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Whyte Wryter

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Location: St. Louis, MO, USA
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Mood: Delight

posted on 30-8-2009 at 06:01

Food food food!

That looks really weird written three times...

I couldn't decide where might be a good place to discuss food-related things...or talk to myself about food, which is good, too, because at least I'll remember some of this shit later on.

Apparently the "journal keeping" twitch isn't going away and if I can't talk about places I've driven to (boy, talk about ready-made journal material...), I find adventures in the kitchen lately have been fun.

And yes, I still fit into my new smaller size shorts; I just like exploring and talking about food and cooking, and I'll try anything once.

I'm re-posting that bit about the silicon squeezie-thingies because that's what started this!

Wracked with your charm/I am circled like prey
Back in the forest/Where whispers persuade
More sugar trails/More white lady laid
Than pillars of salt/Holding Sodom at bay...

---\"Nymphetamine,\" Cradle of Filth

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 30-8-2009 at 06:03

Random over-thoughtlessness...

I love kitchen multi-taskers, and I've found a great one! Silicon, floppy honeycomb-design potholders!

I can handle items (baked potato, butternut squash) and baking dishes over 400 degrees F.

I can use it as a stubborn pickle and jam jar opener! Arrrrrrghhh--*Pop!*

I can protect my table from hot dishes.

I can use it as a non-skid surface beneath my cutting board!

It's actually not bad as a squeezy squishy stress reliever because the texture is so nifty and it stretches and has a lot of give.

And now I've found it's great for reducing pressure-points on my peaches, mangoes, and nectarines while they ripen. Always hate that one bruised spot on my fruit from a hard kitchen counter... Next, avocados and pears!

Only unpleasant surprise I've found is that apparently cooking spray and silicon together create the most slippery of surfaces, second only to teflon...fwip! That was one hot muffin tin!

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51sB6Llh10L._SL500_AA280_.jpg

Still. I love the things. Well spent $7 per.

Whyte Wryter

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Location: St. Louis, MO, USA
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posted on 30-8-2009 at 06:27

As for today....! *looks at time* Er...yesterday...

It's a rare---okay, very rare---day where you get the same look of surprised and incredibly pleased feeding pleasure on the hubby's face twice in one day.

Finally made a dish I'd been eyeballing--which began when I was browsing the "international foods" aisle at the grocery store. Hmmmm...rice. How different can rice be, really?

Well, just between the Basmati rice and the Arborio rice...quite a bit apparently. Both imported; the former from India, the latter from Italy. I'll get to the Basmati rice some other time, but the Arborio rice had a few recipes on the back and one piqued the ol' tastebud's imagination.

They called it: Vigo risotto milanese. (and the stupid online translator calls that "vigo risotto from Milan"---thanks a bunch! Must be like pizza...pizza is pizza is pizza...)

Had to skip the saffron because that shit's expensive and hard for me to get hold of in Missouri. But other than that!
Ultra-simplified, it's sauteed minced onion, white wine, and raw rice heated in butter then chicken broth slowly added a bit at a time (as it absorbs) in a big sauce pan until you get cooked, creamy, very aromatic rice (takes a while--must be patient). Then while it's still hot, you add grated Parmesan cheese until it's....well really creamy cheesy goodness...And between the chicken broth, onion, butter, and cheese....oh my god, it's goooood.

Thank goodness I made the whole package like this, I'll have lunch for a couple work days easy.

Proudly sneak some under the hubby's nose and give him a taste just to watch his eyes bug out.

Not done with the kitchen, though...I was both delighted and weirded out by the fact that I could take an ordinary, inexpensive lemon poppy seed ready-made muffin mix (just add milk!) and...again, reading the recipes on the back....see that with a few modifications, that lemon poppy seed mix could make cookies instead of muffins. Remove most of the milk and replace with sugar and butter. Made incredibly easy dough, put on cookie sheet, bake, blah blah blah....

....except they were some of the best cookies I've ever had in my life.

Slightly crispy around the edges, soft and chewy thorough out, melt-in-the-mouth lemon-buttery flavor....*droooool* Made from a fucking mix!!! WTF! (My "from scratch" cookies are good--and a lot more work--- but now I'm sort of embarrassed!) I offered some to the hubby but he turned them down the first time (too full of vigo risotto). I ended up eating half the batch (6 of 12) before I *ahem* made myself unpleasantly full of rice and cookies...

However, it was hilarious later when the hubby came ambling into the kitchen for a snack and see him pause at the clear cookie jar with 6 lemon poppy seed cookies sitting oh-so-innocently (knew I only had to wait...). He takes one...tries it, gets that same look on his face from before (sort of an incredulous "You made this on planet Earth?" look) and mutters, "Oh my god that's goooood....is this all we have??" (pointing to the 5 remaining ones).

"Well...we had 12."

He gives me a look ("My wife the Sweethound....") and retrieves the rest of the cookies into his custody with a class of milk and sits down to eat with plenty of flattering "yummy" sounds and pleas to make more soon.

Made my night! Stupidly easy and really cheap....and I've got one more mix in the pantry for tomorrow! (Hey, I'm getting that other half of the cookie jar!

)

Good day in the kitchen.

John

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posted on 30-8-2009 at 08:47

So long as you are doing the cooking, you should still be able to fit into your new clothes. Since I took over the cooking at home, I have managed to lose a stone and not put it back on! It has to be said, though, cooking can be like jazz. Recipes are useful starting points, but improvising around them is where the true delight of cookery lies.

I have in my repertoire a number of recipes that may be adapted to a number of final dishes. Chief amongst them is my ragu. This forms the basis for many dishes: Italian, French, English, American and Indian!

A basic ragu is very simple. All you need is some onions, garlic, passata (sieved tomatoes by any other name), brown sugar, ketchup and vinegar (cider for preference, but wine spirit is almost as good).

Coat the bottom of your saucepan with a layer of olive oil and heat this up until it is just about to start smoking. It takes a bit of practice to work this out. Generally, if your pan explodes into flames then you have gone too far. Use the intervening time to chop the onions and garlic. The finer the better, but don't use a grater as the pungent oils will contaminate the grater for a long time. Real kitchen grognards don't mind the effects of all those onions.

Dump the lot in the hot oil and add a tablespoon of brown sugar. This kicks off the caramelisation of the onions, giving them that beautifully sweet, nutty flavour that I love. When the onions are transparent, turn down the heat and add the passata and mix thoroughly. While you are doing this, squirt in the ketchup. Why ketchup when I already have tomatoes and sugar? Because ketchup contains pectin, which is a gelling agent. This makes the ragu the perfect consistency. Yes, I could go looking for pectin in the bakery section, but it is hard to find these days as very few people make jam any more.

While the ragu simmers, stir in a teaspoon or two of cider vinegar. This tones own the sweetness from the sugars. Allow the ragu to simmer (not boil) until done to taste.

Along the way, depending on what you want, extra ingredients can be added to the ragu to transform it into a napolitana, bolognese, barbecue sauce, casserole stock or even masala. And the base recipe only takes me 20 minutes from start to finish.

A word of caution on your basmati rice. We use a lot of it because it is easy to get hold of in Derby (big Asian population here). You have to rinse the rice after cooking it because a lot of the starch comes out of it but collects on the surface of the rice. There are times that the bottom of the sink has been covered in a starch jelly. Other than that, basmati rice is one of the healthier options. Brown rice is best, but I cannot be arsed to boil it for long enough to get it soft enough to eat.

-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
Version: 3.1
GE/TW/O d++(-) s+:++ a C+ U P L+ E? W++ !N !o K? w+ O? M? V? PS++
PE- Y PGP- t* 5++ X+ R+++ tv+ b+++ DI++++ !D G+ e++ h---- r+++ y++++*
-----END GEEK CODE BLOCK-----

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 31-8-2009 at 01:45

Quote:

Originally posted by John
So long as you are doing the cooking, you should still be able to fit into your new clothes.

Thanks for the vote of confidence!

Quote:

Since I took over the cooking at home, I have managed to lose a stone and not put it back on!

Congrats!

There's that "stone" again...about 14 pounds/6.3 kg, right? ...that pretty impressive!

Quote:

It has to be said, though, cooking can be like jazz. Recipes are useful starting points, but improvising around them is where the true delight of cookery lies.

I do understand, my dear sir!

Quote:

A basic ragu is very simple. All you need is some onions, garlic, passata (sieved tomatoes by any other name), brown sugar, ketchup and vinegar (cider for preference, but wine spirit is almost as good).

Love cider vinegar...

Hmmm, ragu needs meat to be complete, though...or so I thought.

Tortellini....*drool*

Quote:

Coat the bottom of your saucepan with a layer of olive oil and heat this up until it is just about to start smoking. It takes a bit of practice to work this out. Generally, if your pan explodes into flames then you have gone too far.

ROFLOL! Oh yes, the fickle smoking point of olive oil.

I had to really, really, really control great bouts of laughter when a friend of mine tried searing a steak in extra virgin olive oil (trying to "cook healthy" but didn't do any research--cooking shows are really helpful if you don't have a good cook to learn from directly!). And she wondered why the steaks tasted funny.

My first questions was, "Which oil did you use?" (because I tasted broken oil compounds...yucky!)

Extra virgin is only meant for salad dressings--never to touch heat!

Regular olive oil is so good for you, though.

Just avoid the flames.

Quote:

Use the intervening time to chop the onions and garlic. The finer the better, but don't use a grater as the pungent oils will contaminate the grater for a long time. Real kitchen grognards don't mind the effects of all those onions.

Another word I had to look up..."grognards"???

You ol' timer, you!

Quote:

Dump the lot in the hot oil and add a tablespoon of brown sugar. This kicks off the caramelisation of the onions, giving them that beautifully sweet, nutty flavour that I love.

Talking my language. Have you ever been able to get your hands on "sweet" onions? (Vidalia, Georgia produces most of them in the US...funny enough it's because of a lower-than-normal amount of sulfur in the soil where they were growing them in the 1930s). Don't need brown sugar to caramelize those babies! *yum yum*

Quote:

When the onions are transparent, turn down the heat and add the passata and mix thoroughly. While you are doing this, squirt in the ketchup. Why ketchup when I already have tomatoes and sugar?

Precisely.

Quote:

Because ketchup contains pectin, which is a gelling agent. This makes the ragu the perfect consistency. Yes, I could go looking for pectin in the bakery section, but it is hard to find these days as very few people make jam any more.

*knicks Heinz ketchup bottle from fridge*.....well, great, now I've got to try how the British make ketchup!

No pectin in mine!

Fortunately...pectin is extraordinarily easy to get in any mega-mart in the US.

Quote:

While the ragu simmers, stir in a teaspoon or two of cider vinegar. This tones own the sweetness from the sugars.

Sounds like the reverse of my hubby's stellar Hot Wing sauce-- brown sugar added to tone down the heat of the pepper sauce but bring out the flavor.

Quote:

Allow the ragu to simmer (not boil) until done to taste.

Along the way, depending on what you want, extra ingredients can be added to the ragu to transform it into a napolitana, bolognese, barbecue sauce, casserole stock or even masala. And the base recipe only takes me 20 minutes from start to finish.

Kewl.

I love marsala. Gotta go buy some chicken, now...

Quote:

A word of caution on your basmati rice. We use a lot of it because it is easy to get hold of in Derby (big Asian population here). You have to rinse the rice after cooking it because a lot of the starch comes out of it but collects on the surface of the rice. There are times that the bottom of the sink has been covered in a starch jelly.

*hrrm?* ....funny enough the package says to rinse off excess starch *before* cooking---which made it holy hell to work with after the fact and messed up my "dry/fry" step (below), so I nixed that step the second time.

However, based on how my brother taught me to make just plain (but strangely addictive) Basmati rice, I haven't had a problem with starch. Starts similarly to your ragu:

Warm up chicken broth/water/whatever liquid will be used to steam the rice. Place desired amount of rice in pot, turn on heat med-high. Add enough regular olive oil to generously slather every rice grain in the pot; heat and stir until a particular "good/nutty/grainy" scent is in the air--and no I can't tell you how long it'll take or describe the scent any better than that.

This was one of those times where I was standing next to my brother as he was stirring and he said, "Smell it? THAT's the scent you're looking for."

Anyway...once the scent is right, add warm liquid (ratio about 2:1 for small/medium pots), add salt if desired, stir, and cover with tight lid. Turn down heat as low as it will possibly go: barely enough to keep it warm. Then leave it the hell alone for 35 minutes. Check/fluff; if ready, eat--- if not, reseal and check in 10 minutes.

....it's really good rice. Made this way, I'll eat it as is. Also makes a great bed for about any meat or sauce you want to pile on top.

I never had a problem with the starch, though...

Quote:

Other than that, basmati rice is one of the healthier options. Brown rice is best, but I cannot be arsed to boil it for long enough to get it soft enough to eat.

LOL, yeahhh...although some in my family feel the same about "Steel Cut Oats" (aka Irish Oats).

I love them, but they do take a while to even get to the chewy/edible state, never mind soft. I need to buy a crock pot; "set it and forget it". I could add the cream and fruit to it, too the previous night and breakfast would be ready in the morning.

Darn this limited counter and kitchen storage space!

John

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posted on 31-8-2009 at 19:09

Quote:

Originally posted by Whyte Wryter
Congrats!

There's that "stone" again...about 14 pounds/6.3 kg, right? ...that pretty impressive!

Indeed, 14 pounds exactly. It's been coming off at the rate of anywhere between 1/2 and 1 pound a month. Mind you, I think it will bottom out eventually

Quote:

Love cider vinegar...

Hmmm, ragu needs meat to be complete, though...or so I thought.

Tortellini....*drool*

Yes it does. Strictly speaking I make the basis for a soffrite. However, as most of my meals include meat (and all those that use this sauce), I prefer to think of it as a ragu. It's als easier to pronounce

Quote:

Have you ever been able to get your hands on "sweet" onions? (Vidalia, Georgia produces most of them in the US...funny enough it's because of a lower-than-normal amount of sulfur in the soil where they were growing them in the 1930s). Don't need brown sugar to caramelize those babies! *yum yum*

Sounds good. I don't think I've ever seen them in this country. Most places have French, Spanish and red onions. Red onions are less pungent that either of those, and I prefer to use them when I can. They are also reasonably edible when raw. Slice very fine and add rice vinegar ... mmm.

Quote:

*knicks Heinz ketchup bottle from fridge*.....well, great, now I've got to try how the British make ketchup!

No pectin in mine!

Fortunately...pectin is extraordinarily easy to get in any mega-mart in the US.

I remember trying Heinz in Pittsburgh last year. It was a different experience. Not as thick, but definitely different. I was also astonished to find out the steak sauce is exactly the same as HP sauce.

Quote:

While the ragu simmers, stir in a teaspoon or two of cider vinegar. This tones own the sweetness from the sugars.

Sounds like the reverse of my hubby's stellar Hot Wing sauce-- brown sugar added to tone down the heat of the pepper sauce but bring out the flavor.

I've found it does that in my curries. We still have bitter disagreements in our house over the spice that should go in them. Mum thinks I like my curries too hot. My daughter and I think she likes curries too mild. Thank goodness for mango chutney and raita.

Quote:

Sounds good. I sometimes use a stock cube if I feel like pushing the boat out. Chicken stock is something we only sometimes have to hand. I like to make my own from a chicken carcass - and we rarely have a whole chicken. And I'm not too fond of the pre-prepared stock. Usually there are too many spices in it.

Quote:

LOL, yeahhh...although some in my family feel the same about "Steel Cut Oats" (aka Irish Oats).

Steel-cut oats (or "pinhead oats" as my mother would call them) are the only way to prepare porridge. Do them in a mixture of half-water, half-milk overnight and they are marvellous. They were the perfect start to a cold morning. Just add salt to flavour. The number of times I've watched my colleagues being ridiculed in Scots guesthouses because they either go for the cold cereal or add milk and sugar to their porridge ...

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 1-9-2009 at 03:10

Quote:

Originally posted by JohnIndeed, 14 pounds exactly. It's been coming off at the rate of anywhere between 1/2 and 1 pound a month. Mind you, I think it will bottom out eventually

'Saright, no worries.

That's about how mine came off (and bottomed out after 2 years) after the initial five-in-two-weeks-drop...I think...I wasn't weighing myself (don't own a scale) nor was I thinking about it...I was just doing other stuff. Then I noticed at some point the clothes didn't fit anymore.

Two sizes down when I finally went to a store to get re-fitted. Happy with that, I'll keep it, cuz I can't afford to replace my closet again.

Quote:

I prefer to think of it as a ragu. It's also easier to pronounce

lol!

Quote:

Rice vinegar...there's something I've been wanted to try.

*scratches chin* Hmmm....would love to try those onions, see if they're that different or not... The ones in Syria were very white and pretty hot!

Quote:

I remember trying Heinz in Pittsburgh last year. It was a different experience. Not as thick, but definitely different.

Now I'm extra curious...

Quote:

I was also astonished to find out the steak sauce is exactly the same as HP sauce.

Ahm, "A1 Sauce," by any chance?

Top steak sauce for us (drool), though I do not recognize HP sauce. (Worchestershire sauce, though, yes--Lea&Perrins rules!)

Quote:

ROFL!

Now curries are one of those things that I haven't acquired a taste for yet. But...mmmm, mango.... We got a nice crop from Mexico in my grocery store recently...I ended up buying five of them and peeling them like a cucumber and eating them all right off the pits within a week. The most sensual and perfumey of fruits! :cool:

Quote:

*nods* Have never made my own stock but I have a killer tv show that instructs me how if I want to!

Quote:

And I'm not too fond of the pre-prepared stock. Usually there are too many spices in it.

Really?!

Bleh....happily, I can get pre-packaged stock with little more than a touch of salt in it (and that comes in "reduced sodium" variety). Very bland stuff; ingredients list says: Chicken stock, salt.

I use it all the time. Extraordinary for steaming rice...

Quote:

Steel-cut oats (or "pinhead oats" as my mother would call them)

*points* YES! That was the other name I was trying to remember.

Quote:

are the only way to prepare porridge. Do them in a mixture of half-water, half-milk overnight and they are marvellous.

"Do them", how?

In a crock pot like I mentioned, or somehow else?

Quote:

They were the perfect start to a cold morning. Just add salt to flavour.

*rubs has with glee* Winter's a-comin'...

Quote:

The number of times I've watched my colleagues being ridiculed in Scots guesthouses because they either go for the cold cereal or add milk and sugar to their porridge ...

*whistles innocently*...well, I do like my sugar addiction, although I've grown more fond of dark (darker the better) brown sugar or honey rather than white sugar...but I can also appreciate porridge as a less sweet dish.

....I'm really regretting both having consumed all of and not being able to get my hands on some tropical Florida honey right about now... Darkest of ambers and a slightly bitter aftertaste that makes it really good in tea and hot cereal... That was one of the best things about living on the Gulf of Mexico--all the local honey! Having grown up on just the blandest of clover honeys, you'd not think honey had so many distinct personalities!

....I have a thought to attempt baklava sometime soon, now that I've finally seen it demonstrated. Hmmm, need pistachios, walnuts, filo, honey...

I'll have to consider a "botch" or two to add here later...

Obviously not everything you attempt comes out right...

John

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posted on 1-9-2009 at 19:04

Quote:

Originally posted by Whyte Wryter
Rice vinegar...there's something I've been wanted to try.

*scratches chin* Hmmm....would love to try those onions, see if they're that different or not... The ones in Syria were very white and pretty hot!

Rice vinegar is good for making sashimi. Cold rice soaked in rice vinegar is the basic ingredient; add veggie slices, meat and egg as required. The vinegar does have a slight smell, but the taste is very clean and sharp. It goes well with california rolls and wasabi.

Quote:

I remember trying Heinz in Pittsburgh last year. It was a different experience. Not as thick, but definitely different.

Now I'm extra curious...

The taste was less spicy. UK ketchup can definitely result in the "mouth surfing" tingle, while the US stuff was milder. I could taste more of the food through it. Also, when mixed with scrambled egg patties (there's strange to me), the result was less glutinous than I'm used to. Considering Pittsburgh is meant to be the home of Heinz (even the roadsigns have the Heinz label on them), I'm assuming it was the genuine article.

Quote:

I was also astonished to find out the steak sauce is exactly the same as HP sauce.

Ahm, "A1 Sauce," by any chance?

Top steak sauce for us (drool), though I do not recognize HP sauce. (Worchestershire sauce, though, yes--Lea&Perrins rules!)

No idea. It was an own-brand in a chain called "The 99". The bottle said "Steak Sauce". That is all I know. Except that when put on chips/fries and beans it was the same colour, texture and taste as HP Sauce:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP_Sauce

And yes, L&P is the good stuff. Accept no substitute. The modern equivalent of garum, and an essential ingredient in my cooking. There is a reason why we call it Chemical X in our house.

Quote:

Steel-cut oats (or "pinhead oats" as my mother would call them)

*points* YES! That was the other name I was trying to remember.

Quote:

are the only way to prepare porridge. Do them in a mixture of half-water, half-milk overnight and they are marvellous.

"Do them", how?

In a crock pot like I mentioned, or somehow else?

Definitely. An electric crockpot (or slow cooker) is the best way to cook porridge. Careful, though. You need to get the mixture right or you end up with something that resembles rubber more than a hot oat breakfast.

Quote:

I'll have to consider a "botch" or two to add here later...

Obviously not everything you attempt comes out right...

If you can eat it, it's not a total failure

The Silent

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posted on 1-9-2009 at 23:14

Just wanted to say, I am enjoying the food conversation, its a bit like watching a cooking show but in internet forum form.

I don't have much to add at the moment, except the difference between ketchup in the US and elsewhere probably has to do with the use of corn syrup and/or high fructose corn syrup as a sweetener and thickner. Corn is used as an additive to almost everything in the US but rarely used outside. My guess is that is why pectin is used in the UK and would account for some of the taste differences too.

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John

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posted on 2-9-2009 at 22:32

Quote:

Originally posted by The Silent
I don't have much to add at the moment, except the difference between ketchup in the US and elsewhere probably has to do with the use of corn syrup and/or high fructose corn syrup as a sweetener and thickner. Corn is used as an additive to almost everything in the US but rarely used outside. My guess is that is why pectin is used in the UK and would account for some of the taste differences too.

That would account for a lot of the difference.

Curiously enough I only found out about the use of corn syrup in the US in a discussion on (of all things) kosher Coke. It seems that during Passover, Coke that uses corn syrup is not allowed. So, if you are an orthodox Jew and wish to keep kosher during Passover, you cannot drink non-diet Coke made in the US.

The Silent

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posted on 3-9-2009 at 17:26

I am not a fan of Coke in general, but the excitement of Kosher Coke goes beyond just orthodox Jews. I know many people who prefer soda with real sugar rather than corn syrup and get excited when the Kosher Coke comes out.

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Whyte Wryter

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posted on 4-9-2009 at 04:17

Ha!

Never heard of Kosher Coke, but I know that during the summer when "retro" Mountain Dew was out in "limited supply", my hubby was thrilled. They used the old logo from the 1970's (the last time they used cane sugar rather than corn syrup), and it was made with sugar. He definitely preferred it.

Part nostalgia on his part, but I tasted it (don't drink much soda at all, but was curious) and I could actually tell a difference, and it was a good one. It actually doesn't taste as sweet and doesn't cling to/coat your throat as much.

(Why I stopped drinking Hawaiian Punch years ago--tasted very fruity but was sickeningly sweet and it would thicken the mucous in my throat so bad I had uncomfortable frets of not being able to breathe if I took a nap soon after.

Alas, it was just a tease. They went back to corn syrup after about six weeks.

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posted on 4-9-2009 at 21:57

And then you get the really cheap pop that is made with sugar, saccharine and aspartame. So, not only does it have a horrible aftertaste and leave your mouth feeling like it has been cleaned with a cotton wool pad, you also have to worry about the sugar rush!

What is up with this stuff? Give me good, old-fashioned C&C lemonade and Club Orange. No aspartame. No saccharine. Made with spring water and real fruit bits.

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 9-9-2009 at 00:20

Huh, you call it "pop"....

What I grew up saying in the Rockies. Then other areas of the country looked at me funny (thinking I was talking about a lollipop/sucker), and insisted it was "soda". *shrug* Soda pop...

Oo, oo! Had something kind of nifty cross my path (literally) here about 30 minutes ago--just got off work.

I can make it fit in this journal here by saying, yes, I've eaten frog legs.

Chinese restaurant; more slimy and gamey-tasting than chicken but somewhat related...fried froggy...

I like froggies, actually.

And turtles. I've been known to pull my car over to the side of the road, get out, and pick up a turtle crossing the road and put it tenderly in the grass, save it half the trip in crossing (because I only saw a car-crushed turtle once and I never want to see it again!)

So, meet Froggie whom I almost stepped on coming home from work.

He (er...she?) hopped beneath my motorcycle and stayed there very cooperatively to be photographed.

Whyte Wryter has attached this image:
Froggie and the Bike.jpg - 184.5kb

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 9-9-2009 at 00:21

Closer...

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Whyte Wryter

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posted on 9-9-2009 at 00:22

Last one...

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mum

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posted on 9-9-2009 at 07:28

Ok. That was a scary moment
I scrolled down the FOOD FOOD FOOD to discover pictures of a very live and cute looking toad! (Looks a bit dry for a frog, but I could be wrong

That last image deserves a photo shop...

The day job - http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PgX9SMwpNDY
do me a favour and watch it.

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posted on 9-9-2009 at 07:40

Blissfully unaware of their fate, the people from the cruise ship explore the Giants causeway,
ignorant of the fact that today is feeding time for the Great North Atlantic Sea Toad.

Meanwhile the locals stay on the cliff tops and wait...

mum has attached this image:
Frogattack.jpg - 96.18kb

The day job - http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PgX9SMwpNDY
do me a favour and watch it.

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 9-9-2009 at 13:02

ROFLOL!

...oh god....*hehehe!*.... Thanks great.

And yeah, after I posted last night (and was starting to get tired and delirious in my chair), I reflected it probably was a toad; pudgy and cute (amphibian at least!). I suppose I was just thrilled I got a picture this time.

Last week, just before the sky was about to open-up into a real (*ahem*) "frog-strangler" (you know, one of those hot, humid, pre-order, air-is-full-of-electricity doom evenings), I got home very late from work and there was a frog (and actual, tiny, slippery frog) hanging out by our front door preparing to ride out the storm somewhat above the rising water level. Alas...that little guy wouldn't pose for pictures.

I did almost nab him though (Glee! Very slick skin...)....and yes, I know that's silly: a grown woman in her work clothes getting distracted and trying to capture a fidgety froggie....but yah know, dignity can take a night off now and then. Just one of those "inner biologist must touch!" moments. (Gary Larson once described it, I certainly felt kinship!)

Managed not to try to grab "toadie" here, though...since he was posing so prettily and letting me get so close as to practically be able to flick out his tongue and hit the camera lens... Very stalwart fellow.

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 16-9-2009 at 14:33

Just frozen pizza last night...(although it was pretty good; chicken, tomatoes, red peppers, and spinach).

It was a "sometimes I really hate people" night and the morale was low in the kitchen.

Hubby discovered an somewhat unexpected, unpleasant side to being the network administrator for the computers at one of his clients; a non-profit organization that's supposed to be a safe/educational center for some of St. Louis's inner city kids.

He had to bring home ("confiscate") three of their computers last night that were discovered to have porn on them (great...these are business computers only employees use) and determine 1) times and dates so they could figure out who was working then and who'd been looking at porn on work computers (because they don't know right now), and 2) (much more disturbingly) determine if he would testify in court, in his professional opinion, if any of it was child porn.

General reaction of pretty much everyone because the lawyers are already appraised to try to protect the organization: ".....well, shit."

Tough to realize they might have a pedophile among them. And my poor hubby had to look through it as well as do his forensics (for lack of a better term). No wonder he couldn't sleep well last night...

I hope the organization doesn't get crucified; but then, that's why they took the initiative to ask my husband to do this for them. *depressed sigh*

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posted on 17-9-2009 at 09:45

Quote:

Originally posted by mum
Ok. That was a scary moment
I scrolled down the FOOD FOOD FOOD to discover pictures of a very live and cute looking toad! (Looks a bit dry for a frog, but I could be wrong

Why? Never had frogs before? They taste like chicken ... hmmm.

Toads are not very edible though (and some are poisenous), but there is a rather disturbing survival technique in which you use them as fresh water supplies (toads can store water in their body and you can actually suck it out without killing the toad).

"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat.
"I don’t much care where ..." said Alice.
"Then it doesn’t matter which way you go," said the Cat.
"... so long as I get somewhere," Alice added as an explanation.
"Oh, you’re sure to do that," said the Cat, "if you only walk long enough."

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 18-9-2009 at 04:21

Quote:

Originally posted by Sincos
Why? Never had frogs before? They taste like chicken ... hmmm.

Ohh, I dunno. The frog legs I had tasted more like fried, slimy lizard-chicken. But maybe they weren't prepared very well, it was a Chinese buffet...

And yes, I do have a comparison for lizard.

Tried a bite fire-roasted in the Outback years ago. It was an Aboriginee-tourist thing. Squeamish bunch (including my grandparents); they wouldn't touch anything that the hunters/gatherers survived on for 40,000 years. Meanwhile I was saying, "Yeah! Lemme try some of that!"

I liked a particular root that tasted just like carrot, though it was ghost white. And the grubs, when cooked, actually did taste like roasted chicken breast! I rather liked those.

Obviously it didn't kill me and they caught me hungry and ready for lunch....

That Aboriginee tribe might still have a sample of my hair...(only one among the tourists with hair long enough to be woven into their "never-ending visitors" keepsake. It was pretty cool.

)

Quote:

Daammnn.....I didn't know that. If I'm looking for water in an arid place, I'll probably go for the cacti first (provided I have some tools), but toads...

Would you happen to know how to do it, or is it theory at this point?

*curious*

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 18-9-2009 at 04:33

As for food today...

I'll go on record just saying I Love Manzanilla Olives stuffed with Pimentos.

aka, Spanish Olives, usually what we put in our martinis over here. I eat those things right out of the jar. *yum*

We at work were also treated by management to some delicious beignets today from Cafe Ventana!

Beignet: fried bread rolled in powdered (aka confectioner) sugar. Sometimes called a French Donut. They are on the menu of every Cajun restaurant in the States.

I had the pleasure of having some wonderful beignets at La Cafe du Monde in the French Quarter of New Orleans, pre-Hurricane Katrina, and those are definitely the best ones I've ever had (not to mention the atmosphere!).

But these today were definitely a trip down memory lane.

So good...

And riding right on that feel-good-high was a very nice treat that only fits into the "food" category as Eye-Candy. We had a customer that all my male coworkers (and myself) remember from the super-busy time a few weeks ago come into the store. 5,000 students or more pass through the store in two weeks and we remember this one.

I return from the back room still licking powdered sugar off my fingers when one of our two (known) Netherlands students comes to the desk and asks me to giftwrap a present she bought for a friend (complimentary service if they buy the gift at our store).

....okay, as gorgeous blondes with exotic dialects go, she was certainly a pick-me-up. And of course I wrapped her gift for her.

Whyte Wryter

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posted on 27-9-2009 at 02:41

Cornmeal Mush to frugal people and the elderly without teeth.

Polenta to the "young urban professionals" who pay three times as much for it "pre-boiled" and wrapped in plastic...

I never once in my life got around to making simple cornmeal mush until tonight. As for why: It was the annual pre-winter (or pre-spring or pre-whenever I have a thought to do it) "Let's see what I've got in the back of my pantry that is either too old or I'm never going to eat it or I'd better use it up next" Weeding-Out Party. It wasn't too bad, really, very little waste, but I pulled out some stuff that was just taking up space (we didn't like it; we were never going to eat it) and I now have better organized cabinets.

It's a good feeling.

Things I used up today: sweet peas, french-cut green beans, cornmeal.
Things I have to figure something out for use quick: quick-rise yeast and canned pumpkin (besides a damned pumpkin pie!! Which is why I bought it in the first place....*sigh*)

As for the cornmeal...I'm tossing stuff out or setting it aside (big nesting instinct this weekend apparently...winter's coming!)

And I'm thinking:

A measly 1 and 1/4 cup of cornmeal in a big canister that is taking up too much room at the back. Not enough to make cornbread (which is what I normally use cornmeal for. That, and as little "ball bearings" to make homemade bread and pizza dough slide out of the oven much more easily), so what to do?

The canister offers cornmeal mush. Great, just boil it. Fine.

I grew up on "Cream of Wheat" (wheat mush), "Malt-o-Meal" (barley mush), and grits (hominey gritty mush). I'm fond of all of them as hot cereal, and apparently that tended my cravings well enough that corn never came into the picture.

Until today.

Warning: Cornmeal Mush can bubble and explode like molten lava unlike any hot cereal I've seen before.

Consider the cook injured and henceforth using the lid as a shield to stir the temperamental goop....

But after finally getting to eat it, I have to say I like the texture and I'm quite pleased (it's much cheaper to buy than Cream of Wheat and Malt-o-Meal and has almost exactly the same texture and flavor as the wheat. Also more B vitamins.)

The canister said, "Add salt and pepper and butter for a savory treat"; okay. That's the polenta, the "Italian" corn mush that is sold for embarrassingly high prices to the snobby and ignorant. Pretty tasty as is; nice and simple.

It also said, "Add milk and syrup for breakfast." Mmmm....given I didn't want to mess with the texture I had (perfect), I skipped the milk, but decided to try the various syrups I had around the house (a bite each): real maple syrup from Vermont, a "flavored high fructose corn syrup" option called "Log Cabin", Smuckers "Blueberry syrup" (probably the least successful...yech), and some molasses-dominated "Stroop" from Amsterdam. Basically the cereal tasted like whatever syrup I used but I found out that I liked simple brown sugar better than any of the syrups.

Now I'm full of mush, and not all of it is in my head for once.

AJCrowley

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posted on 27-9-2009 at 07:57

somehow i don't see risotto being made with basmati rice.....

i have however, seen it done with Pudding Rice. not a good result.

anyhoo, Thai Green for us tonight, peppers, mushrooms, chicken, jasmine rice.... yums for teh noms.

http://d-wolf.net/linked/bars/images.php

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