« October 2019 | Main | December 2019 »
November 30, 2019
Toss another bird in the fryer, and the Jester King
We had a good Thanksgiving feast this year. We had twelve adults and four (almost adult) kids. The prep begins a week ahead of time. The turkey was a 48 hour process with 24 hours in the brine, then we injected him with duck fat and loads of red pepper.
It's been the tradition that the guys all help drop the turkey. It spits a bit of hot oil, just a bit of risk involved in this.
The turkey came out perfect this year!
The daughter was tasked with providing the strawberry rhubarb pie. Kat made a lemon cheesecake... we ended up with several sweet options to end the meal. #2 Son helped by taking photos.
The Turchetta also turned out well. This is also a multi day process. The extra effort did pay off.
Black Friday had us out at Jester King for a special release.
Goji the Japanese Chin sure enjoyed spending time with his stepmom.
Moose liked the More Dots (cassis farmhouse beer)
November 28, 2019
Happy Thanksgiving!
The week got away from me with all the hunt/gather and prep required for a big thanksgiving meal. I’ll post a proper update in a few days. It’s almost time to go fire up the turkey fryer.
November 17, 2019
The Lazarus Effect
I call this Kat's Lazarus garden. She takes the end bits of green onion and places them in a shallow bowl of water. They soon regrow to be planted in the garden. She also has some radish and leek reviving. Some farmer grows them, we buy them from the store. We eat most of them, and REgrow them to have a second life in our garden. The Sony full frame camera is back in action. We've found a solution to the DPF issue on our BMW XD diesel, AND my computer is fixed! It was the power source. Cheap and relatively simple repair thanks to my Computer Tech wife. That is a lot of renewal and second chances for one week.
First round of the Holiday Season feasting was a success.
Kat made a delicious Potato Leek Soup, I provided crispy potato floaters. I also made a load of braised lam shanks. The people were well fed last night!
We've enjoyed the cooler weather by getting good use of the fireplace.
My third big project for my 3D design class. I'm not entirely thrilled with it. My professor agreed I could've done better.
It was more of a proof of concept. The illuminated portions are wire coated with natural sausage casings. The vegetarian in my class was less than thrilled with my project.
My best discovery this week.... the Tupps TDH IPA #15 was really good, but too dry. The PHP Silky Mittens DIPA was OK, and too sweet. BUT! when the two are combined.... that's world class beer.
November 11, 2019
Mostly not so great...
My computer is still out of commission. That hampers my photoshop editing tool. I did get my Sony full frame camera back, they refurbished it for a hefty fee. I promptly listed it on ebay. The final amount was not much more than the cost of refurbishment.... I was expecting more. But the buyer never paid, so I can't be too unhappy about that. It's been a week, I guess I'll cancel the transaction and rethink my life.
My 3D Design class project was accepted to a school juried art show/competition. We all went for the opening reception.
#2 son was excited to see my desk in the Sculpture department. He used his ipad camera to see over the diffused glass.
Our beloved X5 535D is ill. We've gone so many great distances in that vehicle (several summer trips to Vermont, Maine, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island). They gave us a really nice 2019 X5 loaner. We really liked this X5 540i. It's notably quicker, more comfortable and so many fun features.
The car has it's own wifi hotspot. The kids were impressed.
We found this lovely rock of an engagement ring in our loanerX5. This was no great windfall as I promptly contacted my service advisor to return it. I was told the lady that misplaced it had been in tears. I received with many great thanks from the service department, along with a hefty estimate to repair our car.
#2 son and I accepted a last minute invitation to visit wurstfest. The weather was perfect. He enjoyed many rides with a friend while the Dads enjoyed the Paulaner Fest beers and several fun polka bands.
I think that wraps up lederhosen season for this year.
November 05, 2019
Halloween 2019, more spooky meat zombie hands
#2 son likes to take on many DIY projects, Often more than time reasonably allows. He managed to do it all, carve his own pumpkin, design and construct his own costume, and he even made caramel dipped apples.
Kat made her spooky zombie meatloaf hands, one beef and the other pork. We dressed up as The Contrast.
This is great weather for barbecue (smoked meat). I brined a chicken overnight, and smoked it (between 250-300) for four hours. It was upright with lime gose mixed with electric jellyfish ipa inside. It was good!
New local favorite beer is Gold on the Ceiling by Central District.
After years of wanting and yearning... I finally got my hands on a can of Juice Machine, It was all I had hoped for.
Mostly we have all been busy with school, work and chores. It seems like I'm rushing each day from place to place. Soon enough, the holidays will have arrived and past. I see Kat's Persimmon crop is nearly ready for harvest. That surely means something.