kayb

Well, checking back in after an absence from this thread. I have failed to order, and, suffering from early onset of I'm-damn-well-old, I can't remember where to do so. So, for those of us who have been around a while, would you repeat where we can order (and hopefully have an autographed copy!), and, are you scheduled to hit either Little Rock or Memphis any time?

Y'all can have my share of all the ones in the world. Well, and you, too. I knew y'all were kindred spirits with me. I can pick them out and ignore them if they have not polluted the dish too badly.

Tell me of the rice salad, please. I once ate one, and it was wonderful, but I've never found a reicpe that approached that good.

Got my copy last week. I enjoyed it. Of course, I am not nearly as accomplished a cook as many of you. A couple of things in it I will likely try. I doubt I'll subscribe. Given my background in publishing, I was impressed by the quality. Good, heavy stock. He paid a mint to have that done.

I don't know WHY I can love a rare steak, but can't eat rare duck. Of course, I grew up eating wild duck, which you have to braise longer to make it more tender. Got it saved. With the addition of the sesame oil. Going to try this on chicken, maybe this weekend.

Have you tried to get a television fixed lately? Last time I tried was five or six years ago, when the tuner on my 32-inch Vizio went out. First I had to find a repair shop. Then I learned I could buy a new, 47-inch TV for what it cost to repair mine. The 47-incher is still working just fine, thank you.

I think i'm going to have a major SV event this week. Need to clean some steaks out of my freezer to make room for the new beef coming in. I need to clean out the fridge freezer in the kitchen (there's unidentifiable stuff in there that's probably old enough to draw Social Security), and I'll cook about eight steaks and into the freezer they'll go. Most of what is left is stew meat, soup bones, three or four shank cuts (fancifully labeled osso buco) and ground beef. The ground beef will be stashed in an ice chest and transported to my daughters; they grill a lot of burgers and cook a lot of hamburger helper (Sigh. I tried to teach her. It didn't take.) Must roast a chicken this week as well. Probably should roast two. I think I have five in there. And a few other odds and ends. I need a bigger freezer.

Impulse buy at Sam's this morning, because you can never have too many mixing bowls: Wolfgang Puck mixing bowl set; four bowls, ranging from 1-quart to 10-quart; a grating disc and a slicing disc; a colander; a silicone top for each bowl. Sams has them for $29.98, with $10 off in "instant savings" today. No clue how long that will last. Amazon lists them for $30.88. Decently heavy mixing bowls; mine will shortly go in the dishwasher and then into the cabinet.

Love the cheese selection. And, of course, the mousie!

Would be hard for me to call a favorite sandwich, particularly given that I'm not a huge sandwich eater. But pimiento cheese on homemade white bread toast, with crispy bacon and tomatoes out of the garden, is real hard to beat.

I live in perhaps the only college town in the nation that is dry (well, at least as package sales are concerned; we have a gracious plenty of "private clubs" with liquor by the drink). Thus, one goes to the county immediately to the north (if one is up in that direction); to the southeast (the "cheap" liquor store; I buy Balvenie Scotch for $38.99 for 750 ml) or to the southwest (the "good" liquor store, where they have a really good array of craft beer and a semi-decent selection of wine). Or, if I'm in serious search of GOOD wine, I go to Memphis, an hour away, to the primo wine store. Work travel took me across the state line into Missouri yesterday, so I stopped by the Aldi up there to check out wine and beer. Picked up a hard cider I've never seen before, a couple of bottles of prosecco (mimosas, anyone?), and some wines I'd never heard of, either. Good prices, if the wine is any good.

I can give you only anecdotal evidence. I used to make, often, vaca frita (don't know why I haven't done so lately), which calls for boiling the flank steak, then shredding, then marinating, then frying to crisp it up. I have learned you CANNOT marinate the cooked meat longer than the recipe says, or the lime taste will be overwhelming. I've also used the same technique for chicken (vaca frita de pollo). You cannot marinate it as long as you do beef, or the lime taste will be overwhelming.

I would be hard-pressed to name my favorite portion of Our Friend The Pig, but the butt roast would surely be up there. I pulled one out of the freezer the other day, coated it in pastrami spice rub I had from a (failed) experiment, stuck it in a dutch oven, poured a bottle of beer around it, quartered an onion and shoved it down around the edges, and let it go in the oven at 300 for six hours. It was sublime. It was also too damn big for the CSO. I had pulled pork for AGES.

Have not cooked since early in the week. For some reason, I am jonesing for braciole. That may be tomorrow.

If you like egg salad, chop up a hardboiled egg or two (depending on how much ham you have) and make ham 'n egg salad. One of my favorites.

The return of warm weather, after a brief flirtation with fall, has brought flies back to life. I've killed a half-dozen today while I've been in the kitchen. Sigh. I begin to believe it will never be fall. 80F today.

I hate houseflies, and this has been a bad year for them. I will say, though, there is little as satisfying as stalking a flock of them in the kitchen, and relentlessly dispatching a half-dozen. The dog eats them when they fall in the floor, still wriggling just a bit, which kind of grosses me out. We had ants, and fruit flies, also this summer. I think it's because we had next to no winter last year.

That looks like a lovely idea.

Apparently the butcher who processes my steer (or quarter of same) likes that cut. Second one I've pulled out of the freezer.

Petit Jean Meats makes excellent bacon, both hickory smoked and peppered. They're a small processor located in Morrilton, Arkansas. Good hams, and I love their pastrami. Website here.

So how were they?

Beef stew with mushrooms and red wine, served over creamy grits. Please forgive blurry cell phone photo. Beef (a one-time chuck roast) ready for flouring and sauteeing. Bone from roast, as well as a couple of packages of frozen soup bones, roasted and ready to make beef broth in the IP. Very nearly let the bones and onions go too long.

@DiggingDogFarm--- Would LOVE the details on the turkey meatballs in cranberry marinara. Sounds like something my crowd would love.

I usually go pretty traditional at Thanksgiving. Turkey (farm-raised, fresh, brined, roasted per the NYT method). Sweet potato casserole (sweet potatoes mashed with eggs, a bit of sugar, lots of butter) with a brown sugar/pecan crumble on top. Cranberry salad. Cornbread dressing flavored with sage. Green beans with soy sauce and bacon. Roasted broccoli. Mashed potatoes for the son-in-law, who can eat his weight in them. Homemade rolls. Dessert will likely be a cheesecake, but maybe a pecan pie or a coconut cake.

For those looking to get into the sous vide world, or get a second circulator: http://www.target.com/p/anova-sous-vide-bluetooth-precision-cooker/-/A-50496808?clkid=adda83b4N4bd3722cee31585650401474&lnm=79373&afid=BFAds&ref=tgt_adv_xasd0002 plus use the code KITCHEN for an additional 20 percent off, and a final price of $111.75. Plus you can get an additional $10 back if you sign up for eBates and it's your first purchase.