Soup(s)

WAKE UP PEOPLE!

It's getting cold, at least in some places, and it's time to make soup!

Soup has to be one of the easiest things to make, and possibly eat, on this entire planet (With the exception of the PB&J). One of the best things about soup is you can put just about ANYTHING into it. Go digging! Let's see what is hiding in our fridge and, with the exception of desert type stuff, throw it in! You take a really big pot, fill it with a ton of water then start dropping whatever it is your found, into it.

I've seen some rather interesting things come from this event, not all of them good, but watch out for problems. A common being that fruit must be paired correctly with its veggies and meat. Most veggies and meat can just randomly get thrown together with other things to have no harm but fruit, don't work that way. (Yes, you can put fruit in soup.)

Simple Warning: Bake or broil your fruit stuffs before throwing them into a soup, or stew, to prevent from problems of the health nature. Anyway, this post had a main point but it seems lost.

EAT YOUR SOUP!

How to Eat A Star Fruit

3 weeks since the last post, huh? Well, why not explain something? We haven't had many how-to's that aren't recipes.

<-- It's a little early to eat this unless you want sour star fruit (some recipes call for it)

A ripe star fruit is yellow with a little bit of brown. The points of the star are brown. Cut those off (just the brown part). Cut the ends of the star fruit off (the stem end and the opposite one). Slice it so you have lots of stars (as many or as few as you feel like cutting in it). Remove the seeds. You can just push them out with your knife if you cut the slices thin enough. After that, you can enjoy them. If you've never had one before, they're between the texture of a granny smith apple and a watermelon and between the flavors of a kiwi and a red delicious apple. And they look cool.

Trend?

I'm sort of staying with the trend with this one, but my lunch today was all leftovers: Rice (leftover onigiri), baked beans (with onions and such), butternut squash, and honey. I could have sworn there was more, but...yeah, not sure what the last one was. It's not really a recipe, but here's how everything was prepared individually:

Rice: rice cooker...that's about it...after that, it was formed into a triangle with wet hands with some sea salt.

Beans: cooked in a pot on the stove.

Squash: cut in half, put in the oven in a pyrex...thing...with water about halfway up.

Honey: bees.

The beans and rice went into the microwave for about 2 minutes (occasionally stirring) to reheat. When they came out, the squash and honey got mixed in. If you plan on making this, make the amounts to your liking. In mine, they were all roughly the same portions...except the honey...'cause honey is powerful. I love honey ^_^

Something Interesting

Tomato soup, elbow noodles and hot dogs with some cheese.

Really, cook the noodles but stop right before "how you like them" then strain them noodles, turn down the stove top and start to warm up the soup. The hot dogs, well I nuke them cause I'm lazy but generally cook them however you like. Chop up the dogs and toss everything together then let the soup get warm. I'd assume it not to take to long if you used the same pot you used for the noodles.

It wasn't the prettiest meal and for fun I threw in some Parmesan cheese we had chilling in the fridge. It was just that cheap powdered stuff you throw on spaghetti but it added something excellent to the whole meal. Generally, it was a quick and pleasantly tasting magic concoction of math and science. Okay no math and science but it was tasty and very much a concoction.

Honestly, my favorite type of foods are those that people "made up", provided it still tastes good. Its got a nice personal flavor to it (not literal) and makes the meal, even if simple, special. Make things up as you go and if it don't turn out "right" then no biggy. It was just left overs, right? So, honestly, who cares?

GOT GOLDFISHES!

The best little snack cracker you can get at the grocer and most people don't know they can make their own. (Note: This is a personal "recipe" and I've only done this twice and its been years. They will also not taste/look exactly like Goldfish Crackers.)

What You Need

• Salt
• Block Cheese
• Cheese Slicer
• Baking Sheet
• Time

Optional

• Small Cookie Cutter
• Powdered Food Coloring

First thing you need to know is that to make these you have to slow bake and you've got to do it at a LOW temperature. The thing with cheese is that it burns fast so you need to watch it, hence the need for time. This isn't something you can "slam in the stove" on a baking sheet and forget about with a timer cause these babies will go QUICK. The problem is that you need a lot to make a little cause a good chunk of them will burn no matter what you do.

Lightly grease the pan with PAM or something of that nature. It really needs to not be to much otherwise the cheese will soak it up and your result will be rather gross and soggy. Have fun if you don't grease at all.

The oven temp depends on a lot of things but you don't want it over 350 and it has to be over 100. There isn't a set temperature mainly because the things cook to fast one way and to slow another... and the balance is always oven-to-oven different. Sadly, you must experiment with this.

Take the cheese and make REALLY, REALLY THIN and REALLY SMALL slices. I'm talking right before they are impossible to pick up. This is because they wont turn "crispy" if its thick and they wont cook fast enough if they are large. Instead they get gooey and gross. The cheese slices should be practically see through and only about 1inch all way round. (If you want to use a cookie cutter, make slices bigger in size but keep slice thickness)

Take the slices and put them on the pan, VERY SEPARATED. If the slices touch, they'll NEVER turn crispy and instead turn into a cheesy mess. It is at this point that you can use the cookie cutter. Yes, you have to use it on the pan because the slices are too flimsy and weak to be moved about so often. I'd really suggest against this, however, as it makes things too complicated.

At this point you sprinkle salt (not a lot, just a pinch) on the shapes. The salt is a catalyst and helps keep from melting and instead makes the cheese want to bake (Actually it makes it want to burn but that's why you are watching it). It is at this time that you may also lightly sprinkle with powdered food coloring. This is only to make the things all "pretty". You can't use anything other then the powdered because, again, it results in "gooey cheese" and not "cheese cracker". Warning: A lot of powered food coloring has salt or at least crystals that react the same way. Thus, use less salt. I'd suggest against food coloring at all but it can be done.

From here you just slide the things in and watch. The trick is that what you are doing is actually trying to burn the cheese slices "solid" but at the same time "catch them" before they actually burn. If the oven has been preheated this will happen within a couple of minutes or even sooner (assuming you made small slices, didn't soak the sheet with grease/etc and added the salt). At first, the cheese starts to melt but then the salt gets in there and it starts to burn. This is where you'll need to grab the sheet and pull them out. Anything around the edge might be extra burnt and anything in the center might be gooey.... this I've yet to "fix" as I'm not exactly a chef.

I am always happy with the outcome of this odd food experiment regardless of what burnt what went "gooey" and what turned into actual cracker. Its like an extra "surprise" snack! Once you let everything cool its got a random consistency and taste that bleeds well, I think, together. During the "cool down" you can add any other powdered seasonings you want. At this point, what you have will work basically like popcorn made of cheese.

Eggs Benedict

I like eggs benedict. They suck to make if you're lazy, but they're well worth the effort. I'm sure at least a few people don't know what they are (Eggs Benedict, not the readers themselves), so it's RECIPE TIME! This recipe is from the Food Network Kitchens, so it must be good.

Eggs Benedict
From Food Network Kitchens

Prep Time:45 min

Inactive Prep Time:--

Cook Time:--
Level: Intermediate
Serves: 6 servings

Ingredients

• Water
• 1/2 cup distilled vinegar, divided
• 12 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 12 slices Canadian bacon
• 6 plain English muffins, split
• HOLLANDAISE SAUCE, recipe follows
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh chives or finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Directions
Pour enough water into 2 large skillets to reach a depth of about 3 inches, and divide the vinegar between them. Bring both skillets to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Crack an egg into a cup and carefully slide it into the hot poaching liquid. Quickly repeat with all the eggs. Poach the eggs, turning them occasionally with a spoon, until the whites are firm, or to the desired degree of doneness, about 3 to 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the eggs and transfer to a kitchen towel. Lightly dab the eggs with the towel to remove any excess water.

While the eggs are poaching, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the Canadian bacon and cook until heated through, about a minute on each side.

To serve, toast the English muffin halves and divide them among 6 warmed plates. Top each half with a slice of Canadian bacon, and set an egg on top. Spoon the hollandaise sauce over the eggs and garnish with the chives. Serve immediately.

Hollandaise Sauce

• 1 1/3 cup unsalted butter
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• 1 tablespoon strained freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more as needed
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Freshly ground white pepper or a pinch of cayenne pepper

In a medium pan, completely melt the butter over medium-low heat. Remove from the heat and set it aside for 5 minutes. Skim and discard the white foam that rises to the surface of the butter. Carefully ladle or pour the clear golden butter into a container with a pouring spout. Take care not to add the milky solids and watery liquid at the bottom of the saucepan. Set the butter aside in a warm spot.

Pour enough water into a medium saucepan to reach a depth of about 2 inches. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat.

In a medium heatproof bowl, combine the egg yolks and the cold water. Whisk until the yolks are light and frothy. Place the bowl over the saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly and vigorously until the yolks are thickened and light, about 3 to 4 minutes. (If the eggs begin to scramble, or the mixture is cooking very quickly or gets too hot, remove the bowl from the heat and whisk to cool). Remove the eggs from the heat and whisk for 30 seconds to cool slightly.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and set the bowl over the hot water. Slowly drizzle the butter into the eggs while whisking constantly. Whisk in the lemon juice, salt, and pepper, to taste. (If the sauce is very thick, add a few drops of warm water to adjust the consistency so it is creamy and light.) Serve immediately or keep the hollandaise sauce in a small bowl set over warm, but not hot water, for about 30 minutes or in a warmed thermos for about an hour.

Yield: about 1 1/2 cups

Copyright 2001 Television Food Network, GP. All rights reserved

9/16/09 - I have recently tested this recipe; it IS good.

B-O-L-O-G-N-A =/= Baloney

Recently, while traveling to get groceries and the like, I have noticed that the "common brand" or "generic" bologna has been spelling its products name incorrectly.

Baloney =/= Bologna and never will. This is just, STUPID! Why are people not only ENCOURAGING THIS but also stating that the other (bologna) spelling is actually wrong?

That's just, annoying! I eat bologna, not "ball-oony".

One of my favorite little slices of meat gets tainted by stupid. This is not something I am amused to hear or see!

There is a very glad look on my face, however, when it turns out that they are chemically the same. Thus just making it a "merchandise puck up" on the sellers point. I just hope that people realize one is not how the thing is actually spelled and is a slang term.