Posts from — April 2014
Friday funnies
The Friday funnies this week have a theme.
This is what I would have said if you asked me how my day went either of the last two days.
That is because for the last two days, two full days, I spent all day at my dad’s house cleaning. My dad is a hoarder. He hoards recyclable items; plastic storage bags, plastic grocery bags, paper bags, boxes, sour cream and the like containers, frozen food containers, rubber bands, junk mail, etc.
He is spending three days and nights at his church on a Lenten retreat. The only time I can get in and successfully clean his house is when he is away. Otherwise, he watches me like a hawk and argues with everything I try to get rid of.
So, cleaning is the theme today…. yeah, good times!
April 4, 2014 6 Comments
what to do with leftover mussels
I don’t know if you noticed just how big that bag of mussels was in yesterday’s post. There were more than 140 mussels in it! I steamed them all on Sunday and then made another meal out of the leftover 60 or so mussels for dinner on Monday. I’ll get to the recipe shortly, but first I want to share a new favorite ingredient of mine with you – capers packed in sea salt.
Most capers we see in the U.S. are packed in vinegar brine after curing. Often the brine overpowers the wonderful fresh caper flavor. Capers packed in sea salt are more flowery, more like flower buds, which is of course what capers are. The caper plant, Capparis spinosa, can be found all around the Mediterranean Sea and spreads its long, spiny branches over rocks and open into beautiful white flowers with long purple stamens.
I used the capers directly from the jar, with the salt clinging to them, for this recipe. I didn’t use additional salt for the dish, just the salt that was already present on the capers. For a salad or another dish where not as much salt is needed, the capers need to be cleaned of their salt. To do so; cover the salt-packed capers with water. Swish to remove any clinging salt and let stand a minute to let it settle to the bottom. Lift out capers with a sieve, and taste. If still too salty, repeat the process.
I bought the capers while I was in Canada last summer and have looked for them here, but haven’t run across any yet. You can find them easily on Amazon.
April 3, 2014 6 Comments
sausage and mussels
Here is the second recipe I made on Sunday night with a portion of that huge package of sausage I’d purchased at Costco. I bought a huge bag of live mussels to go along with it.
Remember, I made the Corn, Potato & Sausage Chowder? We had steamed mussels too.
It’s important to do two things with live mussels. First, pull out and discard any and all cracked or broken mussels.
The second thing; just before cooking, pour a 1/2 cup or so of cornmeal into a large bowl.
Add cold water and stir. Then add the mussels and let sit for about 20 minutes. As the mussels breathe, they take in the cornmeal and fresh water and expel sand and grit.
Lift the mussels out of the water with a slotted spoon or spider and leave the sandy water behind.
April 2, 2014 2 Comments
April Fool
Sometimes April 1st sneaks up on me before I can plot and plan my April Fool’s prank.
Not this year.
This year I enlisted Connor’s help. He agreed to go to Costco with me to get the supplies as long as I’d stop at the grocery store to get two of the three needed ingredients for Rice Krispies Treats.
Deal.
Here is what Connor and I did with the Post-it® notes we bought.
We covered all the windows of Dave’s car with the colorful squares.
April 1, 2014 4 Comments
