pastameshugana

The sandwich is tradition on the day of and day after. -Then we did Turkey quesadillas -A pot of turkey posole -Turkey Alfredo for dinner (basic alfredo sauce, rehead the chopped turkey w/garlic & onion & chilli, serve over fettuccine) -Today (since I've been sick) Mrs. Meshugana made a pot of Turkey Noodle Soup Forgot to save the carcass for stock - but I've got a spare turkey we may cook up next month and I'll try my hand at making my first pot of stock.

Clap clap clap. Bravo, mi amigo!

Ha! I was just browsing backwards and realized that was the second time in this thread in one year that I referenced crying. Am I overly sentimental? Or is beef just that beautiful? Now I'm positively facing an existential dilemma...

I nearly shed a tear looking at those pictures. Bravo!

Ok - I prepared my compound butter with garlic, portobello, and garlic. I also fried some leftover (store bought) pancetta and poured the drippings in and ground the meat really fine into it. It smells heavenly, hopefully it turns out as good as I hope!

You know, you could market that to kids... That sounds wonderful! We're doing two turkeys this year, so maybe I'll do a couple varieties... Thanks for the tips!

I remember reading somewhere (now I can't find it) a recipe in which they made a mixture of butter and truffles (chopped I believe). He then carefully peeled back the turkey's skin and 'stuffed' it (between the skin and meat) with the mixture before baking. I must say, it sounds entrancing. Of course, truffles are not to be had here, but I was thinking about some other mushroom/spice combos with the butter. I have this vision of a crispy/buttery skin, and all that yummy goodness running down into the drippings below. Has anyone ever tried anything along these lines - how did it turn out - what do you recommend?

Bhuwhahahahaa! Reminds me of a comedian talking about the deception of 'mini' muffins. "I think I'll have a muffin or twelve!" It's true, though, isn't it? Last night I stood in front of the kids Halloween candy bowl and consumed a silly amount of 'little' candies because they were all so cute and bite sized...and missed my alarm this morning. Oh well...

Peanut butter scooped on a spoon, and your favorite chocolate syrup dripped on at each bite - or with a handful of mini bitter chocolate chips works in a pinch!

After reading this whole thread - I just had to make it today for company (I always experiment with new dishes with guests - I hate making 'old' stuff for some reason). 2 Lb Spaghetti 12 oz thick bacon (can't get the good pork products in my little town easily) 5 eggs lightly fork-whipped (sounds like a punishment!) Rendered the bacon down while boiling the pasta, put 5 whole cloves of garlic in while rendering the bacon - then discarded. Not sure if that helped or if it was all in the head. Drained the pasta and tossed with the egg, bacon and fat, about 1/2 cup Parmesan and lots of coarse fresh ground pepper. Was probably one of the finest pastas I've eaten, very powerful in how simple it is. I can understand the temptation to complicate it, but what a beautiful dish it is! Of course, this was two families, so the 'main' was stuffed chops (also an experiment). I had the butcher cut me 8 center cut chops 1.5" thick. I then made a stuffing out of sauteed portobella and garlic and grated romano, with butter for liquid and paprika for color, blended smooth. Made a discreet pocket and stuffed them full. Baked at 170 for one hour, 200 for 20 minutes, then finished in a red hot cast iron skillet till golden. I used Cavenders Greek seasoning to dust the chops. They also turned out amazing. We all ate much more than we should have, and it was a real tragedy I didn't get pictures... oh well.

Agreed with most of the above. I'd add that in the 2.5 years we lived in India with our three kids (now four) the waiters and general populace were *MUCH* more friendly with the kids than we were often comfortable with. It was no issue for them to touch them, their faces, try to pick them up - etc. I had one waiter lead my daughter away from the table at the Hard Rock Bangalore (we were a big crowd) and he and the two managers got more than an earful from me. I've had waiters try to intervene when I scolded one of my children, and all sorts of mind-bending stories in our time there! So - I would add that there may be a cultural thing also happening.

Yes! Yes a million times over! My father taught me the 'proper' way to put a lid on a coffee cup when I was a wee little bean sprout ordering hot chocolate, and I have since indoctrinated my wife and three of my four kids (#4 isn't crawling yet). Of course - everyone thinks we're crazy - but it's really everyone else who is so crazy (uncaring? unkind?) as to not pay attention to proper disposable coffee cup lid etiquette.

Sorry to dig up an old thread...but I've been running across a lovely flavor combo since we moved to New Mexico. Mustard and Green Chillies. On a burger, it's amazing! I'm going to try this with some grilled chicken soon, it seems like such a great combination, and I'm not even a mustard fan. I do believe there are some flavors (much like the thread in the pastry forum) that belong together, like tomato & basil...

Don't know where you're at, but here in SE New Mexico we got ours from a guy who hand makes them and sells them in front of walmart. $100 for the whole thing. We're headed up into the hills this weekend with some families, I'm gonna make discada for about 20. I'll try to get pics!

I've been reading with interest some of the 'cowpooling' threads - and some locals here are talking about buying bulk beef, but so far I haven't run across anyone as serious as I am in Southeast New Mexico. Does anyone have a beef buying group, OR know a source in the area for top notch beef? I'd be interested in maybe a half-side if we could find a quality supplier that would age it and treat 'er nice! Any leads?

So - I finally got around to cooking on my disco. I know I probably should've done discada or asado or something along those lines - but I was craving stir-fry... Certainly not traditional, but here's what we had: Not counting the chicken (leg & thigh cut in strips), onion, green onion, shitake, elephant garlic, celery, basil, cilantro... Frying the chicken. I had it on the lowest setting, and cooked 3 lbs in about 2.5 minutes. Did one batch with just pepper/soy, the other finished with szechuan sauce. Frying the veggies. I had my 7 year old handing me the bowls with each ingredient - they were getting done so fast there was no time to enjoy the process - but turned out beautiful. And one more shot of the flame... I think this would be a great tool for fried chicken - or hot wings...

Sounds good. I remember the asado we made had several generous scoops of lard added. I think I'm going to try stir-frying in it tomorrow. The only downside is the (very) considerate amount of heat that pours out the side when it's up high. And the fact it's far too heavy for tossing. I'll have to accomplish that with my spatula and tongs. I'll get pics if I remember!

So, on labor day, a friend spent a few hours showing me how to make asado with his disco (I don't know if that's just a regional name or not). Yesterday he surprised me with the gift of one. It's great. It sounds like a jet engine when you crank it up. I think I could modify the prongs that hold the disc to accept a big wok, which would be more my speed. So - any ideas how to measure/calculate the BTU's of this thing? Also, I'm having a hard time deciding what I should cook first... Here it is in the yard... Looking down in the burner... On the lowest gas setting... Sounding like a jet engine (I need to take a picture at night, b/c you really can't see the flame. At one point I had it shooting up about 3.5 feet) Boiling water (2 cups to a violent boil in less than 30 seconds from a cold pan)...

Bin 239 must be new, as I haven't heard of it - but the Dinner Bell is a great place. Great ambiance and 'old-timey' feel. It's about a block down from Genovese's.

I must confess I've never encountered this 'white'.... do you have a recipe?

Prescott is my hometown - hopefully I can help! You've got all the chain stuff (Apple&%*W, Olive Garden, Red Robin, etc)., but a few better options. Mexican: There's two twin restaurants in Prescott and 'PV' (Prescott Valley) called Casa Bonita, they're good all-arounders. There's also a great little place called El Charro on Montezuma St. downtown that's a long-time favorite. Italian: Genoveses downtown (on Gurley) is a stand-out. Great daily specials. Across the street from Genoveses is a fantasic Japanese place called Esoji. The chef there is very serious about his food, and it shows. Just up the street a bit (on the same side) is a sandwich shop called Shannon's Place that is quite nice. They actually specialize in cheesecakes, but have great wraps, and feature boars head meat. (Full disclosure: Murphy and Shannon are good friends.) For breakfast - you can get a ridiculously huge one at Zeke's, but you'd be better off heading to the airport and eating at the airport cafe. Great atmosphere, friendly 'small town' service and a pretty good breakfast. Last time I was in town, my favorite coffee shop was downtown, across the street from the parking garage (you'll have to ask, I don't know the name.) Typically 'hip' decor, but a well-pulled latte. You can get decent 'up-scale' sandwiches at Cafe St. Michael, right across from the Courthouse. For burgers, you need to hit Kendall's (opposite side of the courthouse from St. Michaels). It's an old 50's style place that's been there since I was a kid. Full ice-cream bar, real floats, good burgers & fries. Edited to add: I also tried (once) the brown bag burgers near starbucks (there's only one, should be easy to find!). It was a pretty decent burger for a quickie. Hope this helps! If I think of anything else, I'll post it - unless you've got a specific question - fire away!

Never had one - but that sounds good! I'm not really a hot dog fan, but I think I'd eat one of those...

Great idea - surely someone here works for/has family at/etc - an appliance store that would be willing to run a test. Anyone?

I forgot I started this thread...but glad to hear all the good recommendations! Our short time in Alamo didn't uncover any faves other than the ones I mentioned at the top - although I did try one of the Chinese buffets that (honestly) had a poster for a missing cat on the front door... Here in Hobbs, things are pretty limited, but we're discovering some decent places. The one standout is 'Taste of Italy' on Dal Paso street. A small place, with excellent, well made & presented Italian food. Also some very nice seafood options (which are hard to come by these parts). It's just a little off-putting to have such a meal served by someone who says 'Y'all' every other word... Some decent daily stops: Dan's Mexican also on Dal Paso, and Pacific Rim, a quasi-asian place up on Joe Harvey are good stops. Other than that, it's lots of chain restaurants. Tia Juana's is a decent Mexican meal, served by less than cheery servers. Still looking for a standout Mexican meal....

I 2nd (or 3rd) the tortellini from scratch. My wife helped me make enough for three families (including kids), stuffed with some sort of fancy chicken filling I made earlier in the day. We made them in the colors of the Italian flag. Very tasty, but took all day. Also - chinese dumplings with wrappers made from scratch - why did I even bother?