thistle

Bettyjoan asked us at the picnic what was the best dish we ever tasted, & I thought about a fish stew I had years ago. I was working at a convenience store on Topsail Beach, they were just developing it,( which meant stacking trailers together & calling them condos). The construction guys cooked a puppy drum fish stew out on the beach, on an open fire. They brought me some in, & it was simple- fish, water, onions, potatoes, minimal seasoning- but it was definitely the best thing I've ever eaten, probably because the fish was SO fresh.

What quantity do you eat this stuff?

Because you haven't had a frat boy throwdown for awhile:

Come on, post something else, I don't want it to be guys in khakis.

I like my tamarind wood cutting board. It's round because it's from the inside of a tree. You can find them around here at Vietnamese and Thai markets for under $20.

I have one of these, too, & a couple of bamboo boards (one is shaped like a surfboard), & a couple of random exotic wood boards that you can pick up at TJMaxx or HomeGoods. & if I'm not cutting fruits or veg, I top them w/ the cheapo plastic sheets, I'm paranoid about cross contamination.

No, you should really try the pumpkin body butter (not edible)- it smells amazing! I mailed mine off to a friend who doesn't have a TJ nearby, now I need to go back & get more for me.

Little one came home today craving pad see-eaw, so I added an order of larb gai from our local Thai restaurant, Thai Nakorn. I haven't asked E how her noodles are ("amazing"-unprompted), but my larb is super spicy, just the way I like it. She's laughing at me, because I keep making hot food noises.

LPerry, I am going to miss my Sungolds, I'm amazed at how much those plants produced, in spite of almost total neglect, I think I probably picked the last 4 yesterday.

I did an old school hot pepper vinegar, by pouring warmed apple cider vinegar over whole, ripe Thai chile peppers. How long do you think you'll let yours ferment before you start tasting it?

I also have a board that will probably outlast me-http://theboardsmith.com , but I still don't like to cut meat directly on it, I put a thin plastic sheet on top. I bought it quite a few years ago, they're pretty pricey now, but worth it.

An easy on the stomach dish for my daughter, who has a cold- jasmine rice, stir fried chicken (marinated w/ dark soy, fish sauce, sesame oil, sweet chili sauce) & scallions, mushrooms, bok choy. Leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

Wow, going back through this thread has given me a complex.  Such disdain for the name Liz.  I can tell you that I am called Liz b/c it beats the shit out of primarily being called Lizard for the first 17 years of my life, which is the name my loving 5 older siblings christened me with.  Although in the 4th grade I tried to be Beth.  Got a tshirt in Myrtle Beach with the ironed on letters that said Beth and everything.  But it didn't stick.

I feel for you- I call my beloved daughter 'Lizard breath' -I hope she doesn't harm me, I say it w/ affection.

The pumpkin spice coffee smells amazing, & it was only after I made it, that I realized I didn't have any fresh milk. It was still pretty good w/ a coconut milk ice cube. I'll use the leftovers in a protein shake.

Ok, you just need to post after you drink them, & we definitely think of you as a scientist who is doing this for all of us-you're not pre-diabetic, are you? A good milkshake is a good thing, & a bit of alcohol won't hurt you. Maybe you should have a party, & spread the milkshakes/love out...

I hear you-I don't want to think about it, but if my college age son was drinking this stuff, I'd understand- this is what I drank, when I was his age- tasty stuff! & he's an athlete, so he'll burn it off. It's horrible to get old, & have to think about sugar & calories & how to burn off the stuff you drink, but I agree about how these drinks lend themselves to experimentation & creativity.

I keep asking my son, who is a student at GMU, if he is taking a class w/ Tyler Cowen (although I'm sure he teaches grad students). I've followed his blog, & eventually, if my son makes it into one of his classes, they may have stuff to talk about, thanks to DR.com- he (my son, Tom) grew up going to DR picnics, hitting all the local restaurants- Tom came home today & picked up some frozen pulled pork, & went over to Ft. Belvoir's Oktoberfest, so he could get some German sausage & potato salad.

Lizzy picked up the refrigerated beef bolognese ravioli- we will see what the verdict is.

Ok, I'll weigh on on this- I like alcohol & I like the occasional sweet treat, but to combine them together- it's pretty much a 1x/ yr thing, unless you're young (sort of a frat boy drink, the only ones who can recover from this). But f I were concocting one- coffee ice cream, rum or vodka, crushed ice, cinnamon, ginger syrup. One would be sufficient & a good dessert.

I had the same response the other day when a friend suggested hot cider w/ salted caramel apple vodka- it might be ok, but just a hair too much, & it would be wretched.

Thanks for reminding me I haven't been to TJs in a couple of months, & I need triple ginger cookies, feta dressing, random salsas, TJ hefeweizen, & probably lots of other stuff.

I had to reference this, because it's exactly what I picked up today, plus pumpkin spice coffee & pumpkin body butter (the pumpkin body butter smells so awesome, it makes me want to chew on my arm).

We're doing the 'random' grocery store runs, tomorrow we're going to Aldi & maybe Bestway.

Went to Whole Foods today, got my coconut aminos, & a bunch of random stuff-lots of juices for E (she's into smoothies), product (that's what we call all the 'beauty' stuff she acquires)- lip balm, lotion, conditioner, perfume, grapeseed oil (then I found it at TJ's, too), some boxed soups (?) & random frozen stuff, & my favorite, giant bottles of Cholula hot sauce. Maybe if I shopped here more regularly, I could ferret out the special stuff, but we're good going quarterly. When my husband was doing a 'cleanse' & traveling, he said being across the street from a WF saved him, he ate all kinds of stuff from the salad & prepped food bar.

Desserts & sweets are about the only thing I can resist, but obscure condiments/ingredients? Like the 9 types of gluten free flour in my freezer or enough canned adobo chiles or dried chiles to flatten a football team? I'm there. I think I have fenugreek in my spice cabinet- I have NEVER used fenugreek- I purchased some asofoetida for something years ago & left it in my car overnight & almost had to dump the car.

I almost never go to WF because it is farther away than most of my excellent shopping choices (commissary, Costco, TJ, & Bestway) but I'm out of coconut aminos-any suggestions for stuff to get there, that you can't get anywhere else?

Pulled pork & slaw, again (I froze the rest for my son & his roommates).

Inspired by Pat's dandelion green salad, I sampled some out in the yard today- now I know why we eat spring greens instead of old ones, it was intensely bitter.

The last of the fresh pineapple, drizzled w/ ginger syrup.

I have green beans I need to cook, but I wasn't inspired, despite everyone else's yummy green beans-tomorrow is another day.

I know, it's a weird hybrid pale slow cooker sort of Thai dish, but if you added more chilis & fish sauce, it might taste good. Chicken thighs are yummy, & I love my Paderno spiralizer.

No, jeez, you guys don't want to see the dregs that are my meals nowadays. Ok, the pork that I smoked for the picnic was possibly the best pork I've ever smoked, but aside from that, I've got nothing....

Here's my addition. Shoot me now, because I don't really like pad Thai (larb Is my favorite), so I don't have a problem w/ unorthodox ingredients. Now, if I could just quit soy...

I'm thinking about this again (if I can just give up soy, beans, & random sugar), & I found a lot of recipes I'd like to try on popularpaleo.com (& also adaptations for auto immune diets, on aiplifestyle.com). My sister has been primal, not strict paleo for about 2 years now, & it's working for her.