bokreta

A favorite of mine, and easily scalable/customizable is a potato casserole with potatoes, sliced hard boiled eggs, some kind of sausage (hard or soft), and a random dairy binder. I grew up with this using cheap grocery kielbasa and cream of whatever soup (something innocuous and forgettable). I lived for a time in Budapest and there's a traditional Hungarian dish, called Rantott Krumpli (aka layered potatoes) that was identical in concept but generally used a specific spicy hard sausage and the binding was sour cream with a local red pepper paste. Best served with a highly vinegered cucumber salad with lots of garlic and dill. I wonder if a riff on this, with your local flavor profiles, would work? Chorizo would be perfect, maybe add corn? Cajun spices in a bechamel? Something like a crab boil in casserole form.

I'm a little surprised that this YouTube channel hasn't been mentioned yet (that I could find). This gentleman, Max Miller, researches historical recipes, does his best to learn needed languages to translate them, and recreates them in his home kitchen as best as he can. He's delightful, and includes a huge amount of historical context. Not a shill, but a fan.

That reminds me - back in the pre-Orban days when I spent a quite a lot of time in Budapest folk bars, the most common bar snack was zsiros kenyer (forgive the lack of diacriticals!), or "fatted bread". A slice of bread smeared liberally with the melted fat of salt pork, diced onion, and paprika. Damn tasty, and incredibly cheap.

Astonishing that some may have had a different lived experience than yours in the course of their life in different areas of the world than where you live/have lived. I promise that in 1991 Yugoslavia (pre- and mid revolution) the local shops didn't have an "American Aisle" or M&Ms.

I gotta admit, when I spent a year abroad on a Fullbright as a youngling, as much as I LOVED being where I was and the food that was widely available, I seriously missed M&Ms and Kraft Mac & Cheese. I had a chance encounter with a traveling American business man and helped him navigate a sticky local situation. Once he got back to the States, he sent me a care package of those plus a few other treats. I almost cried when I opened the box and rationed the heck out of that box for the next many months. Certainly not tastier or better food, just what the heart wanted after another day of everything being new and different.

I once worked for a tofu manufacturing company. My official title was Office Manager, but the reality was that I did everything that didn't involve immersing my hands in soy mash. I insisted on a working title of Factota. The one who gets things done.

Gyros. Default meat expected to be lamb combined with beef. Seattle, with some deep ties to the local Greek community.

Dobro dosli!

That's appalling. How could they let that through?

My shameful defaults: Pasta with Karam's garlic sauce and a salty cheese (parm/asiago/feta/etc). Rice with ranch dressing, canned tuna, and black pepper. Rice with sauteed summer sausage, cheddar cheese, and green olives and/or jarred jalapenos.

This is slightly off topic, as it's not about a holiday menu, but it is Christmas and food related. I'm planning on a smallish tree decorated primarily with dehydrated pretty slices of lemons, limes, kumquats, blood oranges, and tomatoes (and popcorn garlands). My question is what else can I do with the butt ends of the citrus fruits beyond stashing them in vodka for a spell? Tomato ends will go into a salsa, and assuming that I buy (small) bags of citrus any non-decorative slices with be salt preserved, but what about the pithy end pieces?

Darn it. Y'all got my hopes up!

And I would never judge a book by one recipe.

I bought a Weber Q last year, thinking that it would be a good solution to my living situation not allowing a charcoal grill without a 3 floor trek down and up to check on any progress. I had significant issues getting a Coleman propane tank (the small, squat ones) attached, and was always a little nervous about the connection. Once I got it going, it worked fairly well for most high or medium heat things, which was nice. As BBQ season finally is ramping up here in the PNW, I am finding myself just committing to just schlepping downstairs for the afternoon because it's less daunting than replacing the fuel canister and doing the soap test etc.

Wait, have I been rude all my life? I've only ever stayed in US hotels while in transit, rarely for more than a day. I've also only stayed at utility level places. It never would have occurred to me that I should have been tipping the housekeeping staff for doing what I have little active interaction with. I've also never asked for any "extras" - I tend to travel at minimal maintenance levels.