Food in the time of a pandemic

[ElsieD]

5 minutes ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

I had not realized butter was one of the hoarded goods.  I just checked Whole Foods.  The least expensive* unsalted butter is $13 per pound.  Not that I can get a Whole Foods delivery anyhow.

 

 

*and only.

 

 

Good grief.  Does it have gold dust sprinkled on it?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

1 minute ago, ElsieD said:

 

Good grief.  Does it have gold dust sprinkled on it?

 

Harvested by hobbits...it comes from New Zealand.

 

And while I was clicking trying to get a delivery slot, Whole Foods ran out of onions.

 

[gfweb]

14 minutes ago, BeeZee said:

I have thought about the fresh fruit/veg situation since my dopey husband under normal circumstances eats grapes off the stem or cherry tomatoes out of the container without washing...I shrieked at him for that the other day when I saw him doing it again. You aren’t supposed to wash them until just before eating but I may need to intervene for his own good. I actually washed an apple with soap the other day. He said when he went shopping the produce guys were not wearing gloves. I have been thinking of going to all frozen veg except for bagged salad or things I can peel, like carrots and cukes.

Regarding beets, they sell a brand here called Love Beets that are vac packed, they keep them in the produce area under refrigeration, they are cooked and come in plain or some flavored variety, they are pretty good.

 

I don't trust any raw veg at the moment.  I'm only eating ones that I can serve cooked.  Frozen and canned ought to be fine too.

[ElsieD]

22 minutes ago, BeeZee said:

I have thought about the fresh fruit/veg situation since my dopey husband under normal circumstances eats grapes off the stem or cherry tomatoes out of the container without washing...I shrieked at him for that the other day when I saw him doing it again. You aren’t supposed to wash them until just before eating but I may need to intervene for his own good. I actually washed an apple with soap the other day. He said when he went shopping the produce guys were not wearing gloves. I have been thinking of going to all frozen veg except for bagged salad or things I can peel, like carrots and cukes.

Regarding beets, they sell a brand here called Love Beets that are vac packed, they keep them in the produce area under refrigeration, they are cooked and come in plain or some flavored variety, they are pretty good.

 

Thanks.  I'll look for them next time I'm out.

[gfweb]

And Instacart is now on strike.

I bet Uber would pick up a called-in order.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

35 minutes ago, gfweb said:

And Instacart is now on strike.

I bet Uber would pick up a called-in order.

 

A friend who lives about a mile and a half from here, outside of Whole Foods' delivery area, reports today she can't get anything delivered.  And Uber probably still requires a cellphone.

 

[Porthos]

We needed to be in Orange County yesterday morning, so we went to the Costco Business Center in Westminster. There are things that we can only get there. My DW picked up a case of Top--Ramen-type ramen for my daughter and her family. She came by today to pick up some other food and was thrilled to get the ramen. It's been very, VERY hard to come by here in Southern California.

[Chris Hennes]

After eating pizza for dinner for the last six days straight, I switched things up tonight:

 

 

 

Those are Peter Reinhart's recipe from Bread Baker's Apprentice. The caramel is maybe the best I've ever had on a sticky bun.

[heidih]

2 minutes ago, Chris Hennes said:

After eating pizza for dinner for the last six days straight, I switched things up tonight:

 

Those are Peter Reinhart's recipe from Bread Baker's Apprentice. The caramel is maybe the best I've ever had on a sticky bun.

 

Not normally a sweet person but those look good. Bake on sir!

[scubadoo97]

Eating so little while home.   Just not  hungry.  Walking a lot, good for sanity,  and losing weight by the day.   Maybe not the thing to do during a pandemic.   

[kayb]

The shepherds pie from leftover meat loaf wound up being three small pies. I had just delivered one to my elderly friend from church when I got a frantic call from my daughter: "Come home NOW! There's a tornado coming!" You may have seen on the news it are a swath through Jonesboro; in fact, a half mile from my house.

 

Had the mall and several restaurants that were demolished not been closed due to COVID, it would have been much worse. As it was, we had no damage, have no internet but did not lose power. So I made quiche and Waldorf salad for lunch today. As I have no internet, I can't load pics.

 

As some internet wag noted, my 3-month trial of 2020 is almost over. I think I'll return it.

[Orbit]

We made a cassoulet-esque dish from great northern beans, the turkey thighs that were the only thing in the store, and some kielbasa. It was actually pretty tasty.

[Shelby]

 

32 minutes ago, scubadoo97 said:

Eating so little while home.   Just not  hungry.  Walking a lot, good for sanity,  and losing weight by the day.   Maybe not the thing to do during a pandemic.   

 

I've lost my appetite too.  I always thought I was a stress eater, but both this and another earlier problem (just for me and Ronnie) has taught me that is not true.

 

Bad thing is, my appetite for wine has upped....

[Shelby]

18 minutes ago, kayb said:

The shepherds pie from leftover meat loaf wound up being three small pies. I had just delivered one to my elderly friend from church when I got a frantic call from my daughter: "Come home NOW! There's a tornado coming!" You may have seen on the news it are a swath through Jonesboro; in fact, a half mile from my house.

 

Had the mall and several restaurants that were demolished not been closed due to COVID, it would have been much worse. As it was, we had no damage, have no internet but did not lose power. So I made quiche and Waldorf salad for lunch today. As I have no internet, I can't load pics.

 

As some internet wag noted, my 3-month trial of 2020 is almost over. I think I'll return it.

OMG Kay.  I had no idea that tornado was so close to where you live now.  Bless you and your family.  Yep, I said the same to Ronnie earlier...had the mall etc. not been closed the loss of life could have been really bad.

 

We are all in this together.  (((hug)))  

[kayb]

Aaaaaaand, we have internet again!

 

The aforementioned quiche and salad:

 

 

And how close the tornado came to me.

 

[BeeZee]

1 hour ago, scubadoo97 said:

Eating so little while home.   Just not  hungry.  Walking a lot, good for sanity,  and losing weight by the day.   Maybe not the thing to do during a pandemic.   

Ditto here, also. I have found that minor/low level stress will make me want to eat, but major stress completely shuts down my appetite.

[Katie Meadow]

Eating plenty. Including more sweet stuff than usual. Ice cream. M&Ms. Two days ago we baked an Atlantic Beach Pie. Yesterday I baked a chocolate loaf. Afternoon snack was lots of crackers with Cambazola. Dinner was roasted potatoes in duck fat and and a filling salad. And yet I am having to belt several pairs of jeans they are getting so loose. I will admit I am a bundle of nerves. 

[Jacksoup]

I’m also eating less but cooking dinner most nights.  I’ve been given new duties at work, given two hours of training.  It involves very detailed attention to financial matters which is way out my wheelhouse.  I forget to eat lunch most days.  So like @Shelby, probably drinking more.  At least I have a job, a comfortable home and plenty of food.  All in all, grateful. And glad the tornado missed you @kayb.

[TicTac]

Faux pulled pork sandwiches (king oyster mushrooms and onion jam) with Korean swt pot fries and big-Mac’esque inspired sauce - I won’t eat their burgers but the sauce from what I recall as a kid - was great!

[heidih]

@blue_dolphin I noticed your beautiful Farmers Market strawberries in Breakfast. Is this similar to what your area is working out? https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2020-03-16/farmers-markets-allowed-to-continue-to-operate-in-la-county-coronavirus Since they take EBT (CalFresh) I see it as an important access for healthy produce  for those in economic need with quality  that may not be in grocery stores. My closest is on Sundays in a high school parking lot. The school had at least 1 positive case so I will call and check later in the week. It is a big space so they can properly spread out.

[blue_dolphin]

7 minutes ago, heidih said:

@blue_dolphin I noticed your beautiful Farmers Market strawberries in Breakfast. Is this similar to what your area is working out? https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2020-03-16/farmers-markets-allowed-to-continue-to-operate-in-la-county-coronavirus Since they take EBT (CalFresh) I see it as an important access for healthy produce  for those in economic need with quality  that may not be in grocery stores. My closest is on Sundays in a high school parking lot. The school had at least 1 positive case so I will call and check later in the week. It is a big space so they can properly spread out.

 

Yes, very similar here in Ventura County.  All the farmers markets are still open.  No sampling.  No displaying cut fruit. No feeling up all the produce - you touch it, you buy it!  You have to queue up (well separated) at a lot of the stands.  The market staff are quite committed to supporting the farmers and keeping the markets open as "essential." They've set up a lot of extra hand-washing stations, separated the stands and go around 'policing' the guidelines.  I do worry about some of the farmers who are in their 70s as it's a lot of exposure to people and cash handling, even taking precautions as they do.

[Alex]

25 minutes ago, heidih said:

@blue_dolphin I noticed your beautiful Farmers Market strawberries in Breakfast. Is this similar to what your area is working out? https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2020-03-16/farmers-markets-allowed-to-continue-to-operate-in-la-county-coronavirus Since they take EBT (CalFresh) I see it as an important access for healthy produce  for those in economic need with quality  that may not be in grocery stores. My closest is on Sundays in a high school parking lot. The school had at least 1 positive case so I will call and check later in the week. It is a big space so they can properly spread out.

 

This is from our biggest Farmers Market. Fortunately, at least for social distancing, from November through April the market is open only on Saturdays from 10 to 1. I was there this past Saturday at about 12:30 and there still were customers, although it was quieter than I remember from previous years. We'll see what happens come May 2, when it's scheduled to be open three days per week from 8 to 2.

 

Quote

At this time, we will proceed with our planned market days, including this Saturday, and hope to see you there. At this and future market days, we will be enforcing a strict no sampling policy and we also encourage patrons to limit the handling of any market products as much as possible. Additionally, we encourage all market patrons to follow safe social distancing and safe hygiene practices as recommended by the CDC. In order to facilitate safe social distancing, vendors will be located in the outdoor section of the market only.

 

[weinoo]

So, after dropping out of school those so many years ago, I decided to return for a go...

 

 

This is my first attempt.  Baked this morning, Forkish's overnight white, with 10% whole wheat flour. I do think I screwed up the hydration, because this dough was sticking to everything and was a pain in the ass to get into the hot-as-hell Dutch oven (which, @Anna N will be happy to know, survived).  

But it just goes to show how forgiving this stuff is.

 

And then, lunch today...

 

 

Corned beef tartines on said bread. Potato salad. Quick pickled cukes. Dr. Brown's!

[weinoo]

Speaking of which, and because I'm so busy  cooking, who makes their breads by starting in a non-preheated Dutch and regular oven?

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, weinoo said:

(which, @Anna N will be happy to know, survived).  

 One swallow does not a summer make. Keep doing it and you will ruin the pan for anything else. But I know that does not concern you. So enjoy your bread and your bread making. 

Edited March 30, 2020 by Anna N
The echo chamber problem (log)