Martin Fisher

I'll bet that made the difference! Large order of fries in those cups is a recipe for sogginess!

That's very interesting. Years ago—MANY years ago—when I was raising coturnix quail. I wrote a paper, for school, about inter-egg communication among clutches of quail chicks just prior to hatching in order to sync hatching. It's assumed that this behavior had developed so that the quail chicks could/would hatch at close to the same time so as to be up and running as a group ASAP to avoid predators. I've always been fascinated by this sort of thing. I wish I still had the paper! And yes, this is gardening related, the quail droppings were used in compost for garden fertilizer.

Yeah, the straws are cool! The plant is great when blanched—deprived of sunlight in early spring. I first learned about lovage MANY years ago for Annie Proulx, who wrote "Brokeback Mountain."

Yes, for sure. I usually plant "Empress of India" because I'm weird about having things a 'certain' way. LOL The 'capers' are great. Many years ago, when my maternal grandmother grew nasturtiums—we usually ate the leaves in sandwiches, egg salad and the like. But they're great in salads, as are the flowers—as you mentioned.

In the past I've explained my personal philosophy as to edibles in lawns rather than ornamentals—especially perennials (or annuals or bi-annuals that self-seed easily.) I can't, personally, and with a conscience, bark about folks going hungry without promoting edibles as much as possible—not just talking the talk, but walking the walk. I'll be adding several new things this year—unless I spiral in to a severe bout of depression. The following one has me rather excited: From Will Bonsall, at The Scatterseed Project. "Dystaena Takesimana - "Wild Celery", "Korean Pig Plant" –a rare perennial (I offer seed) endemic to Ullung Island off Korea; edible and highly nutritious, I find it's flavour a bit strong though nothing like (ugh!) lovage – I've only tried it raw, never steamed; supposedly very valuable for forage, especially in very early spring. Collected by my late friend Prof. Elwyn Meader during the post-war occupation of Korea; he claimed it produced more valuable fodder per-acre than alfalfa; also very valuable as a nectiary." Will told me that it's very hardy! He's sending me some seeds! "I find it's flavour a bit strong though nothing like (ugh!) lovage." I'm extremely happy to hear that it's not like lovage—'celery' on STEROIDS! LOL

@gfron1 Are a you familiar with the Cattail Moonshine book by Tammi Hartung?

If it makes any difference, 1919 was the second print run, the first was 1917—I'm sure the recipes didn't all come into existence in 1917. The recipes are all purported to be from individuals, in Missouri, and favorites of the students.

Lexington, Missouri Cookbook, 1919. Entertainment Cook Book: Recipes by Students of Central College for Women.

Source: Good Housekeeping, 1894

I'm surprised by the complexity of some of the recipes. I've studied a LOT of old rural/semi-rural/village cookbooks and the like and the recipes are generally relatively simple. It could be a refection of the social status of those making/eating it, or, perhaps, they're recipes limited to the holidays or other special occasions. An eggless, buttlerless. milkless cake (or other very simple cake) is more what I'd expect the average family to eat—especially during very hard times. Source: Rare Recipes, Old and New, The John C. Winston Company, 1923

Thanks Heidi! I just finished listening to both episodes—one and two.

All my thermometers are from ThermoWorks. They have several applicable models. All PIDS are from Auber Instruments, with the exception of two Sous Vide Magics (which are compatible with some of the sensors from Auber.)

Thanks!

FWIW, this is the cheese press that I've had for a few years. The StrudyPress—It is very sturdy! Free plans are now available: http://sturdypress.com/sdm_downloads/diy-plans Specs

I don't sit and read very many books cover to cover—this is an exception! I'll be experimenting for MANY years with different ideas inspired by this book! The folks who've given the book poor reviews should be spanked! ETA: Flambéing a batch of bourbon is probably best done OUTSIDE!!!

Something else you could try is the following—I've done it in the past to get a much more stable temperature. Place a large covered roasting pan or stock pot in your current oven and test the average temperature inside that (keeping the sensor suspended)—it should be MUCH more stable.

Oops!!! They were 3 mil pouches! I've decided to make some chamomile kombucha. I've ordered a new SCOBY.

Since ~August 1st. It's our only oven. We use it multiple times per day. FWIW, I got an extended warranty.

I just checked the Breville BOV845BSS Smart Oven Pro. I set it at 220°, on "Bake", with convection. I let it run for about 20 minutes so the temperature could stabilize. I then checked the temperature every 5 minutes for an hour. Here's what I got: 7:05 232° 7:10 235° 7:15 230° 7:20 231° 7:25 233° 7:30 238° 7:35 230° 7:40 232° 7:45 237° 7:50 232° 7:55 236° 8:00 231° 8:05 234°

If I wanted the type of accuracy you're talking about—I would buy an old analog toaster-oven, drill a hole in the back, install a temperature sensor and connect it to a PID.

What I think they're essentially saying is that the coffee isn't graded and such unless there's significant quantity—intermodal shipping containers are very large. It appears that they're sending it , in bulk, to Taxachusetts, for direct distribution. It could be that they're packing several varieties in one container. We're only guessing. It's best to ask them.

"Only when we have enough pergamino coffee to fill a shipping container, and we are ready to export it, do we finish processing by removing the pergamino, separating the beans by size according to graded screens, and by hand-selecting and removing coffee bags with faults and/or defects and low cupping score." Emphasis added. Source: https://invalsacoffee.com/pages/about-us

I've read a little bit of the book. I think it's excellent! I love the writing style! I like that they use weights rather than volume measurements—I think that's extremely important both for consistency and safety. I do wish that they'd offered more detail about pathogens, especially the ones that are capable of reproducing at a relatively low pH! Listeria monocytogenes makes me especially nervous—I've seen death by listeriosis, it's a HORRIBLE way to die! Mention of the use of a plastic bag full of water as a weight/seal seems like a good idea, but there's a risk of ruining a fermentable if the bag leaks!!! Don't ask me how I know! Using 2% brine in the bag, rather than water, is MUCH better practice. They don't mention the weight—in mils— of the vacuum pouches that they're using, or many other details. The major problem that I had when fermenting in bags when I had the bokashi composting website and was doing frequent demonstrations was very slow leaks, in spite of extra sealing! So there was no releasing of gas and resealing. But that may be an issue only with the brand and weight (4 mil) of the pouches that I was using. The lemon verbena kombucha sounds good. I'm inclined to make both lemon balm and chamomile kombucha—they both grow easily in my neck-of-the-woods. I'll read some more tonight!

They finally rolled back the price on these so I got one for use in the Breville Smart Oven Pro. The price is currently $17.58 at both Amazon and Walmart—down from as high as $24.73! It's perfect for Smart Oven and it should be very handy!