Whatcha Cooking today?

[pepperhead212]

I made a delicious, one pot sambar masala, with 3 vegetables - beans, okra, and eggplant - plus 3 dals, and some barley. I cooked an onion in some oil in the IP, then added 4 cloves of minced garlic, to cook briefly, then added a couple of large tomatoes, chopped up fine, and let cook down with some sambar masala powder. Then some toor dal, chana dal, and masoor dal were added - about 1¼ c total - and 2/3 c barley (I soaked all this about 2 hours, while getting beans and okra ready, and doing some other things), plus 6 c water. I added a little tamarind, then salted to taste, and put the lid on, and set it to pressure cook 12 min, then let the pressure release naturally.

After this, the thickness was a little thin, but it thickened more with the next cooking. I added the beans and okra, but it seemed like it wasn't enough for all the dal, so I cut up a small eggplant, and it seemed about right. I simmered that about 15 minutes, and prepared the tarka, for tempering, and stirred that in, with about 1/2 c cilantro.

That tarka, which can add a lot of heat, using the usual Thai type peppers, can be mild, using the Kashmiri peppers, clipped up. I did that because I knew I'd be sharing some of this with my friend, who loves these flavors, but has had problems with heat lately. I put a couple of fresh kanthari peppers in my dish, which more than made up for it!
Red and green beans and okra, to go into a type of Sambar Masala. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

The first part finished, started with onion, garlic, tomatoes, sambar masala powder, barley, and 3 dals, pressure cooked 14 minutes. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Beans and okra not quite enough, so I cut up the smallest eggplant, and added that, to cook together by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Ingredients for the tarka at the end -mustard seeds, cumin seeds, Kashmiri chili, asafetida, and curry leaves. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finished tarka, ready to add to the sambar. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Tarka, ready to stir in, followed by the cilantro. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finishing with a generous amount of cilantro. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finished sambar masala. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

[worth1]

If I buy a pastry it's gonna be an apple fritter every time.
So what the devil, I've got everything I need why not throw some together.
These are a little more puffy but they are delicious.
Used Granny Smith apples raw not cooked.
Cinnamon.
Nutmeg.
Sugar.
Salt.
Vanilla.
Flour.
Egg.
Baking powder.
Water.
Powdered milk.
Nothing fancy.

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[karstopography]

@worth1 those might be my favorite thing to get at a donut place such as Shipley’s. But, they are so loaded with grease, I never get one anymore.

[worth1]

@worth1 those might be my favorite thing to get at a donut place such as Shipley’s. But, they are so loaded with grease, I never get one anymore.

Its a rarity for me also but I really really wanted one.
I've been thinking about them for days

I can make just about anything like this plus other sweet treats but I rarely do.

[Tormahto]

In the deep fried realm of fair food, I wonder which came first, apple fritters or elephant ears?

[karstopography]

About the only dessert I’ll ever make is blackberry cobler and I have to pick the berries.

[Tormahto]

About the only dessert I’ll ever make is blackberry cobler and I have to pick the berries.

Thorny or thornless?

[worth1]

About the only dessert I’ll ever make is blackberry cobler and I have to pick the berries.

Thorny or thornless?

Thorns.
That area is covered on blackberries.
They are like sugar up here where I live.

[Tormahto]

About the only dessert I’ll ever make is blackberry cobler and I have to pick the berries.

Thorny or thornless?

Thorns.
That area is covered on blackberries.
They are like sugar up here where I live.

I never found a cultivated blackberry as sweet as the wild ones. But those wild ones are vicious. Here, they can be 12 to 14 feet tall. They arch up, out, and finally down, when laden with fruit, drawing an unsuspecting person in, then entrapping them with their long sharp downward pointing thorns. The only way to get out, without getting shredded, is to move further into the canes, then down close to the ground, and finally backward and out. A lot of blood was drawn the first time I went picking.

[Tormahto]

No cooking today, as I've got the oven set on Self Clean. It takes over 4 hours. The kitchen heats up and gets a bit smokey, even with all of the windows open. I need to get it done before the cold weather, which can come well before one expects it.

[karstopography]

About the only dessert I’ll ever make is blackberry cobler and I have to pick the berries.

Thorny or thornless?

Wild and thorny.

[Danny]

For us, thornless. I've donated enough blood and bits of flesh to the hungry wild ones.

[Danny]

Had some left over rice, so fried rice this evening without eggs though. Snow peas, onions, beef strips, mushrooms and fresh bean sprouts, garlic sauce and soy. Too stuffed now, LOL, and still some for lunch tomorrow.

[karstopography]

About the only dessert I’ll ever make is blackberry cobler and I have to pick the berries.

Thorny or thornless?

Thorns.
That area is covered on blackberries.
They are like sugar up here where I live.

I never found a cultivated blackberry as sweet as the wild ones. But those wild ones are vicious. Here, they can be 12 to 14 feet tall. They arch up, out, and finally down, when laden with fruit, drawing an unsuspecting person in, then entrapping them with their long sharp downward pointing thorns. The only way to get out, without getting shredded, is to move further into the canes, then down close to the ground, and finally backward and out. A lot of blood was drawn the first time I went picking.

@Tormato I picked wild blackberries when I lived up in Massachusetts and they were on those large and vicious canes. There was a patch of conservation land across from a cottage we stayed on the Cape that had been a Cranberry bog. Anyway, the berries were very good, they often got bathed in the fog that rolled in off Nantucket sound. The wild high bush blueberries were much more user friendly.

We have areas with the tall and vicious cane blackberries, I got a spot about a mile from the house, but those often burn up if the year is dry so mostly I pick the low ground hugging type, probably a dewberry, that grow out along the dunes and just off the beach. They are also frequently bathed in fog, April into May is the typical period, and if I get there in April and before the usual morning fog burns off they are sweet, big, plump and perfect. The risk isn’t so much the fang like thorns on these, the thorns are actually pretty small and thin, but the other much more menacing fangs of Rattlesnakes that seem to love the dune areas. There are so many berries per square foot and they are so good, I risk the snakes. The berries around my house aren’t as sweet or as numerous and it’s copperheads, water moccasins and coral snakes vs. Rattlesnakes to think about. I never thought about snakes much up in Massachusetts.

[worth1]

After all the beef braising going on I had a carrot celery salad for food yesterday.
No Meat.
Put everything in the freezer and thawing out some gumbo.
Gonna fry up some fish too.

[karstopography]

Carne Asada for street tacos. Marinating the skirt steak in soy sauce, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, a dash of Worcestershire sauce, cumin, my homemade Ancho chili powder and Aji Cristal powder, olive oil, and a touch of honey.

Going to grill over a little seasoned mesquite chunks and serve with corn tortillas, queso fresco, sweet onion, cilantro, fresh jalapeños, lime wedges, and avocado. Wife is making refried bean dip as an appetizer. Neighbors bringing black beans. Looking forward to dinner.

[worth1]

Scored a USDA PRIME well marbled extra thick chuck roast the other day.
I dissected the chuck eye portion from the rib portion.
Cut it to make it half as thick.
Salt and pepper hot skillet.
This thing is as tender as any cut of meat I've ever had.
Plus more flavor.
Knife just falls through it.
The price was $6.49 a pound the roast cost 19 dollars.
What a bargain for tender juicy steak.

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[Cornelius_Gotchberg]

Peppers-n-Zuke fries ready for the grill, which through ALL fault of my own, got over-cooked.

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Mercifully, the top sirloins fared better!

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The Gotch

[worth1]

Decided to pan sear the rib section of the chuck roast.
It's either tender or it isn't.
Been sitting in black pepper and kosher salt for some time now.
Also cooked some spaghetti in water seasoned with Knorr tomato chicken bullion powder.
My long lost pesto will go on it.
I also have some black pepper garlic butter waiting in the isles.
The pasta will be reheated upon my request of the kitchen staff when I'm ready to consume.

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[Tormahto]

About the only dessert I’ll ever make is blackberry cobler and I have to pick the berries.

Thorny or thornless?

Thorns.
That area is covered on blackberries.
They are like sugar up here where I live.

I never found a cultivated blackberry as sweet as the wild ones. But those wild ones are vicious. Here, they can be 12 to 14 feet tall. They arch up, out, and finally down, when laden with fruit, drawing an unsuspecting person in, then entrapping them with their long sharp downward pointing thorns. The only way to get out, without getting shredded, is to move further into the canes, then down close to the ground, and finally backward and out. A lot of blood was drawn the first time I went picking.

@Tormato I picked wild blackberries when I lived up in Massachusetts and they were on those large and vicious canes. There was a patch of conservation land across from a cottage we stayed on the Cape that had been a Cranberry bog. Anyway, the berries were very good, they often got bathed in the fog that rolled in off Nantucket sound. The wild high bush blueberries were much more user friendly.

We have areas with the tall and vicious cane blackberries, I got a spot about a mile from the house, but those often burn up if the year is dry so mostly I pick the low ground hugging type, probably a dewberry, that grow out along the dunes and just off the beach. They are also frequently bathed in fog, April into May is the typical period, and if I get there in April and before the usual morning fog burns off they are sweet, big, plump and perfect. The risk isn’t so much the fang like thorns on these, the thorns are actually pretty small and thin, but the other much more menacing fangs of Rattlesnakes that seem to love the dune areas. There are so many berries per square foot and they are so good, I risk the snakes. The berries around my house aren’t as sweet or as numerous and it’s copperheads, water moccasins and coral snakes vs. Rattlesnakes to think about. I never thought about snakes much up in Massachusetts.

There are 5 eastern timber rattlesnake dens in Massachusetts. I live within about 4 miles of two of them. Biologists say they grow to about 5 feet. I've seen one about 6 1/2 feet long. I think I've already told the story about walking down the semi-abandoned RR tracks, heard a noise and stopped. I couldn't figure it out, because it was not the time of year for cicadas. Then it dawned on me. I very slowly lowered my eyes, not my head, and there they were, one foot in front of me, two rattlers in the middle of the tracks, mating. While they were rattling in stereo, they were not in a coiled position to strike. Still, I stepped back quickly. Within about thirty seconds, I heard the train whistle, and knew it would get here in less than 5 minutes. The train comes through maybe once a month. Knowing how endangered the rattlers are, I quickly found a stick, a long one, and started poking them, to get them off the tracks. It took them about a minute to finally slither away.

Another time, I found one moving very slowly. I'm just dumb enough to ask myself, what does a rattlesnake (the back half) feel like slithering over a hand. So, I found out. They are very dry, as the experts say.

There is one rattler up here, that has a defective rattle, it makes no noise. The only noise is its body shaking the leaves on the ground. And finally, there was the time that I decided to go specifically looking for rattlesnakes. Knowing that they like to warm up in the day by sunbathing, I picked a summer day that was cool, with a cloudless sky. I hiked a fire road to the general area where I spot them the most. It is about 99% shaded by large oak trees. I scanned for any open patches of sunlit ground. The first area I found took about 30 seconds to get to. And there it was, the most beautiful golden patterned one I ever saw. I never went specifically looking for rattlers again, figuring I'll never find one as easy as that first one, if I would ever find another one at all.

Those are most of my rattler stories, and I'm sticking with them.