Have a great Bloomsday. I'm out of mutton kidneys, so I'll just have a Guinness.

“Mr Leopold Bloom ate with relish the inner organs of beasts and fowls. He liked thick giblet soup, nutty gizzards, a stuffed roast heart, liver slices fried with crustcrumbs, fried hencod's roes. Most of all he liked grilled mutton kidneys which gave to his palate a fine tang of faintly scented urine.”

In which George takes up smoking

We are all very grateful for Casey's Christmas gift to George and last night attacked the inaugural offering with the dedication it deserved.  Smoked pork on sesame buns with bbq sauce.  Sticky heaven.

Study: Drinkers more intelligent

I must be a genius.

My newest addiction...

Also, perhaps the world's messiest food.
Recipe and Text from The Recovering Vegetarian
/http://therecoveringvegetarian.wordpress.com/2009/07/12/sriracha-lime-boiled-peanuts/


Sriracha-Lime Boiled Peanuts

• 1lb raw peanuts, in shells
• 8oz soy sauce
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1/4 cup sriracha chili sauce (Feel free to increase this as much as you like)
• 1 inch knob of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
• handful of fresh cilantro leaves
• 2Tbsp rice vinegar

As far as recipes go, this one is pretty darn simple. Grab the biggest pot you’ve got on hand and toss in your peanuts. Fill with water, add all your other ingredients. Bring to a boil, then turn it down to a gentle simmer. Keep an eye on your water level and periodically pop out a peanut, unshell and taste. Adjust the seasonings to suit your taste, enjoy the smell as you come to check on it. These are definitely the most fragrant peanuts I’ve ever made. You’ll know yours are done when the shells are pliable and the nuts inside are soft and flavorful. (Mine took about six hours?)
When they’re done, place a generous serving in a bowl and toss with red pepper flakes and another small handful of cilantro leaves. If you have any left over, some people drain theirs and store them in the refrigerator that way, I prefer to store them in some of the cooking liquid. They taste even better the next day that way!

I have no idea what prompted this post, but found it funny.  This site also has a simple recipe for Split Pea soup in case you can't find any Siberian Tigers.

http://soupbelly.com/2009/11/04/endangered-soup-come-n-get-it-before-its-too-late/

Give us this day...

I’ve had a good success record making Challah – though it is time consuming it looks and tastes great.  But I really don’t need four loaves of Challah; sometimes I just want one loaf of plain old bread.  Yesterday I tried a very simple recipe for one loaf of white bread; it was a disaster.  Perhaps it was the ratio of ingredients (too little yeast, too much flour) but basically it was my lack of skill.  This week I’ll try a different recipe – one that uses the sponge method which I recall from my Tassajara days and seemed to work all of the time.

 Meanwhile, yesterday’s loaf will come in handy when I make the stuffing for Thanksgiving.  And Matt will be here in December.  Right? 

So who Knew? Via Courtney on Facebook

Courtney Chambers:  Hey Roberta, in north America we consider zucchini, pattypans, and crooknecks summer squash (which wikipedia tells me are harvested before they get too mature) and bigger squashes/gourds such as pumpkins, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, and Hubbard are known as winter squash.

You can read about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squash_%28plant%29

So who knew?

Western Gray Squirrel

Ground Squirrel

Fox Squirrel

OK.  So.  The Gray Squirrel is the one most often seen scampering around and chatting chatting chatting.  G tells me the Fox Squirrel -- I think -- is even chattier and pretty much hangs around the tree tops.  The Ground Squirrel stays on the ground.  This is all I know about squirrels, but is more than I knew yesterday  morning.
                               Redneck Squirrel Fry
                                           Thanks to Justin for sending in this recipe.

~ squirrel legs, amount depends on how many you have or how hungry you are.
~ 2 eggs
~ 1 tbsp ketchup
~ salt and pepper
~ 1 can beer
~ Drakes batter
~ butter

Beat the eggs in a medium bowl. Add the ketchup. Salt and pepper to taste
Add 1/2 can of beer and drink the rest. (you don’t want to waste it!) Mix well.
Put some of the Drakes batter in a shallow dish.
Melt several tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium-low heat.
Dip the squirrel into the egg mixture and then roll in the Drakes. Repeat for thicker coating.
Add to the skillet and cook until golden brown. Turn as needed.
Serve with mashed potatoes and cream corn.
Enjoy.

"It is to die for!" - Justin 
(especially if you're the squirrel...)

Not my cup of chai

Some years ago my mother, who had taken to drinking tea in the afternoon, offered me a cup of chai . I had never heard of chai but I took to drinking it on occasion during the 90’s as espresso shops and carts became prevalent (even in Stinson Beach). The machine-made chai was much better than my mom’s which, as I recall, was a sort of teabag variety. Neither preparation matches the chai described by Eric Margolis in his “War at the Top of the World”:

"Known as chai, this form of tea is unique to the Asian subcontinent. To make it properly, you must take a battered, blackened, greasy aluminum pan; add contaminated water, two or three tablespoons of insect-infested sugar, raw, unpasteurized milk, and black, perfumed tea; then boil it all up into a sweet white drink that will either cure whatever ails travelers to these parts or, more likely, leave you with Q fever, cholera, and assorted parasites. In these parts, tea cannot be refused when offered, which it always is. I discreetly gulped down an antibiotic capsule I had learned to always keep secreted in my pocket for just such social occasions."

Wine Train

On our way up to Happy Camp, Chris and I stopped in Napa for lunch on the Wine Train (thanks Geoff!).