Blessings Darlings!
Actually, the title is a bit off - while I do like flavor in my food, my husband DEMANDS it. Except it can't be too spicy. Or pickly-sweet.
This comes up because after I dropped the Spawn off at work, I checked the grocery store for marked-down meat. I found rather a lot - 3.5 pounds of 'beef for stew' and two packages of pork. We're going to have one of the packages of pork for dinner tonight. But pork is bland by itself, so having a sauce with it came up. I would have been happy with a white sauce (because modern pork loin is really lean and often dry), but the Chubby Hubby wanted something ... more.
He decided on a charcutiere sauce. I'm looking at that, and thinking "cornichones? That's going to be pickly-sweet."
Being fearless, I'm going to make it. But only add the pickles to a bit in a small bowl and see if we like that. I think that pickled peppers would be a better choice, and will likely try that, too.
I will probably have the results before I post this.
Results are in! Couldn't find any cornichones, so didn't add them. Had to thin the sauce, apparently the recipe and I had a disagreement on how reduced the liquids should be. It was tasty, and since I DID fail on cooking the pork, it needed a sauce to cover the dryness.
We WILL use the sauce again. Maybe I'll even succeed at tracking down cornichones.
Frondly, Fern
Shit that catches the attention of a no-bullshit Crone. You're in touch with your inner child? I'm in touch with my inner Baba Yaga.
Monday, July 29, 2013
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Unobtainable Fantasies.
Blessings Darlings!
If I see one more "Being a Witch is a way of life" captioned picture where the picture is some skinny young thing in "obvious witch-clothes" (flimy dress that goes to the ground, big boobs supported (apparently) by magic because there is no bra and no way physics can explain their perkiness, wearing a pointed hat, and/or a pentacle the size of a dinner plate) I might start bitchslapping people.
Is that REALLY how you look on a typical day? I call BS. MY 'way of life' doesn't include dry-clean-only witchclothes at all, let alone for every-day wear. I'm sitting here now in my typical summer life style clothes - remember, it's hot and humid here and we don't use much air conditioning (because THAT is a way of life). So I'm in a nice pair of shorts today, and a white tank top. My wet hair is in a turban with one of my standard towels - this one is 25 years old, and rather frayed around the edges, because using things up IS a life style. Pizza is for dinner tonight, which I mention only because when I sit down to eat I'll be wearing a chef's apron so I have LESS chance of staining my clothes with the tomato sauce. Because, you know, gravity always bats last.
You who post those pics may be young and beautiful - but those are temporary blessings/conditions, not a life style. You don't wear those clothes in your day to day life ... you may be one of the fools who wear the plate sized pents daily, I suppose. But if you have bodacious tatas, they aren't that perky.
If you mean that your lifestyle is a fantasy, get over it and join the real world. Embrace who you REALLY are, not some unobtainable fantasy of who you wish you were. That, my dears, is what is really meant by the occult term 'being grounded'.
Frondly, Fern
If I see one more "Being a Witch is a way of life" captioned picture where the picture is some skinny young thing in "obvious witch-clothes" (flimy dress that goes to the ground, big boobs supported (apparently) by magic because there is no bra and no way physics can explain their perkiness, wearing a pointed hat, and/or a pentacle the size of a dinner plate) I might start bitchslapping people.
Is that REALLY how you look on a typical day? I call BS. MY 'way of life' doesn't include dry-clean-only witchclothes at all, let alone for every-day wear. I'm sitting here now in my typical summer life style clothes - remember, it's hot and humid here and we don't use much air conditioning (because THAT is a way of life). So I'm in a nice pair of shorts today, and a white tank top. My wet hair is in a turban with one of my standard towels - this one is 25 years old, and rather frayed around the edges, because using things up IS a life style. Pizza is for dinner tonight, which I mention only because when I sit down to eat I'll be wearing a chef's apron so I have LESS chance of staining my clothes with the tomato sauce. Because, you know, gravity always bats last.
You who post those pics may be young and beautiful - but those are temporary blessings/conditions, not a life style. You don't wear those clothes in your day to day life ... you may be one of the fools who wear the plate sized pents daily, I suppose. But if you have bodacious tatas, they aren't that perky.
If you mean that your lifestyle is a fantasy, get over it and join the real world. Embrace who you REALLY are, not some unobtainable fantasy of who you wish you were. That, my dears, is what is really meant by the occult term 'being grounded'.
Frondly, Fern
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Zuke Problems!
Blessings Darlings!
I've had several weeks of being buried in zukes. This has been a good thing for me. But ... now not only have some low-level problems with squash bugs started (and I think THEY are rather under control), but wilt has hit. I removed the plant with that, but ... I'm worried it will take out the other two in that hill. And that it will move to the gray squash in the next hill over.
I'm debating starting more grey squash in a new hill to get me to full summer squash power, but they'd have to go in the area I planned to put my fall greens/radishes/turnips in.
With the beans being so bad this year (I'll be applying BT to those this evening, if the wind is calm then), and the tomatoes being so late (my fault), the zukes have been our main veggie. Without them ... mostly I'll just be getting herbs and spices from the garden. Which will leave me sad and lower on money, since I'd have to pay for veggies.
On top of that, something has eaten leaves from some of my cucumber plants. So even THOSE aren't about to bury me.
I'm beginning to think I need a larger garden, as well as the energy and time to work it more.
Oh well.
Frondly, Fern
I've had several weeks of being buried in zukes. This has been a good thing for me. But ... now not only have some low-level problems with squash bugs started (and I think THEY are rather under control), but wilt has hit. I removed the plant with that, but ... I'm worried it will take out the other two in that hill. And that it will move to the gray squash in the next hill over.
I'm debating starting more grey squash in a new hill to get me to full summer squash power, but they'd have to go in the area I planned to put my fall greens/radishes/turnips in.
With the beans being so bad this year (I'll be applying BT to those this evening, if the wind is calm then), and the tomatoes being so late (my fault), the zukes have been our main veggie. Without them ... mostly I'll just be getting herbs and spices from the garden. Which will leave me sad and lower on money, since I'd have to pay for veggies.
On top of that, something has eaten leaves from some of my cucumber plants. So even THOSE aren't about to bury me.
I'm beginning to think I need a larger garden, as well as the energy and time to work it more.
Oh well.
Frondly, Fern
Thursday, July 18, 2013
What if it was your daughter?
Blessings Darlings!
What if Trayvon Martin was your daughter?
She's 16 and walking home from the store. Some older man in a car is following her, slowly, watching her intensely. He eventually gets out of his car and starts following her on foot. He gets close to her.
Being a good parent, you've made sure she's had been thru' women's self defense classes. There she was taught to face and confront men who seem to be a threat. She turns, faces him, calls him out for following her. He come closer. She feels more threatened. He invades her space. She pushes him away from her. He hits her for pushing him - she goes into the rest of her self-defense moves.
He shoots her.
He claims self defense. And that, due to her skimpy summer clothes, she was asking to be followed.
He get off.
She's 16 and walking home from the store. Some older man in a car is following her, slowly, watching her intensely. He eventually gets out of his car and starts following her on foot. He gets close to her.
Being a good parent, you've made sure she's had been thru' women's self defense classes. There she was taught to face and confront men who seem to be a threat. She turns, faces him, calls him out for following her. He come closer. She feels more threatened. He invades her space. She pushes him away from her. He hits her for pushing him - she goes into the rest of her self-defense moves.
He shoots her.
He claims self defense. And that, due to her skimpy summer clothes, she was asking to be followed.
He get off.
Frondly, Fern
Sunday, July 14, 2013
Fern Makes Pot Stickers
Blessings Darlings!
In our household, we like food. Which explains part of our weight problems, but that's not what I'm writing about today. We like food, and we want it to be tasty and have great texture ... and we need it to be inexpensive, because we're limiting our food budget to what we'd get if we were on the maximum amount of food stamps - that's roughly $410 a month for 3 adults here.
Which means I cook a lot of stuff from scratch. While I don't make hamburger buns or most pasta from scratch (the later because it's hard to get the right flour at all around here, let alone at a good price), I make make most of the rest of our breads. Yeah, most of you have been reading long enough to know all this.
Last night I took out the Sacred Book of Chinese Recipes, and I made Pot Stickers - the dumplings that have the crispy bottom. They are one of our Oh My Gods! recipes, amazingly good. And not expensive, especially compared with getting them in restaurants, where they are often not even as good as the ones I make.
I DID cheat a bit, as I chose to NOT make the wrappers from scratch. I've done it before, and I'll do it again, but that will be some day when I'm not working in the garden much of the day ... and yesterday I spent lots of time in the garden.
The entire batch of potstickers had an ingredient cost of about $10.50. It made 96 dumplings. That would have been 12 orders of potstickers in many restaurants. And it would have cost $96 just for the pot stickers - never mind the drinks we'd have ordered, and the tip.
Now, we did not eat all those last night, even tho' we did them as our main course ... hell, it was our only course. We DID eat half of them. I'm going to wrap and freeze the rest tonight and we'll have them some other time, when I don't want to cook.
Cheap never tasted so good.
Oh - and I did NOT use any zucchini in them.
Frondly, Fern
In our household, we like food. Which explains part of our weight problems, but that's not what I'm writing about today. We like food, and we want it to be tasty and have great texture ... and we need it to be inexpensive, because we're limiting our food budget to what we'd get if we were on the maximum amount of food stamps - that's roughly $410 a month for 3 adults here.
Which means I cook a lot of stuff from scratch. While I don't make hamburger buns or most pasta from scratch (the later because it's hard to get the right flour at all around here, let alone at a good price), I make make most of the rest of our breads. Yeah, most of you have been reading long enough to know all this.
Last night I took out the Sacred Book of Chinese Recipes, and I made Pot Stickers - the dumplings that have the crispy bottom. They are one of our Oh My Gods! recipes, amazingly good. And not expensive, especially compared with getting them in restaurants, where they are often not even as good as the ones I make.
I DID cheat a bit, as I chose to NOT make the wrappers from scratch. I've done it before, and I'll do it again, but that will be some day when I'm not working in the garden much of the day ... and yesterday I spent lots of time in the garden.
The entire batch of potstickers had an ingredient cost of about $10.50. It made 96 dumplings. That would have been 12 orders of potstickers in many restaurants. And it would have cost $96 just for the pot stickers - never mind the drinks we'd have ordered, and the tip.
Now, we did not eat all those last night, even tho' we did them as our main course ... hell, it was our only course. We DID eat half of them. I'm going to wrap and freeze the rest tonight and we'll have them some other time, when I don't want to cook.
Cheap never tasted so good.
Oh - and I did NOT use any zucchini in them.
Frondly, Fern
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
It's Zucchini Time!
Blessings Darlings!
So ... Zucchini.
I gave 3 to Suz today (and then we went out and picked blueberries, so I have 9 pounds of those to process). And I had half a cooked zuc left, and one whole fresh one in the fridge, and then harvested one more. So my lunch was pasta with the cooked zuc added.
The Chubby Hubby likes to have something hot with his lunches. Often that means leftovers, but as much as possible I steer him to soup. So I made zucchini soup. Well, a vegetable soup that featured a lot of zuc. Three cups water, 4 boullion cubes, one cubed carrot, most a zuc (cubed), and a large handful of dry egg noodles. He was happy. He ate some zuc, so I was happy. There is soup left for tomorrow, so we can be happy again tomorrow.
I may try Suz's recipe of battering sliced zuc, drizzling it with olive oil, and baking it next, because clearly I have to keep coming up with recipes.
Frondly, Fern
So ... Zucchini.
I gave 3 to Suz today (and then we went out and picked blueberries, so I have 9 pounds of those to process). And I had half a cooked zuc left, and one whole fresh one in the fridge, and then harvested one more. So my lunch was pasta with the cooked zuc added.
The Chubby Hubby likes to have something hot with his lunches. Often that means leftovers, but as much as possible I steer him to soup. So I made zucchini soup. Well, a vegetable soup that featured a lot of zuc. Three cups water, 4 boullion cubes, one cubed carrot, most a zuc (cubed), and a large handful of dry egg noodles. He was happy. He ate some zuc, so I was happy. There is soup left for tomorrow, so we can be happy again tomorrow.
I may try Suz's recipe of battering sliced zuc, drizzling it with olive oil, and baking it next, because clearly I have to keep coming up with recipes.
Frondly, Fern