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This just in from my nephew... The closest hot links that he has found to what he remembers as a kid are made by J&B Sausage, Waelder TX. You can find them at HEB and sometimes Kroger. We know J&B pretty well since my mom and dad had a country place near there for years. They knew the owners of J&B pretty well and dad was satisfied with the quality of their products. Dad was notoriously picky. Nephew says the package labeled HOT is probably closer to memory. He also warns that it is REALLY hot. He hasn't seen them at BBQ joints around here either. His read on the sausages that you get at most places are "mixed meat with cereal filler crap".

That shouldn't be necessary. The interior of the meat is sterile. Any nasties will get killed off pretty quickly starting at about 160 - 180 degrees and the surface will reach that temperature quickly.

The gospel of yogurt according to my mother... For each quart of whole milk: (She hated skim milk on principle, called it blue john with an accompanying derisive snort.) Add 1/4 cup Carnation non-fat dry milk. Bring to a boil STIRRING THE WHOLE TIME with a whisk. (This supposedly has something to do with the final texture.) Cool to 95 - 110 degrees F. Whisk 3T to 1/4 cup live culture yogurt to thin it. Whisk the yogurt into the warm milk. (If we were trying a dry culture, we would whisk it into a cup or so of the warm milk and add it back to the pot.) Pour into containers and incubate at 85 - 100 degrees F to the texture you desire. I used to put it in my 100 degree oven overnight. NOTES: She said the whisking, with a whisk, was important for the final texture and to evenly disperse the yogurt culture in the mix. We don't know if any of this makes a damn because we never tested it. We just always did it that way and made superb yogurt. Yes, the stirring is a PITA. As I said before, I finally settled on Dannon plain for a starter. My sister swears by what she remembers as White Mountain that she got at Whole Foods. Supposedly it has three strains of buggles. I didn't have a WF near me so I never tried it but I trust my sister's taste buds.

They told you to cook them in the oven? Lymphnodes? GET A ROPE!

Doesn't sound like I would like it. I haven't gotten on the hunt for them here in Houston yet. But, sounds like I won't be ordering or looking for Pitts. If they weren't hot they weren't right. My memory says that they are all beef, rather coarsely ground. I may be wrong about that. What ingredients were blech? You didn't say how you cooked them. They are normally cooked in the pit with the rest of the BBQ.

I had a bay leaf tree that I left at the house. It was only about five feet high. I considered putting it in a pot and hauling it with me but the poor thing was just butt ugly. No matter how hard I tried to prune it into loveliness, it perversely persisted in wanting to be ugly. Then I started reading about the different types of bay. You would see a recipe that said "Don't use California Bay." Huh? So what DO you want me to use? Then some mentions of Turkish Bay. Uh... OK... Now I am confused. We just used to snatch a branch when we found one in the woods and bring it home. Since I was now not even sure what my ugly tree was (I bought it at a nursery) I decided to leave it to its fate. I will be researching the various species of bay before I get one to plant at the house. (You can't have a house without a bay tree.) I want the one that is indigenous to the woods of the south since that is the type of cooking that I do the most.

Congratulations and thank you for sharing. Your artistry and creativity blew me away. That show piece is just incredible. It should be in a gallery somewhere. I am sure that all of your fellow eGulleteers are as proud as I of your accomplishment. And we can't wait to hear more about your journey. Top of the class? WOO HOO!

I have a wonderful recipe (that I can't find right now ) but it was whole milk with added non-fat dry milk. Basically, you scalded the milk mixture then let it cool to about 100 degrees and add your starter. I have a set of those heavy French glasses with plastic caps that I got years ago. They look like these from Crate & Barrel. When I did it a lot, I had a gas range with a pilot light in the oven. It maintained a perfect 100-105 degrees. It was usually done overnight. Then I could just put the caps on and refrigerate. Not having that gas oven, I have done it with a heating pad in a styrofoam cooler. Put a towel in the bottom, then the heating pad, then another few layers of folded towel. What is neat about those cheap coolers is that it is easy to stick a thermometer through the lid and monitor the temp. It is also easy to poke a hole for the cord to the heating pad so you can keep the lid tightly closed. Pretty soon, you will figure out what setting on the heating pad will maintain your temperature. Much better than those yogurt maker things. We threw ours out. I think you will be able to find any number of recipes that use whole milk fortified with non-fat dried milk. Of all of the recipes that I tried, this approach made the best texture, at least to me. I hated the skim milk yogurt. Then you can start experimenting with various starters. I tried many but finally settled on using Dannon plain, live culture, no additives. I will have to call my sister tomorrow to get the recipe.

I wonder what a limequat is. I just got back from the store. They had bags of those little key limes on sale. I am going to give those a try. I love those things. They make the most wonderful margueritas. But you go nuts squeezing out enough juice for a good one. Hey... How about a maguerita made with seville orange juice?

We have the opposite problem. We fight flooding rains and really high humidity. Dew points of 78 are not unusual. That is why some of the herbs like thyme and parsley tend to melt down in summer. I like to keep fennel around for the black swallowtails. One year, I had a newly hatched butterfly drying its wings every morning for weeks. Then I transplanted some wild maypop for fritilaries. BIG MISTAKE! Can you spell noxious weed? Some folks say that I sold the house because I couldn't get rid of it. I had an African Blue basil plant for three years. It was actually a big shrub. It didn't taste very good but the bees and butterflies loved it and it was very pretty. Click here and put it on steroids to an eight foot bush. Mine was darker green and purple as well. The flowers are long lasting and said to be good sprinkled on salads.

Hmmm... Will cypress wood grow fungus? I thought it was resistant. I don't know. He was an old Italian guy and lived in the Covington LA area.

The method I use for lemons I got from Patricia Wells At Home in Provence. It is really just lemons sliced into 1/8 wedges, salt and added lemon juice. You need to use a jar with one of those clamp down glass lids or put plastic wrap inside a regular jar lid. You leave it on the counter and turn when you think about it for at least a couple of weeks to a month or until the lemon rind looks transleucent and the liquid gets thick looking. You can add some olive oil if you like. It keeps forever in the fridge. Paula Wolfert also has preserved lemon in her The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen that is similar. It is used in stews and braises, minced and mixed with olives for muching. Both of those books are terrific.

Now THAT is an idea. I have a jar of lemon that I started last week and I have another jar that needs filling. I wonder if the peel would add too much bitter?

I am with you Betts. I have never found tile to be a problem and I have liked my laminate just fine. The soapstone is treated with food grade mineral oil after it is installed, so oil staining is not a problem. Upthread, I remembered that chemistry laboratory benches and sinks used to be made of soapstone because it was indestructable. I haven't checked out the prices here in the Gulf Coast. I may consider the tile if I can make the look work for me.

Oh... goody goody goody. Our very own Texas garden thread. First, I have to say that I am not gardening in my own garden this year since I am still in the apartment making very slow progress on my house. However, my sister's and a friend's garden will allow me to participate. We were just discussing where to plant the chard, lettuces, parsley, and we will try to get some thyme to grow. We want to put bunch in the freezer before it croaks in the heat. That is as far as we have gotten on the cool weather stuff. We grow two varieties of chard, an Italian heirloom white and Vulcan red, when we can find it. I grew the Bright Lights chard one year and found it pretty puny. I won't do that again. I have also had a hard time finding Vulcan but I think we found a substitute. I try to plant the chard where it will be back-lit in the evening sun so I can enjoy it. It is usually mixed in as part of my regular flower beds. I like mixing veggies in with flowers in the "French" way. It is a little early yet for the morning glories and moon vine. This year we are going to try to re-establish a childhood memory... four o'clocks. I found some seeds for pure white that will look and smell lovely on moonlit evenings. Can't wait to hear from all of our gritty fingered friends. Thanks for starting this, Judith.

The Houston Chronicle - Dining Guide Warming Up for Kickoff As you might suspect, the restaurants are getting ready for the big game. This is a first for Houston so it is interesting to see how they are adapting. I think that I will now retire to my cozy cubby under my rock.

BACON!

It is the post nasal drip part that grosses me out. I get grossed out when I am in London, riding the underground, and when I blow my nose it is black. ICK!

Yeah... What I don't know is if the restaurant is using grass fed beef and, if so, where they get it. I may have to call them and track this down. Damn. That was some good steak. Tender, juicy, lots of beef flavor, not overwhelmed by the sauce, drooling on my keyboarl7r gu65o 7 0958f7tioalaj. OOPS! edit to add: Their potato chip crusted calamari was incredible. I normally consider calamari only marginally edible and don't normally order it but we ordered one of those appetizer towers that included the calamari. This was amazing. Even the tentacles were meltingly tender and not a hint of greasiness.

Some folks gag at this but our favorite late spring sandwich when the Texas sweet 1015 onions come in is an onion sandwich. You use a lot of good mayo, current favorite is Hellman's Mayonesa (made with lime juice), slice the onion paper thin. Pile onto a good white bread with salt and pepper. Sometimes we use a seasoned salt like Jane's Krazy Salt. Drink a cold beer or two while indulging. Instant nap. The legendary Tookie's hamburger joint in Seabrook TX makes a burger with refried beans, onions, salsa and FRITOS! A culinary masterpiece.

Interesting. That is an interesting combination of seasonings. The nutmeg is unexpected. I am sure every producer has their "special recipe". They all taste the same to me. Further, if they don't, they aren't a hot dog.

I am known around my family and friends as the slow cooked pork queen. (Strike up... DA DA DA DA DA-DA) But I have never tried one at 200 for that long. I have got to try it. First, I have to use up the one I did last weekend with bitter orange, latin seasoning (cumin, coriander, black pepper, salt and sugar) and lots of garlic. What am I doing with it? Wrapped in a tortilla with lime marinated red onion and Mexican crema. Sandwiches on bollios. Warming it up and shoving it in my mouth with a fork. (That is truly elegant. )

ACK! That sounds to me like that could get all kinds of nerve tissue off of spinal chords etc. I wonder if that will be changing given the BSE situation. I think what we are looking for concerning the "essence of hot dog" is... what is the seasoning mix? I would think that is the defining characteristic. After that, "meat" is just the carrier for the seasoning.

Many years ago, an elderly friend of my FIL would soak a log in the pond at his country place and it would grow some kind of fungus. I wonder what that was and if it was the same thing as the tree fungus. I think he called it "cepes" but I don't think that is correct. I always thought cepes was the same thing as porcini.

I had dinner at Churrascos (Houston) last night. I had the 8 oz Churrasco. This is supposed to be butterflied tenderloin, marinated and grilled then served with chimichurie (sp?) which is garlic, olive oil and lots of parsley. I read somewhere that they use grass fed beef because this is a South American dish and they typically use grass fed beef. I don't know if that is true. I checked out a bunch of restaurant reviews and couldn't confirm it. I will say that it was absolutely excellent, as always, and had a beefy taste that was not really like an aged, corn fed steak. Does anyone know if they use grass fed beef?