fifi

Hmm... 2 to 5 pounds is pretty good sized. One that size, I would be tempted to filet and fry. Most of the little bait stealing bastards that I catch are MUCH smaller than that and land in the bait bucket.

Squeat, on those pop tarts, please check in at Incredibly Strange Cravings. I am in The Hague about 3 times a year for a couple of weeks at a time. The cold cuts that most intrigue me are the ones that kind of look like thin sliced bologna but the spicing is really different. I would love to know what it is. I suspect some cardamom in there somewhere but I am not sure. Anyway, there is something sublime about a bite of those soft scrambled eggs and that meat that is just magic.

And you still live?

If I were Queen (wait, I am Queen, yeah) I would have breakfast at Brennan's every morning of the world. But that is another story. My "on the run" breakfast is a McD's sausage and biscuit in the car. I wrote a pornagraphic paen to that delicacy in my food blog long ago. Previously it was a sausage kolache (hot polish) at the Kolache Shop before my office moved. My all time favorite is a traditional Mexican breakfast buffet with chilaquiles, scrambled eggs with salsa and cheese, and lots of refried beans on the side. I usually pass on the rice. I enjoy English breakfast when traveling there. But I really don't get the broiled tomato. Well... I don't really like tomatoes. When I am in The Hague, I enjoy the various cold cuts that are served and enjoy them with my eggs. The seasoning is very different, I can't quite figure out what it is, and somewhat addicting. I really can't stand sweets at breakfast. If I do venture into the pancakes or French toast, it is a late brunch. And that is rarely. When I decide I need to eat more oatmeal, it is with butter and Cajun seasoning. However, inexplicably, I have my coffee with cream and sugar.

WHEW! Thanks, guys. I thought I was losing it.

How big were these croakers? I never thought about eating them. Down here on the Texas Gulf Coast, they are bait. That is, if we are talking about the same fish. My reference book for this area lists Micropogonias undulatas as Atlantic croaker and may not be the same thing. The reference also says that they are excellent panfish, though. Who knew?

Reporting back in... I have an awful confession. I didn't really like the version with bacon. I cannot believe that I just said that I didn't like something with bacon! OK... It wasn't bad. Just not as good as the version with the butter and EVOO. I found two things about it that I didn't like. One was the texture that the bacon added to the silky soft onion. Also, it seemed to mask the oniony sweetness that I got with the other version. Just so we don't get into an onion debate (I used the same ones as in the other batch) and declarations that I should have used that bacon that is smoked over dried apple blossoms by elves in a hollow tree... I used the same bacon that is so superior in my smoothered green beans and the texture and taste is just fine there.

One year, I threw about an inch or so of "mushroom compost" on my gardens and things went nuts. This was available from one of my local soil/compost suppliers. I take it that this was the leftover compost that the mushrooms were grown on at the big mushroom farms in Madisonville or somewhere. Anyway, it was like a shot of growth hormone in the garden. Has anyone else done this?

I am now trying this with bacon. I have sliced a whole package of bacon (14 oz.) and 6 big white onions and put them into my crock pot (the one that runs too hot, I haven't returned it yet) with some bay leaves and thyme sprigs. I will be interested to see how it goes. Hey... Anything with bacon can't be bad.

Ah... But are these cravings incredibly strange. (Why do I have to keep asking this question?)

Ah Soba, you are speaking to my heart. There is nothing like a bowl of Campbell's cream of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwhich (made with Velvetta, thank you). I don't want anyone messing with this combination. It is a comfort thing and one of the things I always have when recovering from an illness. I do have a recipe that depends upon canned soup and that is an old crock pot recipe for beef stew. Coat two pounds of stew meat with two packets of Lipton's onion soup. Put in the bottom of the crock pot. Pile on the potatoes and carrots. Top with a can of Campbell's mushroom soup and turn the thing on. This results in a wonderful old time beef stew that I haven't really equalled by more orthodox cooking methods.

WOW! What a cool site. Many thanks for that. The peppers and eggplants are blowing me away. I am doing a happy dance while dreaming of my next year's garden.

AhHa! That is what it was... The Garden Conservancy's open day tour. Thank you for filling in my blanks. So do you know what days are for this year? jschyun... So where are you getting those seeds or plants? I am actually thinking of a variation on the organza bags. You could sew up some bags in tulle with lace and ruffles. Wouldn't THAT be cool?

Ah... Peckerwood Gardens may be it. I will have to ask my sister about that. They are not normally open to the public but have open times to some gardening organozation tour. Sorry that my memory is so faulty. But I do think that you have hit it. If you have a chance to tour there, it is worth the trip.

The Blue Oyster Bar on the Gulf Freeway has been one of my favorite places for many years. When friends call from "in town" and want to meet for lunch or a casual dinner, this is a common choice because it is about halfway for all of us. They remodeled it in the last couple of years and it is more comfortable than ever. And, the food is consistently good. This is one of the few seafood restaurants that I frequent where I actually like their cole slaw.

Oh my. Organza bags are soooo Martha. Excellent idea. I am not a tomato eater, but where are you guys finding all of these odd colored cherry tomatoes? I want to pass all of that on to my sister. As we have had some fine warm days, I am really getting the itch. I suppose I am doomed to participate vicariously. Or at least I can start laying out the gardens for the house. As spring approaches, we should keep our eyes out for garden tours. I went on one last spring up around Chappel Hill and Brenham that was a lot of fun. I saw some of the most amazing kale. I will try to dig up some information on that and post it here. I got a lot of good ideas for garden design. I got some ideas for what to do with the old swimming pool on the bayside property that has been filled in. The coping is still visible and I have decided that that should be the boundary of my herb garden. It will be interesting and preserve a bit of history of the property. I want to make paths in between beds (it was a big freeform pool). Any suggestions for the path material? Crushed granite?

I got curious and actually found the recipe here. I am thinking of other uses for that mustard sauce.

I have those things over the fridge, too. I have been in this apartment for a year and a half and I don't think I have ever looked. My houskeeper/domestic engineer unpacked the kitchen so I may never know. Furthermore... I am not going to look. I am short. Having the luxury of designing my house from the ground up... upper cabinets were one of the annoyances that I put in my "diary of using a kitchen". At first, I was stuck with the paradigm that "you have to have upper cabinets 'cause everyone does". Then, Queen fifi emerged and I proclaimed "Off with their heads." My architect agreed and now, at each side of the range and hood, there is a lovely window. I was dubious until he pointed out that, with the size of the kitchen, I have more square footage of storage than I had in the previous house. And most of that will be drawers. The annoyance list also included groveling on the floor to get to the back of base cabinets.

You just drop into Topwater Grill. The only time that we have made a reservation is when we reserved an area for a party. If you decide to go there, I am hoping that you have good weather. Sitting outside is a real treat. The last time that I had the jumbo shrimp stuffed with a jalapeno strip and cheese and wrapped in bacon they were superb. I was trying to figure out how they cooked those shrimp so perfectly, melt in your mouth tender, and still got the bacon crispy. Golightly67... I know the place you mean. A couple of years ago, my sister and I stayed in a friend's house for a weekend near there and went for dinner. The food was very good indeed. The problem is, I can't think of the name of it to save me. If you think of it, please post. It is driving me nuts. I haven't been back in over a year but I hear it is still getting good reviews.

Hi JetLag... So glad to have another Topwater fan aboard. I love that place during shrimp season. The shrimp go from Captain Benny's boats to the kitchen. They also make killer black beans.

Porcelain coating, is what brings in the crowd, and cost. It is a fairly expensive procedure, that works well, and lasts a long time in many different climates, which is what the public calls for. Can it cook, and hold up to high heat?? Yup. Modern technology has surpassed porcelian, I might add that a high end insulated cooker, affords a more stable enviornment, and attracts a much different crowd. woodburner Uh... My Smokey Mountain is porcelain coated in and out. No big whup. And triple nickel plating on the grills is no big deal either. For that price they should be stainless steel. Then it might be worth... oh... maybe $300. It even has the same cheap wheels as my old Weber grill. I just don't get it.

A big second recommendation for Topwater Grill in San Leon. It is my favorite hang out.

I think what they will get fed is some kind of generic BBQ sandwich that comes with the price of the ticket. I have no idea if that is a good thing or not since I didn't partake. But for a $6 ticket I wouldn't expect much. I really don't know how to direct folks to getting "invites" to tents as that is so dependent on local connections. What I do know is that once you get "in" to a tent, the food and drinks are free. BUT... There is that "tip jar". You are expected to stuff it with bills of the 10 or 20 persuasion. The tips are only marginally shared with the "workers" if they are not volunteers. The rest goes to the scholarship fund. What is mind boggling is that all of this "insider trading" in access and patronage still attracts 180,000+ attendees.

Hi Dignan. Thanks for the post and welcome. What team were you with? I will say that even if you don't have an "in" it is still a good time. Just wandering around and looking at the outrageous "tents" and costumes is entertainment enough. And then they have the bands that play in the public areas. Lots of dancing goes on there. It is definitely worth the price of the ticket. I think that is just $6.

I actually did that a few years ago. It was a similar attack to the corndog episode that started all of this. I think the onion rings also qualify. The obsessive search is a clue. "Hey... Hat boy!... Two more tin hats over here." Beware... The evil is spreading.