eG Foodblog Tag Team IV: Marlene, Dave, snowangel - Cold Turkey, Three Ways

[snowangel]

Meant to mention that after dinner, when I needed to do something with my hands, I worked on this:

I have handwork projects lined up like you can't believe.

[Marlene]

I'm not feeling bitchy as much as I am feeling "off balance" for lack of a better word. Like something's just not quite "right".

Tomorrow is another day and I'm going to catch up on my sleep. Everyone's various quitting stories have been really really helpful for me today!

[lesfen]

Good job guys! As cliche as it sounds, it really is one day at a time. One day soon you're gonna notice that you're not "hacking" anymore. Then you're going to notice a lack of sensation in your chest when you inhale deeply. You'll sleep better. You'll wake up refreshed. It's so worth it. Keep up the good work and look forward to good health. Kick ass.

[rjwong]

I'm impressed with that "Tag Team Asparagus" recipe for Marlene!!

I never smoked. Mind you, I grew up with a father, who smoked quite regularly until the early 1980's, until he had his heart bypass. ever since , he never smoked again..

You guys are doing great! I'll be checking in, along with everybody else ...

Do you need a prime rib dinner to help you along?

[snowangel]

I'm not feeling bitchy as much as I am feeling "off balance" for lack of a better word.  Like something's just not quite "right". 

Tomorrow is another day and I'm going to catch up on my sleep.  Everyone's various quitting stories have been really really helpful for me today!

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Absolutely. Dinner was lovely, but...food just doesn't seem right. I needed lots of lime and hot stuff. I think Linda mentioned up thread about spicy. She's right.

But, I did get the dishtowel done:

.

Now, before I blow a gasket, I need advice on photo taking. The towel really is white.

I'm off to bed with a cookbook. To sleep, perhaps (not to) dream.

Shit. It's trash night. Gotta get the recycling and trash out. Crabby moment. Forgive me. Trash and recycling out, sleep, and perhaps I will get my sea legs.

[Dave the Cook]

I'm not sure if it's simply replacing one obsession with another, but I find myself with an embarrasingly detailed photo account of a very simple dinner. Like the short temper of a recently reformed addcit, you'll just have to endure it.

First was cocktail hour:

Applecart

2 ounces Laird's applejack

1 ounce triple sec

0.75 ounce lemon juice, plus lemon carcass

mixture of 2 parts sugar to 1 part cinnamon

thin apple wedge

Rub the lemon carcass around the rim of a cocktail glass. Roll the rim in the sugar-cinnamon mixture. Put the glass in the freezer to chill.

Dip the fine edge of the apple wedge in the sugar-cinnamon mixture, so you get a thin stripe. Set aside while you mix the drink.

Combine the applejack, triple sec and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker and shake. Strain into the chilled glass. Garnish with the apple slice.

Unfortunately, the camera corrupted the picture, but one glistening brown cocktail looks pretty much like another. The garnish is cool, though.

Since I didn't get home until a little after 1900, I started dinner while we talked and sipped. The menu was:

- pot-roast sandwiches with beef-horseradish mayonnaise

- deep-fried red potatoes

- kale in smoked pork stock

First, the beef. This was leftover from Monday dinner. Braised chuck straight from the refrigerator isn't all that appetizing, and frankly, not as tasty or toothsome as it could be:

We can fix this. Luckily, I had a decent amount of liquid left from the braise (the roast had been simmered in beef stock, reduced Worcestershire, trinity, garlic, thyme and bay. Oh, and a little browned tomato paste):

I melted it in the microwave. A bit was ladled over the (trimmed) beef slices and set to warm:

The rest was reduced for the mayonnaise (recipe here; I made about a 1/3-sized batch).

The rest is pretty straighforward. Prep the potatoes -- meaning quarter some small reds:

As you can see, these have some age on them. When deep frying high-moisture potatoes, older is better. They go into what I call the small-batch fryer (the large-batch version is a big pot) at 350F for seven minutes:

Salt them, and keep warm. There's no real crispness to them, so it's not a big deal to do them early in the final prep sequence. There are two big advantages to these, though. First, they're really easy (and go well dipped in the mayo). Second, the quick cooking brings out a sweetness that I don't seem to be able to raise with any other treatment.

I didn't have any smoked pork stock -- the last of that was gone by Christmas -- so I simmered the trimmed kale in a quart of chicken stock seasoned with two slices of bacon and a good shot of Tabasco sauce.

Assemble the sandwich: mayo, with some horseradish stirred in, on toasted rolls (my toaster isn't as cool as Marlene's, but it does have a "bagel" setting that lets you toast only one side). These are "French hamburger rolls" from Publix, a regional chain. It's the best bread their bakery puts out.

Leaf lettuce and tomato (carefully tended "on the vine" types, also from Publix):

Dinner:

[snowangel]

Dave, your sandwiches look great, but would have looked better with Bacon

[Abra]

You guys are very brave to do this in public, and all deserve a gold star for today. The fact that you're inspiring others to join you is already such a cool thing. Hang in there!

[maggiethecat]

Creepy, Dave. I had that dinner, almost exactly, last night but with b sprouts instead of kale. Yours is prettier, tho.

You and Marlene and Susan have been inspirational today. Good night, dear people and sweet dreams.

[Lady T]

*Invokes blessings on all smokers quitting here*

Persevere. It's worth it. It's worth not stinking. It's worth the renewal of your palates alone; the next solid, structured red wine you sip will knock you halfway across the room.

Maggie: I've got a bottle of big honkin' Chilean red that says you can do this. PM me to collect.

[ruthcooks]

I have to tell my smoking stories, too. I started as a freshman in college and continued through the first couple of years of my marriage. My ex got a cold and ended up quitting, and pronounced (he was quite the controller) that if he quit, I could too. One day I realized that I only cared about smoking when I was playing bridge, and that he continued to smoke the occasional cigar. When I pointed this out to him, he realized the wisdom of my argument--and quit smoking cigars! He made life miserable until I quit around age 22 or 23.

Fast forward through several decades of smoldering resentment on this subject, to 1990 when we separated. I pulled the most stupid "I'll show him" revenge by starting to smoke again. He didn't give a damn, he was GONE. I smoked on and off for about 5 years until I just quit, like so many others have described. Nasty, nasty habit, which I don't tolerate for a minute now.

I've always thought there was a correlation between smokers and people who didn't eat dessert. Perhaps they just couldn't wait for that cigarette and substituted it for dessert. Maybe Marlene and snowangel will now turn into sugar freaks. (I don't know Dave's view toward sweets.)

Good luck to the three of you, and to all the others who are now struggling.

[Pan]

Marlene, I'm very impressed that you're quitting smoking -- and eating vegetables! Likewise for Susan, Dave, Brooks, Maggie, and everyone else, but I personally witnessed Marlene smoking during her trip to New York and didn't even realize some of the rest of you smoked. I don't have a lot to add other than good vibes, but I do want to mention, especially for Dave's benefit, that I read an article within the last few months that stated that the results of a study showed that smokers who quit successfully took an average of five times trying to quit before they were able to quit for good. In fact, I have a friend who succeeded in quitting the fifth time she tried, and that was many years before I knew her, so both scientific and anecdotal evidence shows that having tried to quit numerous times is not a reason to believe you won't succeed this time.

Something else that might or might not be inspirational but could be interesting would be for you to have a look at the "Everybody Loves a Quitter" public service announcements that have been up in the New York subways for the last couple of years or so. I've never been a smoker (I cough too readily and, as a flutist, I'm also too paranoid about breathing difficulties!), but I think these are among the more colorful ads in motion underground. Link to Everybody Loves A Quitter under "Media Campaigns" on the New York City Bureau of Tobacco Control page if you'd like to download a PDF showing three of the ads we subway riders have been looking at. There are more, and there are also Spanish-language ones, and I like 'em all.

[bleudauvergne]

My parents went cold turkey back in the day before nicorette and the likes, and what worked for my father to get over the hump were cinnamon sticks (not the candy). My mother said she felt great after quitting, and that her swimming workouts really added to the benefits. My mother says that 30 years after quitting she still craves one from time to time, and sometimes has 'smoking dreams'. She quit once and never went back though! Get your families involved!

Making this decision and sticking to it with the help of friends is going to do you all a world of good. I'm really proud that you're doing this.

The food looks great, y'all!

[Rachel Perlow]

Ryan's dessert will be one of these tonight.  I picked these up at Whole Foods yesterday (I really shouldn't shop when I'm hungry) even though I rarely eat dessert.

Chocolate Fudge Cupcake:

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So, that's why Jason wanted chocolate cupcakes last night!

[gini]

I'm not sure if it's simply replacing one obsession with another, but I find myself with an embarrasingly detailed photo account of a very simple dinner. Like the short temper of a recently reformed addcit, you'll just have to endure it.

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Dave - This actually reminds me of when I first quit - I started documenting in heavy detail my running workouts - temperature, pace, weather, pre-run and post-run weight. But hey - whatever works, right? If you need a detailed photo account of everything you eat, then do it! We'll just sit back and enjoy.

[jackal10]

Hockney on Smoking: http://www.forestonline.org/output/Page264.asp

"smoking is down, but Prozac use is up! Which is better?"

I really wish you luck on giving up.

However I think the anti-smoking lobby has gone too far. There are plenty of other things just as or more dangerous - diesel particulates, for example that society tolerates ("give up your gas guzzlers!"). I wish that the law allowed places where consenting adults could get a drink and a smoke. It mostly doesn't here.

I gave up some years ago, apart from the occasional (like once or twice a year) cigar or puff at a pipe and I still miss it everyday. It is a great pleasure. Personally I did not find giving up improved my taste, outlook, or even much affect on health - the weight gain probably cancelled any health effect. I don't want to live forever, especially with the infirmities and indignities of old age, Alzheimer's and the like, and I object to the government that tells me I must.

Maybe I should take up smoking my pipe again...

Edited February 2, 2006 by jackal10 (log)

[snowangel]

Good morning! I didn't sleep particularly well, but did get up earlier than normal and spent 20 minutes doing yoga, something that always puts me in a good mood. Reminder to self: I have missed my morning yoga routine.

Yoga was followed by three glasses of water, and now I'm laying into lots of hot, strong black coffee.

Not hungry yet. I think my lack of breakfasting early is a holdover from when I worked outside the house.

[Marlene]

Morning all. This morning was slippery slope moring and well, I slid. I confess, I had a cigarette this morning. I am weak. Well, onward and upward, I'm not giving up. On the other hand, I did sleep extremely well but woke up thinking about nothing but wanting to smoke.

Breakfast was a half a grapefruit and coffee. I forgot about early morning band practice and a meeting I have in a little while which means, my run will be put off until this afternoon.

I do have a lovely picture of my grapefruit but I shall have to wait until I get upstairs to my main computer to download it.

[Jason Perlow]

Get the patch! What's with this cold turkey craziness?

[MarketStEl]

Sheesh, Marlene, I am very pleased that things turned out the way that they did. No one , not even my worst enemy, should ever be forced to choke down converted rice. I'm glad that you are safe from harm now.

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Never having had a single bite of converted rice, I'd always wondered what happened during the conversion.

Now I guess I know. I also guess I should consider it an insult to the race that the leading brand of the stuff bears the image of a fictitious black "uncle."

But I still have one unanswered question: Are "converted" and "parboiled" rice identical?

[Dave the Cook]

Get the patch! What's with this cold turkey craziness?

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Nicotine is not the problem. Though it's an extremely powerful drug, the physical addiction is pretty weak. After all, smokers go through a five-to-eight hour withdrawal every night, and it doesn't wake them up. Compare that to heroin withdrawal, where the physical manifestation is severe. Having said that, I think you ought to use whatever works.

[Dave the Cook]

I also slept extremely well -- right through the alarm clock. As a result, nothing but coffee so far, and I'm so busy that smoking isn't an issue yet. The panic from having to rush through the morning routine, and hoping I can slip into my cubicle without anyone noticing my tardiness, has been plenty of stimulation.

[MarketStEl]

Hockney on Smoking: http://www.forestonline.org/output/Page264.asp

"smoking is down, but Prozac use is up! Which is better?"

I really wish you luck on giving up.

However I think the anti-smoking lobby has gone too far. There are plenty of other things just as or more dangerous - diesel particulates, for example that society tolerates ("give up your gas guzzlers!"). I wish that the law allowed places where consenting adults could get a drink and a smoke. It mostly doesn't here.

I gave up some years ago, apart from the occasional (like once or twice a year) cigar or puff at a pipe and I still miss it everyday. It is a great pleasure. Personally I did not find giving up improved my taste, outlook, or even much affect on health - the weight gain probably cancelled any health effect.  I don't want to live forever, especially with the infirmities and indignities of old age, Alzheimer's and the like, and I object to the government that tells me I must.

Maybe I should take up smoking my pipe again...

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This opens up a philsophical Pandora's box that I will keep shut, except to agree that it's one thing to say that you should quit smoking because it's good for your health and another to all but outlaw the use of a legal substance in public.

I see nothing wrong with individual businesses and companies choosing to adopt smoke-free environment policies, though. It's good for their employees' and patrons' health.

Frankly, I'm willing to risk Alzheimer's and all of the various indignities and infirmities that come with old age simply to enjoy the privilege of reaching it. And my chances of doing so are much greater with a pot belly than they are with destroyed lungs.

[daniellewiley]

Get the patch! What's with this cold turkey craziness?

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Nicotine is not the problem. Though it's an extremely powerful drug, the physical addiction is pretty weak. After all, smokers go through a five-to-eight hour withdrawal every night, and it doesn't wake them up. Compare that to heroin withdrawal, where the physical manifestation is severe. Having said that, I think you ought to use whatever works.

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and also, "the patch" doesn't sound as eGullet appropriate as "cold turkey"

[MelissaH]

Just wanted to let yunz know that I've been quietly sitting here in the cheering section, rooting you on.

I'll now go back to quietly sitting and observing.

MelissaH