Small Talk: We'll Be Right Back

[Tom Holmberg]

20 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Sounds good to me. I would have tried it as long as there was no mayo in it.

Only on "special" holidays, when we had company over, did we have the lime green jello, cottage cheese, pineapple ring (with a bowl of mayo in the center) on lettuce.  This was considered high-class eating (I thought it was white-trash cooking).

 

[Bruinsfan]

I suppose I should be grateful that I had two working parents who rarely had time to get creative with those elaborate 70s recipe book horrors. Most vegetables were stewed until all the flavor and firmness had departed (I didn't know broccoli and asparagus could be good until my 20s), but the worst I had to face on a regular basis was potato salad and they were good about letting me opt out of that as long as I was eating salad, corn, and/or tomatoes.

[ams1001]

3 minutes ago, Bruinsfan said:

I suppose I should be grateful that I had two working parents who rarely had time to get creative with those elaborate 70s recipe book horrors. Most vegetables were stewed until all the flavor and firmness had departed (I didn't know broccoli and asparagus could be good until my 20s), but the worst I had to face on a regular basis was potato salad and they were good about letting me opt out of that as long as I was eating salad, corn, and/or tomatoes.

My mom makes the best potato salad. 

But I hate tomatoes.

[Tom Holmberg]

1 minute ago, Bruinsfan said:

(I didn't know broccoli and asparagus could be good until my 20s), but the worst I had to face on a regular basis was potato salad and they were good about letting me opt out of that as long as I was eating salad, corn, and/or tomatoes.

We always had canned asparagus which looks, smells and tastes like something from the sewer. I would have preferred over-cooked broccoli, ours was rock hard, except for the tops, which was all I'd eat. But potato salad was good, German and American!

1 minute ago, ams1001 said:

My mom makes the best potato salad. 

But I hate tomatoes.

To this day, I hate "tomato butts" which I always seem to get when I go to the sandwich places. I've taken to saying, "No tomato butts, please!"

[nokat]

1 hour ago, icemiser69 said:

I won't buy cheese that contains animal based rennet.

The cheese I buy does not use animal rennet. I've got a vegetarian friend who is getting me closer to vegetarian.

[Tom Holmberg]

22 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Sounds good to me. I would have tried it as long as there was no mayo in it.

As a kid I liked mayo sandwiches (bread and mayo, that's it).  Also sugar sandwiches (butter with sugar on top). But I put sugar on lettuce too.

[nokat]

49 minutes ago, Bruinsfan said:

Most vegetables were stewed until all the flavor and firmness had departed (I didn't know broccoli and asparagus could be good until my 20s)

It was the opposite for me. We had a huge garden and fresh vegetables. Then once I left home I was like why is the cauliflower grey? Why are the peas mushy?

[nokat]

36 minutes ago, Tom Holmberg said:

As a kid I liked mayo sandwiches (bread and mayo, that's it).  Also sugar sandwiches (butter with sugar on top). But I put sugar on lettuce too.

I hope you weren't food deprived. :(  My dad who went through some lean years in his youth would eat crackers and milk, like a comfort food.

Since we've been talking mayonnaise (which I like), when I have family over it has to be Miracle Whip.

[Tom Holmberg]

56 minutes ago, nokat said:

I hope you weren't food deprived. :(  My dad who went through some lean years in his youth would eat crackers and milk, like a comfort food.

Since we've been talking mayonnaise (which I like), when I have family over it has to be Miracle Whip.

No, we weren't food deprived.  More like my mother wasn't that great of a cook (her Mom died when she was 12 and she had to take care of her Dad, so she didn't learn from her mother).  When I say mayo, I really mean Miracle Whip (tho sometimes we'd have Hellman's).  I'd eat graham crackers in milk (I called it "graham cracker soup").

 

We had a lot of casseroles (the most horrifying word in the English language is "casserole"), the worst being sunkofleky (Bohemian egg fu young, as I called it).  Also we had SOS alot.

Edited August 11, 2021 by Tom Holmberg
More horrors

[EtheltoTillie]

On 8/3/2021 at 9:23 PM, susannah said:

Not for me either except in Haagen Dazs ice cream. I so like white chocolate and caramels.

There are some new Haagen Dazs flavors that have layers of chocolate candy and varied ice cream flavors like white chocolate and regular chocolate and salted caramel.  Yum. 

[EtheltoTillie]

On 8/9/2021 at 2:48 PM, peacheslatour said:

One of the best $20.00 investments I ever made was our wisteria. We have it growing over a trellis at the end of our driveway. It grows like mad and blooms three times a year. Of course, we have to prune it at least that many times a year but it's amazingly beautiful. People actually stop their cars to take pictures of it. On the other hand, one of my favorite rose bushes dropped dead this summer for reasons that I still can't seem to figure out.

I have an ancient wisteria plant that probably goes back to when the house was built in 1930s or so.  I love it, but it takes pruning every year or it would overtake the property. 

[peacheslatour]

1 hour ago, GussieK said:

I have an ancient wisteria plant that probably goes back to when the house was built in 1930s or so.  I love it, but it takes pruning every year or it would overtake the property. 

Oh yeah, the things grow like crazy. They can tear the roof right off your house but they love being pruned. We whack away on it and it rewards us by blooming again and again.

[Bastet]

2 hours ago, Tom Holmberg said:

(the most horrifying word in the English language is "casserole")

Ugh, yes.  There are a couple I make for my parents when they're recuperating and will save a serving of for myself, but generally when I see a casserole, I take a pass -- too much salty cream of something, with a bunch of stuff thrown together and cooked for too long (I like all my food minimally cooked - vegetables crisp, meat to minimum safe internal temperature, pasta al dente).

These jello concoctions make me think of ambrosia salad.  My mom makes that for herself occasionally (no one else will touch it), and my grasp of the simple fact taste is subjective goes right out the window - my mind cannot process that someone eats that glop.  It looks like it has been regurgitated, and the combination of ingredients is revolting.

[Tom Holmberg]

11 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Ugh, yes.  There are a couple I make for my parents when they're recuperating and will save a serving of for myself, but generally when I see a casserole, I take a pass -- too much salty cream of something, with a bunch of stuff thrown together and cooked for too long...

...and with potato chips on top.

[nokat]

1 hour ago, peacheslatour said:

Oh yeah, the things grow like crazy. They can tear the roof right off your house but they love being pruned. We whack away on it and it rewards us by blooming again and again.

Yes, some plants need to be heavily pruned. You also have to know when to do it.

[peacheslatour]

Just now, nokat said:

Yes, some plants need to be heavily pruned. You also have to know when to do it.

With this, we just do it when it gets to out of control.

[Browncoat]

I have to wait until the birds are finished nesting in my wisteria before I can prune it.  So no pruning at all from about May until September.

I mean, I guess I don't have to wait, but I'd rather not inadvertently render any birds homeless, and I definitely don't want to accidentally kill the babies!

[nokat]

1 minute ago, Browncoat said:

I have to wait until the birds are finished nesting in my wisteria before I can prune it.  So no pruning at all from about May until September.

I mean, I guess I don't have to wait, but I'd rather not inadvertently render any birds homeless, and I definitely don't want to accidentally kill the babies!

Definitely. We get hummingbirds in our tree. It's a delight for me every year. Watching them chase each other around in the spring and you know there's a nest. I try to not be too nosy looking for the nest. Hummingbirds get used to you puttering in your yard, and will hover in front of you.

[peacheslatour]

13 minutes ago, nokat said:

Definitely. We get hummingbirds in our tree. It's a delight for me every year. Watching them chase each other around in the spring and you know there's a nest. I try to not be too nosy looking for the nest. Hummingbirds get used to you puttering in your yard, and will hover in front of you.

Our hummers nest in our magnolia. After the blooms fall off, there are these little "cups" left behind that they build their nests in.

[Leeds]

14 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

Our hummers nest in our magnolia. After the blooms fall off, there are these little "cups" left behind that they build their nests in.

I know I shouldn't be, but I'm always astonished and thrilled by how tiny their eggs are.

[peacheslatour]

Just now, Leeds said:

I know I shouldn't be, but I'm always astonished and thrilled by how tiny their eggs are.

Me too. I love them so much. Fierce little bastards.

[susannah]

4 hours ago, GussieK said:

There are some new Haagen Dazs flavors that have layers of chocolate candy and varied ice cream flavors like white chocolate and regular chocolate and salted caramel.  Yum. 

OOH I will have to look for them! Yum!

1 hour ago, nokat said:

Definitely. We get hummingbirds in our tree. It's a delight for me every year. Watching them chase each other around in the spring and you know there's a nest. I try to not be too nosy looking for the nest. Hummingbirds get used to you puttering in your yard, and will hover in front of you.

Now  Seals and Crofts' "Hummingbird" is in my head. Luckily I like it! 😀

[EtheltoTillie]

Hummingbirds are amazing.  Whenever I see one--not too often--they seem other worldly.

In other nifty bird news, I found the beginnings of a bird's nest under my backyard umbrella.  I had been away for a while, and umbrella was closed.  They put a bunch of sticks inside above the spokes, but they didn't get too far and didn't achieve a full nest.  

 

Edited August 11, 2021 by GussieK

[ams1001]

7 hours ago, nokat said:

It was the opposite for me. We had a huge garden and fresh vegetables. Then once I left home I was like why is the cauliflower grey? Why are the peas mushy?

I will not eat canned peas. Don't often get them fresh but at least the frozen ones stay green.

5 hours ago, GussieK said:

There are some new Haagen Dazs flavors that have layers of chocolate candy and varied ice cream flavors like white chocolate and regular chocolate and salted caramel.  Yum. 

1 hour ago, susannah said:

OOH I will have to look for them! Yum!

They're called Trio. I've had the two flavors Gussiek mentioned (the white/milk chocolate is called Triple Chocolate). Yummy. Just looked at their website and there is also a coffee/vanilla and blackberry/vanilla. Will have to look for them.

I also love the Spirits collection Irish Cream Brownie.

2 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Our hummers nest in our magnolia. After the blooms fall off, there are these little "cups" left behind that they build their nests in.

Jealous. We had a magnolia in our front yard when I was growing up but I never saw hummingbirds in it.

[nokat]

16 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Jealous. We had a magnolia in our front yard when I was growing up but I never saw hummingbirds in it.

One good thing about living on the West Coast is if you're on a trail you'll hear that tiny little chirp. You look around, and there it will be. If the sun is right, oh the colors. Iridescent I think it's called.

[ams1001]

3 hours ago, nokat said:

One good thing about living on the West Coast is if you're on a trail you'll hear that tiny little chirp. You look around, and there it will be. If the sun is right, oh the colors. Iridescent I think it's called.

My mom has a hummingbird feeder on the deck. I don't see them often but there was one when I was over there a few weeks ago.

Edited August 12, 2021 by ams1001

[Prevailing Wind]

I worked for a large law firm - 100+ lawyers - and before Thanksgiving, the firm would buy the turkeys (we had a full commercial-grade kitchen in the building) and the staff would bring all the side dishes.  There was one secretary who volunteered to help with the clean up, I was friends with the firm's cook and she told me Rita the secretary was hilarious with the clean up. Rita looked at all the almost-empty bowls and turned to Sandy, the cook, and said, "Gee, look at all that canned soup..."

Whenever I make a casserole-like meal, I make my own sauce. No canned soup for me.  Mostly, I make chicken pot pie or some sort of baked mac & cheese.

[cynicat]

Bringing the discussion about expiration dates on food over here.

Some bottled water has an expiration date.  I once had one that was expired and thought, "what the fuck does this even mean?"

 

[EtheltoTillie]

18 hours ago, Tom Holmberg said:

...and with potato chips on top.

Back to casseroles:  Lasagna is a casserole technically.  I love it.  Also baked macaroni and cheese. 

[nokat]

19 hours ago, Bastet said:

but generally when I see a casserole, I take a pass -- too much salty cream of something

Yes, cream of mushroom, cream of celery, cream of chicken. A salt lick pretty much.

[ams1001]

1 hour ago, GussieK said:

Back to casseroles:  Lasagna is a casserole technically.  I love it.  Also baked macaroni and cheese. 

I was thinking about making mac & cheese yesterday and now it's been mentioned twice and I'm gonna have to do it.

Also now I want to call my local pizza place and order a lasagna (which I haven't had in over a year and a half). Maybe over the weekend.

1 minute ago, nokat said:

Yes, cream of mushroom, cream of celery, cream of chicken. A salt lick pretty much.

My mom used to make baked chicken with a cream of mushroom gravy. Haven't had that in forever. (It's the closest I ever got to eating a mushroom.)

[nokat]

Just now, ams1001 said:

I was thinking about making mac & cheese yesterday and now it's been mentioned twice and I'm gonna have to do it.

Also now I want to call my local pizza place and order a lasagna (which I haven't had in over a year and a half). Maybe over the weekend.

My mom used to make baked chicken with a cream of mushroom gravy. Haven't had that in forever. (It's the closest I ever got to eating a mushroom.)

A fond childhood memory is going out in the woods and picking morels. Then my mom would fry them in butter. So good.

I am wanting lasagna since being on the View thread.

[cinsays]

20 hours ago, Bastet said:

It looks like it has been regurgitated, and the combination of ingredients is revolting.

really?  and you judge a dish on how it looks? seems like that would exclude a lot of things

[cinsays]

On 8/11/2021 at 10:04 AM, Tom Holmberg said:

We always had canned asparagus which looks, smells and tastes like something from the sewer. I would have preferred over-cooked broccoli, ours was rock hard, except for the tops, which was all I'd eat. But potato salad was good, German and American!

 

my mother would make creamed asparagus on toast for lunch sometimes and I loved it.  not sure if the asparagus was canned or fresh, probably canned, but i have no idea.

[chessiegal]

3 hours ago, cynicat said:

Some bottled water has an expiration date.  I once had one that was expired and thought, "what the fuck does this even mean?"

 

It's because the plastic bottles start to break down and polymers can leach into the water. I learned this after 9/11 when federal workplaces were given shelter-in-place orders that said water and long shelf life food items should be stocked in case workers had to stay for extended periods.

[peacheslatour]

1 hour ago, cinsays said:

my mother would make creamed asparagus on toast for lunch sometimes and I loved it.  not sure if the asparagus was canned or fresh, probably canned, but i have no idea.

My favorite dish to make with asparagus is to take an English muffin, split it, toast it and butter it. Then I top it with steamed asparagus, fresh Dungeness crab and smother it in home made Hollandaise. 

[EtheltoTillie]

Mmmm.  Now I need to have mac and cheese and Eggs Benedict.

[Leeds]

 

On 8/11/2021 at 7:04 AM, Tom Holmberg said:

 

To this day, I hate "tomato butts" which I always seem to get when I go to the sandwich places. I've taken to saying, "No tomato butts, please!"

What the hell is a tomato butt?

19 hours ago, ams1001 said:

I will not eat canned peas. Don't often get them fresh but at least the frozen ones stay green.

 

Canned peas are an abomination.

[Tom Holmberg]

9 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

I assume the tomato butt is the stem end of the tomato. 

You are right.  They kind of disgust me.  I either specifically ask for no tomato butts or don't look too closely.

3 hours ago, cinsays said:

my mother would make creamed asparagus on toast for lunch sometimes and I loved it.  not sure if the asparagus was canned or fresh, probably canned, but i have no idea.

If it wasn't olive drab in color then it wasn't canned.

[Tom Holmberg]

5 hours ago, GussieK said:

Back to casseroles:  Lasagna is a casserole technically.  I love it.  Also baked macaroni and cheese. 

I don't really think of either of those as casseroles, but I guess technically it is (though it lacks creamed soup and potato chips).

[Prevailing Wind]

4 hours ago, cinsays said:

really?  and you judge a dish on how it looks? seems like that would exclude a lot of things

Presentation is everything. The eyes are the key to your appetite.

[nokat]

11 minutes ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Presentation is everything. The eyes are the key to your appetite.

This is so true. Chefs put a lot of effort into presentation. You have that beautiful plate brought to you, you eat with your eyes first.

 

[madmax]

Mr. Max was brought up on canned peas, which he lovingly refers to as "mushy peas."  He won't eat fresh peas.  

I love fresh beans right from the vine.  We grew them when we had a large garden, but now that we're down to a much smaller one, I don't.  

I don't consider lasagna a casserole, but I can see how some do.  A casserole to me is something you throw together in a few minutes with a canned soup, a cooked meat (or not, if vegetarian) and some veggies and it's done in a half hour.  My lasagna takes hours to make and 45 minutes to cook.  That ain't no casserole.

[Tom Holmberg]

7 hours ago, GussieK said:

Back to casseroles:  Lasagna is a casserole technically.  I love it.  Also baked macaroni and cheese. 

I don't think mac & cheese from a box (the kind we had) in any way qualifies as a casserole.

[peacheslatour]

54 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

I am grossed out by it as well.  It is just flat out laziness when that part of the tomato isn't cut away.

More likely it's stinginess. They're trying to squeeze every bit of profit they can out of the produce they buy. You don't see that in the better restaurants. It's a cut throat business.

[Tom Holmberg]

On 8/10/2021 at 11:09 AM, peacheslatour said:

Sounds good to me. I would have tried it as long as there was no mayo in it.

I know a lot of people don't like mayo, but one of my favorite things is elotes (which a lot of people think might not be good, but it is).

[susannah]

8 hours ago, nokat said:

Yes, cream of mushroom, cream of celery, cream of chicken. A salt lick pretty much.

I am not a fan of mixed together food, so I pass on casseroles. But I agree. The sodium levels in canned soups is through the roof.

[susannah]

4 hours ago, icemiser69 said:

I assume the tomato butt is the stem end of the tomato.  I have bought sandwiches before where that stem area hasn't been cut out of the tomato, as it should be with all purchased sandwiches.  That end of the tomato looks like a cat's butt.   Not that I have been staring at a lot of cats' butts.

I agree that the stem end and core should be cut out of the tomato in purchased sandwiches, and I always do at home. Though not because it looks like the hind end of a cat, which never occurred to me, but because I don't want to eat that tough part.

[Prevailing Wind]

4 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

More likely it's stinginess. They're trying to squeeze every bit of profit they can out of the produce they buy. You don't see that in the better restaurants. It's a cut throat business.

I read once about "egg hips" - the writer had noticed (and this tells you how old this story is...) that all the sliced eggs in his airline salad looked like they were "center cuts" - there were no "hips" of hard boiled eggs.  He researched and discovered they aren't eggs cooked in their shells - somehow whites of a bunch of eggs & their yolks are combined separately and then cooked in a tube, so that all the slices will look like they were cut from the center of the egg.

[Bruinsfan]

18 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

More likely it's stinginess. They're trying to squeeze every bit of profit they can out of the produce they buy. You don't see that in the better restaurants. It's a cut throat business.

I'd be fine with them just cutting the largely inedible plug out and getting a donut-shaped slice or two on my sandwich. That's what I do at home to minimize waste. But that would take what, a couple of extra seconds per tomato?

Edited August 13, 2021 by Bruinsfan