#no little garlic thrown into the mix

[najia-cooks]

Hey Najia! I love this blog so much! I have a question. I find cooking pretty difficult sometimes. I'm chronically ill and also the kitchen stresses me out a bit because I'm very scatterbrained and there's knives and fire and stuff. I also fuck things up in the kitchen pretty easy. Are there any recipes on here you find particularly easy to make? That you'd recommend for when you just cannot be arsed? Hope you're having a wonderful day, I know it's your birthday 😄🎉

Thank you!

I can understand your stress—cooking can involve things that are objectively dangerous and also time-sensitive. I'd recommend:

Try recipes where you don't have to come into direct contact with the blades you use. Some Indian dals, for example, cook lentils in a sauce made from blended onion, tomato, and garlic; you could process them using a food processor or blender. A lot of things (fresh salsa, guacamole, a duqqa of garlic, chilies, and spices that you can throw in to cook with some lentils) can be prepared in a mortar and pestle, too.

I've never used one, but a vegetable chopper might help in a similar way that a food processor would, by reducing the amount of knifework that you have to do. There are a lot of recipes where a chopped onion is the only knifework required.

Also try recipes that are cooked in the oven, and not on the stovetop. Something that gets thrown into the oven on low heat to cook (like a casserole or fukharat dish) takes longer, but is more hands-off, than something that's cooked on the stove.

Do all of your prep work first. Read through the recipe and see what chopping, blending &c. needs to be done, prep each ingredient, and put it in its own little bowl. This includes anything in the ingredients list that says "1 onion, diced" or similar: do that right off the bat. If the recipe says "meanwhile" or asks you to do prep for anything while anything else is cooking, you might choose to disregard that and do all the prep first, depending on how long the cook time is and how much attention it needs (e.g., soup on a low simmer for half an hour can pretty much be left alone; anything in a frying pan cannot). This way you won't be rushing to chop anything quickly while worrying that something else is going to overcook.

Look for vegetables, like broccoli / cauliflower / romanesco and green beans, that can be broken up with your hands rather than chopped. Rip up cilantro and parsley rather than chopping them.

Admittedly "simple" is not the guiding principle of this blog, but here are some recipes that I think could be easily adapted:

Fukharat l3des: just one onion to chop. Cooked on low heat in the oven.

Fried tofu sandwich: just mixing sauces and spices. You can skip coating the tofu in cornstarch and frying it. Instead try freezing the whole block, thawing it, cutting into two or four pieces, and then marinating it in a plastic bag with your sauce overnight. Then bake the tofu for 15-20 minutes, turning once, at 350 °F (180 °C).

Roasted celery and potato soup: requires only very rough chopping; the cooking methods are baking and simmering. The fried tempering could be skipped by just adding those ingredients into the simmer earlier.

Carrot salad or chickpea salad or tapenade: you could throw all of the ingredients in a food processor.

Moroccan lentils: just an onion and tomato to grate or process.

Kashmiri lal chaman: the only thing you need to cut is tofu; the gravy is just water and spices. You could bake the tofu instead of frying it.

Black bean burgers: no chopping or frying if you omit the onion and carrot and elect to bake the finished patties.

'Chicken' and olive tajine: the marinade is blended or pounded, and there is no other prepwork to do other than chopping one onion. Everything can be simmered on low heat until cooked, so it's pretty hands-off.

Chana pulao: mostly rice, chickpeas, and spices. Some aromatic prep, but you could crush instead of chopping those.

Romanesco quiche: no knifework at all if you omit the aromatics and break aprt the romanesco with your hands.

Spanish garlic mushrooms: just crush garlic instead of slicing and buy pre-sliced mushrooms. There is frying, though.

Eggplant cooked salad: the eggplant is broiled and then spooned out. No knifework required if you use tomato puree.

Butternut squash soup: just roasting and simmering. No knifework required if you omit the aromatics and buy pre-cubed squash.

Dishes with a base of lentils, chickpeas, beans, rice, and/or noodles are great because there's no knifework that needs to be done to prepare the beans &c. themselves.

#newsreaderyaoi

[dialovers-translations]

DIABOLIK LOVERS DARK FATE Imajin Webshop Tokuten Drama CD ”A Heated Cooking Showdown! ~The King of Founder’s Ultimate Cooking~”

Original title: 灼熱のクッキングバトル！～始祖王の���極料

Source: Diabolik Lovers DARK FATE Imajin Webshop Tokuten Drama CD

Audio: Here

Seiyuu: Katsuyuki Konishi, Takahiro Sakurai & Morikawa Toshiyuki

Translator’s note: While it is nothing new for Reiji and Ruki to get all competitive in regards to cooking, it was definitely interesting to see Carla get thrown in the mix. I always assumed that Shin is the one who does all of the household chores - including cooking - so it’s very difficult to imagine Carla behind the stove. ...And those who have listened to this CD will probably agree with me that this might be for the best. :p

→  LIKE MY TRANSLATIONS? SUPPORT ME ON KO-FI!

*Chop chop chop*

Reiji: The simplest dishes are often the most difficult…as well as most beautiful.

This time’s cooking shodown has been quite the hard-fought battle. However, I believe my victory is basically guaranteed. I simply cannot fathom that an uncivilized Mukami such as yourself will be able to deliver an elegant dish.

Ruki: What are you going on about, Sakamaki Reiji? I don’t want to hear that from the guy who has the nerve to be spouting nonsense all while handling such delicate ingredients.

Reiji: Wha…!? Hah…Ruki. I’d very much appreciate it if you would take back that statement.

Ruki: The answer is no. …Heh. How are you chopping your garlic? You have to make sure that each piece is equal, or else it’ll cook unevenly.

Reiji: Could you not call me out on my mistakes? …It seems like you have not even cut anything at all yet.

Ruki: Yes. My dish doesn’t require any chopping up of ingredients, hence why I haven’t. However, that does not mean I’m not skilled with a knife. Don’t assume I’m the same as you.

Reiji: Hahaha…I see. I suppose you must lower the difficulty of your dish, or else you simply have no chance against me. Heh. Well then…I suppose it is about time I show you the difference in skill between us.

Ruki: I suppose I shall do the same then. It’s on.

Reiji: …Hm? Who has dared set foot on this sacred battlefield?

Carla: …I thought this was the kitchen? When did it become a battlefield?

Ruki: Carla!?

Carla: However, now that I have heard that, I am afraid I simply cannot turn back. Very well. I shall participate as well.

Reiji: Hooh…? Then please shiver in fear as you lay your eyes upon my elegant cooking techniques.

Ruki: That’s my line. Right now you still have the chance to withdraw.

Carla: Hmph. Not a chance. Well then, who shall start?

Reiji: I will. …Well then, behold!

Reiji turns on the stove.

*Thud*

Reiji: To infuse the oil with the garlic’ fragrance, you have to simmer it on low heat for an extended period of time. Well then, let us add some chili pepper as well.

*Pshhh*

Reiji: The pasta as well…Mmh. Looks good. Now you add some of the pasta water to the infused oil and then add the pasta before mixing it all around.

Ruki: While your techniques are noteworthy, I doubt I will lose this showdown.

Reiji: Fufufu…Run your mouth all you want. …And then! Now you turn off the heat and plate it elegantly.

*Cling*

Reiji: Ah…Never before have I seen such a perfect aglio, olio e peperoncino.

*Twinkle twinkle*

Ruki: Hooh. Not bad. However, the pasta looks just slightly overcooked.

Carla: I see. While the fragrance definitely stirs up an appetite, can you guarantee the flavors are there with so little ingredients?

Reiji: Its simplicity is what makes it so difficult to get right. Although I hardly care about what you have to say when you have not even tasted it yet. Well then, why don’t you show us what you’ve got next?

Ruki: Of course. I’ll make sure to give you a good watch, so learn from it.

Ruki turns on the stove.

*Thud*

Ruki: First you thoroughly heat up your frying pan. Getting the right temperature is vital after all.

*Cling*

Ruki: Okay. Now you put it a chunk of butter.

*Pshhh*

Ruki: Next we take our mixture of eggs, fresh cream and salt and pepper. I’m afraid I cannot share the exact measurements as they’re the result of years of personal research.

Reiji: Hmph! Everyone has their own recipes, so I’m not sure what you’re trying to brag about.

Ruki: No. This is the crème de la crème. I have tried countless different ratios and this one came out as the best. I would even go as far as to call this my life’s work.

Reiji: You’ve done enough talking. Please get to cooking already.

Ruki: Heh. You must really be dying to lay your eyes upon my elegant handling of the frying pan. Very well. …Behold!

Ruki pours the egg mixture into the pan.

Ruki: You must start by quickly stirring the egg mixture around in the pan. Then you push the eggs to the back of the pan and swirl it around until you achieve the correct shape.

This is the secret to making a perfect plain, fluffy omelet.

*Cling*

*Twinkle twinkle*

Reiji: I have to give it to you. It does fit the theme of ‘a simple yet tricky dish’ perfectly.

Ruki: Oh? You are being rather vague? Could it be that you’ve realized that you stand no chance at victory after seeing this perfect omelet of mine?

Reiji: What are you saying? Perhaps you have become delusional from the fragrance of my peperoncino?

Carla: Are the two of you done?

Reiji: Exactly. …Will you participate as well?

Ruki: I assume he will offer to be the judge in this case?

Carla: No. I do not dislike a good challenge. My victory is pretty much set in stone already, so let me get to it.

Reiji: However, a Founder such as yourself should have very little experience with cooking, correct?

Carla: Believe whatever you please, but nothing is impossible for me. Well then, let me get started on my dish.

Ruki: What will you be making?

Carla: Is there a rule that says I must share the dish beforehand? Cooking is something you do based on your mood at the moment.

Reiji: While I agree that passion is a necessary component in cooking, to achieve a beautiful end result, one must first plan out the cooking procedure.

Ruki: No, there’s some logic in what Carla’s saying as well. I’m sure you’ve had times where you originally planned to make a tomato-based sauce, but then switched over to a cream sauce during the cooking process?

Reiji: Well…I suppose I have.

Carla: Heh. There you have it. The two of you are more understanding than I thought.

Ruki: However, it can also cause hesitation or doubt. I doubt you’ll be able to win against either of us with that kind of attitude.

Carla: I wonder. ....Well then, let me get started.

Carla turns on the stove.

*Thud*

Carla: I shall start by heating up some grapeseed oil. As you are surely aware, this type of oil contains double the amount of polyphenols as regular olive oil.

Reiji: Hooh…? Are you trying to test our knowledge by bringing up some miscellaneous facts?

Carla: No. This is basic knowledge. Part of cooking is showing off after all.

Ruki: Excuse me?

Carla: How come that the actual cooking process is seen as such an important factor of any culinary showdown, you think? Because the end result does not determine everything, obviously.

Reiji: Now that he mentions, I have to agree that the highlight of cooking is often what happens right before everything is put on the plate.

Ruki: Yes. I suppose we should include that as an evaluation criteria this time as well.

Carla: Well then. Let me pour in the oil. …Hoh!

*Groooowl*

Reiji: That is…!? A wolf…!?

Carla: Now go! Add in the oil from as high as you can!

*Groooowl*

*Psssh*

Ruki: …Oi. Why does it need to be poured in from a high angle?

Reiji: One second, Ruki…Could this not be part of the beauty behind cooking which Carla spoke of earlier?

Ruki: Is that why he decided to order the wolf to pour in the grapeseed oil from up high…?

Carla: Yes, exactly. What do you say? I bet you want to imitate me after witnessing that just now?

Reiji: Tsk…Now that he mentions it, I have never seen such an artistic way to pour in cooking oil before.

Ruki: So this is…Show cooking?

Carla: Heh. It’s an absolutely necessary step to ensure that you capture everyone’s full attention. One does not cook solely for themselves after all.

Ruki: Reiji…I believe this might turn into quite the showdown.

Reiji: As frustrating as it is, I cannot deny that. I cannot believe that I am increasingly more drawn in, finding myself wanting to apply the same techniques.

Carla: Heh, right? Well then, next I shall prepare five different variants of Demon World tomatoes which every household should have in their pantry.

Reiji: I will have to disagree with that statement.

Carla: How so? Demon World tomatoes are some of the best because of their perfectly bitter and tangy.

Ruki: …Their bitterness is on point? However…When they’re right in front of my eyes, they look strangely delicious to me though.

Carla: Hmph! As for the other vegetables, it does not matter which world they came from, but you should try and go for the ones with the most vigor.

Reiji: …Not ‘fresh’ but ‘vigorous’...? What exactly do you mean by that?

Carla: Take this pumpkin for example. Look at its vines.

*Woosh*

Ruki: …!? It moves!? …It’s still alive!?

Carla: Exactly. By using lively Demon World vegetables, it will enrich the flavor profile of your dish. Although those cooking at home must be utmost careful not to have their kitchen destroyed.

Reiji: …I have no idea who you are talking to but well…I suppose it makes sense that using fresh ingredients will enhance the flavor.

Ruki: That being said…Wouldn’t it be too overwhelming?

Carla: That is not an issue as long as you fry them in enough of this grapeseed oil.

*Pshhh*

Reiji: Wha…!? You’re adding even more of the oil!? The pot is filled with oil to the brim!

Ruki: Not even when making a dish fried in garlic oil do they use this large of an amount. …What on earth are you making?

Carla: Did I not tell you earlier? Cooking is all about following your intuition. You make it as you feel at the moment.

Ruki: However…It won’t come together at this rate.

Reiji: Exactly! This is just one big hodgepodge!

Carla: A hodgepodge, you say? I see. That has a very straightforward ring to it. I suppose I shall give it a try.

Carla continues his endeavors and keeps on adding more stuff to the pot.

Reiji: How noble…Could this be a new breakthrough in the world of cooking?

*Bubble bubble*

Ruki: Oi…One second. Did I just witness that guy throwing my omelet inside his pot?

Carla: Yes. Since it had both eggs and fresh cream in it, I used it.

Ruki: Excuse me…!? Oi…Give it back…! Don’t tell me…Was this your intention from the very beginning?

Reiji: Heh. How naive of you, Ruki. To ensure that nobody would get their hands on my peperoncino, I made sure to put it over heー

*Rustle*

Reiji: Wha…!?

*PSSSH*

Reiji: What are you doing to my masterpiece!?

Carla: Well, I want to use this large plate as well. Don’t worry, I won’t do anything to your dish. I’ll simply plate mine on top.

Reiji: No way! Cut it out! I achieved the perfect balance of flavors with that dish!

*Splat*

Reiji: Ah…! My aglio e olio!

Carla: There we go. Now all I need to do is put dry cured ham on top and the dish will be complete. However…I do feel as if something is still missing. …Right!

*Woosh*

*Drip drip*

Ruki: Wha…!? He’s sprinkling on even more of the grapeseed oil…!?

Carla: Yes. It will help bring out the fragrance even more. Remember that!

Reiji: Carla…You truly are unbelievable…

Ruki: We were fools to let our guards down around you for even one second.

*Cling cling*

Carla: Well then, dig in. No need to hold back.

Ruki: …Haah. I suppose I have no other choice. I doubt it tastes bad, considering my omelet which I shed blood, sweat and tears for is in there as well.

Reiji: Right…However, it gives off a very unfamiliar scent. I wonder if it’s okay to eat?

Ruki: Oi, let’s try it.

Reiji: Yes. …Well then, here goes nothing.

Reiji and Ruki try Carla’s dish.

*Cling*

*Nom nom*

Reiji: Mm…

Ruki: Hm…

Carla: What do you think? It’s sublime, isn’t it?

Reiji: Well…Even though the individual ingredients were all of the highest quality…The combination could not be any worse.

Ruki: …I can only taste oil. Why…? How did it turn out like this!? Kuh…!

Carla: Haah…This dry cured ham tastes exquisite. I suppose the two of you are simply not ready yet to appreciate it….

Reiji: …

Ruki: Wha…!? He’s only eating the dry cured ham part dipped in the oil!?

Reiji: This is a blatant insult to us! This cannot even be called a dish!

Carla: Now that is rather harsh of you. However…I do feel as if something is still missing. Ah. Right. I suppose I’ll try grilling it.

Ruki: Hah? …Wait! If you do thatーー!

Carla turns on the gas.

*Thud*

*BOOM*

Reiji: Which idiot exposes oil to an open flame…!? Aaah…! What now…!? My kitchen…!

Ruki: Calm down! We have to extinguish the fire first! ーー Oi, Carla! Do something about this!

Carla: Hm…I don’t like too much ruckus. I suppose nothing beats a piece of dry cured ham by itself. Fufufu…

ーー THE END ーー

#diabolik lovers #dialovers #reiji sakamaki #ruki mukami #carla tsukinami #diabolik lovers translation #diabolik lovers drama cd #drama cd

[mariacallous]

The Bukharian Jewish community, while little known by the world’s broader Jewish population, is certainly no stranger to the kitchen. With historical exposure to multifarious global influences, from Central Asia to Eastern Europe to everything picked up along the Silk Road, Bukharian cuisine reflects profound cultural fusion while maintaining its own unique flair. Here are eight essential Bukharian dishes that are worth a try:

Bakhsh

A staple in any Bukharian Jewish household, bakhsh is a rice dish easily recognizable for its distinctive green hue, which results from the addition of green herbs like cilantro and dill. Finely chopped meat or chicken, onions and other aromatics also feature prominently. Bakhsh is cooked using two primary methods — either by gradually layering the ingredients in a pot or submerging a bag with all the ingredients in boiling water. The latter preparation method, which allows the dish to be pre-cooked, was traditionally favored by Shabbat observers. 

Osh Sovo

Another meal created to accommodate Shabbat, osh sovo is a slow-cooked fruity, meaty rice dish that is commonly served for Saturday lunch after being cooked overnight, beginning before the onset of Shabbat. The fruits incorporated into the rice are typically tangy and dry, often including prunes or dried apricots. Vegetables (such as tomatoes, carrots and potatoes) and spices (paprika or turmeric) are also thrown into the mix. The result is an incredibly silky, sweet-and-sour dish that’s a cross between a stew and a risotto. 

Kov Roghan

This dish is simplicity at its finest — soft potato wedges are simmered with cubes of either chicken or meat in a broth to make for a heart- and soul-nourishing meal. Some soak up the remaining broth on the plate with lepyoshka, a round Uzbek bread adopted by Bukharians. 

Osh Palov

As Uzbekistan’s national dish, osh palov (also commonly called plov) has been adopted into a beloved food enjoyed at all sorts of Bukharian gatherings. To prepare it, chopped lamb is browned at the bottom of a large pot, after which thinly sliced carrots and onions are added, all topped with sticky and often oily white rice. Raisins, chickpeas and whole heads of garlic also typically adorn a large platter of plov, which often serves as the final course at large Bukharian dinners.

Osh Piyozi

Adopted from Afghan culture along the Silk Road, osh piyozi consists of softened, bite-sized stuffed onions. Fillings typically consist of a mixture of ground meat and rice, and the onions are often served in a sauce featuring tomatoes, dried fruits and peas, giving tasters a melt-in-your-mouth, umami bite. 

Samsa

A cousin of Indian samosas, this baked savory pastry consists of triangle-shaped laminated dough filled with anything from ground meat and onions to pumpkin. While Uzbek households use butter or ghee as a laminate, Bukharians typically use non-dairy fats or opt for a non-laminated dough in order to maintain kashrut. One can often find a spicy tomato sauce beside a serving of samsa, which is meant to be drizzled into an opening in the pastry shell. 

Sirkoniz

This rice dish can be perceived as a variation on osh palov, setting itself apart in two main ways: its distinct garlicky flavor and the fact that it is almost always served cold, another ancient Bukharian strategy for eating enjoyably while observing Shabbat. 

Manti

Adopted from Uzbek cuisine, manti are traditional steamed dumplings stuffed with ground beef and diced onions, often served with the same spicy tomato sauce used for samsa. Unlike some variations across the Caucasus, Bukharian manti are distinctly large, usually requiring a few bites to finish.

[nerdyqueerandjewish]

I’m sure it’s not original but I improvised the most yummy meal that I’ve been eating for two days and I’m so proud of myself. Maybe this is too highly specific for anyone to get use out of, but I was just really pleased so I wanted to share

- chicken thighs baked with chopped onion, garlic, and salt. Was not too crazy with the flavors at this point because I was unsure of what I was gonna make. Remaking it, a person could do a slow cooker or however they normally like to do their shredded chicken.

- while the chicken was cooking I found some pita and vegan tzatziki sauce (from Trader Joe’s… so good) so I decided to do a gyro type thing.

- made a zaatar spice blend with equal parts cumin, oregano, sesame, sumac and a pinch of salt

- heated up a huge pan with a little olive oil, then added a can of drained chickpeas. When the chicken was out of the oven I shredded it up with forks and threw it in with the chickpeas. Mix in a generous amount of zaatar.

(- optional: I also strained the remaining chicken fat and put it in a container and it’s gonna be SO GOOD to cook veggies in later. Remaining bits got thrown in the pan)

- cook until all those flavors are blending together and the chickpeas are nice and soft.

- serve with pita and tzatziki sauce. Hummus would be good too. Would also be good with rice or chips. If you really want to live in luxury, toast both sides of the pita in the pan a lil bit

[balkanradfem]

What I learned about growing vegetables in the last 3.5 years of doing it:

Squash: it will grow even in poor soil, summer squash will grow even in the worst conditions, winter squash needs a little more care! If you plant them far apart they will grow huge. Winter squash struggles in heat, but will generally survive it and start growing again once it's not too hot.

Peppers: They have to be watered consistently and periodically after being planted outside. Even if you don't water anything else, you have to water peppers, or they will remain small. They will also cross-pollinate and if you plant hot peppers next to non-hot peppers and try to collect the seeds, next year you will have all hot peppers.

Tomatoes: They're the biggest monster plants and they will grow so vigorously and stubbornly I actually have no clue how to stunt or stop these once they're on the open fields. You're supposed to prune them but they get out of hand so fast. If they survive the 'seedling' stage god himself can't kill them. But blight could so if the lower leaves are looking sick and yellow, cut them off.

Beans: Another thing that will grow in poor soil, the most important thing I learned is that the bush variety will produce earlier, and it's a way safer bet to plant them, because if there's a drought, or slug infestation, or whatever the hell happens, bush variety will give you the produce earlier, and you're very likely to get a harvest. Pole beans, or the climbing variety, is capable of growing so much bigger producing much more beans, but does it slower and is at more risk to be attacked or sun-damaged! So plant both, always.

Carrots: I am still not great at carrots! There are many tricks to germinating them, and I always try to sow them early in the spring, then again in the summer, and it will sometims have better results if you put a big plank over the soil after planting them, to keep them from drying out. They really need soft and well-fertilized soil. Also if you plant them in the fall, harvest before the late spring comes because they will start going to seed.

Onions and garlic: Honestly there's no effort in growing these, bulb stuff grows as long as its underground, it's more of a challenge to stop them from growing really. Even if you cut up the tops they'll regrow like some kind of zombies. Beware of onion fly tho that stuff is evil.

Sunflowers: Do Not Let the seeds fall around your garden, they Will take over your Entire Garden and you will be helpless as these monster plants devour your garden space while You feel too Guilty to tear the pretty flowers away from your space. Do Not be Deceived. That's exactly what they Want you To Think. Will stunt your beans if planted close so be careful. Zero effort in growing, will grow in any dirt.

Cabbage and Kale: They need so much fertilizing, or they will just stay sad and small, you have to give them compost, mulch, and water them with some sort of fertilizer tea (you can make that by mixing nettle with water and letting it sit in the sun for 10 days) or you will not get the gorgeous full plant that you want. Also they are frost hardy but if there's not much sun they won't grow very fast in the cold.

Leek: they do not tolerate being grown inside as seedlings, but if you direct sow them every seed will come out I Swear. Can be grown in a bunch in one place then transplanted around later. Onion fly can also mess them up but I have no idea what to do about that.

Parsley and Celery: seems to do better direct-sown than transplanted, needs a lot of seeds to be thrown in order to germinate. I've never tried the root variety but leaf varieties grow very easy.

Potatoes: They're extremely easy to grow, as long as you put the potato underground you've done it, now if you want them to do amazing, you need to plant them in spring while the soil has a lot of water content in it, and you want to keep adding soil/mulch on top of them as they grow, in oder for them to grow more potatoes. I absolutely love growing them in mulch instead of soil! If you dig a hole, put a potato in it, then cover it in hay, or dry leaves, not only it will grow, but you won't have to dig out the potatoes, you can just feel them thru the mulch! 10/10 Love growing in mulch. They still spread their roots into the soil, but the potatoes itself have a good time growing in mulch because it creates no resistance to potatoes getting bigger underneath. Also they like having decent amount of water, if planted in hot times.

Green beans: You need to put 5-6 seeds in one place in order for them to do well, they like having more of their own kind around to create shade and stability, they get easily damaged by the sun so they appreciate being around each other and protecting each other. Bush varieties do best in my climate, but I'm longing for the evasive pole green bean plants, I want to see them tall one day.

Cucumbers: I've only grown this once and all I have to report is that it was very stubborn, grew in poor soil and with no care, kept creating cucumbers long after I've expected it to call it quits, sometimes they grow bitter and it takes a Ritual to make them edible, good for canning tho.

Peas: This is one thing I suck at so don't do what I did – don't take out seeds from hybrid varieties of peas and expect them to grow next year, they will germinate at abysmal rates. I finally bought some heirloom seeds so we will see if my luck changes.

Chives: Absolutely immortal, zombie plant, grows always except when frozen, grows like grass, loves being cut, unlimited onion seasoning exists and its chives, not as sweet as green onions sadly, but I appreciate it's properties of being an endless supply, a woman needs that sometimes.

Spinach and Swiss Chard: Idk if it's just me but I Never know when these are randomly going to go to seed and it drives me Insane. Cannot be relied upon because they all just loooove going to seed whenever sun hits them in a Way. Plant in fall to have some to eat in the spring for 2 weeks until they decide they're ditching you because sunlight now exists.

Basil: Oh, oh, don't get me started, I thought, originally, this plant needs lots of sunlight to succeed and it made Sense! I mean why Not! But then for several years they did badly..? And then, then I find out, basil grows better in Shade! I find this via youtube video randomly! Really?!?! I have planted the forsaken herb in the shade and I'm Watching its Every Move. It's doing fine for now we'll see tho. =_=

#growing food #gardening knowledge #gardening tips #homesteading #vegetables #notice how it just spirals down into ranting #how dare those vegetables not obey me #ah well i'm sure i'll learn more! #i'm happy with knowing what i know right now #it's enough to grow a lot of food

[unadulteratedkr]

Rules: Pick any ten of your fics, scroll roughly to the midpoint, pick a line (or three) and share it. Then tag ten people.

So @sdwolfpup did this a little while ago and said anyone who saw it should give it a go, so here I am, giving it a go! I decided to just do my most recent 10 fics, so it'll be almost entirely OFMD fic with a small dash of What We Do in the Shadows thrown in the mix.

Between the Sand and the Stardust (OFMD, Rated E)

He could hear the noise of the market behind him—Tongues for sale, give us your teeth for a new tongue—fuck off, last time you took my memories before I was three to get rid of my snores, and you fucking replaced my snores with a fucking train whistle—hey, come back—hey!—but they faded into the far-off sounds of the crashing waves. Ed focused on the waves, focused on putting one foot in front of the other, focused on anything except for the shards of his heart sloughing off to slice away at the only happiness he could ever remember holding tenderly in his hands.

2. plunge me deep (OFMD, Rated E)

“Sit up for me, beloved. I want—“ Stede takes a shuddering inhale, overcome with the simplicity of wanting. “I want to hold you.”

Ed doesn’t even need to push at the ground to sit up; the tentacle cradling his head has Ed upright before he can breathe his agreement with a word. Stede keeps kissing Ed as he maneuvers his way around him, careful, firm caresses of Stede’s lips to his neck, his shoulder, anywhere Stede can reach. Ed grasps at Stede helplessly, trying to return kiss for kiss with little success. It makes Stede laugh again, and Ed could weep now that he knows what that laugh tastes like.

“Love—please—"

Ed doesn’t even know what he’s begging for, all he knows is he trusts Stede enough to plead out loud. Stede takes Ed’s trust into his strong, sure hands and pulls Ed in against his back.

3. let it rain, 'cause you and I remain the same (OFMD, Rated E)

Lucius is swanning against the rat-lines with all the arrogance of a man who was rescued by mermaids. “No. Nope. We’re not doing this. What the fuck is going on, Ed?”

Ed splutters, and if Lucius hadn’t just called him out on the absolute absurdity that is his current situation, he’d be pretty pleased at how very Stede-like he sounds right now. Lucius—the little shit , Ed can’t help but think fondly—just arches his brow and waits for Ed to calm down enough to talk.

“Don’t have a clue, man. Oluwande thinks maybe our… souls have been switched.”

Lucius looks at him expectantly, and when Ed shrugs, he lets out a frustrated noise that sounds something like a strangled goose choking on a garlic bulb.

“Oh because that’s a helpful answer!” He glowers at Ed, settling his hands on his hips. “Anything else of merit you want to contribute?”

4. in the winter wind, be my warm (OFMD, Rated T)

Stede yelps as another snowflake plasters itself to his face. “They’re wet.”

Ed bites down on what Stede suspects mulishly is a laugh, and instead he nods solemnly. “Afraid so, love. Snow’s just frozen water, and you must have had some form of shaved ice at one of those fancy parties. I’ve raided enough ice-ships to know that’s a thing among the gentry.”

Stede huffs petulantly. “Well of course I have, but every story says snow is fine and powdery! I thought it would feel like… like icing sugar!” Ed’s shoulders shake with silent laughs, and Stede glowers at him, indignant. “Well, I did!”

5. crossed all the lines and broke all the rules (What We Do in the Shadows, Rated E)

“Do you have any idea, my darling, how much you’ve been driving me to utter madness since we met?” Viago’s tongue curls around “my darling” like it did around Anton’s tongue not a moment before. “Do you know how much I’ve wanted to know if you taste as irresistible as you smell?” Viago leans down, pressing the flat blade of his tongue into the punctures he’s left in Anton’s shoulder, a wrecked moan joining Anton’s blood on Viago’s lips. “You do, by the way. Dear Anton, do you have any idea how ruinously delicious you taste?”

“Viago—“ Anton manages to gasp, and honestly, it’s a fucking wonder he can form words, let alone Viago’s name at this point, “—please.”

Viago hums in pleasure, wetly lapping up the blood dripping down to stain Anton’s shirt. Anton’s not sure, but he’s fairly certain he’ll be able to reattach the buttons. Maybe he’ll keep it, maybe he’ll wait for the bloodstain to set before he washes it, maybe he’ll wear it to sleep every night and jack off to the irrefutable proof that he let Viago feed from him. He’s whimpering at the thought, and a single word falls from his mouth without a second thought.

“More.”

6. Stand to Face Me, Beloved (OFMD, Rated E)

If they were together, there wouldn’t be a sailor on board who could withstand Annie’s ability to fuck with their fears of two women independent on the sea or Mary sliding as effortlessly from lady to sniper as she used to slide from Mark to Mary.

But Annie isn’t here. And she won’t be alive and real and Mary’s until Mary can see her again, so Mary continues to weep and simper and debase every inch of strength she has.

“Please—I just want to know if her baby is doing well. I don’t mean any trouble. Neither of us ever meant any trouble.”

Mary’s tears chase the sailor out of the room with a half mumbled promise to find more information, and when the door shuts, Mary sinks to the floor, stifling her painfully real cries around the hand still emblazoned with Annie’s gold ring.

7. and as I go along, I want you with me (OFMD, Rated E)

Stede gives up trying to undo the last button and tugs Ed’s trousers down impatiently, but he freezes when the trousers are down to Ed’s knees, eyes fixed on the still-healing tattoo on Ed’s thigh.

Ed pushes himself up to his elbows, gazing down at Stede through an over-stimulated daze.

“You like it?” His voice is soft, like that lovely swath of cashmere Ed first stroked across his skin on the day he and Stede met. There’s a whole ocean between then and now, but Edward Teach is the world’s most notorious pirate; he can sail those choppy waters back to the softness of that moment.

“That’s—Edward.” Stede’s fingers are shaking, hovering a hair's breadth away from Ed’s skin. “That’s—that’s my name. You—you tattooed my name. On you.”

8. I'll follow the echoes (OFMD, Rated E)

Since Ed needs a measure more of courage before he can lift his eyes to the man he loves, he turns one more time–perhaps one last time–to the piano, and plays his heart.

If Ed were being objective about this piece, he’d say it was pretty fucking boring, all things considered. He’s not playing any complicated melodies, he’s not adding trills and flourishes. But he doesn’t need those tricks to share this quiet and vulnerable room in his heart with Stede. He’s saved all the good notes for this song, and he plays them without reservations for Stede to see his heart one more time.

9. sin is sacred again (OFMD, Rated E)

He lifts the tentacle in his hand to his mouth slowly, giving Ed every chance to pull away. In the dim moonlight, Stede can see some of Ed’s starry tattoos have become a delicate charcoal pattern on the smooth, black skin. It’s comforting to see something so familiar. It’s beautiful.

Stede presses his lips to the tip of the tentacle in his hand gently. It’s the second time he’s ever kissed Ed, and even though it’s certainly nowhere near how Stede imagined kissing Ed again, he can’t hold back a sigh. He’s grateful for the water and the other limbs supporting him because he doesn’t know if he’ll ever be able to handle kissing Ed while standing. It’s never going to stop making his knees go weak.

Stede—

“Ed, I have made some truly wretched decisions since you kissed me. This— “ Stede punctuates the word with another kiss that sets Ed’s tentacles swirling,”—is not one of them.”

10. a mile of clean sand (OFMD, Rated E)

There is so much love brimming in Stede’s heart—a heart so young to love–he feels like he might burst. Stede’s voice cracks as he recounts the bullies of his youth, his father, his marriage, Chauncey’s last venomous words, all the things that had him running, all the while softly stroking the laugh lines and the tear troughs that form Ed’s beautiful, steady eyes.

“I didn’t become the Kraken, Ed. I just decided to let it hold me underwater until I got so used to drowning, I got scared when you asked me to breathe air again.” Stede’s fingers tremble as he works a lather up with the soap—lavender—and he lets them tremble as his fingers trace sudsy patterns in the creases. Stede feels like he has them memorized from seeing them crinkled in laughter.

Ed closes his eyes again, and Stede can feel the shifting tensions against his fingertips. He catches the first tear on his finger as he swipes a thumb through the streaks of paint.

“You left. ”

I don't know if I have ten people to tag, but I'm gonna throw this to @ignisentis, @thebrimmingheart, @bizarrelittlemew, @oatmilktruther and anyone else who wants to share off some words they're proud of 🥰

#my writing #ask/challenge game #our flag means death #ofmd #what we do in the shadows #wwdits #gentlebeard #vianton

[pbandjesse]

Me and James are at creative alliance watching the interactive version of Death Becomes Her and I am having the best time. I love this movie and seeing it with drag queens and things to throw ala rocky horror is so fun. I'm so glad we did this.

I decided to work from home today. I thought it would be nice to get the extra sleep (true) and I thought I could focus better on my lesson plan writing (mixed results). But overall I had a really nice day.

I had felt really weird last night and ended up having a pretty horrifying dream about a creature at camp. Like I woke up so distressed I had to wake James up because I was so upset. But being held helped me fall back asleep and only be a little upset and unsettled.

When I first woke up was when I decided I should work from home. I let Alexi know and she was chill and we wished each other happy Easters.

I slept until 9. And when I woke up I felt better. I would get dressed. I wore my new pants and felt so cute. They fit me in the exact way I want pants to fit and it's great. And once I went downstairs to get the breakfast James had left for me I jumped right into my work.

I wanted to get as much of these lessons written as possible. But this ended up being a way bigger task then I expected. Like logically I should have realized but each program just breaks down into so many parts and each part has its own multiple different parts. So I had to start just finished the Early American and Art ones. This at least I had a handle on.

This would take most of the morning. I would take a break and do my nails. Just trying to get all of the cuticles and make them soft so I don't pull and chew on them and make myself bleed. I would have a fun nose bleed during this time that went all over my face and was a little distressing. But I would be okay. I would clean myself up and get back to work.

I would get all the cabin choice and village time programs their own documents and put them in the correct folders and started to break down what happens at each. Mostly just taking the info I already wrote. But it was good progress and I was feeling good about it.

I would have to reach out for help though. I asked Heather to discuss sharing the load. Something John the consultant has said to do. To stop being the only one writing things. And while I want to take all the credit I am just not going to be able to do all of this in the time I have. So I need help. And Heather agreed and we are working on a plan. I'm sure next week we will discuss this more.

I would finish one of the 20 something documents and and took another break. This time to go through my packing list and look over what I have already thrown in my bag for Africa. I would go through my toiletry bag and refill some stuff. I would like the borrow the label maker and go through and label each container because the sharpie just rubs off and then I have 5 white creams I don't know who is who. I'll probably borrow camps next week.

I would stop for lunch around 2. I had the rest of the spaghetti from last night and some garlic bread. I tried opening the windows for sweetp but he went out and immediately there was a huge gust of wind and he came back in. I do not blame him. We closed the windows.

I went back to work for another hour or so. Got half way through another document. Was trying to remain focused but some of them are really hard to write because they are like. Gaga. Or team building games (general). But I will continue to work through these and it will be okay.

I would finish up my day and headed down to lay on the couch with sweetp. Just resting until James got home. And I was so happy to see them. They said the wind was tough but they made it home and were only marginally sweaty.

We would hang out on the couch and caught up about the day.bbht very soon it was 6! And that meant it was time for us to go to dinner.

We drove to Mathews and we have finally made it. Because they didn't even give us menus just came to the table to tell us they already put in our order. We have become regulars! This is great.

And we came in at the perfect time. Because after we sat down it got real busy. But our meal was great. And we talked about our trip and silly things like a game James is playing with their coworkers where they are hiding their business cards in each other pockets and other places. I'm glad they re having fun.

We would walk over to the theater at 7. They tried to gaslight up and say the door were actually at 730 so we walked around their gallery. But also I checked the Instagram post and it 100% says 7. But it's fine.

I would end up confusing James because I kept referring to the show as trivia apparently. I knew it was not trivia but I couldn't think what it was actually called. An interactive show. But James would get us the game pack bags with things to throw. And we took a picture at the photo booth. And soon it was time to take our seats.

And the show was so fun. The drag queens were hilarious. The props were perfect. I forgot how much I love that movie. Death becomes her used to come on TV and it was the movie that no matter where I came apon it I would sit and finish it. The shot gun through the stomach is just burned in my brain it's so good. There was a lot of the movie I forgot. Which honestly made the viewing so much better. And at intermission they had a costume contest and that was a lot of fun to cheer for. I love that they used a puppet for Bruce Willis's character. And the whole thing was great. My cheeks hurt from laughing by the end.

We just left and I really had the best time. I really hope me and James make an effort to get back into seeing shows and going places more. And now that we are more settled I really hope we make that happen.

It is late now though. And tomorrow I am going to see Jess. We are going to a pick your own flower place. I'm very excited. I am going to take a shower and go to bed soon. We are almost home now. I feel really happy.

Sleep well everyone. Talk tomorrow!!

[incarnateirony]

Oh dang, apparently tumblr tip feature lets you leave comments! Also as I reply to this, let it be known that I deeply appreciate every tip, subscriber, and birthday present this month. Because, while I know things will pan out in time, those are the little things helping me out with unexpected expenses like the wheelchair, or frankly getting myself some cheap doordash the other night when I realized I didn't have anything I could make without getting up. So every little bit literally brightens my day and thanks.

So yeah, absolutely.

Listen, I've learned how to make things flex in almost any situation. It really depends what scale you want to work with. I can give advice on everything from how to hitchhike the US returning stolen eyedrops to more standard methods of pursuing stability. Let's start with the latter.

So rule of thumb, the larger and more liberal or progressive your city is, the better your experiences with this will be. I'll add things for more small town and rural people later on. But for the city folk:

Always google your community resources, and don't only check the main city site. Don't be shy about googling "rental assistance [town]", "[utility assistance] town", whatever. Usually there's more than the default government programs around, same as there being community foodbanks and the like. There may be more resources in your backyard than you know.

Even if you yourself are not homeless actively, it doesn't hurt to go down to homeless centers, specifically ones geared towards rehabilitation and recovery housing programs, because they often have pamphlets of resources on where to get free medical, free meals, and so on. For example Portland Oregon down by SAFES and the Rescue Mission hands out little decently thick booklets with piles of resources that teach you to beat your feet for 8 free meals/snacks a day. And that's not even brushing on dental vans, and medical resources even for homeless LGBTQ people needing support on hormones or other issues. It's the best place to look for resources.

Learn to cook basics. Rice and beans is your friend, and very flexible with the right veggie blends, seasonings, and occasional meat thrown in. You can live off a crock pot with several varied meals a week this way. Add in learning to bake your own bread. It cuts your sugar intake considerably, you WILL notice weight loss in a good way, it tastes way the fuck better than store shit, and if you add that, some noodles and butter and garlic to your pantry, you actually have a decent rotating menu where you can keep an EXTREMELY low food budget, if you're in some position you don't have food stamps accessible.

While I always, ALWAYS suggest going to a doctor in any and every situation, and this is purely nonprofessional "this saved my ass" advice, fish antibiotics work in place of human antibiotics in emergencies. You can get Amoxicillin, Penecillin, and several other things on most pet sites or at pet stores if you can't cover copays and this that and the other or just flat Can Not Access Or Get To Assistance. Still immediately seek professional treatment when you can, but if you've got an emergency abcess and no healthcare, this WILL save your ass, literally.

Ignore boomers. Avocados are your friend. They're like 68/cents each in my area of the US at least and have great fatty content. Beans will cover your protein, avocados will cover your fat. Use one avocado with a scoop from a big gallon tub of ice cream and mix in your favorite fruit, easily kept frozen in bulk in the fridge, in a blender. Congratulations you have a semi spoil semi diet shake thing for cheap as hell in multiple servings and a bunch of vitamins and shit. If you're in a region where avocados ARE expensive, then find another base with similar properties. Hell, bananas ain't a bad answer.

Literally this is the diet I have been pouring weight off with. I cut out soda, I stopped buying snack cakes and the like, I started making my own bread. H leaned heavily on rice and beans, noodles for carbs on occasion to break it up, and various small experiments to shake it up while cruising with smoothies by day. It don't cost jack shit in the long run and its. Like. Good for you???

If you have the space, by zoning or rural location, invest in a chicken coop, or at least the parts to build one yourself. There's DIY guides all over the internet. Have the joy of raising a couple chickies inside then putting them out and you have eggs for life. Get a few chickens per people and you'll have eggs coming out your ears. You'll be trying to give eggs away to friends. Sell eggs. I don't care. Eggs. Throw them scraps and they shit out food for you. It's magic.

Don't be afraid about using a little indoor grow space. While I don't expect you to go Pot Farmer like Some People, it doesn't hurt to set up a raised indoor grower and just PLANT some of what you use most, because if you take care of it right within a few months you'll have all you ever need. There's cheap basic grow lights or you can just put them up near windows that match the lighting cycle of the given plant.

There's probably others I'm not thinking of. But here's what I came up with top of my head, hope this helps someone.

[spooniechef]

Split Pea and Ham Soup (1 spoon)

As a little added extra on top of my March sneak preview, I decided to try out my multicooker on soup. Soup is a great one for batch cooking, so lots of leftovers for bad spoon days. Also, beyond chopping things, all that’s really required is letting it cook by whatever method. Pea soup is one of those ones that is always recommended because lots of protein, high nutritional value, and very filling for a pretty good price. So here’s a recipe I got from Bowl of Delicious for Instant Pot Split Pea Soup with Ham, with a few notes on the process and how to make it easier to do.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Three tablespoons oil or butter (it’s just for sauteeing; oil should work fine but butter will taste better)

One onion, diced

Two sticks of celery, diced

Two carrots, diced

1lb (450g or so) dried split peas

6oz (170g or so) thick-sliced deli ham, diced (the recipe recommends a ham bone but that’s trickier to get hold of than some deli ham)

Six cups chicken stock

Two bay leaves (plus other herbs if desired; see notes below)

Salt, pepper, etc to taste

When I did this one, I threw in a tablespoon or so of mixed herbs at the same time as the bay leaves, and added some garlic puree to the butter when sauteeing. Your mileage may vary, but I think it added a lot to the dish.

Here’s what you do:

Sautee your onion, celery, and carrots for about five minutes, until softened. If using an multicooker, use the Sautee or Browning function; if doing it on the stove, just do it in the pot you’re going to make the soup in.

Add split peas, ham, stock, and bay leaves, and any other herbs. If using a multicooker, set up the pressure cooker for manual, high pressure, 15 minutes. If, like mine, your pressure cooker doesn’t have those settings, use the standard ones the multicooker gives you. If you’re doing it on the stove, bring ingredients to a boil and simmer for an hour or so.

If using a multicooker, let the pressure release manually for 15 minutes or so, then quick release the pressure valve. If you’re doing it on the stove, obviously skip this step.

Stir; taste. Add salt, pepper, and/or anything else you think it needs.

It really is this easy, especially with a mandoline to dice all the vegetables. Just a bit of a sautee, throw everything in a pot or cooker, and wait. However, here are a few notes about things I noticed on first attempt.

My peas turned out a little tougher than I might have expected. This might be because I was using yellow split peas, which have a slightly different cooking time, but it might also mean that I trusted the recipe more than the “Soup / Stew” setting on my multicooker. Next time, I’ll try green split peas (if I can find them) and either way, just use the regular “Soup / Stew” setting on my multicooker, which is set for 30 minutes. I think a little mushier is probably better than chewy for the dried split peas.

I think it would have been a little bit bland if I hadn’t put some garlic puree into the butter for sauteeing, and if I hadn’t thrown in about a tablespoon of mixed herbs before cooking. That’s a matter of personal taste, though, so play around with it until you find the balance that you like. Adding herbs and spices after the fact is possible, but it won’t blend quite so nicely with the rest of the soup.

This makes a lot of soup. I mean a lot of soup. Make sure you have plenty of microwave-safe containers to hand, and a reasonable amount of space in the fridge or freezer. Apparently this will keep for about a week in the fridge or up to six months in the freezer, so there’s not too much worry about leftovers going off.

Seriously, even with the slightly chewier peas than I maybe wanted, I’m glad I tried this one. This soup keeps well, is filling and tasty, and doesn’t require a whole lot of effort. Even on the stove, most of what it takes is time; with a pressure cooker, not even that’s a problem.

So there you have it. Nice, simple comfort food. Enjoy!

#The Spoonie Chef #Recipes #meals #soup

[clatterbane]

Tonight's very seasonal Swedabilly delight! Requiring more effort than usual by recent standards, but worth it.

I got a whole chicken on sale, and cut it in half last night, since there are only two people here and I am still not back up to usual eating capacity. (Seriously y'all, I am feeling pretty stuffed after finishing off that kid-sized plateload.)

The half chicken that didn't go into the freezer for later got dry brined with some sage, thyme, garlic powder, and mixed pepper in preparation for baking it today.

I also decided to try brushing it down a couple of times with some of this open bottle of grill oil he picked up.

The taste of this kind is mainly garlic and paprika, which seemed like it should also work pretty well to baste the baked chicken for a little extra flavor and color. Which it did. 😋

That grocery delivery also included our first asparagus of the season, some little new potatoes, and a bunch of dill. So, while it was still nice and fresh we got some asparagus--just microwave steamed and dressed up with butter, a little salt, and bottled lemon pepper seasoning.

Also, depending on perspective, what you could call either creamed new potatoes and frozen peas with some dill and leftover chopped green onions thrown in, or dillstuvad potatis med ärtor och salladslök. 😁

(Was I surprised to see that this is a thing here? Not particularly. If you can put it in a creamy sauce with dill, somebody in Sweden will. And I'm not about to complain.)

Anyway, I was glad to get a couple of different obligatory spring foods in one meal. And I am still so glad to be able to eat semi-normally again. Hoping to get a little more once this settles some. We still have some of the leftover rhubarb-apple crumble from last night, but no way right at the moment.

#food #spring food #asparagus #new potatoes #potatoes #peas #dill #baked chicken #chicken #gluten free

[castletown-cafe]

Castletown Café Episode 11: Giga Salad

We’re back again with another trip into Gaster’s library of cut content. I bet even the items and concepts that never made it in are just as canonical as everything in the final version of the game. It wouldn’t be too farfetched in the fourth-wall leaning worlds of Undertale and Deltarune, after all - the mere fact that they are games is canon.

This food, however, may have been cut for good reason - for one, the very description of this salad deems it useless, as it’s comprised solely of lettuce. Second, it only heals 4 HP to your team except for Noelle, to whom it heals a whopping 90. Why? Most likely, it has to do with her herbivorous nature as a reindeer, and she even comments as it being “something to graze on.” 

But a salad consisting only of lettuce isn’t much of a salad at all....unless you use a ton of different varieties. Even with all these different kinds of lettuce, of course, it still needs more: another veggie or two thrown in for good measure, and what’s a salad without dressing and other toppings to make it extra delicious? With these upgrades, this Giga Salad is not only enormous - but enormous in flavor, too. Now it’s not so useless, but I’m sure it’d still heal Noelle the most, anyway. Hope she’d like lemon yogurt dressing!

This time around, everything was my own creation, down to the lemon Greek yogurt salad dressing. Ideas like this come to me when I can’t sleep, and on one such night, all the ingredients for the salad and the dressing just clicked into place! Of course, whether or not it would work, I didn’t know. But I did know right then and there to write down those ideas - right in the middle of the night - so I could mess with those ingredients the next day and see if I got something that worked, and oh boy, did it!! That’s the great thing about cooking on a regular basis: you gain experience points for each dish you make, and with that experience, your cooking creativity and skills level up!

That said, I still learned something with creating this salad: the walnuts and dried cranberries shouldn’t be mixed in with the rest of the salad as they’ll just sink to the bottom of the salad bowl. Instead, they are meant to be a topping when serving, so I have corrected that for the recipe.

Also, although the salad in my photo contains radicchio, I’ve omitted it from the recipe. Prior to this salad, I had never tried radicchio before, and now I realize why: it’s really bitter! Despite this, the bitterness didn’t ruin the salad for me at all, because there were tons of good stuff in there to counteract it. If you’re a fan of radicchio or other bitter vegetables, you can add it back in if you wish.

As for the dressing? It turned out perfectly! And this is coming from someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing half the time for this series. I was a little apprehensive of adding lemon juice to Greek yogurt, but then I remembered that the dill sauce from the previous episode turned out just fine with that ingredient combination, so, maybe this would turn out fine. The honey adds sweetness, and the olive oil and garlic give it just the right touch of savory to this creamy, slightly sweet, but not too sweet salad dressing that’s perfectly balanced in flavor and exceeded my expectations.

GIGA SALAD DRESSING:

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon honey

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 clove minced garlic OR 1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

Salt to taste

Wash and zest lemon, putting 1 teaspoon of the zest into a small bowl. Cut lemon in half and juice one half with a hand juicer. Fill up a tablespoon with juice and add to the bowl with the lemon zest.

Add about a tablespoon of honey into the lemon mixture, it’s okay just to eyeball it.

Peel and mince 1 clove of garlic (or just measure one tsp of garlic powder) and add to the bowl.

Add in olive oil, yogurt, and stir to combine, adding just a little salt to taste.

GIGA SALAD:

2 leaves Romaine lettuce

5 radishes

1 cup chopped or shredded green cabbage

A generous handful of the following: spinach, mizuna, chard, frisee, lolla rosa, & arugula leaves.

A generous handful of fresh chives.

Toppings:

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup dried cranberries

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Wash and dry all vegetables. In a large salad bowl, place your spinach, mizuna lettuce, chard, arugula, frisee, and lolla rosa leaves.

Chop up your Romaine lettuce and add to the bowl.

Chop or shred 1 cup of green cabbage and add to your salad.

Thinly slice your radishes into rounds, and add.

Finely chop up your chives, add to salad, and toss to combine.

Lastly, the toppings. Open up a bag of dried cranberries, chop up your walnuts, and grate Parmesan cheese.

To serve, grab a bowl, fill it with salad, and top with the Giga dressing, chopped walnuts, dried cranberries, and Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

#castletown cafe #deltarune #giga salad #deltarune food #deltarune chapter 2 #deltarune fanart #cw food #deltarune swatchlings #swatchlings #swatchlings fanart #deltarune inspired recipe #deltarune cut content #salad recipe #my art #recipe

[crazyblondelife]

A Most Delicious Acorn Squash Side for Thanksgiving - My Latest YouTube Video

Finally, I’ve started my YouTube Channel again! It’s been a long while since I’ve done a YouTube video and i’m so proud of this one! I’ll be focusing mainly on food, but there will also be some fashion, decor and lifestyle thrown into the mix! Thank you so much to Janet Gunn - The Grateful Gardenia for suggesting I start this channel back up again and thank you to Taylor Moser for being the best videographer and filming this for me! I know you’ll love this recipe that was inspired by Athena Calderone from Eye Swoon! It’s gorgeous, healthy, delicious and a little out of the box, which I love!

There is so much more to come and I’m very excited! I hope you enjoy! Keep scrolling for the recipe and please let me know what you think!

{"image":"https://i.imgur.com/72akofL.png","name":"Acorn Squash with Shallots & Castelvetrano Olives","prepTime":"PT20M","cookTime":"PT35M","totalTime":"PT55M","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Suzanne Smith"},"recipeIngredient":["3 acorn squash","6 - 7 shallots, peeled and halved","⅓ cup olive oil, plus more for drizzle","3/4 cup dates, pitted and halved","3/4 cup olives, pitted and smashed","1 serrano chili, thinly sliced","3 garlic cloves, smashed and roughly chopped","2 oranges, rind peeled into strips","1 lemon, rind peeled into strips","2 Tbsp Italian parsley, roughly chopped","Zest of 1 orange","2 Tbsp pistachios, roughly chopped","½ cup Greek yogurt"],"recipeInstructions":["Preheat the oven to 400°F","Cut the acorn squash into 1” wedges, following the natural ridges of the squash.","Divide the squash and shallots onto two large rimmed baking sheets, spreading the squash in a single layer, and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss until evenly coated.","Roast until golden brown for 25 minutes total, flipping squash halfway through.","After 25 minutes remove pans from the oven and reduce heat to 375°F. Add orange and lemon peels, olives, dates, serrano chili, and garlic divided between the two pans. Drizzle with a touch more olive oil and roast for 10 minutes more.","To plate, smear labneh or Greek yogurt on a serving dish and arrange squash and other roasted ingredients on top. Garnish with flaky sea salt, black pepper, orange zest, chopped parsley, and roasted pistachios. Serve and enjoy!"],"@context":"http://schema.org","@type":"Recipe"}

I would really love to hear your thoughts on this video as well as what you would like to see more of! Even though I’m active on social media, this blog is my first love and means so much to me so I want to make sure that I’m making content that you want to see! Please leave me a comment and thank you so much for reading today!

#Acorn Squash #YouTube Video #Thanksgiving Side #Thanksgiving Recipe #Fall Recipe

[rhonddaandallaneuro]

Life on the road is made a lot better when a good camp kitchen exists and here at Cessnock it is huge and very friendly. Met up with a group of travellers while we watched “The Block” or at least the girls did while Lindsay and I cooked tea.

After the stay in Cessnock we headed off towards Tuncurry, a hidden little gem of a town that is part of Forster. Here we stayed at the “Sporties” club for a fee of $5 per person per night. The trade off is you are expected to eat dinner within the club and so happy we did. This place puts bigger clubs to shame through its friendly staff, food, drink and raffles.

Rhondda and I both had the king garlic prawns and what a feast. Quality and quantity. Probably the oddest thing here was the raffles. The people literally line up to get their favourite ticket numbers, where they sold on the first night, 30,000 tickets at ten cents per ticket.

A couple of female members actually kept getting up at various times to buy $50 worth at a time. I am sure they spent close on $500 on tickets where they could win a $25 meat tray. Between the two of them they won 15 raffles. Just do not see the value. We actually won 3 trays out of a total 40 trays.

The following day we jumped in the car to drive around the area and it is just not what we had imagined. No country seaside village but some of Australia’s best water views, beaches and cliffs mixed with high rise units and a thriving community. Got to dine out at one of Australia’s top pie shops where they had won over thirty awards over last few years. Food was amazing and cheap. Coffee sucked however as they used goats milk. Only made that mistake once.

Had to return to the club on Wednesday night only to find more raffles with more members queuing to buy tickets. A bit smaller with only 18,000 tickets sold with most of the buyers male as it was mens bowls day. We can only imagine how big the Friday night raffles must be.

This club has a members stand better then most QRL clubs with at least ten different sports operating. They also proudly display the community groups they support. This is what clubs are supposed to be like. Members within the community making it better for everyone.

Sadly our time came to a close here so we drove on to Sawtell along a must changed Pacific Highway that passes every town except Coffs Harbour. The drive was easy and our sites while a little difficult to access are nested in a shady area. Did the walk up to town where not a lot has changed over last ten years. Great atmosphere in tree shaded Main Street where we did breakfast.

There is a lot of opposition between the cafes so the standard is high and fairly cheap. I has poached eggs on salmon and has to be best and biggest ever.

Now on to Brunswick Heads where we free camped at the bowls club which definitely has not changed. The town itself though has thrown off the family holiday image and is a mini Byron Bay. Sad very sad. The camp sights have been removed and the cabins have increased form $100 a day to $2170 per week.

After one last morning walk we packed up and headed for home. A smooth however slow drive sees us home and safe and starting to plan our next trip.

PS cleaning the caravan is a pain in the arse.

[jsms01]

[fryingpanrecipesblogs]

5 Sheet Frying Pan Dinners For Busy Weeknights

Sheet pan suppers are a simple, healthy as well as quick means to prepare a dish. They're also a wonderful method to consume leftovers, that makes them optimal for hectic weeknights! This scrumptious one-pan garlic hen as well as veggie dish has lots of flavor from fresh herbs as well as garlic. It's a fast as well as simple dish that makes certain to please the entire family! This full-flavored one-pan garlic chicken and vegetable dish is packed with tender, juicy poultry and also veggies. It's skilled with a lemony garlic herb rub for added taste! The whole meal collaborates in just over thirty minutes as well as is a best low-carb, keto, Whole30, or Paleo dinner! It's a must-try! A tasty blend of poultry, baked vegetables, and a sweet honey garlic sauce is baked on a solitary pan for an effortless as well as delicious weeknight meal. See more on this page about the best sheet frying pan.

This recipe can be made gluten-free by replacing the soy sauce with tamari or a non-soy marinade. This dish starts with a simple brownish butter that's flavored with garlic and also natural herbs for a nutty, tasty and aromatic taste. The garlic & natural herb combination is put over the chicken and also vegetables prior to they're thrown in the oven. In a tool saucepan over medium-low warm, melt the butter, stirring continually up until it begins to bubble and snap. Continue cooking and also mixing until the butter begins to turn a golden brown color. Eliminate the pan from the heat as soon as it turns a deep brownish-yellow color as well as transfer the brownish butter to a mixing dish. Season the browned butter with garlic, parsley, salt and also black pepper. Get more info on this blog about the best sheet frying pan.

Change the seasonings to taste, if essential! Cook the poultry and also potatoes till the chicken is fully prepared and also the potatoes are golden-brown, regarding 15 minutes. Offer the hen and vegetables together with an eco-friendly salad, a dish of pasta or a scoop of Greek yogurt with a side of fruit for a gratifying as well as complete meal! Additionally, you can offer the chicken and also vegetables with a grain like rice or cauliflower rice for a much more filling up supper. If you would certainly such as, you can even add some feta cheese to the veggies for included taste! These are some of our favored sheet frying pan dishes to make in the house. They're comforting, comfy and also very easy to clean up! Sheet Pan Sausage & Peppers, Chicken and Veggies and Shrimp and also Asparagus are three of our preferred one-pan meals that every person enjoys.

Every one of these dishes are easy to make, have very little cleanup as well as are a terrific means to use up leftovers! This mouthwatering one-pan garlic hen, asparagus and also potato dish is a quick and simple meal that's best for busy weeknights. It's seasoned with a straightforward lemony garlic natural herb rub for extra taste! The whole meal integrates in simply over 30 mintutes and is an ideal low-carb, gluten-free, Whole30, or Paleo supper! Check out this related post that will enlighten you more on the topic: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheet_pan.

[mitchamsocialuser]

Wood Fired BBQ Chicken Pizza

Sweet and smoky BBQ sauce, tender chicken, zesty red onion, fresh cilantro and precious smoky Gouda cheese elevate this homemade pizza to restaurant deliciousness.

It’s a quick and easy meal that you can make at home for your family anytime! The dough is ready to roll, the sauce is made ahead and the toppings can be thrown together in minutes.

Dough

If you love smoked meat, then you’re going to want to make this wood fired bbq chicken pizza. It’s the perfect way to repurpose your leftover grilled meat, and it makes a great dinner!

This BBQ chicken pizza has tangy sauce, tender roasted chicken, gooey cheese and caramelized onions on top of a NY-style crust. It’s so much better than any frozen pizza, and it’s easy to make!

Start by making the dough. Mix together the yeast with water, then add the remaining ingredients and knead until a smooth, elastic dough is formed. If the dough seems a little sticky, add more flour.

Once the dough is ready, shape it into a 12-inch circle and let it rest. You can also use a rolling pin to stretch it into a thin crust.

Once the dough is done, grill it on the grate of your grill over direct heat until the bottom is browned and bubbles are rising. Rotate the crust every 20 seconds to ensure even baking.

Sauce

Sweet, tangy, and smoky BBQ sauce is the perfect base for juicy chicken, zesty red onions, buttery mozzarella and a hint of Gouda cheese. It’s a classic combination that is a must have on any restaurant menu.

Homemade dough makes this pizza super easy and quick — it’s even easier to make than a frozen pizza! You can even use leftover shredded chicken to make this recipe!

This pizza is also great to make ahead and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to cook it up. It’s so easy and delicious — it’ll quickly become your new favorite dinner!

For added flavor, I always recommend using FRESHLY GRATED cheese on my pizzas (NOT pre-shredded). This saves money and is MUCH better than bagged shredded cheese as it melts beautifully and stays fresh longer.

Toppings

Tangy barbecue sauce, shredded chicken, and plenty of cheese melted atop a perfectly chewy pizza crust.

To make this grilled chicken and cheese masterpiece, start by seasoning one chicken breast with a good ol’ sprinkle of smoked paprika, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Grill it over direct heat until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.

Finish the job with a smattering of red pesto, fresh mozarella, and sliced cherry tomatoes, topped with a healthy dose of fresh basil leaves.

Topping a pizza on the grill is not just a cinch, but it also proves that you can make a quality pizza in a fraction of the time it would take to order out. If you’re looking for a new way to impress your guests or simply want to add a bit of a gourmet twist to your backyard cookout, we recommend checking out our wood fired pizza oven giveaway! You can enter to win it by texting DaVinci to 73876.

Cooking

The cooking process of this pizza is similar to that of most barbecue pizzas — except with the added bonus of a smoky, tender crust and gooey, ultra cheesy mozzarella! It’s a delicious treat for your family that they will love.

You can make this pizza on a wood fired BBQ or an oven. If you want to cook it on a grill, preheat the barbecue to 550 to 600 degF (288 to 316 degC).

For an even heat, use bricks around your barbecue before preheating it. This will give you a more even temperature that will cook the pizza evenly.

When preparing your dough, use wholemeal flours or fine cornmeal. These will add a more protein-rich texture and also help the dough cook through more quickly.

#wood fired pizza #pizza #wood fired