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Quick, easy and cheap. †Probably not good for you, but here is: Scavenger Hunt Lo Mein 1 package Top Ramen (beef or pork works best), 1/2 to 1 cup frozen Peas and Carrots two table spoons of cooking oil (olive preferable) one slice of lunchmeat (ham preferable) (optional) 1 egg In a small pot heat up the peas and carrots, when they are basically thawed put them in a bowl. †Dice up the meat into little pieces and toss it in with the veggies. Boil the ramen and drain off the water. †After draining the water add the soup spice package and stir up the noodles. †(For maximum efficiency use the same pot you heated the veggies in) In a sauce pan of sufficient size heat the oil for three minutes or so, no more than five. †The heat setting should be between low and medium heat and mix the stuff in the bowl with the noodles. †Put the noodles and stuff in the oil and mix gently for three to five minutes and it will be Lo Mein. You can add other stuff, if you whip the egg and cook it up omelette style, then dice it you can add it with the stuff in the bowl to the noodles. †I like to throw in some finely diced bell peppers. †The more stuff you add the less Peas and Carrots you need. You get about two adult servings. †Helps if you have something to go with it. †Eggrolls in the oven is a favorite of mine. †But, in keeping with the scavenger hunt whatever you find is fair game. †This has worked well for me on the no one wants to cook and no one wants to go out nights where we fend for ourselves. †Usually takes less than thirty minutes to make. It's not pretty, but it usually tastes good. † † † † † † † † † † † † † † † † † † :O

So hey, I've known you guys for years. Kinda dropped off when we had kids, but I think everyone here is pretty level headed and only a handful know me IRL. This is rambling, and long. The whole mess is this. I am obsessed with Japan. Literally obsessed. I had a wonderful two week trip with my wife there. Before that I spent a few months learning Japanese so that reading the signs, knowing kinda the gist of what people were saying, etc, was somewhat possible. My interest actually started around back when I was teen, around bonsai and arts and craft, and the influence Japanese design had on it. The language is brutal. I want to know more. The culture is fascinating. The food in general delicious. The food? Eatting it, cooking, drinking green tea and matcha saved my guts. I shed 20 lbs, kept it off, my digestion improved. My IBS improved, my sibo went away. The wife had a blast, and she's like "You know, if an American firm gave you enough money to work there, I would be for it". She's in love with the quilt books and fabric stores. A Japanese bookstores is like US bookstores in their heyday. They're stocked and wonderful. The craft stores have everything you could need. Our only concern would be navigating the possibly brutal Japanese education system, or finding a expensive foreign school for our kids. So here I am making good money as a software dev. But I'm kinda of tired, doing basically glorious rest apis to backend datastores. I tried my hand at a Japanese joint for carpentry and didn't 100% flub it up. And it was enjoyable. I helped my parents prune some trees, chop up wood, and the immediacy of the feedback was refreshing. I told them "Man, I hate mowing but I could do this all day". And when I learned of temple carpentry and saw what they did, it stirred something deep inside. Like maybe I missed my calling, but it just could be my late midlife crisis. My parents are loving, and good. But sometimes I feel I am needled more for my interests than my sister. I don't need to have jokes, no matter how good natured, made about every project I want to do. Like yes, I am weird, and odd, and I have been for 40 years, I don't need to hear it again. You all enjoy my cooking, so kinda cut me some slack when I want to build a hibachi or irori, and try my hand at some really old school robotayaki/yakitori. No one looks at you too weird if you're a fan of french cuisine and buy french wine and cheese, and maybe visited Paris. But start talking about buying your own block of dried aged smoked bonito, and a proper plane to shave it with, and they look at you funny. It's been ten months since the trip. I still have dreams about it. I think the covid isolation is making it worse. Because of the commute, and now covid, I really don't have anyone to talk to. There is a Japanese Culture center just up the road, with the local university, and a Japanese Language group. But basically, its entire focus is around their yearly anime convention. So I don't have any cooking/culture outlet there. Why not call it an anime club? Don't be misleading. The Culture center doesn't seem to have many programs beyond being festooned with a garden and supporting the Japanese language program. Oh well, they do offer language classes, and since we will be working from home for the foreseeable future, maybe I should sign up. I don't know what I am looking for. Just venting more than anything. I keep saying I don't want to feel bad for enjoying the things I like, but I still do. Why does everything need a comment? "Oh, you could go into special FX" said during the last dot bomb by my mom. "Well, I had an interest in that kind of stuff, but you didn't like me drawing monsters, or telling me what I liked wasn't true art." I know some of it she probably got from her dad about her interests, but sheesh.

So, as mentioned in the Getting to know you thread I'm starting this off. I am a big fan of easy ingredient/quick to make food. Since I live alone I don't have to please anyone but myself. I eat a lot of rice and veggies. I also love doctoring up cheap Ramen. One of my favorite additives is pickled cabbage. For starters I will share one of my favorite quick recipes. Tuna Casserole: 1x Can of Condensed Cream of Soup (I prefer Mushroom or Celery) 1x Box of Macaroni and Cheese Dinner (Kraft Dinner, Velveta Shells and Cheese, whatever you prefer) 1x Can of Tuna Prepare the Mac n' Cheese as per directions. Mix in the tuna and soup (no water). Add in seasoning to taste.

Got a few gifts for the gals in the office ... got me thinking about food (I let them pick the gift subject) ... thought I'd let you all have a snek peek ... and I'll throw in a few extras ... Funny how food has hardly changed at all ... or has it ???

I mentioned this in Randomness a few days ago, but people should be aware of this. There is a massive recall of frozen vegetables ongoing in the US at the moment. Listeria contamination is suspected in frozen organic and regular vegetables processed by CRF Foods in Pasco, Washington. They supply vegetables and ingredients under a large number of brands to many retailers, including Trader Joe's, CostCo, Krogers, and Publix Supermarkets. The recall is not just vegetables, but dishes like stir fries, frozen entrees and salads made with those vegetables. Several lists of some of the products affected are here: http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm499406.htm?source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm499568.htm?source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm499623.htm?source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm499858.htm?source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm499852.htm?source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery

http://www.hodderscape.co.uk/11-majestic-handmade-dune-sandworms/ I just noticed the second one is actually a worm sign. Augh.

http://makezine.com/2015/12/04/make-this-awesome-dune-inspired-sandworm-bread/ "It's Shai Hullicious!" (No, seriously, that's a quote from the page.)

Feel free to add your own recipes to the collection. *coughMiss Melons Sour Cream Cakecough* This one was asked for by PcktLnt: No pies here. Just cranberry relish. To put on everything. Put it on the turkey. Put it on the Thanksgiving Sandwiches. Put it on the vanilla ice cream. Put it on a spoon and straight in my belly... (Put the recipe on the forums if anyone asks for it...) Asks for it. Please. ^__^ Old family recipe handed down through generations of BH&G cookbooks: Prep: 15 minutes, Chill: 2 hrs Makes: 2.5 cups 3/4 cup apple or orange juice (I use orange juice) 1/2 to 2/3 cup sugar (I use 1/2 cup Stevia In The Raw; SWMBO's diabetic) 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg dash ground cloves (go lightly here) 1 12-oz pkg (3 cups) fresh cranberries 1/2 cup golden raisins 1/2 cup chopped pecans (I substitute chopped walnuts) In medium saucepan, combine juice, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Stir over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Add cranberries and raisins. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Stir for 3-4 minutes or until cranberries pop. Remove from heat. Stir in nuts. Cover and chill at least 2 hours before serving.

I think it was Reaper Bryan who posted about Kit's family making the news with their homemade treats used as a fundraiser. My forum search fu is weak. Does anyone have the link? I was going to try to order some for pickup durng Reapercon... Thanks!

MmmmMm, that sounds delish! I've been thinking of trying out various stews and such in my slow cooker this coming winter. I'd probably switch out the jalapeno peppers for regular bell peppers and some mushrooms, though. Can you post the whole recipe? Sure, but in an effort to stay marginally on track I'll fire it over on the Off-topic section : ) Hai, everybody! As requested, here's my recipe for my infamous "Three Flesh Chili". Might as well get some other contenders in here : ) Post 'em if you've got 'em! Chili Con Carne - adapted from Alton Brown's Pressure Cooker Chili recipe Serves 6 - 8 Ingredients 500 g diced wild goat (lamb otherwise if you can't source) 500 g diced venison (beef as above) 500 g diced wild pork (if you can get it, pork otherwise) 2 600 ml or similar bottles of ale - not dark, just middle-of-the-road. Use a good microbrewery option if you have a favorite and can afford to cook with it. I use Emersons 1812. 1 375ish g bottle of salsa 1 tbs tomato paste 1 tbs cider vinegar 1 tbs chili powder 2 chopped chipolte peppers (could add 3, but this is a fairly mild chili) 1 tsp ground cumin 3 large handfuls of plain corn chips, unsalted if you can get them Optional: Liquid smoke, for instant BBQ flavor. Small quantity of bourbon or cognac to provide a little complexity to the flavor. Preperation Season the meat with salt & oil (go light on the salt, as the corn chips are going to provide a good deal of it anyways). Remove the seeds from the pepper, and chop into thin strips. Crush the corn chips into small fragments. Method Grab a large cast iron or enamelled dutch oven / casserole dish with a tight fitting lid. Brown off the meat in batches in the vessel over high heat - you don't want to crowd the bottom, so work in small batches. Once browned, remove the meat and place a slow cooker preheated to 'High' Next, we need to get the nice tasty cruft off the bottom of the cooking vessel. This is where we use the beer to dissolve it - it's called deglazing, and the cruft is called fond, for the non-foodies out there. Remove the vessel from the heat, pour one bottle + 1 imperial glug of the other bottle into it, and scrape the bottom of the vessel with a wooden spoon to get all the tasty stuff off there and into the liquid. If you're adding bourbon or cognac, deglaze with that before adding the beer. Once that's done, add the other ingredients - the salsa, vinegar, tomato paste, chili powder, the chopped peppers, the cumin and the crushed corn chips, move back onto the heat, and bring to a boil. Add the Liquid Smoke to taste if you want to use it: I usually go with about a capful. Oh, and finish off the 2nd bottle of beer by drinking it - that's why we used the imperial glug, rather than the metric, after all : ). Once at a boil, remove from the heat and pour carefully into the slow cooker over the meat. OK, once that's done, stir the meat so the sauce gets all around it, slap on the lid, and wait for the chili to start simmering. Once it's up there, turn the heat down to 'Low'. Cook for 6 to 12 hours depending on taste (personally, I've never managed to last longer than about 5 before giving in and starting to eat). Stir every 30 minutes or so if possible to prevent burning. The result will be a superb gestalt of smoky flavors and heat. It's not overly hot - it won't make you break out into a sweat or anything, but it'll be delicious. If you wanted to kick up the heat a bit, you could add more peppers to taste or grind in some cayenne pepper, but personally I think that destroys the taste of the dish. This freezes very well indeed. I've usually got 5-6 meals of it tucked away for when I'm feeling lazy. Eat with fresh bread, or corn chips, or just as a bowl of stew with nothing else to distract you. In reference to the changes above by Gentle Giant: bell peppers would be fine, and would knock down the heat a few notches. If you can get them, get smoked bell peppers for the flavor, but fresh would be fine. Mushrooms would disintergrate with the cooking time we're talking about. Add them to the slow cooker about an hour or so before you pull it out.