New and Experienced climbers over 50 #23

Lori Milas wrote:

Tony and I have pot pie challenges. Today I made a turkey, broccoli, mushroom pie with wine.  It’s a keeper. 

What’s on your stove?  

At work, I did a close cousin of a pot pie, shepard's pie.

Traditionally it's made with lamb, but I use a mix of shredded grilled chicken thighs/breasts. We pipe the russet potato topping; bake, then finish under a broiler...  Served seventy for lunch.

For Valentines Day we made a-bento boxes.

Sweet egg omelet, quick fried tofu, sushi rice, a seaweed salad, and miso/sesame green beans. And, hearts cut from beets.

For my dinner:

Homemade hot Italian pork sausage (local from Farmer Dan pigs,) roasted baby Brussel Sprouts with onion quarters in a balsamic/garlic glaze, and roasted carrots glazed with maple syrup, cumin, black and white sesame seeds.   The sprouts, when roasted just right become crispy caramelized on the outside and wonderfully soft on the inside.

Man, you folks are making me hungry! 

She is 3/4 Pyrenees and 1/4 shepherd. 

Oh my gosh, we have some chefs here! Tim, that salmon sounds wonderful. Helen, I keep getting you confused with the cheesecake lady, but lately I’ve been seeing really healthy meals. Your salad is beautiful and one of my favorites. Ed, everyone of those meals looks incredible.  I was so curious about the Bento box. It’s been along time since I’ve had fried tofu, but it looks really great.  And beet hearts?  

Does anyone here know Kerwin Klein? I don’t know how we met, but we’re Facebook friends and I know he is or was a climber around here. But he frequently posts meals that he’s working on, and there are usually specialty sausages, various vegetables, and beans and stews and what sounds like fresh breads from a local bakery. A few days ago, I looked at his chili masterpiece and decided to whip some up for Tony and me. We both regretted it because we were already dealing with a stomach issue and this did not help but it sure tasted good.

It occurs to me that among us there’s quite a mixture of talent.  I’ve been getting really good with our smoker. Too bad we can’t all get together and share some real meals.

I think Ed is the real deal.. 

What we're eating. 

Judging from the salad, you might expect a healthy dinner.

But you'd be underestimating the Butterfat Queen.

Yes, that's shrimp drowning in heavy cream and parmesan with a touch of lemon. 

I've been exploring home made pizza lately.  Got my 00 Caputo flour and yeast and spend Friday afternoons making dough.  I bought a pizza stone and if it is reasonable outside I cook on my grill which gets to about 600 degrees and I can add some smoke to it.  It is is raining like hell then I am stuck in the oven which still gets to 550 and isn't too bad.  So far I am still working on getting the rise of the dough just right.  Too much and my crust is thick and doughy.  Too little and the crust is to hard and crunchy.  Sooner or later I will get it right every time.

I also make a mean seafood paella, and pork ragu, and carne asada tacos, and lots of other yummy food.  Mostly I cook seafood but I do love me some pig!

Oldtradguy wrote:

Depending on the weather, Jean and I will leave to drive out west around March 1st or so. We will spend some time with our son’s family in Sandy UT and then head down to St. George for a day. We will then travel to Red Rocks for the rest of the month through April 2. We will camp most of the time and meeting up some friends to climb. Jean can go about 4-5 days before she wants a shower. So maybe get a hotel room once a week or so.

 Hiking with a non-climbing friend from college for 3 days in early April.

 April 6th we will then head out to Jtree. Spend 2 days(7 & 8) hiking with our son’s family and then spend 2 days(10 & 11) climbing. We will try to catch up with Lori, Brandt, Jay, Linda and Soo.

 We have never been to Spy Mountain or New Jack City so maybe go there for a visit.

 After that, head down to Moab to meet up with Bud and other friends to climb. Back to Sandy for a couple of days and if weather is okay go to City and Castle Rocks. Then take that long drive back home.

 John

Hey John!  Thinking of heading to Vegas in a week or two to hang with Cass and wait till the weather is a bit warmer in Moab to work on projects.  Could hit The Tree as well, just have to talk to Cass.  Big hug to Miss Jean.  

Jan Mc wrote:

I've been exploring home made pizza lately.  Got my 00 Caputo flour and yeast and spend Friday afternoons making dough.  I bought a pizza stone and if it is reasonable outside I cook on my grill which gets to about 600 degrees and I can add some smoke to it.  It is is raining like hell then I am stuck in the oven which still gets to 550 and isn't too bad.  So far I am still working on getting the rise of the dough just right.  Too much and my crust is thick and doughy.  Too little and the crust is to hard and crunchy.  Sooner or later I will get it right every time.00

Nice!  We cold ferment our dough in three or four small balls for 3-5 days.  00 flour.  We use a similar recipe to this:

Neapolitan cold fermented pizza dough

I think I add a tablespoon of olive oil too...

Instead of a stone, I have a 3/8" thick pizza steel.  Takes awhile in the oven to warm up, but, money for the crust.  I'm about 8 minutes at 550F mostly 'cause its fully loaded.  Fun!

Hey Bud, tell Cass howdy!

Boy, all that looks and sounds great. I just ordered a brisket from my local rancher. Pick it up March 3rd, then it'll be just about right to get brining for corned beef! I don't do the salt peter thing (that keeps it the bright pink), but it tastes great. 

H.

Nick Goldsmith wrote:

I think Ed is the real deal.. 

Hear, hear.

The heart shaped slice of roasted beet is a great touch!!  Cherry on top so to speak.

Re the weighty question of pizza dough.  In the past Tony would have been aghast at making pizza with anything less than the real deal.  He grew up in an Italian kitchen with an Italian grandmother and mother and everything was from scratch.  However, Tony makes himself pizza now as follows:

Giant flour tortillas (stack 3, brush each one with olive oil)

Find a bottle of jar sauce that you like, pour on top of the tortillas 

Put whatever toppings you like on top

Shredded mozzarella cheese on top of that

Bake in over at 450 for 20 minutes.  

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Another storm coming in.  I get that this is so important for the state, and for our desert.  It's just been sort of rough on me, personally.  Having said that, I got the perfect message from my daughter-in-law a few days ago.  She and my son and 3 little girls live 'off the grid' in Soda Springs and have been totally confined to the house for days.  I texted that I was worried for their safety, she responded: "Thanks, we are. Happiness is a choice... even in a blizzard. :-) "

So alrighty then.  Working on my attitude here.    

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BTW... Wendy, oh my god that looks wonderful!  Shrimp in heavy sauce... put a little butter on your butter!  Mouthwatering.  

Terry- Thanks 

ED … holy molly, what time is dinner?

Lori- I bet Tony’s Grandma is rolling over in her grave! Tortilla’s??? Jar sauce!!?? The horror.

You all have a good day 

Tortillas and jar sauce is far better than me—I go with the frozen store ones and add lots of mozzarella!!!! Fortunately my wife is an excellent cook and keeps me away from the kitchen!!!!

Ed, where do you cook? It looks like your Shepherd’s Pie alone would be worth the drive north.

To use jarred sauce is blasphemy.

I guess Steve Johnson and I should start working on that climbing/eating movie that we always joked about making: “Masters of Scones.”

Ward, as you know, I’ll volunteer for the ‘don’t do’ example.

It is so wonderful to go to the gym mid-week during the day!

My dad had a story from his youth, from living on the "ranch". He was born in 1920, oldest kid, with siblings to try and help keep fed in difficult times.

Anyway, his mom made some biscuits. My dad grabbed one at some later time, and quickly discovered it was impossible to eat. Literally hard as rock.

So he pitched it out the door, hard, for the piggy to deal with.

And, that precise moment is when the pig trotted by.

Got whacked hard by the biscuit, and toppled over.

My dad got to ponder how the heck he could ever tell his mom he had killed their pig. And with her biscuit. 

Fortunately, piggy lived. Or at least survived that particular biscuit.

Re speedier than totally scratch pizza?

If you have access to good quality, naan breads make a rather nice undercarriage for pizza cravings. 

And I've made almost everything from scratch, one time or another. Including having to bottle whatever it was. 

Good enough is good enough, but hey, please do show off your fabulous stuff if I ever get to visit, eh?

But....

I've been cooking for other people almost 60 years. 

I'm using jars and cans and frozen and....

Well, artisan bakers and garden produce, and wonderful cheeses.

But I'm not cooking down tomato sauce on a hot plate on the back porch for hours and hours and hours, then a full day doing nothing but getting jars through a canner anymore, lol! A multistage process, that tomato processing! 

Best, Helen

It's creeping closer to a cheesecake day, Lori! That pic upstream includes a lemon tart....and saffron pudding. And dumplings. And Paul had a pistachio latte. And....  

phylp phylp wrote:

It is so wonderful to go to the gym mid-week during the day!

That's me on most Thursdays.  Yes, wonderful to be the only climbers in a gym.

Lots of holds and lots of routes in yours.  Where is it?

been dumping every day here. BC skied 3 days in a row at our private Mt wishicouldtellya. On one side of the road is nordic and on the other is skinning to the usual  telle sking hardwood glades. we have the only tracks on the  telle side the last 3 days. the few other folks that go there have been all on the XC ski side.  it was dumping hard enough today that our tracks were filled half way in after every lap.   I am jonseing for some ice tomorrow but it might just be a mandatory ski day.