The Front Porch Swing

[Blooie]

Wyo, that is so painful for any family....I know all too well! Sending prayers for her and for her family and friends.

The soup was pretty doggone good, if I may brag. It's Ken's second favorite. His very favorite is tomato with lots of chunks of mater, dotted with butter and pepper. The house smelled so good yesterday. Unfortunately right after I supper I had to get to my town council meeting so I left the soup on the stove and asked him to pack it after it cooled a little bit. He forgot. Usually as soon as most of the hot is off it I bag it into gallon freezer bags, stand them up in the outside freezer until the next day, and then bring them in and put them through the food saver routine. I don't keep anything else in that freezer - it's just the top freezer of an old refrigerator - so that I don't have to worry when the temp inside the freezer compartment rises due to the open bags of hot whatever. I use the heck out of that method in the fall with chili, etc. Anyway, he forgot. Which meant that now the noodles are kinda soggy and sticky. Looks more like goulash than soup. Oh, well....it all fills the tummy, so I'll just change up the spices when I reheat it and MAKE it be goulash! Hunger is the best sauce, as Pa Ingalls used to say..

 

[Alice28]

Blooie, your making me crave some warm soup! I will have to make some soon!

wyoDreamer, I will keep your friends in my thoughts. What a horrible thing to go through! I am happy they located their daughter and hope she makes the choice to come home soon and that she keeps safe. The internet is a scary place sometimes. People can say whatever they want. At least they know where she is and hopefully with time she will see that comeing home is the best choice.

 

[perchie.girl]

Wyo, that is so painful for any family....I know all too well! Sending prayers for her and for her family and friends.

The soup was pretty doggone good, if I may brag. It's Ken's second favorite. His very favorite is tomato with lots of chunks of mater, dotted with butter and pepper. The house smelled so good yesterday. Unfortunately right after I supper I had to get to my town council meeting so I left the soup on the stove and asked him to pack it after it cooled a little bit. He forgot. Usually as soon as most of the hot is off it I bag it into gallon freezer bags, stand them up in the outside freezer until the next day, and then bring them in and put them through the food saver routine. I don't keep anything else in that freezer - it's just the top freezer of an old refrigerator - so that I don't have to worry when the temp inside the freezer compartment rises due to the open bags of hot whatever. I use the heck out of that method in the fall with chili, etc. Anyway, he forgot. Which meant that now the noodles are kinda soggy and sticky. Looks more like goulash than soup. Oh, well....it all fills the tummy, so I'll just change up the spices when I reheat it and MAKE it be goulash! Hunger is the best sauce, as Pa Ingalls used to say..

I lay bagged stuff flat on a cookie sheet till it freezes... then its like looking in a file cabinet in the freezer. I wish i had a food saver...
Another thing I do is when i buy meat like steaks in the grocery store its usually on sale and in HUGE family packs. I take the steaks out and pack them in individual freezer bags and again lay them flat on a cookie sheet to freeze. No sticking together and individual steaks defrost much quicker than a whole block.

The freezer here is a bottom freezer not much bigger than the kind on top. My bad I picked it out. Lots of room in the refrigerator though.
deb

 

[perchie.girl]

Hey I have been searching for a recipe for a Cucumber drink I had at an Aztec restaurant a couple of years ago. It was very light very refreshing and an excellent drink for hot days.



Yield:
4 servings

Level:
Easy

Ingredients

3 quarts water
3 English cucumbers, peeled and coarsely sliced
7 limes, juiced to yeild 1/2 cup worth
1/4 cup sugar, or more

It smelled like fresh mown grass and obviously tasted like Cucumber.

deb
Directions

Put 1/2 cup of water in a blender container with 1 cup of sliced cucumber. Blend. Add more cucumber and blend. Continue until all the cucumbers are pureed.

Strain the cucumber juice of its seeds into a very large pitcher. Add the remaining water, lime juice, and sugar, to taste. Chill before serving.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/agua-fresca-de-pepino-cold-cucumber-drink-recipe.html?oc=linkback

 

[vehve]

I'm making pork neck tonight, super easy and the whole meal is made in one dish. So here's a bit of Cooking and Carpentry with Felix again.

Pork neck in Ale

Take a pork neck, and let it warm on the counter until it's room temperature. Mix a paste of honey, dijon-mustard, garlic, fresh thyme, salt and black pepper, and rub it into the meat. Slice onions in quarter inch slices and line the bottom of a large pan with them. Put the meat on top of it, and throw it in a really hot oven (250C). While it's roasting in there (maybe for 15 minutes), take a couple of potatoes and slice them. You'll also want a few apples and a few carrots. Take the meat out, and turn down the heat to about 120C. Fill the pan with the vegetables, and pour half a bottle of ale on top of it. Throw it back in the oven for a couple of hours, and you'll have a complete meal.

 

[dpenning]

I'm making pork neck tonight, super easy and the whole meal is made in one dish. So here's a bit of Cooking and Carpentry with Felix again.

Pork neck in Ale

Take a pork neck, and let it warm on the counter until it's room temperature. Mix a paste of honey, dijon-mustard, garlic, fresh thyme, salt and black pepper, and rub it into the meat. Slice onions in quarter inch slices and line the bottom of a large pan with them. Put the meat on top of it, and throw it in a really hot oven (250C). While it's roasting in there (maybe for 15 minutes), take a couple of potatoes and slice them. You'll also want a few apples and a few carrots. Take the meat out, and turn down the heat to about 120C. Fill the pan with the vegetables, and pour half a bottle of ale on top of it. Throw it back in the oven for a couple of hours, and you'll have a complete meal.

Sounds yummy, will have to try that one!

 

[MistyMountain]

I'm making pork neck tonight, super easy and the whole meal is made in one dish. So here's a bit of Cooking and Carpentry with Felix again.

Pork neck in Ale

Take a pork neck, and let it warm on the counter until it's room temperature. Mix a paste of honey, dijon-mustard, garlic, fresh thyme, salt and black pepper, and rub it into the meat. Slice onions in quarter inch slices and line the bottom of a large pan with them. Put the meat on top of it, and throw it in a really hot oven (250C). While it's roasting in there (maybe for 15 minutes), take a couple of potatoes and slice them. You'll also want a few apples and a few carrots. Take the meat out, and turn down the heat to about 120C. Fill the pan with the vegetables, and pour half a bottle of ale on top of it. Throw it back in the oven for a couple of hours, and you'll have a complete meal.

Got room for another place setting?

 

[vehve]

Here's how it turned out:

 

[lazy gardener]

Yummy. I'm having dominique slow cooked in a dutch oven with cheesy broth, carrots, potatoes and parsley (from the garden) and onions.

 

[MistyMountain]

Y'all are too much! I am officially hungry!!

Tonights menu includes grilled sage-garlic pork tenderloin, mashed potatoes (the real kind) and corn.