Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, cross-border living, food on November 22, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Oh, right, tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I tend to forget holidays because, paradoxically, I have two sets of them to track.
Thanksgiving? We’ve already done that, haven’t we? Yes, but no.
So today I am prepping a list of holiday-related food to make, along with a series of Plan Bs in case holiday-specific foods are not available.
Because why, Canadians might ask, would anyone look for fresh turkey or cranberries in November?
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Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, baking again, creativity on November 8, 2023| Leave a Comment »
I’m looking to make a new special-occasion cake and find myself with too many recipe options. We’re also under a bit of a time crunch. So of course I will take three of these possible alternatives and combine them into something I hope will work.
Wish me luck!
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Posted in Food and..., Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, Thoughts on November 2, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Now that Halloween has come and gone, you may find yourself wondering what to do with all that candy. And really, does candy spoil?
Good* news, candy eaters, your typical Halloween treat will last well into the next season or even longer, depending on the type.
How Long Does Halloween Candy Last? – Eater
And on the off chance that you find yourself with an excess of aging candy (not a problem I generally have), these ideas might help:
What to Do With Leftover Halloween Candy
40 Best Leftover Halloween Candy Recipes – What To Make With Leftover Candy
15 Leftover Halloween Candy Recipes | The Kitchn
What to Do With Leftover Halloween Candy | Bon Appétit (Reese’s peanut butter cups in brownies? Sounds good. But Black Licorice Vinaigrette? No. Just… no.)
* Look, it’s been established that excess sugar is not great for our health. You know it, I know it, and the kids bouncing down the aisles at the grocery store before having a meltdown and collapsing into a sugar coma know it too. As the purveyors of other addictive products like to say, know your limits!
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Posted in Food and..., Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, Thoughts on October 9, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Today I’m grateful for family, friends, and an excuse to try a recipe for pumpkin cheesecake pie.
Happy Thanksgiving, Canada!
Posted in Food and..., Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, recipes, Thoughts, writing on October 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Yesterday, I had the nice but somewhat complicated experience of having someone ask me for a recipe.
That’s right, my mushroom soup has fans both inside this house and out! And as this site frequently demonstrates, I’m happy to share my recipes.
The problem is that in this case, I don’t actually have a recipe to share.
Like so many of the things I make, be it soup or a story, I tend to start with an idea, triangulate, course correct, confabulate and finally create a whole new version of whatever it is I’m making.
That’s fine for fiction, but more complicated when what I’m trying to share is not just the result of the creative process, but the process itself.
This is a long way of saying that I don’t actually have a mushroom soup recipe, not exactly.
But for this particular person, I’ll figure it out. And if it makes any kind of sense, I’ll share it with you too.
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Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, food on September 30, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Due to an upcoming event involving Mr Man and fifteen buddies, today was mushroom soup day. Imagine this day, only with twice as many mushrooms.
We did the slicing and duxelle-ing and at one point, had four of our biggest pans on the stove and two cookie sheets in the oven. The goal was to make mushroom soup and we are about 81% of the way there. Next, we just need to assemble 32 cups of stock and the roasted mushrooms and the rest, and then we have a double quadruple batch of soup. Half for us, half for Mr Man’s Manly Crew of Adventurers.
Won’t lie, I’m beat. And we didn’t make quite as much progress as we’d hoped.
Ask me what we’re having for dinner.
Indian food:)
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Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, Thoughts, Tuesdays on September 26, 2023| Leave a Comment »
I’m rushing through lunch with a quick PB&J. We use natural peanut butter that has an annoying tendency to separate and require a sloppy stirring session before said butter can be spread.
Or at least, that’s how my PB life used to be.
I ran across a comment the other day that recommended storing the peanut butter jar upside down. The author suggested it would change my sandwich life.
I did. And it has.
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Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, food science, summer, things I don't really eat anymore but loved once upon a time on September 20, 2023| Leave a Comment »
It’s starting to feel like fall here now, but still early enough that it feels right to cast my eyes back to a childhood summer treat: saltwater taffy.
Ever wondered what makes taffy both so sticky and so slippery?
The sweet physics of saltwater taffy | ScienceDaily
When measuring how the taffy responded to applied forces, Chan and their colleagues found taffy occupies the intriguing middle ground between solid and liquid material.
Ever wondered “how the ingredients and confectioning process contribute to the rheology of saltwater taffy”? Read on!
“In some sense, oil droplets and air bubbles are like rubber balls. When deformed in the taffy, they tend to return to their original, spherical shape because of surface tension. In other words, emulsification and aeration make taffy more elastic, hence, chewier.”
Also and alas, no saltwater is used in the making of saltwater taffy.
Why is it Called Salt Water Taffy? | Mental Floss
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Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, breakfast options on September 8, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Note from the kitchen: Peanut butter and jelly with yogurt is surprisingly good.
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Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, #thebeverageindustrialcomplex, Thoughts on September 1, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Ah, pumpkin spice. It’s that time of year again, and whether you are are the sort of person who loves pumpkin spice exemplars like the pumpkin spice latte or not, you might be interested to know what’s in it.
If it seems as if pumpkin spice season comes earlier each year, you’re not imagining things. Pumpkin spice lattes have officially arrived at Starbucks. But before you order a cup, drink this in: The flavor can be composed of more than 300 elements—and pumpkin usually isn’t one of them.
Wait, pumpkin is a fruit?
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J.R. Johnson 
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