Gray, damp and cool here in Gainesville as well. Got to use the 1850 F ceramic broiler to blister some poblano peppers for making rajas as part of smoked chicken enchiladas. Made quick work of them.
Ahhh—choices/choices Pacifico Dos Equis Lager But that’s just me, you are quite capable of your own choice. Here’s to you!
Thinking about Mexican beers made me think about my college days when I would go to Mexico quite often and usually with my family. Bohemia struck a chord. Way back then I once dined at Cafe Bohemia in Chicago. They were famous for serving game meat. And not just venison. They served moose, water buffalo, elk, bear, beaver, lion and elephant along with other things. I don't remember what I ordered. It might have been moose or elk because I had eaten venison before. Of course this place is long gone. I think they closed in the 1980's.
That’s quite a menu for one place-they must’ve had great connections to be able to offer those types of options to their customers. Besides venison, wild hog, frog legs, and rattlesnake I have had black bear, elk, and mountain goat. Never had the chance to try moose, caribou, or any of the exotics that are available to hunt in Texas. Bird-wise I’m most fond of quail (any way you cook’em) and pheasant.
Quail and pheasant (especially smoked) are very delish. My favorite bird is duck. Smoked is great for a whole bird, but pan seared duck breast is my favorite. I went ring neck pheasant hunting with my older brother once. He was bow hunting and I was his bird dog. This was up in Illinois. I would spot them, point, and flush them out. No way to hit them on the ground because the cover was so think. When flushed they would just clear the cover and fly horizontally for a bit and that was your chance. He had to guess when and which way they would fly out. He never bagged one. And never came close to hitting me because they never flew toward me.
Exotic animals being served makes me think about the movie The Freshman with Matthew Broderick and Marlon Brando.
Making Turkey Chili. It's all in the crock pot now so just letting everything meld. This will be a big enough batch I will be able to share, as always. I have some Kahlua left over from the holidays but no eggnog to be found in the stores so guess I will try to make my own....something I've never attempted, but looks fairly straight forward. Re: Mexican beer....too many to pick just one. I do like Tecate though....
As is the case with most everything-I too love duck-depending on how it is prepared. For the longest time growing up in the south every time I had the chance to have duck it seems like it was always either greasy or dry. Once we started hunting up in Illinois I learned what well prepared duck is. I have not had pan seared before-I need to get with you on that. The two ways we have it up there is on the grill with the breasts butterflied open, stuffed with cream cheese and cut up jalapeños, then wrapped in thick cut bacon—and then we will pressure cook the number of whole ducks needed, make the appropriate size pan of cornbread dressing, lay the ducks in the dressing and then bake until the dressing is done. It’s outstanding!
Tonight we’re cutting up the rest of the half boneless pork loin into chunks and warming it in a frying pan with vidalia onions and Pat’s Homade. With it we’re having white rice to spoon the meat and BBQ sauce over and will also have steamed broccoli and cauliflower topped with fine shredded cheese. The ice cold longnecks and chilled wine are in play on the back porch. Life is good in Gator Nation!
The house has been full of the aroma of a big pot of spaghetti sauce simmering on the stove since mid-morning. Spaghetti topped with Sargento Mozzarella shredded cheese, a freshly made Romaine salad topped with vine ripe tomatoes, and five cheese Texas toast will make up our supper tonight. We have reached 70* briefly today and have had sunshine pretty much all day. The back porch is open and restocked with ice cold longnecks and chilled wine. Life is good in Gator Nation!
It’s National Pizza Day. Large wheat, thin crust-5 item Sampler—black olive, onions, mushrooms, sausage, and pepperoni. A couple of pieces for tomorrow lunch if my wife doesn’t decide on a midnight snack
Dentist appointment today at 3. Just a checkup and cleaning - but I still hate going there...lol. The good news is my friend who owns a local retail garden shop here is bringing me back some Rex Begonias from his weekly buying trip to central FL. We did the same thing 3 years ago and all of those Begonias were given away, so time to replenish. With these new decks I built I now have an excellent place to keep them. They are such beautiful plants with such interesting foliage. Included will be several Iron Cross Begonias, of course. I'll head over to his place right after my dental appointment. What a beautiful morning!
My wife's car battery needed replacement. She got a jump from AAA yesterday and they tested her battery and gave her the bad news. No surprise as I have had to drive to her car that wouldn't start a couple of times recently for a jump. When I asked her why she didn't call AAA she said that I would be faster. I guess she called AAA yesterday because she knew that I was out walking the dog. Because of the Gator basketball game yesterday evening I promised to get up early and do it. In thirty minutes I removed the battery from her 2006 Ford Fusion with a 5 speed manual transmission and almost 240,000 miles, took it (the old battery and not her car, LOL) to AutoZone, bought a replacement, and installed it. It was pretty simple. I have seen cars where getting the battery out is a big deal, but not this one. Anyway tonight I am roasting a pork tenderloin marinaded in a sesame teriyaki sauce, sauteing broccoli in a wok and making rice. My wife will be working late (she is a lawyer and has too many things on her plate right now) and this is easily warmed up. Simple and delish.
Nice job, Lurk! Getting a new battery is like getting new tires. Every time you get new ones you auto-magically reduce the chances of being stuck somewhere with a problem. Money well spent! Thankfully all went well with my dental appointment. They were on time. Good cleaning job. Got new Xrays and nothing showed up. Done until August! Picked up my Rex Begonias - beautiful! Also got some other odds and ends...Maranta, Calathea, Anthuriums, Af. Violets, and some small Cryptanthus!Tomorrow I will post a couple pics when I get everything out of their sleeves. The Begonias are 6" pot size. Also went by Moms and dropped off a few things. Heinz catsup, Peter Pan creamy peanut butter, and some Green Mountain K-cup Mocha that I thought she might like. She was eating a Publix chicken tender when I got there and watching TV. Turns 99 in 10 days. What a life!
My Hamilton Beech toaster oven wasn't coming on tonight. I unplugged it and plugged it back in and it started working again. Odd but I'll take it! Forgot to mention earlier today for lunch I had tuna fish and avocado sandwiches. These were 2 for a dollar Dollar General avocados I bought yesterday. Very soft so I was skeptical. One was perfect and the other about 90% so I guess it turned out OK. Those freaking sandwiches were amazing!
Never had that, sounds good. Do you mash the avocado into the tuna, or add slices to the sandwich? What kind of bread?
