Text 14832, 157 rader
Skriven 2007-04-30 09:39:56 av Glen Jamieson
     Kommentar till en text av Carol Shenkenberger
Ärende: Re-posting 22
=====================
Ä Area: COOKING ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
  Msg#: 14387                                        Date: 04-22-07  16:28
  From: Glen Jamieson                                Read: Yes    Replied: No 
    To: Carol Shenkenberger                          Mark:                     
  Subj: TRAVELS 922 70422
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
 -=> Quoting Carol Shenkenberger to Glen Jamieson <=-

 GJ> It depends a lot on what I find in the fridge in the morning...  The
 GJ> spicy eggplant is particularly nice.

 CS> Humm!  I'll keep it in mind.  I'm not a major eggplant fiend so only
 CS> when there is a glut, do it get it.  My favorite way to make it stems

One of my favourites is given below.  I like it hot as a vegetable or
cold on breakfast toast.

 GJ> Grape jelly and apple butter are toppings I have never tried, or even
 GJ> seen sold here.

 CS> The apple butter, I wouldnt be suprised if you didnt have it.  Sure,
 CS> you grow apples but this is a product from an area with a glut of them
 CS> and a need to preserve them.  Colonial times (pre-revolution-USA) sort
 CS> of thing that people still like.  Easy to make too.  You have to wrap
 CS> your mind around the fact that its a dark brown.  It's normally spiced
 CS> with a little nutmeg and cinnimon.  Goes great on hot toast with a
 CS> little butter under it. 

I'm familiar as a child with stewed apples and baked apple, with the
nutmeg and cinnamon, which do go well with apple.

 CS> Grape jelly though?  That suprises me?  I imagine it is there but you
 CS> havent noticed.  I do seem to recall the jelly/jam section (now that I
 CS> think about it) was pretty small at that place in Darwin.  The popular

I looked out for it in the local s/market, and although there were
lots of spreads and many kinds of jams, the only jelly I found was the
traditional quince jelly; no grape jam or jelly.

 CS> ones are a vibrant dark purple and coloring is added to make them that
 CS> way.  The natural version is still purple if you use the right grapes,
 CS> but not so much so.  It's considered a perfect match with peanut butter
 CS> (which you've probably seen but i do not recall sold in Darwin?).  

I have seen stripy jars of peanut butter and jelly somewhere, maybe in
Manila, but not eaten it.

 CS> them then. With 'sorguhm sugar' if you were lucky.

 GJ> I looked it up in my dictionary and Grolier, and read that although it
 GJ> is a grain mostly used a stock feed, there is a sweet version from
 GJ> which a sweet syrup is made.

 CS> I am not sure if she had it named really 'right'.  I am only sure she
 CS> didnt make it from corn.  It was a tan color, quite thick, and had a
 CS> slight 'bite' that was other than cane sugar.

Young Jim has looked into it also, and written about it.

 CS> Gotta keep in mind, these ladies cooked things from 'ages past' that
 CS> they learned from their own grandmothers and they were themselves
 CS> pushing 70 by the time little ol' me encountered them.  The lady I
 CS> learned this from, learned it from a woman who'd learned it herself
 CS> about the time of the US civil war.  This area is too remote, to have
 CS> been noticed by the Civil war antics in that recent contremps <grin>.

Seeing that the original sorghum was introduced to USA pre-Civil War,
I'm sure the grannies would have been familiar with it.

 CS> It ya havent figured it out, I'm a down south gal from the small town
 CS> area and my memories and experiences in some ways, just dont match the
 CS> others here who come from big city backgrounds (big city as based on my
 CS> ideas of 'big' and not nessecarily how they'd term it).  Ruth Hanascka

It is all relative. Some people even think Texas is a big state. (g,d&r)

 CS> I even tried to tell everyone 'red eye gravy' was called that because
 CS> of the ham bone eye and didnt have coffee in it....  It doesnt where I
 CS> come from.  It's juice from a bean-pot with ham and a few mashed beans.
 CS> maybe chicory boiled and leftover for the water added (that would then
 CS> make the coffee connection).  I *literally didnt get it* that my
 CS> version was 'non-standard' as it was the only one I knew.

There are lots of "standards".
 
 GJ> Coming from a culture which only knows cane sugar derivatives, your
 GJ> varieties of sweet syrups, from Jim's maple, to beet sugar to your
 GJ> sorghum is interesting.  I wonder if there is much difference in
 GJ> flavour between them?

 CS> Oh yes!  Much difference.  Had a bit of a maple candy?  Even the
 CS> artifical kind?  Thats maple syrup.  Its somehow 'sweeter per cubic

Yes, I've had both the maple syrup and the candy.  A pleasantly
complex flavour.

 CS> Had fresh beets just boiled up and noted the earthy flavor?  Thats

Nup.  No sugar beets; only red beets - in an Aussie-burger.  That
looks impressive, with the juice bleeding down through the fried egg.

 CS> inthere in beet sugar and in the 'sorghum' I was used to but the
 CS> 'sorghum' had something else too and it wasnt the almost burnt corn
 CS> flavor of molassis.  Perhaps an almost kiwi-like hint without the tang?
 CS> Like a sunwarmed stalk of grass was also in there which is weirding me
 CS> out as other posts say its a grass but I am not sure what she used
 CS> other than she also gre sugar beets... 
 CS> I dunno.  I just was happy to eat it.

As sorghum is a type of grass, you were probably correct in picking up
a grass flavour.
 
Beans
 CS> Oh, I can make pretty good ones.  The missing part is due to the
 CS> food-cops. Lard is an essential.  If you are making them without that,
 CS> then you are missing out.  Come to think of it, regular OZ bacon fat
 CS> would be just about right to make them.
 GJ> As I said to Jim who made the same suggestion, I will give that a try.
 CS> I'll look over my memory for you.  Since you can get dried beans just
 CS> fine, you'll want to experiement with types.  This is one time where
 CS> the type of dry bean will make a small but telling difference.

 CS> Pinto beans would be the classic.  I dont know if you have them there.
 CS> They are a mostly light tan backround with reddish spots.  They take
 CS> longer to cook to soft than most.  Pink beans (they are basically 'pink
 CS> when dry' vice red) would be my next choice.  Red beans will work but
 CS> be careful to not get adzuki 'sweet red' as that will not work (those
 CS> are the tiny red ones, wont work for this).

 CS> Put one part beans and 4 parts water in a pot then bring to a boil and
 CS> draw down the heat to a bare simmer.  Let'em do their thing, adding
 CS> water as needed to keep it very loose for about 2 hours on the stove
 CS> (gosh it's been ages since i stove made beans!).  Its ready when it
 CS> only faintly resists 'squishing' a bean between your fingers.

Thanks for that info on the beans.

 CS> Cook up a mass of regular OZ bacon, perhaps 2 lbs or more.  Let the
 CS> fat collect til you have about 1 knuckle thick of fat, then add the
 CS> soft beans at about 1/2 cup at a time, mashing them into paste as you
 CS> go along, and adding more til it's a bit too runny but 'close' to what
 CS> you want.  Cook this down til a bit dryer than you want and then put a
 CS> lid on it.  Let this gently steam and add a little water and spices
 CS> (use a light hand with spices this time).  Add garlic whole cloves if
 CS> you wish at this stage. 
 CS> Taste test and it it tastes 'watery' add more drained beans.  If it
 CS> still tastes watery, you overcooked the beans <grin>.

I will probably start with a smaller quantity, but try to keep the fat
level up.  (G)

___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR]

___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR]

--- FLAME v2.0/b
 * Origin: Braintap BBS Adelaide Australia (3:800/449)