snowangel

Arne, reheating advice. In foil, very low. I don't feel it needs to be hot, just warmed up. And, about the brand of briquettes. How much experience with the kettle? Do you usually get Kingsford? Is that what you've usually used? Final question. Did you use a rub?

My opportunity to do meatloaf is coming, as The One Who Abhors Meatloaf is going to camp for a month. I want to grill one. I'm figuring I need some advice on this. Brooks, where are you?

Arne, how soon after taking it off did you slice into it? I usually give it a 2-3 hour rest, in foil, in the oven with just the light on before I dare slice into it. I do manage to pick some fat off the top to check on the smoke, tho. One of the things I'm noting about the experiences you and Abra (over on the Butt topic) is that you seem to have more trouble keeping the temp up on the bullet with briquettes than I do on the kettle. Hmmm.

We periodically catch fish that are sort of mushy that we don't throw back. One of my favorite preps is something we often ate in Thailand. Deep fry the whole fish and sauce with something spicy.

Please note that I have included the version of this Blueberry Pie that my Grandmother and I modified from one in the Farm Journal Cookbook (around long before Rose's books ever appeared!). Same deal with the Raspberry Pie that my grandmother and I also modified from Farm Journal. What's especially nice about these pies is the crunch of the fresh fruit and the sweet of the thickened and sweetened fruit "juice." And, a casual reminder that RecipeGullet is ready and waiting for any recipes you have that are within the guidelines!

What did you use in your mop?

Beautiful, Abra! So, what do you have in mind for leftovers? Our favorites are just gently heated and on top of buns or in enchiladas/tacos. Makes for a mighty quick meal.

I know that all kinds of basil preserve best when whizzed in the food processor or blender with some olive oil. Lay out in log(s) on plastic wrap, wrap securely in said plastic wrap, and freeze. The oil will keep it from freezing so hard that you can just unwrap frozen log, break off a piece and add to whatever. This is the only worthy manner of preserving Thai and Holy Basils, which lose everything when dried. If you choose to dry the herbs, cut them off at the stems, grab some dental floss, string, embroidery floss, yarn (whatever is handy), tie the stems together, and hand them on that rod in the laundry room. There's also nothing wrong with getting a nice jug of nice white wine vinegar, heating it slightly, and adding sprigs of tarragon, thyme, or whatever, and decanting into pretty bottles (or old clean jars with tight fitting lids). The vinegar thing can make impressive hostess gifts. The last one I did was lemongrass. Hostess gift. She thought I worked for hours! Edited to add: When I dry herbs, I tend not to crush them too much. Seems to me that some of what makes them what they are releases when crushed.

Totally un-food related, but the lupine display along Highway 73 between Highway 53 and Interstate 35 was absolutely and beyond spectacular this past Monday. We now return you to food. Probably time I put my thinking cap on for Marlene on how to preserve some of the other herbs.

We'd better see pictures of your butt(s) this time around! Before you think of injecting, please read this thread. I am a huge fan of brined, but naked butts. No rub, no nothing, other than =Mark's South Carolina Mustard Barbeque Sauce on the side. Squishy white hamburger buns (haute buns need not apply). There's something about the unadulterated by marinade, rub, etc. taste of that wonderful smokey pork that's absolutely beguiling. Would you marinade bacon? Just call me a purist. How long the butts take depends on how big they are. Figure about 1.5 hours per pound, and start earlier, because they can and should be pulled, and wrapped in foil for a while before they are pulled. And, reminder to throw as many butts (or add some chicken thighs, or whatever) to your smoker because it takes the same amount of wood, charcoal and beer to smoke more. My motto is that the grill should be as full as possible when smoking.

Good job! I am not a big baby back rib fan. Some will call me a heretic, but I'm happier with a meaty slab of spare ribs with a nice fat cap. They've been running on sale here for $.98/lb about every three weeks. For more on ribs, click here.

Go no further than here -- Smokin' Brisket -- how do I roll my own?. Read, smoke, snap some photos and post. Those of us smoking goddesses and gods have made sure that there is a category for just about anything smokey and fatty and divine!

Be still my beating heart. Yet another smoking goddess is joining the ranks of the esteemed and elite! Yes, your smaller butt will probably be done first. Rain. Sorry about that. It's much more fun when it is hot and sunny, but I've smoked at zero F outside (temp control was a piece of cake!). One of these times, you should really try with briquettes, so you can figure out which way works better, for you. Waiting for photos!

Strikes me that this might be a good way to not only season the grates, but also get a good idea of temp control. It's all about learning about temp control on your particular smoker. I know for a fact that the Weber one-touch at home (25 years old; used frequently) has some different nuances than the much newer Weber One Touch at the cabin (used infrequently).

If you want any smoky flavor, you need to get the smoke into the meat before it reaches 140 (F).

I'm kind of an "instant gratification" person (yes, and I do smoke meat, which certainly isn't instant gratification). I'm also a supreme justifier. So, I'd go ahead and just smoke something, figuring that you are seasoning it while smoking.

I do know that if you take a pan of boiling water and toss it in the air when it's way sub-zero (F), the droplets freeze before they hit the ground or the deck. Water straight from the tap doesn't do it. Kids love to watch this trick.

Bacon Sweet corn Garden fresh tomatoes (preferably heirloom varieties)

Yes, Yuk. Big yuk. As I reported earlier on eGullet, in some other Jello topic, they used to make a savory celery jello. Double yuk.

I've had his brisket and my brisket. Some time and experience, and I did just fine!

Abra, I would love to help you, but I'm a Kettle woman. Have you read over Klink's ECI course on Smokin' Meat at Home? He covers not only the Weber Bullets and Kettles, but also the Smoking Pros.

See the holes in the raw burgers. By the time they are cooked, the burger has shrunk enough that the hole is really more of an indent. Has no one ever heard of this before? I'd swear that over the course of more years on eGullet than I remember that someone else did this... All I know is that the burgers stay a fairly consistent thickness throughout. Sorry I didn't get more and better pictures, but we were hungry and the lake was calling. And, Diana has asked me to try the thinner griddle burgers later this week before she leaves for a month of camp food. Since the only griddle I have is electric, think that the cast iron skillet will have to substitute.

Should you head to Duluth, do take Highway 1 from Ely to Duluth, and take the scenic highway from Two Harbors to Duluth. Stop at Russ Kendall's for sugar smoked salmon, and there's also a great yarn shop in Knife River, right along the lake, with fab views and fun yarn.

We burgered twice this past weekend, once on the way to The Cabin and once at The Cabin. Because the two kids who get report cards had outstanding report cards, we stopped at Gordy's High Hat in Cloquet, MN for burgers on the way up. We almost never stop for food on the way up (due to lead feet). Anyway, Gordy's serves up a mighty fine burger. They are only open from Opening of Fishing (mid-May to those not in the know) through Labor Day. They are well known up there for burgers, fries and shakes. Their burgers are hand-formed, and they offer lightly grilled chopped onions automatically. They are a different burger than one would probably do at home on a grill or grill pan. They are thin, more of the ilk of the burgers my grandmother formed in her Tupperware burger mold, but they are a great burger. The beef isn't too lean, and they don't cook them too long, nor do they squish them. Toasted bun. The fries are also wonderful. Very crispy, which is how I like them. Anyway, this topic is not about "diner" style burgers, although I intend to try to do them at home, soon. I bring it up only because it is a different style of burger. This is about the kind of burgers we made at home. So, we decided it was time for burgers at The Cabin. I had the chuck ground to order at my local meat market. It was about 75/25. Since I had to get it on Wednesday, and I knew we wouldn't eat it until Sunday, and it had to endure a 5 hour trip in a cooler, I froze it. Yes, I know. Anyway, I formed the patties. We are happiest with 1/4 pounders. I also poke a hole in the middle of my burgers, which no one else has mentioned. It seems to keep them a bit flatter, and not puffing up in the middle. Paul grilled them on the trusty Weber Kettle. He always uses a timer. I think 2 minutes per side (but I could be wrong). Buns are toasted. We seem to be pretty darned happy with the Cub Foods (local supermarket) brand. Their jumbo brands. As I mentioned upthread, I am not a cheeseburger fan, so my family doesn't get cheeseburgers (that could be another attraction to Gordy's in Cloquet -- they all got to order cheeseburgers). I don't have any really great pictures of the done burgers, other than this one For toppings. I am a tomato, onion and mustard woman. Peter is either ketchup of A1 sauce. Paul is a salad and ketchup man. Diana's burger is the one photoed. She also likes salad, in addition to tomato, ketchup and mustard. Heidi doesn't eat burgers. These were outstanding. I had one. Peter had three. Diana and Paul each had two. Nice a juicy. Just the right amount of pink inside. I think burgers are, quite frankly, one of my very favorite foods. They are so easy. The kitchen doesn't get heated up in the summer. And, they make our tummies happy.

We cabined again this past weekend. As I said above, we are into longer and less frequent trips, due to road construction. So, we left on Friday afternoon. I should preface this by saying it has been a long and brutal spring. Heidi was plagued with seizures, my Dad with qunituple bypass surgery. It has done nothing but rain and be cold for weeks. We have been more than ready for summer. We left home noon-ish, and as a reward to two kids for great report cards, we stopped at Gordy's High Hat in Cloquet for burgers, fries and shakes. It is rare that we stop for more than car food on the way north. We (me) are too hot to trot. I will report on Gordy's on the burger cookoff thread. Anyway, our wait for summer met with a grand reward. As we pulled into our little piece of heaven, the air temp was 86 (f), and not a breeze around. Which means that the lake is doing some major warming. When we saw the thermometer in Cook and realized how warm it was, Peter embarrassed himself by putting on his suit in the car (in front of his sisters) so he was ready to go. He has been for a swim already, and is laying on the dock; we don't even have the Bronco unloaded yet. We all headed, as soon as the fridge was on, for cold beverages (G & T's for Paul and I, ice cold coca cola for the kids) and swim suits. The above photo does not show how brilliant the sun was, nor the golden glints of reflected sunlight on the lake. The lake water was like a layered Jello salad. Very warm (79 degrees F) on the surface, with successive, and very distinct layers of cooler water underneath, with a surprising warm layer way down below. Standing at the dock, taking sips of a drink and the tiny little perch came and nibbled on my ankles. If we were really quiet, mother duck and her brood of 12 (!) came swimming by. The ducks are not yet big enough to fly. Dinner was on the dock, and various easy to eat munchies. I've quit cooking a dinner the evening we get there. There is too much to explore, remember, and in this case, the water was just plain too inviting to make us even think of time in the kitchen. We did not leave until last night, and the ensuing meals consisted of standard cabin breakfasts (you can see them up thread; eggs, bacon, sausages, waffles, pancakes, muffins, etc.). Lunches salami, sliced ham, cheese, chips, etc. Dinner one night were some great skin-on Hot Dogs from Bob's Produce Ranch. These are made in-house, and when grilled, have a really nice snap. I also made potato salad (boiled potatoes and eggs before we left, and made mayo up at the cabin, thanks to the recent eGullet Culinary Institite class on condiments. Diana made her first batch of guac, which we had with chips, on the dock. She mashed it more than she wished she had, but it was an impressive first attempt. For dinner on Sunday night, we had burgers. I have reported on them over on the Burger Cookoff thread (or will in a minute). Sunset on Sunday night was at 9:19 pm. Almost the longest day of the year! Long after sunset, and several games of cards, the kids wanted dessert, so I pulled out the marshmallows, which they "toasted" over the gas stove And, then they made Smores Yes, the photo is blurry. But, the Hershey bars were pretty soft because it was so hot up there, but we all agreed that soft Hershey bars make the best and most messy Smores. The kids and I made a pilgrimage out to the point, which had been trashed by campers (I'm really tired of cleaning up other people's trash out there), and did a blueberry check. There are plants out on the point, which never amount to much, partly because of terrain, and partly because they get trampled by those not in the know, but it looks like it will be a very, very good berry year. Lots of rain, and the heat that is here should produce a bumper crop. We'll know more about that late in July. The fish certainly didn't want to be caught this weekend. The bugs were fierce, with all of those mosquitoes and no-see-ums, there is a nice big crop of fat dragonflies. I tried to photo these beautiful insects as they laid on the cement path to the dock, but it was not to be. (I was rather lame on photo taking this weekend, outside of pics of the kids frolicing in the water). We returned home (there is almost no traffic on a Monday afternoon, now our favorite travel day!) with color (slight sunburn for me) feeling silky and smooth from all of that time in the water, rejuvenated from the silence, and loving each other. 'Til a good place to take the kids.