Glibertarians.com 2019 Archive

Author: Tulip

  • Hot Dish!

    I can’t believe I have waited until now to talk about Minnesota’s state dish! Hot dish (or casserole for those unfortunate enough not to be from Minnesota) is a great canvas for experimentation. It’s easy, generally inexpensive, and good for weeks when you won’t have time to cook.

    Back in the day, I subscribed to The Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacycyzyn. In one issue, she presented a universal hot dish recipe.  This was the first time I learned about universal recipes. It was a revelation and changed the way I cook. Ever since, when I want to make something, I read lots of recipes and look for the commonalities, then make my own recipe.

    My version of a universal hot dish varies slightly from Dacycyzyn’s, and is as follows:

    Starch: pasta, rice, tater tots – usually cooked
    Aromatics: onions, garlic, celery – generally sauteed.
    Protein: usually ground meat or leftover meat, can also be beans
    Vegetables: additional veggies – usually cooked.
    Binder: often a ‘cream of’ soup like cream of mushroom or cream of celery, but you can make your own bechamel sauce or use canned tomatoes
    Topping: cheese,nuts, or potato chips. added to give the dish a little zing

    In general, the meat is browned (if not cooked leftovers) and mixed with everything but the topping. Put the mixture is put into a casserole pan, sprinkle the topping on it, and bake at 350 for about one hour.

    Universal recipes like this let you think about flavors you like and make a hot dish incorporating those flavors. For example, if you have leftover chicken, you could saute onions and garlic, add bell peppers as the additional vegetable and mix with pasta. Add basil and thyme and use canned tomatoes for the binder and top with Parmesan. It’s not chicken cacciatore, but it’ll be tasty.

    If you prefer TexMex flavors you could season ground beef with taco seasoning, saute onions with garlic and jalapenos. Use rice for the starch and add black beans and corn as additional vegetables. Top with crushed tortilla chips and cheese.

    I rarely make hot dish these days because I like to cook everyday (kitchen therapy) and I find it easier to control my portion sizes when I cook single meals. But at least once a year I make Wild Rice Hot Dish (the most Minnesota of hot dishes) and freeze portions for nights when I need comfort food.

    I live in an area where wild rice is considered exotic and is thus crazy expensive.

     

    On sale, they want $3 for a four oz package. Whenever I visit Minnesota, I seriously stock up.

     

    This package cost me about $7.

    I use wild rice as gifts for my book club or a neighbor that watches my cat occasionally. My brother is a college professor at St. Cloud State and has done the year abroad program several times. They take students to Alnwick, England (the professor apartment he uses is in the barbican of Alnwick castle which was used as Hogwarts in the first Harry Potter movie.) The students and professors bring wild rice to use as hostess gifts. And that’s how Alnwick became the wild rice capital of England.

     

    Feeling Minnesota Wild Rice Hot Dish

    4 C boiling water
    1 cup wild rice
    1 ½ pounds of ground beef – browned and drained.
    I medium onion, chopped
    1 cup chopped celery.
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
    1 can sliced water chestnuts, drained
    1 can cream of mushroom soup
    1 cup beef stock
    1 tsp salt,
    ¼ tsp garlic powder
    ¼ tsp onion powder
    ½ tsp paprika
    sliced almonds for the top

    Pour the boiling water over the rice and let sit for 15 minutes, drain. Saute the onion, garlic and celery until translucent, then add the mushrooms and saute until softened. Mix the beef, wild rice, and vegetables together and pour into a casserole. Sprinkle the almonds on top and bake at 350 for 1 ½ hours. Serves half an army.

  • Searching for Steve Smith

    Monster Hike is a book in the spirit of Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods and Cheryl Strayed’s Wild. As Avrel Seale approached 50, he decided he needed an adventure. A hike seemed just the thing. He can’t leave his job to spend months hiking the Appalachian or Pacific Crest Trail and doing just a portion doesn’t appeal. He wants to do ALL of something.

    He decides to do the Lone Star Hiking Trail through the Sam Houston National Forest in eastern Texas. The trail runs about 100 miles, a distance he thinks he can do in the time he has available. But, unlike most long hike books, Avrel Seale isn’t looking for enlightenment, he’s looking for big foot. He’s convinced that big foot exists and that there is a large population living in the Sam Houston National Forest. He also believes that the USDA and the Dept. of Interior are covering up the existence of big foot and keeping the population down.

    Seale has been interested in big foot since he was a kid. He follows the research through books and organizations like the North American Wood Ape Conservancy, the Texas Bigfoot Research Conservancy, and the Bigfoot Field Research Organization. He also follows a podcast called Sasquatch Chronicles.

    Seale believes because of the thousands of sightings, video and other evidence. He also notes that the phenomena appears to be worldwide, not just limited to North America and that sightings stretch back in time with consistent details. He subscribes to the theory that big foots can be found in forested areas that receive at least 40 inches of rain annually and that offer prey such as deer. The Sam Houston National Forest fits that description, offering not just white tailed deer, but also wild hogs. It is considered a hot spot for big foot sightings.

    So, while Seale follows the standard format of a hiking genre book, detailing the physical challenge experienced and providing some history of the trail, he also discusses why he believes in big foot, the state of the research and what signs of big foot he finds along the way. Along with the usual hiking gear, he brings audio recorders and a camera.

    He sets off, alone, and on his very first night completely freaks himself out. He sees and hears a helicopter and gunshots. He thinks it must be the government hunting big foots. He’s convinced (at least in the middle of the night) that he hears big foots killing a white tailed deer. Twice. He also hears ‘tree knocking’, which is thought to be big foots hitting trees to communicate.

    He feels better in the daylight and spends the second night in a camp, but still doesn’t sleep well. His brother is acting as support, and meets him at a trail head. Because he has slept poorly, he opts to have his brother pick him up each night and stay in an AirBnB with him. So, hike during the day and stay with his brother for most of the nights.

    Near the end of the hike, he finds what he thinks is an 18 inch long footprint. It doesn’t look like a footprint to me, but, I’m not exactly a tracker. He finishes the hike and feels elated at his accomplishment.

    As I’ve been reading rock-n-roll biographies, I’ve tried to make it an immersive experience. If the author talks about writing a song, I listen to the song. If they talk about a video, I watch the video. I even bought and drank Trooper beer. So, when Seale discusses (for example) The Bigfoot Field Research Organization, I checked it out. I even listened to part of a podcast. Apparently, through BRFO, you can join expeditions to search for big foot and they will train you in the correct, scientific, techniques. Essentially, you go camping with other people who are interested in finding big foot. Now, if you want to hunt big foot, well, look elsewhere. BFRO is strictly no kill. I bet the people that sign up have a blast!

    When this book popped up in my Amazon recommendations (I blame you people!), my first reaction was to roll my eyes. Then, I thought this would be a fun review for Glibertarians. I was right. Seale comes across as plausible. He explains why he believes in ways that mostly stopped me rolling my eyes. For example, to the question of why haven’t we found big foot if it exists – he answers by asserting that we have! There have been more than 10,000 reported big foot sightings. As the book progresses, he points out that even if he’s wrong, no one has been hurt and he has learned science and met interesting people along the way. Not a bad return for any hobby.

    Overall, I thought this book was a fun twist on the hiking genre. It didn’t change my mind about big foot, but it introduced me to a whole new sub-culture I had no idea existed. I rate it 3.5 out of 5 stars.

  • What Does This Button Do?

    Well, I’m in love.  No, not with anyone I’ve met online. (Some guy called “Papa” messaged me.  His profile is “Sex, sex, sex, sex, sex, sex.”  That’s it, the entire profile. **Slams laptop shut** Eww.)  No, I’m in love with Bruce Dickinson – lead singer of Iron Maiden – as portrayed in his autobiography “What Does This Button Do? ” He’s definitely my new imaginary boyfriend.

    I wasn’t a huge fan of Iron Maiden, but I had friends that were.  I appreciate what talented musicians they are and what a talented singer Dickinson is.  I’m always impressed by how long he can hold a note.  Especially since he runs all over the stage.  The concert videos look like a real workout.  Dickinson is a favorite for vocal coach reaction and analysis videos that make much of his control and technique.

    So, I put Number of the Beast on the stereo, cracked open a can of Trooper, and sat down to read.  It starts slowly and I found the early chapters before he goes to boarding school unclear.  I re-read them a few times and I still find them confusing.  Once he hits boarding school (and it hits back) it’s a great read.

    He attends an incredibly horrible and sadistic boarding school where he is bullied by upperclassmen and beaten by teachers.  He does find a few bright spots.  He loves drama and readily takes to the stage.  He has a great metal working teacher that tells the boys not only will he teach them to make a sword, he’ll teach them to use it.  So, he becomes a fencer.  There is also an art teacher that arranges rock concerts at the school.  Bruce attends the concerts – Wild Turkey and Arthur Brown among others, and they blow his adolescent mind.

    Once reaching university, he joins a band (teaching himself to sing properly from books) and is eventually recruited into Samson, which already had a record contract.  Samson led to an opportunity to audition for Iron Maiden.  The band liked him and he was invited to join once he passed studio checks, hearing tests, eye tests, drug tests and blood tests.  He was happy to learn he was STD free.  He didn’t just join a band, he joined a serious business, and Iron Maiden’s management treated it that way. At an award dinner an American executive tries to chat up Ron Smallwood, their manager, who snaps at him “I’m not in the music business.  I’m in the Iron Fucking Maiden business.”

    The Number of The Beast album was huge.  The tour was extended several times.  While drugs were around and easily available, Iron Maiden mostly stuck to beer, generally after the work was done.  They weren’t just messing around.  They did drink a lot and engage in rock-n-roll shenanigans.  On tour in Japan, he doesn’t like what the constant partying is doing to him and decides to make a change.  He starts bringing his fencing kit with him on tour and training and competing whenever he gets the chance.  Eventually (after changing from right handed to left handed fencing), he represented the UK at the European championships.

    The Iron Maiden machine rolled on, making new albums every year or so and going on tour. Creative differences started to arise and none of his songs made it onto the Somewhere in Time album.  Bruce decides to just be the singer and writes a novel.  It sells, so he writes a second.  Because, why not.

    On the next album, he’s again part of the writing team, but still discontented, probably with his personal life as well.  He mentions that Iron Maiden’s success had changed his living circumstances.  He now had a big house with a pool (because he hates to swim), a fancy garden (because he hates to garden), a tennis court (because he doesn’t play) and he can’t walk to the local pub (because he wants a pint without having to drive) and a fancy garage for the expensive car he never drives.  He thinks a lot about leaving music altogether.

    He doesn’t.  Instead, he makes a solo album, then a second and pursues getting his pilot’s license.  Once the second album is complete, he leaves Iron Maiden.  While pursuing a solo career, he does a concert in Sarajevo during the war.  He writes the screenplay for Chemical Wedding.  Because, why not.

    He gets his pilot’s license and buys a small plane but really wants to fly the big planes.  So he becomes an airline pilot.  He didn’t like the training program, so he writes a study guide and ends up one of the trainers for British Airways.  Because, why not.

    He eventually returns to Iron Maiden and is one of the pilots for Ed Force One – the Iron Maiden plane that they use to tour the world.  Note that the entire time he is working as an airline pilot, he is continuing to tour.  I love the image of him requesting time off to go do a gig.  Oh, and somewhere along the way, he helps make Trooper, the Iron Maiden beer. The last part of the book covers his battle with throat cancer (he’s not impressed with morphine) and return to singing.

    Overall, this book is very focused on his musical career and activities that touch on that.  He leaves out his personal life and much of his entrepreneurial activities.  (He is apparently a big investor in air ships as well as an airline maintenance firm.)  I enjoyed his self-deprecating humor and his discussion of image in rock.  He says he realized early on that he would have to be ‘substantial’ because he wasn’t good at the image part.  As examples, he describes his stage outfit for Samson, which included a custom made, gold lame jock strap to be worn over his pants and his design for his Somewhere in Time tour outfit – an outer space D’Artagnan maybe made from a space lizard.  His descriptions made me giggle.

    I have no doubt that this autobiography is every bit as carefully curated as Billy Idol’s.  I just like the person portrayed much, much better.  What a fascinating, curious, and restless man he is.  I give it five stars for being such an interesting portrait of someone who never stops reinventing himself.

  • Decorate That Cake!

    I started baking as part of my half-assed, slow-motion, car crash of a mid-life crisis.  I needed a creative outlet. My first decorating attempt was truly pathetic.

    Peppermint Cake by Tulip

     

    It was a peppermint cake and I wanted to make it look like a peppermint candy.  I failed. I lacked technical skill (and proper tools) in decorating.  So, I regrouped and focused on making the cakes impressive on the inside by figuring out how to make checkerboard cakes.

    But, I really wanted them to be pretty on the outside as well.

    I decided to focus on what I was capable of doing.  I bought basic tools, an offset spatula and basic tips and a pastry bag.  With just these tools, you can make impressive cakes if you think carefully about what you are doing.

    offset spatula

     

    Before we get to decorating, I do want to tell you about ermine – or boiled– frosting.  This is the best frosting I have ever tasted.  It is fluffy, light, and just sweet enough.  It’s made by combining 5 T flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup milk (you can use coconut milk or almond milk to make it vegan) in a saucepan and cook, stirring constantly, until it has the texture of mashed potatoes.  Let that cool, then beat it a little at a time into 1 cup of butter (or margarine) with a pinch of salt and vanilla or other flavoring.

     

    It will seem to curdle, keep going, and it will turn into something with the texture of whipped cream.   Now, we’re ready to talk about decorating.

     

    First, you can make a swirled frosting, then sprinkle stuff on top.  I made a coconut lime cake with lime curd between the layers.  I used coconut  milk to make the ermine frosting and balance the fresh lime curd between the layers.  I used the offset spatula to make it swirly.  It really takes no skill at all – just smear it on the cake.   Then I sprinkled dried coconut on top along with a few lime slices.  I think this is a pretty and inviting cake.

     

    I’ve also made an almond cake with raspberry between the layers.  I decorated this one with sliced almonds and fruit.  I toasted the slivered almonds and used them to make ‘flowers’ with a berry in the center. Just stick them into the frosting in a circular pattern – it’s hard to mess up.  I smoothed out the sides, and I’ll explain how I got it smooth in a moment, but you don’t have to do that.  You could leave it swirled.  I pressed toasted almonds around the bottom of the cake as well.  Again, I think this is a pretty and inviting cake.

     

    You can make a very cute or a very elegant cake just by making blobs of frosting.  When I do this, I leave the sides unfrosted.  This is for two reasons: I like the look, and I use butter cream and the blobs are thick.  That is a lot of butter cream on the top of the cake and I don’t want the sweetness of the butter cream to overwhelm the cake.  I made this cake (along with StraffinRun who never posted pics – glares) back in  October.  I just made blobs using different tips and colors and then added candy eyes.

     

    The simplicity of the idea inspired me.  I thought instead of cute, this could be used for an elegant cake.  And, you don’t actually need tips to make the elegant version.  It can be done with just a Ziploc bag.  Put the frosting into the Ziploc, cut off part of one corner and go to town. I made a lemon cake and put cherry jam between the layers.  I just made blobs and then sprinkled a little colored sugar over it.  I think it looks elegant.

     

     

    Lastly, drip cakes are very popular and hip these days and they are easy.  I made a peanut butter cake and put chopped peanuts between the layers

     

    For a drip cake, you want the frosting smooth on the top and sides.  I made a peanut butter butter cream, and smoothed it over the cake.

     

    You make it smooth by putting frosting on the outside of the cake.  It doesn’t need to smooth at that point, but you’re not trying to make a swirled cake. Then, put the offset spatula under hot running water.  Use it to smooth the sides by running it around the outside.  It takes repeated efforts, under the hot water, smooth, repeat until you are happy with it.  Once it is smooth, stick it in the refrigerator to chill.  A drip works best over a cold, frosted cake.

    Next make the ganache for the drip.  I made chocolate ganache which is equal weights of chocolate and cream.  Do weight it, it makes a difference.  Chop up the chocolate then pour hot cream (heated in the microwave) over it and stir.  Add a little corn syrup (1 tablespoon or less) to make it shiny.

     

    Pour a little ganache on top, then smooth it toward the edge of the cake.  When you reach the edge, give it a little push to make it drip over the side.  It’s that easy.  You can add more decorations, like chopped Reese’s peanut butter cups or other candies if you like.

     

    I’m enjoying learning to decorate cakes.  It gives me a creative outlet and has pushed me to think about how to get an effect within my skill level.  I hope you enjoyed seeing these easy methods and take inspiration for your own cakes.

     

     

  • Billy Idol

    Fourteen year old Tulip lurrvvved her some Billy Idol.  Those cheekbones, those eyes, that mouth, the leather and the hair.  Just hearing his voice on the radio could make me wet.  But, after the Rebel Yell album, I moved on.  To real boys (Pete Swenson, mmm, mmm) and other artists: Depeche Mode, Prince, a brief flirtation with Metallica and a longer one with country music.  In fact, I didn’t know he had been in a serious accident until I read the concert brochure about 6 or 7 years ago at a concert at Wolf Trap.  (Dear God, I’m old, I saw Billy Idol at Wolf Trap!)

    It was a great concert; just a bare bones set, but he did all his hits with energy and conviction.  When he first came out, he did a strip tease to lose his white silk shirt and switch to a black leather vest (to match the black leather pants). He is still incredibly sexy.  After the strip tease, he ran out on stage right and posed with a fist pump and flexed his abs for people to take pictures.  After a moment, he ran to stage left and posed and flexed while the flashes went off.  It was a perfect acknowledgment of the nostalgia his concert represented, done with humor.  After the concert was over, I forgot about him again.

    Until…I came across his autobiography “Dancing With Myself”. Apparently, he wrote it without a ghost writer.  Hell, yes, I had to read this!  So, last weekend, I put the “Very Best of Billy Idol” on the stereo and sat down to read it.  It is a great read, but somewhat uneven.  He does a fantastic job of creating a sense of time and place in the early chapters discussing his time in Generation X and first arrival in the U.S.  The best part is getting a sense of what a fan he was – he was so excited to play on stages where he had watched acts.  The discussions about how he wrote the songs and what they meant is fun.  Once he can afford drugs everyday, (I was high and did something stupid), it does become a little boring.

    But, once I finished it, I was left with the conviction that Billy Idol is the greatest performance artist ever.  Better even than Trump.  I mean, he did name the book for his masturbation song, which is hilarious and punk as fuck. When discussing the writing of the song, he never mentions masturbation.  Instead, he says it was based on seeing Japanese teenagers dance with their own reflections.  Uh, huh. Fourteen year old me and my friends knew exactly what that song was about.  So, I’m not convinced that he is a reliable narrator.  I mean,  Billy, we’ve heard the song, and from reading the book, he is too smart for that.  So, again hilarious.

    From the beginning of the book, it’s clear that his goal is to become a rock star.  He mentions watching and discussing performance artists, while perfecting his own performance.  The music that gets him there is secondary, despite the book’s focus on writing the music.  His real goal is to be a rock star.  His first meeting with Steve Stevens focused on what it means to be a rock star and only secondarily on what kind of music he wants to play.

    His ultimate approach though, is to become a parody of a rock star.  His very name – Idol – is all about parodying the idea of a rock star.  And, he has always been a caricature or parody.  The leather, the hair, the first pumping, the sex, the drugs.  It can only be explained as parody.  Don’t believe me? Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvTaDn03qtQ (preferably with the sound off – any 80s video with the sound off is hilarious).  Not only is he parodying being a rock star, he is parodying himself being a rock star and laughing while he does it.  I mean, c’mon, the cunnilingus thing, the humping Steve Stevens.  Seen that way, this video is an absolutely brilliant performance.  Too bad he bought into his own performance and completely descended into sex, drugs, and rock and roll as if he were a Roman emperor.

    I’ve seen a lot of reviews of this book that talk about how he didn’t hold back and how sensitive it is[1].  My take is different.  My first thought on finishing the book was, “Christ, what an asshole!”  Yes, he’s careful to not throw other people under the bus.  He’s still an asshole.  If, every few pages you detail an example of how you were an asshole, you’re an asshole – drugs or not.  Finally, despite being a brilliant performance artist, I see him as an essentially shallow man who wrote an essentially shallow memoir.

    Fifteen year old Tulip would have given anything to meet Billy Idol.  She would have dropped to her knees and blown him and done anything else he asked.  Such is the power of celebrity and image.  Today’s Tulip looks back and thinks…ick, not enough Lysol in the world. Unless, of course, my view of him as the ultimate performance artist is correct.  Then, I want to smoke a joint with him, and maybe meet  John Lydon[2].

    On my stereo or on a stage, I like him just fine, but I have zero interest in meeting or fucking him.  I give his autobiography 4 out of 5 stars for the fantastic nostalgia trip it gave me and recommend it to any other child of the eighties.

     

     

     

     

    [1]Even a review on Amazon that mentions his respect for women.  Whaaaa???  Did we read the same book?

    [2]Interestingly, there are a lot of people who insist Billy Idol was never punk, just a hanger-on.  Johnny Rotten isn’t one of them.

  • I Can Pickle That!

    Summer is coming. I think there is nothing better than an icy cold martini on a hot summer evening. What food goes well with a martini? Something pickled! I love a plate of cheese and crackers with an array of pickled fruits and vegetables to accompany my martini.

    Everything I’m going to discuss is a refrigerator pickle, not canned. They aren’t shelf stable and need to be kept in the refrigerator. This means you are free to experiment.1 I have read hundreds (literally) of pickling recipes in an attempt to come up with a base recipe that you could riff off of and create your own recipes – much like dressing is a 3:1 oil to vinegar ratio. I cannot claim that I have defined one from my investigation. The recipes are all over the place. Some have no salt or no sugar. Others use lots of sugar, but no salt, some use lots of salt and no sugar.

    Michael Ruhlman in Ratio says a brine should be a 20:1 ratio of water to salt (2 ½ cups water to 2 T Morton’s kosher salt) and he uses it for some fermented style pickles, though not refrigerator pickles. Tamar Adler of An Everlasting Meal gives several suggestions. First, she says you can use nothing but vinegar and salt. For a brine, she suggests using one and a half times as much vinegar as water and for every four cups of liquid, add ¼ cup salt and ¼ cup sugar and simmer until they dissolve. Or, don’t measure and adjust the salt and sugar until you like it (Chapter 18). I find her suggestion a little too sweet and salty, so I adjust. The goal is to help you understand the techniques used.

    In general, for the kind of pickles I’m talking about, you need vinegar, water, salt, sugar and spices. For my experiments, I use 1 cup water, 1 cup vinegar, 1 tablespoon each salt and sugar. Then add additional spices depending on what you are pickling and your own tastes. It is easy to scale up if necessary and I frequently adjust the level of salt or sugar.

    I have used this to pickle cherries by adding cinnamon and cloves. Pack a clean jar with pitted cherries. Put the vinegar, water, salt and sugar in a pan, add a cinnamon stick and a teaspoon of cloves and bring to boil (for the basic brine – scale up as necessary). Once the brine is boiling, remove from heat and pour over the packed cherries. Make sure all the cherries are covered with the brine. Let cool uncovered to room temperature, then cover tightly and store in the refrigerator. They are ready to eat after sitting overnight (12 hours). I love them with duck or tossed into a salad.

    I’ve used this basic brine with cauliflower adding onion and a few sprigs of fresh thyme. I put the onion and thyme in the jar with the cauliflower and poured the basic brine over it. Again, cool to room temperature then close tightly and put in the refrigerator. They were crunchy and made an excellent addition to salads (as well as just eating them with a martini) or alongside fish.

    The next few recipes all come from someone else, but are ones I really like. They also show the wide variety of pickling recipes. I will note that when I follow the recipes, I don’t often have enough brine. In those cases, I just top up the jars with vinegar. What I hope you learn is that there are many ways to make pickles. Each recipe is done in a different way.

    First, are pickled carrots. I have this recipe written on a card and have no idea where it came from. I cut the carrots into matchsticks and slice onions thin. I pack them into a quart jar. Then, I toast 1 T mustard seed, 2 t coriander and 2 t black pepper corns. Then I add the brine ingredients. The brine is 1 cup apple cider vinegar, 1 cup water, 2 T kosher salt and 3 T sugar. Bring that to a boil, stirring to make sure the salt and sugar dissolve, then pour over the carrots. Cool to room temperature, then cover tightly and store in the refrigerator. I use them in fish tacos or serve them with pork chops. These are addictive and I make them frequently -they should last for up to a month though mine never last that long because I eat them a cup at a time. I also make smaller recipes and eat them, so that I don’t have to worry about getting bored. I’ve also used the leftover brine in place of vinegar in salad dressings. Works really well.

    Oscar disapprovingly notes, “I cannot eat that.”

     

    My pickled mushrooms recipe comes from the Washington Post. These are supposed to sit in the refrigerator for a week before eating. I never make it – day 5 I’m eating some of them with a roast chicken, a steak, or just on their own. The recipe says they will last for several months, but again, mine don’t last that long (though I usually only make half a recipe.)

    Next are pickled grapes. The recipe comes from Simple, Fresh, Southern by The Lee Brothers. I enjoy these because they are sweet and spicy. I’ve given them to a neighbor who used them in martinis instead of an olive. I toss these in salads and also serve with roast pork. The recipe is 6 cups mixed red and green seedless grapes (I just use red), 2 cups of white vinegar, 1 cup of water, 2 tablespoons kosher salt, 2 teaspoons sugar, 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed, leaves from a four inch sprig of rosemary, ½ teaspoon crushed red chile flakes.

    Pack the grapes into 3 pint sized glass containers with lids. Put water and vinegar into a sauce pan, and add the salt, sugar, garlic, rosemary and chile flakes. Heat to a simmer, then remove from heat and divide among the three pint sized containers. Cover loosely and let cool to room temperature. Then cover tightly and store in the refrigerator. They are ready to eat after an hour in the refrigerator. Keep for two weeks if they last that long.

    The last recipe I want to discuss is pickled apples. This recipe comes from the apple council and I don’t have a link. Served with cheddar cheese (and a martini), these are awesome. I’ve also laid pickled apple slices on top of a pork loin for the last ten to fifteen minutes of cooking. This recipe is different in that you don’t heat the vinegar mixture. Tamar Adler of An Everlasting Meal suggests just putting vegetables into leftover brine from pickles or capers and letting them pickle, so this is similar to that idea.

    Use 1 English cucumber (unpeeled), sliced thin and tossed with 1 tablespoon salt. Let sit for 20 minutes, then rinse and drain. Meanwhile, core and slice thin two apples (unpeeled), 2 medium shallots (or ½ red onion) and 1 jalapeno pepper, sliced crosswise. Whisk together ¾ c apple cider vinegar, 1 cup water and ½ cup sugar (I use ¼ cup). Add a cinnamon stick and a star anise pod to the vinegar mixture and pour over the apples, shallots and jalapeno. Add the cucumber and toss. Let sit for 30 minutes and serve. Keeps in the refrigerator in a tightly covered container for two weeks. These are great on sandwiches. I’ll also note that when I haven’t had a jalapeno available, I’ve substituted crushed red pepper flakes.

    I hope the recipes I’ve shown here demonstrate the wide variety of things that can be pickled and the wide variety of pickling brines that can be used. I’ve also given you a few basic brines to use for experiments. I hope this inspires you try pickling vegetables or fruit. I can imagine using a basic recipe to pickle peaches with habanero peppers, or green beans with some marjoram and garlic. Much like salad dressings, pickling fruits and vegetables is an opportunity to experiment and be creative. There aren’t any wrong answers, just make what you like.

    —-
    1 If you find a canned pickle recipe you like, you can use it for refrigerator pickles. You can’t go the other way. Don’t screw around with canning recipes. Botulism doesn’t make you sick; it makes you dead.

    “Wait. Why did you wake me up?”

  • Tulip Takes a Holiday

    Ever since reading a mystery novel in which the victim lives on a narrow boat, I’ve wanted to tour the English countryside in one.  This year, I convinced an old college friend to join me and off we went.

    The canals of England date mostly to the 18th century.  They were originally used to transport goods like coal and salt.  Today they are part of Britain’s inland waterways and used mostly for pleasure. Narrow boats are designed for the canals.  They are typically just seven feet wide and range from 48 to 70 feet long.

    We rented a boat from Anderton Marina in Cheshire through my time share.

    When we checked in at Anderton, they gave us a booklet with routes and points of interest along the way, as well as some brief instructions on how to run the boat.  An octogenarian with dry wit named Archie showed us the most important valve on the boat (the propane valve), the most important rope (the center rope) and the daily maintenance we would need to do.  Every day, we needed to grease the propeller shaft and make sure the propeller wasn’t fouled (and clean it if it was) and top off the water tanks.

    He took us out on the canal to make sure we could steer.  He was very nonchalant about two clueless middle aged American women taking a boat for a week and that was actually reassuring.  When handing us the life jackets, he said, “We have to give you these, but if you fall in, stand up and walk to the side.”  The canals are only about three or four feet deep.  I wouldn’t want to fall in though, because ick.  When we asked about what knots we should use to tie up at night, he said, “Whatever you can untie in the morning.” After about 15-20 minutes of steering instruction, he pointed us north, gave us a pub recommendation, and sent us on our way.

    Our rental was one of the small ones, just 48′ long, and sleeps four – two in the bedroom and two on the pullout couch.  It was quite cozy.


    The kitchen had a little refrigerator, stove and even a microwave.  It did not have a coffee pot or toaster.

    It did have egg cups.

    When you drive the boat, you stand at the rear and steer using a rudder.  This means if you want the front to go left, you push right and vice versa, much like a sailboat.  But, the sailboats I’ve been on are small and respond quickly.  This…doesn’t.  The boat is long and slow.  Here’s what it looks like while you are driving.

     

     

    Narrow boats go slowly.  The speed limit on the canals is 4 mph, but you are not supposed to create a wake as it could damage the canals.  In addition, you are supposed to drop to idle speed when passing moored boats.  As a result, people walking their dogs, or pushing strollers along the tow path, routinely passed us.  This lets you look around and enjoy the scenery.

     

    We saw lots of ducks, swans and herons.

    There were daffodils everywhere.

     

    The point of a canal vacation is to cruise along, then tie up near a point of interest and walk in to see what there is to see, or visit a pub.  Along the route we took, there really wasn’t that much to see.  In a way, that was the point for me.  I wanted to see the English countryside and this was it.  Little towns with a pub or two.

    We did stop near Massey Hall which is a country house with tours, a gorgeous garden, and a deer park.

     

    We stopped at the Keckwick Science and Innovation Center in order to walk up to Daresbury – the home of Lewis Carroll. The Science and Innovation Center was nerd central.  It had a building named “Electron Hall” and a Van De Graaf accelerator.  The accelerator looked like an air traffic control tower.  When we first saw it, we thought we were approaching an airport.

    The booklet claimed there was a Lewis Carroll Center in Daresbury.

     

    That turned out to be a corner of a church shop.  But, the village was cute with a Tudor style pub,  a Mad Hatter Cottage and a Dormouse Tea Shop.

     

    We were definitely in horse country.  Walking to Daresbury, there were horse crossings.  One button at walking height and one well above my head.

     

    In the town of Sale, we came across the worst named restaurant ever.


    We later found out it’s a chain.  Tells you all you need to know about British cuisine.

    Along our route, we needed to go through tunnels. Because the tunnels are too narrow for boats to pass, the longer ones restrict entry to specific times.  For example, the third tunnel we did restricts northbound entry to 10 minutes starting at the top of the hour.  The tunnels are not straight and we were not good at steering.

    Good thing I got that damage waiver.

    Locks are another feature of the canals.  Our route had only one, right before the third tunnel that only allowed entry for ten minutes.  We ran into a traffic jam.  After we cleared the lock, we had to wait to enter the tunnel.  Someone else was coming through the lock behind us.

    While we waited, five boats came out of the tunnel.

     

    Since the boat behind us was still in the lock, there was nowhere for them to go.  It was a little hairy for a while, but we managed without running into any other boats.

    I had wanted to go during the summer, but now I’m really glad that we went in March, despite the cold.

    On Saturday and Sunday there was a lot more traffic on the canal, which was a little stressful, especially when there were boats moored on both sides.

    I suspect the canals stink in the summer and it would be much harder to find a mooring.  As you can see in the photo, even on a weeknight in March, there a lot of boats tied up in the desirable places.  Out of the week we had the boat, we were only able to tie up at mooring rings twice.  The rest of the time we used the mooring pins.  I also think routes with more locks would see long waits or traffic jams like the one we encountered. That wouldn’t be much fun.

    This was a truly relaxing vacation.  I got to see parts of England I wouldn’t have otherwise and from a different perspective. There was no Internet, no TV, and I ignored my phone.  Instead, I got to read and draw in the evenings, as well as catch up with my friend.  If I lived in England, I’d do it again.