Manitoulin test kitchen

[Kerry Beal]

 

Cocktail tonight - the Cuban Rose.  Hadn't even had a drink before taking this out of focus picture.  

 

 

Sirloin with onions, tomat's gratin, grilled bread with garlic oil.  

[Kerry Beal]

 

Those of you who follow the Ladies Who Lunch thread will be aware that when Anna and I need comfort food - it's pho.

 

Our comfort cocktail is a Negroni.  Tonight, after a long day of shopping in Sudbury, our dogs barking, we have opted for a Negroni.

 

 

[Kerry Beal]

 

In order not to slow ourselves down today - we stopped at McD's in Espanola and indulged in Egg McMuffins and hash browns.  While they were remarkably warm and fresh for McD's foods - the wait in the drive through line was not what I would call expeditious.  

 

 

For you Smitty!

 

The morning was consumed by visits to Stop Restaurant Supply and several thrift stores.  One thrift store is run by crazy cat ladies so I was able to indulge my love of patting cats.  

 

For lunch we decided we should go to Cafe Asia - sadly it no longer exists and has been replaced by Okinawa Sushi - so what the hey - we were there - we'd give it a try.  An all you can eat sushi place that apparently allows people to leave with takeaway containers!  

 

We ordered a variety of things.

 

 

A beer for Anna.

 

 

Inari - one lonely piece on a big plate. 

 

 

Rotuts - can you see the calamari in these maki?

 

 

Gyoza.

 

 

Shrimp tempura.  

 

 

Negimaki.

 

 

Tempura vegetables.

 

 

Chicken udon.

 

 

Garlic shrimp.

 

 

Sesame chicken.

 

 

The afternoon was consumed by visits to the LCBO, Costco, Homesense, and Metro grocery store.  Then a quick trip in to Paris Natural Foods and one of the other LCBOs in town.  

 

 

 

 

 

[Smithy]

Thanks for the nickel photo!

The tempura looked pale compared to what I usually see. If I didn't know your photographic skills in general - and have more from this batch as a comparison - I'd wonder whether it was exposure. Since I do, I don't. If you get my drift. ;-) Which leads to the next question: how did the texture of these rather pale tempura shrimp and vegetables compare with the usual, more golden versions?

[Kerry Beal]

And here's what we brought home - 

 

 

From the LCBO we found a couple of things not previously seen - Hayman's Old Tom and a new brand of genever.  

 

And a nice collection of empty bottles - don't you just love the 3.75 litre Johnny Walker swing bottle - figure I can liberate it from it's bonds and use it to hold other liquids. 

 

 

 

A few assorted cookbooks for Anna.

 

 

A variety of odds and ends - some from the restaurant supply, some from thrift stores.  We picked up a couple of those silicone flowers to top bowls etc.  

 

 

My new favourite bread knife - it's a Montana Knife Works bread knife - I picked one up last fall.  We have been powering through the loaves that Anna has been making with it.  It's heavy and sharp and actually a little hard on the cutting boards.  It's a bit too short but it's power more than makes up for it.  We cleaned them out of the remaining 4 - at $6 each!

 

 

Costco and Metro meat - two of the meatiest lamb shanks you'll ever find, pork hocks, chicken thighs, rib steaks and lamb chops to throw over the balcony (see Mixing it up in Manitoulin).

 

 

A few other odds and ends - some to replace stuff that had been pitched while others were staying in the condo.  Can you believe that some people actually look at the dates on bottles and think that means they need to go?  When we leave this time - things will be clearly labelled - 'do not pitch'!

 

 

[Kerry Beal]

Thanks for the nickel photo!

The tempura looked pale compared to what I usually see. If I didn't know your photographic skills in general - and have more from this batch as a comparison - I'd wonder whether it was exposure. Since I do, I don't. If you get my drift. ;-) Which leads to the next question: how did the texture of these rather pale tempura shrimp and vegetables compare with the usual, more golden versions?

Nice and crispy - but we've had better!

[Smithy]

What a great haul from your shopping expedition! I'm looking forward to seeing it in use. I feel your pain about people throwing things away, when they're perfectly good. Expiration dates? Hah! Add 10 years, at least. :-)

Is that a stack of 4 small cutting boards (in nice colors) I see? High-density polywhateverpolymer? I have a terrible time passing up things like that. Thanks for letting me shop vicariously.

[Kerry Beal]

What a great haul from your shopping expedition! I'm looking forward to seeing it in use. I feel your pain about people throwing things away, when they're perfectly good. Expiration dates? Hah! Add 10 years, at least. :-)

Is that a stack of 4 small cutting boards (in nice colors) I see? High-density polywhateverpolymer? I have a terrible time passing up things like that. Thanks for letting me shop vicariously.

Nope - notebooks!  Anna and I both have a notebook addiction.

[rotuts]

wonderful stuff.  like the 'beer can chicken' holder.  I use it w/o the beer can, now that that topic has been throughly run over here somewhere

 

Vertical Chicken it is.

 

for the Egg ?

[Smithy]

What is in the squarish container behind and above the Montana bread knife in the third photo and to the left of the oven mitts in the photo before that? It looks a little like colored plastic hearts.

In the bottom photo there seem to be identical red thingies packaged in cardboard and plastic, sitting atop what looks like gummies. I take it that was a latest-and-greatest thingie that each of you will use and take home? What is it? The label suggests something to do with citrus.

[Anna N]

Smithy,

We were exhausted when we got back last night and our photo skills suffered immeasurable harm! Tried to enhance a couple for you.

The heart-shaped thingies are silicone bowl scrapers. Forgot to bring any from home and I do make lots of use of them.

The red thingies are silicone tie-wraps for closing bags etc.

Edited to add a photo.

Edited July 6, 2014 by Anna N (log)

[Kerry Beal]

wonderful stuff.  like the 'beer can chicken' holder.  I use it w/o the beer can, now that that topic has been throughly run over here somewhere

 

Vertical Chicken it is.

 

for the Egg ?

nope!  For something else - need it to hold a fan above something.  Didn't have anything else in the place that would do.

[Anna N]

Breakfast this morning. Kerry needed the rind of 3 clementines so I got to eat the inside. Then bread that is surely more holey than religious topped with more braunschweiger. With bread like this I persuade myself I can eat two slices with no more than 10 calories.

[Smithy]

I'd like to make bread like that.  It looks wonderful: ideal for saying, on the one hand, "it has fewer calories" and on the other hand, "look at all the voids I can fill with butter/braunschweiger/jam/whatever".  

 

Tie wraps!  Very different than the new citrus squeezers or zesters that I thought I saw.     

[Shelby]

Ugh, I had a friend that RELIGIOUSLY threw stuff away on or before exp. dates.  Drove me crazy lol.  

 

 

On the other hand, maybe the other guests there used some of your condiments etc. and they ended up in someones luggage. 

[gfweb]

Except for meats and dairy, expiration dates are mostly arbitrary, I think. Some things lose flavor if too old, like coke or beer, but they don't become dangerous.

 

Someone in my household (who will go unnamed) threw out a bunch of just-expired condiments without replacing them last year. The "for better or for worse" clause needed to be invoked.

[Kerry Beal]

Ugh, I had a friend that RELIGIOUSLY threw stuff away on or before exp. dates.  Drove me crazy lol.  

 

 

On the other hand, maybe the other guests there used some of your condiments etc. and they ended up in someones luggage. 

Nah - apparently the husband of the girl here before us was a bit particular!  Everything was gone - down to the horseradish in the fridge, the ketchup...

 

In the past one of the cleaners took everything home cause he liked the look of it - it was returned!

[JoNorvelleWalker]

This discussion moved me to go check the ketchup in my refrigerator.  There were two open bottles, both Heinz.  The newer expires at the end of this year.  The other, way down in the bottom of the door, next to the bottle of Yugoslov Slivovitz from before the war, does not have an expiration date.  Possibly it lasts forever.  However comparing the contents side by side, one is red and one is gray.

 

Since I have two, if you're in need I can send a bottle up to you.

[rotuts]

that grey one is 'mature'  probably has an unusual and very interesting taste.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Actually it smelled pretty good, but I can't quite get the odor off my fingers.

[Kerry Beal]

 

Sister Mary for tonight's libation (picture taken in the bat cave apparently judging from the tilt).

 

 

Followed by a lovely little roast of pork done in the Big Easy with Danish potatoes and nuked green stuff.  Needed to show you that we do eat some green stuff!  Anna says it's important to have odd numbers of items on the plate - then put 6 potatoes on hers.  

[Smithy]

It looks like you both have 2 slices of meat there, too. :-)

[Kerry Beal]

Looks like I have 4 - Anna 2.  Either way...

[Kerry Beal]

 

A batch of Butterscotch Squares to take to work tomorrow.  I'm beginning to think the new can of Pam that I picked up (yup - they threw that out too) is causing the deformities on the sides of the stuff I'm baking.  I first noticed it on the banana bread and then on the cherry pound cake.  It sprays on really thick and foamy.  Wish I had a can of the lecithin stuff that RobertM turned me on to at the PMCA and they sent me as a sample - stuff is wonderful.

 

I have 3 tiny loaves of pane de campagne in the fridge overnight that I shall bake first thing in the morning.  That way I'll have something for rounds and something for the ER.

[Darienne]

The cheers which must arise when the local staff find out that Kerry Beal, she who bakes the endless wondrous goodies, is coming again.