Silversea Water Cooler: Welcome! Part Five

[UKCruiseJeff]

32 minutes ago, Will Work for Tiramisu said:

What do you do when presented with bumper crops of tomatoes, chilies, onions, etc, and you're on west coast US?  You make fresh salsa!  Everything from the garden, except the lime.  We actually have a lime tree, but used up the last of the crop in a G&T.  The albacore are running off the coast this time of year, so tonight will grill a nice tuna loin, make some fresh tortillas from some wonderful locally made masa my daughter gifted me, and do fish tacos.  I'd like to say I will go harvest something from the guacamole tree, but sadly they don't grow here.  

 

I chopped a lovely little red onion the size of a golf ball by hand, then drenched with lime juice to take the bite off.  I boil the tomatoes for a minute, so the skins pull off, stem & deseed the chilies, wash the cilantro, then chop all that in the little mini-Cuisinart, then add to the onions, a little salt & pepper & voila!  No garlic.  Used it last night on a chicken curry & rice, like a chutney.  It is better the second day, as the flavors bloom a bit.  

 

You should be extremely proud of yourself.  🙂  That piccy is of cookbook quality.  Put’s mine to shame!

 

Looking forward to piccies of tonights home-made fish tacos! 

 

Jeff

 

 

[mysty]

50 minutes ago, Will Work for Tiramisu said:

What do you do when presented with bumper crops of tomatoes, chilies, onions, etc, and you're on west coast US?  You make fresh salsa!  Everything from the garden, except the lime.  We actually have a lime tree, but used up the last of the crop in a G&T.  The albacore are running off the coast this time of year, so tonight will grill a nice tuna loin, make some fresh tortillas from some wonderful locally made masa my daughter gifted me, and do fish tacos.  I'd like to say I will go harvest something from the guacamole tree, but sadly they don't grow here.  

 

I chopped a lovely little red onion the size of a golf ball by hand, then drenched with lime juice to take the bite off.  I boil the tomatoes for a minute, so the skins pull off, stem & deseed the chilies, wash the cilantro, then chop all that in the little mini-Cuisinart, then add to the onions, a little salt & pepper & voila!  No garlic.  Used it last night on a chicken curry & rice, like a chutney.  It is better the second day, as the flavors bloom a bit.  

 

That looks spectacularly delicious!  The enticing aromas can be enjoyed from here! 😁

[bissel]

What terrific topics you all are full of today; schmatte shops, table linens, recipes, and beautiful photographs. So enjoyable to read about and thanks to you!

There is a shop In Tennessee that creates mostly paper table settings and they really dress up a table that lifts your spirits. It’s called Hester and Cook and I like to send my loved ones too.

Thank you all for lovely morning reading. (Morning here). 🙏

 

 

 

[UKCruiseJeff]

Just now, bissel said:

What terrific topics you all are full of today; schmatte shops, table linens, recipes, and beautiful photographs. So enjoyable to read about and thanks to you!

There is a shop In Tennessee that creates mostly paper table settings and they really dress up a table that lifts your spirits. It’s called Hester and Cook and I like to send my loved ones too.

Thank you all for lovely morning reading. (Morning here). 🙏

 

 

 

 

What a lovely post.  

 

It made me smile.  Thanks.

 

🙂

 

Jeff  

[mysty]

Here is what an Empress martini looks like.....

 

 

 

[lincslady]

Well, purple is a royal colour,  isn't it.  Mysty, please try a Negroni sometime, just for me.  The great thing is that, made according to the recipe, they are not sweet.  Campari is,  to me,  a lovely flavoured sllghtly bitter drink, and a pretty  colour.  Campari and soda is the King's favourite tipple, although I am not sure if that is a recommendation.  I like it boozed up a bit with the gin.  Oh, and it should be served in a straight sided short tumbler. Can't  remember the proper name.

 

 

 

[mysty]

1 minute ago, lincslady said:

Well, purple is a royal colour,  isn't it.  Mysty, please try a Negroni sometime, just for me.  The great thing is that, made according to the recipe, they are not sweet.  Campari is,  to me,  a lovely flavoured sllghtly bitter drink, and a pretty  colour.  Campari and soda is the King's favourite tipple, although I am not sure if that is a recommendation.  I like it boozed up a bit with the gin.  Oh, and it should be served in a straight sided short tumbler. Can't  remember the proper name.

 

 

 

 

Thank you @lincslady !  I will definitely try one in your name!  I will report back!  🥰

[DavyWavey70]

2 hours ago, lincslady said:

 Oh, and it should be served in a straight sided short tumbler. Can't  remember the proper name.

 

An Old Fashioned glass Lola. Negronis are the work of the Devil. I Make a Ginger Negroni using the Kings Ginger for anyone wanting something a bit different. 

[UKCruiseJeff]

Good Evening Coolers,

 

Pleasant warm evening on the balcony.

 

Jeff

 

 

[Will Work for Tiramisu]

OK, UK - as requested, here are some photos.  Tortillas are made with blue corn masa; after mixing and kneading a bit, I use a plastic bag cut open, so can lay on the tortilla press, which makes it easy to remove, and lay on the flat grill, that goes over the gas burners.  Tuna was grilled on the outdoor gas grille - you don't have to do anything to it - it is just tasty as can be, neat. Chopped up some romaine, had the salsa from last night, and did some beans with garlic, onion, peppers, cumin & chili powder.  

 

As it turns out, neighbors had a guacamole tree, from which we harvested, per photo.  Lastly, it was bread day, so three baguettes were had.  Regarding the neighbor's guacamole tree, I'm reminded of a song from the Depression, "Morning Blues":

"Nickel's worth of grease and a dime's worth of lard,

Would buy more, but the times so hard.

Ain't no need for me to work so hard, 

I can live off the chickens in the neighbor's yard."  

[lincslady]

Were you a professional baker?  Surely.

 

Just to close the Negroni chat for a while, they are actually weaker than a martini, in that two thirds of the makeup are only 25 and 15 proof.  The odd thing is they make me feel 'happier' than a martini. 

 

The weather here in the east of England is just gorgeous - probably only for a few days, so this is summer.

[MissSophia]

Hello Coolers!

Weekend fun 😊

 

Wonder how many kids use a library these days!

Edited August 17 by MissSophia
To add

[UKCruiseJeff]

4 hours ago, Will Work for Tiramisu said:

OK, UK - as requested, here are some photos.  Tortillas are made with blue corn masa; after mixing and kneading a bit, I use a plastic bag cut open, so can lay on the tortilla press, which makes it easy to remove, and lay on the flat grill, that goes over the gas burners.  Tuna was grilled on the outdoor gas grille - you don't have to do anything to it - it is just tasty as can be, neat. Chopped up some romaine, had the salsa from last night, and did some beans with garlic, onion, peppers, cumin & chili powder.  

 

As it turns out, neighbors had a guacamole tree, from which we harvested, per photo.  Lastly, it was bread day, so three baguettes were had.  Regarding the neighbor's guacamole tree, I'm reminded of a song from the Depression, "Morning Blues":

"Nickel's worth of grease and a dime's worth of lard,

Would buy more, but the times so hard.

Ain't no need for me to work so hard, 

I can live off the chickens in the neighbor's yard."  

 

Good Morning  ….. great work.   I so enjoyed the piccies … thanks.

 

Jeff

[mysty]

Greetings Coolers!

 

Today's funny.....

 

 

 

[UKCruiseJeff]

Good Afternoon  Coolers  ……from the balcony@seaside ….

 

Today’s harvest mouse 🙂

 

Jeff

 

 

 

Edited August 17 by UKCruiseJeff

[MissSophia]

2 hours ago, UKCruiseJeff said:

Good Afternoon  Coolers  ……from the balcony@seaside ….

 

Today’s harvest mouse 🙂

 

Jeff

 

 

 

They look oh so cute….until you find a little beggar running around ones kitchen which happened quite often when l lived up in Yorkieland 🙈

[Tothesunset]

Yesterday we were in Swansea, South Wales at our nephew's wedding celebration. It didn't rain and wasn't windy! 

 

Stayed overnight at a place called Gileston Manor in what turned out to de quite a funky redevelopment of a 16th century manor house. 

 

We had the Highland Room (in Wales? I know!) and it was really rather nice. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DavyWavey70]

13 minutes ago, Tothesunset said:

Yesterday we were in Swansea, South Wales at our nephew's wedding celebration. It didn't rain and wasn't windy! 

 

Stayed overnight at a place called Gileston Manor in what turned out to de quite a funky redevelopment of a 16th century manor house. 

 

We had the Highland Room (in Wales? I know!) and it was really rather nice. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looks lovely TTS. That is a Welsh Tartan on the walls and the Welsh Highlands are the area around the Snowdonia National Park. The Welsh Highland railway is a beautiful day out. 

[Host Hattie]

Sorry to gate crash the Cooler but I live quite close to Gileston Manor so I was interested to see your photographs. 

It's not that handy for Swansea though !

[Lois R]

Hi Hattie, no need to be sorry about anything.😀....you are more than welcome on here,

[DavyWavey70]

20 minutes ago, Host Hattie said:

Sorry to gate crash the Cooler but I live quite close to Gileston Manor so I was interested to see your photographs. 

It's not that handy for Swansea though !

Hi Hattie, you’re not gate crashing, all are welcome here. And a big wave from North Wales. 

[jpalbny]

52 minutes ago, DavyWavey70 said:

Snowdonia National Park.

 

A beautiful area, from what I've "seen" (we did a virtual series of hikes on our iFit treadmill). It's on the list for an in-person visit.

[UKCruiseJeff]

49 minutes ago, Host Hattie said:

Sorry to gate crash the Cooler but I live quite close to Gileston Manor so I was interested to see your photographs. 

It's not that handy for Swansea though !

 

Visitors from The Valleys are particularly welcomed.  

 

🙂

 

Jeff

[mysty]

Ian Carswell (Chef/Owner of Black Tartan Kitchen) shared a recipe for his pot roast.  Myster made it a few times and we really enjoyed it.  Here it is for those who are interested.....

 

Ian Carswell's Pot Roast:
Ingredients:

2 Tbs of canola oil
½ lb bacon, diced
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 parsnips, peeled and chopped
½ lb mushrooms, sliced or quartered
1 cup dry red wine 
1 litre beef stock, enough to cover three quarters of the roast
¼ bunch thyme
1 sprig rosemary
1 bay leaf
Butter (optional)
Kosher salt & pepper
65 grams (or just shy of ½ cup) flour

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 275F.

Season the roast all over, quite liberally with Kosher salt and cracked pepper. Heat two tablespoons of canola oil on high in a Dutch oven or deep pot. When the oil is so hot it just about begins to smoke, sear the beef on all sides, turning only when each side is golden brown.

Remove beef from pan and set aside.

Lower heat to medium and add bacon, onion and mushrooms. Cook until slightly caramelized.

 

Add carrots, parsnip and garlic and sweat for a few minutes.

Add 1 cup wine to de-glaze the caramelized bits on the bottom (best done with a wooden spoon). 

Simmer briefly, until wine has reduced by about half. Add the beef roast and pour in enough beef stock (ideally homemade) until the roast is about three quarters covered. 

Tie the thyme and rosemary together with butcher's twine and add to the broth with the bay leaf.

Bring the mixture to a light simmer, cover and put in the oven.

Cook for at least three hours and begin checking every 30 minutes thereafter. Roast is done when a fork can easily shred the meat when pierced and gently twisted.

For the gravy: 

Remove pot from the oven when the roast is done and let sit for at least 15 minutes. Remove the roast from the pot and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

With a ladle, gently skim the top layer of oil from the braising liquid and reserve.

Strain and measure the amount of braising liquid (broth) left in the pot. For every liter of broth, you will need 65 grams of flour, 65 grams of the reserved oil and an ounce or two of whisky or red wine.

If there isn't a lot of reserved oil, make up the difference in weight with butter.

Add 65 grams of this reserved oil (and/or butter) to a saucepan over medium heat and add 65 grams of flour.

Combine until a paste (roux) is formed and cook until it begins to bubble slightly. 

Deglaze with a splash of whisky or red wine.

Gently whisk in the liter of broth, bring to a simmer and continue to whisk until thickened. 

Season with salt and pepper.
Enjoy! 

 

Note:  for flour measure 65 g = 4.154842108923 fl oz

           for fluid measure 65 g = 2.497626676841 fl oz

 

 

[Tothesunset]

1 hour ago, Host Hattie said:

Sorry to gate crash the Cooler but I live quite close to Gileston Manor so I was interested to see your photographs. 

It's not that handy for Swansea though !

It took us about an hour from Mumbles and therefore an hour nearer home today allowing us to pick the dogs up from their kennels an hour earlier. 

 

We lived in St Athan for a couple of years and think the coast between Barry and Bridgend is outstanding. Don't like Swansea, though, or Port Talbot (can't imagine why not) but love Cardiff and, as a motorcyclist, love the valleys and Brecons.