Duvel

The second distillery of the day was Glen Moray. Truth to be told this was not my choice because of their excellent reputation or exciting products - I chose Glen Moray because they are the only distillery in the area that allowed kids on the tour, and I really want to show the little one what his father enjoys to drink and how it is made. Glen Moray was far more industrial (with proper process control, a DCS, you name it …), but the tour was well made and little one asked a lot of questions, with about half of them actually related to the tour. 1337 🤣 The most interesting part was the warehouse. Glen Moray is focusing on providing different cask finishes on their products, and they had open casks to showcase the different characters one can imprint onthe basic product. You could sniff & smell the differences. Accordind to the little one, the port finish was the best. I bought a bottle for his 18th birthday … They had quite a few warehouses, a contrast to the single one at Benromach … In the tasting room I added the samples to my drivers kit … By now we had all worked up an appetite and I started preparing linner: A coupe of snacks, pie, grilled lamb and steamed mussels in garlic sauce. All accompanied by a nice beer in the sunshine … The day was concluded a bit earlier with a lemon pie (commercial, very good) … Aaaand a belated sampling for yours truly 🥳

After a brief hiatus we are back online … A beautiful morning - warm and sunny. Perfect for … This was the day I was looking forward to - distillery visits at two Speyside distilleries 🥳 Of course being a German and all, nothing was left to chance. I even brought some Katerfrühstück (some preserved fish in a soucy tomato & pickled cucumber sauce) all the way from Germany, to strengthen my stomach and get ready to buffer the alcohol before the tasting tour … Little one was entertaining his new-found friend and trying to teach her all the games he had. So much patience in that young girl … First distillery was Benromach, one of the very few Speyside distilleries that produces a lightly peated whiskey. They had a lovely visitors center with even more lovely personnel (with the loveliest Scottish accents you could imagine). But then the lovely guide asked: “is anyone here driving ?”, which I unfortunately answered truthfully with “me”. This excluded me automatically from the tasting set after the tour 😪*. The distillery was very “manual” and the expertise on controlling the process was impressive. I had a talk with one of the distillers that was running around how they determine the change from the methanol-rich forerun to the real distillate in the absence of any proper process control equipment, and his answers (and willingness to share those) were really great. I was impressed … Filling casks with a hose would be my next dream job. The room, though well ventilated, was perfumed with the scent of nascent whiskey … All in all a great visit (minus - of course - the inability to taste). I bought a bottle of a rare expression, filled my tasting samples into a provided kit (for later, they were paid for) and headed to pick up the family for the second visit of the day … —- * they were adamant on that: I told them I am a big guy, and three little sips don’t do anything for me, but …

Streak of comfort food continues - today the Catalan edition (and coincidentally what little one requested for his 9th birthday today): Macarrons de l’àvia (or gratinated pasta with meat sauce). Very simple, just a sofregit, meat, tomatoes, salt, pepper and cheese - but full of childhood memories for my wife and obviously for him … Treat for the cook - more of a student memory, though …

Of course not - they have a rotisserie in their portfolio and wouldn’t cannibalize their own product … 😜

I have difficulty grasping the meaning of this sentence. It is coated in everything (you had lying around) except for the bagel seasoning (which would be unsuitable) ?

If they are crunchy and you have a proper fish to crust ratio, they are really good. The regular fish fingers here contain not enough fish. Ratio is 55% fish to 45% crust. The Rösti-coated ones had more fish, and because the coating has bits and pieces of potato sticking out, was also more crunchy. If all fails, you can just make breadcrumb-coated fried fish - DH will like that 🤗

I am wondering whether Breville or Anova will bring this to the ambitious home cook …

Nice ! How do you prepare your pork loin ?

Gluten free is quite popular, as are vegan products and meat alternatives. Basically all the major brands have their lines of products (see here for the one I cited above). The allergen warnings are there, but not as pronounced as in the US (mostly, because our law does not allow for “outrageous” settlements in lawsuits).

Yes, you are correct. This is the most popular brand here …

No, it pretty much what you’d call Marinara sauce (minus the red wine) …

Was a bit of a lousy day, and I felt not like cooking. So I went out to buy some Fischstäbchen (fish fingers), kind of my childhood comfort food. They have evolved - plenty of varieties: I picked the salmon variety and the cod one, coasted in a Rösti shell. Baked in the oven, they won’t win any gourmet competition - but they were crunchy and strangely quite tasty. Served with mashed potatoes, creamed spinach and tomato sauce - just like 40 years ago 🤗

Make miso soup with it …

Will do … soon 🙏

I understand, but kale is more of an alternative to what they like to use. This weekend I prepare a half-years supply of Grünkohl (kale), so maybe I am very biased …

Thanks ! Would gave never thought of kale in a soup (the German way of treating kale is … different) - but seems this is a different veggie. End result sounds pretty good to me 🤗

I prepared dinner on the occasion of my father’s 79th birthday … SV goose legs (18h @ 70oc, then roasted for 30 min @ 225 oC)). Some goose breast. Braised red cabbage with apple and lingonberry. Potato Knödel (half boiled/half raw). A goose sauce made from the carcass and - if I may say so - to die for …

Kale ?!

Let‘s say starch - I don’t mind which plant it got isolated from. For me, là zi jī pieces need a bit of „crust“ and adding starch is a easy way to ensure that …

For a long time I also struggled with that. But now I feel that reduced soy/shaoxing really benefits from it. YMMV …

I would probably add some cornstarch to the marinade, together with a bit of salt and shaoxing wine. Fully with you - lots of garlic. A touch of sugar and a some MSG for good measure. And the final result should feel „dry“, for the lack of a better word …

It literally folds and it about 70 cm x 35 cm x 5 cm …

The next day started very lazy. There is something about waking up in a pleasantly warm tent, opening the front “door” and seeing everything bathed in bright sunshine … I was happy ! I spend some time reading the food magazines I bought, my wife enjoyed her Outlander novel and even the little one immersed himself in the Scottish folk tale book we got him on Skye … At one point we finally decided to head out and returned to the western shore of Loch Ness to visit Urquhart castle. The castle (or better the remains) are an important sight in the Inverness area. What remains of it is well preserved and the exhibitions are full of interesting facts, such as important jobs long forgotten … There was some artwork distributed over the grounds … For those who were wondering what we were eating while “on the road”: the 3.99 £ special - sandwich, crisps and softdrink. Todays variety: coronation chicken (very tasty, I might add) … Some more impressions of the castle and the loch … How the early campers in this area cooked their food … This informative signpost made me feel going back to the tent … Dinner was enjoyed in the warm afternoon sun (22 oc) with … My aperitif … Local lamb, cooked with celery, garlic and rosemary … Crackers with leek & chedar dip, pastries, cheeses … Little one made a friend and they played in our tent, while the grown-ups enjoyed the sunset …

Opinions may differ on that … I know at least one person who thinks otherwise ☺️

Nope … we have a strict “one toy per holiday” policy and little one already got Axl, the axolotl.