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

[Marlene]

Like Dave, I find myself taking pictures of every step in the process. The least you folks can do is suffer along with us. The long awaited dinner finally got underway.

Various ingredients:

garlic, onion, red and yellow peppers

Sesame oil, ginger and soy sauce

Bean Sprouts!

plus the sirloin tips, some orange peppers and snow peas. And we're ready to cook.

Don gets the wok started with the sesame oil and does the garlic and onion first:

Then adds the beef and soy sauce

Then the various peppers:

and the snow peas. When that is all ready, he removes it from the wok and does the bean sprouts separately (by the way, Ive had that pepper mill for almost 30 years. My father gave it to me when I got my very first apartment during college. It's also really scary when you actually have memories from 30 years ago.)

Served with rice this is oh so very very good.

(and Susan, one of my very favourite snacks is shaved parmesan on triscuts. I'll try the prosciutto next time)

[patti]

Kudos to you all. I sit here in admiration, cheering you all on. I quit smoking many years ago, and I know how hard it is for you guys. Good luck, you're doing a wonderful thing for yourselves AND your families!

Oh, and the food ain't bad, either.

[Chris Amirault]

Wish me luck, everyone. I'm off on a seven-hour drive to Tampa. Marlene and Susan's meatfests have made me remember Bern's, which many people consider the best steakhouse in the country. If I behave myself on the drive down, maybe I'll treat myself.

See you later.

←

It's been more than seven hours. Am I the only one wondering whether or not Dave chose Marlboros over Bern's?

Fingers crossed.

[Marlene]

While I'm waiting for my partners to get back on line, how about Matt, Brooks and Maggie checking in?

Isn't this supposed to be easier by now?

[Susan in FL]

Marlene, beeee-utiful cooking of dinner (especially the bean sprouts ), and end result!

[easternsun]

I am a chiming in to say what a wonderful idea!

If I may add one suggestion: carry around cardamom pods in your pockets. I learned from an ayurvedic doc in India that they are great for quitting smoking. Just have a chew whenever you feel the urge to smoke.

Good luck!

Kira

[snowangel]

I've been absent, but I have had guests!

First, the turkey. It's been too long since I smoked some meat. It was 10 degrees (F) when I started. The chimney takes much longer to get going when it's cold. It was 45 minutes from iginition to ready to roll. BTW, I light my charcoal like a real woman. With a propane torch.

Now, I could have documented starting the chimney, but I didn't. But, as I do when smoking meat in the winter, as soon as I start the chimney, I put the meat outside.

45 minutes later, after doing the solo juggling act with removing the chimney, getting the drip pan on and filled with water, dumping the charcoal and adding some wood, the grate and the thermometer (an old fashioned oven thermometer, thank you very much), I gave it a minute to heat before I plopped the 9 pound breast (previously brined; not documented) onto my trust Weber Kettle grill.

For those in the smoking meat know, I know I should probably think about a Bullet, but since I have absolutely no trouble regulating the heat and keeping things to a bare 225 degrees (F), and since we grill quite often, I'm of the opinion that less is more.

Now this Kettle is old. We've had it almost as long as we've been married (just about 25 years). So, the top vent thing doesn't fit like it used to. The lid doesn't fit like it used to. Consequently, I can keep the lid on, all vents closed, and still get enough action, but not too much. If you look carefully, you can see wifts of smoke at the top of the lid and to the left side. It was hard to capture the wifts because it was so bright and sunny today.

I checked the temp many times, and added the periodic briquette or hickory chunck (I have some apple wood, but it is too fresh to use on the smoker), and at a certain point, I realized I had real estate on that grill going to waste and a mess of wings in the fridge, so...

I've never smoked wings before.

Anyway, because it was cold and breezy, the temp on the grill never got to the 250 point. I can't remember how long the meat was on, but I pulled the meat when the breast got to 149 degrees.

Brought it in

and tented it with foil. Had another bloody mary and the guests started to arrive.

More as soon as my camera charges and I get some photos up.

But, I smell of smoke, an alluring smell to the Mr. I love smoking meat. It is fiddly stuff. You have to tend to it, just like a baby, and the results are almost as rewarding.

[Chris Amirault]

Susan, you are my hero. As a result, I won't count how many times you used the word "smoke."

[mizducky]

Smoke turkey, not tobaccy!

Edited to add: Y'know, like the 1960s saying "Make love, not war" ... only sideways, sorta ...

Edited February 6, 2006 by mizducky (log)

[tejon]

I can almost smell that turkey breast! Now that's the kind of smoking we all should be doing

[snowangel]

Susan, you are my hero. As a result, I won't count how many times you used the word "smoke."

←

Now I feel really terrible. Not only did I smoke turkey, but also two cigarettes.

And, now I should explain something. I didn't clue my family in ahead of time, nor none of my friends. I came clean with them today, and Paul has agreed that whether he or not he quits during the day, there will be no more cigarettes in our house.

Ironically, my friend Nancy, who was over tonight, and with whom I shared the last two cigarettes I will ever have, also called Kristen (my dr. and her SIL) yesterday. Nancy has requested some help with this as well.

So, hopefully, tomorrow, my resolve will be such that I have had my last cigarette. It has to be.

What's so puzzling to me is that I so want to be rid of them. I can't find a reason to want to smoke. Yet, I keep falling. Sigh.

This is really, really hard. I do want to say, however, that the encouragement of all of you (and you have no idea of how many PM's I've gotten) are what's getting me through some of the tough moments. Keep the encouragement coming. It is also hard to blog and do this. Taking all of these photos, cropping, re-sizing, etc., all while trying to keep things together personally and at home are time consuming, so if you don't hear much from me tomorrow, please forgive me.

[Dana]

Susan in FL - the Burger King commercial was the most lame of all. We enjoyed nearly all the others, even laughing out loud at several. The Burger King one was just plain awful.

Keep you chins up, all you recent quitters!!! We're all rooting for you. It will be worth this pain when you live to see you great-grand children!!!!!

My Granny B, just passed at nearly age 93 with 18 surviving grands, 20 great grands and 18 great-great grands!!! We all should be so lucky.

That rib roast looked awsome, Marlene. Why do most of us keep that for holidays?

[Gifted Gourmet]

That rib roast looked awsome, Marlene. Why do most of us keep that for holidays?

←

Any day that I serve a rib roast in my house, is a holiday!

[snowangel]

Now to dinner. There were 7 adults and 9 kids.

The cocktail sauce is from a local place, and not that what seems like pasturized stuff. Nor does it have that hint of horseradish. It has grated horseradish. Plus some citrus. Very good stuff. The shrimp were good, too. Not mushy.

My mom made hummus and guac. She read in a Bittman column that if you put the avocado in with the guac, it won't turn brown. We found this to be very true. 3 hours later, what was left was still avocado green! The chips are Stacy's Pita Chips (the plain lightly salted ones) which I get in mongo bags at Costco for a pittance. They are very good. Not salty enough to satisfy the latest salt craving, but that's easily fixed with some salt on them.

Half of the breast, sliced. We also ate the other half. The carcass and some of the skin is in the freezer for some smokey stock. Smokey salt is a pantry staple in my household.

Nancy made some killer slaw with a bacony creamy dressing, bacon bits and sliced cuke and green pepper.

Buffalo wings. Lighter on the butter than Susan mentioned upthread for more of a punch. These were a big hit.

To satisfy the kids, we mixed some of the buffalo sauce with some honey. It was lacking. So, we added a couple of glugs of nam pla. Perfect.

Remember, we also had the smoked wings, which were wonderful. They were especially great with the blue cheese dip. I will smoke wings again. We actually preferred them to smoked thighs!

For the wings, we baked them, then had a drink, and tossed them with sauces and returned them to a 170 degree (F) oven until people were ready to eat. This was the way to go. The skin unflabbed from the sauce. The wings were perfect.

I also made some blue cheese stuff -- plopping some mayo, cream cheese and blue cheese into a bowl and whizzing them with my immersion blender. We did add a bit of Worchestershire sauce.

This is an embarrassingly blurry photo of the leftovers.

We had some beer and two rather non-descript bottles of wine that people had brought as gifts some time ago that we needed to get rid of. Neither of the wines were great, but the weren't offensive, either.

We had a wonderful evening. The kids shreaked over the football game, the women told stories of their kids' births, and no one wanted to go home, but tomorrow is a school day. Peter wonders why they have this game on a Sunday and not a Saturday.

I should add that the kids topped off the evening with ice cream and topping.

[Pan]

[...]This is really, really hard.  I do want to say, however, that the encouragement of all of you (and you have no idea of how many PM's I've gotten) are what's getting me through some of the tough moments.  Keep the encouragement coming.  It is also hard to blog and do this.  Taking all of these photos, cropping, re-sizing, etc., all while trying to keep things together personally and at home are time consuming, so if you don't hear much from me tomorrow, please forgive me.

←

Susan, do whatever you have to do. If you take time off, we'll still be here when you come back. It's often been said that it's harder to quit cigarettes than heroin, yet many people quit every year, so give yourself a break when you struggle, but remember that it's been done many times before, so it really can be done. (I have no idea how that came across, but I hope it helped.)

[MarketStEl]

Is blue cheese dipping sauce just blue cheese, mayo and sour cream?  Some garlic?  Worchestershire sauce?

←

My blue cheese dip recipe--which produces a huge amount of smooth, not chunky, dip, not sauce--is as follows:

1 pint sour cream

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened

1/2 pound blue cheese, room temperature, crumbled

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Pulse with immersion blender to further break down blue cheese chunks. After blue cheese has been reduced to fine particles, run blender steadily in a series of 1-2 minute bursts to thoroughly mix ingredients.

If you find the consistency too thick, you may thin it with 1/4 to 1/2 cup milk, added slowly until desired thickness is reached.

Optional add-ins include onion powder (up to 2 teaspoons) or garlic powder (up to 1 teaspoon).

Killing a few other birds:

--Dave: I usually do bacon on a rack in an oven roasting pan as well--it's the best way to produce a large quantity of crisp bacon. As I often make biscuits at the same time, I usually cook my bacon at 400F for 10 to 15 minutes, turning once.

--I usually bake my buffalo wings rather than fry them, so they're a little less crunchy, but I find that if you cook them at 375F for about 45 minutes, drain the fat and juices, then turn them over and cook for 15 minutes more, you get acceptably crispy wings. The wings I made tonight were coated with Old Bay prior to baking, then tossed in wing sauce.

--Marlene: You should try the Gates' Barbecue Sauce recipe that was featured on "From Martha's Kitchen" a couple of years ago. I don't know if this recipe is still up on the Food Network web site. As it's Ollie Gates', not mine, I don't feel comfortable posting it to ImageGullet, but if you all can convince me I'm being overly fastidious about this, I may add it.

[snowangel]

[...]This is really, really hard.  I do want to say, however, that the encouragement of all of you (and you have no idea of how many PM's I've gotten) are what's getting me through some of the tough moments.  Keep the encouragement coming.  It is also hard to blog and do this.  Taking all of these photos, cropping, re-sizing, etc., all while trying to keep things together personally and at home are time consuming, so if you don't hear much from me tomorrow, please forgive me.

←

Susan, do whatever you have to do. If you take time off, we'll still be here when you come back. It's often been said that it's harder to quit cigarettes than heroin, yet many people quit every year, so give yourself a break when you struggle, but remember that it's been done many times before, so it really can be done. (I have no idea how that came across, but I hope it helped.)

←

Thanks, Pan, for the kind words.

I think one of my big mistakes was not going public in advance with friends and family. I figured it would be easier without them "bugging" me, not realizing that they would be a terrific support for me.

Actually, you will hear from me tomorrow. I am meeting a friend at a very nice place for lunch and treating myself! But, be warned, you just might see leftovers on my table tomorrow night!

[snowangel]

Sandy, I think what made these wings so great was that I baked them, like you said, and then dressed them. Then, I returned them to a very low oven (170) for some time (not sure how long; we were drinking!), so that the sauce sort of lost some of it's liquid, rendering the wings still somewhat crispy without the flab that's often associated with dressed wings.

And, yes to baked bacon. Minimal tending and no grease to clean on the stovetop. Just run the oven clean cycle!

[Kouign Aman]

I think you guys are doing really well. I'm impressed.

When you stumble, and start the self-beatings, have you stopped to consider how many cigarrettes you haven't smoked this week? Every one skipped is a victory. Please remember to celebrate the victories!

Wishing you all luck for Monday.

[mizducky]

This is really, really hard.  I do want to say, however, that the encouragement of all of you (and you have no idea of how many PM's I've gotten) are what's getting me through some of the tough moments.  Keep the encouragement coming.  It is also hard to blog and do this.  Taking all of these photos, cropping, re-sizing, etc., all while trying to keep things together personally and at home are time consuming, so if you don't hear much from me tomorrow, please forgive me.

←

No apologies needed, dear. Just keep breathing, and asking for help. You're doing great.

If it helps any, think of it this way: you may not be 100% stopped, but you're certainly smoking a helluva lot fewer cigarettes than is your norm. And you're getting closer to that 100%.

I am failing to recall which modern spiritual pundit said this--I want to say Thich Nhat Hanh--but the teaching goes as follows: if one ceaselessly follows the North Star, one will never actually reach the star itself, but one will make great progress in a northerly direction.

HOWEVER! you can--and will, eventually--reach your North Star. Meanwhile, though, you are indeed making great progress in your chosen direction.

Okay--intermission from me being so damn serious ... those were some fabulous munchies you cooked up while you were busy smoking and working on not smoking yourself.

[rjwong]

Marlene, great Chinese dish there! My compliments to the cook (it was Don, ehh?)! For me, I hardly use bean sprouts. There's so many variations you can make. Omit the bean sprouts & the snow peas. Add an extra onion (sliced), one stalk of scallions (1/2 inch sections) and some Chinese chile paste or hot sauce (not much, just one teaspoon ... hehehe ...) for that "kung pao" flavor.

Susan, you told us the temp inside the Weber. What was the temp outside (yes I noticed the snow)?

Marlene, Susan, Dave, et al., In the event you need some "tough love" to get you through, let us know. If not, vee haf vays to findink out ...

"All you have to do is call, and we'll be there ... You've got a friend."

[Kamara Deon]

Please all of you, keep it up, you CAN do it. I quit smoking nine years ago on New Year's Day. It was the hardest thing I have ever done. Get the patch. At the time I quit there were different patches, the one I picked worked 24 hours so I didn't miss my morning cigarette. Stock up on nicotine gum for whenever are in a cigarette crisis, (after the patch). I only used the patch for one week cause at the time it was more expensive than cigs, and I in my infinate wisdom thought why waste the money (after smoking for 20 years!) It will not be easy, but it will be one of the most important things you do for yourselves. As long as you have made the commitment, don't go back on it now. Everyone you know will thank you in so many ways. Plus, remember, it really IS about loving yourself.

[Marlene]

I've got the patch. It takes the edge off but it isn' dealing with the mind part. I got a recommendation from a doctor for a hypnotist who I will call today. I figure at this point it can't hurt.

It's a school morning and it's really cold. Ryan makes his own breakfast and packs his own lunch on school days so all I have to do is sit here and drink coffee.

Leftovers will be on my table tonight as well, (yes Susan, you read that right) as I have a Council meeting tonight.

More after breakfast.

Chin up partner. It's incredibly hard to do this. Especially in front of a rather large audience. As for your pics, aren't you usintg Picasa? It cuts out several steps in the cropping and resizing area.

[Marlene]

[...]One thing this blog has confirmed is my suspicion that the Society has a disproportionately large proportion of smokers compared to the population at large. The connection between food and smoking is pretty strong, especially among professionals.[...]

←

Your reasoning is logical, Dave, but it's possible that lots of smokers and ex-smokers are attracted to this thread in particular. I'm not yet convinced that the proportion of smokers who are members here is actually greater than the proportion among the general population, though you may very well be right.

←

That's what I'm thinking Pan. I remarked to my husband that I never knew eG harboured so many closet smokers!

Is blue cheese dipping sauce just blue cheese, mayo and sour cream?  Some garlic?  Worchestershire sauce?

←

My blue cheese dip recipe--which produces a huge amount of smooth, not chunky, dip, not sauce--is as follows:

1 pint sour cream

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened

1/2 pound blue cheese, room temperature, crumbled

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Pulse with immersion blender to further break down blue cheese chunks. After blue cheese has been reduced to fine particles, run blender steadily in a series of 1-2 minute bursts to thoroughly mix ingredients.

If you find the consistency too thick, you may thin it with 1/4 to 1/2 cup milk, added slowly until desired thickness is reached.

Optional add-ins include onion powder (up to 2 teaspoons) or garlic powder (up to 1 teaspoon).

Killing a few other birds:

--Dave: I usually do bacon on a rack in an oven roasting pan as well--it's the best way to produce a large quantity of crisp bacon. As I often make biscuits at the same time, I usually cook my bacon at 400F for 10 to 15 minutes, turning once.

--I usually bake my buffalo wings rather than fry them, so they're a little less crunchy, but I find that if you cook them at 375F for about 45 minutes, drain the fat and juices, then turn them over and cook for 15 minutes more, you get acceptably crispy wings. The wings I made tonight were coated with Old Bay prior to baking, then tossed in wing sauce.

--Marlene: You should try the Gates' Barbecue Sauce recipe that was featured on "From Martha's Kitchen" a couple of years ago. I don't know if this recipe is still up on the Food Network web site. As it's Ollie Gates', not mine, I don't feel comfortable posting it to ImageGullet, but if you all can convince me I'm being overly fastidious about this, I may add it.

←

I'll look around and see if I can find it. The one I'm using is from Wolfgang Puck.

[...]This is really, really hard.  I do want to say, however, that the encouragement of all of you (and you have no idea of how many PM's I've gotten) are what's getting me through some of the tough moments.  Keep the encouragement coming.  It is also hard to blog and do this.  Taking all of these photos, cropping, re-sizing, etc., all while trying to keep things together personally and at home are time consuming, so if you don't hear much from me tomorrow, please forgive me.

←

Susan, do whatever you have to do. If you take time off, we'll still be here when you come back. It's often been said that it's harder to quit cigarettes than heroin, yet many people quit every year, so give yourself a break when you struggle, but remember that it's been done many times before, so it really can be done. (I have no idea how that came across, but I hope it helped.)

←

Thanks, Pan, for the kind words.

I think one of my big mistakes was not going public in advance with friends and family. I figured it would be easier without them "bugging" me, not realizing that they would be a terrific support for me.

Actually, you will hear from me tomorrow. I am meeting a friend at a very nice place for lunch and treating myself! But, be warned, you just might see leftovers on my table tomorrow night!

←

I'm finding the opposite. By telling everyone and anyone, I (maybe in my own mind) put myself under a lot of pressure. My mind does this perverse, stubborn thing sometimes. My friend, "waddayamean you had a cigarette. Aren't you supposed to be quitting?. Me. Shut up. .

Marlene, great Chinese dish there! My compliments to the cook (it was Don, ehh?)!  For me, I hardly use bean sprouts. There's so many variations you can make. Omit the bean sprouts & the snow peas. Add an extra onion (sliced), one stalk of scallions (1/2 inch sections) and some Chinese chile paste or hot sauce (not much, just one teaspoon ... hehehe ...) for that "kung pao" flavor.

Susan, you told us the temp inside the Weber. What was the temp outside (yes I noticed the snow)?

Marlene, Susan, Dave, et al., In the event you need some "tough love" to get you through, let us know. If not, vee haf vays to findink out ...  

"All you have to do is call, and we'll be there ... You've got a friend."

←

Russell, didn't she say the temp was 10F outside? And Don actually loves to cook. Quite often we prep together in the kitchen. This time of year though he doesn't have that much time, so it was a treat for him to take a break yesterday and take up the cooking utensils.

[snowangel]

I'm up and getting caffinated. More after the kids are off to school.

It's looking like a brighter day today!