Massive incoming grain and food shortages

[U_Stormcrow]

I prefer egg pastas, they are more filling. Also, less prone to getting mushy when overcooked - important when I add them to several quarts of chicken stock before jarring for later. The semolina helps with the "toothiness" and also helps hold onto the sauce - Bob's Red Mill brand has a relatively coarse grind. King Arthur AP (or better, their Bread flour) is high protein, which gives it a nice spring.
But I do make none egg dough on occaision Don't have a recipe I'm thrilled with, and all of the recipes are more sensative to humidity, which is... a problem.

 

[AGeese]

My mom got me a pasta maker for a previous Christmas and I find it can go angel hair thin. What I didn't like was the recipes for dough. Every last one calls for eggs, but the boxed pasta from the store and a lot of restaurant pastas don't use eggs at all - just flour and water, apparently. So the homemade doesn't taste right even with the best flour. I need to experiment some more.
But pasta doesn't matter as much as sauce. As soon as I find a good one, they ruin it by cheapening out on ingredients. I thought Rao's was pretty good, then they started leaving the tomato skins in, which all roll up and look so gross.
I've tried many a time to make my own sauce, but I can't get my hands on tomatoes that taste right. Canned Marzanos with bloody citric acid added... gah!
Such are the trials of a picky, spaghetti dependent creature...

If I make it I just get Contadina paste, puree, and diced otherwise look for some good Romas.

 

[AGeese]

You tend to find the ethnic stores, match the ethnic make up of their neighborhoods. If there are not a lot of italians around, you probably are not going to find a lot of high quality italian deli's, restaurants, import stores etc. When I grew up in chicago, ethnic stores were all over the place, down south here, I don't seem to see many,but in total honestly are not looking for them either. I remember my grandma going to one of the polish deli's for the sausages and ham and stuff. They had some sort of, oh god I have no idea what it was called, it was like a roll / with fruit in it and it was Soooo good, she used to get me one as a snack.

Perhaps one of the yuppy places like whole foods might have some of this stuff... at 40 times the price, but they DO have it

Aaron

I lived in Chicago for a time. Orso's is great!

 

[Sally PB]

Don't want to get side tracked even more, now that I've gotten us sidetracked. I make my own pasta sauce; haven't bought any in decades. Very easy, and done before the water is boiling.

1 quart home canned tomatoes, WELL drained
1 onion (golf ball to egg sized)
1 clove garlic (mine are huge)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil (how much in a small glug?)
1/2 teaspoon salt
scant teaspoon oregano
slightly heaping teaspoon basil

Process on "sauce" setting in a blender, which is about 25 seconds on mine. Heat if you like.

 

[Sally PB]

I'll be getting another 50 pound bag of Kalmbach's Flock Maker 20% in a couple weeks. Last time it was about $22-23. I'll let you know if it's gone up.

IIRC, it's inched up in price the last couple times. I think the first time I bought it (a year ago?) it was about $18-19. Which doesn't sound that bad, compared to some of the reports I've seen here.

 

[AGeese]

The tomatoes do matter.

 

[Iluveggers]

One other thing you will need to remember,which I learned very quickly making salsa's. Making your own from fresh ingredients, NO it will NOT taste the same because YOU don't have all those chemicals and preservatives and salts in yours. Secondly, without all those chemicals in it, unless you freeze it, it will only last a day or so in the fridge before it wants to start fermenting. / growing in the fridge. Id give it 3 days absolute tops before it's starting to really be 'off'.

Add spices, play with it, learn how to make it taste how you want it to, that's half the fun of it.

Aaron

Salsa is easy to water bath can!

 

[Ascholten]

Yes they do, they will have a huge factor in taste and texture. Get one you like and go with it.

 

[Ascholten]

Salsa is easy to water bath can!

Actually, I freeze dry mine now. WHen I need some, I just scoop out how much I need, add water and poof, instant salsa and the flavor is still right on the money because you Fd'd it.

Aaron

 

[NatJ]

Cracked or whole corn? Which do you prefer. I find the girls like the cracked a little better, its easier to get down.

I typically find whole corn a bit cheaper than cracked, and I assume it retains nutrients longer than cracked corn, so I prefer it when I have only adult chickens. I've seen adult bantams eat cracked corn with no apparent problems (hatchery-quality bantams of several breeds, but I've never had tiny little Seramas.)

When there are chicks to eat it too, I prefer cracked corn, and the adults eat that just fine too.

Of course, if one kind is out of stock or takes a giant price jump, I get the other one.