts etc that use it liberally.

Although peel or shredded zest add flavor and texture to marmalade, as long as you use seeds to set up the end result, you could most likely make a good spread without the peel. I've never done that, but it's maybe worth a try. You can use up lbs of citrus to make a few jars of marmalade. Just curious, why has this fruit already been zested?

Maybe start cooking with the pan by doing shallow fry in oil. For my first efforts with my new carbon steel pan I made some vegetable fritters and then some shrimp cakes and it was a breeze. I haven't cooked eggs in it yet because making two eggs in a 12 inch pan seems silly, One of the surprise bonuses of the pan is that I get to watch my husband swoon over it. Wife number 2: never cranky!

This piece from Eater pretty much sums up how we on the west coast feel about ramps. For two or three weeks a year we have to listen to east coasters ranting on about these over-picked and over priced alliums. I've eaten them. They are delicious on a pizza. Every year I look forward to the end of ramp season. . https://www.eater.com/23706623/ramps-seasonality-overrated-wild-leek-garlic

The 12 inch Made In carbon steel pan from Amazon sells for $129. I'm sure you will love yours! The cooking show host Jamie Tracy, who calls himself the Anti Chef must have a contract with Made In. All the pieces look great.

If you are looking for a large carbon steel skillet this one is great. The price changes, although I am not sure how often. Two days ago it was $27. That's the price I got it for a couple of months ago. Today it's $35, which is still not a bad deal for this kind of pan. Worth watching. I love this pan. It needed virtually no further seasoning and nothing sticks to it. I have another carbon steel pan and it only gets better after 20 years. https://www.amazon.com/Merten-Storck-Carbon-Frying-12-Inch/dp/B08CZWT4XD/

No idea but maybe. I have to tell you I just heard his voice. Eerie!

That's exactly what my long-departed dad would say.

For my last meal before heading home to CA we went out to Lee's Bakery on Buford H'way, which is essentially one very long stretch of ethnic strip mall food, including many Vietnamese. joints. Lee's makes excellent banh mi. They bake their own rolls. I was hoping to score an egg coffee, but they didn't make them, so I settled for Vietnamese iced coffee. In Oakland we used to get Viet coffee served dripping in a glass onto the sweetened condensed milk. About halfway through your meal all the coffee would be dripped. You stir it up together and then a second glass is provided with ice and you pour the coffee mix over the ice. Lately I 've noticed very few places do it that way any more, they just bring you a pre-mixed drink. Too bad. The other way is more fun to wait for and the coffee is always freshly brewed. Our next meal will be dinner on the plane. If inedible as usual, you won't hear it from me. My opinion, not shaken in years, is that the best meal on a plane is the PB &J sandwich that you make yourself at you place of origin and which sits in your backpack for at least six hours until you are starving. My next trip to Asheville and Atlanta won't be until October. If @gulfporterand any other birders are interested I saw two new birds to add to my list, both on Edisto Island: Laughing gulls and Boat-tailed grackles, both probably common on the east coast, but not on the west coast. Here in Decatur and all over the island the cardinals are screaming for their girlfriends, loud and louder. Sadly, my eyesight isn't what it used to be, so major birding in the Carolinas and GA is no longer happening. On the beaches on Edisto there were large flocks of pelicans flying back and forth all the time. So lovely. I did learn one maybe useful fact about South Carolina wildlife, the difference between a Coral snake and a King snake. If red is next to yellow, it's a deadly fellow. If red is next to black you're all right, Jack.

They are different species.

Blinded by the light I am. My grandgirls would think it was the second coming.

Shout out to Gene's BBQ in Atlanta. The best way to describe this place is a bar with a kid's menu. It isn't really a BBQ joint as I think of one, but sort of an Asian/BBQ fusion dive. The atmosphere was warm and friendly with a ceiling full of string lights. The martini was decent, my blue crab claws were pretty good in some variation of an Asian sauce. My son-in-law, a brisket lover, declared his brisket to be very good. The twins were happy with their mac n cheese and thrilled with their dessert which was really just a pineapple coconut smoothie that was deceptively delicious and which we all agreed might be good with a splash of rum. The surprising star was the banh mi with charred crackly sort-of- barbecued pork, proper pickled vegetables in a Viet roll. Highly recommended as a great place for families. Oh, and I don't want to forget the fact that the girls found a basket of free lollipops soon after we walked in and that kept them busy until the food arrived. What's not to love? As always by the end of our visits, my husband and I are fried and no longer in the mood to cook, and also as usual, the new crop of mosquitoes has dined out ON ME, so I'm over eating al fresco at dusk. Another few meals and we are headed home.