treat yourself to a half-pint

Currently available (and quickly selling out) at a couple of Seattle’s Farmers’ markets - Half Pint is a small, owner-operated homemade ice cream company based out of Seattle, Washington. Their ice creams are made fresh weekly and with organic dairy and eggs and local ingredients when possible. - Check Cle’s website for updated on flavors of the week, and times/locations.

Where better than Seattle to get coffee ice cream? is all I’m sayin. But don’t just my word for it (as a family member back on the other coast), Here’s another seattle based food bloggers 2 cents.

 

Don’t eat anything that doesn’t rot

Acclaimed author and journalist Michael Pollan argues that what most Americans are consuming today is not food but “edible food-like substances.” His previous book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, was named one of 2006’s ten best books by the New York Times and the Washington Post. His latest book is called In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto.

http://www.alternet.org/healthwellness/76987/?page=entire

 

I’ve been aggregated!

and that seems to be a good thing.

 

light dawns on marble bean

First off, Thanks Lynne!

Several years back, I had a subscription to Saveur. Beautiful magazine… kind of Travelogue meets food. One issue in particular really got me excited about cooking white beans, rustic Italian style. I tried several of their recipes, for Riboletta, and others from super simple to more involved… and none of them came out well. Nothing like watching gallons of food, and a lost weekend go in the trash - while the place smells great, but you’re HUNGRY!

The articles had me hooked, and really wanting to like these recipes, but they just didn’t work. I couldn’t tell if the recipes were good or bad, because the beans never cooked! I double checked everything, don’t think I missed a step… Even after cooking the riboletta (meaning, literally reboiled) - for two days, this delicious sounding soup just didn’t work! ARGH!

Discouraged, I gave up on the entire magazine. Friends of mine had good things to say about the magazine, but I didn’t want to hear it. Sure I wanted to like it, but it just wouldn’t let me. Vegetarian Times and Cooks Illustrated treated me much better.

Fast forward several years (and lots of successful, and other mediocre meals later) to the latest radio show/podcast for The Splendid Table… one brief little bit about cooking beans, I think it was an answer to a callers question, with a note to avoid overcooking them by adding the acid (lemon juice, tomatoes, whatever) when the beans are done. They’ll stop cooking - as in they won’t get any softer - good advice for me today, as I make a nice garlicy cranberry bean soup (a “good soup for the sick”) … I also picked up a couple pounds of dried cannelloni to try something new with.

And then the realization just dawned on me… I can go back to those old recipes… and make sure I add the tomatoey bits at the appropriate time! Mmmm bread, tomatoes, garlic and beans with just a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Bread soup here I come!

 

a stunning debut

Huge Kudos to my uncle & co!

“…What I do know is that this is the best wine to come out of the Crushpad operation yet, and a stunning debut for a new label.” - Read the entire review over at vinography.com - then do yourself (or a loved one) a favor - and order a bottle, or three to enjoy this holiday season!

 

whats in the wert?

I’m looking to see what to start brewing for the fall (since I’ve missed my window for some light ones for the (scorching) dog days….

I guess my recipe book has become quite passe - or some people out there have become WAY out there…

Pizza and beer… (pizza, not with beer, but in the beer.) I think it would take A LOT of (normal) beer to get someone to try a bacon brew… but then again, I should know not to be surprised by such things…

 

(drunken) glutton for punishment

As mentioned in previous posts, I’ve been on an on-and-off quest to remake my precious Dark N Stormy. Today came version number… pick one, I’ve lost count.

This afternoon I found myself trolling the aisles of WholeFoods, which always makes for a glorious day - especially since It’s been about a year since I’ve set foot in one. (Note to Whole Foods: You just opened up a new store across the pond in London… can we get one in New Hampshire? Please!!!)

I grabbed, among other things, some fantastic sushi for dinner (car food supreme!) and my choice of water to wash it down, I spied a “new” ginger beer. I say new, its from a company that’s been making it for over 100 years in the UK. I only bought one bottle - trying to invoke Murphy’s Law to hedge my bets that it would be a good one…

(but as I’ve learned you can’t invoke Muphy’s Law - you can’t wash your car to Make it rain)…

And so, once again, the Dark N Stormy comes up short. Drinkable, but just not right. Probably akin to using fat-free milk in a Sombrero. I’d previously found (and tested) another ginger beer with the mysterious quillaia, close but not quite. Now i’ve learned that the ginger mash needs to ferment in Bermuda stone vats before bottling… Today’s gingerbeer from Fentimans was indeed fermented - in stone bottles no less - But alas, not in Bermuda stone.

I drank this one, despite the frustration - others have been poured down the drain, so this one was above par at least. I did some more google searches for the beloved Barritt’s to see if there were any more clues to either it’s availability - or it’s secrets.

I’ve also stumbled across other sites where equally frustrated Bermudian ex-pats, and tourists alike are unhappy with the state of other ginger ales and beers. Misery and company. Depending on which sites you read (and choose to believe), Barritt’s products are simply unavailable in the US or the UK… or they are available in select liquor stores (despite being a non-alcoholic product) across the US, and it’s territories. (I’m thinking positive here… and even made an inquiry to the companys help line as to the nearest vendor - fingers crossed it’s not in Montana).

So now I’ll be checking out the local liquor stores, whilst waiting for a response from the company (or an order form) before I lose hope.

No, I won’t lose hope… Worst case (or perhaps best case?) I’ll be taking a flight (or cruise) back to the island, and I’ll be bringing an empty suitcase (or two) with me. Customs restrict the number of bottles of alcohol one brings back into the county (Black Seal, while touted as hard to find, is available locally) however there’s no restriction on bringing in cases of soda!

 

a few homemade kitchen tools

More cross-blog posting fun, where woodworking and the kitchen combine…

The two spurtles, I made last fall in a woodturning class. The top one is oak the bottom is cherry. Both are finished with walnut oil, and so far remain unused. I’ve only seen Alton Brown over on the Food Network use one to make oatmeal, or perhaps it was haggis. I just don’t seem to make enough of either to neccessitate two spurtles!

The turner, my brother-in-law liberated from a broken cutting board. Maple.

More artisan homegoods from (and more coming) over at my lumberjocks blog.

 

No-cal chocolate pudding

(3 gallons worth)

Never go shopping on an empty stomach - good advice for groceries or for paint. read more.

 

top ten quotes of the week - slacker vacation week edition

Ok, not only did I stop at five, I also killed 3 blogs with one stone with this’n! You could consider this is a top ten list in progress… (but it’s not) bear with me - I’ve been down in the basement workshop all day trying to finish my fathers birthday present (and get that place cleaned up once and for all - proud to say I’m almost done!!! (on both counts), not exactly how one starts a vacation, so there. And with no further ado - some bits about food that made me chuckle this week:

#1 - Kate over at The Accidental Hedonist: When reading the headline Chinese Scientists Clone Mad Cow-Resistant Calf, the first thought that came to my mind was “Yeah, but how does it taste?”

#2 - Jenniferschmoo over at The Vegan Lunch Box: Bac-Os (yes, indeed, they are vegan!)

#3 - Fran Spielman, City Hall Reporter for the The Chicago Sun-Times: Forget about skyrocketing gas prices, soaring property tax assessments and corruption that has federal investigators crawling all over City Hall. Chicago aldermen have a more pressing concern: foie gras.

#4 - Over at The Food Whore: …there were the infamous “soft pie” hunts, which basically means we would run through the cow pastures - in our bare feet - stepping on cow pies until someone found a fresh one. The first person to call “Soft Pie”, would win a candy bar…

#5 - Barbara Fisher over at Tigers & Strawberries: The most important thing he has learned, apparently, is that it is okay to say “fart” on the ABC News.